INDUSTRY & PRODUCT NEWS

Ultimate Ears Pro Announces Second-Generation Capitol Studios In-Ear Monitors Tuned For Hi-Res Audio

Ultimate Ears Pro announced a renewed collaboration with Capitol Studios with the new UE Pro Reference Remastered custom in-ear monitors. This is the second such product launched in collaboration with the famous Hollywood studios. The UE Pro Referenced Remastered now feature True Tone Drivers with an extend frequency range, optimized for high-resolution audio material. Read More

Powersoft Promoted Successful M-System Subwoofer Technology Showcase

Italian amplifier manufacturer Powersoft "shook things up" with four exclusive in-person listening sessions in Los Angeles and San Francisco, CA. The presentation and the listening experience "Xperience the Power" explored what is possible in the low-frequency zone with Powersoft's next generation Class-D amplifiers and its M-System technology. Read More

G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration Legendary Founder Turns 90

The distinguished acoustic engineer Gunnar Rasmussen, who founded G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration, celebrated his 90th birthday. Gunnar Rasmussen founded G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration in 1994, at the age of 67, and continues to inspire with his extraordinary vision and guiding principles for the Danish measurement microphone specialist. Read More

Audio Precision Sponsors AES Scholarship Honoring the Legacy of Tom Kite

The Audio Engineering Society (AES) Educational Foundation has announced the establishment of "Advancing Audio - The Tom Kite Scholarship," offered to graduate student AES members who have a passion for advancing audio through innovation and technology development. The scholarship honors Kite's legacy of dedication to engineering excellence in audio and audio measurement, as well as his achievements within the AES and as Vice President of Engineering of Audio Precision. Read More

Paul Reed Smith Launches Digital Harmonic With Patented Image and Waveform Technology

Guitar maker Paul Reed Smith and a team of scientists and physicians have lunched a new image and sound waveform technology company called Digital Harmonic, LLC. The company intends to explore revolutionary medical applications for its patented image technology "Weds Mathematics and Physics to Medicine" to develop sharper X-Ray images with significantly less radiation exposure. Read More

Freescale Produces the First Record Album on a Silicon Wafer

Finding innovation in old places, Freescale Semiconductor has engineered a modern application for a classic music format - record albums. For the first time, an 8" silicon wafer was programmed and etched to play a music recording, just like a vinyl record album. Developed within the Freescale Discovery Lab, this retro project intends to demonstrate the unique expertise in the company's engineering and manufacturing facilities. Read More

Blue Introduces Lighter and Slimmer Lola Headphones

Blue decided to follow-up on the positive things achieved with its original Mo-Fi headphones and has now introduced Lola, dropping the built-in amplifier while maintaining the positive things from its radical form-fit design. Lola shares the same custom 50 mm drivers in a new lighter, slimmer design that enables enjoyment in comfort. Read More

New Actran 16 Release Delivers New Advances for Acoustic Response in Bigger Domains and for Higher Frequencies

Free Field Technologies (FFT), an MSC Software company, announced the release of Actran 16. The new release provides new audio and electroacoustic capabilities; acoustic propagation in huge domains and at high frequencies; new aeroacoustic modeling capabilities for fast virtual testing; and co-simulation with other MSC Software tools for multi-discipline analyses. The new release also introduces performance enhancements, including on graphical user interface (GUI) and its meshing tool. Read More

Jo�o

Martins

Editor-in-Chief

Editor's Desk

A New Year High Resolution

For the past two years, I've lost count of the number of articles we've published dedicated to High-Resolution Audio (HRA), HRA Music, and HRA streaming services and formats. While recording in high resolution is not exactly something new, if we consider the recently published definition of HRA as material "mastered from better than CD quality at 48 kHz/20 bit or higher", we know that's not exactly what the majority of us experiences in our daily lives. And the problem is not with getting those HRA files. The truth is, the whole audio industry understands the challenges of accurately translating HRA at the consumer level.

While even low-budget home recording equipment is currently able to record uncompressed WAV files at 24 bit/96 kHz, the professional audio community understands that we still need to upgrade much of the studio audio chain to correctly master for the additional level of information stored in those files - including the loudspeakers used to monitor in the studio.

Until very recently, the vast majority of studio productions were actually "mastered for CD" quality from the recorded higher resolution material - very often processed and mixed using digital tools and classic analog audio equipment, which we all know is not exactly "high resolution." And even if the master files can be mixed and remastered for high resolution, there's still the challenge of knowing which format and end-user playback system we should be targeting.

Mark Waldrep is Professor of Audio Recording at the CSUDH, California State University. He has been working professionally as a recording engineer and media producer with extensive experience on high-resolution audio.

With consumers actually able to get high-resolution audio files in multiple flavors and formats and the perspective of streaming HRA soon to be a reality, the industry needs to upgrade both the studio tools and the systems available for consumers to enjoy the additional quality. And of course, there's a variety of challenges to correctly design, measure, and evaluate those new-generation systems, including truly understanding the consumer experience and response to high-resolution audio, both using loudspeakers and headphones.

That's the main topic under discussion at the forthcoming Association of Loudspeaker Manufacturing & Acoustics (ALMA) International Symposium & Expo 2016, now fast approaching - January 3-4, 2016, at The Tuscany Suites & Casino, in Las Vegas, NV.

The ALMA International Symposium & Expo (AISE), promoted every year in Las Vegas, and just preceding the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), is the most important event of the year for loudspeaker and electro-acoustic professionals. For 2016, the ALMA Symposium theme will be "Hi-Res Audio: A Bridge to Build or a Bridge Too Far?" The topic seeks to provide a vibrant and interactive forum to discuss the challenges, opportunities and risks attached to HRA. The Symposium will seek to cover the subject from the technical as well as the business perspective.

Dr. Mark Waldrep (AIX Media Group - AMG) will deliver the Keynote Address, "The Myth of High-Resolution Audio/Music," on Sunday evening, January 3, 2016. The same day, Patents and Intellectual Property specialist J. Andrew McKinney, Jr. will summarize recently published patents and applications in the US and abroad, focusing on inventions that seek to exploit new approaches to HRA.

Steve Temme, founder and President of Listen Inc., will discuss test equipment and new design challenges for Hi-Res Audio devices.

Also on Sunday, Steve Temme, Listen's president, will discuss the "Challenges of High Resolution Measurements" in a presentation that promises to be educational. He will also discuss the industry definition of "Hi Res Audio" and how human hearing responds to it. In a separate session, on Monday, Temme will also speak about the correlation of hearing and measurement at very high frequencies.

These are just some of the sessions already scheduled for this year's ALMA International Symposium & Expo, which also covers new standards for headphone and in-ear measurements, new audio drivers and loudspeaker materials, speaker component testing, and everything related to the loudspeaker and acoustics industry. And, there's the improved exhibition with additional space and expanded exhibit hours where audioXpress and Voice Coil magazines will also have a table. Start planning your attendance now. We are looking forward to see you there.

From the Vault

Current Source Crossover Filters

By Nelson Pass

In this article originally published by audioXpress in March 2005, Nelson Pass offers a series of tips about designing filter networks for both voltage and current sources. As he explains, "The concept of filter networks in series is not new, but it is not that popular because with a voltage source, anytime you adjust one filter you affect the response of the others." Nelson Pass provides filter examples that can be used equally well with a voltage or current source. "The best-sounding crossover networks - whether active or passive - are usually the result of painstaking experimentation, measurement, and listening," he reminds us. Read the Complete Article Here

Voice Coil Test Bench

Acustica Beyma's 12CXA400Nd 12" Pro Sound Coaxial Driver

By Vance Dickason

This Test Bench sample, the 12CXA400Nd, came from pro sound OEM driver manufacturer Acustica Beyma. Acustica Beyma has an extensive line of pro sound coaxial drivers, which now includes the 12CXA400Nd 12" coaxial driver. Applications for 12" drivers include floor monitors for stage use, studio monitors, or any requirement where baffle space is limited. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, October 2014. Read The Full Analysis Online

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Advancing the Evolution of Audio Technology

audioxpress features great articles, projects, tips and techniques for producing the best in quality audio. It connects manufacturers and distributors with audio engineers and enthusiasts eager for innovative solutions in sound, acoustic and electronics.

Voice Coil, the periodical for the loudspeaker industry, delivers product reviews, company profiles, industry news, and design tips straight to professional audio engineers and manufacturers who have the authority to make powerful purchasing decisions.

The Loudspeaker Industry Sourcebook is the most comprehensive collection of listings on loudspeaker material in the industry. Purchasers and decision makers refer to the guide for an entire year when making selections on drivers, finished systems, adhesives, domes, crossovers, voice coils, and everything in between.