Questions with Tom: Paraline™ Technology

[@Acoustic_Theory]

The method of action of the Paraline lens is to create an acoustic delay line for parts of the high frequency wave without disturbing the other parts of the high frequency wave, allowing each pressure front to propagate from a diffraction slot exit while having a shape that is either identical to the shape of the slot exit, or curved like it was radiating down a much longer horn with narrower exit angle. The purpose is to take an acoustically small high frequency source (a round compression driver exit opening) that would produce a wide coverage angle on a horn with certain dimensions, and make that source acoustically large in one dimension relative to the exit dimensions of the horn so that the horn itself behaves like a much deeper horn with narrower vertical coverage angle, without losing energy or introducing due to internal reflections or comb-filtering between multiple apparent sources. This is similar to what is done in line array cabinets but not necessarily the same. You can introduce any arbitrary curvature and produce any resulting coverage angle in that long dimension. Other wave-shaping lenses (EV Hydra, Turbosound Dendritic Horn, etc.) try to divide up the entering wavefront and make it follow a number of delay lines, like a sectoral horn with different path lengths, but not only does this require more overall depth to be effective (shortening the bell of the horn that we would hope to use to provide horizontal pattern control but now we can't), but it still creates a group of exits that can experience comb-filtering between them, and the narrow pathways of the delay lines add harmonic distortion to the output. The Paraline preserves a single, coherent wavefront through the entire waveshaper while minimizing the path length through the lens and the overall depth of the lens, so that harmonic distortion is not added to the HF output. Additionally, because no two possible path lengths through the Paraline lens are equal, any internally reflected sound ends up canceling itself before it can add together with the next wavefront from the compression driver, preserving high-frequency clarity. There's my analysis.

[@artkulak9802]

For this kind of stuff you guys need to make a "presentation" video, like the ones on physics from Fermilab with Dr. Don Lincoln, preparing all the graphics in advance instead of drawing freehand in real-time on a board. Not sure I completely grasp the Paraline yet. Tom, are you using Paraline in your home system or still using SH50?

[@winflexful]

Paraline is brilliant technology - Can't wait to receive the pair of ILE3s I bought, they make use of the paraline principle. Here is a video from 2014 that has better graphics: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mGnGiWiOqMSpkMk

[@claudej1]

I'm not Tom. However Tom uses SH-50 according to what he recently posted in a Forum a week ago that he uses SH-50's with an SH-95 Center under hit TV.