Lithe Audio bowed a Wireless Speaker and Audio (WiSA)-enabled in-ceiling speaker at the Integrated Systems Europe show Tuesday, said Summit Wireless Technologies. The powered-over-ethernet speaker, designed for commercial and cinema applications, will support Airplay 2, Google Cast and Alexa, Summit said. The WiSA platform transmits high-resolution 24-bit digital audio at 48kHz/96kHz with low latency.

Pearl Audio is pitching true wireless earbuds inspired by Ferrari design in a crowd-sourced campaign on Indiegogo. The gold Pearl earbuds were designed by Crystal Li, a former Pininfarina designer. Early bird prices start at $114, and availability is given as April. The earbuds are offered in gold, silver and black. The campaign raised $120,944 from 922 backers as of Thursday, with 20 days left.

QSC introduced an integrated subwoofer-satellite pendant loudspeaker system in its AcousticDesign series. A 5.5-inch subwoofer and four 2.75-inch transducers are integrated in the enclosure that’s said to be “purpose-built” and ready to install out of the box, without the need to assemble hardware components. The speaker eliminates typical assembly times of 30-40 minutes per speaker, said the company Wednesday.

A year after launching its first active noise-canceling headphone at CES 2019, Sol Republic announced Tuesday it’s finally shipping the over-ear Soundtrack Pro ANC. “It took refinement and precision to bring that vision to life," said Josh Poulsen, director-product management. The $199 cans, with a foldable design, feature 40mm drivers; 32-hour battery life with and without noise cancellation; four buttons for control of volume, answer/end calls, and pause-skip; and an auxiliary cable for wired listening. Its digital hybrid ANC technology uses a four-mic system to intercept ambient noise while preserving audio quality, said the company. Users can enter monitor mode to pause music and ANC for a quick conversation without having to remove the headphones. USB-C quick charge technology is said to provide three hours’ listening from a 15-minute recharge. The Pro has a leather-wrapped foam ear cushion for a more comfortable fit and “sleeker look” than the entry-level Soundtrack headphones. The Soundtrack ($169) wireless model has 42-hour battery life, similar controls and design, and 4.5-hour operation from a 15-minute USB-C quick charge, said the company.

Renewed interest in music consumption and tech advances are driving increased demand for consumer audio hardware, said a Wednesday Futuresource report. The market for home audio hardware and headphones grew to $50.8 billion in 2019, from $47.5 billion the prior year, it said. The researcher estimated a 37 percent rise in headphone volume for 2019, up from $22.7 billion in 2018, as the price consumers are willing to pay for headphones continues to rise -- up 32 percent year on year in October to $74. With AirPods, Apple created a new subcategory and a market for copycat designs, said analyst Luke Pearce, saying the true wireless category will grow by 25 percent year on year through 2023. The total in-ear segment now is over two-thirds of aftermarket headphone shipments. A recent Futuresource survey in the U.S., U.K., Germany, China and Japan showed 69 percent of consumers regularly use two or more pairs of headphones. A crossover with hearing aids is creating a market for smart hearable products that can amplify and enhance speech while filtering out ambient background noise, Pearce said. The home audio market grew 21 percent to 111 million units Q1-Q3 vs. the comparable 2018 period, said Pearce. Wireless speakers led growth, up 25 percent year on year; wireless speakers with screens had a 894 percent shipment spike. Sound bars grew 7 percent, while hi-fi shipments dropped 9 percent. Smart speakers will be more than half of global wireless speaker sales 2019-2023, it said. The U.S. market had just under half of smart speaker shipments last year, followed by China and the U.K.

Sound United officially launched the long-awaited third generation of the Classe Audio Delta Series Tuesday at CES. The line includes the Delta Mono and Stereo amplifiers and a preamp. Sound United bought the Classe brand from Bowers & Wilkins two years ago (see 1801070004); the high-end audio line had been in limbo since EVA Automation acquired B&W in 2016 (see 1606300059). The Delta trio is available at qualified Classe dealers in the U.S. at $12,999 for the Stereo, $10,999 for the Mono and $9,999 for the Pre. Classe Brand Director Dave Nauber emailed that no products were introduced under EVA ownership, but development on the Classe line continued as the brand transitioned to Sound United two years ago. “Since then we have been moving manufacturing from the B&W facility in China to Shirakawa Audio Works in Japan,” he said. That “took longer than expected,” said the executive, crediting parent Sound United for not rushing product to market or taking shortcuts. “They have been consistent, doing what they said since before the acquisition was finalized, that everything needed to be done correctly,” he said. Sound United will be giving “most” former Classe dealers first right of refusal for the new line, but they won’t all be automatically qualified, Nauber said: “Distribution will be more exclusive than it was, which is appropriate since these are more expensive products.” He expects the North America market to generate 40 percent of global business. That could increase when the company starts delivering multichannel products, Nauber said.

Swedish sound company Dirac, known for room correction tuning technology, announced at CES Tuesday a digital audio solution for mobile devices. It’s said to reveal subtle beats, tones and sounds typically lost in headphones and to bring the higher definition content “outside the listener’s head” with a more spacious listening experience. Customized app-based algorithms boost details in music to “unleash the full potential of the headphones,” regardless of the audio codec used, said the company. Dirac is in talks with smartphone and music streaming companies about embedding the digital audio tech in products and platforms with the first partnership expected to be announced this quarter, it said.

Klipsch is zeroing in on true wireless and over-ear headphones at CES with five new models for 2020, it said Thursday. True Seal oval ear tips are said to provide a complete seal, strong bass, noise isolation and a comfortable feel in true wireless models. The T10 ($649, fall) and T5 ($299, fall) true wireless smart earphones are capable of high-quality audio, voice control and telephony with dual-mic active noise cancellation, Klipsch said. The T10 is significantly smaller and lighter than competing models, said the company; the T5 has an optimized signal boost antenna for a high-quality Bluetooth connection and comes with a wireless charging case that holds up to an additional 24 hours’ battery life. The Klipsch over-ear active noise canceling headphones ($399) have a transparency mode, 30 hours’ battery life and come with Klipsch’s FlightCase with pockets for travel essentials and charging. T5 true wireless sport earphones ($229, summer) are dust and waterproof and come with a wireless charging case. The T5 II true wireless earphones ($199, summer) have the new antenna for better Bluetooth connectivity and are dust- and waterproof. Klipsch’s Connect app allows users to personalize their experience by adjusting EQ settings, getting firmware upgrades, troubleshooting, accessing customer support and monitoring battery levels, it said. Klipsch will demonstrate at CES in Central Hall, Booth 13506.

Aviot will showcase three true wireless earphones at CES (Venetian Suite 29-125), with features including 120 hours play time and a Qi-based wireless charging case, it said Monday. The TE-D01d mk2 earphones can be recharged 10 times via charging case with a USB Type-C port that can also be used as a portable smartphone battery, said the company. The company's hybrid earphones use dynamic and balanced armature drivers.

LG is launching sound bars at CES designed to pair with its OLED and NanoCell TVs. Several of the premium 2020 sound bars support Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, it said. Some add AI Room Calibration that’s said to tailor sound output to the audio characteristics of a room, and a processing algorithm upscales conventional file formats to “near-studio” quality, it said. Other features are 4K pass-through and enhanced audio return channel. A wireless rear speaker kit is optional.