Soft dB
Soft dB is a Quebec-based acoustics and vibration technology company that designs adaptive sound masking systems, real-time noise and vibration monitoring stations, industrial noise control products, and precision acoustic instruments for enterprise customers across corporate, healthcare, government, mining, and financial services segments in 45 countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1994
- HeadquartersQuebec, Canada
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Soft dB does
Soft dB is a Quebec-based acoustics and vibration technology company that designs, manufactures, and installs sound masking systems, environmental noise and vibration monitoring stations, industrial noise control products, and precision acoustic measuring instruments, while also delivering professional acoustics and vibration consulting services. The firm's flagship offerings include an adaptive sound masking system with multizone controllers, networked speakers, and management software that automatically adjusts masking volume and equalization to ambient conditions, plus the Watch Monitoring Station and web platform for 24/7 real-time environmental compliance tracking using geophones, MEMS accelerometers, and Class 1 sound level meters. The technology base is supported by a portfolio of seven US patents covering auto-adjusting masking, loudspeaker failure detection, vibration monitoring, sound recognition, and AI-based noise discrimination, with the company's 100+ acoustics specialists contributing to ASTM E33, ASTM E33.02, LEED, and WELL standards committees.
Soft dB generates revenue through hardware sales of controllers, speakers, monitoring stations, sensors, acoustic enclosures, construction noise barriers, and DSP boards; professional consulting across environmental, industrial, architectural, vibration, and aeroacoustic disciplines; and rental of monitoring equipment. Pricing is custom-quoted with multi-year contracts and supported by an ROI calculator that quantifies office construction cost savings of up to $3 per square foot from reduced soundproofing requirements. Customers span corporate offices, healthcare facilities, law firms, call centers, hotels and casinos, industrial and mining operations, green buildings, and financial services, with named enterprise logos including Canadian Malartic Mine, National Defence Headquarters, New Balance World Headquarters, Partners Healthcare, Akamai Technologies, CAE, and Financeit.
Distribution operates through a hybrid model: 17 directly owned offices across Canada and the United States drive enterprise field sales in North America, while a network of 50+ certified distributors in 45 countries extends reach into Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. An Integrators Program recruits system integrators and low-voltage contractors to bundle Soft dB systems with their technology offerings. The company is privately held and operates independently with no disclosed external investors or parent company.
Soft dB firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Soft dB
- Legal name
- Systèmes de contrôle Actif Soft dB inc.
- Website
- https://softdb.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1994
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Soft dB is a Quebec-based acoustics and vibration technology company that designs adaptive sound masking systems, real-time noise and vibration monitoring stations, industrial noise control products, and precision acoustic instruments for enterprise customers across corporate, healthcare, government, mining, and financial services segments in 45 countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Soft dB industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Acoustics and Noise Control Solutions
- NAICS
- Audio and Video Equipment Manufacturing (33431), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451)
- SIC
- Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Acoustic & Soundproofing Works (IMAFANAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Microphones, Headsets & Audio Input Devices (HDACAFAH)
Keywords
Where Soft dB is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Quebec
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices17 records
Markets served
Soft dB business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Sound Masking Systems: Sale of complete sound masking systems including controllers, speakers, and management software. Systems are sold through direct sales and channel partners with professional installation services.
- Noise & Vibration Monitoring Equipment: Sale of monitoring stations, sensors, geophones, accelerometers, and sound level meters. Includes real-time web platform access for data analysis.
- Industrial Noise Control Products: Sale of modular acoustic enclosures, construction noise barriers, and custom acoustic blankets for industrial machinery.
- Measuring Instruments: Sale of precision measurement instruments including Class 1 and Class 2 sound level meters, noise and vibration analyzers, sound intensity probes, and room acoustics software.
- Acoustics & Vibration Consulting Services: Professional consulting services for environmental noise, industrial acoustics, vibration control, architectural acoustics, and aeroacoustics. Includes noise monitoring services and equipment rental.
- DSP Boards: Specialized digital signal processing boards sold through dedicated distributors for integration into third-party systems.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Enterprise sound masking systems with full-feature capabilities |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Soft dB product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Soft dB designs, manufactures, and sells proprietary acoustic and vibration solutions, including adaptive sound masking systems (controllers, speakers, management software) for office speech privacy, noise and vibration monitoring stations and sensors with a web-based analytics platform, industrial noise control products such as modular acoustic enclosures and construction noise barriers, precision measuring instruments (sound level meters, microphones, analyzers, room acoustics software), and DSP boards. The company also delivers professional consulting services across environmental noise, industrial acoustics, vibration control, architectural acoustics, aeroacoustics, and acoustical imagery.
Product overview
Soft dB is an acoustics and vibration technology company offering a portfolio of integrated products and services for noise control and acoustic comfort. The core offering includes an adaptive Sound Masking System (with controllers, speakers, and management software) for office speech privacy, a Noise & Vibration Monitoring platform (with sensors, monitoring stations, and web platform) for environmental compliance, Industrial Noise Control solutions (acoustic enclosures and barriers), and Measuring Instruments (sound level meters, analyzers, microphones, and room acoustics software). The company also provides consulting services across environmental, industrial, architectural, and vibration acoustics. The products are sold through direct offices and a global distributor network spanning over 45 countries.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Sound Masking System
Quantifiable outcome
- 10,000,000 ft2 of office sound masking installed each year
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Soft dB
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Soft dB technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability9 records
Feature8 records
Soft dB partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and regional.
- Sage Technologies (California, Arizona, Washington, Michigan)corePrimary US distributor for sound masking systems covering California (Manhattan Beach, Chandler), Arizona, Washington (Bellevue), and Michigan (Walled Lake) markets.
- Scantek (Columbia, MD)coreAuthorized distributor for sound masking products in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.
- Soft dB DSP Boards DistributorscoreDistributors for DSP Boards covering all of Canada and United States markets.
- S&V Samford (Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Taiwan)coreMajor distributor for China (Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen), Hong Kong, and Taiwan markets with multiple office locations.
- Soundmasking Brazil / Omni AcústicaregionalDistributors serving the Brazilian market for sound masking and acoustic solutions.
- 45dB Systems (Sydney, Australia)regionalAuthorized distributor for sound masking solutions in Australia.
- Dezibel-Werk GmbH (Düsseldorf, Germany)regionalDistributor for sound masking and acoustic solutions in Germany.
- Sound Directions / Resonics (London, UK)coreUK distributors covering the London market for sound masking solutions.
- Granteq (Dubai, UAE)regionalDistributor for sound masking and acoustic solutions in the UAE and Middle East region.
- Matiza International Consulting Engineers (Harare, Zimbabwe)regionalAuthorized distributor for sound masking solutions in Zimbabwe.
- Morosini (Belgium, Luxembourg)regionalDistributor for sound masking products in Belgium and Luxembourg markets.
- SoftdB Expert (Arnhem, Netherlands)regionalDistributor for sound masking solutions in the Netherlands market.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Soft dB competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Biamp Systems: Biamp acquired Cambridge Sound Management in 2018, making it the largest direct competitor in networked sound masking and a broader commercial AV incumbent that bundles sound masking with paging, conferencing, and audio solutions for enterprise customers.
- Dynacord (Bosch): Bosch-owned Dynacord and Electro-Voice serve professional/commercial audio and offer sound masking-adjacent capabilities as part of larger installed-sound portfolios, competing with Soft dB in mid-market enterprise.
- Shure Incorporated: Shure is a dominant professional audio incumbent producing microphones, conferencing systems, and integrated AV solutions; while not a direct sound masking competitor, it competes for the same enterprise AV budget that Soft dB addresses via system integrators.
Direct peers
- Lencore Acoustics Corp. Lencore is a direct competitor focused on networked sound masking and paging systems for commercial offices, healthcare, and government facilities, with comparable zoning, equalization, and speech-privacy use cases to Soft dB.
- AtlasIED (Atlas Sound): AtlasIED manufactures commercial audio, mass notification, and sound masking products for healthcare, education, and corporate environments, overlapping with Soft dB's paging, masking, and zoning capabilities.
- Brüel & Kjær (HBK): Brüel & Kjær is a global leader in sound level meters, vibration analyzers, and environmental noise monitoring instruments, competing directly with Soft dB's Class 1 sound level meters, Mezzo analyzers, and Watch monitoring stations.
- Cirrus Research plc: Cirrus Research manufactures Class 1 and Class 2 sound level meters, noise dosimeters, and environmental measurement instruments, directly competing with Soft dB's Piccolo2, Mezzo, and Class 1 SAS product lines.
- PCB Piezotronics: PCB Piezotronics is a leading manufacturer of vibration sensors (accelerometers, geophones) and monitoring systems, directly comparable to Soft dB's Triaxial MEMS Accelerometer, geophone, and industrial vibration monitoring offerings.
- Mason Industries: Mason Industries manufactures vibration isolation and industrial noise control products, including acoustic blankets and machinery isolation, closely overlapping with Soft dB's modular acoustic enclosures and industrial soundproofing blankets.
Regional players
- Soundmask (Australia): Soundmask specializes in sound masking for Australian and Asia-Pacific commercial markets; Soft dB serves the same geographies via its Australia distributor (45dB Systems), making this a regional overlap for the same product category.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Soft dB social profiles
Digital presenceSoft dB financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Soft dB leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Soft dB funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Soft dB M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Soft dB
What does Soft dB do?
Soft dB designs, manufactures, and sells proprietary acoustic and vibration solutions, including adaptive sound masking systems (controllers, speakers, management software) for office speech privacy, noise and vibration monitoring stations and sensors with a web-based analytics platform, industrial noise control products such as modular acoustic enclosures and construction noise barriers, precision measuring instruments (sound level meters, microphones, analyzers, room acoustics software), and DSP boards. The company also delivers professional consulting services across environmental noise, industrial acoustics, vibration control, architectural acoustics, aeroacoustics, and acoustical imagery.
Is Soft dB a public or private company?
Soft dB is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Soft dB founded?
Soft dB was founded in 1994. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Soft dB based?
Soft dB is headquartered in Quebec, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Soft dB make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Sound Masking Systems are the primary driver. The others are noise & Vibration Monitoring Equipment, industrial Noise Control Products, measuring Instruments, acoustics & Vibration Consulting Services and DSP Boards.
Who are Soft dB's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Biamp Systems, Dynacord (Bosch) and Shure Incorporated. Direct peers are Lencore Acoustics Corp., AtlasIED (Atlas Sound), Brüel & Kjær (HBK), Cirrus Research plc, PCB Piezotronics and Mason Industries. Soundmask (Australia) is listed as a regional player.
Does Soft dB have an API?
No public API is recorded for Soft dB.
What industry is Soft dB in?
Soft dB's product category is Acoustics and Noise Control Solutions. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAFANAL, Acoustic & Soundproofing Works, with a secondary code of HDACAFAH, Microphones, Headsets & Audio Input Devices. Its NAICS code is 33431 and its SIC code is 3823.