Pro Audio at NAMM Show Targets Sports-Venue Needs Traditional music expo features installed, portable sound systems By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Wednesday, January 22, 2020 - 10:30 am
Print This Story
Story Highlights
Music and sports have been intertwined since Take Me Out to the Ballgame was new on the charts in 1908. The recently concluded NAMM Show in Anaheim, CA, is focused squarely on the former but has more than a few implications for the latter when it comes to the sound systems that sports venues have been investing in.
Flagship brands like L-Acoustics, d&b audiotechnik, and Meyer Sound Labs, all of which have departments or personnel dedicated to the sports-venue vertical, had sizable demo rooms in the North Hall, which was added to the convention center three years ago to accommodate the expo's steadily expanding pro-audio segment.
But given that sector's growing number of global brands targeting the lucrative U.S. market, the NAMM Show also hosted its second-annual Loudspeaker System Showcase, where 14 companies - Alcons Audio, AXIOM, FBT, Martin Audio, RCF, Verity Audio, and VOID Acoustics among them - exhibited both installed and portable systems.
Some Notable Exhibits
d&b audiotechnik demonstrated its SL-Series product line and new A-Series, combining point-source cluster technology with extensive control of a line array.
L-Acoustics showed its evolving L-ISA immersive live-sound technology, now able to scale immersive hyperreal experiences for live events in large venues, including arenas and stadiums. Presentations included addressing such challenges as loudspeaker-system design, implementation, and calibration; spatial-rendering algorithms (audio objects positioning, virtual acoustics); and object-oriented mixing techniques for live sound.
Electro-Voice introduced its first powered floor monitor, the PXM-12MP, but perhaps more striking was its demo room, which was brightly lit and draped in white, rather than dressed as the dark, black-curtained space usually used for audio demonstrations. Looking more like an event space (or wedding hall), it offered an alternative environment that helped its products stand out. Darkened demo halls - which also emulate lighting conditions in sports arenas - ostensibly help visitors focus on the sound by limiting visual distractions. But E-V Creative Manager Guy Low counters that, with venues becoming more multipurpose, sound systems for sports venues need to sound as good as concert systems and, in an increasingly Instagrammed world, also have to be visually pleasing as well. And our loudspeakers do look good, he says.
A Showcase for New High-End Products
Live-sound consoles also were in abundance at NAMM 2020. The most spectacular product launch in the category was DiGiCo's Quantum 338 desk, whose ballyhooed debut was scheduled for 3:38 p.m. Thursday afternoon (although technical hiccups brought it in closer to 3:40). The console, targeted at the sports-sound market among other verticals, offers 70 individual TFT channel displays, and the floating Quantum chassis features 38- x 100-mm touch-sensitive faders laid out in three blocks of 12 fader banks, plus two dedicated user-assignable faders, each complete with high-resolution metering.
A big crowd was on hand for the introduction of DiGiCo's Quantum 338 audio console at NAMM 2020.
According to Matt Larson, VP, professional audio products, DiGiCo, the 338, which is priced between $98,000 and $142,000, was the company's most successful product launch ever in terms of initial orders. He adds that the NAMM Show, which even a decade ago was better-suited to small mixers, has become one of the best trade-show venues at which to introduce high-end audio products, including those aimed the sports market.
Music and entertainment in general have been interconnecting with sports at levels we've never seen before, he points out. The NAMM Show is in Southern California, so it's close to the broadcast industry, the music-touring business, and a ton of major sports venues, all of which are constantly upgrading their systems, and many of them were here at our booth at the show. This has become a show to reach all of that.
North America Stories
06/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
06/04/2026
From high school sports all the way up to the major leagues, building high-quali...
06/04/2026
Quickplay, an AI company for the media and entertainment industry, has been accepted into the Advanced tier of the TwelveLabs Ecosystem Partner Program. Quickpl...
06/04/2026
Grass Valley has announced the Future Playmakers Program, a global initiative to...
06/04/2026
El l der de operaciones impulsa la producci n en estudio mientras encuentra insp...
06/04/2026
The ops leader helps lead the charge in studio for the Spanish-language broadcas...
06/04/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
06/04/2026
The National Hockey League (NHL), in partnership with Verizon and the New Jersey Devils, today announced the opening of the NHL Innovation Lab powered by Verizo...
06/04/2026
Rock League, a new professional curling league, has announced that ESPN+ will stream its inaugural 2026 season for fans in the United States. The first Rock Lea...
06/04/2026
Advanced Systems Group has announced the appointment of Andrea (Andy) Cummis as Vice President of Systems Design and Engineering. In this role, she will lead de...
06/04/2026
Backed by Bolt Ventures, the venture brings Bryson DeChambeau, Grant Horvat, and...
06/04/2026
With this environment we can start that collaboration even earlier because we ca...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/04/2026
Dalet Showcases Dalia Agentic AI and End-to-End Media Workflows at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Dalet, a leading technology and...
06/04/2026
OpenDrives Shows Off Sports Expertise in Sports Business Hub located in NAB Show...
06/04/2026
Proton to Demonstrate 3D Application at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Yet further creative potential unleashed through innovation in ...
06/04/2026
Autoscript Highlights Voice-Driven Prompting and PTZ Solutions at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton April 6, 2026
0 Comments
Experience Autoscript Voice, PTZ prom...
06/04/2026
Mediaproxy Highlights Significant Enhancements to its LogServer suite at NAB Sho...
06/04/2026
April 6th, 2026
TRIBECA STUDIOS AND LILLY ANNOUNCE WINNERS OF INAUGURAL VITAL...
06/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Expands Kids Entertainment Lineup With Playground App ...
04/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
04/04/2026
1080p HDR arrives, a new generation of storytelling tools takes center stage, an...
04/04/2026
Michigan legends bring a new voice to the broadcast as TNT Sports and CBS Sports...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/04/2026
DHD Introduces AI-Based Audio Noise Reduction to XD3 IP Core
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
The accompanying image shows the rear panel of the ...
04/04/2026
Macnica Redefines ST 2110 Flexibility with Two Speeds on One Card
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
New for NAB Show 2026, MEP100 SmartNIC now sup...
04/04/2026
Unified Media Workflows for Story-Centric Production
Brie Clayton April 3, 2026
0 Comments
Framelight X unifies field capture, editing and publishing ...
03/04/2026
Michigan's Fab Five will reunite for an alternate presentation of the Mich...
03/04/2026
Avid will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (April 18-22, Booth N2226, Las Vegas Convention Center), demonstrating its Content Core platform and new AI-driven workflow c...
03/04/2026
Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC) has announced the appointment of Nick Barthee as Chief Operating Officer.
The announcement follows MRMC's transition fro...
03/04/2026
Interra Systems has announced that Elite Media Technologies has selected its BATON file-based QC solution for media workflows. Elite Media Technologies speciali...
03/04/2026
Ateme has announced that Moldtelecom has deployed Ateme technologies across its streaming workflow, covering encoding, delivery, operations, and analytics.
Mol...
03/04/2026
Grass Valley will demonstrate Framelight X, its content management platform, at NAB Show 2026. The platform connects capture, ingest, editing, and publishing in...
03/04/2026
Encompass Digital Media and Techex have announced a cloud-native Master Control ...
03/04/2026
Live Vertical Video automatically track the action on the court via AI technology and delivers a fully optimized, 9 16 live feed for viewers...
03/04/2026
As the Illini make their first trip to college basketball's biggest stage si...
03/04/2026
After last summer's Softball National Championship victory and last week'...
03/04/2026
The University of Arizona's Men's Basketball team has only loss twice th...
03/04/2026
Eight games across four tournaments will be played in three venues; accommodatio...
03/04/2026
The Ottawa Senators and Bell Media have announced a long-term rights extension for regional Ottawa Senators games on TSN and RDS. TSN Radio 1200 remains the exc...
03/04/2026
Massive production in Phoenix is run out of Game Creek Video Flagship mobile uni...
03/04/2026
New York April 2, 2026 TelevisaUnivision, the world's leading Spanish-la...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Pro Audio at NAMM Show Targets Sports-Venue Needs Traditional music expo features installed, portable sound systems By Dan Daley, Audio Editor 
