NAMM has announced the finalists of the 38th Annual TEC Awards. Presented annually during The NAMM Show, the TEC Awards recognise the individuals, companies, and technical innovations behind the sound of recordings, live performances, films, television, video games, and multimedia. At the ceremony, one artist will be presented with the Les Paul Innovation Award. The annual award honours musical artists whose work has exemplified the creative application of audio technology.

In total, 21 Technical Achievement and Studio Design Project categories were evaluated by a group of industry experts from all facets of the pro audio and sound production industries. Finalists are those products and projects that, in the opinion of the nominating panel, represent superior accomplishments in their respective fields.

For invited members, voting in each category will begin on December 21 and end on March 1, 2023. Finalists from the 22 categories will be selected by industry professionals across major music, sound, and game audio associations, along with pro audio focused media groups.

The finalists will be celebrated at The 2023 NAMM Show at the TEC Experience, a special, communal reception designed to gather the crossroads of the industry to applaud the achievements of the researchers and developers, product designers, marketers, and innovators behind the innovations.

The event, which is open to all NAMM Show attendees and precedes the return of the TEC Awards in 2024, will be held on the campus of the Anaheim Convention Centre on the evening of Thursday, April 13.

Here are the 38th TEC Award nominees:

Amplification Hardware – Studio & Sound Reinforcement

Amphion – Amp400.8

Avantone Pro – CLA400

Crest Audio – CPX-4

d&b audiotechnik – D40

K-Array Kommander

L-Acoustics – LA7.A6i Amplified Controller

Audio Apps & Hardware/Peripherals for Smartphones/Tablets

Apogee – Control 2 for iOS

Flock Audio – PATCH APP DX

JBL – Performance Manager

Moog Music – Animoog Z

Steinberg – Cubasis 3.4

Universal Audio – Volt 2 Audio Interface

Waves – MyFOH

Audio Education Technology

Audio Test Kitchen – ATK Mobile

Audiomovers – Listento Plus

Berklee Press – Hip-Hop Production: Inside the Beats

iZotope – Are You Listening, Season 4 Video Series

Mix with the Masters – Mix with the Masters

Shure – Microphone Techniques for Recording Educational Booklet

Computer Audio Hardware

Antelope Audio – Galaxy 32 Synergy Core

Digital Audio Denmark – Core 256

Flock Audio – PATCH XT

Focusrite – Clarett+ Series

Focusrite – Vocaster

Neve – 88M

Universal Audio – Volt 276

Console Technology

Allen & Heath – Avantis V1.2

DiGiCo – SD12T Theatre Version

RØDE  – RØDECaster Pro II

Solid State Logic – ORIGIN

Solid State Logic – UC1 SSL Plug-in Controller

Waves – CA3000-MX Commercial Audio Mixer

DJ Production Technology (Hardware / Software)

Numark – NS4FX

Omnitronic – TRM-422

Pioneer DJ – DDJ Rev-7

Reloop – Mixon 8 Pro

Roland – SP-404MKII Creative Sampler and Effector

Headphone / Earpiece Technology 

Audeze – MM-500

Audio-Technica – ATH-M50xMO

Austrian Audio – Hi-X60 Headphones

Jerry Harvey Audio – Sharona In-Ear Monitors

Neumann – NDH 30 Headphones

Shure – SRH840A Headphones

Ultimate Ears – UE Live In-Ear Monitors

Microphone Preamplifiers   

AEA – TRP500

Antelope Audio – Discrete 8 Pro Synergy Core

Audient – iD 44 Mk2

Daking Audio – Mic Pre 4T

Focusrite – Clarett+ OctoPre

Rupert Neve Designs – 5025 Dual Shelford Mic Pre

sE Electronics – DM2

Microphones – Recording

AKG – Ara

Austrian Audio – CC8

Earthworks Audio – ETHOS

Lewitt – LCT 1040

Mojave Audio – MA-37

Warm Audio – WA-8000

Microphones – Sound Reinforcement

Audio-Technica – ATND1061

Austrian Audio – OC707 True Condenser Vocal Microphone

Austrian Audio – OD505 Active Dynamic Vocal Microphone

DPA – 4055 Kick Drum Mic

Neumann – Miniature Clip Mic System

Shure – KSM11 Wireless

Musical Instrument Amplification and Effects

Ampeg – Micro VR Limited Edition White

BOSS – Katana Bass Guitar Amplifiers

BOSS – RE-202 Space Echo

Hotone – Ampero II StompSoftube – Marshall Murder One Lemmy Signature

Strymon – Deco V.2

Strymon – El Capistan V.2

Universal Audio – UAFX Dream ’65 Reverb Amplifier

Musical Instrument Hardware

Moog Music – Etherwave Theremin

Moog Music – Mavis

Nord – Piano 5-88

Oberheim – OB-X8 Analog Synthesizer

Robkoo – Wind Synthesizer R1

Roland – JUNO-X Programmable Polyphonic Synthesizer

 Musical Instrument Software

EastWest Sounds – Forbidden Planet

ILIO – Andy Narell Steel Pans — The Ellie Mannette Collection

Roland – Jupiter-4 Software Synthesizer

Spectrasonics – Omnisphere – Sonic Extensions

Sound Magic – China Ensemble

Universal Audio – UAD Opal Morphing Synthesizer

Vienna Symphonic Library – Synchron Brass

Vienna Symphonic Library – Synchron Woodwinds

Production Essentials

Genelec – GLM V4.2 GRADE Report

Merging Technologies – Ovation 10

Other World Computing – OWC Flex iU4

Radial Engineering – Power-1

Rational Acoustics – SMAART 8.5 Audio Analysis Software

U-he and Bitwig – CLAP

 Signal Processing Hardware

Antelope Audio – Synergy Core

Bettermaker – Stereo Passive Equalizer

Black Lion Audio – Auteur MK3

GC Audio – Density Compressor

Line 6 – DL4 MkII

Pultec – MEQ-500 Jack Douglas Edition Midrange EQ

rockruepel – sidechain.one

Solid State Logic – THE BUS+

 Signal Processing Software (Dynamics / EQ / Utilities)

Eventide – SplitEQ

Softube – Overstayer M-A-S

Sonarworks – SoundID Reference Multichannel

Steinberg – SpectraLayers 9

Universal Audio – UAD Hitsville EQ Collection

Waves – Nx Germano Studios New York

Waves – SSL EV2 Channel

Signal Processing Software (Effects)

FabFilter – Volcano 3

New Audio Technology – Spatial Audio Designer

Roland – JUNO-60 Chorus Software Effect

Softube – Atlantis Dual Chambers

Solid State Logic – X-Delay

Universal Audio – UAD AMS DMX Digital Delay & Pitch Shifter

Sound Reinforcement Loudspeakers

Celestion – CF1025BMB

d&b audiotechnik – XSL-Series

DAS Audio – LARA Line Array

EAW – AC6 Column

Holoplot – Immersive Matrix Array

JBL – SRX900 Series

LD Systems – MAILA Intelligent Array

Meyer Sound – PANTHER

Studio Monitors

Augspurger – MX-65 MinimaX

Auratone – Active 5C Super Sound Cube

Focal – Solo6

Genelec – 6040R Smart Active Loudspeaker

Neumann – KH 750 AES67 Subwoofer

PreSonus – Eris E5 BT

Wireless Technology

Audio-Technica – 3000 Series IEM System

BOSS – Waza-Air Bass

Carvin Audio – IEM EM900 (500 MHz)

Lectrosonics – IFBlue

Sennheiser – XS Wireless IEM

Workstation Technology / Recording Devices

Merging Technologies – Pyramix 14

PreSonus – Studio One 5 Professional v.5.5

Steinberg – Cubase 12

Steinberg – Nuendo 12

Tracktion – Waveform Pro 12

Universal Audio – LUNA v1.2.5

Studio Design Project

Expanding Sky Studio – FM Design

Hermes Sound – Carl Tatz Design

MTSU – Middle Tennessee State University – Studios D and E – nonzero architecture

Rambling Rose Studio – Russ Berger Design Group

Spotify at Mateo – WSDG – Walters-Storyk Design Group

Warm Studios – Alex Otto – Otto System Works