FOOTHILL RANCH, CA – The workshop was conducted by Stefan Feistel of Software Design Ahnert with assistance from Steve McManus of Gold Line. Blair McNair presented THE TEF HEYSER AWARD to Mr. Davis.

The TEF Advisory Committee has named acoustician and audio engineer Chips Davis (pictured, right, with Blair McNair) as the 2004 recipient of the annual TEF Heyser Award. The Award was presented by Blair McNair of TMS Consulting, chairman of the TEF Board of Advisors, following a workshop on EASERA™ which was held at the Las Vegas Hilton on Saturday, March 20 during this year’s NSCA Expo.

The TEF Heyser Award recognizes individuals whose work utilizing Richard Heyser's patents in Time Delay Spectrometry (TDS) has made a significant contribution to professionalism in the field of acoustical design and/or measurement .

Stefan Feistel of Software Design Ahnert GmbH (left) and Steve McManus of Gold Line (right) discussed the development and features of EASERA during a workshop at NSCA. The event was co-sponsored by Renkus-Heinz and Gold Line.

During the workshop, Stefan Feistel of Software Design Ahnert discussed the development of EASERA (Electronic & Acoustic System Evaluation and Response Analysis), a comprehensive set of audio and acoustical test and measurement software modules that allows audio professionals to make MLS and dual-FFT measurements using a Windows laptop and a sound card. Four independent modules - a measurement module, a signal generator, a real time analyzer, and a post-processing module – are included in EASERA. Mr. Feistel was assisted in his presentation by Steve McManus of Gold Line, which has developed a TEF/TDS module for EASERA that implements Time Delay Spectrometry measurement and processing entirely in software. The TDS software includes a tracking filter that provides superior noise immunity.

Chips Davis’ career in architectural acoustics has spanned three decades and encompasses recording, postproduction and broadcast studios, hotels, casinos and other large commercial venues and high end home theaters. In the 1907’s, he used TEF to develop the landmark LEDE (Live End/Dead End) concept of recording studio acoustics, working with Don Davis. Chips Davis has also engineered numerous records, TV productions and live concerts. His work is part of many leading texts including, Handbook for Sound Engineers-The New Audio Cyclopedia, Sound System Engineering, The Master Handbook of Acoustics and Mix Magazine.

Prior Heyser Award Recipients:

- 1998 Gerald Stanley, Sr. Scientist at Crown International for the Development of the first production TDS Analyzer, the TEF10.

- 1999 Don & Carolyn Davis, for their founding Syn-Aud-Con, advancing TDS/TEF to public awareness and for authoring Sound System Engineering.

- 2000 Dr. Eugene Patronis, for his work as an Educator as Chair of the Department of Physics at Georgia Tech.

- 2001 D.B. "Don" Keele, for his scholarly writings in the field of electro-acoustical measurement, and for his work developing software to measure the Speech Transmission Index for Intelligibility utilizing Time Delay Spectrometry.

- 2002 Don Eger, for his tireless promotion of the TDS concept into a commercially available product and engineering leadership.

- 2003 Farrel Becker, for his work utilizing Richard Heyser's patents in Time Delay Spectrometry.

Headquartered in Foothill Ranch, California, Renkus-Heinz is the worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of powered and non-powered loudspeakers, system specific electronics and fully integrated Reference Point Array systems.