As all kinds of news, rumours, and predictions continue to swirl around Winter NAMM, Allen & Heath is diving into 2020 with a showing of its growing product line-up in booth #18219 that includes SQ, dLive, and the new Avantis. The company’s extensive array of I/O hardware will also be featured, including dedicated solutions for Dante integration.
A number of AES Academy live sound classes will be offered by the manufacturer at this year’s show as well, with veteran FOH and monitor engineer Michael Bangs (Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, Katy Perry, et al.) hosting hands-on Masterclass training offering insight into mixing techniques for festival, house of worship, broadcast, and other live applications. A special ‘Modern Front of House Mixing’ Masterclass will be presented by Parnelli Front of House Engineer of the Year Nominee Drew Thornton, FOH engineer for six-time Grammy Award nominated pop phenom Billie Eilish. Daily dLive certification courses round out Allen & Heath’s extensive AES Academy training offerings, with those enrolled earning CTS International Renewal Unit (RU) credits.
For those anxious to hear an Allen & Heath system in action, a compact dLive Wings rig comprised of a C1500 control surface and DM48 MixRack has been selected as the console of choice for the NAMM Loudspeaker System Showcase, mixing loudspeakers from 14 different companies in the Anaheim Convention Center Arena. Participating companies will be featured in multiple demos per day, during show days on Thursday, January 16 through Saturday, January 18.
Allen & Heath begins 2020 following a successful year of awards and new product introductions last year. Custom Control—a cross-platform control app for dLive mixing systems—added to the company’s laurels with a New Product Award at WFX in September, while Avantis took home its first award win October at AES with a Best of Show nod. Parnell Awards voting opened in November with dLive named as an Indispensable Audio Technology nominee. The SQ Series received news in December of its selection as Product of the Year for the second year running among MMR’s 27th annual Dealers’ Choice Awards. TEC Award nominations for 2020 were announced last month as well, with the SQ getting a repeat nod in the Small Format Console category, and dLive named as a competitor in the Large Format Console group. Not to be left out, the new DT168 Dante Expander also received a Music & Sound Awards nomination for Console Hardware of the Year before 2019 ended.
Looking back on all the company has accomplished in the last 12 months, Allen & Heath USA Marketing Manager Jeff Hawley is ready to call it a wrap and prepare to ring in 2020 with appropriate aplomb. “We’ve had a great time celebrating our 50th anniversary throughout 2019,” Hawley remarked recently. “It’s been a notable year for us on many fronts. Here’s to everyone in our industry for a sensational run going forward. We’re looking forward to seeing you all in Anaheim!”