Kombo Audio and HLH Rapid Shake Copenhagen Grounds With Innovative Wireless Amp System

Dennis Sørensen, Founder and Head of R&D at Kombo Audio, and his team are the creative minds behind this innovative amp technology. They spent several years prototyping the product in-house, beginning in 2018, and in 2022 found HLH for their low-volume production needs to meet early demand.

1. Rapid ramp to production – no time to waste

HLH machined a single-cavity mould, a 1+1 (multi-cavity) mould, a 1+1+1 (multi-cavity) mould, and two 1*2 (multi-cavity) moulds, delivering a total of 5 tools to support 8 designs within a 3-week lead time. Within that time frame, HLH also laser-cut and black anodized 200 aluminium sheet metal speaker meshes and rear covers, and sourced multiple components (such as screws and light pipes) upon request for assembly.

2. Fine-tuning for manufacturability – “HLH helped us avoid some costly tooling mistakes”

At the outset of the collaboration, Kombo Audio approached us with a design that was nearly 90% ready for manufacturing. Our DFM (Design for Manufacturability) and tooling experts then worked closely with Dennis Sørensen and his team to bring the design to full manufacturability. This process included reducing rib sizes to avoid sink marks and increasing draft angles to prevent scratches during ejection. Dennis Sørensen pointed out how valuable this process was, saying, “HLH’s services were incredible and their in-depth analysis of the part design for manufacturing really helped us avoid some costly tooling mistakes.”

3. Quick-turn plastic injection moulding

Production of the injection-moulded parts took 10 days—slightly longer than HLH’s typical lead time but still impressively fast. This extended timeline was necessary to meet Kombo’s requirement of 200–500 parts per design, with sizes ranging from 80 × 80 × 9 mm to 205 × 245 × 97 mm, as well as additional post-processing steps like silk screening, without leaving out quality control (QC) checks and reports. “The fast turnaround by HLH was a real game-changer for us,” said Dennis.

4. Quality craftsmanship

Dimensional tolerancing, appearance, and durability are the most critical quality factors for Kombo Audio, all of which HLH has helped achieve through expert rapid tooling, injection moulding, and sheet metal fabrication, with the acoustic housings crafted by hand in Denmark. The positive reviews and feedback on the performance and design of the Kombo Audio system are a testament to this high standard of quality.

A partnership – Kombo Audio and HLH Rapid

Thanks to HLH’s rapid production capabilities, Kombo Audio successfully met early market demand for its innovative sound system. HLH also had the chance to see this success firsthand at Kombo’s Sound System Demo and Launch Event in Copenhagen. The entire partnership proved to be a resounding success. Dennis added, “We worked with HLH to manufacture our first product—and since then, I have recommended their service to every other hardware company i have come across!”

Highlights and results

✔ Provided in-depth DFM report and suggestions to take a 90% complete design to 100% readiness for manufacturing.
✔ Completed in-depth DFM analysis, tooling, and T1 samples within 3 weeks.
✔ Manufactured a total of 5 tools to support 8 designs.
✔ Precision laser-cut and black anodized 200 sets of sheet metal speaker meshes and rear covers.
✔ Delivered 4k+ parts (200 sets of speakers) in time for Kombo’s Demo and Launch Event in Copenhagen.

Looking to get your parts made with HLH? Send your CAD drawings and project details to info@hlhrapid.com, and our team will get back with a quote within 48 hours or less. Find out how other companies are using HLH Rapid to speed up innovation.