While Europe is still recovering from COVID, the expectations for this year's traditional IFA trade show were nonetheless high. With more than 1100 exhibitors from 45 countries and 150,000 square meters of show floor, there was the promise of an exciting comeback after a three-year pandemic-related break. Walking around the halls and exhibits at IFA 2022 in Berlin one could clearly see that the show has transformed into something new.

Of course, it was a bit smaller this year compared to when the show was last held before COVID. Many traditional brands still didn't make the much expected return in 2022. Considering the trade show spreads out over a large number of halls, corridors, and rooms it always gave the impression of being very crowded. However, this time it was just "busy," without the usual congestion. The usual halls filled with washing machines, ovens, and fridges managed to do good business. On the audio front, nothing was as before.

Several brands did not make an appearance at the show itself and instead organized their own side events, parallel to the show. One of them was Sennheiser. The German company presented its new products at "The Grand," one of those famous places in Berlin. And probably because of such an historical building, Sennheiser did have the updated HE 1 - the no-compromise reference headphone amplifier (aka Orpheus) - available for listening. Be assured this headphone amplifier performed extremely well... However when you are in this upper league, there are other brands that have a claim on the pole positions as "best headphone," "best headphone amplifier," and "best integrated headphone and amplifier system." IFA is not usually the place to find those.

Yes, at IFA we can find all the latest consumer headphones, on-ear or in-ear. But the main event for Sennheiser this year was the introduction of the expanded AMBEO soundbar family of products. The big Sennheiser AMBEO soundbar developed in partnership with the Fraunhofer Institute (IIS) is well known for its incredible immersive performance. Sennheiser referred to it "as simply the best soundbar in the world." This AMBEO soundbar has been recently updated and is now known as the AMBEO Max since Sennheiser expanded the AMBEO soundbar "family." This implies there are more members in the "family."

That's what Sennheiser did, with the introduction of the AMBEO Plus, a smaller version of the original AMBEO Max. This "little brother" is supported by of an optional subwoofer, which raises the performance again to a stunning level of immersiveness. With a price of $1,499.95 (MSRP) for the Plus and $699.95 USD for the Sub, it is still not the cheapest soundbar but the demos were very convincing.

This soundbar "system" does all the Dolby Atmos, DTS-X, MPEG-H audio, and 360 Reality Audio of immersive or spatial audio. With all the top quality hardware involved in the soundbar itself to generate the same effect of a 7.1.4 system, it relies on the software to do the magic. And the auto calibrating feature does a great job adapting the soundbar to the room. Of course, it is not expected that it will work in every room as it has its limitations. But in the “average” living room it does a great job and it is easy to get hooked on this Sennheiser experience.

Another side-event was organized by Teufel, the German online sales brand. The event took place in the company's Berlin flagship store, where they want to show how they have grown to become a mature CE and audio brand that does not need to shy away from competing with the big brands. The Teufel flagship store is located in the posh “Bikini” shopping mall, near the famous Berlin Zoo. There, they announced that Teufel was also expanding its headquarters located in the same building with two more floors in the building next to it.

The event served to show how Teufel can offer a wide range of products covering the whole audio gamut, from Bluetooth party speakers to high-performance home theater complete systems. In a small showcase for IFA 2022, Teufel revealed prototypes of products to be introduced the coming year. Yes, they are really ambitious and many bigger audio brands might be sleeping a little less well.

It was also interesting to see was another German company that does something similar by selling most products online, Nubert, was present in the IFA hall that, traditionally, used to be the ‘Hifi’ hall.

And that brings us to the IFA 2022 showfloor and what was happening there in the field of audio. First of all, the traditional "Audio hall" was filled with companies that are working in or with the audio business but were not audio manufacturers or brands. Clearly there was a focus on audio products that are used by consumers while commuting to work, lifestyle products that are a fashion statement, or products where audio is just a part of the package. A good example of the latter are Livall helmets with built-in camera, warning lights, brake lights, all the communication possibilities, including making calls with wind noise cancellation, and the ability to listen to music via stereo speakers and Bluetooth.

This article offers a valuable inside perspective about developing new diffuser solutions, and lessons learned while designing countless critical listening rooms around the world. The author was actively involved in multiple acoustics standards committees, including for testing procedures, and he explains why diffusers continue to be misunderstood and many times wrongly used. A journey that lead to the creation of the unique PolyFlex diffuser, which will scatter either horizontally or vertically, depending on the orientation, and improve clarity in speech and spatial focus without making a room sound dead and/or small. This article was originally published in audioXpress, August 2022. Read the Full Article Now Available Here

The Celestion CDX1-1412 Compression Driver is a compact 1" unit intended for professional audio applications, and a traditional segment for the UK-based OEM manufacturer. This driver is the latest member of Celestion's extensive CDX line of neodymium (neo) motor compression drivers, totaling 12 models at this time. This compression driver has a 25mm (1”) throat diameter driven by a 34mm (1.4”) diameter voice coil wound with round copper clad aluminum wire (CCAW) on a nonconducting former driving a single piece polyimide diaphragm and surround. Other features include a FEA-optimized neodymium ring magnet motor structure, a nominal power handling of 35W with a 70W continuous power handling rating, a 2kHz recommended crossover frequency (with a minimum 12dB/octave high-pass network), and 106dB sensitivity (1W/1m measured on a typical horn), and a two bolt M5 mounting configuration. Along with the CDX1-1412, Celestion supplied its new 1" H1-9050 90°x50° constant directivity horn. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, June 2022.  Read the Full Article Now Available Here