Spending serious money on control systems to make a commercial audio system usable has always been just the thing you had to do. Either that, or you hire somebody to manage the systems, available to press buttons and make magic happen.
With the first version of their AUDAC Touch™ App, AUDAC threw those conventions out of the window. Customised interfaces on any smartphone or tablet, full or limited control, depending on the user’s level of access, and it worked with products from across their range and beyond, thanks to very clever relay units (ARU range).
AUDAC even made a video to showcase what happens when a control system is a little too easy to use (coincidentally highlighting why you shouldn’t leave your tablet unlocked):
“So,” you’re thinking, “time for the software engineers to take a break, put their feet up with a nice Belgian beer?”
Not quite.
How about the added ability to automatically discover all the AUDAC controllable devices on your network?
Or new mixing functionality on their fantastic M2 matrix-mixer?
Scalable and placeable widgets to allow you to further customise the look, user by user?
And how about complete integration with the NMP40 Audio Streaming SourceCon modules, giving you control over the world’s first total streaming solution for both residential & commercial venues?
That’s what they did with AUDAC Touch™ 2.
And did I mention it was a free app? No? Shame on me, my memory’s leakier than a sieve.
So, if you think about it for a bar+restaurant, you could have a “manager” user, with access to the volume controls and source selection in every zone, plus the ability to use the ARU relays to trigger control over lighting, projector screens, and so on.
Your bar staff might have access in their pockets, or via an iPad on the wall or via their phones to the source selection only for the bar, along with limited-maximum volume controls.
Similarly for the restaurant staff, along with separate controls over the outside zone.
And for the installer or integrator, they have the ability to tweak every setting in the back-end of the system, but not leave those open for editing by the everyday staff or even the manager. Let’s face it, a great restaurant manager isn’t necessarily great at understanding digital signal processing! If they are, then great! Give them access too.
It’s one of those control interfaces that makes you think “why doesn’t anyone else do this?” And then you realise that yes, they do, it just costs 10x as much, and is much more complicated to setup and program.
AUDAC’s tagline for this product is “Amplify sound, simplify control”, and that’s the most succinct way to put it.
Find out more on the AUDAC website here (including a huge list of compatible products at the bottom), and if you want to check out my favourite AUDAC Touch™ 2 controlled source, have a look at the XMP44 SourceCon™ professional modular audio system on our site here. The range of module options is fantastic, and includes the new NMP40 streaming module, capable of streaming Spotify and more.
And, as always, for more information, design support, and anything else, contact us via sales@radioparts.com.au anytime.
Cheers, Ben.