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exceptional stereo imaging and fatigue-free listening. Most important, it was
the first loudspeaker system available to consumers to do all this.
Project Everest DD66000, the most advanced and sophisticated loudspeaker in
the world today, is the latest expression in technology that is deeply rooted in
more than 60 years of tradition. JBL’s president in 1954, William Thomas,
described the Hartsfield as the “speaker system we have always wanted to build
[with] the finest components ever made available to serious listeners.”
He went on to describe the process behind the creation of the Hartsfield:
“Most people who own and appreciate fine sound reproduction equipment
look forward to the day when they will be able to assemble a system without
limitation in just exactly the way they think it should be done. Periodically a
manufacturer gets this same feeling.... The science of acoustics has provided us
with the basic principles available to all for achieving precision reproduction. It
is only a matter of incorporating these methods into a system design, and then
taking every bit of trouble necessary to build a system precisely to the design.”
He added, “It isn’t easy, but that’s the way it is done.”
The Ranger-Paragon, JBL’s second Project system, was the first serious
attempt at a reflecting speaker system, and broke ground in the new concept of
stereo imaging. Basically two independent full-range speaker systems installed
in a handsome, curved cabinet nearly 9 feet (2.7 meters) long, the Paragon’s
enclosure was treated as an extension of its transducers. In essence, the system
had its own “built-in acoustics.” In many respects, the Paragon anticipated
loudspeaker developments that would occur years and even decades later. This
“built-in acoustics” concept is present in the latest Project Everest DD66000.
For nearly 30 years, the Paragon remained the most acoustically perfect speaker
system for the home. Today, along with the Hartsfield, it is still the most
sought-after speaker in the world.
In 1986, JBL introduced a new Project system that retained the Paragon’s
overall sense of musicality while upgrading its character by incorporating three
decades’ worth of continuous development in every facet of its design. Its name –
Project Everest – reflected the pinnacle of achievement it represented. This was
the original Project Everest DD55000.
