AVPro 2023 Wrapped
- Published , by Justine Murray
GULF COAST GOODIES
Goodness, it isn't easy to comprehend that the year’s end is nigh. And with a bit of poetic blandishment, I will inject that by writing this from the AVPro Southern Command in Tampa and with the temperature currently at 86 degrees, I hold little hope for a white Christmas. But let’s start the 2023 send-off by highlighting the Tampa (actually, St. Petersburg) office. Tier Two Tech Support is located here, experiencing a growth spurt that now includes 9 top shelf individuals with an intimate knowledge of all things AVPro Edge and AudioControl, plus disciplines that feature expertise in Crestron, Control 4, Elan, QYS, URC, and many more. Their vow to never leave a caller without a working system is exercised daily, no matter what manufacturer’s products might be involved. It has earned the team here and the frontline Sales Excellence team in Sioux Falls a Systems Contractor News Stellar Service Award for 2023.
We are also excited about the additional space we acquired, which will soon become two new labs inside the historic former St. Petersburg power station, where our offices are located. One will be a Tech Support Research Lab, where connectivity issues in the field with almost any combination of product brands integrators assembled in systems can be duplicated. Adjacent will be the Training Lab, which is anticipated to host AVPro Academy and AVIXA-certified events regularly. Since AVPro South is also home to Murideo, the lab was designed to be adaptable for Murideo research. It will host ISF video calibration seminars and intriguing new advanced ISF specialized training events that are currently in the planning stages.
HEARTLAND HEADLINES
The term “Headquarters” has been redefined in Sioux Falls. Earlier this year, a larger building was acquired, moving administration, engineering, marketing, sales, and sales support to a newly remodeled expansive space. By extensively modifying the largely vacated former AVPro building, space was now available to accommodate machinery for product manufacturing on American soil. The transformation was completed in late summer, with pre-production manufacturing run-throughs finishing with flying red, white, and blue colors. Select SKUs are scheduled to begin shipping in the first quarter of 2024.
A portion of the new layout also houses a fully equipped, state-of-the-art quality assurance lab to maintain AVPro Edge’s reputation for high performance, partnered with long-term reliability.
Though busy juggling buildings, we launched a cross-section of new solutions requested by commercial and residential integrators.
Dante audio entered the AVPro vocabulary with three devices. The AC-DANTE-D and AC-DANTE-E are Dante decoder and encoder pairs, compatible with AES67 and available for use independently.
The AC-DANTE-AMP-2CH is a Dante audio/AES67 decoder with an onboard 25 watts per channel amplifier, perfect for an area requiring speakers but with only a network category cable available.
MXnet 1G added two new units. The AC-MXNET-1G-R15 heavy-duty rack houses 15 MXnet 1G devices (except the AC-MXNET-1G-DANTE-E, which is taller when end-on-end due to the space required for the Dante hardware). MXnet Evolution II now includes the AC-MXNET-1G-AVDM-EV2 downmixing encoder that extracts two-channel balanced analog audio from high bitrate, multi-channel audio codecs, including Dolby Atmos and DTS:X IMAX Enhanced, for integration with multi-zone stereo distribution systems.
Designed to transport eARC audio signals from a TV location to a compatible AVR in a central rack, the AC-AEX-DEARC-KIT debuted at CEDIA 2023. Supplemental TOSLINK and analog facilities broaden the range of technologies the kit can support, such as legacy digital products like CD players or DAT decks and analog gear like a prized classic open reel tape machine.
A clever problem-solving upgrade for the AC-SC-1X was developed to respond to EDID issues for some manufacturers’ surround decoders struggling with high-bitrate audio codecs. EDID Blend is an added feature combining two separate EDIDs to create a working EDID that manages video and audio requirements.
The AC-CXWP-HDMO-TB is an HDMI via HDBaseT single-gang Decora wall plate transmitter, now available in black, to mesh with installations where the darker color is better suited.
NOTABLE NORTHWEST NEWS
Perhaps the most noteworthy news of the year many in the consumer electronics industry felt was earth-shattering was AVPro's acquisition of the Home Audio division of perennial American audio pioneer company AudioControl. Long a stalwart in the domestic and worldwide high-fidelity marketplace, AudioControl assumes a prized position in the AVPro roster of brands. The initial focus is to meet the now-growing, faster-than-ever demand for AudioControl’s products by commercial and residential integrators. When the dust finally settles and engineers from all walks of AVPro assemble, you can be confident that 2024’s year in review will contain fascinating news.
THEN AND NOW
Sneaking in during the eleventh hour, just before the ball drops, is the announcement that AVPro has acquired THENAUDIO from X-VUE, LLC. Additionally, X-VUE founder and CEO Juha Nurminen will join AVPro as Director of Engineering, focusing on bringing new possibilities to AudioControl and beyond.
AND TO ALL, A GOODNIGHT
Engineering alchemy is swirling through every AVPro brand, destined to make the upcoming year another milestone. We will enjoy the brief coda the holidays afford us, and we wish the same for all of you.
We know that if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu. Rest assured, our push to be future-forward and bring you world-class products will continue the day after the calendar welcomes 2024.
