New flagship speaker line builds on Focal heritage
CAMARILLO, CALIF., November 8, 2018 (MEDIAWIRE) –Orca Design and Manufacturing, U.S. supplier for Focal mobile audio products, announced Focal has been named a CES 2019 Innovation Awards Honoree in the In-Vehicle Audio / Video category for its just-introduced Utopia M premium mobile speaker line. The second generation of the reference-standard Utopia Be line introduced in 2005, Utopia M is the result of three years of ground-up research and development by a dedicated team and a $2.5 million investment, not only in new tooling, but new manufacturing methods.
The Innovation Awards, presented by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) and showcased at the association’s annual CES show in Las Vegas, awards products that push the boundaries of technological ingenuity, uniqueness and consumer benefit. (Note: The CES Innovation Awards are based upon descriptive materials submitted to the judges. CTA did not verify the accuracy of any submission or of any claims made and did not test the item to which the award was given.) The Innovations winners were announced Thursday, November 8. Focal made its first presentation of Utopia M at an invitation-only event in November at the Aria Hotel in Las Vegas. Guests were able to experience design and build of the drivers firsthand and hear demonstrations in comparison to the Utopia Be line.
“Utopia M builds upon the groundbreaking technologies of its predecessor with changes that reflect today’s vehicle architecture,” said Nalaka Adikari, sales director for Orca. “In addition to the use of its drivers in custom audio systems, the line was optimized to meet the demands of owners who want to get the best possible performance using their factory multimedia center and amplification. The result is a series of drivers that easily replace factory speakers and also deliver exceptional efficiency and frequency response.”
Utopia M consists of five driver options: a dual-mount tweeter, 3.5-inch, 6.5-inch and 8-inch drivers, and a 10-inch subwoofer. The design of the Utopia M line pays homage to French architecture in the cross-hatch basket structure of the drivers, and to the Utopia heritage with its signature red motor.
All drivers are offered separately or in pairs and without passive crossovers, a departure from the previous line’s full system offerings. This enables professional installers to select specific drivers to build a unique sound profile for each vehicle.
The ‘M’ in Utopia M reflects the new M-shaped inverted cone used throughout the line, which offers four major advantages to the speaker performance. The dust cap-less cone lets frequencies develop across the entire surface for increased bandwidth. It also enables more precise tuning during the manufacturing phase to enhance dispersion. In addition, the new shape allows for a larger voice coil, and for that coil to be positioned closer to the speaker surface, resulting in a shallower structure.
The patented, re-imagined tweeter features a one-inch voice coil and grille-protected Beryllium dome that carries the same M-shaped design. It comes with an optional rear-sealing enclosure that can be removed to allow the tweeter to play a wider frequency range.
The 6.5-inch driver features TMD suspension, a patented design that features ribs in the surround which eliminate distortion at key frequencies to balance out the sound. The 10-inch subwoofer includes braided material throughout its progressive spider to help with stiffness and control.
In addition to the Utopia M line, Focal has upgraded its iconic component set. The 165 W-RC is being supplanted by the 165 W-XP, which retains the W-shaped cone of the original woofer but adds the patented TMD suspension and other M performance cues. The 165 W-XP tweeter gets a Beryllium inverted dome protected by an external grille.
Utopia M will be available to Orca retailers in January and will be on display at the 2019 CES in Las Vegas in the Innovation Awards Showcase, as well as in the Orca suite at the Westgate Hotel during CES. For more information on the Utopia M line, visit focal.com.
Based in Southern California for more than 30 years, Orca is a multi-faceted supplier of premium audio brands and components. Orca is the sole U.S. importer and distributor for Focal mobile audio and Gladen-Mosconi. With in-house design, engineering and manufacturing capabilities, Orca also produces quality products including Blackhole damping materials, Raven pure ribbon tweeters for pro audio applications, and Illusion Audio reference car speakers and subwoofers. For more information, visit our website at orcadesign.com.
STILLWATER, USA – Stillwater Designs® today announced that it has been named a CES® 2021 Innovation Awards honoree for the new KICKER® Solo X® L7X™ subwoofer. The announcement was made ahead of the first-ever, all-digital CES 2021, happening Jan. 11-14, 2021.
The CES Innovation Awards program is an annual competition honoring outstanding design and engineering in consumer technology products across 28 product categories. An elite panel of industry judges, including members of the media, designers and engineers reviewed submissions based on innovation, engineering and functionality, aesthetic and design.
“We’re very happy to win the Innovations award,” said Steve Irby, KICKER’s Founder and President. “This is a radically improved version of the original Solo X, and to be recognized for the amount of work and creativity we’ve put into making it a reality feels really good.”
A ground-up reimagining of the legendary Solo X, the 2021 iteration was designed to set high standards in a subwoofer’s mechanical excursion, musicality, thermal management and reliability. Offered in 10-, 12-, and 15-inch versions, each Solo X will share a 2,000-watt RMS power rating. KICKER’s SoloX has not yet been assigned an MSRP, and will begin shipping later this spring.
For the past four years, KICKER has researched and experimented with concepts surrounding an extreme subwoofer, while re-introducing the brand to the competition circuit by sponsoring major competitions like the Unified Finals, USACi Finals and Midwest SPL Finals.
“The concept of the new Solo X is to take it to the next level,” Irby said. “It is designed with very tight tolerances. It has more power, more stroke, more Xmax, and still has a field-replaceable cone. The new design allows the Solo X to be extremely loud, but also be extremely musical.”
The no-glue reconing system uses a unique surround compression system and bolt-on spider landing, and is designed specifically to make speaker repair possible in only a few minutes time.
The CES 2021 Innovation Awards honorees, including product descriptions and photos, can be found at CES.tech/innovation. Additional honorees will be revealed during CES 2021.
KICKER Performance Audio products, a division of Stillwater Designs and Audio, Inc.®, are available for the mobile and home audio aftermarket at authorized retailers worldwide, and also as Original Equipment for boat and automobile manufacturers. Consumers seeking more information on KICKER or Livin’ Loud® may call the Consumer Information Line at 1-800-256-5425 or visit the brand website at www.kicker.com. Consumers can follow KICKER socially at Facebook.com/kickeraudio, Twitter.com/kickeraudio, Instagram.com/kickeraudio, or Pinterest.com/kickeraudio, and use the hashtags #kickeraudio and #livinloud.
The BSS2LPBC has been selected for the Innovations award in Vehicle Intelligence category.
TORRANCE, Calif. - November 11, 2018 – Rydeen Mobile Electronics announced today the receipt of a prestigious CES Innovation Award in the Vehicle Intelligence category. "Our BSS2LPBC is an honoree and will be on display in Rydeen Booth 5606, North Hall as well as Innovations Award Showcase in Booth 83319, Hall G, Level 1 at the Sands Convention Center," said Phil Maeda, Rydeen Mobile's President and founder. “This product is currently available and offers drivers an advanced technology solution for avoiding accidents caused by blind spot during lane changes."
"It is a tremendous honor for Rydeen and validates our position as a leader in vehicle safety,” Maeda added. “Unlike most “OFF THE SHELF PRODUCTS” available from any other manufacturers, Rydeen has designed and built these products from the ground up, utilizing the highest quality components and extreme testing conditions to ensure superior quality and reliability.”
The BSS2LPBC incorporates the latest radar sensing technology and can easily be added to any vehicle for the extra protection needed in todays driving environment.
The BSS2LPBC Radar Blind Spot System “the BAR” uses microwave radar technology with highly accurate sensitivity sensing for distances of up to 35 feet for detecting objects within the driver’s blind spot. The system gives the driver a warning when vehicles are located within the driver’s blind spot. This microwave system provides the driver a flash warning when there are vehicles approaching either in the left or right blind spot. Advanced second-generation radar sensors within the unit provide much more accuracy than previous ultrasonic based sensor solutions from other companies. The system also uses GPS to initiate the operation above speeds ranging from 5/10/15/20 MPH that is user selectable eliminating potential faulty alerts in slow moving environments such as parking lots. Unlike other systems, it requires no drilling or removal of a vehicle's bumper for installation.
“BSS2LPBC installs on the top or bottom of a vehicle license plate, more importantly, it works on vehicles with metal bumpers giving millions of vehicles the additional coverage needed,” Maeda said. “Trucks and commercial vehicles with metal panels that never had an option for aftermarket blind spot systems before can now take advantage of this advanced technology." In addition, the system includes a backup camera and cross traffic detection features offering the total vehicle safety solutions for vehicle drivers TODAY!
Rydeen Mobile Electronics, a premier supplier of safety, lifestyle and convenience products for the automotive aftermarket, will be exhibiting at CES 2019 in Las Vegas. All products will be on display January 8-11 in the North Hall, Booth 5606 of the Las Vegas Convention Center. For more information on Rydeen’s featured products, visit www.rydeenmobile.com. To schedule a one-on-one product tour during CES, call (877) 777-8811 to schedule an appointment.
Elkhart, Ind. – November 13, 2018 – MITO Corporation today announced that their splitsecnd crash detection, response and GPS device has been named a CES® 2019 Innovation Awards Honoree in the category of Driver Safety & Assistance Innovation. The announcement was made during CES Unveiled New York, an invite-only tech event bringing together top media, exhibitors and industry leaders for a sneak peek of the products and trends expected at CES 2019. MITO will be presenting the splitsecnd product at CES 2019 at booth 5918, January 8-11, 2019 in Las Vegas, NV.
splitsecnd is a 12-volt plug-in device for any vehicle that combines crash detection, GPS capabilities, and two-way emergency communication into one compact device. It also allows users to monitor driver location status and gives peace of mind with the ability to set up destination arrival and boundary alerts via the online portal and mobile app.
"splitsecnd received a great reception at SEMA and we are looking forward to the same at CES show in January and we feel this award is only the beginning of that excitement," said Ben Bontrager, MITO Auto Division Manager. "This product has a lot of energy as splitsecnd was born to aide its users in emergency situations where the methods you think can be depended on really can't in one form or another. This award confirms that others grasp the concept and agree this is the innovation our industry has been patiently waiting for."
The MITO AUTO division is the aftermarket arm of parent company of MITO Corporation based in Elkhart, IN. Since 1974 MITO has provided solutions for an improved, safer and more comfortable driving experience through electronics and add-on convenience components in response to consumer demands and expectations. MITO Corporation is a major distributor of electronics to the OEM RV, Marine and Commercial Fleet industries with a reputation for quality products and service exemplified by their ISO 9001:2015 Certification. For more information on this product call 1-800-433-6486
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., www.mitocorp.com.
The Magazine
Magazine Quick Links
