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MACKIE SA1530Z DetailsOptimized wide-dispersion WaveFront™ high/mid horn system Re-Engineered for Superior Performance Because a loudspeaker is more than the sum of its parts, the new SAz Series Loudspeakers were developed and tuned exclusively by the EAW loudspeaker engineering team. This is the same team behind high-output loudspeaker systems for the Olympic games, the Super Bowl, and musical tours ranging from Usher to REM to Eric Clapton for over 25 years. The end result of their efforts is that the SAz Series loudspeakers function as highly efficient systems, optimizing acoustic, electronic, and mechanical designs to achieve the highest level of performance and value. Put simply, the new SAz series stand as the finest active loudspeaker systems in Mackie history, rivaling professional passive systems costing thousands more you haven't heard of EAW, allow us to fill you in. Since 1978, Eastern Acoustic Works has been building high-end live sound systems for venues where only the best and most reliable systems will do. Mediocre just don't cut it in their world. Think everything from worldwide concert and theatrical venues from Royal Albert Hall and Buck Owens' Crystal Palace, to The Vatican, where the Pope addresses the faithful. EAW has the best transducer and electronic engineering minds in the industry, or world, for that matter. Not only are their brains beautiful, they have what's known in the business as "golden ears." You see, making the best speaker systems in the world isn't just about brains and expensive audio analysis, it's about how the system sounds that ultimately matters the most. When EAW tackles a new loudspeaker design, they begin by choosing one of hundreds of sample transducers from manufacturers spanning the globe. They choose the transducer that comes the closest to meeting the criteria of their design (i.e., size, power handling, cost, etc). Next, they tweak the design of the selected speaker by beefing up every element, from the cones to the magnets. Then, and only then, do they have that particular design manufactured to exacting specifications. This ensures the kind of performance that can only be achieved when you have selected the "perfect" transducer for a given application. Once the transducers have been determined, the EAW team "tunes" the enclosure and custom-designed electronics (equalization, phase alignment, and time correction) with the finest parametric EQs and analysis software that money can buy. Finally, the speaker is put into "The Pit," a 60'x40'x35' chamber specifically designed to recreate any acoustic situation a loudspeaker could possibly be subjected to. This is where the previously mentioned "golden ears" have the final say as to whether, or not, the design has earned the prestigious EAW logo What's unique is that Mackie is one of the few companies to offer them, and the ONLY company to offer "Active" 3-way systems. First consider the physics of loudspeakers (we also call them transducers or drivers). A transducer is simply a piston that vibrates room air. The size of a transducer is proportional to the frequency range it's best at creating. If you want to generate low frequencies, you use a big speaker (woofer); if you want high frequencies, you use a small speaker (such as 1-inch exit compression driver). There's also an optimum size for a midrange speaker, too — usually six to eight inches in diameter. 2-way systems use two transducers: high frequency and a low frequency to cover the frequency spectrum — from the highest highs to the lowest lows. This leads to compromise in the midrange. As noted above, size is proportional to output frequency. So in a two-way system, both the HF and LF transducers are being forced to contribute output in a frequency range (mids) that they're not optimally suited to produce. Worse yet, the cross-over point when one driver leaves off and the other takes over is around 2000Hz. Unfortunately, that's right smack in the middle of the critical midrange frequency band (green area in the drawing). Slight bumps and dips in frequency at the crossover point become very audible. 3-way systems add a third transducer that's just the right size to produce highly accurate midrange. Crossover points fall at the outer edges of the midrange area (green band in the drawing). The LF and HF transducers are freed up to produce only the frequencies that they're best at generating. Audio quality is tremendously improved by adding this third, or midrange speaker, especially since most of the vocals live in the "green" zone. In order to make sure that midrange output "keeps up" with the HF horn, the SA1530z, SA1532z, SA1232z, and SR1530z are the first speakers in their classes to feature a horn-loaded mid-frequency transducer. To smoothly integrate mid and high frequencies, we designed a one-piece, 90° x 40° Optimized Wavefront™ horn that incorporates both the mid- and high-frequency transducers. That's one reason all frequencies above 700Hz are evenly dispersed in the same wide pattern — and everybody in your audience hears the same thing. (see Fig. B) Another reason is the asymmetrical shape of the Optimized Wavefront™ horn system. In traditional passive 3-way systems, the horn's vertical cross section is symmetrical. Since they both face straight outward, the mid-and high- frequency horns physically point to different locations in the audience. Optimized Wavefront horn design is asymmetrical with 10° of angle upward and 30° of angle downward. This positions the high-frequency section to fire downward into the 6-inch midrange's dispersion pattern, creating a focused, single wavefront, with excellent phase and power response characteristics. That means your audience hears balanced amounts of mid and high frequencies in front of the stage as well as at the very rear of the room. Additionally, all three models feature our optimized wide-dispersion WaveFront™ horn design— a scientifically developed one-piece 90°x40° horn that combines both mid- and high-frequency drivers. Unlike typical mid/high horn designs, the high-frequency section fires slightly downward into the six-inch mid-range driver's dispersion pattern, creating a focused, single wave front with excellent phase and power response characteristics. The resulting 90° x 40° dispersion pattern provides open, natural sound for the entire audience, even at extreme output levels. |
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Mackie SA1530Z Active Sr Loudspeaker
