The National Research Council (NRC)
Anechoic Chamber
Dr. Claude Fortier, Acoustic Designer
The NRC performs, supports and promotes scientific and industrial research for the economic and social benefit of all Canadians. The NRC underlines its commitment to acoustic excellence through a number of programmes, such as anechoic chamber tests. The result is a speaker that represents the highest form of acoustic development and technology available.
When placed within such a room, the pure acoustical reproductive properties of a speaker - uncoloured by any room influences - can be accurately measured. Based on these measurements, predictions can then be made about a speaker's performance under normal listening conditions and its acoustic transduction further refined.
Dr. Fortier received his Ph.D. (Particle Physics) from the University of Ottawa in 1984, following research at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in Berkeley, California and at the Fermilab National Accelerator Lab in Batavia, Illinois. His graduate level studies included digital circuits, systems and digital signal processing.
Dr. Fortier was founding president of the Canadian Audio Research Consortium, an industry - NRC research consortium inaugurated by the Minister of Science and Technology, and was also elected its technical director.
Qualified as an expert witness in acoustic measurement by the Supreme Court of Ontario, he currently teaches a graduate course in acoustic measurement at McGill University. Dr. Fortier is also president of his own companies: State Of The Art Electronik Inc. and State of the Art Acoustik Inc.
Dr. Fortier had this to say about the Mach 17...
"The basis for the design of the Mach 17 was to be 'no compromise' in terms of smoothness of response in all directions. The cabinet shape chosen is the most complex to build yet universally recognized as providing the best off-axis dispersion. The drivers used were chosen for their high efficiency and low distortion as well as impeccable frequency response in the three dimensional sound field."The choice of dual twelve inch woofers in a vertical alignment was made to give a large cone area for very low distortion bass and high efficiency while providing excellent off-axis radiation not usually possible in enclosures using single 15 inch or larger drivers. The result is a loudspeaker providing unparalleled imaging as its dispersion characteristics imitate those of natural acoustic sources."
-- Dr. Claude Fortier
State Of The Art Electronik Inc.