This month, audioXpress expands its acoustical focus with a round-up of Acoustical Analysis Solutions. Every year the audio industry benefits from increasingly sophisticated acoustic measurements and analysis tools. In this issue we summarize some of the possibilities offered by the key players in the sound level meter space and discover the latest cutting-edge simulation tools. From NTi Audio and HBK, to Norsonic, Rion, and Bedrock, with highlights about Treble Technologies and ODEON Room Acoustics and its first hardware product, the ODEON Omni omnidirectional loudspeaker measurement source.Transitioning to our product development focus, Brent Butterworth shares what he learned about two evaluation solutions intended for designers of true wireless earbuds, the fastest growing product category in the audio industry. Specifically, he had the opportunity to review the Knowles KN2 True Wireless Reference Design and the Knowles Franklin 2 Developer Kit. With this reference design and developer kit, Knowles made it easier for companies to add sophisticated true wireless earphones to their lines — whether they develop their own design or adopt one that’s ready to go. audioXpress tried out both options.
And from a completely different angle, MC Patel, the founder and CEO of Emotion Systems, a company that specializes in high-volume automation of audio file processing for streaming distribution, cinema, and broadcast, explores immersive audio from the deliverables standpoint. Any form of audio and entertainment content today is produced and distributed as files, which are then streamed to consumers. In this article, we learn about its evolution and what immersive audio is.
Again, from yet another perspective, in his Sound Control article, Richard Honeycutt writes about Sound Exposure and Hearing Damage Risk. Exposure to noise is common today and the risks for hearing damage are also extensively studied and recognized. Exposure to loud music shouldn't be contributing to those risks but concert experiences through the years remain unpredictable. A great read, as Honeycutt shares his personal experience from his time as a musician, to his first rock concerts and today's good and bad experiences.
And although the Speaker Focus issue of audioXpress has now changed to October, we decided to anticipate the topic with a few great articles. This issue includes a major report from Roger Shively (Shively Acoustics International) with his review and analysis of the Dinaburg C2S Concentric Coplanar Stabilizer (C2S) loudspeaker technology. Dinaburg Technology developed a unique patented integral coaxial speaker cone approach that features the advantages of a passive radiator in a small volume and takes advantage of a back wave from the loudspeaker’s diaphragm to optimize the passive radiator’s response and the off-axis performance of the active driver. The advantages are clearly audible, and this article dives into the mathematical simulation with a COMSOL multiphysics approach, integrating the mechanical, acoustical, and electrical simulations.
And on the home audio front, Charlie Laub explains how he designed a Minimally Baffled Dipole Loudspeaker. After experimenting with and building open baffle speakers for more than 10 years, in this article he reviews the related theory and the approach to practical design and construction, followed the crossover design and voicing equalization. The project is based on the example design "Baffle-less-ness" that garnered first place in the Open Unlimited category at the 2022 Speaker Design Competition (Midwest Audio Fest).
And in this issue, Gary Gesellchen (Vanatoo) completes his fascinating article series on Bass Reflex Performance Envelope. After concluding the main analysis portion of the article determining his novel approach to estimating the performance envelope available from bass reflex loudspeakers, Part 3 shows an example to see how his calculations all work together. He also addresses some practical considerations that will make it clear that not all theoretically allowable solutions to the equations are practicably possible, and which desirable but unpractical designs can be easily realized by using a passive radiator. A set of Excel spreadsheets are available online, enabling the reader to experiment with different design options.
In Audio Electronics, Chuck Hansen continues his valuable and in-depth explorations of Power Transformer Parameters, detailing the history of transformer cores, their different construction methods, their materials, the design of current transformers, additional transformer core types and their advantages and disadvantages. In this issue he discusses the tests that were made on another batch of transformers, two E-I, two R core, and three toroidal core types. Expanding on the various testing methods and their losses, this article comments on the results that are obtained.
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