Prague, 12 July 2023 - On 12 July 2013, the world lost Professor Amar Bose, who brought a whole new perspective to the world of audio engineering in the 1960s. It was then that he applied his insights from psychoacoustics (the science that deals with human perception of sound) and created his own concept of the Bose 901 loudspeaker with a completely unprecedented design that opened a chapter for the world-famous Bose brand. This legendary audio system, designed to be installed in the corner of a room, is still a symbol of innovation in reproduction today. But that was just the beginning.

  Who was Amar Bose and how the Bose brand was born

His first name suggests that Bose was not a "pure" American. However, he was born in Philadelphia in 1929. His father was an Indian freedom revolutionary who fled Bengal in the 1920s, and his mother was of French and German descent. Amar Bose became an electrical and sound engineer, lecturing for more than 45 years at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

In addition, he was also an avid music lover. He bought the finest audio system the market had to offer at the time, but was not completely satisfied with its reproduction. So he began to investigate why the experience of concert halls was so fundamentally different from that of home reproduction. He applied his knowledge of psychoacoustics (the science that deals with human perception of sound) and discovered that more than 80% of the sound perceived in a concert hall does not come to the ears directly from the instruments, but only through reflections off the walls. This was just one step towards the creation of his own concept, the Bose 901 loudspeaker, and the fame of the Bose Corporation. The aforementioned Bose 901 audio system outfitted Amar with nine speakers, only one of which was aimed forward towards the audience. The other eight were directed to the back of the wall, and the system used the reflections of sound waves from two walls simultaneously. The result was a previously "unheard of" music listening experience.

  Bose's biggest historical milestones

Professor Amar Bose was a visionary. He brought many of his ideas to life and some of them set new standards in audio technology. Over time, Bose headphones and loudspeakers used a range of proprietary technologies and patents. Over the years, Bose has come to stand for tiny speakers that can create unexpectedly dense and varied soundscapes. The brand has also entered the minds of a wide range of people through the implementation of Bose audio systems in premium car lines such as Audi, Porsche, Cadillac, Infiniti, Nissan, Mazda and others.

A separate chapter that has led to the worldwide popularity of the Bose brand is the massively expanded headphone technology known today as ANC (Actine Noise Cancelling). Using microphones and sophisticated electronics, it can mute ambient noise. Bose is historically the biggest pioneer of ANC headphones. Originally, Bose used this method in professional headsets for airline pilots, where it referred to the technology as Active Noise Reducing (ANR). Then in 2000, the Bose QuietComfort headphones for the general public appeared on the market, setting the bar for all products in this category for a long time.

The third and most recent area that deserves significant attention in terms of Bose's history is smart wireless home music distribution solutions. This is a technology that allows you to wirelessly connect audio systems that stand alone in individual rooms and then control playback throughout the space using a smartphone. Each member of the household can select music from their smartphone, choose which rooms to play in, control the volume and many other things.

  More patents, technology and innovation for the Bose brand after Amar's departure

A decade after Amar's death, the Bose brand remains a private entity that isn't pushed by shareholders to make quick profits and is projecting most of its revenue back into development. As a result, new ideas continue to emerge. To demonstrate, let's mention at least three of the most interesting Bose technologies of today.

  CustomTune sound personalisation

"Everyone's ear canals are unique and behave acoustically differently," recalls John Rule, PhD, senior systems engineer at Bose, who previously worked as an aerospace engineer, on the technology's inception. So Rule came up with an idea - let's try to improve the performance of headphones by tailoring the sound reproduction and ANC technology to each person's individual ears. At Bose, he was given the space and time to solve the problem, and the result is an innovative sound calibration technology called "CustomTune" first introduced in the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II, considered by many experts to have the best ANC in the world.

Rule recalls that the key was the culture of innovation at Bose, which allowed him to work on this project for several months with no guarantee of success: "The founder, Amar Bose, believed that a company should always have a team of smart people doing research without a direct link to the development of a specific product, with the goal of discovering something better than what is currently achievable. Such discoveries can then be translated into products that are truly unique. At Bose, if you come up with a great idea, you are encouraged to focus on it and try to make it happen - which is exactly what I did. The 'heureka' moment for the creation of CustomTune came when I applied mathematical techniques from my experience in rocket engineering to a given problem in the acoustic industry."

  Portable waterproof speaker that can fall into the sea and not get lost

Waterproof and water-resistant portable Bluetooth speakers are now the standard. But what happens if such a speaker falls into the sea or river from a boat or paddleboard? The answer is obvious. But what about the latest Bose SoundLink Flex, the indirect successor to the legendary SoundLink Mini, one of the most popular Bluetooth speakers ever? Not only is it waterproof and dropped in water (even fine beach sand won't hurt it), but when it actually falls in, it floats to the surface with its loop up and keeps playing. In addition to that and its excellent sound, it automatically optimizes playback based on whether it's lying, standing or hanging by the loop.

  The latest Bose applies professional sound reinforcement features to portable devices

Bose's hottest new product demonstrates and largely heralds the next direction - applying technology from professional sound systems to portable speakers ideal for sound systems for large parties, small concerts for up to around 50 people, karaoke events and corporate events. Weighing in at around 7 kg, the Bose S1 Pro+ portable PA system cannot be compared to the most powerful portable Bluetooth speaker in terms of performance or volume. PA system is an acronym derived from the English term "public address system" and refers to equipment designed for public address. It uses a combination of a woofer and tweeters placed underneath each other and angled differently to create a "line array" system used for stadium sound systems. It is equipped with a very powerful rechargeable battery that allows it to operate at high volume levels for up to 11 hours, has 3 inputs (2 of them usable for microphones or musical instruments and one for Bluetooth or wired stereo input), a built-in internally and app-controlled remote mixer, receivers for wireless microphone or guitar connection and much more.

We could go on and on in the list of technologies and products demonstrating Bose's historical and current milestones, mentioning details of soundbars with ever-improving room-specific sound calibration technologies, Bose audio sunglasses, speakers that radiate sound in all directions in the same quality, and smart home sound systems. But what we wanted to highlight is the legacy of Amar Bose, which the brand is still building on a decade after his passing. As a result, it continues to bring new trends to the world of sound reproduction.

  About Bose:

Bose was founded in 1964 by Mr. Amar G. Bose. The very first Bose audio system revolutionized the way music was designed and revolutionized the music experience. To this day, the company is driven by its original principles of investing in long-term research to develop new technology solutions that bring real benefits to customers. In addition to audio technology, Bose also develops and manufactures equipment for several other industries. Bose products and patented technologies are found in the home, in the car, on the road and in public spaces.

  About BaSys:

BaSys is a leading distributor of premium audio and video technology based in Switzerland with distribution companies in several European countries. Since 1990, when the company was founded, it has represented global brands such as Pioneer, Bose, Loewe, Elac, Marantz, beyerdynamic, Neutrik, Bugera, Behringer, Monster, TC electronics, Midas, KlarkTeknik, Turbosound, Cordial, Rean.