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Highlights from AES

Nov 1, 2009 12:00 PM

The 127th AES convention offered all the audio goodies your facility could ever need.

The 127^th AES Convention returned to New York last month. In case you missed the show or didn't get a chance to see everything, read on. We've compiled highlights of the latest audio products, technology and solutions from the exhibition floor.

Audio consoles

StageTec presented the CRESCENDO mixing console to the American market for the first time. It targets the needs of users in broadcast and live venues and fills the gap between StageTec's successful flagship console AURUS and the smaller AURATUS. CRESCENDO has a depth of 530mm and supports up to 300 audio channels, 128 summing buses and 48 channel strips. It allows users to configure the number of mono, stereo and 5.1 sums, as well as stereo and 5.1 input-channel linking.

Lawo showcased its mc²66 production console, which offers advanced redundancy for failsafe operation, mc² bay server technology, a new control system on the MKII router, real-time DSP data transfer within the HD core and extended frame modularity.

The company also unveiled an enhancement within Version 4.6 of the console's OS: matrix GUI (mxGUI). Optionally available for use with v4.6 and subsequent release versions, mxGUI is a stand-alone application that enables the configuration and operation of mc² series consoles as well as the operation of the Nova 73HD.

Prism Sound introduced a series of SADiE audio recording, editing and mixing products that can run as software-only versions. Key functionalities include a rendering-free editing environment; precision editing to sample accuracy; instant, real-time crossfade engine; multiple playlists; nondestructive editing; and editing and real-time waveform drawing during record.

Calrec Audio debuted its Artemis console, which is based on the Apollo platform. Using a combination of OLED displays, touch screens and light-emitting knobs, the console's control surface provides instant visual feedback and a flexibility that enables users to reconfigure the desk on the fly. It uses Bluefin2, the next generation of Calrec's Bluefin High-Density Signal Processing platform, giving the console up to 640 channel-processing paths, 128 program busses, 64 IFB/track outputs and 32 auxiliaries.

Fairlight demonstrated its Constellation XCS console, which harnesses the power of the company's Xynergi controller to provide an intuitive tool for recording, editing and mixing.

Solid State Logic displayed its updated Duality SE hybrid analog console and DAW controller, which combines an analog signal path and processing with advanced DAW control within a single hardware surface, and C10HD, which offers many of the benefits of the C100HD but is designed for smaller stations.

Studer highlighted the Vista 5 compact digital mixer. The 32-fader unit consists of 20 channel strips and 12 additional versatile strips for operating output and input channels. Up to 240 channels can be accessed from the desk, and the total I/O capacity may exceed 1700 inputs and outputs, depending on the additional cards and configurations.

Yamaha showed several consoles. The eight-bus IM8 series is available in 24-, 32- and 40-channel models and features low-noise, intuitive operation and single-knob compression. The LS9 digital mixing console is available in 16- and 32-channel versions and features four stereo input channels, versatile bus architecture with comprehensive digital patching capability, built-in USB memory recorder/player and full-console scene store and recall.

Audio control/monitoring

Riedel introduced the RockNet RN.334.MD MADI module and the Version 1.41 update for RockNet's control and monitoring software RockWorks. The new version provides both electrical and optical MADI inputs and outputs. The module supports both 56- and 64-channel MADI formats.

With RockWorks Version 1.41, now routing is also possible in single channels and ports, allowing a connection between any given I/O.

Audio routing

Solid State Logic featured an audio processing card and range of multichannel audio converters. The XLogic MX4 audio I/O and processing card features a 128-channel MADI digital audio interface, multiclient software mixer and DSP-powered processing plug-ins. The XLogic Alpha-Link range is a family of multichannel audio converters designed for studio, live and broadcast applications. Each model features 24-channel AD/DA converter circuitry, and all of the units can be used as stand-alone format converters.

SoundField showed its UPM-1 stereo-to-5.1 audio converter designed to create 5.1 material from older stereo programs.

NTP Technology introduced the Penta 725 series, a compact modular audio router that packs up to 384 × 384 crosspoints into a compact 1RU 19in chassis.

The company also debuted RCCore, a software application that handles configuration, control and supervision of all router modules in an audio signal distribution system. The app can be used as a stand-alone controller within the NTP 635-300 router or run from standard PC hardware.

Optocore previewed a new digital audio protocol, SANE-Audio Network plus Ethernet. SANE is a fully-synchronous Cat 5 network solution for uninterrupted, real-time streaming. It combines the attributes of AES/EBU and MADI Ethernet, allowing full-scale data transport via a redundant-ring network topology.