SM500i-II Speaker // Jon Hart directed the design of the SM500i-II family of commercial loudspeakers while under the employment of SoundTube Entertainment (a subsidiary of MSE Audio).

The SM500i-II was designed as a refresh of SoundTube's already successful SM500i. Customers loved the way that the current speaker sounded, but after 7 years of service the line was ready for an update. SoundTube has strong relationships with its customers, and this means that over the years they have provided good quality feedback on several aspects of the design that had room for improvement.

Having just completed the launch of SoundTube's new SM8 series, Swarm already had researched the issues directly related to surface mount speakers used in diverse commercial installations. This information proved invaluable in informing the refresh of the SM500i. Swarm knew that for this product to be a success it would not only have to build on the already solid legacy of its predecessor, but also incorporate the lessons learned from the SM8 project.

Building on the design language developed for the SM8 series,  Swarm set out to implement a series of functional design improvements. The premier update was to develop a completely new, patent pending mounting system that is tool free, easy to use, robust, secure, and affordable. The new mounting system involved significant engineering and prototyping efforts by Swarm to ensure manufacturability and reliability. Swarm worked closely with the manufacturer throughout the manufacturing transfer process to make the design as robust as possible. 

The launch of the new SM500i-II (and its sister products the SM500i-II-WX, SM590i-II, and SM590i-II-WX) marks the expansion of SoundTube's new modular design language. The design refresh successfully met all of SoundTube's needs, and has been enthusiastically received by SoundTube's customers worldwide.