Good vibrations: underwater sound systems and speakers are creating a pulse in residential pool construction. Here's what you need to know about this emerging trend

Pool & Spa News, Feb 27, 2004 by Shabnam Mogharabi

Microsoft Corp. CEO Bill Gates installed one in his Medina, Wash., mansion. Actor Russell Crowe special-ordered a set for his pool Down Under.

They are underwater sound systems. However, they are no longer a luxury afforded only by the likes of corporate giants and celebrities. "Homeowners are becoming better-traveled and more sophisticated, and that inevitably has a trickledown effect," says Skip Phillips, owner of Questar Pools & Spas in Escondido, Calif., and co-founder of Genesis 3, a design group based in Murfrees-boro, Tenn.

High-end pool designers such as Phillips say this feature has been growing in popularity over the past two years, especially in high- to mid-range pool construction. Still, despite numerous applications and easy installation, the growth of underwater sound systems is hindered by an industrywide skepticism and lack of knowledge about their value.

"Some people will see value in it, while others won't," Phillips says. "It's hard to read in terms of who would buy it and who wouldn't. It's not something we would actively market on each and every vessel be. cause it's something that is so specialized."

However, new advances in sound technology offer pool contractors the potential of a new area of expertise. "We have a lot of clients who are interested in vanishing-edge pools, glass tile pools and fiberoptic lighting," says Lawrence Stoen, sales manager at Lake Worth, Fla.-based Hackl Pool Construction Co., which only recently entered the underwater sound market. Company President Doug Hackl was initially unimpressed with the quality of underwater speakers.

"This seems to be the next new toy for the high-end market," Stoen says. "It gives these clients an edge over their neighbor."

What is it?

Underwater technology is based on one key principle: Sound travels about five times faster in water than in air. Closely knit water molecules need less displacement to transfer sound.

That may be a simple premise, but numerous types of underwater sound systems have flowed from it. When it comes to the speaker component, though, manufacturers say there are two basic varieties: (1) A moving coil speaker, similar to the shaker of a standard home audio system. Coil speakers, such as tactile sound transfusion speakers, are amp-driven and emit strong vibrations ideal for rhythmic, low frequency sounds. (2) A voltage-driven "piezoelectric" speaker, which is constructed with layers of stainless steel disks.

Following its initial debut, the underwater sound system generally was considered a specialized, luxury feature. Its use was restricted to institutional arenas, such as space training, naval research and synchronized swimming.

Today, manufacturers say the market has evolved, but contractors and designers haven't caught onto the new demand.

"A lot of times, in the home market, the person who's having the pool built will do the legwork and tell the contractor, 'Contact these guys and get these speakers,'" says one Ohio manufacturer. "Considering the number of pool contractors out them, they just don't know that underwater sound is an option and that people want it."

Many pool designers and builders agree. "We load the pools up with everything, and sound had never been something we discussed," says Paul Benedetti, vice president of operations at Aquatic Technology Pool & Spa in Morgan Hill, Calif.

"But about two years ago, one of the high-end travel magazines had an article about resorts like Four Seasons [that] were starting to install sound, and one of my clients brought it up with me.

"It tends to be clients who are over the top with their entertaining or who want it for the functionality of swimming laps," Benedetti adds. "But now I include it on my checklist of items I want to address with the client."

For people who participate in home exercise, lap swimming can be boring and tedious, according to a Colorado manufacturer. "When you can keep cadence with music just like a jogger, you can time yourself and do exercise," he says. In the last couple of years, he has seen a hundredfold increase in the number of orders he receives for tactile sound-based speakers.

He and other manufacturers have seen underwater sound used in many venues. "The newest market we've had is people who want to listen to the news or music while they're swimming in place in the endless pools," says another manufacturer.

The feedback

Despite this growth, some builders are skeptical about the value of installing an underwater sound system. "I haven't had anyone call me yet to say it's falling apart or that they hate it, but I haven't had anyone say they love it either," says Brian Van Bower, president of Aquatic Consultants Inc., a Miami pool/spa design and consulting firm.

His company has installed several sound systems over the past five years, both in pools and spas. Underwater sound is slow to spread industrywide, says Van Bower, who is also president of Genesis 3.

"I don't want to say it's a big trend because I can't say we've had an onslaught of people asking for it," Van Bower says. "Sometimes I find that things have to become commonplace for people to want them, and I don't think underwater speakers have done that yet. Maybe not enough people know about speakers."