ESSENTIAL INTERVIEW
The Model S range is well worth a listen
I DID IT STEINWAY! Charlie McClarron, UK Sales Director for Steinway Lyngdorf, explains the brand’s new direct approach to the installation market. Tell us about your time in the AV industry, how did you get to this point?
I started as the Saturday boy at a branch of Audio-T, so from the Hi-Fi side of the industry. I then went full time there straight after college. I was very lucky to be trained up by a lot of the HiFi manufacturers, and also witnessed the start of custom install with the early Crestron projects, the first Sonos products and other brands like Pioneer TVs. Following Audio-T I have had time with distributors and a manufacturer all in the audio/cinema sector. All this means I have gained an understanding of what good audio is and how to achieve it. You could argue these days that some of that audio understanding has been lost in the CI industry, but this is where myself and Steinway Lyngdorf can help. I also have lots of experience in cinema design and so now find myself in my dream role working for a manufacturer that I think is the best in the world.
When did you first become aware of Lyngdorf and Steinway Lyngdorf? I remember going to ISE one year, walking into the Steinway demo space where the
essentialinstall.com
@Install_mag
company was showing its first full cinema system. I sat down and listened for a good 10 minutes and walked out thinking wow! Firstly, the performance, even in a show environment like that, was amazing! But secondly the build quality of the product was and still is the best I have ever seen! Let alone the fact the company can back it all up with the Steinway name as well! I knew then that these guys had something very special indeed and it stuck with me. One thing they did talk about when I was there, which again really stuck with me was that it is a complete system- you get the speakers, processor and power amps. I think clients will really understand that, instead of pitching them brand x for speakers, brand y for amps and brand z for processing, why not have it all controlled and designed by one brand? As for Lyngdorf Audio, this brand was fairly new to me, the guys in Denmark sent over our little amp, our smallest subs and speakers for me to play with. I set them up one night and to be honest I couldn’t quite believe what came out of them! For something so tiny they really do make one hell of a noise! As a combination of brands I knew it was a pretty special duo!
/Essentialinstall
What is it that you feel really sets the brands apart? The way I have been explaining it is that Steinway Lyngdorf is the best of the best. It is the best product we can make and offers a complete system with speakers amplifiers and processors. We also have a huge range of applications for Steinway as well; floor-standing speakers that give you the best audio performance possible, full cinema systems that I think will massively surprise people in terms of performance but also price point, but then also technology-wise we have everything from line source, to high output, to traditional speaker designs. Lyngdorf audio is our more day-to-day brand, budget friendly options but still huge performance. We have taken what we have developed and learnt with Steinway and trickled it down to Lyngdorf Audio with technologies like RoomPerfect, digital amplifiers, boundary woofers and bass management. Also with Lyngdorf Audio, like Steinway, we can offer literally everything from speakers to amplifiers to processors to even CD players!
APRIL 2022 23
