Since the DML500's inception in 2019, customers have been asking for a weatherized version. While there has not been such a model up to this point, there have been a few enterprising system integrators who have gone ahead and placed them in locations out in the elements. From rain and snow in the south, to hot sun in  Southern California, and even a few cruise ships, DMLs have fared fairly well outdoor, without any significant modification.

If we look inside the DML500, much of its components are fairly impervious to water and dust. The main radiator is carbon fiber, and the case is powder-coated aluminum, both which stand up well to water and elements. And after some of these early experiments existing for 3+ years outside, we felt it was time to step up the game, and release a weatherized version.  We considered IP rating, but at this point, we feel that IP rating is intended to protect devices that are very sensitive to rain and dust internally. We believe the DML500 has very little ways that dust and water can ingress - and any parts that would be extra sensitive to these elements would be our exciters, which live fairly protected behind our rear grille, and covered in several layers of grille cloth and acoustic absorption material. And so in our humble opinion, IP rating was not really necessary, as any water or dust that makes it past the grille cloth, in most cases, had no long term effects.

But we decided to go further. The DML500W will have a German-made water resistant grille cloth inside the front and rear metal grille. This cloth will all but prevent water ingress even more than the previous grille cloth. In addition, we're adding some silicone sealant to strategic locations inside the DML500 to add even more protection against water getting inside. But again, if water does enter, we're not overly concerned about it, but we will be providing small drain holes in the bottom of he DML500 body - just to give the water somewhere to go, if it does get inside. Stainless steel hardware and a dust cap covering the unused Speakon connector are the last modifications.

And with this new DML500W, FlatPanel believe so much in our product, that we're offering a 4 year warranty on on it!

Check out our data sheet here.

NOTE: The DML500A - our DML without a casing around it, is not intended for use in wet areas - and as a result is not available in a weathered version (no casing to protect it.)