The demo has always been a big part of the consumer audio education paradigm.
For years, successful retailers have deployed systems in showrooms to educate their clients on the benefits of their products. Carrying this philosophy over to the trade, shows like CEDIA and CES have always emphasized the value of the “demo.”
Taking a page from the consumer market, commercial shows such as InfoComm are now providing a platform for companies to demonstrate their products. Taking those tradeshow demos a step further, the Italian audio company Powersoft is bringing its demos directly to dealers as part of a national roadshow that recently stopped in Boston.
Powersoft, a manufacturer of products for the touring, installation and corporate audio categories is showcasing its X-Series amplifiers and M line of subwoofer solutions from its touring line of products during its traveling demo show.
Claudio Lastrucci, R&D director, Powersoft, explains the products’ value lies in their core technologies.
“One key benefit [of the amps’ Class D designs] is efficiency. Its capability to dissipate heat now makes it a widely used technology,” Lastrucci explains. “After years of performance improvements Class D sounds better every year … [it delivers] clear and accurate sound.”
Watch Powersoft discuss its M-Force subwoofer solutions, or continue reading below.
Lastrucci notes that while a niche market for chip companies, other markets demand for the latest innovations benefit the pro audio category to help keep its designs and demand for new technologies up-to-date. In the next five to 10 years Lastrucci speculates that innovations in the design of power supplies will further aid the development of products like amplifiers, and he notes that, “we [Powersoft] are already working on the next generation of power supply devices.”
Describing some of the features built into the X-Series amps, which are available in four- and eight-channel versions, Lastrucci points out the Dante-enabled products are stable down to two ohms, and they offer options such as input/output matrix signal routing, Wi-Fi remote monitoring; compatibility with its Armonia pro audio software, and single-, bi- and three-phase power supply with load balancing capabilities.
Other features the amps offer include analog inputs, EQ and delay options with DSP.
Software & Subwoofers Complete Demos
Before demonstrating its M-Force family of subwoofer solutions, Jon Garner, sales and logistics, Powersoft, briefly outlined the features of Powersoft’s Armonia control software.
During his presentation, Garner pointed out that the suite has a wealth of presets, and users can utilize access specific features in whatever way is the most convenient.
“The software allows for online and offline system tuning,” he said. “It also enables real-time functions, and all of these functions are available offline. You can set up an amp whether you are onsite or offsite.”
Concluding its presentation, Powersoft set up to challenge the local AC/DC urban myth that claims the Australian Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame band was so loud that it once cracked the wall of the old Boston Garden.
Constructing a demonstration system driven by X-Series amps, along with a pair of speaker cabinets and subwoofers, Massimo Minardi, sales manager OEM and M Systems, Powersoft, pointed out the M Systems’ key components—including the M-Force 01 transducer and M-Drive amplifier module.
Running the demo with a variety of content that coincidentally included AC/DC, the company played several pieces of music at volume levels that peaked at concert levels. The demo was so loud that it literally shook paint loose from Red Sky Studio’s (the location of the demo) ceiling. The visceral impact of the demo matched the physical impact through the system’s ability to flutter pant cuffs, shirt sleeves and compress your chest as if Mas Oyama was punching you in the sternum.
Making the demo’s low-frequency impact a physical reality was the M-Force 01 moving magnet linear motor transducer. Powersoft describes the M-Force as a “unique transducer based on a patented moving magnet linear motor structure,” in the company’s product literature. “[It provides] unbelievable performance in terms of power handling, electromagnetic conversion, reliability and Maximum SPL are a few of the incredible innovative features and improvements with respect to conventional moving magnet arrangement.”
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Powersoft says the M-Force 01 can be used in large arrays to create “wall diaphragms with options for dual diaphragm/push-pull capabilities for multi-resonator acoustical loads, as well as multi-horn loads. The product is also engineered for long-term reliability, zero power compression, low distortion levels, and extremely high SPLs.
The other half of the company’s subwoofer solutions is the M-Drive amp module. Powersoft rates the module to deliver 5,550 continuous watts from a 240-volt main and 4,000 continuous watts from a 120-volt main. According to Powersoft, the M-Drive is, “the most powerful amp module ever built … showing amazing figures in terms of both output voltage [310 volts peak] and current capabilities [200 A peak].”
Powersoft also says the amp module incorporates its proprietary Smart Rails Management (SRM) technology that maximizes system efficiency while reducing power consumption at any load condition. Through its compatibility with all of its DSP solutions, the M-Drive can be configured easily via its Armonia software.
Wrapping up the approximately two-hour presentation, Minardi told demo attendees that Powersoft does not offer subwoofer enclosures to support the M Series of products in order to maintain its relations with loudspeaker companies.
“Powersoft does not build sub enclosures,” he explained. “Our relationships with speaker companies prevents us from building cabinets.”
