Willem van Ginkel, MD of Charles Goffin Communicatiesystemen in the Netherlands reviews TOA’s latest solution for small to medium-sized PA/VA applications such as retail outlets or educational establishments.
Product overviewThe introduction of the VM-3000 has enabled us to be able to provide a PA/VA system for smaller and medium sized installations. It’s a single box solution that covers all of our clients’ needs. The voice evacuation system of the VM-3000 has a command microphone with all the necessary start/stop functions and status information integrated into the unit. It also combines emergency voice alarm system with digital audio PA, paging and BGM functionality delivering consistently high sound quality and intelligibility.
Adding a backup amplifier and an emergency power supply to the VM-3000 ensures a cost effective and compact evacuation system; it is a facility often requested by our customers.
In useThe first system we used the VM-3000 for was at an office building in the Netherlands. One of the things we immediately liked about it was the fact that we could set the VM-3000 up with the client on site. The programming software is very simple to use, with a control menu that is easily accessed and manipulated using a standard PC.
The possibility of remote configuration and system maintenance is also very welcome. This saves valuable time and costly man-hours for us, and helps us meet our clients’ expectations because their system is always operational, regardless of whether we have personnel on-site.
Since that first installation we’ve used the VM-3000 on many projects. We particularly like the fact that the system is scalable and can be expanded for future use or if the configuration of offices changes. This is especially welcome at a time when many customers are altering the layout of their operations, because it means we don’t need to re-install a new system every time.
The VM-3000 system is controlled by a choice of two System Amplifiers, and can be expanded using up to nine VM Extension Amplifiers, each of which offers six assignable speaker zone outputs to give a maximum of 60 speaker zones, each with its own programmable volume setting.
High-quality, electronic voice messages are built in, which is also an added bonus.
ConclusionWe look forward to continuing to use TOA products for our projects. The VM-3000 is only one of a number of advanced TOA products, and we believe it represents only the beginning of what the company can do for small to medium sized commercial projects. We can't wait to see what is coming from TOA next!