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UK distributor Karma-AV has added Perlisten Audio to its stable. The American brand, founded in 2016, is the first in the world to produce loudspeakers that meet the new THX Dominus specification, and its home cinema-centric S Series includes floorstander, bookshelf, monitor, in-wall, centre and surround/angle/height models.

While a fresh endeavour, Perlisten co-founders Daniel Roemer and Lars Johansen are both audio industry veterans, the former previously working for pro/OEM outfit MiTek Corporation, and the latter having positions with Jamo, Klipsch, Harman and M&K Sound. The company name apparently alludes to the concept of 'Perceptual Listening'.

The S Series is the result of a five-year process of 'advanced modelling, measurement and listening' and 'developing transducers, electronics and software entirely in-house', we're told.

The flagship model is the S7t floorstander, priced £16,000. This features a quartet of custom-made thin-ply carbon 6in bass drivers tuned by side-firing ports, positioned around Perlisten's Directivity Pattern Control (DPC) driver array, which places a 28mm beryllium dome tweeter, plus two 28mm polycarbon mid-range drivers, within a single unit.

This DPC invention is found across the S Series, aiming for timbre matching in a multichannel setup.

Perlisten also sells a seven-strong subwoofer range, all models featuring a 2.4in LCD touchscreen display, 48-bit DSP engine, and balanced and single-ended connections. Controls and settings, including 10-band parametric EQ, can be accessed via an iOS/Android app.

The lineup begins with a 12in single-driver model with 1,500W rated amplifier (the D12s), and is topped by the D215s, a dual 15in/3,000W woofer described as 'the audiophile's choice'.

Perlisten's subs are currently only available in piano black, but the S Series speakers also sell in Piano White, plus Ebony High Gloss ‘special editions’ for the S7c centre, S7m monitor and S7b bookshelf. Karma-AV will also distribute Perlisten's more affordable, 'trickle-down' R Series.

The big idea
The THX Dominus specification, announced last March, is intended to 'bridge the gap between large home theatre speakers and those used in movie theatres worldwide.' Certified products are said to be suited to cinema rooms up to 184m3 (compared to the 85m3 of the THX Ultra standard). Dominus loudspeakers need to hit 120dB SPL at 1m while maintaining 'very low distortion', and offer a minimum 92dB sensitivity rating.