ANAHEIM, CA — The NAMM TEC Awards’ TECnology Hall of Fame will honor five defining audio products and innovations as the newest inductees to the prestigious TECnology Hall of Fame. The 2024 awards will be presented at a ceremony held at 5:00 pm on January 27, 2024, during the annual NAMM Show in the NAMM Member Center at the Anaheim Convention Center. All NAMM attendees are invited and there is no charge for the event.
Founded 20 years ago by noted audio/music journalist (and FRONT of HOUSE magazine editor) George Petersen as a historic adjunct to the annual TEC (Technical Excellence and Creativity) Awards, and presented since 2015 by the NAMM Museum of Making Music, the TECnology Hall of Fame honors products and innovations that have made significant contributions to the advancement of audio and music technology.
Joining the 180 previous honorees in the TECnology Hall of Fame, are five inductees for 2024: the RCA 12AX7 vacuum tube (1947); Neumann M49 variable pattern tube microphone (1951); Shure SM7 vocal microphone (1973); AMS rmx 16 digital reverb (1981); and Harrison Systems Series Ten (1985) — the first totally automated mixing console.
“Each of these innovations made a major contribution to how sound is created and reproduced – even years after their debut,” says TECnology Hall of Fame Director George Petersen.
RCA 12AX7 (1947)
Seventy-seven years old (and still in production worldwide), RCA unveiled the 12AX7 high-mu miniature dual-triode tube in the fall of 1947, which remains the most ubiquitous vacuum tube in use today. Designed to be used as a phase-inverter or as a resistance-coupled amplifier for radio equipment, the 12AX7 was not the first triode tube — that distinction goes to Lee DeForest’s Audion from 1906.
The 12AX7 was also not the first miniature dual-triode, which was RCA’s 12AU7, a low-Mu (20x amplification) design that predated the 12AX7 by nearly a year; and RCA’s medium-Mu (60x) 12AT7, which debuted five months before the 12AX7.
In RCA’s “12AX7” designation, the “12” refers to the 12.6-volt heater filament; the “A” notes an amplification tube; the “X” is the model number; and the “7” reveals the number of internal elements. The 12AX7’s miniature design meant that its nine pins exit directly through the bottom of the glass envelope, rather than larger tube designs that had to be mounted on a Bakelite base, allowing the 12AX7 to be manufactured more cheaply than full-size tubes.
But as a high-Mu (100x amplification factor) dual-triode design in a miniature package, the 12AX7 was a hit and an ideal basis for pre-amplification stages in microphone, radio, phonograph and guitar amplifiers. The tube continues to be manufactured, both as the American 12AX7 and as the European Mullard-Philips designation of ECC83.
But anyone who loves that “tube sound” should give a silent nod to RCA for developing the 12AX7 miniature dual-triode tube three-quarters of a century ago, and for any electronic device, that is an amazing accomplishment.
Neumann M49 Multipattern Tube Microphone (1951)
Designed on contract for the IRT (the governmental regulating arm of the German broadcast system), the Neumann M49 microphone debuted in 1951 and was an instant success. Just a few years earlier, in 1949, Neumann launched its classic U47 — the first switchable pattern (cardioid/omni) condenser mic — and although quite popular, it was somewhat large for on-camera broadcasting, and having more polar directional pickup patterns was desirable in many applications.
So besides offering a more compact body, the M49 became the first condenser microphone capable of remote pattern control. By turning a knob on the faceplate of the power supply, users could vary the rear-diaphragm voltage against the backplate reference, and a full range of polar patterns — from omni to cardioid to figure-8 — was accomplished.
The M49 was also one of the first to incorporate a special ultra-miniature triode tube that was specifically designed for microphones. This was the MSC2, which was later refined and further miniaturized before seeing mass production as the AC701. The M49 used the same capsule as the U47, yet due to the completely different housing and the triode electronics, the sound of the two mics bear few similarities. The M49 is exceptionally well-suited to female vocals, yet there are few sources (and very few) where it doesn’t excel.
Long out of production, the M49 returned in 2023 as the M49 V, a reissue built to original specifications and design documents from the Neumann archive. It uses the same circuitry (including remote variable pattern control from the external power supply) but with an even lower noise, hand-selected subminiature tube. And the new M49 V uses the classic K49 large-diaphragm capsule, which has been manufactured by Neumann with no changes since the 1950s.
Shure SM7 Dynamic Vocal Microphone (1973)
Once upon a time (ok, 1964) Shure debuted the SM5 broadcast vocal microphone. It was based on the Unidyne III element (eventually used in the SM57), but with an internal shock mount and a large blimp-shaped windscreen. After a few years, Shure launched a project to create a sleeker, more modern broadcast mic, which became the SM7. This new design was also based on the form factor of the Unidyne III element, but tweaked with a different diaphragm for an overall flatter response, yet with increased low-end.
The SM7 debuted at the Los Angeles AES show in May 1973. Dual slide switches on the mic body let users tweak the mic to their preferences for: a flat response; midrange presence boost; bass roll-off; or presence boost with bass roll-off. The pro user net price was set at $240. Other features included an internal capsule shock mount and a modern-looking (and highly effective) foam windscreen. The SM7 was a hit with both broadcasters and studio users, who took advantage of the tonal shaping features, and found that the SM7 was effective on capturing both voices and a variety of instruments.
One noted user was recording engineer Bruce Swedien, who used his SM7’s on Michael Jackson’s 1982 Thriller, employing the mic for some of Michael’s vocal parts as well as Vincent Price’s memorable narration.
The SM7 continued evolving over the years. In 1999, the SM7A debuted, which incorporated a humbucking coil (to help prevent interference from nearby computer monitors that — by the turn of the century — began populating every studio and production facility). The design of the yoke mount was also improved. Another revision came in 2001, with the advent of the SM7B, which featured a larger windscreen. And in 2023, to celebrate the SM7’s 50th anniversary, Shure launched the SM7dB, an active version of the mic that features an onboard preamp with switchable +18/+28 dB of gain.
The SM7B took off like a rocket in the new millennium — finding legions of new fans with the rise of podcasting and streaming, becoming a standard mic of choice to both studio and online users — and even today, this Shure classic remains in production and shows no signs of slowing down.
AMS rmx 16 Digital Reverb (1981)
Founded in 1976 by Mark Crabtree and Stuart Nevison, two aerospace engineers with a love for music, Advanced Music Systems (AMS; now AMS Neve) made waves with its DMX 15-80, the world’s first microprocessor-controlled, 15-bit digital delay line. That unit was eventually updated as a stereo unit, onboard sampling and pitch control.
In 1981, AMS launched the rmx 16, the world’s first microprocessor-controlled, full-bandwidth digital reverberator. The rmx 16 stereo digital reverb featured sophisticated parallel processing of 16-bit data with 28-bit internal data paths, offering a (then-amazing) 18 kHz bandwidth. Although it only offered nine programs (later expandable to 18) the unit provided a smooth reverberant field, with user access to pre-delay, delay time, high- and low-frequency decay and the ability to store user settings in 99 non-volatile memory locations.
The rmx 16 later offered an optional wired remote control, with a barcode reader attachment(!), that could load additional programs from a laminated sheet with barcodes — an early, but effective way of sharing reverb settings in 1984.
But what made the rmx 16 a success (and classic even to this day) was the musicality of its algorithms. One particular favorite was the NON-LIN (non-linear) program, which became part of Phil Collins’ signature drum sound on “In the Air” and with the unit becoming must-have on session by top users such as Peter Gabriel, Hugh Padgham, Rupert Hine, Humberto Gatica and others, the rmx 16 was an unquestionable success — a studio classic even 43 years later.
To reach a wider audience, Mark Crabtree worked with the team at Universal Audio to model the original rmx 16 as a UAD plug-in. For those who want the “real thing,” AMS/Neve launched the rmx 16 500 at the 2020 NAMM Show, which put the functionality and same bit-for-bit algorithms of the original unit into a hardware 500-series module.
Harrison Systems Series Ten Automated Mixing Console (1985)
At the 79th AES Convention in the New York Hilton Hotel in October 1985, Harrison Systems made a splash with the unveiling of its Series Ten, the first totally automated audio console system. In less than a single video frame (1/30th second), the board could be reconfigured to any required signal flow architecture and all levels, pans, equalization, dynamics processing and routing changes were automated with sub-frame accuracy. Mix data could be stored for future recall on 20 megabyte hard drives or 8-inch floppy disks.
Company founder Dave Harrison — who was elected a Fellow of the Audio Engineering Society for originating the user interface of modern analog inline mixers (implemented in the MCI’s JH-400 series consoles back in 1972) — was responsible for conceiving and overseeing the design of the Series Ten.
All Series Ten signal processing parameters were digitally controlled analog functions using DCAs (digitally controlled attenuators) rather than voltage controlled amplifiers and Penny & Giles moving faders were standard equipment.
Each of the Series Ten modules had two complete, totally automated signal paths, with two each of the following programmable controls: level, program mute, program pans (one stereo and one stereo/quad/left-center-right-surround cinema), 4-band parametric EQ, high and low pass filters, compressors, gates, and assignment sections; and each module was equipped with eight (also automated) aux sends as standard equipment.
Prices for a 32×32 model was $384,620; a 64×64 version was $639,780. However, as each System Ten module contained two complete signal paths, the price tag was (somewhat) more affordable.
Automated levels, pans, dynamics and EQ are common on modern digital consoles, but the access to this power in 1985 was truly revolutionary. The second generation of the console — the Series Ten B — improved on the automation system, added interactive video graphics and was the recipient of a TEC Award in 1991.
But equally important, the Series Ten (in all its forms) was universally praised for the excellence of its sonic performance — a tradition that continues with Harrison System consoles, even to this day.
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The 2024 TECnology Hall of Fame takes place on Saturday, January 27, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. in the NAMM Member Center inside the Anaheim Convention Center. This free event is open to all NAMM attendees.
For more about The NAMM Show, go to: www.namm.org/thenammshow.
