Polk Audio's story begins in 1972 in Baltimore, Maryland, when three Johns Hopkins University graduates — physics major Matthew Polk, history student George Klopfer, and Sandy Gross — set out with just $200 in capital to build loudspeakers that delivered the most accurate, lifelike sound possible. Having previously built PA systems for local bluegrass and fiddlers' conventions, the trio moved into a sprawling, twenty-room 18th-century mansion on Notre Dame Lane, nicknamed "The Addams Family house," which served as both factory and living quarters for the founders and their families.

Working with tight budgets and a hands-on, in-house approach to design, the team developed a distinctive philosophy: combine the airy, refined mids and highs of European speaker design with the powerful, dynamic bass Matthew Polk felt was missing from the market. That vision came to life with the 1974 Monitor 7, which put Polk on the map in audiophile circles, followed by rapid growth — the company crossed $1 million in revenue within a year of hitting its stride, and Sandy Gross famously built the company's early distribution network by driving cross-country in his Volvo wagon.