Martin Audio's UK Demo Days

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MARTIN AUDIO’S UK DEMO DAYS

To coincide with PLASA Show in London, a stone’s throw down the M40, Martin Audio welcomed industry customers and collaborators to its High Wycombe headquarters for three days of pro audio demonstration.

Capitalising on its successful in-house formula, Martin Audio opened its doors for a series of demonstrations and presentations. Split into five two-hour presentation sessions, the open days showcased a myriad of products and pro audio offerings.

Martin Audio Managing Director Dom Harter reflected: “The timing was perfect. Not only were many of our partners and customers already in town but it gave us the perfect opportunity to showcase, and in some cases give world premieres to nine new products.”

Harter began proceedings by introducing Martin Audio’s VIA amplifier range - designed to partner all Martin Audio systems beneath the Wavefront Precision line arrays, and in particular the new ADORN series as well as CDD and O-Line.

“The market for commercial speakers is growing and is often served by poor sound,” Harter explained. “We thought it was time to enter this growing market and offer a no compromise solution of affordability and audio quality.”

Martin Audio ADORN 40 and ADORN 55, equipped with 4-inch and 5.5-inch drivers, were also demonstrated, along with Martin Audio’s latest SX110 slim line single 10-inch subwoofer. Product Support Engineer, Robin Dibble, then took over, presenting CDD and CDD-LIVE.

“With quarter of a million CDD enclosures now out in the field this is our

most successful install range ever,” Dibble exclaimed.

Martin Audio showcased its CDD-LIVE 8, CDD-LIVE 12 and CDD-LIVE 15 were demoed, both with and without the new hybrid SXH218 sub, which contains presets for cardioid configurations.

Next, visitors experienced the loudest manifestation yet as the TH Series model was run in combo with the SXH218 subwoofer. The biamped TH Series is a 3-way, full range, horn-loaded point source series ideal as a powerful live venue or club system.

“Coverage, control and consistency to this level is something only Martin Audio can do, removing the trial and error approach,” Harter explained. “Summation of sound at the audience plane is what we focus on.”

Harter showcased the latest development in optimisation — scalable resolution - and how the Martin Audio Wavefront Precision and O-line series behaves with different box resolution and the commercial advantages. Visitors took time to hear scalable resolution in action, via O-Line, WPM and WPC demonstrations, with LF extension then boosted with the presence of SXH218 subwoofers.

However, Martin Audio still had one surprise left to reveal. While the previous demonstrations had satisfied every market segment from large scale touring to small AV, bars and corporate offices, Martin Audio showcased its partnership with Astro Spatial Audio in a series alluringly

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MARTIN AUDIO’S UK DEMO DAYS

Opposite: Martin Audio showcase a range of products and an immersive 3D sound experience.

titled: Sound Adventures — Unrivalled Immersive 3D Sound Experience.

Bjorn van Munster explained the reasoning behind the multi-faceted approach to the system. “The more traditional solutions that require very rigid loudspeaker set-ups and which limit the user’s choices in terms of loudspeakers and other technology, they are not really designed with the live and touring sector in mind,” he continued. “They require large investment, lots of additional work and much larger overheads. That’s why our object based, scalable approach is already proving popular from Europe to Asia and the United States,” he explained. “We don’t make demands of our customers, we work with you to make your show a truly spectacular, immersive event.”

Dibble added: “This is a fully immersive 3D audio environment with no panning gimmicks or Doppler effects, made possible by the SARA II rendering engine,” he explained.

The demonstration theatre had been specially equipped with six overhead XD15 enclosures on the overhead truss, with CDD-LIVE 8’s in the surround and four arrays of O-Line on stage with SXH218 completing the audio environment, all Dante enabled.

Dibble showed how it was also possible to generate different room environments, changing the sound of the speakers to suit the application - effectively creating an artificial acoustic environment. This was effectively demonstrated by the sound of a plaintive sax that slowly became embroidered with 3D reverb and other room FX.

“Another key thing,” Dibble continued, “is that we can bring a much wider stereo image and deliver it to more members of the audience.” This was demonstrated via four O-Line hangs across the front of the stage with the effect demonstrated with the impact of switching between two standard left right configurations and all four. “The wide stereo image changes the whole perspective — in other words there are no longer any cheap seats.”

Joined by Harter, Dibble explained that throughout they had been

wearing a device called Stagetracker II - which offers the possibilities of precise, multi-dimensional positioning. “It enables you to track over 100 cast members and position sound accordingly within the venue, for a truer visual and audio experience.”

Dibble and Harter then formed a tag team, with both representatives constantly tracked from left to right, before switching off Stagetracker to highlight how their individual audio was then completely removed from their current position.

“Sound Adventures produces unrivalled immersive 3D audio canvas,” concluded Dibble.

With the audience wowed by the presentation, they broke for refreshments at the end of the session with an opportunity to chat to Astro Spatial’s Bjorn Van Munster, Stagetracker II CEO John Skjelstad - and members of the Martin Audio staff. TPi Photos: Martin Audio www.martin-audio.com