HARMAN Professional Delivers Superb Sound in New Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe Auditorium

BIBVEWADI, PUNE, India — The city of Pune has a new cultural attraction to be proud of – the recently completed Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe Auditorium, an 850-seat facility built to host Marathi-language theatrical productions and other events. Named for the noted social reformer and writer, the Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe auditorium has an understated yet striking architectural design and an elegant interior with the finest quality appointments and audio/video facilities throughout, including an audio system built around HARMAN Professional’s JBL, Crown and dbx.

Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe Auditorium was built under the auspices of government agency Pune Municipal Corporation, which chose Zillion Solutions of Pune as the systems integrator thanks to the firm’s more than 25 years of experience in auditorium installations. “The time span to install the audio system was only five days,” said Pankaj Pansare, Zillion Solutions’ proprietor. “Five days for everything – from receiving the loudspeakers and components to installing, EQing and calibrating the system in time for opening night.” As if that wasn’t enough pressure for Pansare and his team, the installation was the first government project Zillion Solutions had ever undertaken.

Pansare knew he could turn to HARMAN to help him meet the tight time requirements and provide loudspeakers and products that would deliver world-class sound. “We’ve had a long-standing relationship with Zillion Solutions over the course of many successful projects,” noted Rohan Tadke, National Sales Manager, HARMAN Professional India. “They know our products offer sound quality, performance and reliability that’s second to none and we know they trust us as a valued partner to provide technical and design assistance and deliver products on time no matter what.”

HARMAN Professional India supplied 12 JBL VRX932LA-1 Constant Curvature loudspeakers, along with two VRX915S subwoofers, two SRX712M stage monitor/utility loudspeakers and 10 Control 1 wall-mountable loudspeakers. The loudspeakers are driven by seven Crown XTi 6002 amplifiers. Additional system components include a dbx DriveRack 4800 Loudspeaker Management System, dbx 234 stereo crossover and dbx 231 dual-31-band equalizer. “We needed a system that provided high-quality sound with even coverage throughout the auditorium, and was easy to operate and be totally reliable once installed,” stated Pansare.

The speakers were deployed in a somewhat unusual manner, since no fill loudspeakers were specified for the balcony by the architects. The JBL VRX932LA-1 loudspeakers were placed to cover both the main auditorium floor and the balcony, with the upper line array elements in the cluster aimed at the balcony and operated at a higher volume than the rest of the speakers via the dbx DriveRack 4800. “This combination actually works so well that we don’t miss the presence of fill loudspeakers at all,” Pansare pointed out.

 The system was calibrated using HARMAN HiQnet Audio Architect™ software. Pansare noted that Audio Architect enables him to optimize a system to its full potential, and makes the process faster and easier than by any other means he’s used previously. The result was all Zillion Solutions hoped for and more. “The engineers from Pune Municipal Corporation were highly impressed with the sound quality and performance of the system and its ability to deliver even coverage and clear, intelligible audio throughout the auditorium.”

Pansare proudly noted, “Because of the hard work and dedication of our team and the support that HARMAN provided, the system was working a day earlier than we promised.”

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets premier audio, visual, infotainment and integrated control solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets. With leading brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson ®, the Company is admired by audiophiles, musicians and the entertainment 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 approximately 16,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $5.3 billion for the twelve months ended June 30, 2014.

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USO’s 4th of July Pitbull Concert at the White House Celebrates Veterans with Event Tech and HARMAN Professional

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Contracted by the United Service Organizations, Inc. (USO) for the sixth year to integrate the sound at the 4th of July concert on the South Lawn of the White House, live production company Event Tech deployed HARMAN’s JBL VTX line arrays, Crown amplifiers and dbx signal processing to meet the strict demands of the venue and to deliver high-quality sound to the honorable audience.

International pop star Pitbull gave an hour-long performance for the 1,200 US servicemen and servicewomen that were present, as well as their families and the White House staff. Besides the show, there were various activities such as barbecue, lawn-games, photo stands and meet-and-greets. However, the annual event would have not been as successful without Event Tech’s ability to bring high-level production quality to the events.

Because of a gradient on the South Lawn, it was a challenge to balance the sound between the two ends of the stage; stage-left was elevated two feet above the ground, and stage-right was elevated five-and-a-half feet above ground. To provide precise coverage of 280 degrees, Event Tech used four stacks of six ground-stacked JBL VTX V20 loudspeakers and one VTX S25 subwoofer per stack, as well as six VTX G28 subwoofers per side in cardioid arrangement as the main PA. Two VTX F12 and two VTX F15 loudspeakers were deployed for front and out fills.

Four VRack 4x3500HD and two VRack 12000HD amplification systems powered the entire PA system. A dbx DriveRack 4800 unit enhanced the signal processing and routing for the overall system. The system was configured and controlled with JBL HiQnet Performance Manager™.

“We did a lot of pre-work at our office with the VTX rig, because we wanted to make sure that the coverage was precise and make it drop off 300 feet from stage left, so that the sound did not penetrate the White House,” said Jeremy Meyers, Account Executive and Audio Systems Designer for Event Tech. “I was very impressed with the output from these small V20 boxes, given their relative size compared to those from other manufacturers that I have worked with in the past. The detailed coverage from JBL’s patented waveguide and the precise frequency output of the D2 drivers allowed us to accomplish our goal.”

Since the stage was set up between the fountain and the White House, space was tight and the FOH position was at an awkward location. Also, the crew was forced to use smaller sized loudspeakers in order to fit all the equipment onto the stage. However, compromising on power was not an option either, since Pitbull’s music has significant output requirements, especially for low frequencies.

“The VTX V20s were truly perfect because of their power-to-size ratio and the Crown amplifiers were also compact and powerful enough for this event,” said Raul Gonzalez of HARMAN. “The front stacks could throw the music 225 feet to the back of the audience, and the stacks on the side were so powerful that we did not need separate loudspeakers for the FOH position. Overall, the performance was great and we were able to deliver everything in a compact, tightly-integrated package.”

“We were also impressed with the VTX F12 and F15 fills, which had amazing output, even when compared to the V20 boxes,” said Meyers. “Thanks to our experience in live corporate events and the incredible caliber of these JBL loudspeakers, our veterans received a terrific 4th of July gift.”

For more information about Event Tech go to www.eventtech.com.

Event Tech is a nationally recognized leader in providing production services to the trade show, entertainment, industrial, and special events industries. No matter the location or project size, Event Tech meets and exceeds the needs of its clients through the use of the latest in audio, lighting, power distribution, mobile stages, roof systems, staging and structures, and is supported by some of the industry’s leading professionals. Event Tech carries a wide array of Harman brands’ equipment for sale and rental, and proudly uses Harman brands on their own productions around the country.

HARMAN designs, manufactures and markets premier audio, visual, infotainment and integrated control solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets. With 15 leading brands, including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson ®, the Company is admired by audiophiles, musicians and the entertainment venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a global workforce of 15,200 people and reported sales of $5.1 billion for the last 12 months ended March 31, 2014.

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HARMAN’s dbx Debuts Its AFS2 Advanced Feedback Suppression™ Processor

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – HARMAN’s dbx today announced the introduction of its AFS2 Advanced Feedback Suppression Processor, designed to completely eliminate feedback from a PA system. The AFS2 is ideal for bands, DJs, live sound and fixed installation applications and offers a host of upgraded features including a Wizard auto-setup function, a completely re-designed Advanced Feedback Suppression module, and a large LCD display.

Successor to the popular AFS224, the AFS2 provides state-of-the-art feedback elimination, yet is simple to use, thanks to its one-button Wizard function that automates key setup parameters and walks the user through the configuration process. The AFS2 offers a full LCD display and 24 LED meters per channel for setup and monitoring. The AFS2 can be added to a system in minutes, thanks to its easy rear-panel connectivity and its optimized front panel .

The AFS2’s all-new DSP module takes dbx Advanced Feedback Suppression (AFS™) to an entirely new level. This new module provides for faster and more focused filter sets in both fixed and live mode. While 10- and 12-filter feedback-elimination processors are commonplace, the dedicated processor in the AFS2 provides up to 24 programmable filters per channel with filter Qs up to 1/80 of an octave. This level of extreme precision, previously available only in high-end processors, enables the AFS2 to zero in on the exact frequencies needed to attenuate feedback. The AFS2 offers application-specific filter types including Speech and Music Low, Medium and High.

The AFS2 offers selectable Live and Fixed (installed sound) filter modes, selectable filter lift times, live filter lift and more, all of which are available via the intuitive front panel user interface. The AFS2 can be used in either stereo or dual independent channel mode. It includes XLR and TRS inputs and outputs and a USB jack to enable firmware updates when they become available.
“Getting rid of feedback can be one of the most difficult and insidious things to deal with when setting up a PA system, especially for bands and performers who have to carry their own PA and may be musicians first and sound engineers second,” said Jason Kunz, Market Manager, Portable PA and Recording & Broadcast at HARMAN Signal Processing. “The AFS2 is simple to use, yet powerful and flexible enough for elaborate large-scale live sound systems and fixed installations.”

The dbx AFS2 Advanced Feedback Suppression Processor will be available in July 2014 at a suggested retail price of $499.

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio 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 15,200 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $5.1 billion for the last twelve months ended March 31, 2014.

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HARMAN Professional India Highlights Technology and Innovation with Showcase of Latest Audio and Lighting Solutions at PALM Expo India 2014

MUMBAI, India — HARMAN Professional India will exhibit a wide range of its latest audio and lighting products at PALM Expo India 2014 at the Bombay Exhibition Center, Mumbai, India, Booth D09 (May 29 – 31, 2014). Industry-leading products from AKG, BSS Audio, Crown, dbx, JBL, Lexicon, Martin Lighting and Soundcraft will be showcased at the booth.

HARMAN PALM Live Arena, now in its 5th year will host a variety of India’s top musicians and performers throughout the show including percussion icons Sivamani and Ranjit Barot, Blackstratblues, Bhayanak Maut, Louis Banks, Mihir Joshi and many other artists.

“We are dedicated to offering the very best in pro sound and lighting to the expanding Indian market,” explained Prashant Govindan, Director – India Operations, HARMAN Professional. “And, we will be demonstrating this in the way it really matters – live, on stage at the HARMAN Live Arena as we bring the excitement of the live concert experience right to the show floor.”

A host of new and state of the art HARMAN Professional products will be featured at PALM 2014. Highlights include the following:

JBL VTX Series line arrays have redefined the performance capabilities and installation flexibility of professional sound reinforcement loudspeakers. The VTX Series is JBL’s flagship range of line array loudspeakers and subwoofers for tour and installed sound and incorporates JBL’s most advanced components, materials and technologies. The latest VTX V20 3-way 2x10” high-directivity line array elements, S25 suspendable, cardioid-arrayable dual-15-inch subwoofers and compact, high-performance F Series models will be in use at the HARMAN Palm Live Arena and featured in the booth.

JBL’s CWT128 is a compact 2-way speaker that provides powerful, wide-angle coverage. The CWT128 is ideal for installed sound applications as it delivers full-range sound across a wide listening area, thanks to its Crossfired Waveguide Technology 160-degree horizontal dispersion, yet it takes up only one third of the footprint of two conventional speakers splayed side by side.

Soundcraft Vi3000 – setting a new standard in digital live sound consoles, the Soundcraft Vi3000 offers a host of high-end features including a new ergonomic design, 96 channels to mix, new internal SpiderCore 40-bit floating point DSP, Dante compatibility and much more. The Soundcraft Vi3000 features a control surface with four Vistonics II™ 3-D touchscreen interfaces, making it the only console in its class that can be used by two engineers at the same time.

Also featured at PALM 2014 will be Soundcraft’s ViSi Connect expansion cards, which add a 128-channel expansion bus to a console for connection to stageboxes, personal monitor systems, audio networks and DAWs for live recording.

HiQnet Audio Architect is a common control platform for all devices in a sound system, from microphone to speaker. To facilitate system setup, Audio Architect utilizes graphical, diagrammatic representations of the installed or live sound venue, and the components and loudspeakers in the system. Devices “understand” both their physical and logical placement and the software “learns” how they are to be used, while offering extensive setup and configuration capabilities.

The new dbx DriveRack PA2 Loudspeaker Management System enables a loudspeaker system to be quickly and accurately optimized for the best-possible sound quality. The PA2 is ideal for bands, musicians and artists who carry their own PA and for a wide range of installed sound applications. The DriveRack PA2 makes it easier than ever to set up a system and control it on the fly using an Android®, iOS®, Mac®, or Windows® mobile device or laptop.

Martin MAC Quantum Wash lighting features the unique and expressive Colorganics™ system to create a stunning palette ranging from vivid colors to bright white. With features including 750 watts of RGBW LED power, high-speed movement and a 1:5 zoom, the rugged, compact and efficient MAC Quantum Wash is ideal for creating beautiful wash effects with wide, powerful and bright beams on any stage.

 “PALM 2014 continues to grow every year, as does HARMAN Professional’s presence and commitment to India, making this annual industry event the ideal venue for us to demonstrate the benefits and technologies of our brands for professionals in every segment – be they musicians, sound engineers, DJs or just sound enthusiasts.” said Ankush Agarwal, Director, Business Development and Marketing HARMAN Professional India.

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio 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 15,200 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $5.1 billion for the last twelve months ended March 31, 2014.

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Bounty Music Completes Audio Revamp at St. Theresa Church In Hawaii with HARMAN Brands

MAUI, Hawaii – Owner of 35-year-old musical instrument store and pro audio installation company Bounty Music on the island of Maui, Paul Weinstein and his wife Linda recently revamped the local St. Theresa Church with HARMAN’s Soundcraft digital console, JBL loudspeakers, Crown amplification and dbx signal processing. This Catholic Church, which seats 550, required an immediate upgrade of its sound system, streamlining all the gear into an integrated network, controlled by a one-switch system.

Featured are the Soundcraft Si Expression 2 digital console with 24 recallable mic preamps, Crown DCi 2|1250 amplifier, a JBL CBT70JE-1-WH column loudspeaker per side and a dbx DriveRack PA2 for room EQ, anti-feedback and compression.

“I have always relied on Crown amplifiers for their sound quality and their reliability, especially powering JBL loudspeakers.” said Weinstein. “The dbx Driverack PA2 is a great all in one solution, for room EQ and anti-feedback.”

Due to the variety of groups performing at the Church, music can vary between multiple genres within a given day. The recallable features of the Si Expression 2 made the console the best solution for the Church.

“Compared to what else was out there, Soundcraft offers the ability to recall everything, including even mic pres,” according to Weinstein. “The price and performance made it the ideal choice for this category, beating everything else within its price range. With the new modification, we have no problem catering to the different groups coming in.”

The console is housed in a cabinet hidden from the general audience, which makes the ViSi Remote App 2.0 perfect for controlling the audio from a distance. Given the wide and shallow structure of the seating arrangements, the CBT70JE-1-WH loudspeakers were chosen to provide excellent coverage in every seat, without consuming much real estate. Bounty Music accomplished a tremendous feat by integrating an amazing audio system that is both capable and low profile in design.

“The Si Expression sounds great, and it does what you want it to do, using a much appreciated intuitive layout,” said Weinstein. “The faders are not cluttered by layers, which is great for non-professionals and volunteers. Everything we need including EQ and compression is onboard, and no external gear except for the dbx DriveRack is used.”

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio 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 15,200 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $5.1 billion for the last twelve months ended March 31, 2014.

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HARMAN’s dbx Is Now Shipping Its DriveRack® PA2 Loudspeaker Management System With Mobile App Control

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – HARMAN’s dbx is now shipping its DriveRack PA2 Loudspeaker Management System, which enables a loudspeaker system to be quickly and accurately optimized for the best-possible sound quality. The PA2 is ideal for bands, musicians and artists who carry their own PA and for a wide range of installed sound applications. The DriveRack PA2 makes it easier than ever to set up a system and control it on the fly using via an Android®, iOS®, Mac®, or Windows® mobile device or laptop.

The original DriveRack PA revolutionized audio for bands around the world by providing all of the processing they needed between their mixer and amplifiers to optimize and protect their loudspeakers. The DriveRack PA2 takes all of this functionality to an entirely new level, at a price point that offers outstanding value. A brand new Wizard allows for faster and easier set-up, new AutoEQ™ provides professional touring-quality room EQ and incredibly accurate Advanced Feedback Suppression (AFS™) ensures freedom from feedback in any room.

The DriveRack PA2 can be set up and operated from a compatible tablet or smartphone via Ethernet using the free dbx PA2 Control App, available at www.dbxpro.com, the iTunes® Store and Google Play. Users have access to a host of configuration menus and on their mobile device or laptop, with full-color graphical displays that give ready visual indications of the parameters being adjusted. The DriveRack PA2 can also be operated via its front-panel controls and display.

The DriveRack PA2 provides a comprehensive suite of system tuning and optimization tools. Its improved AutoEQ enables automatic and precise equalization of the loudspeakers to the venue in which they’re installed to achieve smoother, more accurate in-room frequency response. A new AFS Advanced Feedback Suppression feature automatically finds and dials out any problematic feedback-producing frequencies.

The PA2 offers numerous additional system-tuning and sonic optimization capabilities, including dbx compression, graphic and 8-band parametric EQ, a new input delay module for delaying the front of house system to the backline, dbx’s exclusive Subharmonic Synthesis for enhanced low-frequency response, a built-in loudspeaker crossover (for full-range, 2-way and 3-way systems), limiting, loudspeaker time alignment and many additional features.

“Setting up a PA can be one of the most challenging aspects of ilve performing, especially for local and semi-pro musicians who have to do it themselves, but the DriveRack PA2 makes the process fast, accurate and stress-free,” said Noel Larson, Director of Marketing, HARMAN Signal Processing. “Getting great live sound is now as easy as reaching for your phone or laptop.”

The dbx DriveRack PA2 is currently available at a suggested retail price of $499.95.

HARMAN designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio 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 14,800 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $4.7 billion for the last twelve months ended December 31, 2013.

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