inMusic Brands Set to Acquire Renowned Audio Manufacturer Rane Corporation
Highly regarded maker of innovative audio products and solutions for the professional audio and DJ markets, Rane Corporation is to join inMusic’s lineup of companies. According to the announcement released by Jack O’Donnell’s group of companies, Rane co-founders Linda Arink and Dennis Bohn have agreed to sell Rane Corporation to inMusic LLC. inMusic Brands announced that the transaction is set to be completed this summer. After the sale, Ms. Arink and Mr. Bohn plan to step down and retire.
Sennheiser Introduces PXC 550 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones with up to 30 Hours Battery
Sennheiser just turned up the ante on the wireless headphone market with its new PXC 550 wireless noise cancelling model with Bluetooth 4.2. Designed for travelers seeking the ultimate way to travel, the new Sennheiser PXC 550 Wireless combine Sennheiser’s renowned high-quality sound and up to 30 hours of battery performance in a sleek wireless design. The German company also combined personalized listening experiences on the move using Sennheiser’s companion app, CapTune.
Tascam Ships iOS Optimized iXR USB Audio/MIDI Interface
Tascam announced a new way to bring out the power and performance of the iPad and iPhone for music and recording apps with the all-new iXR USB Audio/MIDI interface with iOS connectivity. Designed to bring mobile devices into the world of professional audio, the iXR is a full featured “Made for iPad” PC/Mac USB audio interface that also delivers direct connectivity to iPhone and iPad via the standard iOS Lightning or 30-pin connector, without the need for special adapters or flimsy mini-plugs.
Listeners Are Effectively Able to Find Audible Differences with High-Resolution Audio
A new study by Dr. Joshua Reiss of the Centre for Digital Music, Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), published in the June issue of the Journal of the Audio Engineering Society (JAES), concludes that in the majority of cases listeners can hear a difference between standard audio and better-than-CD quality, known as high-resolution audio (HRA). The study, involving over 12,000 different trials, is the first to apply formal meta-analysis techniques to audio engineering research.
Doppler Labs Takes Hearables a Step Further with Here One Wireless Earbuds
As we said previously, the race is on for the winner of the full-wireless earbuds challenge. Doppler Labs is the latest contender with their Here One hearables, promising “The Future of In-Ear Computing”. The difference is this is not your typical crowdfunding project, but a company working for the past three years to perfect the Here One concept, exploring the full potential of personalized earbuds.
STMicroelectronics Powers Lower Power Projects with New BlueNRG-1 System-on-Chip
STMicroelectronics revealed its first Bluetooth (4.2) Low Energy wireless System-on-Chip (SoC). The BlueNRG-1 is optimized to satisfy high-volume opportunities in the fast-growing Bluetooth Low Energy market, combining energy efficiency, and strong radio performance. Featuring a dedicated digital-microphone input that simplifies voice-enabled applications, the new SoC responds to multiple applications including retail, wearables, connected home, automotive, industrial and medical devices.
Fulcrum Acoustic Unveils New CS118 Subcardioid Subwoofer
Fulcrum Acoustic consistently delivers high-performance professional loudspeaker technologies and InfoComm 2016 was another opportunity for the company to demonstrate new designs. This time, David Gunness and team have introduced the CS118 Subcardioid Subwoofer module. The C118 incorporates Fulcrum’s patent-pending Passive Cardioid Technology to effectively reduce excessive rear LF radiation without requiring additional amplifier channels or additional transducers to control low frequencies.
Dolby Laboratories Continues to Expand Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos Entertainment Experiences
While there are several competing immersive audio proposals and published High Dynamic Range (HDR) standards for vision, Dolby Laboratories continues to provide its totally integrated approach with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos experiences in a successful way, gradually and consistently becoming the dominant player. This is well illustrated by Dolby’s recent announcements of content collaborations with Lionsgate and Amazon, as well as the worldwide expansion of Dolby Atmos screens installed or committed.
Texas Instruments Announces New Voice Remote Control Low Power Development Platforms
Texas Instruments announced new advanced voice remote control solutions as part of its SimpleLink ultra-low power platform. These solutions were created to help developers easily add ultra-low power Bluetooth low energy, ZigBee RF4CE or multi-standard connectivity to their designs for voice remote controls, TVs, set-top boxes, home entertainment centers and automation, wearables and smart speaker applications.
Avid Announces new 5.2 Software for its Venue S6L Live Sound Mixer and New Dante Option Card
Things move slowly at Avid, but they move. Announced at Prolight+Sound 2015 in Frankfurt, the DNT-192 Dante Option Card for the Avid Venue S6L digital live sound mixer, is now available one year after the promised shipping date. The Venue S6L started shipping end of 2015 and now receives a new free software update (5.2), which adds support for Dante network connectivity, as required by the industry, apart from several other “highly anticipated” features.