Celestion Presents an Interview with Paul Hales, Owner and CEO of Theory Professional

Lake Forest, CA  (September 16,  2025) —From its conception in 2018, Theory Professional knew that if they were going to bring real value to the commercial and professional installation market, that they needed to be different. With that as their inspiration, they quickly became renowned for providing unique, high-performance products with innovative form factors and a strong focus on sound quality. Celestion is pleased to present an exclusive interview with Paul Hales, Owner and CEO of Theory Professional, where he shares his love of music and early interest in designing and building audio equipment, his company’s unique philosophy, and their mission to disrupt the status quo.

Hales beginnings in pro audio stemmed from his love of music and his father’s background in hi-fi, who built things like Heathkits and speakers using JBL drivers. It really took off at age twelve when his little, all-in-one stereo broke. “My father suggested that I sell my drum set as my drumming was driving them crazy, and buy a real stereo. I received a good amount of money for the kit and spent $670 on a Hi-Fi system. It was 1977, so that was a pretty decent rig for a twelve-year-old. Then I was hooked,” he says.

“My interest in audio equipment grew from there. I designed and built my first speakers at 16, purposefully taking a woodwork class in high school to construct the cabinets. I even built my own crossovers,” shares Hales, “I loved the whole process, the concepts of engineering, industrial design, being able to style these things. That inspired me to go to college with the intent of starting a speaker business, and I tailored my coursework at UC Davis to loudspeaker applications.”

He founded his first company, Hales Design Group, in 1988, focusing on high-end audiophile products. However, Hales grew disillusioned with audiophile offerings, feeling that they were small, petite, and not capable of conveying the real power of live music. This led him to join QSC in 2000, establishing their loudspeaker R&D department. “I spent four years there designing professional loudspeakers with exceptional dynamic range that also sounded like hi-fi speakers,” Hales shares. “This is my unique value proposition and these same values now underpin Theory Professional, which extends this approach to broader commercial and professional applications.”

When discussing Theory Professional’s success, Hales states: “Our primary strength is our ability to achieve exceptional levels of accuracy in speakers.”  He emphasizes, “We set out to disrupt the status quo, and despite being a small team, we are executing at a very high level, leading to early success with high-end projects and rapid industry adoption.”

“Our products are entirely different; they are made from aluminum, feature high-end proprietary transducers, which Celestion supplies, and boast unique, compact, and shallow form factors.” He adds, “This, combined with hi-fi sound quality and high output, alongside a focus on superior design, has been very well-received by the market.”

Innovation is also evident in their streamlined product range. Hales explains: “Our general philosophy is to keep our product catalogue simple… A specific example of this is our ic6 Acoustic Core, a six-inch ceiling speaker that can also function as a pendant loudspeaker or a landscape loudspeaker when mounted in appropriate enclosures. This standardisation simplifies inventory and maintenance for our customers, allowing a single part to serve multiple audio needs.”

Looking ahead, Hales sees a strong future: “We believe our future lies primarily in the commercial install side of the business,” where “as a smaller business, our resilience and ability to quickly adapt to industry changes and customer demands gives us an advantage over larger companies. Our strong customer relationships and reliance on referrals also position us for continued growth.”

Click here to read the full interview with Paul Hales on the Celestion Speakerworld blog.

About Theory Professional

Commercial spaces are becoming increasingly more refined and sophisticated, but the audio products to address them have not kept up. Theory Professional is genuinely different. We address the premium audio niche head-on with a small stable of highly-refined, yet very high-utility loudspeakers, subwoofers, and amplified loudspeaker controllers that offer class-leading performance in every application – indoors and out. theoryprofessional.com

About Celestion
With worldwide headquarters in Ipswich, England, Celestion design, develop and manufacture high-quality professional audio loudspeakers and compression drivers for sound reinforcement, as well as premium guitar and bass guitar loudspeakers. These world-renowned speakers are used onstage and in clubs, theatres and other venues the world over. With more than 100 years of success, the company continues to offer the latest technologies and innovations in the world of loudspeakers. celestion.com