It’s not that we’re saving the best for last, but audioXpress December 2015 includes some great articles on all the most current and interesting topics for the audio industry. There’s Auro-3D, two great reviews of measurement solutions, and lots of great DIY projects. And for those designing new audio products, there’s even an introduction to Audio Network Development. audioXpress December 2015 begins with another great article in Ron Tipton’s series on Realistic Sound Reproduction, which this month focuses on immersive sound. Ron offers an interesting look at Auro-3D from Auro Technologies and its proposal to move from 2-D surround sound (5.1/7.1) formats to add the missing third dimension of “height” around the listener.
In our Standards Review column, we signal the start of a new article series on Audio Network Development. This first article provides insights on the evolution of audio network connectivity and available technologies and platforms. The article series intends to address the question of who the companies are that support the product implementation efforts with regard to audio networking.
audioXpress December also includes another great Practical Test & Measurement article, extending our series on Sound Cards for Data Acquisition in Audio Measurements. This time, Stuart Yaniger is “Pitting the CLIO Pocket Against a Sound Card” because he was intrigued by Joe D’Appolito’s recent review of the CLIO Pocket. He tries to find out if the “junior” version of Audiomatica’s well-respected CLIO systems really could prove to be a convenient alternative to his DIY approach of using sound cards and a variety of software.
In our Sound Control series, Richard Honeycutt focuses on test and measurement tools. As was evident from last month’s Sound Control article, “Smartphone Apps for Sound Measurement,” many mobile apps have been developed for making electroacoustical and acoustical measurements. During his research, Richard kept finding references to one company that is responsible for the most comprehensive and professional such products — Studio Six Digital. This month he reviews Audio Tools, a suite of useful audio measurement tools for iOS devices from Studio Six Digital, a company founded by Andrew Smith, who is also the founder of TerraSonde and the famous Audio Toolbox.
In the December issue, we also have a great collection of DIY projects. First, there is A Low-Cost High-Performance IC Audio Preamplifier by Bruce Heran, a solid-state headphone preamplifier, designed “out of the need for something compact that did not generate a lot of heat.” In fact, the project includes two versions. One is a nice looking tabletop wood-cased version and the second is a compact mini version.
The December issue also includes the second part of James Lin’s “SRX Plus Hybrid Amplifier.” In this article about his tube amplifier with solid-state support for electrostatic headphones, James details the power supply, the construction, and the test results.
Our third article on DIY is definitely something for the “tube aficionados” among our readers: A classic design of a single-ended Type-A 25W monobloc amplifier using two KT 88 vacuum tubes. Even though this project was published some years ago - in German - Gerhard Haas has supervised the translation and updated his project exclusively for audioXpress. And as Gerhard explains, in the update, he paid particular attention to “making the full undistorted amplifier power available to 20 Hz!”
And because controlling noise in Hollow-State Electronics is critical, Richard Honeycutt explains how to create “Low-Noise Amplifiers” and control both the external noise that enters the circuit from an external source, and the internal noise produced within the electrical system and electronic components themselves.
In “Questions & Answers,” Shannon Becker talks to an inspired duo with a great first product. Tlacael and Tenoch Esparza are the founders of Sunhouse. Their Sensory Percussion solution was successfully funded on Kickstarter and managed to create genuine excitement within the drumming and percussion community. The solution combines the expressive nature of drumming and the essence of performance with samples, synthesizers, and digital audio effects to create totally new music styles, simply by playing the drums.
And because sharing knowledge is an essential part of what audioXpress represents, this month’s issue includes another Practical Test & Measurement article on “Testing Audio ADCs and DACs,” written by David Mathew from Audio Precision.
And finally, we included a full Industry Calendar, listing all the 2016 audio shows with confirmed dates scheduled from January to December 2016.
Plenty of reasons to start exploring your new issue of audioXpress, now available at www.gotomyxpress.com
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