Sound & Communications - Commercial AV for Integrators, Contractors and Consultants.

NEWSLETTER

March 11, 2010

EXTRON ACQUIRES ELECTROSONIC PRODUCTS DIVISION
Extron Electronics (Anaheim CA) has purchased the Products Engineering and Development Division of Electrosonic Group (Burbank CA), a worldwide AV systems integration and service provider. The Electrosonic Group systems integration and service business is not part of the acquisition and will continue as an independent organization. Electrosonic's Products Division is involved with video and graphics over IP encoders and decoders, HD video players and multi-image display processors. It has been operating as a standalone division from the systems integration and service business since February 2009. The acquisition includes all current products designed and manufactured by Electrosonic as well as the IP for the underlying technology. Key staff will join Extron to support current customers and continue the development of this group of products.
According to Andrew Edwards, President of Extron, "At Extron, we have been in development of a complete line of AV streaming products for over three years and will be announcing additional streaming solutions later this year. We see the Electrosonic products as a great complement to our continually evolving product line."
Jim Bowie, President of Electrosonic Group, added: "These current products have developed to the point that we as a systems integrator cannot take them to their full potential. Extron is exactly the right company to take these products forward worldwide. Electrosonic can now concentrate on its main business activity: the design, supply and support of audiovisual systems."
In exclusive comments to Sound & Communications, Joe Da Silva, Director, Product Marketing, Extron, said all products will be rebranded Extron. The transition will commence in April and continue over a period of time. About 30 engineering and support personnel came with the purchase of the brand, half in the US and half in Europe. Finally, he confirmed the purchase does not affect Electrosonic’s systems integration business.

The LM 26 Loudspeaker Processor from Lab.gruppen
Featuring Lake Technology

The LM 26 is the first of a range of Lake-branded products to be manufactured by Lab.gruppen. A full-featured 2-in/6-out stand-alone Lake Processor in a 1U frame, it is fully compatible with the PLM Series and with all Dolby® Lake® Processors including the legacy Mesa Quad™ and Contour™. The LM 26’s easily programmable EQ and delay capabilities allow rapid configuration for use as a processor and line driver for self-powered loudspeaker systems as well as for systems with separate power amplifiers.

In step with the flexible Lake Processing technology currently implemented in the PLM Series, the LM 26 will accept audio signals as analog, AES digital, or via Audinate®’s Dante™ digital audio network at 48 kHz and 96 kHz sampling rates. Automatic input priority switching may be enabled, and the unit can function as both an input matrix mixer and Dante break-in box.

Exclusive Lake processing features include Raised Cosine Equalization™, linear phase and classical crossovers, LimiterMax™ peak and RMS limiters. A Super Module capability allows flexible grouping of processor channels across separate hardware frames, including prior Lake products and PLM Series units. All functions are controlled via wired or wireless networking by the Windows®-based Lake Controller software application.

Visit http://labgruppen.com/products/lake_products for more information.

UNITEDSCREENS MEDIA ACQUIRES KLOTZ DIGITAL
Klotz Digital AG (Feldkirchen, Germany) has been acquired by UnitedScreens Media AG. The companies also have entered into agreements securing the future financial support of Klotz Digital AG, to contribute to the long-term stabilization of the company and to ensure its economic growth. Dr. Andreas Gruettner has been appointed CEO, replacing Thomas Klotz, who has resigned his position.
Gruettner has been acting as an independent entrepreneur, investing his own private equity, since 1993. Throughout the years, he has acquired about 18 companies, and has taken a multitude of interim management positions. Currently, Gruettner is a member of the supervisory board of Gebrueder Rhodius GmbH & Co. KG, a German company with a turnover of €100 million per year and a staff of 400.
Klotz Digital will maintain its position in the international broadcast market. Gruettner has identified the company’s main potential for growth in the international PA market. He also wishes to boost Klotz’s position in the industry, and to increase its economic efficiency.

DSE FUNDS THE DIGITAL SIGNAGE FEDERATION
The digital signage industry has a new trade association, The Digital Signage Federation (DSF). Angelo Varrone, CEO of ExpoNation, LLC, owner of Digital Signage Expo (DSE), an international conference summit and trade show dedicated to digital signage, interactive technologies and out-of-home media networks, announced initial funding to launch the trade association during DSE. DSF will be an independent 501c non-profit association with legal and professional by-laws and an elected Board of Directors who represent a cross-section of the industry and are motivated to act in the industry’s best interest. Association consultant and interim Executive Director, John Johnson CAE, is an association executive with more than 40 years of experience.
Along with other member benefits still being finalized, the Digital Signage Federation will provide a year-round education program for members and a full program of member services, featuring a vertical industry outreach program to bring the digital signage industry’s message to thousands of end users in 2011. Professional association management will support the new Federation and funds will be provided to make projects immediately actionable. DSE has agreed to foot the bill without reimbursement, to create a member-owned forum in which industry leadership can come to the fore.
Varrone said, “We believe the industry has earned the right to an independent industry association in order to safeguard continued growth in a direction that accurately reflects the industry’s voice. We are committed to support the industry that supports us.”

The World’s First Powered Processors!

Ashly’s 4-channel ne4250pe and 8-channel ne8250pe deliver plenty of power and so much comprehensive DSP they could easily be called the world’s first powered processors. Network ready right out of the box, they offer the lowest installation cost in the business.

Available in Low Z, 25V, 70V and 100V models with 250W per channel, these amplifiers have a built-in full matrix mixer with assignable routing, plug and play setup and monitoring via self-configuring Ethernet connection and no compiling required – settings change in real time. For more information on the NE-Series, visit http://www.ashly.com/neamps.

Remote control is available using Ashly’s WR- or RD-Series wall or desktop controllers and fully supports 3rd party controllers.
Additionally, each amplifier also provides DC voltage control of the attenuators which makes it a snap to control volume from remote locations, preset recall, Remote Power Standby and data in and out ports for connecting accessories like the WR-5 to control user selected parameters. There are LED indicators for power, standby, protect, network communications and each channel has a four-step signal meter, bridge mono, temperature and current indicators. Four-channel Mic-pre, AES/EBU, and CobraNet input modules are available as options.

SOUND & COMMUNICATIONS LAUNCHES WEBSITE
Sound & Communications (Port Washington NY) has redesigned its website, www.soundandcommunications.com, adding exclusive content. News Update, a regularly updated feature, gives the most important, late-breaking news affecting commercial systems integrators, contractors and consultants. NEWSLETTER, modeled after the longstanding magazine feature, gives a sneak peek at the print-issue content, with additional detail unavailable anywhere else. Additional resources include an industry association list with contact information, an event calendar covering all the most important conferences and expositions, and more.
The site is also the portal for the Sound & Communications and IT/AV Reportinteractive Digital Editions, as well as the digital versions of two annual surveys: the Commercial Systems Integration Survey and the Worship Center AV Survey. With the digital technology, visitors can search for any company name or other bit of text in editorial and advertising throughout each issue, as well as gain instant, linked access to any web or email address. Additionally, visitors can print articles, crop a portion of a page, make a PDF file of pages or email items of interest. Blue Book Online Edition is also available at the site.
The site will continue to evolve, and add fresh content, in upcoming months.

MANAGE YOUR EMAIL SUBSCRIPTION TO OUR NEWSLETTER HERE

thumb Sound & Communications NEWSLETTER, Internet Edition, is self-managing and conforms to anti-spam agreements and policies worldwide.

If for any reason you can not reach the management links above or encounter any problems managing your email address, please contact John Carr at jcarr@testa.com and the issue will be resolved.