Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/7010
helped launch our company. That really gave us our start and the credibility." In the late '90s, the home theater market exploded, fueled by DVD sales. Fichera rec- ognized this would change the post industry overall, including pro audio speakers. "We knew we wanted to build speakers using two key features:The first key was bass manage- ment. That means blending the subwoofer with a satellite system. We wanted to do that with both our stereo and surround sound systems. Bass management was the line in the sand, so to speak, that would make us differ- ent from everyone else. It worked really well for the film industry and the post industry, but the music industry looked at us like we were from another planet." The second key feature focused on an impor tant area of speaker technology known as the crossover. "The idea of our system — that nobody else was doing — was designing it as a three-way system," says Fichera. "So, the mid-range frequencies that are in our satellites are true, because we are not sucking it out to make it go to the woofer. And that makes all the difference. If you listen to a two-way monitor, to get that crossover to work they tend to suck the mid-range out to get the woofer to go lower. That results in a dip between 500hz and 4K. And guess what? For film and TV, that is were all the dialogue is. So that's why we got high ratings right from the start from the post production community. Now, they can hear everything and not have to guess." Fichera knew this impor tant distinction would be hard for some people to accept. "We star ted this at AES in 2001 when we had one system. People asked us if we could turn off the sub. Then I would ask them, 'If this was a two-way speaker, would you want to turn off the woofer?' They would always answer no. And then I would say, 'That is the idea.' I knew at that time the only way we would get noticed was if people understood that you do not turn off the subwoofer. Technically it's the woofer, it's just located in a separate box, and that idea makes it really simple to take this system and put it in a room that is very small.That way, the sub can be controlled by changing the level and plac- ing it correctly in the room. Everything about this made sense, but the music industry still wanted a two-way speaker that was full range. So, I decided to the pay attention to post production instead." Fichera explains how DTV has a very im- portant impact on stereo-only mixes: "I make the case that everything you mix in stereo is probably going to be played back in surround sound — people ask what I mean by that. Unless something is being played on iTunes only, television is all done in surround sound. So, whether your mix is surround or stereo, it is going through a processor and is going to be played back on a subwoofer-based system that people bought with their home theater set-up. And people need to be paying attention to that." Fichera has also designed speak- ers with the needs of game pros in mind. "The other big industr y we were after was the gaming industry, because they were already in sur- round. We got involved in Elec- tronic Ar ts and sold them many systems back when they were first doing Lord of the Rings. We built these little pod-based systems and that was a whole market that we didn't even realize existed. Now the gaming industr y is a ver y im- por tant par t of our products and sales. Gaming is bigger than all the entertain- ment industries combined." Being a relatively new company, Fichera has a fresh take on the audio industr y and what lies ahead."I think the biggest thing that is going to happen industr y-wide is 3D. When we went from standard def TV to HD, that was the 'wow factor.' People could see the difference.The next game changer is going to be 3D.That is going to be big, huge. "I have been involved with this for a cou- ple of years and helping [figure out] if we can use more speakers like 7.1. It's about trying to get one more dimension inside the surround environment that can bring things into the sides of the room. And then, if you can add a couple of different speakers for height, there is a lot of stuff you can do that is unique. So, 3D is going to be a game changer once they get past the glasses. And if sports gets involved and you don't have to wear the glasses, then everyone is going to buy it. Then we will adapt sound to the idea of 3D and make the audio match the same kind of experience of the visuals." Lastly, Fichera offers an impor tant obser- vation about the audio industry overall. "My argument for the music community is that television is the new radio. Most people don't understand that, but think of how many TV shows today tell you who the musical ar tist featured on the show was, and tell you where to get it.These shows feature different artists each week, and every time I listen it's in sur- round sound." 34 Post • February 2010 www.postmagazine.com McDSP's Colin McDowell: "Like most engineers, I wanted things to be done a certain way, so I broke off on my own and tried it." Dangerous Audio's Bob Muller: "We cater to people who care about sound, the reliability of the equipment and consistency." Unsung Heroes