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{{short description|American audio hardware manufacturer}}
{{other uses}}
{{More citations needed|date=October 2019}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox company
| name = JBL
| logo = JBL logo.svg
| former_name = Lansing Sound
| type = [[Subsidiary]]
| founded = {{Start date and age|1946}}
| founder = [[James Bullough Lansing]]
| hq_location_city = [[Los Angeles]], California, United States
| industry = [[Sound reproduction|Audio]]
| products = [[Amplifier]]s, [[loudspeaker]]s, [[headphones]]
| owner = [[Samsung Electronics]]
| num_employees = 
| homepage = {{URL|jbl.com}}
| parent = [[Harman International Industries]]
}}

'''JBL''' is an American [[audio equipment]] manufacturer headquartered in [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, California]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=JBL Inc – Company Profile and News |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/1352994D:US |access-date=August 26, 2023 |website=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}</ref> The company was founded in 1946 by [[James Bullough Lansing]], an American audio engineer and loudspeaker designer. JBL currently serves the home and professional audio markets. Their home products include [[home audio|home audio speakers]], waterproof [[Wireless speakers|Bluetooth speakers]], and high-end [[Vehicle audio|car audio]]. Their professional products include [[Public address system|live PA systems]], [[studio monitors]], and [[loudspeakers]] for cinema. JBL is a subsidiary of [[Harman International]], which is owned by [[Samsung Electronics]].

==History==
James Bullough Lansing and his business partner Ken Decker started a company in 1927 in Los Angeles, manufacturing {{convert|6|and|8|in|spell=in|adj=on}} [[speaker driver]]s for radio consoles and radio sets. The firm was named ''[[Altec Lansing|Lansing Manufacturing Company]]'', from March 1, 1927.<ref>{{cite web |last=McRitchie |first=Don |title=6900 McKinley |url=https://www.audioheritage.org/html/perspectives/6900-mckinley.htm |website=Lansing Heritage |access-date=October 19, 2018}}</ref>

In 1933, head of the [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] (MGM) sound department, [[Douglas Shearer]], dissatisfied with the loudspeakers of [[Western Electric]] and [[RCA Corporation|RCA]], decided to develop his own. [[John Kenneth Hilliard|John Hilliard]], Robert Stephens, and John F. Blackburn were part of the team that developed the [[Shearer Horn]], with Lansing Manufacturing producing the 285 [[compression driver]] and the 15XS [[Woofer|bass driver]]. The Shearer Horn gave the desired improvements and Western Electric and RCA received the contracts to each build 75 units. Western Electric named them ''Diaphonics'', and RCA used them in their [[RCA Photophone]]s. Lansing Manufacturing was the only firm selling them as Shearer Horns. In 1936, the Shearer Horn received the [[Academy Scientific and Technical Award]] from the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]].

[[File:Lansing Iconic multicell horn speaker 1937.jpg|thumb|Lansing Iconic]]
[[File:JBL TI 5000.jpg|thumb|upright|JBL TI 5000, a 3-way system with a 30 cm bass driver and a [[titanium]] membrane tweeter, built from about 1992 to 1999. With a height of {{cvt|1.15|m}} and a weight of {{cvt|55|kg}}, it was the top model for the consumer market.]]
Based on the experience developed with the Shearer Horn, Lansing produced the Iconic System loudspeaker for cinemas. The Iconic was a [[two-way speaker]] using a {{convert|15|in|adj=on}} [[woofer]] for the low frequencies and a compression driver for the highs.

In 1939, Decker was killed in an airplane crash. The company soon began having financial troubles. In 1941, Lansing Manufacturing Company was bought by Altec Service Corporation, after which the name changed to "[[Altec Lansing]]." After Lansing's contract expired in 1946, he left Altec Lansing and founded Lansing Sound, which later changed to "James B. Lansing Sound" and was further shortened to "JBL Sound."

In 1946, JBL produced their first products, the model D101 15-inch loudspeaker and the model D175 high-frequency driver. The D175 remained in the JBL catalog through the 1970s. Both of these were near-copies of Altec Lansing products. The first original product was the D130, a 15-inch transducer for which a variant remained in production for the next 55 years. The D130 featured a {{convert|4|in|adj=on}} flat ribbon wire [[voice coil]] and [[Alnico]] V magnet. Two other products were the {{convert|12|in|adj=on}} D131 and the {{convert|8|in|adj=on}} D208 cone drivers.

The [[Marquardt Corporation]] gave the company early manufacturing space and a modest investment. William H. Thomas, the treasurer of Marquardt Corporation, represented Marquardt on Lansing's board of directors. In 1948, Marquardt took over the operation of JBL. In 1949, Marquardt was purchased by General Tire Company. The new company, not interested in the loudspeaker business, severed ties with Lansing. Lansing was reincorporated as James B. Lansing and moved the newly formed company to its first private location, on 2439 Fletcher Drive, Los Angeles.

A key to JBL's early development was Lansing's close business relationship with its primary supplier of Alnico V magnetic material, Robert Arnold of Arnold Engineering. Arnold saw JBL as an opportunity to sell Alnico V magnetic materials into a new market.

Lansing was noted as an innovative engineer but a poor businessman. Decker, his business partner, had died in 1939 in an airplane crash. In the late 1940s, Lansing struggled to pay invoices and ship products. Possibly as a result of deteriorating business conditions and personal issues, he committed suicide on September 4, 1949. The company then passed into the hands of Bill Thomas, JBL's vice president. Lansing had taken out a {{US$|10,000|link=yes}} life insurance policy, naming the company as the beneficiary, a decision that allowed Thomas to continue the company after Lansing's death. Soon after, Thomas purchased Mrs. Lansing's one-third interest in the company and became the sole owner. Thomas is credited with revitalizing the company and spearheading a period of strong growth for the two decades following the founding of JBL.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FOUNDING JBL |url=https://www.audioheritage.org/html/history/lansing/founding.htm |access-date=February 8, 2024 |website=www.audioheritage.org}}</ref>

Early products included the model 375 high-frequency driver and the 075 ultra-high frequency (UHF) ring-radiator driver. The ring-radiator drivers are also known as "JBL bullets" because of their distinctive shape. The 375 was a re-invention of the Western Electric 594 driver but with an Alnico V magnet and a four-inch voice coil. The 375 shared the same basic magnet structure as the D-130 woofer. JBL engineers Ed May and [[Bart N. Locanthi]] created these designs.<ref>{{Cite web |title=JBL TO 1981 |url=https://www.audioheritage.org/html/history/lansing/to_1981.htm |access-date=February 8, 2024 |website=www.audioheritage.org}}</ref>

Two products from that era, the Hartsfield and the [[JBL Paragon|Paragon]], continue to be highly desired on the collectors' market.

In 1955, the brand name JBL was introduced to resolve ongoing disputes with Altec Lansing Corporation. The company name, "James B. Lansing Sound, Incorporated," was retained, but the logo name was changed to JBL with its distinctive exclamation point.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Signature Logo |url=https://www.audioheritage.org/images/logos/signature_logo.jpg |access-date=February 8, 2024}}</ref>

The JBL 4320<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Mix |date=2006-09-01 |title=1974 JBL 4311 Studio Monitors |url=https://www.mixonline.com/technology/1974-jbl-4311-studio-monitors-383603 |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=Mixonline |language=en-US |ref=Mix Mag Sep. 2006 article}}</ref> series studio monitor was introduced through Capitol Records in Hollywood and became the standard monitor worldwide for its parent company, EMI. JBL's introduction to rock and roll music came via the adoption of the D130 loudspeaker by [[Leo Fender]]'s Fender Guitar Company as the ideal driver for [[electric guitar]]s.

[[File:GD 廣東 Guangdong DG 東莞 DongGuan 萬道路 WanDao Road 萬江華南商場 WanJiang South China Mall shop JBL Sound Expert December 2024 R12S 01.jpg|thumb|JBL store at [[South China Mall]] in [[Dongguan]], [[China]]]]
[[File:JBL flagship store at SM City Cebu (2024-09-29).jpg|thumb|JBL flagship store at [[SM City Cebu]] in [[Cebu City]], [[Philippines]]]]
In 1969, Thomas sold JBL to the [[Harman International|Jervis Corporation]] (later renamed "Harman International"), headed by [[Sidney Harman]]. The 1970s saw JBL become a household brand, starting with the famous L-100, which was the bestselling loudspeaker model of any company at that time. The 1970s were also a time of major JBL expansion in the professional audio field from their [[studio monitor]]s. By 1977, more recording studios were using JBL monitors than all other brands combined, according to a ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' survey.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.audioheritage.org/html/people/wolf/wolf.htm|title=ARNOLD WOLF|website=audioheritage.org}}</ref> The JBL L-100 and 4310 control monitors were popular home speakers. In the late 1970s, the new L-series designs L15, L26, L46, L56, L86, L96, L112, L150, and later the L150A and flagship L250 were introduced with improved crossovers, ceramic magnet woofers, updated midrange drivers, and aluminum-deposition phenolic resin tweeters. In the mid-1980s, the designs were again updated and redesigned with a new titanium-deposition tweeter diaphragm. The new L-series designations being the L20T, L40T, L60T, L80T, L100T, the Ti-series 18Ti, 120Ti, 240Ti, and the flagship 250Ti. To test speaker drivers, JBL in Glendale and Northridge used the roof as an outdoor equivalent to an [[anechoic chamber]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=INSIDE THE STUDIO MONITOR |url=https://www.lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/reference/technical/inside-monitor.htm |access-date=February 8, 2024 |website=www.lansingheritage.org}}</ref>

Over the next two decades, JBL went more mass-market with their consumer (Northridge) line of loudspeakers. At the same time, they made an entry into the high-end market with their project speakers, consisting of the Everest and K2 lines. JBL became a prominent supplier to the tour sound industry, their loudspeakers being employed by touring rock acts and music festivals. JBL products were the basis for the development of [[THX]] loudspeaker standard, which resulted in JBL becoming a popular cinema loudspeaker manufacturer.

==Automotive use==
JBL are currently fitted to vehicle manufacturers such as [[Fiat]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=JBL + Fiat |url=https://uk.jbl.com/fiat.html |access-date=February 8, 2024 |website=uk.jbl.com}}</ref> [[Kia]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=JBL + Kia |url=https://uk.jbl.com/kia.html |access-date=February 8, 2024 |website=uk.jbl.com}}</ref> and [[Toyota]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=JBL + Toyota |url=https://uk.jbl.com/toyota.html |access-date=February 8, 2024 |website=uk.jbl.com}}</ref>

==Timeline==
*1927 – Founding of Lansing Manufacturing Company in Los Angeles
*1934 – [[Douglas Shearer]] from MGM designs the first speaker for the cinema. Lansing builds system components.
*1941 – Altec Service Company acquires Lansing Manufacturing Company
*1944 – Lansing and Hilliard redefine the reference theater speaker with model A-4, renamed ''Voice of the Theatre''
*1946 – JBL creates the original 'JBL signature' logo with an exclamation (!) in black and white. Designed by Jerome Gould<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=JBL Logo and symbol, meaning, history, PNG, brand |url=https://1000logos.net/jbl-logo/ |access-date=February 13, 2024 |language=en-US}}</ref>
*1946 – Lansing leaves Altec and founded a new company, James B. Lansing Sound Inc.
*1947 – JBL has a 15" speaker (38&nbsp;cm), model D-130, using for the first time a {{convert|4|in|mm|abbr=on}} voice coil in a speaker cone
*1949 – James. B. Lansing dies of [[suicide]]; William Thomas became president of the company
*1954 – The ''375'' compression engine is the first 4-inch engine sold; its response extends to 9&nbsp;kHz
*1954 – Presentation of acoustic lenses developed by [[Bart N. Locanthi]]
*1955 – [[Leo Fender]] integrates the D-130 model in their amplifiers, thus starting the entry of JBL into professional music
*1958 – Introduction of the one-piece [[JBL Paragon]] stereo speaker system
*1962 – JBL creates the first 2-way studio monitor, using a high-frequency motor lens
*1967 - JBL creates the iconic red box logo with the exclamation (!) and white lettering. Designed by Arnold Wolfe, the president of JBL<ref name=":0" />
*1968 – JBL launches the 3-way speaker 4310
*1969 – [[Sidney Harman]] acquires JBL
*1969 – L-100, a consumer version of the 4310 is launched; it would sell over 125,000 pairs in the 70s
*1969 – JBL components used in [[Bill Hanley (sound engineer)|Bill Hanley]]'s [[Woodstock]] sound system<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lenk |first=Frank |date=2024-08-10 |title=55 Years Later: A Look Back at Woodstock and the Audio Gear That Made the Festival Happen |url=https://wifihifi.com/a-look-back-at-woodstock/ |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=Wifi Hifi Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> and many other rock festivals
*1973 – 4300 Series launched, including the first 4-way speaker
*1975 – 4682 Model Line Array ''Strongbox''
*1979 – Technology ''diamond surround'' for control of high frequency resonances in
*1979 – Development of Symmetrical Field Geometry (SFG)
*1980 – Pavilion Bi-Radial Constant dispersion technology
*1981 – The first Bi-Radial monitor, 4400, for the recording studio
*1982 – Titanium is used as a material for compression engines
*1984 – JBL acquires [[UREI]]
*1986 – The first models of the Control series introduced
*1990 – Vented Gap Cooling technology (reduces low frequencies transducer temperature)
*1991 – The first pro-audio speaker based on [[neodymium]] with Array Series
*1995 – Birth of the EON system
*1995 – First Neodymium Differential Drive speaker
*1996 – Creation of the HLA standard with Line Array Space Frame design
*1999 – JBL used at [[Woodstock 1999]]
*2000 – Creation of VerTec Line Array system
*2000 – Launch of EVO, a DSP controlled loudspeaker
*2002 – VerTec is used for the [[2002 Super Bowl|Super Bowl]], the [[2002 Grammy Awards|Grammy Awards]] and the ceremony of the [[2002 FIFA World Cup]] (Seoul, Korea)

==Examples of applications==
* [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences|Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - AMPAS]]<ref>[http://www.jblpro.com/catalog/support/getfile.aspx?docid=1496&doctype=3] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608115809/http://www2.jblpro.com/catalog/support/getfile.aspx?docid=1496&doctype=3|date=June 8, 2011}} JBL, ''Cinema Loudspeaker Systems'', p.1.</ref> (Samuel Goldwyn Theater, [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]], [[United States]]).
* [[IRCAM|Institut de Recherche et de Coordination Acoustique/Musique - IRCAM]]<ref>[http://www.gdbennett.net/texts/Research_at_IRCAM_1978.pdf] IRCAM, ''Rapport'', p. 17.</ref> ([[Pierre Boulez]], [[Paris]], [[France]], 1974–1991).
* [[Gaumont Film Company|Digital Cinema Project - GAUMONT]]<ref>[http://www.jblpro.com/catalog/support/getfile.aspx?docid=632&doctype=3] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928035453/http://www.jblpro.com/catalog/support/getfile.aspx?docid=632&doctype=3|date=September 28, 2011}} JBL, ''Three-Way Screen Channel System'', pp. 1–2.</ref> (Philippe Binant, [[Paris]], [[France]], 2000–2008).

== JBL Bluetooth speaker models == 
JBL<ref>{{cite web |title=Buy JBL Bluetooth Speakers |website=JBL UK |url=https://uk.jbl.com/bluetooth-speakers/ |access-date=2025-06-19}}</ref> produces a variety of Bluetooth speaker model families, each tailored to different needs:

* '''JBL Go''' – Ultra‑compact and affordable, designed for everyday portability.
* '''JBL Clip''' – Small speakers with an integrated carabiner clip, ideal for travel and outdoor use.
* '''JBL Grip''' - Cylindrical, mid-sized speakers 30% smaller than the Flip series.
* '''JBL Flip''' – Cylindrical, mid-sized speakers offering waterproofing and strong audio for their size.
* '''JBL Charge''' – Larger than the Flip, featuring long battery life and the ability to charge other devices via USB.
* '''JBL Xtreme''' – Rugged, boombox-style speakers with powerful sound, designed for outdoor use.
* '''JBL Boombox''' – Large, heavy-duty speakers with extended battery life and deep bass.
* '''JBL Pulse''' – Cylindrical speakers with integrated LED light shows that sync to music.
* '''JBL PartyBox''' – High-output party speakers with lighting effects, mic/guitar inputs, and event-ready features.

==See also==
* [[List of studio monitor manufacturers]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{official website}}
* [https://jblpro.com/en-US/discontinued_products Discontinued JBL Professional products] website

{{Harman International Industries}}
{{Samsung Electronics}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jbl}}
[[Category:JBL| ]]
[[Category:1946 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Audio amplifier manufacturers]]
[[Category:Audio equipment manufacturers of the United States]]
[[Category:Harman International]]
[[Category:Headphones manufacturers]]
[[Category:Loudspeaker manufacturers]]
[[Category:Manufacturers of professional audio equipment]]
[[Category:In-car entertainment]]
[[Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1946]]
[[Category:Audio equipment companies]]