16 l July 2014 showreview InfoComm
to the consultant community and our key contracting customers and identified the areas where we needed to focus, in order to make a great loudspeaker even better. “We believe we have achieved just that, and we’re confident that CMS 3.0 represents the new benchmark in the premium in-ceiling audio space. “We can only make that assertion, given that we had ourselves to beat.”
UNITED STATES
InfoComm14 delivers to the installation market once again
Record attendance and a clutch of new releases at Vegas extravaganza THE HUGE
installation-fest that is InfoComm came to Las Vegas this year, and
the show saw a 5.5% rise on last year’s event – a record 37,048 visitors from over 114 countries, according to the organiser. A reported 947 brands
exhibited, occupying 490,000sqft of exhibition and special events space at what continues to be the world’s largest pro AV trade show.
At the start of the expo, Harman announced it had completed its acquisition of AMX. Blake Augsburger, president of Harman
Professional, and Rashid Skaf, president and CEO of AMX, both spoke of their enthusiasm for the “marriage” of the two companies.
Skaf highlighted the good fit in terms of technology, markets and geographies. There is very little overlap in terms of products – in terms of vertical markets, Harman is strong in events, broadcasting, houses of worship and stadiums, while AMX is well established in education, business and governmental markets – and while both companies are strong in North America, Europe and Australia, Harman additionally
QSC AD-S6T surface-mount speakers
is well established in the BRIC countries. “AMX has built up a great set of solutions over the years,” said Skaf. “[The two companies] can work separately but bringing us together makes us even stronger.”
Augsburger described AMX as “a perfect addition to our family”. As well as increasing Harman’s share of the installation market, the acquisition is a good fit with the company’s “total AV strategy”. “Bringing together audio, video and lighting could be radical,” he said, pointing out that he combined companies will have buying power “second to none”, “unmatched” R&D assets and a roster of more than 5,400 patents.
One of the questions submitted by journalists ahead of the
A&H AB168 portable audio I/O rack
press conference asked whether Harman’s portfolio might be further rounded out in the future by the acquisition of a company in the video display market. “I hope so!” said Augsburger. The third generation of
Tannoy’s premium in-ceiling loudspeaker system features a new “evolutionary milestone development” of the company’s Dual Concentric transducer technology. According to Tannoy – part of TC Group – CMS 3.0 represents a new pinnacle in sonic performance from a ceiling loudspeaker device, bringing “even higher degrees of intelligibility, more consistent broadband directivity, and a brighter, more accurate soundstage”. CMS 3.0
introduces several mechanical and aesthetic features to benefit both systems designer and contractor alike.
The new line of Dual Concentric-equipped CMS comprises five models – CMS 403DCe, CMS 503DC, CMS 603DC and CMS 803DC – each designed to replace previous equivalent iterations – plus an all-new CMS 803DCQ 8-inch high-Q model, designed for high-ceiling/longer throw applications. At the heart of each device is the next- generation Dual Concentric transducer, providing improved performance by virtue of a fundamentally new design. Philippe Robineau, director of engineering for Tannoy, commented: “We listened closely
Another TC Group brand busy at InfoComm was Lab. gruppen, launching the D Series of amplifiers, as previewed in last month’s PSNEurope. German loudspeaker manufacturer Coda Audio made its first appearance at InfoComm. Products on show included the recently introduced TiRAY, and the compact ViRAY line array system featuring Coda’s patented DDP driver technology; along with associated SC2F sensor- controlled bass extension, and its large-scale LA12 line array, as well as SCPF subs. Also on show were the LINUS family includes the LINUS10 amplifier with integrated DSP and the system controller LINUS Con, which delivers highest performance on a future proof control platform for all Coda Audio products. Audio-Technica’s new ATND971 cardioid condenser boundary network microphone bridges the gap between audio and IT as the first wired microphone that transmits audio and control data together over Audinate’s Dante network protocol.
Designed for boardrooms and other meeting spaces, the ATND971 boundary mic is said to offer outstanding sound quality, and features a red/ green LED status indicator. The integrated user switch can control such things as video camera pan/tilt, room lighting presets and much more. And since Dante can support up to 512 bi-directional audio channels, the microphone offers an easily scalable solution. Tom Harrold, Audio- Technica UK pro-audio marketing manager, said: “As the first Dante-compatible wired microphone, it’s clearly a very significant introduction. The ATND971 also represents excellent value to installers compared with the costs of specifying standard
www.psneurope.com
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