Essential Install | Speakers
DID YOU KNOW: The ‘Guinness World Records’ no longer contains ‘The Loudest Band in the World’ category for fear of
promoting damage to ears
Meridian DSPs are
included in this high-
quality install from
Electric String
life with the speaker electronics sealed against water and
weather ingress. This model can be used in stereo or mono
configuration and offers the wide dispersion the whole
range is designed to deliver. The PS-65SI is a weatherproof
terracotta style pot combining stereo speaker performance
and the ability to house a specimen plant or smaller plant
arrangement. Combining the same 6in polypropylene
driver and dual tweeters common to the Rock and
Terracotta ranges ensures an even tonal balance across
larger outdoor installation projects, says the maker.
Custom AV Distribution (CAVD) is the exclusive
distributor of a brand new home cinema speaker system
by Audio Excellence. Headed by Patrice Congard, Audio
Excellence shares the same home as Screen Excellence in
Rendlesham, Suffolk. Like the screens, the speaker system
is UK manufactured.
Patrice has not only designed a system consisting
of a speaker range with matching amplifiers and DSP,
but also aims to promote the ‘Congard Code’ which is a
methodology for configuring a surround sound system.
The Congard Code seeks to challenge and improve upon,
common misconceptions that Patrice argues the industry
applies when designing and then calibrating a system.
CAVD has implemented the speaker system and
Congard Code at its training room as a trial and says the
results are great.
Wayne Hyde, technical manager at the company
says: “The Audio Excellence system sounds powerful,
controlled and ‘correct’, better still it avoids the ‘sweet
spot’ problem so that more people can enjoy the sound
across the seating area. Attendees to a Congard Code
CEDIA training session in April seemed to be delighted
with the system and the concept.
“The main difference in the way that the system
is configured is centered around the routing of the
bass signals. For example, in most home cinema
configurations, bass frequencies that the satellite
speakers cannot deliver are channeled through to the LFE
subwoofer. Congard argues that this is bad practice and
the LFE channel should be solely for, well LFE!”
Wayne explains: “So instead, an Audio Excellence DSP
is used to provide bass extension (everything under 100Hz)
from left, center and right speakers to their very own
dedicated subwoofer. This BE subwoofer sits between and
below the center channel and either left or right speakers.”
The products themselves include three new
loudspeakers for on or in-wall installation, Vertex 1, 2 and
3 for small to large rooms. Two models of subwoofers to
use for either LFE or the Bass Extension channel, these
are Raijuu 1 and 2. There are three amplifiers, the Quattro
02, 06 and the DSP 06. Lastly the standalone DSP units,
Control 48, 46 and 26.
Rayner Sheridan, director of marketing at Meridian
Audio, argues that to deliver the best experience for
customers, integrators need to focus on design and quality.
Rayner says: “A theatre can have fantastic visual
capabilities, but without a really high quality audio
system, a home theatre can lack the power and
performance to deliver the nuance and drama of the
client’s favourite movies. At Meridian we work closely with
home integrators to ensure that our solutions provide the
customer with the best possible experience.
Design is of course key to getting good results,
including where to place speakers, but also taking into
account client preferences such as where they are likely
to sit. Meridian Room Correction can come into its own
here giving integrators more flexibility when positioning
Meridian loudspeakers, as it enables them to target the
distribution of the audio more accurately. Meridian also
offers its complimentary Design and Specification Service,
giving integrators the option of sending a schematic or
plan of the room to the Meridian team, who will then
produce a wiring schematic and plan showing where the
speakers should be positioned, as well as the projector,
acoustic panelling and projection screen if necessary.
As video has developed with new 4K standards,
Meridian argues installers need to follow the same no
compromise approach with the audio.
Rayner says: “At Meridian, our Hi-Res Audio music
solutions are gaining increasing popularity, because they
provide customers with the very highest audio quality so
that they can enjoy the full experience of their favourite
songs. We know that customers want the highest quality,
May 2017 | 67