A little birdy showed me...

...an Exile product announcement;

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Multiple Zone Audio Controller & Bluetooth AirPuck

Portland, OR - Exile Audio announced two new products aimed at mobile and marine audio aftermarkets. The Exile ZLD (zone line driver) adds independent audio control to cabin, subwoofer, and tower zones. When outfitted with the Exile AirPuck, a bluetooth device, the combination adds wireless streaming from any bluetooth enabled portable audio device.

“The products are pretty slick,” states Brian Kelsey, Exile Director. Each operates independently so consumers may integrate the AirPuck into existing systems or opt to add the full functionality of the Exile ZLD.”


Exile ZLD highlights: USA Retail: $199
The compact design offers large knobs that are easy to use. The built-in line driver increases amplifier input voltages and supplements source player output. User controls include master volume, cabin/tower fader, EQ, subwoofer frequency adjustment, and subwoofer level adjustment. The auxiliary input accepts portable source input connections.

Exile AirPuck highlights: USA Retail: $89
This Bluetooth device can transmit and receive, while providing a mini USB charger and 3.5mm audio connections. These features make the device the most versatile of its kind. In receiving mode, the AirPuck eliminates audio cables and puts the music in the hands of anyone in the boat. Powered by an 8 hour, rechargeable Lithium Ion battery, the AirPuck magnetically mounts in any location and acts as a 30 foot wireless audio connection that easily syncs to any Bluetooth enabled streaming device. In transmit mode, the AirPuck has endless possibilities for marine audio boat to boat linkups. With micro USB charging the AirPuck is truly portable allowing users to utilize it in home audio applications such as wireless audio transmitting to remote subwoofers, or providing room to room audio streaming. For mobile applications the AirPuck makes it easy to add wireless audio streaming to any auxiliary input equipment audio system.

https://forum.moomba.com/attachment....4&d=1327099236

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I know that I'll definately be picking up the the AirPuck, that sounds like a killer little gadget!

Word, that little birdie left Texas at about 10am this morning. He flies fast. :)

I had my hand on the Rev 1 of the Zone controller back in July. I recently herd about the puck. Nice they went public finally. This is one of the many upgrades Fierah is getting in the Stereo gut this spring.

Is the ZLD driver meant to compete with the WS420? If so looks like the only thing the ZLD doesn't have is the microphone.

Nice setup Brian. Hmm ... Might need some more exile gear.

Yeah the LSV will be sporting one of these this season! Might just pull the head unit and put this in it's place, I only play ipod anyway.

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Originally Posted by viking

Is the ZLD driver meant to compete with the WS420? If so looks like the only thing the ZLD doesn't have is the microphone.

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Yes and Yes.

Wish i could share the current build plans for the boat but almost all the stuff going on the boat is in final stage of Development. I can tell you what i have seen is very impressive.

Of course i havnt been disapointed in anything out of the Exile shop yet. Scratch my head sometimes and wonder seriously? But always impressed lol.

Hi guys -

We are pretty excited about these products as well. We still got 60 days or so before they start hitting the streets. The AirPuck is the coolest little device we've ever had the pleasure of developing because its applications far out reach the boat. My 8 year old daughter sync'd her Itouch to the family room AV receiver and showed us all how to rock out with Taylor swift last night. I think the AirPuck will basically eliminate the awkward cables everyone has dangling around the face of their decks. And if you have a friend on the water, its pretty easy to use two of the pucks and transmit on 1 on one and receive on the other. Presto! Instant 8 hour party!

@ viking; The ZLD will compete in that market but we have no interest in adding a microphone feature to it. The ZLD is a 3 zone controller. The subwoofer operates independently from the cabin levels. And the sub control has a trick frequency adjustment. It is not designed to be a super duper EQ.... After tuning over 100 boats on the water this year its very clear to me that to much tone control is simply a bad idea for most people. Raise your hands now, if your kids make smiley face curves on your current setups...

Anyway, thats the 411. Hit me up if you have questions. Have a great weekend everyone!

-Brian
Exile Audio

I like the zone controller. never got the microphone idea. last thing I really want when on a wakeboard is some a$$hat in the boat talking to me..
price is right too.....

how about a moomba group buy :)

would be real nice when designing these things if they created 2 units- one with rca inputs and one with short rca cables to patch into a hu. sucks buying a new toy like that and having to shell out more for 1-3ft rca leads....

nice work brian, and for the record, I used to make smilies on my dad's old technics eq :)

Very nice!

Any noticeable quality difference between the puck and a wired connection?

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Originally Posted by KG's Supra24

Very nice!

Any noticeable quality difference between the puck and a wired connection?

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Very good question!

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Originally Posted by sandm

never got the microphone idea. last thing I really want when on a wakeboard is some a$$hat in the boat talking to me. :)

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Two reasons I'd like the microphone:

1) to be able to more easily instruct surfers from the drivers seat. I could talk to them while facing forward vs turning my head and screaming.

2) to more easily scream at the a$$hats that like to get too up close & personal when my children are surfing.


I REALLY like the idea of a group buy! Oh, Brian . . .

@KG; technically speaking there is absolutely a difference. Nothing is going to beat a wired cable. Make no mistake about that. Real world speaking, there is almost zero difference. Let me put it this way, in the test we did nobody... and I mean nobody could pick the wired versus Airpuck connection. What makes this device special is the ease of use and size. Its something that I could see every boat on the water using. If there is any downside to the thing, it might be that some phones eat battery faster with bluetooth active. But hey, thats what battery phone cases are for.

re: group buy. Guys remember we are 60 days out. The press info everyone read was from the CES show in Las Vegas. We can setup a group buy for Moombas. Ill contact Newty and ask how he wants to work it.


@wolf; no doubt that having a mic can be a great thing in certain situations. I've seen it come into play a lot at wakeboard camps and such. In my experience the more adult beverages consumed during the day, the more you hear the mic feeding back like crazy from the tower speakers (when people wave it around). I agree with you tho, great device to back people off that are trying to run down your kids on the water.

I've zero to say bad about the 420. It is a great high end solution. The ZLD is an Exile solution at a different price point. Hopefully that makes sense.

-Brian
Exile Audio

Bingo............

Is it possible to use Airpucks to send signal from one source to multiple destinations? Like could it be an alternative solution for Bump Parties, rather than running wires?

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Originally Posted by ian ashton

Is it possible to use Airpucks to send signal from one source to multiple destinations? Like could it be an alternative solution for Bump Parties, rather than running wires?

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.... and if so, does the source have to be hard wired? I would think if the puck was in "transmit" mode instead of "receiver" mode it could not receive a bluetooth signal? Or maybe it can receive and transmit?

Yes, the Wetsounds WS420 EQ and the new Exile controller shouldn't even be in the same discussion because they have so little in common. Its not just a difference in a PA and mic. Each have their own distinct ideas towards functionality, features and benefits. Let both products stand alone for what they do. Enjoy both.

David
Earmark Marine

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Originally Posted by ian ashton

Is it possible to use Airpucks to send signal from one source to multiple destinations? Like could it be an alternative solution for Bump Parties, rather than running wires?

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Don't see why not. Ever tried to pair your BT headset with your phone and your withing range of another BT device? Yup it pick up both especially if in pairing mode. Same theory here i'll bet with one downside, BT devices have a finite range and per the press release it's 30 feet. So in a bump party scenario as KG stated it would have to be transmitter/reciever to move the signal along beyond the 30 feet of the original transmitter i would believe. Brian?

Agh, now your beginning to see the big picture.. Yes, you can pretty easily do multiple links, but lets slow down for a moment... A lot of the BT products out on the market have horrible range before audible digital artifacting sets in. The AirPuck is solid at 30 feet which is more than enough to connect two boats. Remember, this device goes point to point. Not Point to infinitum. So to add multiple stereos to the party, you'd have to use more Pucks--one transmits, and one receives. We considered doing a receive only version but opted to just put all the features in the box so to speak. When doing setups like this, most of the time you'll be using the battery option for the additional boats.

-Brian
Exile Audio

So to connect 2 boats, I would need 3 puck's?

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Ian - I posted this up on wake world and don't know if you saw it there....

but to answer your question, you'd wire this way

AirPuck Link

-Brian
Exile Audio

I've been silently following the ww thread. I'm hoping to get a puck the second they become available. I think the puck is going to be a huge hit.

Awesome, awesome idea with the puck. I'm guessing it doesn't even need to be asked if it's waterproof/resistant?

I might have missed it or you can't say yet, but what kind of price point will the pucks be at?

Is the EQ backlit in anyway? That's just one feature I like about the 420 and the similar Krypt model.

Nevermind on price, I did miss them in the first page, I feel like that's an awesome price for sure, especially if there's a group buy coming around. Sign me up!