Johnson Audio

I have used Guitar Pro 5 and while it has always been the defacto TAB software for guitarists the program sucked a little on OS X, for instance it only allowed a single TAB open and when you closed a TAB the entire program shut down which was annoying to say the least. Also the floating tool bar was reminiscent of Microsoft word and faded to semi-transparent when not in use which I found pointless. What it did do though was make writing guitar TAB pretty easy and when you played it back, sound pretty good using Guitar Pro’s Realistic Sound Engine (RSE).

I’m glad to say Guitar Pro 6 has had a complete overhaul of the user interface and has fixed both of the problems mentioned above by allow multiple documents to open in tabs like you would see in a web browser and the toolbar has been moved into a left hand panel. This left hand panel has 6 buttons which allow you to switch between panel views, the first opens the Editing toolbar which contains all of your notation options. The second opens the Instrument panel where you can choose the tuning of the guitar (or bass) and what RSE soundbank to use (guitar has option of Les Paul, Strat and Jazz guitars). The third button opens the Audio panel which lets you choose an amp, effects pedals and master effects such as reverb and chain up to 5. The fourth button opens the Mastering panel which include compression, limiter, gate, eq and reverb. Button five opens up the Chords panel which allows you to choose the chords that are used in your song and add them to the top of the TAB sheet and finally the last button opens the Lyrics Panel.

The result of these enhancements has made Guitar Pro 6 much easier to use, quicker to write TAB with and more realistic sounding on playback. This isn’t just a minor upgrade, if you are a Mac user this is this upgrade that finally makes Guitar Pro really worth the $60 price tag.

Long before boutique bass amps like Markbass, Genz-Benz and Ashdown appeared on the scene, the Ampeg SVT tube heads held down the bottom end in the backline at concerts. Ampeg branched out into solid state technology some time ago, and the company has released two new heads the popular SVT-PRO Series, the SVT-7PRO and the SVT-8PRO , one of which has enough power to bring down small buildings or drive groundhogs out of their burrows, fer sure.

The SVT-7PRO pumps out a full kilowatt (that's 1,000 watts, if you're not up on your electrical terminology) yet weighs only 15 pounds. The head offers professional features, including a flexible 5-position mid control, a remote switching FX loop and an onboard variable compressor. The tube preamp usesa premium JJ 12AX7 that feeds Class-D power section. It's a perfect match for the all-new PRO NEO Series or Heritage Series enclosures.

If you think 1,000 watts is a lot of power, you'll be impressed to hear that the SVT-8PRO delivers up to 2500W of RMS power in a the same compact, lightweight, two-rack-space design, making it the highest output head ever created by Ampeg.

The Ampeg SVT-7PRO is now available and has a U.S. MSRP of $1119.99.

The SVT-8PRO has estimated availability in the first quarter of 2010 and will have a U.S. MSRP of $3359.99.

The Pnoe horn is the culmination of a 10 year effort to design and realise a horn speaker without compromises. A team of high-end enthusiasts with deep technical knowledge and access to advanced production equipment worked through many stages of design, mathematical and physical simulations, prototype development, and countless hours of listening and blind testing. In various times listening panels of jazz and classical musicians were employed to ensure that the direction is the right one.

The Pnoe speakers are simply in a class of their own. They combine the best characteristics of single driver horn designs along with a clarity and fullness of sound which is simply unique. The sound is extremely dynamic, clear and correct. The bass extension, although not the deepest, is very fast and totally natural, unlike hybrid box/horn designs or multiple driver systems. The soundstage is wide and precise and the whole experience brings the emotions of a live performance.Voices are simply divine, horns are in the room, orchestras are alive!

This excellent performance comes with a speaker sensitivity of 100db/W along with a favourable impedance curve, which means the Pnoe is perfectly suited to be paired with the smallest high quality tube amplifiers. A 300B makes the Pnoe sing effortlessly with authority and speed reminiscent of solid state monsters.


The design objectives of the Pnoe were to:

• Create the smoothest, roundest path for the sound wave front, without any obstructions, so that there are no sources of standing waves and spurious reflections. This was the spark which started the Pnoe concept. 

• Choose the ideal horn design. The design of the Pnoe is the optimized result of many tests, calculations and consecutive prototypes.

• Build the speaker precisely, using materials with a friendly sonic signature. The Pnoe is shiny in and out. It is made of fibreglass and special damping materials in the form of a sandwich, with special attention to resonance control where it is needed most.

• Use the highest quality driver available. The AER MD3B was chosen for its ultra detailed presentation and its warm sound. It sounds like a point source electrostatic speaker with a sensitivity of 100 db/W! In the Pnoe it offers nuances like the ‘brassness’ of brass and the ‘woodness’ of violins and pianos, which have to be experienced to be believed! The reproduction of human voices is another area where the MD3B is simply in a class of its own.

Style 
The Pnoe speaker is also uniquely stylish and attractive. It is a statement of modern design and respect for natural, harmonic lines, especially important for a large speaker.





Specifications

• Size: 220cmH * 100cmW * 90cmD
• Weight: approx. 52 Kg
• Frequency Response: 42-21.000 Hz
• Max Power: 100W
• Nominal Impedance: 16 Ohms
• Sensitivity: 100db/1W/1m

The Pnoe speaker, being a large horn, is more suited to listening rooms with 3m or more distance between the listener and the speakers.
The standard internal wiring is the DNM Solid Core Precision and the binding posts are Eichmann Cable Pods. Both have been carefully chosen for the specific application.


Ordering

The Pnoe horn speaker is currently available only from Arcadian Audio. Standard colours for the horn body are charcoal black and ivory white. The driver mount, grille and grille fabric can be ordered from a range of colours. Each pair includes 2 sets of magnetic grilles, one with fabric and one without and 2 sets of Pnoe logos to be installed by the user.
For more information and prices, please contact Arcadian Audio.


Contact Info

• Address: 16 Heimaras St., Athens 15125, Greece
• Tel: +30 6970632970
• e-mail: info@arcadianaudio.com