Sweetwater has created a dedicated Home Audio Room at its Fort Wayne, Indiana music store. The room is intended to let customers compare passive home loudspeakers in a controlled environment using consistent listening conditions.
LEA Professional Connect Series 168 amplifiers power the audition system for up to 80 loudspeakers. The CS168 is an eight-channel amplifier in a 1RU chassis, rated at 160 W per channel, with selectable Hi-Z 70 V/100 V and Lo-Z operation on each channel. The system also uses the Connect Series’ 96 kHz DSP, network management, the ability to apply settings across amplifiers, and Q-SYS integration through a dedicated control plugin.
The practical significance is that the amplifier platform can remain constant while customers audition different loudspeaker pairs. Because Q-SYS was already managing the Home Audio Room’s audio, user interface, and room control, LEA amplifier management could be brought into the same workflow for one-pair-at-a-time comparisons under shared source and amplifier settings.