The Central Hall has undergone something of a paradigm shift from previous years.
Joining the traditional denizens of the Central Hall — camera companies, lighting equipment providers, boom manufacturers and a smörgåsbord of support enterprises — is a wholesale importation of pro audio and radio companies from the North Hall. These are now resident in the front of the hall.
Joe Klinger of audio interface manufacturer JK Audio is a veteran of the North Hall experience. He said of his new location, “2010 gave JK Audio its best location in years, so I’ve got no complaints. The North Hall was getting a bit desolate, so, in this case, change is good.”
But beyond a new location there is a sense of optimism, especially compared to last year. Ian Gunn of Burli Software said: “The show is looking more promising and our hopes are positive. Of the folks we contacted before the show this year, more seem to be coming to the show and are eager to see what’s new.”
Ask most anyone how their business and business practices have changed in recent years and they can tell you more than you’d probably like to hear.
A good example comes from microphone maker Audio-Technica. Rather than standing around hawking mics, A-T is being proactive this year with training sessions and a 5.1 mixing post room, a first for them, run by Hollywood vet Mike Abbott.
Steve Savanyu of Audio-Technica said, “Audio-Technica is showing our commitment to the broadcast industry with new products and application-centric training. We are doing a hands-on live 5.1 sports mixing demo where you can come and audition different mics and create your own mix in our in-booth audio control room using a Calrec console.”
Another North Hall migrant is Canada-based transmitter maker Nautel. John Whyte of Nautel said, “By all signs, Nautel is off to an extremely successful 2010 NAB Show. ... It’s always a great opportunity to get direct feedback from customers to make sure we’re developing the solutions we need.”
Scott Fehl with Clark Wire & Cable has been in the Central Hall for years and has noticed changes. “Hall traffic is once again evenly distributed throughout the halls. For a few years after the South Hall opened people were distracted from the Central Hall, but things have returned to normal.”
He is especially happy with his location near other cable manufacturers and network facilitators, the people who buy cable. He said, “Fiber transport is a fast-growing business, and being located in the Central Hall drives traffic to us by being co-located with optical connector, networking and multiplex product builders.
In other Central Hall news: Coming from the South Hall into the back end of the Central Hall is the Sony compound. That would explain the unusual amount of traffic in the back of the hall.