When you hear that a client or potential client is an “audiophile,” the typical picture that comes to mind is a person who is over 55, affluent, male, and sitting in front of a pristine 2-channel system alone, since there is only one chair in the sweet spot. And no one can touch any settings on the processor!
Certainly, that is one type of audiophile, and speaker manufacturer SVS caters to many who fit that description, but today’s lover of sound, what the company calls the “Modern Audiophile,” goes well beyond that depiction in age, gender, stage of life, and income. “We know this because we talk— and share our love of great sound — with them regularly through both virtual engagement and dealer events,” says Gary Yacoubian, president and managing partner for SVS.
Creating a Client Community for Dealers
When SVS does events with its dealers, it promotes them extensively on social media and livestreams them to get maximum exposure, which typically draw anywhere from 100 to 500 people on-site, depending on the space and the timing of the event. Once there, SVS produces a demo that gets people excited about sound, but it is not an infomercial — it’s about sharing the company’s philosophy as a brand and why people should care and love immersive sound.
“We let them experience multiple levels of our products — multichannel home theater surround sound, wireless 2-channel audio, and so on — and get the audience excited,” says Yacoubian. “We are also creating a community event where people with shared interests are able to get together, which is great for our dealer partners because a lot of these Modern Audiophiles have never been to their stores before. It allows the dealer to shine a spotlight on what they’re doing in the community, as well as the types of services and products they offer.”
To create a similar type of experience on the virtual side, Yacoubian and SVS vice president of marketing Nicholas Brown produce “Audiophile Happy Hours,” which are sincere conversations with guests discussing why they love great sound. “We invite custom installation pros to join us, but we also go beyond the industry for guests, with visitors hailing from the worlds of music production, movies, and sports,” explains Yacoubian. “For example, past shows have included music producer DJ Jazzy Jeff and retired MLB pitcher Glendon Rusch. The one thing all our guests have in common is they all get excited about high-quality sound.
“Our engagement with this community continues on social media — we have more than 1 million social media followers across all our accounts, including Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. We have our own YouTube channel with lots of content that includes legacy videos of our old Happy Hours, as well as short-form videos that inform people about our products. We’ve also got a passionate community of YouTube bloggers that love SVS and who have produced more than 400,000 videos that reference SVS in a positive way.”
Strengthening the Dealer Connection
With SVS’ newest product, the 3000 In-Wall Subwoofer, the company is taking its loyal following and turning it directly toward its dealers. Not only is the 3000 In-Wall Subwoofer SVS’s first architectural speaker, it is also the first product that will be exclusively sold and installed through its dealer network.
“This is a real subwoofer that creates the full-on SVS subwoofer experience, and it does it in a wall and at a relatively affordable price — $2000 for a single-cabinet solution and $3000 for a two-cabinet solution, which includes the 850-watt RMS/2500-watt peak power amplifier,” says Yacoubian. “When creating the 3000 In-Wall Subwoofer, we considered the challenges that integrators have had with in-wall subwoofers in the past in terms of ease of installation and control.”
For installation, SVS provides a template for precise cutout of the mounting hole, and the sealed-box design allows for fast installation using dog-leg clamps attached to standard 16-inch on center studs. When installation is directly up against a stud, the enclosure uses screw holes for direct mounting. An optional pre-construction kit with template is available for new construction.
In terms of control, the SVS subwoofer DSP smartphone app for Apple, Android, and Amazon devices allows installers to set and control volume, adjust crossover frequencies, set the three-band parametric EQ, polarity, room gain, and more, all from the listening position. Bi-directional feedback shows the adjustments in real time on both the app and the front-panel amplifier interface.
The 3000 In-Wall Subwoofer features dual-active 9-inch drivers. “We didn’t do a passive radiator — and we will never do a passive radiator — because they do not provide the kind of clean articulate bass that people who truly want an immersive sound experience desire,” says Yacoubian.
The rack-mountable amplifier has two options — there is a single execution that is connected to a single subwoofer unit that has two 9-inch drivers, or the integrator can run duals from it where there are four drivers in two subwoofer units that can be installed to get even more bass response throughout the listening area.
“It is an absolute beast, and every integrator who’s tested it — and you can test it without installing it because it’s a fully self-contained sealed enclosure that can be installed in a wall or stuck under a sofa — has said that they’ve never seen or heard anything like it intended for in-wall use,” adds Yacoubian.
Become an SVS Dealer
“We are extremely proud of the 3000 In-Wall Subwoofer and are delighted to be sharing it exclusively with our dealer network, but that is just the first new product in what is going to be a very big year for SVS,” teases Yacoubian. “While it is too early to divulge any substantial information about our plans, I can say that fans of our popular wireless speaker systems will be very pleased.
“Now is the perfect time to join our community of Modern Audiophiles. Dealers love our brand because the performance is fun and they’re proud of it, and our products are bulletproof. One truck roll is all it takes — you install it, get it up and running, and that’s it. We have a five-year warranty on everything — including the amplifier — and we offer seven-day technical support. You can call us from the job site every day of the week.”
Click here to find out more about becoming an SVS dealer.
For more information on SVS, visit www.svsound.com.
