UK-based speaker maker Artcoustic ships three new Spitfire subwoofers-- the Control 1, 2 and 3, all promising performance while fitting to practical design requirements.

The Control 1 is the smallest and shallowest of the three with two long-throw 10-inch bass units. Designed for small and medium rooms, it features 20 - 120Hz operating range with 95dB sensitivity.

The Control 3 is a larger version of the Control 1 specified with extended dynamic range and higher sound pressure levels at frequencies below 30Hz. It has two long-throw 10-inch bass units and its also ideal for small to medium rooms.

KEF updates two of its flagship high-end speaker families-- the Blade speaker gets a smaller sibling with the Blade Two, while the Reference Series sees a hardware refresh.

The distinctive floor-standing Blade Two carries the Uni-Q "point-source" driver array, a 25mm vented aluminium dome tweeter placed at the supposed acoustic centre of a 125mm midrange driver to provide direction-agnostic high- and mid-range response.

The speaker also incorporates four 6.5-inch bass drivers within a high-density polyurethane enclosure featuring a parabolic shape KEF claims increases cabinet rigidity. The drivers are fully decoupled, meaning only driver movements (not the cabinet) generate sound.

by Graeme Harrison

Executive VP of Marketing, Biamp Systems

As a lifelong audiophile, I’ve heard the sound quality in consumer audio products steadily decline. We went from records, to CDs, and then to MP3s–all the while compressing audio files into smaller and smaller formats that increase device-carrying capacity, but at the very real expense of audio fidelity.

Unfortunately, low-fidelity (Lo-fi) audio has become so prevalent in mainstream culture–from mobile phones to online videos–that most people are quite accustomed to compressed audio, and have no idea what the audio is actually supposed to sound like, and how wonderful it really is. Living in a Lo-fi world is hard for us audio lovers, but there’s light at the end of this ear-grating tunnel. Thanks to three major factors, high-fidelity (Hi-fi or HD) audio is making a comeback.

Auralic sets to debut the first products in the Lightning series-- the Aries, a device the company describes as a "bridge" between music files on network storage or streaming services and DACs.

It carries a 1GHz quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 processor, 1GB RAM and 4GB storage, allowing it to stream high-resolution music (in formats including AAC, AIFF, ALAC, APE, DIFF, DSF, FLAC, MP3, OGG, WAV, WV and WMA) quickly and wirelessly at any sampling rate, including DSD, double-rate DSD and DXD.

Inputs include dual-band wifi, ethernet and USB 2.0, while outputs are a USB audio host buffered by Auralic ActiveUSB technology, AES/EBU, coax and Toslink.

The USB audio host delivers PCM signals from 44.1 to 384kHz at 16-, 24- and 32-bit resolution, as well as DSD and double-rate DSD for compatible USB DACs. The other outputs handle signals at 24-bit/192kHz as per the S/PDIF standard.

RTI starts shipping two next-generation audio distribution systems-- the AD-4x and AD-8x, featuring built-in ethernet for 2-way control and feedback over LAN, as well as a new web-based UI.

Both provide whole-house or facility-wide audio switching, amplification and distribution via the combination of matrix switching pre-amp and built-in 25W-per-channel Cool Power amplifier.

RTI control system integration allows 2-way audio source control and current status information (such as selected source, volume level and tone control settings available for each zone).

Philips sells the WOOX Innovations audio, video multimedia and accessories business to Gibson for $135 million and a brand license fee covering a 7-year license agreement.

Better known as a guitar maker, Gibson is also something of an investor in audio makers-- it owns a large chunk of Onkyo, as well as a 54.4% stake in TEAC. Now through WOOX it gets a way into the global consumer audio market, since it will be able to leverage on both Gibson and Philips brands.

“This agreement is the most significant step yet in Gibson Brands’ journey to become the largest music and sound technology company in the world,” Gibson says. “By acquiring Philips’ audio and home entertainment business, our goal is to continue to provide the most exceptional consumer audio products and experiences in the world."