Social Media Decides Winners For Global Rockstar Competition, Winners Receive HARMAN AKG Prize Package

VIENNA, Austria – With a vision to bring international musicians together in a peaceful and fair contest, the Global Rockstar competition will once again rely on social media to find the best new musicians around the world. Bands, singers and musicians from all genres are invited to upload their original compositions to be put up against fellow international artists in an online voting contest. The Global Rockstar winners receive a prize package from HARMAN’s AKG, in addition to international recognition.

“We launched Global Rockstar simply because we love music,” stated Christof Straub, Founder of Global Rockstar. “There is so much undiscovered talent that is worth a listen and we hope to provide a stage for all artists who believe in their art.”

To ensure a fair outcome during the contest, a jury formed of social media users and an expert panel of music business professionals will choose those who advance throughout the contest. The highest voted songs and additional “wild card” votes from the panel will be in the running for $10,000 and an AKG prize pack worth more than $15,000, which includes: numerous D5, D7 and C214 microphones, K271 and K171 headphones and WMS470 instrument and vocal wireless system sets.

For their loyalty, activeness and support, fans are also eligible to win AKG prizes.

“Our motivation for supporting the Global Rockstar competition is its offering of a professional competition for young, up and coming musicians and an opportunity to present themselves internationally without a major recording deal,” said Walter Ruhrig, Artist and Key Customer Relations, AKG. “With AKG’s professional line of mics, headphones and wireless systems, these artists will be able to continue pursuing their dreams with professional-grade equipment, bringing out their best sound possible!”

For more information and to register for the Global Rockstar competition, please visit: https://www.global-rockstar.com. Artists can upload their original songs on the site up to August 5, 2013. National pre-selections will end September 2 and one national winner from each country will be chosen for the global finals, which run from September 2 through December 20.

HARMAN (www.HARMAN.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of audio, lighting and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer, and professional markets. It is a recognized world leader across its customer segments with premium brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, and Mark Levinson®, and leading-edge connectivity, safety and audio technologies. The company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with Harman audio and infotainment systems. Harman has a workforce of about 14,300 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $4.4 billion for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012.

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AKG Launches C 214 Stereo Set Offering Maximum Consistency And Accurate Localization For Stunning, Three-Dimensional Recordings

Demonstrating the outstanding performance value and versatility of the C 214 microphone, AKG today launched the C 214 Stereo Set today at NAMM. The rugged construction of the C 214 delivers a highly detailed and accurate sound not only in the studio, but on the road as well. The introduction of the Stereo Set provides users with a complete solution that delivers outstanding performance and excellent quality from a pair of C 214’s.

“Realistic stereo recordings require microphones with outstanding performance and excellent quality,” comments Thomas Stubics, Product Marketing Manager for Recording and Broadcast at AKG. “It also requires performance consistency and accurate localization from the pair of microphones. Therefore, every factory-matched pair of C 214’s is created from thousands of individual microphones selected by AKG's sophisticated computer-aided matching method and the result is the highest possible correlation over the whole frequency range and virtually identical sensitivity for stunning, 3-dimensional recordings.“

The C 214 is a cost effective alternative to the revolutionary C 414 and is capable of handling the rigors of high-pressure sound, such as amplified guitars, with sensitivity perfect for voice and orchestral instruments as well. The C 214 boasts the highest dynamic range in its class and features a low cut switch enabling operation in low phantom power voltages from 12 to 48 volts.

Additional features include 156 dB SPL capability, an integrated suspension, double mesh grill and high RF immunity. The circuitry in the C 214 provides maximum SPL capability with minimum noise and the XLR-type output connector offers loss-free signals.

Commenting on the C 214 is Grammy Award Nominee, Hal Winer, owner of BiCoastal Music. “I've been using the C 214’s regularly and I absolutely love them! I've used them for a wide range of recording applications and I find them especially great for jazz kick drum. It's been very difficult to find a microphone to represent that small and tight sound that a jazz kick has and the C 214 is absolutely the best microphone I’ve ever used in that application. Piano, voice and guitar amp applications have been equally successful."

Hal Winer has produced records for world-renowned artists including Rob Thomas, Björk, Joe Lynn Turner, Tony Levin, John Patitucci and Mike Stern. "They have become my ‘go to’ microphone for almost everything and I keep them mounted on stands for regular use," said Winer.

Accompanying a pair of C 214’s, the Stereo Set includes spider-type shock mounts, stand adapters, windscreens, and a stereo pair certificate for authenticity.

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