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| {{Infobox person
| | Master Fisher Cameron Lester from Chase, has interests [http://voguegloves.com/?option=com_k2&view=itemlist&task=user&id=53066 condominiums for sale] instance metal detection, property developers in singapore and surf fishing. Was particulary motivated after setting up a journey to Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui – Xidi and Hongcun. |
| | name = Charlie Hughes
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| | residence = [[Gastonia, North Carolina]]
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| | other_names =
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| | image = Charlie_Hughes_portrait.jpg
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| | caption =
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| | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1965|02|13}}
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| | birth_place = [[Jackson, Mississippi]]
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| | birth_name = Charles Emory Hughes II
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| | known =
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| | occupation = [[Audio engineering|Audio engineer]], [[Invention|inventor]], [[Standards organization|standards expert]]
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| | spouse = Beth Fleeman Hughes
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| | children = 2
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| | relations =
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| | website = http://www.excelsior-audio.com/
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| | footnotes =
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| | employer = [[Peavey Electronics]]<br>[[Altec Lansing]]
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| }}
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| '''Charles Emory "Charlie" Hughes II''' (born February 13, 1965) is an American [[Invention|inventor]] and [[Audio engineering|audio engineer]]. He is known for his work on [[loudspeaker]] design, and the measurement of [[professional audio]] sound systems. Hughes first worked for [[Peavey Electronics]] designing loudspeakers and [[Horn loudspeaker|horns]] where he was granted a patent for the [[Horn loudspeaker#Quadratic-Throat Waveguide|Quadratic-Throat Waveguide]] horn used in concert loudspeakers. He worked for [[Altec Lansing]] for two years as chief engineer for the pro audio division and was granted two more patents. Currently, Hughes designs loudspeakers and performs contract engineering for Excelsior Audio as co-owner. He is an expert consultant in audio measurement and analysis software and systems. He has led committees in prominent [[standards organization]]s to develop [[technical standard]]s for the measurement, modeling and production of audio equipment.
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| ==Career==
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| [[File:Charlie Hughes and Gene Patronis, 2000 NSCA.png|thumb|Hughes with Gene Patronis in 2000]]
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| Hughes studied physics at the [[Georgia Institute of Technology]] including audio engineering under Dr. [[Eugene Patronis|Eugene "Gene" Patronis]]. He helped maintain [[WREK]], the campus radio station, and he spoke on the air as talent.<ref name=AboutExcelsiorAudio/> His senior project was a 3-way loudspeaker system that Hughes describes as sounding good but looking shabby because of his poor woodworking skills. He graduated in 1988 with a bachelors degree in physics. Following college, Hughes was hired by [[Peavey Electronics]] in [[Meridian, Mississippi]], where he worked for almost 14 years.<ref name=Becker2013>{{cite web |url=http://audioxpress.com/interviews/qa-charlie-hughes |title=Q&A: Charlie Hughes |last=Becker |first=Shannon |publisher=Audioxpress |year=2013 |accessdate=October 23, 2013}}</ref>
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| ===Peavey===
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| At Peavey, Hughes served as a loudspeaker designer and the main horn designer for [[loudspeaker enclosure]]s. He developed a new horn design as a means to improve linearity in mid- and high-frequency reproduction. The design was primarily a simple conic section except that its throat was curved in a circular radius arc to match the desired throat size for proper mating to the [[compression driver]]. The mathematical formula describing the cross-sectional area expansion was a [[quadratic equation]]:<ref name=Peavey2000>{{cite paper |first=John |last=Murray |title=The Quadratic Throat Waveguide: A white paper on an invention by Charles E. Hughes of Peavey Electronics Corporation |publisher=Peavey Architectural Acoustics |year=2000 |url=http://www.peavey.com/media/pdf/aa/qwp1.pdf |accessdate=October 23, 2013}}</ref>
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| :<math>S = Ax^{2} + B\sqrt{r^{2} + x^{2}}\ + C</math>
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| This quadratic equation suggested to Hughes the name of the horn design: the [[Horn loudspeaker#Quadratic-Throat Waveguide|Quadratic-Throat Waveguide]] (QT waveguide). Instead of increasing the horn mouth size with a flare to control midrange beaming, a relatively thin layer of foam covering the mouth edge was found to suit the same end. The QT waveguide, when compared to popular constant directivity (CD) horns, produced about {{nowrap|3-4 dB}} lower levels of second harmonic distortion across all frequencies, and an average of {{nowrap|9 dB}} lower levels of the more annoying third harmonic distortion. Being without a diffraction slot, the QT waveguide was free from problems with apparent apex, making it arrayable as needed for public address purposes.<ref name=Peavey2000/> In New York City, Hughes presented a paper on the technology at the [[Audio Engineering Society]] convention in September 1999.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=8164 |title=A Generalized Horn Design to Optimize Directivity Control and Wavefront Curvature |date=September 25, 1999 |publisher=Audio Engineering Society |last=Hughes |first=Charles E. |accessdate=October 24, 20133}}</ref> His patent for the QT waveguide was provisionally filed on March 5, 1999, and granted on May 9, 2000.<ref>{{US patent reference |number=6059069 |y=2000 |m=05 |d=09 |inventor=Charles Emory Hughes, II ([[Peavey Electronics]]) |title=Loudspeaker waveguide design ''[Quadratic-Throat Waveguide]'' }}</ref>
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| At Peavey, Hughes measured the results of his horn experiments, and he analyzed the total performance of multiple-driver loudspeakers, especially with regard to tuning the [[Audio crossover|crossover]] to obtain optimum results. In this measurement he used TEF, a professional [[acoustical measurements and instrumentation]] system first made by Techron, a division of [[Crown International]], then sold to Gold Line. TEF is a system that incorporates [[Richard C. Heyser]]'s [[time delay spectrometry]] (TDS) method to analyze sound waves. In 1998, Hughes was appointed to the advisory committee of Gold Line's TEF division.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://svconline.com/mag/avinstall_people_22/ |title=People |date=July 1, 1998 |journal=Sound & Video Contractor }}</ref> As of 2008 he was still on the advisory committee.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gold-line.com/tef/t-advsr.htm |title=TEF Advisory Board |publisher=Gold Line |accessdate=October 24, 2013}}</ref> Hughes also programmed in [[MATLAB]], a computing environment that allowed him to visualize the complex output pattern of a loudspeaker system under test. He used MATLAB to optimize crossovers to achieve smoother directivity results at the crossover transition region. Toward this end, Hughes developed a software tool called PolarSum which eliminated much of the drudge work of taking a great many [[Polar coordinate system|polar plot]] measurements.<ref name=Becker2013/><ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.excelsior-audio.com/Publications/Alternative_Ways_of_Viewing_Polar_Data_%28SAC_tt013%29.pdf |title=Alternative Ways of Viewing Polar Data |last=Hughes |first=Charlie |journal=Syn-Aud-Con |editor=Pat Brown |date=Summer 2001 |volume=29 |number=3}}</ref> Hughes also used [[Enhanced Acoustic Simulator for Engineers]] (EASE), a 3D simulation tool which was developed by [[Wolfgang Ahnert]] and [[Stefan Feistel]] of Germany.
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| Hughes involved himself early with the more practical aspects of operating sound systems. He served as head sound engineer and [[sound design]]er at the Meridian Little Theatre from 1989. Beginning in 1991, Hughes teamed with Peavey Product Manager Mick Donner to form Meridian SoundWorks, a local sound reinforcement company providing gear and engineering to mix concerts, corporate and political events, and theatrical productions. Meridian SoundWorks also provided sound system design and optimization for permanent installations. The experience allowed Hughes to assess the performance of sound gear in real-world applications.<ref name=AboutExcelsiorAudio/>
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| In 2000, Hughes became an instructor of TEF II systems, part of a team that included Don Eger and [[Russ Berger]].<ref name=AboutExcelsiorAudio/><ref name=Becker2013/>
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| ===Altec===
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| Hughes joined [[Altec Lansing]] in May 2002 to serve as senior engineering manager in the professional audio division. This included both component-level and overall product engineering for the installation market as well as for touring systems.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://svconline.com/mag/avinstall_people_news_13/ |title=People News |date=February 1, 2003 |journal=Sound & Video Contractor }}</ref> While at Altec, Hughes was granted two patents. The first was a patent for the optimum spacing of driver elements in a line array, using a minimum of drivers.<ref>{{US patent reference |number=2005091809 |y=2005 |m=12 |d=22 |inventor=Charles Hughes and Kirk Lombardo ([[Altec Lansing]]) |title=Optimum driver spacing for a line array with a minimum number of radiating elements }}</ref> This technology, marketed as "InConcert", was at the core of Altec's compact [[computer speaker]] system FX 6021, a satellite and [[subwoofer]] system which used the patented process for its two satellite speakers, each containing six drivers mounted vertically. The two center drivers covered the frequency range from 150 [[hertz]] up to 20 kHz, the next two drivers above and below covered up to 6 kHz, and the top and bottom drivers covered up to 1 kHz. This allowed for good sounding results with six drivers mounted on a columnar surface that could physically accommodate eight or nine.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/altec-purports-pro-sound-lansing-fx-6021-speakers,848-2.html |title=Altec Purports Pro Sound with Lansing FX 6021 Speakers |last=Roche |first=Jean-Pierre |date=July 20, 2004 |work=Review |publisher=Tom's Hardware |accessdate=October 25, 2013}}</ref> Hughes' third patent, his second with Altec, was a patent for a dipole and monopole [[surround sound]] speaker system which used indirectly aimed drivers added to the top of the usual front left and front right loudspeakers.<ref>{{US patent reference |number=20060072773 |y=2006 |m=04 |d=06 |inventor=Charles Hughes and Olin Williford ([[Altec Lansing]]) |title=Dipole and monopole surround sound speaker system }}</ref> Altec brought the technology to market as the GT 5051R—a 3.1 system which included a center speaker and a subwoofer. The front left and right speakers bounced surround information off of the walls and ceiling for customers who did not want to clutter their listening space with a pair of rear speakers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/altec-lansing-gt-5051r,1012.html |title=Altec Lansing GT 5051R: 5.1 Sound Without the Clutter? |last=Roche |first=Jean-Pierre |date=April 12, 2005 |work=Review |publisher=Tom's Hardware |accessdate=October 25, 2013}}</ref>
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| ===Excelsior Audio===
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| Hughes left Altec in late 2004 to co-found Excelsior Audio in North Carolina.<ref name=Becker2013/> He serves as managing director.
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| ==Audio measurement and analysis==
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| [[File:Charlie Hughes with audio test and measurement equipment.png|thumb|left|Hughes in 2013 with audio test and analysis equipment]]
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| The EASE simulation software that Hughes had been using for years came under management by the Ahnert Feistel Media Group (AFMG) in early 2006. At the beginning of 2011, AFMG brought Hughes on board to consult on software development and to join their team of product support and advanced training experts.<ref name=Becker2013/> Hughes supports AFMG software products such as EASE, EASERA, SysTune and SpeakerLab. Through AFMG, he trains and supports customers of [[Renkus-Heinz]] audio products.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.renkus-heinz.com/afmg-and-renkus-heinz-transition-with-ease |title=AFMG and Renkus-Heinz Transition with EASE |date=August 2012 |publisher=Renkus-Heinz |accessdate=December 31, 2013}}</ref>
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| ==Professional associations==
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| Since 1994 Hughes has been a member of the [[Audio Engineering Society]]. He has contributed to four standards committees: SC-02-01 (Digital Audio Measurement Techniques), SC-04-01 (Acoustics and Sound Source Modeling), SC-04-03 (Loudspeaker Modeling and Measurement), SC-04-08 (Sound systems in rooms).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aes.org/aes/CharlieHughes |title=Charles Hughes |work=AES Member Profile |publisher=Audio Engineering Society |accessdate=October 25, 2013}}</ref> After his first paper in 1999, he teamed with Ahnert, Feistel, and Bruce Olson to present a paper in New York in 2007 on simulating the directivity of loudspeakers.<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/123/papers/session.cfm?code=P15 Simulating the Directivity Behavior of Loudspeakers with Crossover Filters]</ref> In 2008 in San Francisco he took part in a panel discussion about the state of the art in loudspeaker design in profession sound reinforcement. The panel included consultant Tom Young, [[Tom Danley]] of Danley Sound Labs, Aleš Dravinec of [[ADRaudio]], [[Dave Gunness]] of Fulcrum Acoustics, and Pete Soper of [[Meyer Sound Laboratories]].<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/125/acoustics/session.cfm?code=L2 The SOTA of Designing Loudspeakers for Live Sound]</ref> Hughes also gave a talk called "Loudspeaker Directivity Improvement Using Low Pass and All Pass Filters."<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/125/education/session.cfm?code=P6 Loudspeaker Directivity Improvement Using Low Pass and All Pass Filters]</ref> In New York in 2009, Hughes once again spoke in a panel of experts on the state of live sound loudspeakers.<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/127/livesoundseminars/session.cfm?code=L11 State of the Art Loudspeaker Design for Live Sound]</ref> In San Francisco in 2010, Hughes chaired a panel discussion about achieving directionality with subwoofers; the panel was composed of Dravinec, Steve Bush from Meyer, [[Dave Rat]] of Rat Sound, and Bill Gelow from [[Robert Bosch GmbH|Bosch Communications]].<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/129/livesoundseminars/?ID=2519l Subwoofer Directionality]</ref> Hughes also participated in a panel discussion composed of Peter Mapp, Floyd Toole and Kurt Graffy comparing objective audio measurement results with subjective methods.<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/129/livesoundtrack/?ID=2500 Audio System Measurement and Subjective Evaluation]</ref> In New York in 2011 he revisited the topic of subwoofer directionality as a member of a panel including Jim Risgin of On Stage Audio, Paul Bauman of [[JBL]], and consultant Doug Fowler.<ref>[http://www.aes.org/events/131/livesoundseminars/?ID=2826 Subwoofer Arrays and Beam Steering]</ref>
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| Hughes is a member of the [[Consumer Electronics Association]] Standards Committee. In 2006, he served as chairman of the sound measurement working group which established testing methods and marketing specifications for subwoofers. Hughes pushed for standardization so that consumers would not be confused by incompatible specifications between subwoofer brands. He said, "Consumers trying to interpret figures from two different manufacturers are in a quandary. The numbers may be the same, but they may sound completely different."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.avsforum.com/t/671746/cea-levels-subwoofer-playing-field-with-new-measurement-spec |title=CEA-2010 Levels Subwoofer Playing Field: Organization specifies how manufacturers test subwoofers and report specs |last=Jacobson |first=Julie |date=April 27, 2006 |work=AVS Forum |accessdate=October 25, 2013}}</ref> In October 2013, the CEA honored Hughes at their Technology & Standards Awards Dinner in Los Angeles, naming him as the 2013 recipient of the Technology & Standards Achievement Award, recognizing his contributions to the advancement of "new technologies or significant enhancements to existing technologies."<ref name="CEA Winner 2013">{{cite web |url=https://www.ce.org/News/News-Releases/Press-Releases/2013-Press-Releases/CEA-Announces-Winners-of-2013-Technology-Standards.aspx |title=CEA Announces Winners of 2013 Technology & Standards Awards |publisher=Consumer Electronics Association |date=November 11, 2013 |accessdate=November 29, 2013}}</ref> The award acknowledged Hughes' leadership in producing the guideline CEA-2034, ''Standard Method of Measurement for In Home Loudspeakers''.<ref name="CEA Winner 2013"/>
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| Beginning in the 1990s, Hughes joined a [[LISTSERV]] discussion hosted by [[SynAudCon]], an audio training organization, and he assisted SynAudCon in training students.<ref name=AboutExcelsiorAudio/> As well, he wrote articles for SynAudCon's newsletter.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.synaudcon.com/site/category/blog/guest-blog-authors/charlie-hughes/ |publisher=SynAudCon |title=Articles written by Charlie Hughes |accessdate=December 31, 2013}}</ref> Hughes also joined another industry LISTSERV called [[Live Audio Board]] (LAB), hosted by Dave Stevens, a live audio engineer. The LAB was bought by [[ProSoundWeb]] (PSW), and Hughes submitted articles for publication by PSW.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.prosoundweb.com/tags/tag/charlie+hughes |publisher=ProSoundWeb |title=Articles written by Charlie Hughes |accessdate=December 31, 2013}}</ref> Hughes also writes for ''[[Live Sound International]]'', a magazine published by PSW.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.afmg.eu/index.php/read-news/items/live-sound-international-about-systune.html |title=Live Sound International about SysTune |publisher=AFMG |date=June 29, 2009 |accessdate=December 31, 2013}}</ref> Hughes is a member of the [[Acoustical Society of America]].<ref name=AboutExcelsiorAudio/>
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| ==Personal life==
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| Hughes graduated from [[William B. Murrah High School]] in [[Jackson, Mississippi]]. He moved to Atlanta to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology. Upon graduation he moved to [[Meridian, Mississippi]], to work for Peavey. On May 27, 1989, he married Beth Fleeman. First a daughter, Tori, then a son, Ben, were born in Mississippi. The family moved to [[Milford, Pennsylvania]], in mid-2002. In late 2004, the family moved to [[Gastonia, North Carolina]]—the hometown of Beth—where Hughes established Excelsior Audio.<ref name=AboutExcelsiorAudio>{{cite web |url=http://www.excelsior-audio.com/About.html |title=About |publisher=Excelsior Audio |accessdate=October 24, 2013}}</ref> In December 2012, Hughes presented his daughter at the Gastonia Debutante Ball.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.gastongazette.com/lifestyles/community-spotlight/twenty-one-young-women-make-debut-at-2012-debutante-ball-1.89095?ot=hmg.PrintPageLayout.ot |title=Twenty-one young women make debut at 2012 Debutante Ball |date=February 2, 2013 |newspaper=Gaston Gazette}}</ref>
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| ==References==
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| {{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
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| ==External links==
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| *[http://www.excelsior-audio.com/ Excelsior Audio], Hughes' consulting and design firm
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| {{Persondata
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| | NAME = Hughes, Charlie
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| | ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
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| | SHORT DESCRIPTION = Loudspeaker engineer
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| | DATE OF BIRTH = February 13, 1965
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| | PLACE OF BIRTH = Jackson, Mississippi
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| | DATE OF DEATH =
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| | PLACE OF DEATH =
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| }}
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| {{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Charlie}}
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| [[Category:1965 births]]
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| [[Category:American audio engineers]]
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| [[Category:American inventors]]
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| [[Category:Living people]]
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| [[Category:People from Gastonia, North Carolina]]
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| [[Category:People from Jackson, Mississippi]]
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| [[Category:People from Meridian, Mississippi]]
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| [[Category:People from Milford, Pennsylvania]]
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| [[Category:Georgia Institute of Technology alumni]]
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Master Fisher Cameron Lester from Chase, has interests condominiums for sale instance metal detection, property developers in singapore and surf fishing. Was particulary motivated after setting up a journey to Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui – Xidi and Hongcun.