That being said, 35-70Hz is such an important part of the audio spectrum. That's the "thump" in your kick drum. Any technical development that improves fidelity in low bass systems, and that takes into account the practical design aspects of portability, will be welcome in touring sound reinforcement.

The Old Soundman: Please tell us, engineer-to-engineer, rather than as JBL Man, what do you honestly like about the VerTec?

David Scheirman: Well, I haven't been at JBL long enough to have seen my blood turn orange. But I will say, what I honestly like about the VERTEC system is its high power to weight ratio...its exceptional fidelity...its low distortion, and its well defined coverage pattern when combined in arrays. I've been trying to find rigs like that my entire soundmixing career, it makes the show a whole lot more fun when you don't have to 'worry' about the non-linearities in the speaker system. Focus on the mix.

Moderator: So....you’re our man on the inside? ;-)

David Scheirman: Your man on the inside...well, one of them certainly!

I was a soundmixer, a truck driver, a rental company tech, an event sound designer and such long before I ever got involved in manufacturing speaker systems. I did not 'abandon' my neutrality until about 1993, when I first joined a networking technology Research & Development firm, working on computer-controlled audio.

Ken: Why hasn't the industry been able to get a real network together?

David Scheirman: Getting a "network" together requires time, attention, and a reason for coming into existence. For audio equipment vendors, that reason must be profit and return on investment.

It may be a bitter pill to swallow...but our "Pro Audio Industry" is just not large enough (in overall gross revenue) to support the inter-linked technological developments required. Those developments include software/firmware/hardware...and then there is the entire issue of APPLICATION and SYSTEM INTEGRATION. The customers know more about that than the manufacturers typically do.

Ken: What applications will the EVO technology have on the touring world?

David Scheirman: A quick thanks to Ken Berger here, for having the vision that has brought you this Chat forum...and, that in one sense is creating a "network" of a different sort, one based on people and experiences rather than just bits and bytes and routers and hubs.

EVO technology, for those unfamiliar, includes BiDat (Bi Directional Digital Audio Transfer) so that control/monitoring signals can be 'carried' on the same XLR/shielded wire mic-cable hookups that get the audio signal to the loudspeaker enclosure.

It also includes self-analyzing digital electronics, feedback suppression, and DSP templates that let the system "learn" what the operator or setup technician wants to achieve over time.