Pan Beam – The Name
The word Pan originates from Greek Mythology and means all embracing, whole or complete. Putting PanBeam in a nutshell, sound events are acoustically and electronically varied to provide the audience with a clearly focussed and fully intact acoustic experience free from annoying echoes and feedback.
Similar to a torch beam, acoustic information is focussed and directed into the auditorium. This focussing on a whole basis is a synonym for PanBeam.
General
Even in acoustically problematic surroundings PanBeam delivers problem free sound transfer. Genuine clarity of speech without echo is granted even in larger auditoriums.
One of the main and perhaps most interesting features of PanBeam is the consistency of volume throughout audience areas. This pleasant feature means that even though being situated near the sound source (in this case loudspeakers) a member of the audience will not experience the usual unpleasant effects of increased volume. Additionally members of the audience situated farther from the sound source are not affected by the usual loss of volume over greater distances. Even for the layman this pleasant effect is immediately noticeable.
Another excellent feature that PanBeam has to offer is the ability to direct a constant volume effectively and flexibly to a desired position within the space the audience is situated without having to rearrange, redirect or even relocate the loudspeakers. DSP electronic control technology is applied throughout the PanBeam system and is adjusted comfortably using either computer or network technology.
Basics
Acoustics
The reception and interpretation of acoustics by the individual depends on several biological and physical processes. Acoustics means the radiation of sound in space via a medium. Architecturally differing rooms possess differing acoustic properties, the sound of speech and music therefore also differ in these rooms, especially in large halls, where clarity is rapidly lost with increasing distance.
Sound and its Expansion
To produce a sound and enable it to expand through a medium (in this case air) a sound source is required (here for example we will use 1...n loudspeaker-chassis). Loudspeaker-chassis are stimulated with an electronic amplifier and transmit this agitation in the form of waves into the surrounding air molecules. The agitated air molecules transmit their movement to the neighbouring molecules therefore effectively filling the room with sound. The problem is that time is required to complete the transmission of this molecule agitation. The speed of sound waves depends on the medium in which they move. In air the sound of speed is about 340 m/s.
This means that, for example in large rooms, sound signals that are far away from their source and need to be amplified with loudspeakers in the rear areas, have to be electronically delayed in order to synchronize with the sound signal coming from upfront. Otherwise the sound signal from the loudspeakers will overtake that of the sound source and create a rather irritating „echo" effect.
Directional Sound Irradiation
There are several methods in which sound can be compressed or produced to create audible sound in the close vicinity of the listener. Not to speak of other unhealthier methods using for example a mixture of differing ultrasonic beams that utilise extremely high sound pressures. These methods prove to be improper for the transmission of whole musical sound spectra.
The scientific realisation of the PanBeam idea is nothing new and was originally discovered in the 1920's. Although there being no appropriate technology to support this project at the time.
The overlapping of sound sources can be ascertained when using vertically closely neighbouring loudspeakers within a corpus (e.g. a loudspeaker series) and thus a vertical compression throughout a large frequency range is made possible. The longer this loudspeaker series is the better the deeper tones can be manipulated.
When each individual loudspeaker within the series is also individually electronically controlled then it becomes possible to manipulate the directional character and to steer the „sound beam“as desired. Highly complex technology is required in order to ascertain the desired results, especially when the characteristics are to be effectively varied in the field.