Following six years of development, British loudspeaker manufacturer Funktion-One has launched Vero, a new large-format touring sound system.
Vero is a complete system, including loudspeakers, amplifiers, cabling, rigging, transport dollies, weatherproof covers and software.
“One of the reasons it’s taken six years to develop is the amount of design work and detail that goes into originating a complete system,” explains Tony Andrews of Funktion One. “Not just loudspeakers, but the flying system which is patent pending, the cabling, the amplifiers and the shock mounted racks.
“We’ve developed Projection – Vero’s propriety predictive software, which is very intuitive and easy to use,” he continues. “What you see in the software is what you get in the field. Every element of the system has to be exactly right.”
Vero has been in beta testing for the last three years, during which every part of the system has been constantly refined. For example, three types of dolly wheel were tried, tested and rejected before the fourth qualified as being the correct option for the challenges of tour, festival and big arena gigs.
Andrews says: “When you’re listening to it, the presentation of the sound stage is absolutely phenomenal. You can actually go outside the typical two hang arrangement and you’re still aware of the stereo image.”
This determination for a natural sound, free of processing, led Vero’s designers to something called Geometric Energy Summation (GES). In short, this is the natural geometry of the waveguides and their relationship with each other within the array combining for a coherent addition of sound.
The design of the drivers and the geometry of both the waveguides and flying system have been optimized to ensure sonic integrity. Preservation of the original audio signal through a system’s component chain is a fundamental requirement for quality sound. With Vero, spectral balance, directivity and level control are achieved by natural means so that transient and harmonic information remain intact.
The design team focused coherent summation of audio energy from finely angled adjacent enclosures for high intensity projection to the far field. Enclosures can also be arrayed at greater angles to extend vertical coverage for the near field, helping to insure accurate physical control of sound density from a Vero array.
The Vero loudspeaker range includes six efficient, low-distortion horn-loaded loudspeakers – the V60 mid-high, V90 mid-high and V315 mid-bass, with a choice of V221, V124 or V132 bass. The V60s, V90s and V315s all have identical dimensions, enabling them to be flown in the same vertical array. The ground stacked V221, V124 or V132 bass enclosures offer a choice of size and low frequency extension.
Vero is powered by Lab.gruppen PLM 20K44 amplifiers, supplying tremendous and reliable power from a compact package, onboard processing and Dante networking for signal distribution. Three PLM 20K44 amplifiers and mains distro are fully shock mounted in a compact rack, complete with sliding doors that conveniently stow in the roof of the rack.
Vero’s patent pending Lambda flying system is designed for speed, safety and ease of use. It allows Vero arrays to be deployed accurately and efficiently. All rigging settings can be calculated using Vero’s Projection software. Inter-cabinet splay angles can be adjusted with the system in suspension.
The flying system also helps optimize driver alignment and allows for angle adjustment under load, meaning arrays are transported and flown in a straight line before being tensioned to exact angle settings.
Vero’s Projection design and prediction software allows users to optimize array designs for the specific application. Projection provides venue plan, cross-section and 3D screens. It has a user-friendly interface, a measurement tool calibrated in distance and time at the speed of sound, and color coding to differentiate between the different types of enclosure.
“Good audio is an art. It isn’t plant hire,” Andrews concludes. “The part it plays in people’s enjoyment of music is severely underestimated. The overall result with Vero is industry leading coherence and accuracy, resulting in a big sound of dimension and intimacy.
“Vero presents a very spacious and realistic sound stage, meaning that artists, engineers and concertgoers can enjoy unprecedented dynamic range and fidelity, which is how audio should be.”
