Meyer Sound announced that it is closing out a successful 2023 that was marked by new product introductions, enthusiastic user reports, and record-breaking sales figures.
“We’ve been on an exhilarating journey these past two years,” says senior vice president John McMahon. “It’s been a transformative time for Meyer Sound. What started last year with PANTHER and continued this year with the introduction of the 2100-LFC [low-frequency control element] has inaugurated a new era for our company.”
PANTHER-based systems were installed across a range of venues from clubs to arenas in 2023, including The Fillmore in San Francisco and the Mohegan INSPIRE Entertainment Resort in South Korea. Elsewhere, PANTHER arrays started their summer-long residencies at Cadence Bank Amphitheater in Atlanta, GA and Hayden Homes Amphitheater in Bend, OR.
The LEOPARD compact linear line array loudspeaker continued in 2023 as a choice for venues requiring a smaller profile, including the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, CA. In addition, the LINA very compact linear line array loudspeaker was highlighted at the Guild Theatre in Menlo Park, CA. Point-source designs also delivered, such as an install at the Lithuanian State Puppet Theater in Vilnius, Lithuania, deploying ULTRA-X40 and ULTRA-X20 loudspeakers.
PANTHER systems were shuttling across continents throughout 2023 on stadium and arena tours. Ed Sheeran’s “+ – = ÷ x” (“Mathematics”) tour hit North America this year, with a system comprised of 212 PANTHER loudspeakers. PANTHER was also deployed for a variety of genre-spanning tours, including Billy Strings, Dave Matthews Band, Dead & Company, John Mayer, Marc Anthony, Metallica, and Michael Bublé, among others. For the first time, Metallica’s system presented true stereo imaging to all seats on a 360-degree, in-the-round stadium tour.
“The reviews from those Metallica shows were some of the best they’ve ever received,” notes McMahon. “This was a bold move — and a big investment — on behalf of the band, but it worked amazingly well. The logistics would have been practically impossible without PANTHER, and Bob McCarthy’s design again proved why he’s the best in the business.”
The company adds of all sizes and configurations once again powered stages at festivals around the world, including Roskilde in Denmark, Montreux Jazz in Switzerland, and Outside Lands and Life Is Beautiful in the USA. In addition, Bluehorn System monitors continued to gain usage from scoring and surround sound mixing engineers, with new systems making their debut at Manny Marroquin’s Larrabee Studios, Fred Paragano’s Paragon Studios, and John Traunwieser’s new private mixing facility.
The Constellation acoustic system continued to build on its global reputation as the gold standard for active acoustic technology, with major new installations at large performance halls around the world. A fitting capstone to the year’s accomplishments was “NADIA’s Music Hall,” an unveiling of the new NADIA integrated digital audio platform in the Appel Room of Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, where NADIA is now at the core of the venue’s Constellation acoustic system.
And, the education program further expanded its offerings in 2023, with a schedule of trainings at the Berkeley headquarters as well as programs at Full Sail University in Florida and at other sites around the world.
The coming year will mark the company’s 45th anniversary, with McMahon noting, “We have significant new products in the pipeline. Our customers will notice — and appreciate — a renewed emphasis on software. Our loudspeakers have high visibility as large physical objects, but our customers increasingly engage with those products by interacting with dedicated software. We are continuing to grow a global software team by adding an infusion of new talent, and we expect great things from them in 2024.”
