TPi_Magazine__February_2018

EVENT FOCUS
NEURON’S DANLEY DEMO DAY
In order to showcase an array of products from US audio innovator Danley Sound Labs,
UK-based Neuron Pro Audio recently held a well-attended and in-depth demo day at Manchester’s
Academy 2 venue.
Kyle Marriott, Managing Director at Neuron Pro Audio, described the
beginnings of this transatlantic relationship: “I’ve personally been
an admirer of Tom Danley’s work for over 10 years. After hearing the
ServoDrive BT7 and LABsub designs that he made before Danley Sound
Labs was started, I have been trying to get access to his advanced
Synergy and Jericho designs since becoming aware of them. It’s taken
several years for the large body of water between us to cease being a
barrier, with importation and distribution of the systems carrying some
logistical challenges. But we feel the time is now right for us to support
the move back towards a higher fidelity, more efficient point source
approach.
“We became partners with Danley UK after their first demo around 3
years ago, and have been building up a steady following through word of
mouth, gigs and private demos, but there’s been so much interest that a
formal demo day with a broader range of products was needed.”
Neuron showcased a variety of speakers from the Danley portfolio on
the day, including the SM80, SH50 and SH46 from the Synergy Horn series,
the SBH10 from the Paraline lens-based column series, the TH118, DBH218
and BC412 from the various subwoofer designs the company offers, and the
almighty J3-94 from the large format Jericho series.
“The J3-94 is relatively new, at around 18-months old,” Marriott said.
“But all of the products are ‘of the same cloth’ so to speak and adhere to
the same core principles of all of Danley’s work. We do have some exciting
new products in the pipeline though, so keep an eye on our social media for
sneak peeks in the coming months!”
Director of R&D at Danley Sound Labs, Tom Danley, originally found
himself in the world of pro audio having arrived by a less than conventional
path, which has greatly influenced the development of the company’s
products.
Marriott elaborated: “Tom has a long history of handling the more
esoteric and extreme demands of military and NASA acoustic challenges
with aplomb; including things such as subwoofers to communicate with
elephants, simulate the effects of shelling and bombs on large buildings,
silence helicopter rotor noise and acoustic levitation for space station
analysis work.
“This truly allows him to think ‘outside the box’ in his approach, and
the Synergy Horns in particular show that a true ‘next step’ is viable to
overcome the intrinsic shortcomings of the dominant line array approach
in live and installed sound. It also helps that he’s an incredibly humble and
open guy, always willing to go deep on explanations as to how his designs
work and share his knowledge with those who are curious, and that’s
something that Neuron embodies too so it’s a perfect fit for us - and it helps
that the boxes sound great, of course!”
The day itself was a great success for both companies, with walk-ins
bolstering the 250+ registered visitors that made time to visit Academy 2.
Marriott commented: “We welcomed a wide range of people, from venue
owners, event promoters, system techs and engineers to rental houses
and installation companies, plus performers and artists, across all levels
of experience and size. It seems that the word is getting out that we have
something special here.
“The feedback after the event has been brilliant, and frankly we’ve been
a little blown away by how many people have asked us to provide quotes
for sales, installs and events right off the bat. The Jericho in particular really
took people’s breath away, as it’s capable of handling huge crowds with
1 box per side, rather than the normal 12 boxes of line array, but the SH50
and SH46 have also garnered a tonne of interest with their hi-fi sound, ease
of use and SPL capabilities. Even the harshest of critics have humbly stated
that these are incredible products, which is all we could have asked for.”
With the promise of new product “sneak peaks” to come sooner rather
than later from Danley and Neuron, the questions remains - are we likely to
experience them in anger in the near future? “Most certainly!” exclaimed
Marriott. “It’s fair to say that there’s a bunch of interesting projects ahead
for all of the systems on display, so be sure to keep a look out for them on
shows. We’ll keep people informed of these and other events, and we also
plan to host further demos later in the year for those who weren’t able to
attend this time around.”
TPi
www.danleysoundlabs.com www.neuronproaudio.co.uk
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