Cartier Coco

Devon Turnbull on Building His Cultish Handcrafted Speakers

Devon Turnbull, founder of Ojas, creates bespoke, hi-fi audio gear and speakers that are often commissioned and collected as pieces of art, with clients that include Virgil Abloh, Ace Hotel, and Public Records. Here, he tells us what goes into building a premium hi-fi system by hand and the audio heritage he’s trying to keep alive.

“For me, as an audio hobbyist interested in craftsmanship, the important thing early on was understanding exactly what was happening throughout the signal chain, on a materials and components level. Breaking those boxes open and seeing what’s going on inside of them, and what’s contributing to the sound in ways that I appreciate—or, in some cases, what’s taking the sound in a direction that I don’t want to go in. The opening of that box is a really important moment for me, looking at my whole system as a sort of assembly of parts, components, and materials, as opposed to just boxes of gear.

The philosophy that I design from is a very specific, niche world in hi-fi that’s based on early-to-mid-20th century audio technology, to serve a lineage that was started by Western Electric, which became a family of companies that are really the heritage of audio electronic engineering in America—they essentially invented and patented many of the fundamental building blocks that all audio reproduction is built on. Sound systems worked differently back then, and there’s a purity and transparency to the sound that people like myself really feel is unparalleled in modern audio electronics.

Basically, the core components are very, very low power amplifiers (which is what was possible in that era of tech), and for this you need a very efficient speaker. That’s something that can be a little counterintuitive to a lot of people—that a very efficient speaker is very large speaker. Very efficient speakers have big, heavy magnets and are also loaded with horns. The horn, just by nature, has to be a certain size in order to reproduce the necessary frequencies. It’s not designed to be large for the purposes of visual impact; if I could achieve what I’m trying to accomplish with a tiny speaker, I would be all for it.

Visually, one thing that I always try to stay true to is just making the products look like exactly what they are, exposing as much of the raw components as is practical and possible. And if plywood is the right material, acoustically, to use on the speaker, even when I’m painting the surface (which I often do) it should still just look like plywood; if it’s an aluminum horn, I’ll just mount that into the box. I like that things just look exactly like what they are. The way my friend who shares this aesthetic put it, you want the thing to look ‘not fancy but perfect.’ It’s a utilitarian, undesigned aesthetic.

Sometimes, I’m sourcing rare, desirable components, refurbishing and building them into a complete package that someone can use. As much as possible, I’m working with craftsmen who can reproduce these parts in a pure way. A lot of the work I do is involved in finding and developing relationships with these guys who are masters of their craft—and then trying to figure out how to keep these things alive, because in the last 20 years alone, a lot of the designers and craftsmen of these amazing and specific types of audio have literally died off, and you can’t just get this stuff anymore.

My work is made by hand, by me and maybe one other guy in my shop. A lot of mainstream hi-fi audio brands will claim or aspire to proprietary technology, and that’s basically counter to what’s inspired me. I love tried-and-true things that people have, for decades, been turning to for reliable, best-possible sound.”

Katy Bowman on Why “Movement Nutrition” Matters

Phaidon’s Emilia Terragni on the Media That Satiates Her Roving Curiosity

With “Open Questions,” Helen Molesworth Opens Up New Ways of Seeing Art

Stefan Sagmeister Finds Optimism in the Long View

How Stoicism Can Cultivate Joy

Spike Lee’s Prolific Career Gets the Spotlight, Naturally, in Brooklyn

Roxane Gay Balances Her Content Intake Between the Real and the Imagined

The Gossamer Glow of Jhumpa Lahiri’s “Roman Stories”

5 Exhibitions You Can’t Miss This Fall

Lindsey Bro on the Cathartic, Humanizing Effect of Bathing Rituals

At New York’s Climate Week, a “Climate Science Fair” Cultivates Optimism and Future-Forward Thinking

David W. Orr on the Inextricable Links Between Climate and Democracy

William Hanley on Media That Adds a Bit of Whimsy to the Everyday

A Dynamic, City-Defining Riverfront Park Grows in Memphis

The Vibrant, Kaleidoscopic Color Theory of Christopher John Rogers

Desiring Beauty, Even If It Kills Us

Eddie Stern on the Physiological and Spiritual Power of Pranayama

vanessa german on Art as a Way of Life and Love as a “Human Technology”

The Go-To Routines and Rituals of Daphne Javitch

Beverly Nguyen’s Highly Tactile Taste in Media

In “Look,” Christian Madsbjerg Celebrates the Slow, Patient Act of Observation

Sara Auster on Fine-Tuning Your Life Through Sound Therapy

A Herzog & de Meuron Exhibition Emphasizes Architecture as Collective, Not Egocentric

Priya Khanchandani on the Media That Inspires Her Curatorial Work

Vivian Rosenthal on the Profound Power of Holotropic Breathwork

Pedro Gadanho on How Architecture Must Adapt to Our Ecological Emergency

In “Ordinary Notes,” Christina Sharpe Weaves a Profound Portrait of Black Life

The Alchemy of David Adjaye’s Architecture

Millana Snow’s New Well-Being Plan

5 Exhibitions You Must See This Summer

Jaé Joseph on Broadening Notions of Luxury and Well-Being

The Poetic, Humanistic Architecture of Lina Ghotmeh

Chris Impey on the New Space Race and Exoplanet Habitation

Norman Teague on How He Keeps His Finger on the Pulse

With His Monumental Bronze Sculptures, Thomas J Price Honors the Everyday Features of Black Life

In “Not Too Late,” a Vital, Kaleidoscopic View on the Climate Crisis

From “WET” to “Wabi-Sabi”: Leonard Koren’s Adventurous Aesthetic Journey

Rachelle Robinett’s Science-Backed Approach to Herbalism

An Intellectual African Revolution Comes to the Venice Architecture Biennale

A Breathwork Practitioner Making Space for Black Women to Feel Free