Where does this latest product sit within the TORUS range?
“Following the runaway success of TORUS cabinets, we decided the next step should be a smaller 8in sibling and hence the TORUS 8 was born. T820 is the official model name, and it is a passive, two-way loudspeaker featuring an 8in neodymium LF driver and two 1in exit, 1.4in voice coil high-temperature polymer dome neodymium compression drivers. Engineered for small to medium-scale applications, it combines impressive output capability, superb sonic performance and a defined 100° by 20° coverage pattern, all from a very compact enclosure that weighs just 14kg.”
How has the popular TORUS 12 system influenced the development of T820?
“When it comes to short and medium-throw applications of typically 15m to 30m, a full-blown line array is not always practical, optimal or affordable. Conversely, a point-source solution may not be able to achieve sufficient coverage with the SPL required. TORUS constant curvature arrays are designed to fill that gap perfectly. TORUS can be configured to deliver plenty of power over a specified area – combining optimised coverage and SPL profile with cost efficiency.
TORUS cabinets can be arrayed either vertically or horizontally, offering full configuration flexibility to match the coverage and SPL requirements of the venue. TORUS also overcomes issues associated with typical constant curvatures, such as lack of sufficient sensitivity in the mid-band frequency and comb filtering – advancing the constant curvature acoustic concept to achieve new levels of performance and refinement.
“TORUS 12 and TORUS 8 systems feature a phase plug mounted in front of the neodymium LF driver to increase mid-band sensitivity. In addition, they also feature multiple temperature polymer dome neodymium compression HF drivers to deliver greater high-frequency extension with low distortion and better transient response.
“This combination ensures Martin Audio’s signature sonic performance is not compromised even when driven at higher SPL. They also share similar design and material aspects with plywood cabinets in hardwearing PU paint and incorporate two pocket handles for easy installation and deployment, as well as fixings for pole-mounting. They are also available in black or white.”
How will the system benefit end users?
“The combination of the phase plug mounted in front of the LF driver and the multiple use of HF frequency drivers – as opposed to a single large compression driver – ensures that the Martin Audio signature sound is not compromised when driven hard. And in the case of TORUS 8, that’s an impressive 126dB peak (crest factor 2) from just a 14kg box.
“The second aspect is the huge variety in deployment versatility. TORUS 8, with its small size and portability, extends its range of applications from live sound and permanent installations to corporate events, gigging musicians and DJs. It can be used singularly or as a pair, pole mounted, or as an array in vertical or horizontal format with up to six cabinets. It also integrates mechanically with the SXCF115 cardioid subwoofer in flown and ground stack configurations. As such, it can be used as a main PA in small to medium sized events, centre clusters or as sidefills and infills to larger systems. Its flexibility means it’s a box that can be used in multiple applications thereby returning quick ROI for rental companies.
“There are a variety of rigging hardware and accessories to make every configuration simple to set up. Equally, T820 cabinets also feature an LED indicator that can be illuminated via VU-NET software to identify its location. TORUS 8 has just started to ship and a lot of the early take up has been from rental companies. This means we should be seeing systems on a number of events, tours and smaller stages during the upcoming festival season.”
What has the response been like from the wider live entertainment sector?
“The product was launched at ISE, where we had more than 2,000 people come through our demo room to listen to TORUS 8 in action. The feedback we received from this was overwhelmingly positive, with both the sound characteristics of the box and the flexible nature of its deployment being the two standout features. It meant that we had sold our first four months of production in less than two weeks following the launch.”