AudioMedia - July 2008 - (Page 41)

P R O M OT I O N A L F E AT U R E Audio Precision Most professional, consumer, and broadcast audio manufacturers spend considerable time, money, and effort to ensure that their products meet the highest quality standards and produce and/or reproduce the most accurate sound possible. As R&D departments design, build, and test their audio products, they have to trust that the equipment they use is absolutely precise. Audio Precision, arguably the leader in audio test and measurement equipment, has nearly 25 years of experience in exceeding their customers’ expectations with their audio analyser hardware, software, and other accessories. ontinuing their trend of raising industry standards, Audio Precision issued the APx Series, an efficient next-generation audio analyser platform that offers one-click measurements, two- eight- or -channel model configurations, and an automated measurement sequencer and continuous sweep technology that can derive measurements in as little as seven seconds. The recently introduced APx and analysers both offer two balanced and two unbalanced analogue inputs and outputs, while the APx comes with K digital inputs and outputs. Both models generate signals down to . Hz. A u d i o P r e c i s i o n’s latest, and perhaps most groundbreaking new development, however, is their new HDMI option module for the APx , making it the first multi-channel audio analyser capable of testing HDMI and Blu-ray audio. Engineers working with HDMI can now use the APx to measure HDMI audio quality on devices such as surround sound receivers, set-top boxes, HDTVs, and DVD and Blu-ray disc players. “There are so many protocol standards that HDMI can support in audio and video,” says Hofer. “HDMI literally asks the device that it’s talking to, ‘What are you capable of reproducing? What format should I send you the data in? Do you want your audio in stereo, Dolby . , Dolby . , HD, et cetera?’ Before we released this HDMI interface, there had been no way that a manufacturer could systematically check its product for functionality against all of these different standards.” Current Chairman Bruce Hofer and fellow engineers Robert Wright, Bob Metzler, and Rich Cabot, founded Audio Precision in after collaborating in the labs of test and measurement equipment manufacturer Tektronix. “We had developed a couple of audio products for Tektronix and they were immediate hits,” says Hofer. “Following their business model, the company decided not to do any follow-up products. That left us as a team thinking, ‘What’s next?’ Do we shake hands and go our separate ways, or take this audio thing to a different realm? We chose the latter, and 25 Years As An Industry Standard C that became the genesis of Audio Precision.” At the NAB Convention – six months after incorporating – Audio Precision debuted their first prototype. Within a year, they were in the black. Within two years, they had become an industry standard. “We offered a very cost-effective solution to automation,” says Hofer. “We were the first way most companies automated their production tests in the world of audio. We also set out to reach an international market. We signed our European distributors at that first NAB show.” Today, about distributors carry AP products in more than countries, with an especially strong presence in Europe. “Our partners have extensive training,” says Tom Williams, Audio Precision’s Director of Marketing Programs. “They know the kinds of problems that our customers face in audio test and are doing a good job of solving those problems as well as providing the right equipment.” To further enhance technical support in Western Europe, Audio Precision recently set up an independent service centre in the Netherlands. “We have replacement modules and calibration capabilities,” says Hofer. “Anywhere in Europe it’s a quick overnight shipment to get instruments to the service centre for quick repair. That’s been very successful and very well received.” The company’s US headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, serves as the main technical support and service centre, although many AP’s international distributors offer adjustment and repair services for equipment sold in their regions. Audio Precision’s broad customer base includes manufacturers in recording and broadcast, A/D and D/A chip design, computer audio, automotive audio, home entertainment, personal stereo, and telecommunications. Audio Precision’s instruments are paramount for quality control and testing of a manufacturer’s products; therefore, their own quality control is crucial to their success. “We have three layers of tests, staringt at the modular level,” says Hofer. “We do most of our own internal final assembly. We test the modules first; then they’re assembled into complete instruments and tested again. After that, the products go through our automated calibration lab.” Accredited by American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A LA) under ISO/IEC: for equipment calibration, all AP products ship with a complete, certified calibration report. “We go to a lot of pains to check our own equipment because people fundamentally trust us,” says Hofer. “Manufacturer test measurement equipment is accepted as the ultimate reference, so we make very sure that we deliver that kind of quality.” As audio manufacturers continue to develop new technologies, the equipment used to test their wares develops, as well. “The world of test and measurement is certainly not stagnant,” says Hofer. “Technology is always moving forward and bringing us new challenges and new things to measure.” CONTACT DETAILS Audio Precision 5750 SW Arctic Drive, Beaverton, OR 97005 t +1 503 627 0832 w www.ap.com e sales@ap.com AUDIO MEDIA JULY 2008 41 http://www.ap.com http://www.ap.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of AudioMedia - July 2008

AudioMedia - July 2008 Contents Recording Post Broadcast What's Up UK Geofocus: France For the Record Special Report: Develop Preview SE Electronics 4400 Sennheiser MKH800 Twin Tubetech Club Final Cut: Wanted Smart AV Tango Doctor Who Made in America DSP Roundup Product Sampler: Summer Hits Edirol R44 Video Guide AMSR Fame - Le Musical Waves MaxxBCL Yamaha AD8HR Special Supplement

AudioMedia - July 2008

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