Wheatstone Produces New PR&E DMX Digital Audio Consoles
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Wheatstone has begun production of its PR&E DMX digital audio consoles. The announcement marks the first in a new line of studio products intended to restore the PR&E brand.
DMX Console
“It’s like adding a new family member, which is a big deal around here because we do everything in-house. We do the millwork, the circuit boards, the wiring, the testing. It’s notlike we subcontract any of that out, so when we introduce a new product line, you can bet we’re committed,” says Matt Wilson, Production Manager for Wheatstone.
In February, Wheatstone acquired the assets and moved manufacturing and support of consoles and peripheral equipment from Gates’ Illinois factories to its plant in New Bern, North Carolina. In April the company introduced the DMX as the first PR&E IP networked broadcast studio console line, carrying forward the rugged quality and practical functionality of the PR&E brand and adding IP audio routing as an easy studio add-on.
Wheatstone’s new DMX line is the first in a series of new products to replace PR&E’s legacy
Vistamax and Envoy router lines and RMX consoles, the components of which have become
increasingly difficult to source. “Many of these product components are at end-of-life, so it made sense to discontinue manufacturing them and provide broadcasters with a more modern line,” says Wilson.
PR&E branded NetWave and Oasis consoles will continue to be manufactured by Wheatstone in its New Bern factory. Coinciding with the first production run of the DMX line this week, Wheatstone also rolled out an expanded technical support program for existing PR&E customers.
“We understand how important this equipment is to legacy PR&E customers, which is why we are now offering expanded site license support packages,” says Jay Tyler, Wheatstone Director of Sales. 24/7/365 support by qualified technicians, onsite troubleshooting, spare parts kits and a large parts inventory to maintain products over their lifespan are just a few of the support additions made by the studio equipment manufacturer in order to help broadcasters preserve their investment in gear.
Wheatstone will continue to honor currently active PR&E hardware warranties and related tech support. The first DMX 8-fader and 16-fader control surfaces are expected to ship by the end of summer, along with new IP audio network modules that also carry the PR&E brand. DMX consoles are available with a 1RU DMX mix engine and 1RU Razor I/O module, which include 1GB Ethernet ports and RJ-45 interfaces for quick setup and easy audio routing between studios.
