UK - Martin Audio has provided a major boost to its touring and theatre portfolio, with the introduction of the new high-output XD Series. This sets out to define the ultimate in performance and versatility for professional, fixed-dispersion, two-way loudspeaker systems, says the company.

The models in the XD Series - the XD12 and XD15 - have been designed to deliver best-in-class performance, including higher output levels and more extended frequency range than is normally associated with similarly-sized systems. They are designed to represent new benchmarks for the compact two-way f

Thailand - Bangkok-based JSS Production Company has become the first L-Acoustics K1/Kudo rental network agent in South East Asia. JSS is one of Thailand's largest live event production companies, founded more than 25 years ago by industry expert Jack Jesada Pattanatabut.

The system purchased by JSS consists of 48 K1 WST line source loudspeakers, 24 K1-SB and 24 SB28 subwoofers, 36 Kudo and 12 Kara cabinets and 18 LA-RAKs. Members of JSS' audio team underwent a training session for the systems in August 2012 with certified trainer, Alvin Koh.

"We are very pleased to have this ne

UK - Several Allen & Heath iLive digital mixing systems were selected by two PA companies, APR Audio and SXS Events, running seperate Olympic events in Weymouth, where all of the sailing events were held.

Somerset-based APR Audio used several of its iLive systems for the opening night at the Weymouth & Portland Beach Live Site, which hosted live entertainment, welcomed the Team GB Sailing Squad, and broadcast a live screening of the London opening ceremony.

APR employed the largest Control Surface in the series - the iLive-176 - at FOH with an iLive-T112 at monitor position, both fe

UK - Roland Systems Group (RSG) are hosting a series of 'Hands On Live' Sessions for visitors to the PLASA show - taking place on their stand number 1-F34. Designed to give a truly interactive experience with live, recording and video product, five 'Hands on Live Sessions' will take place each day, with up to 12 places available at each. Each person will have the opportunity to mix an exciting four camera shoot in HD of a live recorded band (V-Topia) including immersive visuals on the Roland V-800HD Multi-Format Live Video Switcher as well as mix up to 40 channels of audio on the Roland

UK - At the end of an unrivalled summer of success, PLASA 2012 opens its doors for the very last time at the Earls Court Exhibition Centre on Sunday 9 September and with pre-registration figures already way ahead of last years, it's time to celebrate!

As PLASA announce a new home for the PLASA Show, the final event at Earls Court promises to be a glorious celebration of the industry's involvement in the Diamond Jubilee and London 2012 Olympics. The Olympics Uncovered sector of the Professional Development Programme is close to a sell-out and joining Backstage at the London 2012 Cer

Spain - Around 5,000 people attended the 20th Night of the Habaneras on Cura Beach (Playa del Cura) in the Spanish seaside town of Torrevieja recently, with seven groups in the town taking part.

The event, which served as a prologue to the 58th Certamen Internacional de Habaneras y Polifonía, featured powerful sound projected along the beach by an RCF TT+ line array, provided by rental house Orecam.

Orecam, who provide sound reinforcement each year, fielded five TTL33-A elements each side of the stage, with four TTS28-A subwoofers to achieve the required SPL and reproduce the sound

UK - Simon Blackwood has joined digital console manufacturer DiGiCo as business development director.

"It's great to be able to welcome Simon to the DiGiCo team," says managing director James Gordon. "He is going to bring a new dimension to our expertise base and will be instrumental in taking us into new areas. It's an honour to manage a great company where smart people want to come and work and we're delighted that Simon is going to be a part of that. We believe DiGiCo is a real professional audio oasis."

Blackwood comments, "I've long admired the way the

UK - The ShowTex Acoustic Baffle has been nominated for a Theatres Trust People's Choice Award and a PLASA Innovation Award.

This new flexible fabric panel is proof that stage technology and the environment can go hand in hand.

Independent laboratory research confirms the Acoustic Baffle from ShowTex achieves better sound absorption of very low frequency sound levels than any other baffle on the market today with just half the fabric thickness of other systems.

Made from 100% recycled material, the flame retardant baffle provides an ecological solution for sound absorption.

An i

USA - Provident Bank Park is home to the Rockland Boulders minor league baseball team as well as the St. Thomas Aquinas College baseball team. Opened in June of 2011, the stadium is also undergoing its first season as a summer concert venue. Featuring a variety of well-known acts, including Gavin DeGraw, Colbie Caillat, Gretchen Wilson, REO Speedwagon, and Smashmouth, among others, Provident Bank Park has rapidly become an important destination for sports and entertainment.

To ensure the best possible audio quality for its patrons, stadium management wanted a world-class sound system.

Sweden - For the 36th time, Stockholm's classic fans assembled for the traditional picnic outside The Maritime Museum in the Gärdet district where the annual classical prom was presented by The Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra (RSPO) conducted by Marc Soustrot.

For at least 20 of those concerts the sound has been mixed by DM Audio's Lars Wern. Fielding their new Martin Audio MLA Compact system, the leading production company ensured that not only the orchestra but also famous Swedish soprano Malin Byström were heard as never before by the 25,000-30,000 people who attended.

P

UK - Clear-Com will highlight the latest additions to its line of professional headsets, the CC-300 and CC-400, at PLASA 2012 (Stand I-F29). The CC-300 and CC-400 offer extra comfort, better performance and more flexibility for users who are constantly employing intercoms for long hours. The headsets are compatible with Clear-Com's wide range of wired and wireless intercoms.

Continuously wearing headsets, while communicating with other team members over the intercom, can easily and quickly exhaust a user. The new Clear-Com CC-300 single-ear headset and CC-400 double-ear headset were d

Germany / The Netherlands - At IBC, Sennheiser has today unveiled Digital 9000, a digital wireless system that can transmit completely uncompressed audio, artefact-free and with superb dynamics. Targeting broadcasting professionals, (musical) theatres and high-profile live audio events, Digital 9000 - which includes the EM 9046 receiver, SKM 9000 handheld and SK 9000 bodypack transmitters, plus a suite of accessories - sets a new benchmark in digital wireless transmission, the company says.

"This system is a masterpiece, both in the digital and the wireless realm," says Kevi

Italy - The leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI, visited Milan in June to attend the 7th World Meeting of Families. At the nearby Bresso Airport, the Pope celebrated the Feast of the Testimonies and High Mass with over a million believers. A stage the size of a church was constructed for the event, featuring a semi-transparent dome inspired by the windows of Milan Cathedral. The challenge posed to the sound reinforcement team involved not only reproducing the Pope's words but also the sound of an orchestra and a choir of 1,500. The provision of sound reinforcement was

UK - XTA Electronics and MC2 Audio are joining UK distributor POLARaudio at PLASA London again this year and exhibiting together on stand 1-F9.

XTA will be showing the new DS8000 8 to 32 audio distribution system with a host of new features (including a digital option), the DP548 dynamic audio management and the DC1048 Installation audio manager.

MC2 will showcase a range of products including the S-Series S800 and S-1400 Signature Reference Power Amplifiers, designed for high quality studio monitoring applications. Also on show will be the E-100 Lightweight Touring Power Amplifier,

Japan - Internationally renowned recording engineer and lecturer Akira Fukada made an enormous impact at the New York AES Convention in 1997 when he unveiled the Fukada Tree seven microphone arrangement - a totally new technique for recording orchestral music in surround sound for subsequent broadcast or CD release.

Developed to resolve some of the problems engineers had encountered when trying to record spatial environments with traditional omni-directional microphones, the Fukada Tree clarified microphone positioning and also incorporated directional microphones for main and environ

UK - Allen & Heath will launch the XB-10 at PLASA, an ultra-compact broadcast mixer designed for a range of applications from small radio or internet broadcast studios, to college and university radios, podcasting and content creation.

Based on the larger XB-14, the XB-10 has three mic/line and three stereo inputs and equipped with a similar range of features specifically designed for broadcasters, including a telephone communication channel, mic channel on switch sensing, stereo channel start/cue outputs for CD deck transport control, and automatic muting of speaker outputs.

A sepa

UK - Cadac is moving firmly into the live sound sales and rental channels with the launch of CUK Live at PLASA. CUK Live is the new, dedicated live sector distribution division of CUK Audio being launched at this year's exhibition. The division is built around the Glasgow based company's three core live sound brands, Cadac, Powersoft and Clair Bros.

Already a leading force in the pro audio installation market, where it exclusively distributes Audica, Community, Listen, MTSi, Sabine, SACOM, Pan Beam, Phonic, Symetrix, t&mSystems and Televic, the company has seen a significant growth in

UK - Allen & Heath is introducing a new product to its range at PLASA, the ICE-16, a 16 In/16 Out audio interface allowing performers and audio engineers to easily capture high quality multi-track recordings direct to a USB drive or interface to a computer.

Fitted into a compact 1U rack design, ICE-16 is capable of studio quality interfacing, converting and bi-directional streaming of 16 channels over high-speed USB or FireWire at 24 bit, 96kHz resolution. Alternatively, 16 channels can be simultaneously recorded straight to a USB hard drive or memory stick at up to 24bit 48kHz resolu

UK - Launching at IBC and PLASA 2012, the new Roland R-88 eight-channel recorder and mixer is designed for recordists who currently record in stereo but want to switch to multi channel recording and for those who need more channels than existing 4 channel recorders. Designed for a variety of professional needs, the R-88 provides a portable recording and mixing solution for situations where there are multiple microphones on location and music recordings with more than FOUR microphone channels. Complimenting the existing award winning range of Roland portable and hand held field recorders

The Netherlands - Professional audio technology specialists HHB Communications has been appointed the Master Distributor for DiGiCo's UB MADI 2.0 USB device in the UK and Ireland.

Announced during the IBC 2012 show on HHB's stand, this news further extends theirr relationship as it follows the recent appointment of HHB as DiGiCo's UK broadcast dealer.

DiGiCo's broadcast product line is comprised of powerful digital mixing consoles and complementary connectivity solutions catered for live broadcast production. UB MADI bolsters this product group by providing up to 48 simultaneous cha

UK - Midas' newly launched PRO1 digital console is making its European debut at this year's PLASA. The MidasVeniceU is also making its European debut.

"The PRO1 features new manufacturing materials and techniques, comprehensive I/O on the back, and a previously undreamt-of price point," explains MIDAS brand development manager Richard Ferriday. "The PRO1 is now accessible to freelance engineers, small music venues and anyone who actually cares about audio quality, reliability and portability.

"The VeniceU expands the range of Midas 'Digi-log' hybrid consoles, off

UK - On Monday 10 September, in front of a packed audience at the PLASA Awards Ceremony at Earls Court John Meyer was announced as the winner of the 2012 Gottelier Award.

John Meyer is one of the original pioneers of the modern sound reinforcement industry. He began his career in 1967 by building a customised system for the Steve Miller Band, and from there he went on to develop loudspeaker systems for the likes of Creedence Clearwater Revival and the Grateful Dead. Since founding Meyer Sound Laboratories in 1979 with his wife Helen, Meyer has continued to research, experiment and dev

UK - The PLASA Awards for Innovation, sponsored by AED Rent and Lighting&Sound, were presented at the PLASA Show in London yesterday evening, along with the announcement of the prestigious Gottelier Award.

During the show's opening two days, 47 products were judged 'live' in front of a crowd of show visitors and camera crew by an independent panel of expert judges who toured the show floor to view each product presentation.

John Meyer of iconic pro audio brand Meyer Sound was honoured with this year's Gottelier Award in recognition of his life as one of the pioneers of the mo

UK - Neatly summing up its mission to achieve "the utmost excellence in every part of its business", Sennheiser comes to PLASA 2012 with a bold statement of intent - The Pursuit Of Perfect Sound.

Exhibiting on Stand 1-F6, the pursuit of excellence has been the core of Sennheiser's ethos since the company was founded nearly 70 years ago. This year Sennheiser is reaffirming its quest to seamlessly link science and emotion by launching its continuing mission for The Pursuit of Perfect Sound.

"We believe that the purer and more intense a sound is, the greater the emotiona

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