RCF Launch ART 9-AX Bluetooth Speakers
Posted on: 21st October 2022
We’ve got an exclusive first look at the brand new ART 9 AX Series from RCF. Fleshing out the incredibly popular ART 9 series, ART 9 AX introduces a six channel mixer with Bluetooth streaming and control.
On the face of it, these new speakers are exactly the same as their ART 9 counterparts, with the same cabinet, construction and advanced DSP, FiRPHASE and Bass Motion Control. We’ve already covered the acoustics and build quality of ART 9 in another video so if you’d like to know more on that, click here.
Inputs and Outputs
At the black of each speaker there’s a brand new layout for your ins and outs, and the all new mixer interface. Now, this is a six-channel-mixer so we have 2 mono mic line inputs with XLR Jack Combo connectors. These can be used separately or as left and right for stereo output. Channels 3 and 4 belong to the 3.5mm aux in, at the top. Channels 5 and 6 are for Stereo Bluetooth streaming.
Finally, we have an XLR mix out. This allows you to output your mix via XLR to any other ART 9 or ART 9 AX speaker in a mono or stereo configuration. If you’re pairing 2 ART 9 AX speakers, you can also transmit your mix out via Bluetooth for cable free sound.
There’s also a mix out override button, which essentially deactivated the mixer in linked AX speakers, giving you a clean in and through for daisy chaining speakers. ART 9 AX also features a crossover mode for use with RCF subwoofers, with presets for SUB 8003, 905, 708, 705 and 702 AS subs. Power is provided by a standard 3 pin IEC cable, and you have a micro USB port for firmware updates.
6-Channel Mixer
Right, let’s talk about the main attraction, the six- channel-mixer. Navigation of the mixer is super simple with a 2.4” full colour touch screen and dedicated volume and editing knob, which doubles up as a button. At the top level of the mixer, you have live monitoring and levels control for all your channels and the master mix out. These can be controlled on the fly by selecting one of the channel faders and adjusting the levels with the volume knob.
The level of your chosen channel is displayed at the bottom of the screen above the mix out and channel edit mode indicator. There are labels for 48V Phantom Power on channels 1 and 2, and ducking indicators on channels 2 through 6. This allows you to use the channel 1 mic input as a Public Address, automatically ducking down the levels on specific channels whenever you want to make an announcement.
Reverb settings can be accessed from the top menu by swiping left from the 3 dots on the right hand side of the screen. From here you can precisely control the reverb for each channel, select from small medium and large presets, adjust the overall FX return and toggle reverb on / off for all channels with a single button.
Back at the mixer, you can also tap into each channel for precision PEQ adjustments, including high pass filter, lows, mids and highs. Just select the parameter you’d like to adjust and toggle it up and down with the selector knob. Spin it slowly for precise control, or quickly for faster jumps. This is true across the mixer settings and really speeds up the process of setting up your speaker. Another cool trick is that if you press, click and hold the dial, it will reset the parameter. Saving you valuable time if you want quickly adjust different settings.
For channels 3 through 6 you can also adjust the left and right balance of the inputs. With channels 1 and 2 being mic line inputs, they have the same PEQ and levels controls as the other channels, with the addition of a compressor, input preamp sensitivity, phantom power and the ability to link channels 1 & 2 with the option to pan between them.
One more handy quick tip for the channels section, or anywhere in the menus actually, if you want to quickly get back to the top mixer page at any point, just swipe down from the top of the screen.
Finally for the top mixer page, we have the main mix out section. Again, you can control the main levels adjust from the front screen using the volume adjust dial, or tap into the mixer settings for more options.
From here you can control your levels, and adjust up to 6 PEQ points including the high pass filter. Using the control knob you get precise control over the frequency, gain and the Q, curve or bandwidth of each point. You can also reset the entire mix out PEQ with the EQ Initialise button.
System Settings
Moving on to the settings pages and there’s a whole bunch of controls to unlock here. Starting at the bottom, we have the channel edit modes. As you can see at the bottom, we’re currently in Advanced mode. This gives us access to all the PEQ settings in the channel edit pages. In easy mode, you’re limited to levels adjustment across all channels, and pre-amp, phantom power and linking for channels 1 and 2. You can quickly toggle between easy and advanced from any channel page by long pressing on the PEQ.
Next, we have the system settings page. From here, you have full control of your speaker.
Like the original ART 9, you can set a speaker preset to linear, boost or stage. Or override the mixer of your speaker to essentially allow channel 1 to act as a direct input and through signal for linking additional speakers.
You can program your cross over mode for use with additional subwoofers. Choose from subwoofer presets and adjust trim, delay and frequency, as well as toggling low pass filter and polarity settings.
In the audio setup section, you can adjust which channels are affected by the ducker, adjust reverb for all channels, toggle delay settings between linked mono speakers and configure your mix out settings including mono, stereo and crossover modes, and the ability to independently link delay, EQ and level controls for linked mono speakers.
In the utilities section you can view all your speaker information including firmware version and Bluetooth name. Change the display settings including brightness and idle time. And reset Bluetooth settings or factory reset your entire speaker.
In Bluetooth options, you can toggle over to single, allowing one or more Bluetooth connection for streaming and control.
To pair a device for streaming and control, navigate back to the top mixer page and tap the Bluetooth icon. From here you can tap pair and select the ART 9 AX from your device’s Bluetooth settings. Once paired, you can choose to stream audio only or download the RCF Live Remote app for iOS and Android, giving your wireless remote control of all your mixer options.
Back to the Bluetooth, and the dual primary and secondary modes allow you pair 2 ART 9 AX speakers together for mono or stereo sound with either speaker in master or slave mode. In dual mode, your speakers are locked into easy editing for simpler configuration.
Dual primary mode allows you to control whether your speakers are in left and right stereo or mono zone modes. You can also assign left or right channels to either speaker and toggle level links for channels 1 and 2 and Bluetooth streaming. All of these settings are locked for the secondary speaker.
The Bluetooth status bar tells you which mode you’re in, and whether you have Bluetooth connected for streaming and control. From here you can also rename your speakers for Bluetooth with up to 8 characters.
The last thing to mention in the system settings, is the load and save function. Here you can save up to 8 presets to instantly recall your system settings for various situations like presentations, crossover mode or Bluetooth stereo.
This makes it super easy to recall your favourite settings for your most common applications whether you’re setting up for an install client or for a live event.
Step-by-step configuration
Now, there’s a lot of options in the system settings which less technical users may find overwhelming, or can be a little difficult to navigate when you’re in a hurry. For this reason, RCF have included a step-by-step configuration wizard to streamline your setup. In the systems setting section, you can quickly configure your Bluetooth mode, mixer mode and mix out or stereo designation. The input wizard allows you to set up channels 1 and 2, with settings for source type, input selection, EQ setup, sensitivity and phantom power. Not only is this great for less technical users, but it speeds up the process of setting up your inputs for seasoned pros as well.
The ART 9 AX is an incredibly flexible tool for live events and presentation or venues like leisure centres or schools looking for a flexible solution without compromising on power. And the fact that it works seamlessly with the original ART 9 series and a host of RCF SUBs is a huge bonus for hire and production companies looking to expand their existing lineup.
That's the ART 9 AX from RCF. Want to know more about the range? Click the link below to find out more about the RCF ART 9 AX Ecosystem or call our team on 01525 850085
