Product Design | Audio Electronics | Acoustics | DIY | Audio Innovations
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Knowles Launches Raspberry Pi Development Kit to Enable Voice Integration for New Applications and Industries |
Knowles announced the availability of the Knowles AISonic IA8201 Raspberry Pi Development Kit to bring voice, audio edge processing, and machine learning (ML) listening capabilities to devices and systems in a range of new industries. The new development kit bundles all the hardware, add-on open software, and algorithms required to test, prototype, and debug voice and audio functionality and integration in new applications for smart home, consumer technology, industrial, and beyond . Read More
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Cine Gear 2021, Los Angeles Convention Center September 24-25, 2021 |
Even with the significant challenges of the pandemic and many of the scheduled activities being streamed online, Cine Gear Expo returns in 2021 with an actual technical exhibition, in-person. This is the premier annual event for professionals engaged in the film and entertainment technology industry, which includes image, lighting, and sound. The 2021 edition is scheduled to be held September 24-25 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. A great location!. Read More
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APEI Discusses Mitigation Strategies for Component Shortages and Supply Disruptions |
The AES Audio Product Education Institute (APEI) presents a new webinar in its Supply Chain & Sourcing education pillar, addressing current component shortages, logistics challenges, and manufacturing and supply disruptions. David Lindberg (DB Enterprises) and Mike Klasco (Menlo Scientific) invited senior executives from Seltech International and Emporium Partners - two companies with extensive experience in supply chain services - to outline this dynamic global environment, and define mitigation strategies for the audio industry. Read More
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1More Introduces ColorBuds 2 True Wireless ANC Earbuds with SoundID Personalization |
Consumer audio company 1More joined forces with the team at Sonarworks to include SoundID sound personalization software in the company's latest $79 ColorBuds 2 true wireless earbuds with ANC. The announcement sees SoundID personalized sound becoming accessible in the most affordable TWS earbuds ever, enhanced by the built-in QuietMax hybrid noise cancelling design, also with support for aptX Adaptive Bluetooth. Read More
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NAD Expands Classic Series with New C 399 HybridDigital DAC Amplifier |
NAD Electronics expanded its Classic Series with a new flagship integrated amplifier featuring HybridDigital nCore amplification, ESS Sabre DAC, and the latest MDC2 Modular Design Construction architecture. With all these key elements of NAD's Masters Series amplifiers, the new C 399 Hybrid Digital DAC Amplifier takes value and performance to a whole new level. The suggested retail price of the C 399 is $1999 USD with retail availability in time for the holiday season. Read More
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Pro Audio Technology's New SR-28212ai Offers Three Loudspeakers in One |
Pro Audio Technology announced the SR-28212ai, which the company calls its most acoustically ambitious and flexible loudspeaker ever. The new PRO SR-28212ai speaker features a 1.7-inch advanced polymer compression tweeter, two ultra-high output 8-inch midrange drivers, and two 12-inch, 2000W woofers. The configuration allows it to serve as a full-range LCR, surround, and subwoofer - all within a distinctive, "amiable," single 6-inch deep enclosure. Read More
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ReadSpeaker Powers Custom Voices for Spotify Car Thing Smart Player |
ReadSpeaker, a voice technology company from Sweden (actually, based very close to Dirac, in Upsalla), announced that Spotify uses its neural text-to-speech (TTS) technology to deliver custom voices for Spotify’s newest exploration in the US - a limited release of Car Thing, a smart player for the car. ReadSpeaker’s technology currently powers the custom voice available in Car Thing, the bold, first hardware adventure from the Swedish streaming company . Read More
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Audeze Reveals New LCD-5 Flagship Reference Headphones |
Audeze announced a new reference over-ear, open-back headphone design to expand its premium LCD range, the Audeze LCD-5 ($4,500). Audeze says the LCD-5 sets a new standard for accuracy using a new planar magnetic driver design with the company's own patent-pending Parallel Uniforce voice coils and new magnet assembly. A solution that the company hopes will appeal equally to high-end enthusiasts and audio engineers looking for a reference listening solution . Read More
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What Listeners Are Seeking in 2021: Global Audio Consumer Research |
The use of audio devices has expanded since 2020. Many consumers today are heavily reliant on their audio products to aid connectivity, as well as for video watching, gaming, remote working, and music listening. The Qualcomm State of Sound research identifies audio device purchase drivers, and interest in current and future use cases, to better understand what today’s users look for in earbuds, headphones, and speakers. Download the State of Sound report here
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Guest Editorial
Elia Shenberger
(Business Development Director, CEVA Sound BU)
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Audio for USB Video Conference
Premium Video Conferencing for Everyone
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Pre-pandemic, video conferencing was a rather staid market. At the high-end, big expensive systems and plans for corporations. At the low-end, free Skype for the rest of us.
Then the pandemic hit, we all started working from home, and Zoom became the new global superstar, supporting pretty much all forms of communication and collaboration. Product builders have connected the dots, actively building hardware platforms compatible with popular conference service providers yet adding premium conference experiences. At a cost accessible to all of us, SMB users and even home users. |
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The global video conferencing market is projected to grow from $6.28 billion in 2021 to $12.99 billion in 2028 at a CAGR of 10.9%, according to Fortune Business Insights. |
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Why do we need USB Video Conference devices?
Because no matter how convenient a desktop dial-in may be, there are times when it’s more effective to meet in person, conferencing to groups in other locations as needed. But why should we have to do that from the one big room dedicated to video conferences? Now we want a solution that will scale to smaller meeting rooms, with portability and lower cost. With the same or better telepresence expectations we have for the high-end big-room solutions. See all the attendees around the table and clearly see and hear whoever is speaking at any time.
This is no idle hope. USB video conferencing is moving fast to redefine the domain. These are lightweight systems that connect via a USB link (making them portable), are cheaper and easier to use than traditional video codecs, and connect naturally to IT and cloud systems. In Q1 of 2021 these systems accounted for 36% of video conferencing market revenue, up from 21% the previous year. Over the last 12 months, the market ran around $2 billion. The overall video conferencing market has an estimated CAGR of around 11%, a number depressed by a sharp decline in sales of traditional systems.
Indications are that the market for USB-based systems may grow much faster. Cisco, Logitech, Poly, and Aver are in the lead today and other players are jumping in enthusiastically. This is already apparent in North America, even more so in Europe. Chinese ventures are not missing out on the trend either, judging by new product introductions.
These systems are already certified to work with Microsoft Teams, Zoom and other cloud-based conferencing platforms, no longer requiring specialized software to connect to Internet backbones. Which makes them even more flexible.
In the new normal, we’re all still working in hybrid mode. Even when we’re calling from our home offices, we’d like to fence out some of the unfortunate realties of WFH, dogs barking and kids playing in the background. Something these solutions can do so much better than the simple audio interface on your laptop.
Delivering attractive solutions
Cost of ownership and portability are a great start, but these systems also need to match or beat the traditional systems on features. That demands a premium audio and video experience. Start with the audio. This should be top-notch in noise suppression and acoustic echo cancellation (AEC). It should also provide accurate audio zoom and fence control. Excluding background chatter and other noises by zooming in on the speaker. Video needs the option to support wide-angle views, which software will need to de-warp, because the team may be spread out around a table. And it should auto-frame whoever is speaking because that’s not always obvious to anyone viewing the video. Audio zoom detection can help identify the speaker. I’ll concentrate here on audio capabilities.
These are the same features you’ll find in a smart speaker. Multiple microphones to support audio zoom through beamforming, except here you can afford to spread those microphones across a wider soundbar, offering much better discrimination in who is speaking and what sounds can be fenced out. Added to which you need proven AEC and noise suppression.
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According to Synergy Research, USB technology is rapidly gaining ground in the video conferencing market. USB technology is cheaper than the more traditional video codec systems and the ability to plug into VaaS services is an added boon. |
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It’s going to get better – virtual telepresence!
Facebook recently revealed its Horizon Workrooms, applying virtual reality to meetings. The next level in telepresence where instead of staring at a flat screen, your avatars are sitting around you. A critical component in completing this experience real will be 3D audio, sometimes called spatial audio.
When a speaker to your left talks, you should hear that voice coming from your left. Turn your head to face them and you hear the speaker directly ahead. Just like meeting your colleagues and partners together in a real conference room. That’s going to be difficult to beat for a truly immersive conference experience. Expect to hear more on this topic!
An example of a suitable technology for audio management in USB video conferencing systems is CEVA’s audio front-end software product ClearVox. This solution manages beamforming, noise suppression, AEC, and interference cancellation to enhance voice clarity in VoIP use-cases.
For many years now, CEVA has been building audio, voice, and speech solutions installed in products, from headsets to earbuds, from smart speakers to auto infotainment and smart homes. These products are built on CEVA-BX1 and CEVA-BX2 audio DSPs, designed to deliver high performance for constrained power-budgets. |
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In the new normal, we’re all still working in hybrid mode and many times simply connecting from a laptop. |
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Getting Started with Automotive Audio Bus (Part 1)
It’s Not Just for Autos
By Brewster LaMacchia
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This is the first article in a four-part series about Analog Devices' A2B or Automotive Audio Bus, a digital audio bus technology originally developed for automotive requirements that is now finding interesting design possibilities in other audio applications. "Getting Started with Automotive Audio Bus (A2B)" is the title for the series, prepared for audioXpress by signal processing audio expert Brewster LaMacchia. After having discovered A2B technology in its inception, and Analog Devices announcing that the A2B parts and tools would become a regularly available part through distribution, LaMacchia started looking at applications where A2B solves problems that don’t have good alternatives. In this first article, he details A2B's features, and use with I2S and PDM interfaces, before exploring the technical underpinnings of the A2B bus design and creating systems with the development tools available.
Part 2 dives into the technical underpinnings of the A2B bus design. Part 3 completes that dive and looks at the Analog Devices' devices that are used for A2B. And last, Part 4 explains how to create systems and how to use the tools available from not only Analog Devices but also a number of third-party suppliers. The wide range of tools and off-the-shelf hardware vastly simplify prototyping, development, and debugging of complex audio systems. An exciting roadmap for all audioXpress readers to enjoy. This article was originally published in audioXpress, October 2020. Read the Full Article Now Available Here
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The PTT6.5X 6.5” Midbass Driver from Purifi Audio
By Vance Dickason
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This article is Vance Dickason's much-anticipated perspective of the Purifi Audio PTT6.5 midbass where he highlights some of the new and unique engineering technology achievements, and explores step-by-step everything that makes this product a unique proposition. The Purifi PTT6.5X04-NFA-01 is an over-achiever, and to help understand why, Dickason talks with Lars Risbo about the research and thought process that lead to many of the features found in this woofer. Those include the unique cone assembly that consists of a mildly curvilinear paper cone made with a proprietary fiber mix, a 3.13” concave dust cap, and a V-shaped edge reinforcing ring, the NBR surround, and of course the surround, which Dickason calls "probably the most unique surround in the history of Voice Coil’s Test Bench." All the details, exchanges with Lars Risbo, and of course the measurements, are in this Test Bench. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, July 2021. Read the Full Article Now Available Here
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