Product Design | Audio Electronics | Acoustics | DIY | Audio Innovations
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CEVA Announces RivieraWaves with Bluetooth 5.3 IP for Wireless Audio Streaming and Low Power IoT |
CEVA announced the general release of its RivieraWaves Bluetooth 5.3 IP. Supporting a multitude of features to further enhance security, robustness, and low power operation, the RivieraWaves Bluetooth 5.3 IP is now available as a complete hardware and software solution for new designs, and as a software-only upgrade for compatible existing designs. All the latest features of Bluetooth are supported, including Isochronous Channels for LE Audio. Read More
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ELAC Announces Solano Line of Affordable Home Speakers |
ELAC announced availability in North America of the brand's new Solano line of premium home speakers. These new models are a perfect solution for two-channel music enthusiasts or home theater configurations. With three affordable models, the ELAC Solano series includes the attractive BS 283 bookshelf, the attention-grabbing FS 287 floorstander, and the CC 281 center-speaker, all simple rectangular-shaped speakers, made with solid MDF, and paired with a slightly curved, large front baffle, that delivers an attractive look and feel. Read More
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Gaetan Byk Acquires High-End Audio Equipment Designer and Manufacturer Amadeus |
Founded 30 years ago in Paris, France, by Bernard Byk and Michel Deluc, Amadeus has been acquired by Gaetan Byk, who is intent on continuing the company's journey with its unique audio speaker designs and one-of-a-kind projects. The French audio manufacturer is renowned for its live, installed, and custom sound reinforcement and studio systems, and became globally recognized with the unique Philharmonia reference speakers, unveiled in 2014. Read More
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Sound Devices Releases Innovative A20-Mini Digital Wireless Microphone Transmitter |
Sound Devices announced the A20-Mini digital wireless microphone transmitter and its companion app, the A20-Remote. The A20-Mini is Sound Devices' first miniature transmitter and incorporates state-of-the-art features such as full remote control via the A20-Remote app, GainForward Architecture, internal 32-bit float recording, a worldwide tuning range of 470MHz to 694MHz, and more. The A20-Mini is fully compatible with Sound Devices’ existing A10 Digital Wireless System. Read More
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Resonado Labs Closes $3M Series-Seed Round and Gains New High-Profile Investors |
Resonado Labs announced the closing of its Series-Seed venture capital round at $3 million, bringing the total raised to date to $5.2 million including Pre-Seed funding. The capital will accelerate the commercialization of Resonado Labs’ proprietary, novel Flat Core Speaker (FCS) technology, help the company develop a wider array of drivers, and invest in new talent and test and measurement equipment. Resonado is intent on rapidly expanding into the automotive, marine, and home audio industries. Read More
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Ocean Way Audio Launches Pro3 Reference Nearfield Monitor |
Allen Sides' Ocean Way Audio announced its new Pro3 monitor (nicknamed “Fat Boy”), the latest addition to the company's high-resolution monitor line. The new two-way active monitor system is its most compact design and delivers a frequency response of 45Hz to 20kHz and 110dB maximum SPL between channels. A nearfield monitor designed for project and commercial recording studios, as well as in professional broadcast and post facilities where optimal performance is required and space is at a premium. Read More
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Yamaha Announces YH-L700A Advanced ANC Headphones |
The announcement comes directly from Japan and the brand's Asian and Pacific websites, following the Yamaha Design Laboratory preview unveiled in 2020 to promote the new headphones created by lead designers Masafumi Futo and Yoshinobu Terazaki. Now, Yamaha has confirmed the flagship and truly unique YH-L700A headphones will be available August 2021, introducing an advanced ANC implementation with a series of smart optimizations . Read More
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Sony Raises the Bar for Immersive Sound with New HT-A9 Wireless Home Theater System and Flagship HT-A7000 Soundbar |
Sony Electronics introduced its new premium HT-A9 home theater system and flagship HT-A7000 soundbar, introducing new more convincing immersive audio sound experiences to the home. With a soundbar equipped with up-firing drivers and wireless surround speakers and subwoofers, the new Sony systems for the living room make it easier for households to enjoy all types of content with an incredibly immersive home theater and soundscape experience. Support for High-Resolution Audio, 360 Reality Audio, and other "spatial audio" formats included . Read More
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Editor's Desk
J. Martins
(Editor-in-Chief)
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Evolution Delayed or Suspended?
How the Pandemic Is Changing Our Technology Perspective
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In my other life before audioXpress magazine, for more than two decades I followed and reported about broadcast technology and the exciting world of media content production, distribution... and transmission. Together with my fascination of audio things, there's a part of me that still feels the excitement about a new camera, a new tripod, or announcements about 8K UHD and High Dynamic Range.
When in the beginning of 2020, still feeling the excitement of a full round of trade shows before the world was forced into lockdown because of COVID-19, I felt the need to write about the temporary nature of the thing, while making an effort to put into perspective the likely consequences for the audio industry. I still believe this is temporary, it just seems that it's been longer than expected. And that's the reason why I prefer not to speculate too much about trade shows until I see one actually happening (with actual people doing business at it).
Now that we are already in the third or fifth wave (depending where you are) of the global pandemic - with new variants of the virus making it clear that this is going to take a little longer than we all imagined (and wished for) - it becomes clear that the consequences for technology and whole industry sectors will be more disruptive than we thought.
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Accelerating
On the consumer electronics side, things are clearly progressing at impressive speed, and the pandemic in fact reenergized many of the trends that we all knew were coming, such as a transition to online commerce, cloud services, streaming content, etc. Communications have also progressed positively, all things considered. Deployment of 5G networks, even with all the associated political turmoil and geo-strategical implications, was not affected. In fact, 5G deployments are taking place faster because we all understand the sense of urgency to improve something that we have learned is what kept us going doing the global pandemic. The consequences for the spectrum allocation will be something that we will need to reevaluate later.
Similar positive progress is being made in many enabling key technologies and standards, and I am certain that wireless audio and Bluetooth is going to continue to be one of the big growth stories in the next few years for audio. For those who did not notice, Bluetooth 5.3 was just released. |
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For 15 years, NHK was preparing for this historic moment, signalling regular 8K UHDTV transmissions. |
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Time Warp
The other side of this home-centric technological shift is that many other technologies and standards have not progressed as expected, and some have pivoted from the original projects toward completely new usage cases. Audio-over-IP, object-based audio, next-generation audio, immersive audio, and spatial audio are examples of technologies that continue to progress, now with a shift in priorities.
The pandemic has in fact changed a lot of things in our lives and this week I’ve seen some slightly depressing signs of it. Some have serious consequences for the audio industry and are felt in very large markets. The live entertainment industry will recover quickly, sooner or later from the pandemic, but vibrant sectors like content production, broadcasting, and media distribution will never be the same.
This week, we will have the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games, and those events will be produced in object-based immersive audio and broadcast in MPEG-H and Dolby Atmos for different regions of the world. All the audio for the games will be mixed and delivered in 5.1.4 immersive audio for those organizations that want to carry it through to their viewers. I wish all my friends working on the Olympic Broadcast Services the best in the world. I know they will do an amazing job.
But it's hard not to remember that this was supposed to have happened in the Summer of 2020, and not in the Summer of 2021. It's hard to imagine how frustrating this must have been for the NHK (Japanese public broadcaster) that was preparing for this moment for at least 15 years. While very few people will notice under these circumstances, they are moving on with their technical plans - as much as possible. The 2021 Olympics will see incredible technical changes, transitioning from 4K UHD to 8K, with HDR (High Dynamic Range) and WCG (Wide Color Gamut) images. The whole infrastructure will now be IP-based and cloud-based. And as mentioned, this will be the first Olympics using MPEG-H 3D Audio immersive and delivered with personalized experiences.
Technologically, it is one of the most substantial changes ever in the history of Olympics broadcast operations. Even with the pandemic, the Olympic Broadcast Services (OBS) for Tokyo 2020 are supposed to deliver 30% additional content in comparison with Rio 2016. And the content will be delivered in more formats, to more platforms, than ever.
When the 2021 Tokyo Olympics Opening Ceremony begins, Japan’s public broadcaster NHK will achieve a major milestone on its roadmap for 8K UHDTV as it presents its BS8K (Broadcast Satellite 8K) channel in 8K to the world. For the 2021 Summer Olympics, NHK plans about 200 hours of 8K UHD coverage, including broadcasts of the opening and closing ceremonies and seven events, including swimming, athletics, and judo. |
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You ask Alexa for your playlists, check Clubhouse, and listen to podcasts daily. Do you remember Digital Radio? |
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Suspended Airwaves
While I am following the Olympics, I was this week reminded about Digital Radio and an important anniversary for HD Radio in the US. HD Radio was originally the trademarked term for the in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio technology. But will Digital Radio still be a thing after the pandemic’s effects and the world getting used to podcasts and Clubhouse? Radio is more important than ever, in my opinion, but the "broadcast" model is now irrelevant except where it matters the most - for those regions of the world not covered by cellular services and broadband data. Precisely where digital AM should be more important than ever.
And as the HD Radio story this week reminds us, Digital Radio is a crucial component in the automotive audio experience, and that should be a focus for those who care. But who are they? Xperi? The BBC? Voice of America?
I couldn't help noticing the HD Radio website’s FAQ where one can find fascinating questions such as: “Is an HD Radio broadcast the same as Satellite Radio?”, and "Where can I find an HD Radio receiver?” Those are pertinent questions, sadly.
And I will conclude with a story that most of our audience probably didn't noticed: The last NTSC broadcast! For those who don't remember, NTSC stands for National Television System Committee and was the technology and standard developed for the analog television color system in North America. Together with other TV standards, like PAL and SECAM, they should have been switched off a long time ago, with the transition to digital broadcasting. And yet, even though the FCC mandated that analog transmitters be shut down by 2009, some low-power stations were allowed to operate and were only now finally terminated on July 13, 2021.
It is almost painful to remember that just in January 2020 I was excited to follow sessions regarding the launch of ATSC 3.0 services in Las Vegas, NV, during CES. And that many local broadcasters in the United States actually launched Next-Generation TV (4K UHD) services that year, as planned by the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC). In the most recent ATSC 3.0 “Progress Report,” the organization writes that "the technology that powers NextGen TV (...) will bring together over-the-air broadcasting with over-the-top choices for viewers".
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An historic milestone: the end of licensed analog NTSC over-the-air broadcasting in the United States... in 2021, the year of 8K UHD Olympics. |
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Eighteen Sound: The Younger Face of Italian Speaker Tradition
By J. Martins
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In October 2015, audioXpress visited pro audio loudspeaker manufacturer Eighteen Sound in Italy, and we shared the details of its modern factory in Reggio Emilia. The article was intended to illustrate the ongoing company's expansion, combined with a bit of its history. Eighteen Sound had just confirmed the acquisition of Ciare, another established Italian speaker brand, broadening the scope of its product line and reaching out to a wider market at a global level. A lot has changed in the company's structure since then, Eighteen Sound (and Ciare) was acquired by B&C Speakers, and the faces at Reggio Emilia also changed. We think that many aspects of that factory tour are still worth sharing for our readers to add context into our many other published articles about the Italian company. This article was originally published in audioXpress, February 2016. Read the Full Article Now Available Here
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Eighteen Sound ND1TP Compression Driver and XT120 Horn
By Vance Dickason
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The product on this Test Bench is Eighteen Sound’s ND1TP Compression Driver and XT120 Horn. Already the result of the company's efforts in the aftermath of the Eighteen Sound (and Ciare) acquisition by B&C Speakers in 2018, this is the first review of a new Eighteen Sound driver since that transition. The company continues as a discrete brand, separate from B&C Speakers, and they sent Voice Coil one of its latest 1" compression driver designs, the ND1TP, along with its XT120 elliptical-shaped horn. The ultra-compact ND1TP compression driver has a 25mm (1") throat diameter driven by a 44mm (1.75") diameter edge-wound voice coil wound with copper-clad aluminum wire (CCAW) on a non-conducting Nomex former with a proprietary treatment. The ND1TP also incorporates a proprietary phase plug design that has short openings and a high flare rate that, according to the company, reduces distortion and improves mid-range detail. Along with the ND1TP, Eighteen Sound provided the 1" XT120 90° x 60° elliptical horn with a 1.5kHz cut-off frequency. Made from high-pressure injection-molded polyurethane foam, the XT120 has a smooth flare rate that provides constant directivity from 2.5kHz. This article was published in Voice Coil, April 2021. Read the Full Article Now Available Here
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of Audio Technology
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