The best technology doesn't ask people to change the way they live, work or create. It fits naturally into the moments that matter, making experiences feel simpler, more intuitive and more enjoyable.
That philosophy guided the development of JBL BandBox, an all-in-one, AI-powered practice amp and speaker designed to help musicians learn, practice, rehearse and create.
At HARMAN, meaningful innovation starts with understanding how people experience technology in their everyday lives, and that starts with our world class employees. The Bandbox team turned to musicians across HARMAN whose real-world experiences helped shape how BandBox supports the way people learn, practice and create.
From Vision to Reality
When the team began developing Bandbox, the goal wasn't simply to create another portable practice amplifier. It was to rethink how musicians learn, practice and rehearse.
As Richard Metcalfe, Senior Director, Product Innovation at HARMAN, explained, the goal behind BandBox was to, "change the way you play, practice and rehearse music." That meant designing BandBox to support musicians wherever inspiration struck. As Richard put it, "The technology doesn't get in the way."
Designing Around the Way Musicians Play
Among the HARMAN employees who shared their real-world experiences throughout BandBox's development was Brian Schultz, Senior Director, Global Operations. With nearly 40 years at HARMAN dedicated to bringing great sound to life and decades spent playing guitar in a rock cover band, Brian brought a unique perspective to how BandBox could better support musicians in everyday moments.
Drawing on both his professional expertise and personal experience as a musician, Brian believed HARMAN had an opportunity to create a more complete practice experience. For him, that meant delivering more than great guitar tones. It also meant creating an all-in-one experience musicians could rely on whether they were practicing or streaming music.
As Brian explained, "A new product from HARMAN naturally would have to also have good amplifier tones and effects, but it also had to sound very good as a Bluetooth streaming speaker."
Innovation Shaped by Real Moments
Some of the most valuable insights came not from a lab, but from everyday life. While testing an early version of BandBox Solo, Brian packed it, a guitar cable and headphones into his gig bag for a vacation, allowing him to travel with everything he needed to practice.
Once he arrived, he quickly created clean and distortion presets, connected his iPad and practiced quietly with headphones. Reflecting on that experience, Brian shared, "I was able to stream the songs from my iPad and 'practice silently' in the timeshare/hotel. I also used the Solo with its internal speakers and was impressed with the sound quality of both the streamed music and the guitar tone coming from such a small device."
Those moments reinforced how thoughtful design can let musicians spend less time managing equipment and more time playing.
Solving Real-World Challenges
One feature, in particular, changed the way Brian approached practice. BandBox's STEMAI vocal and instrument separation technology allows musicians to reduce or remove guitar parts from recorded songs, making it easier to play along.
Brian admitted the STEMAI vocal and instrument separation technology was not initially what drew him to BandBox. As he put it, "The STEM ability wasn't initially a 'need' for me, but after using it to 'remove' the recorded guitar, I found it pretty fun just to hear 'just me' doing the guitar parts."
The value became even clearer when Brian thought about his band's lead guitarist, who struggles to rehearse alongside recorded guitar tracks because the parts differ from the way he performs them live. After hearing about the STEMAI vocal and instrument separation technology, "He thought that would be the perfect tool for him to practice without the 'band being there' that he normally requires."
Sometimes innovation isn't about introducing something entirely new. It's about solving familiar challenges in ways that make the experience more natural and enjoyable.
Building Technology Around People
Brian's story reflects how BandBox came to life: shaped by real musicians, refined through authentic feedback and designed around the way people actually play. When innovation is informed by real experiences, the result is technology that fits naturally into everyday life and helps people spend more time doing what they love.
Across HARMAN, employees bring more than technical expertise to their work. They also bring the perspectives of musicians, creators and music lovers who understand firsthand how technology fits into everyday life.
