Knowles Partners With Ole Wolff to Deliver Compact Hybrid Driver for TWS Earphones With HD Audio and ANC

The innovative small woofer matched to the new balanced armature tweeter meets the need for premium sound, high-performance ANC, and hearing personalization in smaller size.

ITASCA, Ill.–KNOWLES Corporation, a market leader and global provider of advanced micro-acoustic microphones, speakers, audio solutions, and high-performance capacitors and RF products, and OLE WOLFF, a manufacturer of high-quality speakers, receivers, and provider of acoustic system integration, today announced the result of their cooperation to improve the comfort and performance of True Wireless Stereo (TWS) earphones with high-definition audio and active noise cancellation (ANC). The combination of Knowles's new high-performance, balanced armature RAN model tweeter with Ole Wolff's 8mm dynamic woofer, offers unprecedented performance for its small size. With the bass performance of a larger driver, the Ole Wolff woofer delivers rich bass and excellent ANC performance in a tiny size that allows greater comfort and gives product designers room to add additional features. The Knowles RAN tweeter delivers exceptional treble performance, with output up to 40 kHz for JAS Hi-Res Audio certification. Its high sensitivity also facilitates improved hearing personalization and enhancement.

Designers of TWS earphones face a complex set of performance requirements that must be contained in a small form factor that can deliver long-wear comfort. Now a smaller driver option exists bringing greater flexibility to OEMs while delivering premium performance to meet consumers increasing demands for HD quality audio in TWS earbuds.

“Ole Wolff is excited to partner with Knowles in developing a compact market-leading hybrid audio solution for TWS earphones. A correctly designed dynamic driver can reproduce bass frequencies with vanishing low distortion while delivering the loudness necessary for ANC and/or leaky (i.e., not sealed) earphones with anti-occlusion designs. By combining the bass performance of an Ole Wolff driver with a Knowles BA, each component can be tailored for maximum performance in their respective frequency range. In other words: The hybrid approach is a “no compromise” approach,” said Gary Brind, Ole Wolff's General Manager. “We believe that the cooperation between Knowles and Ole Wolff will enable more audio companies to integrate a hybrid audio solution in their products with a fast ‘speed to market’ and thereby bring the excellent audio performance of the hybrid solution to a wider audience.”

“Knowles has always been about pushing the boundaries of what is possible in acoustic solutions,” said Jon Kiachian, Vice President and GM of Knowles Hearing Health Technologies. “As the inventor of the micro balanced armature driver and leading supplier for in-ear monitors used by professional musicians, Knowles is delighted to bring that same premium listening experience to consumer TWS earphones together with Ole Wolff.”