Harman Kardon's Clear GLA-55: Most Expensive 2.0 Speakers Ever

What's this? Some arms race to produce the wildest, most alien-approved set of speakers ever? In the same month that JBL issued the third generation of its completely wild Creature speakers, yet another trusted name in sound has stepped forward with a pair of PC speakers that could very well blast off at any moment. Harman Kardon's GLA-55 speakers "merge the latest in art and science," and while the two-piece setup won't deliver pounding bass, it'll certainly provide the basics while upping your style points.

The speakers are housed in clear enclosures and designed to work with PCs, MP3 players and home audio systems (or pretty much any source with an analog output), and they're built around Atlas woofers, CMMD tweeters, DSP processing and touch-sensitive volume controls. You're probably thinking--okay, cool, a 2.0 speaker system that looks good, this can't cost much right? Wrong. Somehow these drivers will cost you $999.99, so unless you have buckets of cash with nothing else to buy, we'd suggest spending your thousand dollars on a more elaborate setup.

Compatible with virtually any audio device with an analog output, (MP3 and CD players, desktop and laptop computers, satellite radio and other home audio systems) the GLA-55 belts out high quality audio while exuding luxury and refinement. From the facets of the bass reflex enclosure and custom copper tubing, to the powerful bass of its Atlas woofers and crystal-clear highs of the CMMD^® tweeters, the GLA-55 is an expert in both beauty and sound. The system delivers with a powerfully tuned digital audio path; the clean and compact digital amplification coupled with DSP (digital signal processing) equalization efficiently provides the systems transducers with cool-running power. For added bass response, the subwoofer output allows connection to most standalone subwoofer systems. Touch-sensitive volume controls provides an easy user experience; touch both volume controls simultaneously to mute the audio output and touch again to un-mute. From the chrome base to the fully visible audio engine and port, the clear diamond like design leaves no detail unrefined.

“From inception to final product, Harman’s design and engineering team worked in tandem to create the aesthetics for GLA-55,” said Christopher M. Dragon, director of field marketing for the Harman International. “Our goal was to create a high-end product that not only has stunning sound and visual appeal, but versatility in its use as well. GLA-55 does just that by delivering pure Harman sound while displaying simplicity and class.”

“While in the design lab, the creative minds at Harman Kardon were determined to create an audio system that inspires creativity and beauty along with great sound,” said Kurt Sollund, vice president of industrial design for Harman International. “With its unique design and cut glass motif, we see GLA-55 as a piece of art that will add aesthetic appeal to any surrounding.”

GLA-55 combines many proprietary technologies to provide the highest quality sound featuring:

Atlas AL™ and CMMD™ Transducers – The CMMD drivers provide accurate high frequencies while capable of low frequency extension to four octaves compared with traditional powered tweeters. The Atlas AL driver is capable of nearly 1” peak-to-peak travel for tight, accurate bass reproduction. This desktop pairing provides a full rich frequency response from the lowest bass to highest highs.

Slipstream Port Design – The GLA-55 port minimizes boundary layer separation providing high output bass with low distortion, for all to see and hear.

COE (Computer Optimized Equalization) – The GLA-55 system equalization is computer optimized to provide a rich, complete sound stage over a wide range of listening positions.

OCT (Optimized Compression Topology) – The GLA-55 utilizes a proprietary compression technology to insure clean accurate sound at high output levels.