NAMM Show Is Virtual, Features Wealth of Pro Audio Introductions target immersive audio, podcasting, broadcast sports By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Thursday, January 21, 2021 - 10:48 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The annual NAMM Show may be virtual this year, but the pro-audio products using it as a launch pad are very real.
Online this week, the event is produced by the trade organization for the musical-instrument industry, but the National Association of Music Merchants' expo - which dates back to 1902 and had Thomas Edison as a member and exhibitor - began embracing pro audio several decades ago, focusing on personal-recording technology as the AES's own annual U.S. conferences saw a steady decline in attendance. That trend was de facto formalized in 2012, when the TEC Awards, which recognize excellence in audio production and products, moved its ceremony to the NAMM Show's main Anaheim Convention Center venue, conferring pro audio's imprimatur on NAMM's foundation of drums and guitars.
(The AES Show co-located with NAB Show New York at the Javits Convention Center from 2017 to 2019; the two events were held virtually in 2020. Both organizations will co-locate their main events this year in Las Vegas: the AES Show will take place at the Westgate Hotel Oct. 11-13, adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center, where the NAB Show will be held Oct. 9-13.)
The AES has its own slate of events on the NAMM Show conference program this week, with panels covering how pro audio can best deal with the ongoing pandemic ( Pandemic: Panic or Pivot ), near-field monitoring ( Secrets of Near-Field Monitoring ), and file management ( Organizing Chaos - Top Engineers Discuss File Management ).
The stream of new audio products, including those relevant to broadcast sports, has continued unabated, pandemic notwithstanding. Here are some highlights from the NAMM Show - virtual though it may have been - this week.
Lectrosonics SMWB transmitters
Lectrosonics introduced two transmitters as the latest generation in its Digital Hybrid Wireless SM Series product line: the SMWB/E07-941 (single AA battery) and SMDWB/E07-941 (dual AA battery), covering the Part-74 license-only frequency range from 941.525 to 959.825 MHz. The new transmitters have the same dimensions and features as the earlier UHF SMWB and SMDWB units, including the ability to act either as a transmitter or as a body-worn recorder. RF power is selectable at 100, 50, or 25 mW. The transmitters feature the standard TA5 connector with servo-bias mic input used on all previous SM Series units and all current TA5 beltpack units, such as the LT and LMb. Any lavaliere microphones wired for the other Lectrosonics transmitters will also work on these new models. The new units can be configured as either a transmitter or a recorder, with files stored on Micro SD card memory, allowing use as body-worn recorders. Audio files are recorded in the industry-standard Broadcast Wave (.wav) format at 24 bits, 44.1 kHz sample rate. The Micro SD memory card can also be used to update firmware in the field.
Electro-Voice RE-20 Variable-D broadcast mic
Electro-Voice is showing its broadcast-microphone line topped by the RE-20 Variable-D, which was designed to mitigate the proximity effect on speech tonality. Other microphones in the series include the RE27N/D, a high-output, neodymium-equipped voice-production microphone, and the RE320, also equipped with Variable-D proximity control and an integrated humbucking coil and integral pop filters for virtually noiseless performance.
AKG K812 studio headphone
Priced at over $1,000, AKG's K812 flagship studio headphones are not inexpensive, but they are unique. The K812's 53-mm transducer is the largest that AKG has ever built. The 1.5-tesla magnet system offers highly accurate imaging, and a copper-covered aluminum voice coil extended frequency response up to 54 kHz.
An Immersive Show As immersive audio moves closer to reality for broadcast, support in the music sector is also on the rise. Avid has announced it will support independent music distribution in the Dolby Atmos format to streaming services Amazon Music and TIDAL, via Dolby Atmos Music and AvidPlay. Meanwhile, Sony's 360 Reality Audio uses Sony's spatial-sound technologies to establish an object-based, immersive-audio system for headphone virtualization. The final mix is encoded in MPEG-H and can be delivered at a bitrate of up to 1.5 Mbps, depending on the streaming service used.
Podcasting, which has become well-entrenched in sports media, is also well-represented at the virtual NAMM Show. Shure's MV7 microphone was inspired by the SMB7 broadcast mic but has pivoted nicely to podcasting with a USB connection and its Auto Level Mode, part of the ShurePlus MOTIV app, to control vocal tone and distance from the microphone.
See lots more gear here (requires free registration).
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Zero in on one that says yes (and no)
Andy Marken May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Hero image courtesy of Deposit Photos
For content creators the most difficu...
29/05/2026
With InfoComm 2026 just weeks away, NDI is giving attendees plenty of reasons to...
29/05/2026
Reaffirming a partnership that has defined Canadian sports broadcasting since 19...
29/05/2026
Mobile/tablet is No. 2 device for watching TV, suggesting that the sports-production industry needs to take another look at the format
Ring Digital's Sprin...
29/05/2026
Berliner Ensemble, one of Berlin's five major theater companies, has expande...
29/05/2026
Solid State Logic will showcase its new compact, fly-away TCA Tour audio product...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, passed away last month on April 12 ...
29/05/2026
Paramount+ will be the English-language U.S. home for Barclays Women's Super...
29/05/2026
Further strengthening its virtualisation strategy to fully support broadcasters ...
29/05/2026
Swiss broadcaster Canal Alpha has deployed Harmonic's award-winning, software-based XOS Advanced Media Processor to modernize playout operations across cant...
29/05/2026
PTZOptics will showcase a new generation of intelligent video workflows at InfoComm 2026, June 17-19, Las Vegas. Visitors to booth N8227 will see how PTZOptics ...
29/05/2026
Arizona's Family has launched the Arizona's Family Sports (AZFS) streaming app, a new direct-to-consumer destination for live, local sports. The app is ...
29/05/2026
Starting in 2027, DAZN will be the exclusive home of The Canadian Football Leagu...
29/05/2026
Comcast Business has detailed the advanced network infrastructure it has deploye...
29/05/2026
In two-day event, leaders from academia and industry explored solutions to chall...
29/05/2026
The Basketball Tournament (TBT), now entering their 13th year of competition, ha...
29/05/2026
Roku has launched FOX One as a Premium Subscription on The Roku Channel in the U.S. Roku customers can now subscribe to FOX One using their Roku account for liv...
29/05/2026
In its sixth year, the broadcaster's coverage has become a global brand and ...
29/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent ratings news and is derived from press re...
29/05/2026
The days are getting longer, the temperatures are rising, and playlists are filling up for the season. With summer around the corner, Spotify's global edito...
29/05/2026
New retro-inspired MPC announced
There are few devices that have gained the status held by Akai Pro's MPC range, and in recent years, the company have s...
29/05/2026
Save up to 30 on acclaimed titles
Following a successful launch at Superbooth 2026, Bjooks have revealed that they will be continuing the Kickstarter campa...
29/05/2026
Binaural monitoring application improved
Genelec have just released an update that brings some powerful new features to their HRTF-based binaural headphone ...
29/05/2026
6 June 2026 at SAE Institute, London, UK
IMSTA FESTA 2026 is almost upon us, with some of the biggest names in pro-audio set to descend upon SAE Institute i...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, died April 12, 2026, at his home in...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Comparing 5 AI Video Enhancers for Restoring Old Video Quality
Kate Luvis May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Digitizing VHS, MiniDV, and other legacy formats doe...
29/05/2026
Studio Hamburg Builds New Post Pipeline with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Workflow replaces a patchwork of legacy tools...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
At the Intersection of Music and Dance, an Epic Collaboration Boston Conservatory musicians and dancers found creative parallels in their recent performance o...
29/05/2026
May 29 2026, 09:00 (PDT) Dolby and rednote Bring More Immersive Storytelling to...
29/05/2026
Something fundamental has shifted in how people consume media. Audiences aren't abandoning television or radio content; they're just expanding how, wher...
29/05/2026
Youtube exclusive special drops today
Watch now
UKTV today announces another e...
29/05/2026
Back to All News
The Official Trailer of Physical 100 Italy, on Netflix From Se...
29/05/2026
Genelec announces V2.1 for Aural ID binaural headphone monitoring application posted: 29/05/2026
Aural ID 2.1 enhances binaural monitoring for stereo and ...
29/05/2026
At just 20 years old, Sean Melia from Summerhill Co. Meath has been revealed as the winner of Super Garden 2026. Sean is the youngest ever contestant and winner...
NAMM Show Is Virtual, Features Wealth of Pro Audio Introductions target immersive audio, podcasting, broadcast sports By Dan Daley, Audio Editor 
