Steady Development
Moving beyond its traditional OEM business, Linea continued forging its singular path with a series of rack-mount products based on a range of innovations including their new output stage. Among them were the company’s 44M and 48M Series amplifiers for live sound applications, a line of 4- and 8-channel amps offered in models stated as capable of providing anywhere from 400 to 5,000 watts (RMS) per channel.
A staple of the design is high-capacity power supplies intended to ensure that the full power specification can be delivered into 2 ohms. Optimized for live sound applications, the amps are outfitted with 96 kHz DSP, Ethernet for system operation and monitoring, multilayer EQ, uniquely capable limiters, and analog, AES3, and optional Dante networking.
To address the needs of permanent installations, the 44C and 88C Series components include tamper-proof front panels and contractor-friendly connectors in 4- and 8-channel models also stated as capable of the same per-channel wattage as the M Series. The information provided on Linea data sheets underscores the fact that its power ratings are not given in “transient,” “burst,” or “peak” figures, but rather state output delivered by all channels simultaneously, even when driven with diverse and complex program material.
For applications requiring digital processing, the company offers the single rack-space ASC48 system controller, while Podware has given way to System Engineer, a proprietary app optimized for setting up, controlling, and monitoring all Linea products, as well as those of OEM partners.
“Development never stops, though,” Williams adds. “We’ve just unveiled new FIR (Finite Impulse Response) capabilities for both the M and C Series, plus the ASC48 that allows users to import proprietary FIR settings supplied by their loudspeaker manufacturers.”
Completely Committed
To date, Linea has supplied tens of thousands of products to its OEM partners around the world. With this number on an increasing upward trajectory due in part to the addition of adding its own branded products to the mix, the company stands poised to come out of the shadows in this, its 15th year.
“We’re independent by nature,” Smalley notes, “and privately owned. That makes a huge difference in the way we can run our business. We’re not beholden to anyone, and you won’t find us scrambling around at the end of the month chasing sales just to give the profits away in a management fee to a holding company, venture capital firm or anything like that.
“Our owners and directors are involved in daily operations, and we all have a live sound background, which is a very immediate business and makes us used to being in rapid response mode. Choose Linea, and you get the actual people who design and use the products that we sell, and more importantly, people who know pro audio inside-out and are truly committed to both high quality and performance.”
Ver concludes, “I left a senior position at Harman Pro to help found Linea because I have passions for audio and the technology behind great sound. Being able to indulge these passions is a blessing and is why I’ll probably never stop trying to make things better or investigate new ways of doing things. One thing’s for sure: I’m not finished yet.”