The Netherlands - As Community Professional Loudspeakers celebrates 50 years of offering innovative loudspeaker solutions, it’s what hasn’t changed over all those years that really sets the company apart. Founded by Bruce Howze in 1968 to develop concert-worthy loudspeakers that were both powerful and lightweight, Community is now a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of professional loudspeakers for installed applications. As the company evolved its market focus from tour sound to MI and now to install, Howze’s technical leadership has been the one constant throughout. About those early days, Howze recalls, “Everyone was making horns from wood, sheet metal or cast iron. We thought fiberglass would be an ideal material for small runs. It was lightweight, strong, portable and relatively easy to mold to shape. We could make horns that were far more acc
USA - Bose Professional debuted the S1 Pro multi-position PA system at NAMM 2018 in Los Angeles. An all-in-one PA, floor monitor, practice amplifier and primary music system, it’s the latest addition to the Bose portable professional product line. Designed for singer-songwriters, DJs, other musicians and general PA use, and drawing upon the award-winning technology developed for the Bose L1 and F1 portable loudspeaker systems, the S1 Pro allows users to sound great anywhere. At only 15 lbs (6.8 kg) and with dimensions of 13" x 9.5" x 11.2" (330 x 241 x 286 mm) (easily fitting in an airplane’s overhead compartment), the ultra-portable and rugged S1 Pro is lightweight and designed for effortless transport using the convenient carry-handle. The S1 Pro is engineered to be used in four different positions to accommodate a wide range of applications – tilt-back,
UK - Allen & Heath has announced Dante Domain Manager support for its dLive and GLD digital mixing systems via the M-Dante audio networking card, further widening their use in install applications. All new Allen & Heath M-Dante cards will be supplied DDM-ready. Existing cards can be made DDM-ready by updating to V4 firmware, available from the Allen & Heath website. The M-Dante audio networking card can be fitted to any Allen & Heath dLive system or GLD mixer to provide a 64x64 Dante interface. Nic Beretta, Allen & Heath’s head of product marketing comments: “We always strive to make our products as integrated as possible within an installation. Dante Domain Manager is an excellent solution for many of our customers. As soon as we heard about it, we put things in motion to be among the first manufacturers to release V4 Dante firmware with DDM s
USA - With the launch of the evolution wireless G4 series and two new XS Wireless 1 Dual Sets, audio specialist Sennheiser is bringing a wide portfolio of new wireless solutions to NAMM. Meanwhile, leading studio microphone manufacturer Neumann is presenting a re-issue of the U 67, the quintessential studio workhorse of the 1960s. The Sennheiser and Neumann booth is once again continuing its tradition of presenting a diverse roster of musical talent. This year’s artists performing on the booth stage include singer-songwriter Rie Sinclair, contemporary roots duo The Talbott Brothers, and many more. Alongside evolution wireless G4 and the XSW 1 Dual Sets, both available from April, Sennheiser is showcasing upgrades to its Digital 6000 wireless microphone system as well as the AMBEO portfolio, with immersive audio workshops also held at the booth (daily at 10.30 a
Europe - Yamaha has released the two latest models in the popular STAGEPAS line-up of portable PA systems - STAGEPAS 400BT and 600BT. These updated versions are the successors of the STAGEPAS 400i and 600i, which have sold over 400,000 units worldwide and enjoy a reputation as a very compact, yet high-powered, portable all-in-one sound system with exceptional sound quality. With the addition of Bluetooth audio streaming to the high-efficiency amplifiers, speakers, state-of-the-art Yamaha DSP and comprehensive suite of onboard features, the new STAGEPAS will expand the system's already versatile capabilities for an even broader spectrum of uses. Both the 400BT and 600BT feature two sleek, lightweight speakers and a detachable powered mixer, along with a pair of speaker cables and a power cord, giving users a complete, portable sound solution that can be set up qu
USA - At the 2018 NAMM Show this week, Sensaphonics continues its tradition of promoting hearing wellness in music through innovative products and technology. An expert staff of Gold Circle audiologists will be on hand (Booth #12111, Hall A) to answer hearing health questions, and to provide attendees free ear impressions with purchase of any custom-fit product, from IEMs to the popular Musician Earplugs. Another booth highlight will be hands-on product demonstrations of the 3D-U AARO in-ear system in surround sound. The universal-fit Active Ambient IEM system, the retail-friendly 3D-U AARO is nominated for a 2018 TEC Award. In addition to free ear impressions, Sensaphonics will offer special NAMM pricing on all custom silicone models, including 3D AARO, 3MAX, 2MAX, and 2X-S. Sensaphonics soft silicone designs are documented to offer the highest isolation for the lowe
USA - The Adam Hall Group is set to premiere a series of commercial product launches at this week’s show. LD Systems MAUI P900, first shown at Prolight + Sound 2017 in Frankfurt, is a column PA design concept developed in collaboration with the renowned Porsche Design Studio. The resulting industry feedback revealed that the new pro audio concept completely re-defines the boundaries between engineering, art and design. The MAUI P900 will now be officially launched to the marketplace at the Winter NAMM Show. With several international design and product awards to its name (including the German Design Award), this PA system combines state-of-the-art technology in an iconic design with exclusive materials making it truly groundbreaking in the pro audio scene, says the company. The MAUI 5 GO is the battery-powered version of the MAUI 5, the award-winning ultra-port
USA - German manufacturer d&b audiotechnik is exhibiting for the first time at NAMM at the Anaheim Convention Centre this week. This year’s theme for the show, ‘Believe in Music’, makes NAMM an appropriate place to preview the d&b Soundscape and the DS100 signal engine, says the company. These two innovations from d&b allow for a completely new auditory experience that “bridges the gap between the physics of loudspeaker system design and the creation of artistic material - an experience you must hear to believe”. d&b will be running multiple demo sessions each day of the show at room 18820, offering visitors the chance to hear how d&b Soundscape and the DS100 signal engine perform. Guests will have the opportunity to experience listening “that is no longer defined by physics alone, but by the unlimited power of the imagination”.
The Netherlands - Bringing its next-generation Audio over IP technology to large-scale retail, hospitality and corporate music applications, Barix will unveil its new Retail Player solution on stand 8-K255 at the upcoming ISE 2018 show. The company’s newest multi-channel background music streaming solution, the future-friendly Retail Player system combines robust hardware endpoints with an intuitive, web-based management portal while defining a cost-effective new price point for deployments spanning large numbers of sites. “For customers wanting to deliver streaming background music and messages across a high number of locations, budget restrictions and price sensitivity have often led them to use consumer-grade players that lack the reliability and usability of dedicated solutions,” said Reto Brader, vice president of sales and marketing, Barix. “Our new Retail Pla
The Netherlands - At ISE 2018 Stand 7.P-200, German manufacturer Lawo will focus on its IP-based signal processing and control solutions, namely the Power Core Audio Processor, the VisTool GUI Builder and the VSM control and monitoring solution. The Power Core is a networked 19”/1RU Audio Processing Unit with unprecedented processing capacity providing 96 fully equipped DSP channels, 80 summing busses and a 1,920x1,920 routing matrix. The eight rear side slots accept any variety of IO cards for Mic, Line, AES, MADI and headphone interfaces in addition the unit’s IP and MADI connectivity. Besides standard audio processing like dynamics and EQs, Power Core also features advanced audio assist systems like one-touch AutoGain and 32 instances of AutoMix for automatically maintaining the balance of open mics. The included touch-screen software VisTool allows for routing
The Netherlands - Elation Professional is taking momentum from a very successful 2017 to the ISE show in Amsterdam with a number of cutting-edge products set to inspire at Stand 12-F50. From Elation’s award-winning Artiste series of creative, full-featured moving heads comes the Artiste Picasso, an innovative and inspirational theatrical-grade luminaire that connects art to engineering. The Artiste Picasso is a rare combination of brightness and features in an LED light. One of the brightest and most feature-rich profile LED lighting fixtures on the market today, it is a high-output (22,000 lumens), feature-packed (zoom, framing, CMY, CTO, gobo wheels, animation, prisms, frost and more) yet compact profile light featuring a new high-power 600W Cool White LED engine. Making its European debut at ISE will be the Smarty Hybrid, a full featured spot, beam and wash fixtur
Europe - Cross 3 is a new high-performance cable protection product launched by Penn Elcom. Described as tough, durable and fire-retardant, the product is suitable for festivals, concerts, shows, events or exhibitions. Cross 3, the first product in this new series, was revealed to the public earlier this week at the CUE 2018 expo in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It’s a three channel ‘crossover’ product manufactured from Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU), chosen for its strength, high resistance to abrasion, flexibility and recyclability. All elements of the Cross 3 product - top and base - are fire retardant and compliant to DIN EN 13501-1. Penn Elcom has been developing Cross 3 over the last year based on extensive research and communication related to event industry demands for portable cable protection. (Jim Evans)
USA - ADJ is set to introduce eight new products at NAMM. Those are: a moving head wash, a blinder, a ‘dim-to-warm’ pinspot, an illuminated lighting stand, two all white housing fixtures, a POW-R BAR and a new addition to the American Audio range of wireless mics. Expanding the Vizi Series of professional-calibre moving heads, the new Vizi Wash Pro is ADJ’s most powerful wash fixture to date. Powered by 19 x 30W RGBW Osram LEDs and boasting motorized zoom that offers a beam angle of between 5 and 50 degrees, “this potent fixture is equally suited to tight mid-air beam effects as it is to far-reaching wash lighting”. The Encore Burst 200 will also be showcased for the first time at this year’s NAMM. This innovative new addition to ADJ’s Encore Series of professional stage lighting fixtures is a dual blinder unit featuring high intensity 110W COB warm white
USA - NAMM 2018 marks the introduction of GigaCore 10, the first truss-adaptable switch in the GigaCore family. The 19-inch half unit can be mounted in truss, on a wall or in a single or double rack. In addition to the GigaCore 10 introduction, Luminex will be presenting the new GigaCore v2.6.1 firmware bringing some major improvements on PTP, PoE management and network monitoring. With the constant growth of Audio over IP solutions, Luminex has enhanced the performance of the Precision Time Protocol handling, especially with applications running AES67. PoE handling now offers advanced power management settings allowing users to select between class-based consumption and class based allocation providing even more flexibility when connecting PoE devices such as cameras or PoE loudspeakers. “The recent expansion of Winter NAMM gives us the perfect venue to introduce so
The Netherlands - Cadac will launch its MegaCOMMS platform at ISE. MegaCOMMS enables mixing, control and networking of multi-channel studio quality audio, across networks of up to 3072 channels of time-aligned, phase-coherent audio, at distances of up to two kilometres. MegaCOMMS’ ‘total through-system propagation delay’ - from on-stage inputs to outputs (including all console processing, A-D / D-A conversions and three stage internal latency management) - is less than 400 microseconds (millionths of a second). Additionally, the MegaCOMMS protocol synchronizes all audio samples before summing, for absolute phase coherency at every output. At the heart of the MegaCOMMS network is the software programmable CDC MC Router. The 2U 12 port MegaCOMMS router is a powerful tool for creating large, resilient networked audio systems, comprising up to 12 separate MegaCOMMS d
The Netherlands - ARX Systems is adding to its range of Dante enabled products with the release of the new NetSplit Audio Distribution Splitter on their Booth Number 6 - E160 at ISE 2018 next month in Amsterdam. The new NetSplit Dante Digital-to-Analogue Distribution Splitter extracts audio from the Dante protocol network and converts it to studio-quality, transformer-isolated, low-latency analogue audio suitable for connection to multiple amplifiers, powered loudspeaker arrays, mixing consoles and other analogue audio devices using standard Ethernet hardware and cabling. Extending operating flexibility, the NetSplit can be operated in either of two input modes, Dante or analogue. In Dante Mode, it will extract two channels of digital audio from the network via a RJ45 Ethernet input, and split them to two channels of 1:4 splitter/distribution amplifier. In Analogue Mod
USA - sE Electronics has announced the RNT, a premium large-diaphragm multi-pattern tube condenser microphone created in collaboration with Rupert Neve Designs. “All in all, the RNT brings the larger-than-life sounds of classic tube mics into the modern age with greater depth and clarity than ever before.” The RNT is the third microphone in the collaboration between sE Electronics and Rupert Neve Designs, founded by audio designer Mr. Rupert Neve. From sE: “Much like the RNR1 Active Ribbon and RN17 Small-Diaphragm Condenser, the RNT is something truly special, developed over several years of careful listening and measurement by Mr. Rupert Neve, Mr. Siwei Zou, and the engineering teams from both companies. “The partnership between sE Electronics and Rupert Neve Designs is an extension of the great friendship between the two founders. This elegantly different tub
USA - Funktion-One is marking its debut appearance at The NAMM Show with the launch of a new bass enclosure - the F124. Building on design-thinking first utilised for Funktion-One’s powerful F132 horn-loaded bass, the new F124 “takes the company’s bass loading and driver technology to a new level”. Funktion-One co-founder Tony Andrews says that the new enclosure marks the next logical step in bass speaker development: “With the 32-inch F132, we introduced something unique to the market: transient in the sub frequencies, as far down as 25Hz. From there, we felt there was potential to go further by using the knowledge we’d gained when developing the F132 to create a 24-inch bass speaker.” By re-visiting a 24-inch frame and tooling they had developed during a previous R&D phase, the basis of the new enclosure quickly fell into place. To create th
The Netherlands - The CRMSC-SRHV reference surround is a 2-way passive-filtered full range loudspeaker, designed to meet all requirements of current and future immersive surround sound formats for studios, screening rooms and high-end residential cinemas. Featuring the patented Alcons pro-ribbon driver technology, the CRMSC-SRHV surround combines” an exceptional clarity and intelligibility with an unusually high dynamic range, offering the most realistic sound reproduction possible”. The CRMSC-SRHV system consists of one RBN202 pro-ribbon driver for HF and a vented 6.5" mid-bass for LF reproduction. The CRMSC-SRHV HF section has an 500 W peak power input, enabling a 1:16 dynamic range with up to 90% less distortion from 1 kHz to beyond 20 kHz. The CRMSC-SRHV is designed as matching (height layer) surround system for the CRMSC system: By utilizing identical M
UK - Tourflex Cabling is showcasing products from its extensive range of specialist cable assembly solutions, at PLASA Focus Glasgow 2018 this week. Visit stand C2 to see their comprehensive display of power, signal & multicore cable assembly options used by rental and production companies, venues and installers in the live touring, theatre, events, architainment, architectural and film and TV industries. The brand's cabling solutions are also being used on the adjacent A.C. Entertainment Technologies stand to provide power, signal & multicore for all lighting, rigging, audio & video equipment showcased. Tourflex Cabling recently launched a new website to showcase the thousands of options available, and has invested heavily in testing equipment so that every cable assembly manufactured in-house conforms to the high build quality customers re
USA - Powersoft has announced that it will participate in this year’s NAMM convention in Anaheim, California for the first time since its inaugural appearance 13 years ago. Powersoft arrives at the 2018 NAMM show on the heels of significant gains in market share in 2017 around the globe. In addition to showcasing its range of amplification products, Powersoft will host training sessions at its booth and offer discount coupons for participants as part of a new marketing initiative with Rational Acoustics, makers of Smaart measurement software. In the interest of helping its growing roster of international users take full advantage of their Powersoft products, the Powersoft NAMM booth will play host to three daily demonstrations focusing on the latest features packed into the newly updated Armonía Pro Audio Suite version 2.11. The demos, taking place each day of the c
The Netherlands - Atlona is set to unveil its next generation of compact, affordable and energy-efficient amplifiers in the Atlona stand (5-U80) at ISE 2018 next month. Available in three models, the new Gain Series of Energy Star qualified power amplifiers provide custom installers and commercial AV integrators with flexible options for speaker amplification. All three models – the Gain 60 (AT-GAIN-60), Gain 120 (AT-GAIN-120) and Gain 120NET (AT-GAIN-120NET) – offer low- and high-impedance outputs, RS-232 and Ethernet control, front panel metering and convection cooling. The availability of dual-impedance operation is significant as integrators and designers can manage a simplified inventory, or quickly specify the proper amplifier optimized for either program speakers or distributed speaker systems. “The Gain Series is designed to give our installers seve
USA - Elation Professional has introduced three new lighting control products designed to ease communication, optimise functionality and increase compatibility of intelligent lighting systems. The 4CAST DMX Bridge is a compact four-universe wireless device which seamlessly bridges WiFi, Art-Net, sACN, and E-FLY (Elation’s wireless DMX solution) signals to wirelessly control compatible DMX devices, a solution for small production events, nightclubs, bars or any event or venue which requires hidden data cables. The eNode2 POE is a compact two-universe Ethernet-DMX node powered over Ethernet (POE) that supports Art-Net compatible DMX control systems utilizing a single RJ45 auto-switching 10/100Mbps Neutrik etherCON input and two multi-configuration 5pin Neutrik DMX data outputs. Features include DMX bilateral conversion support, a 4-button control panel, an OLED system
The Netherlands - ETC will showcase a selection of its versatile and scalable architectural lighting control solutions at ISE 2018. Stand 15-R260 will be dedicated to a collection of reliable, well-supported and easy-to-maintain architectural systems from ETC – designed to suit installations of all sizes and budgets – from a single room to office complexes, large museums, convention centres and entire theme parks. Designed as a new way of thinking about building control, ETC’s visionary Unison Paradigm system fuses architectural lighting control advances with entertainment lighting control technology. Making its debut at ISE, Paradigm version 4.0 boasts several additional features, including energy management monitoring and display, colour control support for conversion to RGBA and RGBW, and comprehensive Paradigm Inspire support in LightDesigner. The Uni
