Audio Products International (API) At The 2001 International CES

Main Corporate Display In The Hilton Ballroom

4-Jan-01

API Locations: Main Corporate Display in the Hilton Ballroom - 9205Mirage OM-1 ""Dealer Invitational"" at the Mirage HotelMirage OM-9 sound room at The Home Entertainment Show (St. Tropez) - 1101Veritas home theatre at The Home Entertainment Show - 1104Mirage - Dealer sneak preview of coming ""flagship""- New-at-show OM-9- New-at-show Incognita custom install subwoofersEnergy- New-at-show Take 5 .2 - New Veritas models Athena Technologies- New-at-show S-. 5 bookshelf speaker- New-at-show C-. 5 center speakerMirage LoudspeakersNew-At-Show Dealers' Flagship Sneak Preview - By Invitation - Mirage HotelAccording to Mirage Engineers Ian Paisley and Andrew Welker, ever since the legendary M1si ceased production, ""Miragophiles"" and audiophiles generally have been looking for a worthy successor - one that made both strong visual and audiophile statements. The OM-5 and OM-7 introduced at the 2000 CES to replace the OM-6 and OM-8, and now in full distribution, have set the stage for just such a no-compromise speaker, according to the company. Tentatively dubbed OM-1, this ""all-out"" Mirage flagship will be sneak-previewed to select dealers at the Mirage Hotel. The official launch is scheduled for Home Entertainment 2001 in New York. Production is slated for the spring of 2001. Expect a suggested retail price in the area of $20,000 per pair in a variety of finishes including Cherry, High Gloss Black and Aluminum! New-At-Show OM-9 Joins OM-5 and OM-7 - Hear Them At The Home Entertainment Show #1101A new Mirage model enjoying its launch now at CES is Mirage's new OM-9, replacing the OM-10, the last remaining of the previous generation OM-Series. This 6 1/2-inch, two-way, four-driver, vented floor-standing design benefits from the ""trickle-down"" of the driver and cabinet engineering responsible for the dramatic performance improvements and sales success of the OM-5 and OM-7. More than forty percent heavier than its predecessor, and significantly more elegant, its performance improvements include better Omnipolarô dispersion and flatter frequency response with deeper, tighter bass. The OM-9 is available now in Cherry veneer or High Gloss Black, and carries a suggested retail price of $1,300 and $1,400 per pair, respectively.New-At-Show Mirage Incognita Subwoofers - Hilton Ballroom #9205Two new Mirage Incognita powered subwoofers will debut at the show. Each is powered via an external amplifier/crossover combination rated at 500 watts RMS. Scheduled for spring 2001 production and targeted at the $1,500-$2,000 range, including amplifier/crossover, there is a choice of a forward-firing 12-inch model and a bipolar, 2 x 10-inch unit that will ""fire"" through a large port. A major advantage of the bipolar configuration is its lack of vibration - the two drivers will be facing each other. These Incognita subs will function incognito - built into walls, cabinets, floors or ceilings.Energy LoudspeakersNew-At-Show Take 5 .2 Previewed - Main Display - Hilton Ballroom #9205""The product that started a whole new category and spawned countless imitations is about to see a new Energy ëmicrosystemí knock the competition on its ear"", says Energy Brand Manager Joe Fraser. The Energy Take 5 is about to be joined by the ""Take 5 .2"" with a new dedicated powered sub and numerous technical and cosmetic improvements over the Take 5. The new front-vented satellites (Take 5s are sealed) go lower, louder and will blend more smoothly with the subwoofer. Like the Energy Encore system, a higher priced microsystem launched by Energy a year ago, the new Take 5 .2 will include flexible integral bracket mounting systems and offer the option of stand mounting on newly available cosmetically matched custom stands. The center channel of the new system is a dual-vented model using the same 1-inch aluminum and a pair of the 3 1/2-inch injection molded mid/bass drivers with rubber surrounds that are used, one per speaker, in the satellite model.The new powered subwoofer will offer front-mounted controls, an A/V switch, an extra couple of dB of maximum output over that recommended for the Take 5, and a superior 8-inch injection molded/rubber surround woofer. The new sub also adds five-way binding posts - both high level ""in"" and ""out,"" making it more user-friendly to hook up. Positioning is also aided by the new option of setting the sub either upright or on its side.New Veritas Models On Display And Playing - See them at Hilton Ballroom #9205- Hear them at The Home Entertainment Show #1104Until now, owners of Energy's flagship Veritas series have been unable to create a full Veritas home theatre system. With the introduction of the Veritas V2.0C center channel speaker and V2.0R surround models at CEDIA, and their recent production, this has changed. The four new Veritas models which were launched as replacements for the highly regarded C-Series at CEDIA are now all available, allowing buyers to configure multiple Veritas home theatre systems. Dealers and press can audition a surround Veritas setup at The Home Entertainment Show, at the St. Tropez, adjacent to the Alexis Park.The New Veritas Models Outlined - See them at the Main Display - Hilton Ballroom #9205All benefit from numerous refinements in driver, crossover and cabinet design including the Veritas Dual Hyperdriveô woofer technology, Tapered Crossover Systems and the 360-degree Veritas Bracing System (VBS). Other technical details, too numerous to mention here are available at www.energy-speakers.com. Available finishes are cherry veneer with black and high gloss black with black. The V2.0R surround model has reversible cherry/high gloss black side panels to suit either finish in the main speakers.The V2.1 is a large bookshelf model sporting a 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter mated to a 6 1/2-inch Dual Hyperdrive woofer, both contained in a heavily braced furniture grade cabinet. Suggested list is $1,500 per pair and is now available.The V2.2, a larger bookshelf model, steps up in size and features the same 1-inch tweeter but adds a 2-inch aluminum dome midrange driver housed in a Veritas Convergent Source Moduleô. This midrange dome is a smaller version of that in the original Veritas models the V1.8 and V2.8. The woofer is the 6 1/2-inch unit common to all of these new Veritas models. Suggested list is $2,200 per pair and is now available.The V2.3 is the smallest of the floor-standers, featuring the same tweeter/domed-midrange module of the 2.2 but with two 6 1/2-inch Dual Hyperdrive bass drivers. Together with all of these new Veritas models, it has a unique bracing system running from the phase plug of the woofer, through the center of the woofer magnet, back and through the rear of the cabinet, so that not only is the cabinet tightly braced but minuscule unwanted woofer basket vibrations are also eliminated. Suggested list is $3,500 per pair with availability now.The biggest of the new models is the V2.4, which retails at $5,000 per pair. As a step-up from the V2.3 it has the same tweeter and midrange of the other models but three of the 6 1/2-inch Dual Hyperdrive driver, each one progressively covering deeper parts of the bass frequency range.The Veritas Center channel speaker, V2.0C is spectrally matched to the L/R speakers by using the same 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter flanked by a pair of the 6 1/2-inch woofers. Its suggested retail is $1,000 each and availability is now.The Veritas surround channel speaker, V2.0R, at an retail price of $1,500 per pair employs the same tweeter as the others, together with an acoustically matched 6 1/2-inch Dual Hyperdrive mid/bass driver both flanked by a pair of 3-inch ""Mid Band Fill"" drivers, part of their exclusive Soundfield Management System. This flexible control system allows the user to manipulate the direct and radiated sound, in volume and polarity (bipolar or dipolar) to tailor performance for a wide range of room layouts, speaker locations and tastes. The V2.0R is available now.Athena Technologies LoudspeakersNew-At-Show Athena S-. 5 Lowers Entry Level Price And Raises Home Theatre Possibilities - Main Display - Hilton Ballroom #9205The ""bad boy"" of the API cadre of loudspeaker engineers is Athena Technologies Chief Engineer Gord Van Kessell, who tweaks the noses of his fellow ""golden ears"" by coming out with novel ways of combining high performance with high value. The Athena series of ""docking"" satellites and subwoofers has met with unanimous raves from the audio and home theatre press. Not content, Van Kessel will be overseeing the launch of an additional new Athena bookshelf model at the show. The driver complement of this rear vented model, 1-inch ""Teteron"" dome tweeter and 4-inch composite mid/bass driver is similar to that of the current S-1, which carries a list price of $275 per pair. but in a smaller, though still ""non-micro-sized"" cabinet capable of bass performance. The price of entry into the Athena range thus drops to just $200 per pair.Of particular note to dealers and consumers, this new model will have an integral wall mount system included and be packaged a number of ways - allowing for their purchase in pairs or as part of a $600 5-piece home theatre system includingÖA New-At-Show Athena Center Channel Speaker - Hilton Ballroom #9205Flank the 1-inch tweeter common to all Athena models with the a pair of 4-inch mid/bass drivers developed for the S-. 5 in a vented enclosure, and you have the Athena C-. 5 center channel speaker that will also be launched at CES. List price is $200 each.Production of these new Athena models, available in a cherry-like vinyl or black, is set for June 2001.