Stay on Top of Loudspeaker Industry Developments with Voice Coil April 2022
Voice Coil April 2022 is now available and brings an interesting overview of the latest updates to Loudsoft's FINE Suspension Nonlinear FEA Spider and Surround Design software. Mike Klasco discusses Cables, Lead Wires, and Connector/Terminal Technology, and there's an updated directory of vendors and manufacturers in those product segments. Then, Vance Dickason characterizes the AMT 23CM1.1-C Air Motion Transformer from Mundorf, and the Beyma CD1ND 1" Polyimide Diaphragm Compression Driver and TD-194 compact horn.
Røde Debuts Into Headphone Market with the NTH-100 Professional Over-Ear Headphones
Røde has entered the headphone category with the NTH-100 professional over-ear headphones. The Australian company has invested a lot of time and R&D resources to enter this competitive market, and its first headphones are a refined attempt to hit the sweet spot in pro audio applications, particularly for home studio, podcasting or web streaming. A completely original design with very high quality details and superior comfort, the NTH-100 headphones are set to become a new industry favorite.
Rotel Announces New C8 and C8+ Installation Amplifiers
Rotel Electronics announced the C8 and C8+, the brand’s latest Class AB custom installation amplifiers, leveraging Rotel’s 60-years audio engineering heritage delivering 8 channels of high-performance multi-zone audio. The amplifiers are powered by an oversized, in-house manufactured toroidal transformer feeding an array of high current dedicated output devices comfortably driving even the most demanding loudspeakers in critical listening zones.
HP Announced Agreement to Acquire Poly
HP Inc. announced a definitive agreement to acquire Poly, the company created from the merger of Plantronics and Polycom, and the last remaining of the videoconference era companies. HP has been acquiring other companies in the audio space in order to expand its offer to growing market segments, and this acquisition is intended to significantly reinforce its position as a leading global provider of workplace collaboration solutions.
Vesper Launches 2nd Generation Smart Piezoelectric Voice Accelerometer with ZeroPower Sensing
Vesper continues to redefine its range of MEMS solutions for voice applications with the launch of the VA1210, Vesper’s 2nd generation analog piezoelectric smart voice accelerometer. The VA1210 offers higher sensitivity (+17 dB) and higher (+6 dB) SNR than the 1st generation VA1200 in voice pickup. Additionally, new intelligent features of Wake-on-Voice (WoV) and hardware voice activity detection (HVAD), introduced into the VA1210, enable a drastic improvement of voice quality True Wireless Stereo (TWS) earbuds.
Warwick Acoustics Promotes Patented Electrostatic Transducer Panels for Automotive Applications
Warwick Acoustics already achieved significant recognition with its unique electrostatic transducers, currently used in the world's best sounding headphones (unfortunately also the most expensive and only available with a dedicated amplifier and electronics). Now, the UK-based audio technology company says that it is primed to disrupt the $8 billion in-car audio market with its ultra-light and low-power patented electrostatic technology, key in modern automotive systems.
IKEA and Spotify Unveil VAPPEBY Outdoor Bluetooth Speaker Lamp
It's no big secret that IKEA and Spotify are from Sweden, and a collaboration between the two Swedish companies on a Bluetooth speaker would not come as a surprise. But effectively, IKEA has done speakers before and the company has mainly worked with Sonos on two very successful products for whole home audio. Now, IKEA finally confirmed a project with Spotify for a new Bluetooth situational speaker and lamp named VAPPEBY, available from April 2022.
Digigram Announces New ALP-222e and ALP-222e-Mic PCIe Sound Cards
Digigram has announced the release of two new PCIe sound cards, ALP-222e and ALP-222e-Mic as part of their new ALP-X range. According to the French audio equipment manufacturer, the ALP-X range comprises a series of digital and analog sound cards with improved features that will gradually roll out throughout 2022 to replace the legacy Digigram VX sound cards. ALP-222e and ALP-222e-Mic are the first two cards of the range to be released on the market.
Yamaha VSP-2 Speech Privacy System Now Shipping to US and Canada
Following availability in Japan, Yamaha Unified Communications announced that its all-new VSP-2 Speech Privacy System is in stock and available for immediate shipping to the United States and Canada. The VSP-CU2 control unit features user-selectable sound types and volume levels and it supports two, four, or eight VSP-SP2 speakers. The unique sound masking system can be installed quickly into any space to ensure conversations are kept confidential.
Dirac Introduces New Dirac Live Auto Target Curve
Swedish digital audio processing pioneer Dirac announced a new auto target curve functionality for its Dirac Live solution that aims to make it easier for consumers to get even better sound quality out of their sound systems. The company's Dirac Live solution will now automatically generate an auto target curve based on a specific sound system's unique measurements. Dirac believes that with this new functionality, consumers no longer need in-depth knowledge of room correction to enjoy the best sound possible.