Vox Column Speakers - first format
Spring 1961
In the Spring of 1961, JMI introduced a number of new lines of Public Address equipment, offering Reslo, Elpiko and Grampian microphones in its catalogue, along with free-standing loudspeaker units (similar in design to those devised by hi-fi companies in the late 1950s).
All were aimed squarely at "beat" groups. JMI's work in the PA field up to this point had mostly revolved around the installation of sound systems - primarily for organs - in churches and community halls. Microphone systems were sometimes supplied too, though less frequently.
Behind the scenes in early 1961, the development of the Vox Radio Mic. was well underway, but the unit was not ready for demonstration/trialling until early 1962.
The loudspeakers were also advertised in Spring 1961 in the music trade press - in a "portmanteau" advert illustrating a spread of JMI's activities.
In general styling, the units were not too far removed from the speakers provided by JMI to accompany organs. A wood veneer finish was also offered in 1964 for JMI's small wall-mount 8" and 10" cabinets.
In terms of sound dispersion, the new floor-standing loudspeakers were "directional", containing a single driver at top and possibly a second in the body of the column. Resonant damping in such cabinets was normally achieved in the late 1950s and early 1960s either by a network of shaped horns and pipes, or more simply, by acoustic foam.
Perhaps the most popular design in the hi-fi community, which is where free-standing columns were first adopted, was the "omni-directional" - as for example in the model marketed by Wharfedale in the late 1950s. Sound radiated from all four grilles at top.
Other companies - "Express" being one - took a different approach, producing directional units designed to throw the sound forward either into a room or at a wall which would then radiate it out. Design number 6 is similar to the one used by JMI.
So far, no surviving example of the JMI loudspeaker has come to light. Sales, however, are unlikely to have been substantial. The "Line Source" cabinets, designed in late 1962, proved far more popular.