Get Connected to Speaker Intelligence in Voice Coil April 2023

The April 2023 issue of Voice Coil is now available and it features a very detailed article written by Kris Jackson on Echo Test + Measurement, "The New Kids on the Block" as it is titled. The article details the story of this "old company with a new presence," founded in the 1970s by engineer Milo Street as Street Electronics and later rebranded as Echo Digital Audio. From being one of the first audio sound card developers to starting to gain recognition in consumer electronics manufacturing as an affordable solution for production line testing, Echo Test + Measurement has now built an interesting range of modular interfaces that where completely designed for audio test and measurement applications. And the best part, is that the AIO product range from the company works with the most popular analysis software, from freeware to established industry references. And the AIO Test System can be controlled and programmed to match any application.

As scheduled for the month of April, Voice Coil offers an updated industry directory of Cable and Connector vendors compiled by Mike Klasco and Nora Wong (Menlo Scientific). An essential guide on the wire, cable, and connector supply, specifically selected for the perspective of the loudspeaker industry and specifically speaker design and integration. This sampling of some of the cable and connector vendors greatly complements the larger listings in the Loudspeaker Industry Sourcebook, available at www.loudspeakerindustrysourcebook.com.

For this month's Acoustic Patents column, James Croft offers a very detailed and exceptional review of a key field of research and innovations from Polk Audio, in this case listing Bradley M. Starobin (Baltimore, MD) as inventor. The specific patent is titled "Method And System For Implementing Stereo Dimensional Array Signal Processing In A Compact Single Enclosure Active Loudspeaker" and was granted in June 2019. What motivated James Croft to address the patent is the fact that this describes the fundamental aspects of a product design that is now available on the market and his review expands on the research that Polk Audio initiated with the original Polk SDA loudspeaker. The patent in question describes a single enclosure multi-channel loudspeaker product that uses "a novel signal processing system and method to achieve a surprisingly effective psycho-acoustically expanded image breadth by inter-aural crosstalk cancellation, in a manner which relies on a new method for cancellation of apparent sources of inter-aural crosstalk." As the patent abstract details, unlike the Polk SDA method, the new compact speaker system employs DSP and selected time delays to acoustically simulate the optimal placement to reduce the space needed to create the same effect. As our readers can guess, James Croft revisits some of the key inventions and patents in this domain to provide proper perspective for the current approach in a more compact enclosure.

And this issue's Test Bench sees Vance Dickason characterize the innovative TW045WA01 dual-diaphragm tweeter, a new coaxial cloth dome/ceramic cone tweeter from Wavecor. This is one of three products recently unveiled by the company, which include also a Kevlar/Carbon Fiber woofer and midrange design. But this TW045WA01 driver is unique and certainly the most intriguing. Its dual-diaphragm assembly combines a 22mm coated textile dome for high-frequency extension and a 45mm ceramic/aluminum cone, which adds low-frequency output and efficiency. The hybrid design incorporates aspects of both dome and cone tweeter technology, including a dual neodymium magnet motor structure, an aluminum die cast damped rear chamber, a compact injection-molded 90mm (3.5”) diameter 6.7mm thick aluminum faceplate, rated with 95dB sensitivity (averaged 5kHz-20kHz). A sculpted foam damping ring is attached to the faceplate, along with an acoustic damping pad attached to the top of the pole piece, directly below the coated textile dome. Vance Dickason dives into this very unique driver that will soon appear in new two-channel high-end audio loudspeakers.
 
This April 2023 issue of Voice Coil concludes with a dose of Industry Watch highlights, including the latest Klippel software updates, a spotlight on Radian Audio's newest LM10n ribbon planar midrange that the company unveiled at CES 2023, new pro drivers from Lavoce, and what's being planned for the High End Show in Munich, and the presence that the Audio & Loudspeaker Technologies International (ALTI) Association is planning for that show in Germany, immediately followed by the annual ALTI Expo & Conference, this year in Orlando, FL (June 11–12).

This issue of Voice Coil is available for download and already in the mail to print subscribers. Subscribers can go to - www.gotomyvcoil.com - to download this issue.

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