K-array has been working tirelessly to stay ahead of the fast-growing pro audio market in the US. Director of Sales Josh Radin discusses his perspective on how the industry is performing.
How would you characterize the overall state of the pro audio market in the US from a business/economic stand point and how is this likely to change going forward?
From our standpoint, professional audio is a fast-growing market in the US. Our year vs. year sales are up quite a bit compared to 2016 due to this rapid growth.
We see that the industry is seeking complete creative, cutting-edge solutions. Consultants and integrators are pairing our products with the latest high-resolution video monitors and projectors as well as state-of-the-art control systems. As a technically innovative company, we should be seeing more of this move towards advanced solutions rather than some more traditional speaker suppliers who still are supplying more conventional systems.
Which industry verticals would you point to as showing growth in the market. What is driving that growth and what solutions are in demand?
We are seeing the greatest growth in dining/hospitality and multi-use educational facilities. In both of these vertical markets, our line array modules like the Kobra-KK102 and compact subwoofers have been the solution of choice. These products can produce the clarity and resolution that today’s sophisticated public demands, whether they are in a corporate meeting or in the public areas of a boutique hotel. In addition, our products’ unique form factor allows them to blend in seamlessly with the high end architectural designs that are prevalent in these vertical markets.
Another vertical with much potential is houses of worship. There is a great need for high-performance audio for clear spoken word which can be very difficult at times given the complicated architecture of arches and domes, long corridors and large auditoriums with raised audience seating. Many sanctuaries benefit from the narrow vertical coverage of our loudspeakers which minimizes sound spill towards the ceiling and floor which reduces any reverberation.
What is the biggest challenge in doing business in the North American market?
Our biggest challenge at this point is educating the pro audio market about our products. Once they see and hear them, like at this year’s InfoComm, they quickly become converts and think of applications for our products that we have never even considered.
In fact, an incredible opportunity is fast approaching to hear our unique products in person. K-array will be participating in the Live Sound International (LSI) Loudspeaker Demo at WFX Worship Facilities Conference and Expo in Exhibit Hall C at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas. Attendees will be able to listen to, evaluate, and compare our Portable and Installed Sound systems with other top professional loudspeaker systems in a controlled listening environment as well as hear from our team of line array experts.
We will fly a 6-meter line array of Python-KP102 loudspeakers and pair it with a Thunder-KMT21 subwoofer for the Compact Systems portion of the demo, while our Axle-KRX202 system will be demo’d for the Portable Systems category. You have to come and hear the difference yourself!
Learn more about the demo and register here.
*Reposted from K-array Website: https://www.k-array.com/en/rss/item/2549-k-array-perspective-on-professional-audio-in-the-us.html