UK - Nexo has announced the appointment of Rich Soper to its UK team, where he assumes special responsibility for the company’s sales activity in the tour sound and audio production rental markets.
Soper began his career as a freelance sound engineer and has spent many years at the sharp end of the business, notably as a system tech and FOH for well-known artists. He further developed his hands-on experience with an operational role at Disney Cruise Lines, running ship-wide audio and AV systems, before moving into technical sales for several successful pro-audio distribution companies, including Yamaha Commercial Audio.
For the last four years, he has been in charge of business development at Allen & Heath and, most recently, at Adlib Audio. In these roles, he was instrumental in developing training and technical support packages for his clients, building strong relationships between manufacturers and engineers.
He says, “Most engineers are familiar with the classic Nexo products like Alpha, GEO S8 and PS Series. I’m looking forward to introducing them to the current slate of loudspeaker systems, which includes probably the most flexible line arrays on the market, and certainly the most scalable. Nexo’s catalogue can tick every box, for the small regional company, looking for returns on investment, as well as the major touring partner, demanding high performance in an ultra-versatile package.
“Not only does Nexo have the backing of Yamaha, the world’s biggest music company, but this manufacturer makes itself highly accessible t

USA - Prestonwood Baptist Church, one of the largest churches in America with a membership of over 45,000 and a weekly attendance of around 17,000, is emblematic of the Lone Star State’s scale. When the church realised that it needed to revitalise its audio mixing, routing, and management capacity, DiGiCo was chosen.
Working closely with integrator Paragon 360, the church installed three DiGiCo Quantum7 consoles in the 7,000-seat auditorium of its main campus in Plano, Texas, used for front of house, monitors, and broadcast, and one more Q7 at its newer Prosper, Texas campus, used to simultaneously handle front of house, monitors, and broadcast for the smaller yet substantial 1,500-seat sanctuary there.
The 140-acre Plano campus is also now fitted with an ample complement of I/O stations, including two SD-Racks backstage, along with an Orange Box loaded with DMI-DANTE 64@96 and DMI-OPTO Optocore cards for wireless microphone inputs. On stage are two more SD-Racks, plus an SD-Nano Rack for tracks, with yet another SD-Rack found in the church’s broadcast studio.
Also, SD-MiNi Racks are located at both FOH and monitors, with another SD-MiNi Rack in the amp room, and an SD-Nano Rack positioned up in the catwalk. The Prosper campus’ new Q7 is supported with two SD-Racks onstage and one more in the broadcast studio, plus an Orange Box for its wireless mics.
Mike Smith, Prestonwood Baptist Church’s live production lead and lead audio engineer, “As soon as I came on staff, we started talking about doing the console switchover, and we already

USA - The BYU-Idaho Centre, on the western edge of Brigham Young University-Idaho’s Rexburg campus, is an architectural marvel. Dedicated in December 2010 after three years of construction, the ‘I-Centre’ is a 435,000sq.ft facility combining two distinct gathering places: a large athletics centre equipped with 10 multi-use sporting courts and a 15,000-seat auditorium used for student devotionals, ecclesiastical meetings, graduation exercises, and select artistic and cultural events.
Recently, the auditorium became more intimate sounding when an L-Acoustics loudspeaker system was installed by Clearwing Systems Integration.
The fan-shaped venue with its 7,500sq.ft stage is one of the largest production theatres in North America, offering only 6,000 fewer seats than its sister facility, the LDS Conference Centre at Temple Square in Salt Lake City.
Familiar with L-Acoustics loudspeakers installed at other LDS facilities - including the Conference Centre, Salt Lake Temple, and Provo’s BYU Marriott Centre - BYU-Idaho called on L-Acoustics house of worship application manager Josh Maichele to conduct a product demo in its auditorium. L-Acoustics Certified Provider (CPi) Clearwing Systems Integration had both the inventory and available personnel to assist and was committed to investing the time to fine-tune the demo system to ensure that it would be optimized for the space.
“Vocal intelligibility has always been a hallmark of L-Acoustics,” says Clearwing engineer Joshua Barnhill, “and the full L-Acoustics product line-up had exactly th

UK - Gravity Media, provider of live broadcast facilities and production services to content owners, creators and distributors – has made further significant investment into its real-time communication systems for live event broadcasts. The new equipment meets increased demand for Gravity Media’s services, particularly for live sports. It will initially support a project with long-time client, UEFA European Soccer League, before being made available to other customers worldwide.
The purchase includes 20 new V-Series Iris Panels, in addition to Gravity Media’s existing Clear-Com Eclipse HX Digital Matrix within their London facility, as well as Station-IC Virtual Desktop Client licenses. The Station-IC client will enable Gravity Media’s expert technical teams to create a completely scalable intercom user station, which includes talkback both on desktop and for working remotely; something that’s essential given ongoing global travel restrictions and decentralised live production.
Also included is a new Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) licence based on Clear-Com’s LQ Series of IP Interfaces. This marks a shift away from legacy Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) communication standards to SIP. The new investment is due to the phasing out of ISDN communications in the UK and to enhance the overall scalability, quality and control of Gravity Media’s communication systems in the IP space.
This investment builds on Gravity Media’s previous purchases of Clear-Com equipment in preparation for women’s professional soccer in 2019, whe

Taiwan - Seapower Technology has partnered with Renkus-Heinz to strengthen the company’s loudspeaker offerings in the Taiwan market.
“We are very happy about this strategic partnership with Seapower, a highly recognised company that is excited and passionate about high quality audio solutions,” said Karan Kathuria, director - sales and business development. “We are sure this collaboration will enable the best support, education, and training for end-users, integrators, and system designers across various business verticals in Taiwan.”
Based in Foothill Ranch, California, Renkus-Heinz has a global presence in permanent installations at auditoriums, transit centres, sports venues, houses of worship and musical performance venues as well as in the concert touring industry.
“We’re extremely excited to partner with Renkus-Heinz,” said Douglas Chang, MD at Seapower. “Renkus-Heinz’s offerings are very well aligned with our solutions portfolio in providing high quality, engineered audio solutions to resellers and integrators across the Taiwanese market. We know the product lines Renkus-Heinz offers will be very well received and will result in impressive audio installations across the region.”

Australia - To create an innovative space for industry experts to effectively interact and communicate with students, Videopro collaborated with Harman Professional Solutions to outfit James Cook University’s new JCU Ideas Lab with a cutting-edge networked AV solution.
Established in 1970, James Cook University (JCU) has campuses in Cairns, Townsville, Singapore, and Brisbane, as well as research and learning sites in Mackay, Mount Isa, Rockhampton, and Thursday Island.
JCU recently completed its new $30m facility, the JCU Ideas Lab, creating a place for researchers, entrepreneurs and students to share ideas and innovate together. The facility houses an atrium, meeting rooms, electronics labs, workshops and teaching spaces to create, prototype, test, develop and scale innovative technologies, products, and business concepts, including a Narrow-band Internet of Things laboratory (NB-IoT).
To ensure a seamless and collaborative creative environment, JCU hired Videopro to outfit the Ideas Lab with a complete Harman Professional Solutions networked AV system consisting of JBL loudspeakers and AMX control systems.
“The client visualised an interactive learning space where students, lecturers and industry experts could come together,” said Scott Maunsell and Ben Thompson, Videopro. “The design called for a centralised AV distribution and control system, which was most appropriate due to the many smaller spaces in the facility. To bring the client’s vision to life, we selected Harman AV equipment. JCU are a long-term AMX partner so AMX so

China - On 18 July, the Shanghai Planetarium opened in a blaze of bright lights nearby the Dishui Lake in Pudong New Area, Shanghai. It covers an area of 58,603sq.m and a building area of 37,741sq.m, making it the largest planetarium in the world.
With the vision of "shaping a complete view of the universe", Shanghai Planetarium strives to stimulate people's curiosity, encourage them to appreciate the starry sky, understand the universe and think about the future. The main exhibition area includes three parts: Homeland, Universe and Journey, which show a panoramic view of the vast universe, create a multi-sensory exploration journey to help the audience shape a complete view of the universe.
The What If theatre is located in the Universe exhibition area and uses a highly immersive 360-degree circular screen with 7.1.4 3D immersive sound to create an enveloping universe for the audience. Shanghai Magic Digital Creative Technology Co (Magic Digital) undertook the task of audio and video design and production for the immersive experience of the theatre.
The 7.1.4 speaker layout of the theatre is tailor-made for the architectural structure and sound field of the theatre and does not meet any existing audio production standards (such as Dolby Atmos or Auro 3D). It is a typical "user-defined" environment. This layout posed a problem for Magic Digital. At the beginning of demo production, whenever sound effects producers took audio files mixed in a standard surround sound recording studio and played them in situ, they were always "very different" from wha

Europe - Audio-Technica has introduced the AT2040 Hypercardioid Dynamic Podcast Microphone.
Taking cues from the BP40 professional broadcast microphone, the new AT2040 dynamic microphone brings pro-quality sound, style and all-metal construction to podcasters and other discerning content creators, at a more accessible price, says the company.
The directional, precision-made hypercardioid pickup keeps the sound focused on your voice and helps to minimise unwanted room noise, ensuring professional-quality broadcasts even from less-than-ideal locations. To further reduce unwanted noise, the mic features a specially designed, integrated shock mount that dampens shock and vibration that’s transmitted through a mic stand, boom or mount.
Additionally, the AT2040’s multistage windscreen combines a nonwoven filter with foam mesh to provide superior internal pop filtering, allowing close-up use with exceptional clarity and without annoying pops.
The AT2040 has an XLR output that connects to a conventional analogue microphone input. This provides easy pairing with everything from multi-input home studio computer interfaces to professional mixing consoles.

UK - Fourier Audio is a new company that aims to bring cinematic audio to live audiences with a set of new audio processing tools. Fourier Audio is one of eight of the University of Southampton’s most promising start-ups that unveiled technologies ‘to make the world smarter, safer and more sustainable’ as part of the Future Worlds Founders Cohort.
It has been created by multi-Olivier award-winning sound designer, Gareth Owen, acoustical engineering postgraduate student, Henry Harrod, and lighting designer and software engineer, Peter Bridgman.
Henry says: “Fourier Audio is reinventing the tools used by sound designers on live productions, enabling them to create amazing new sonic worlds and revolutionise the audience’s listening experience. While live events have the most electric atmosphere, so often there simply isn’t the same immersive and mesmerising audio experience you get in a cinema or listening to your favourite studio recording. Our technology will bring studio-grade, immersive audio to live audiences for the first time.
“Fourier Audio is creating a suite of tools, including Rewind and Transform, to bring live audio technology into the 22nd century. The products are centred around allowing live engineers to bring the power of the studio environment to the live audience.”
Henry adds: “We have a top team behind us including Gareth Owen who is one of the top three musical theatre sound designers in the world. He’s worked with The Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi and won the Olivier Award for Sound Design three times - and r

Germany - Fibre network specialist, Optocore, has announced the appointment of Márton ‘Marci’ Sós, as its new technical support engineer, with immediate effect.
Sós, who will take up the same role with sister company, BroaMan, hails from Budapest and is multi-lingual. He has wide experience in both system integration and sound engineer roles within the theatre world and as a freelance, and is proficient on many industry leading digital platforms, including Optocore partner DiGiCo, as well as Focusrite Pro and Dynacord.
Of his appointment, he says, “I met Optocore’s former support team a short time ago and was impressed with their immense level of knowledge, so I know I have big shoes to fill. The challenge therefore is to move into the role seamlessly so that clients don’t notice the personnel change.”
He says the move to the German company is a logical progression from the similar position he occupied with Chromasound plc, one of Hungary’s leading system integrators and distributors. “Whereas at Chromasound I had a broad variety of responsibilities, working with many leading pro audio brands, I was tempted by the possibility of narrowing down the palette to move deeper into a single technology.
“The Optocore philosophy and mindset is similar to mine in that the company builds future-proof systems designed to last for many years with minimum maintenance.”
Announcing Marci’s arrival, company director Tine Helmle, stated, “It is with great pleasure that we welcome him into the Optocore and BroaMan family. We are

USA - Audinate has announced the immediate availability of Dante Domain Manager version 1.2. This new version improves how AV and IT managers use and maintain their Dante-based AV networks, while supporting a new, more flexible range of purchase options.
All editions of Dante Domain Manager are now expandable to accommodate growing needs for Dante nodes or Dante domains and features previously reserved for Platinum customers are now available as add-ons to the Silver and Gold editions. Additionally, the base versions of the Silver and Gold editions now support twice as many nodes right out of the box: Silver now supports 20 Dante nodes, and Gold supports 100 nodes. Additional nodes may be purchased at any time in packs of 20, 50 or 100, and provide additional domains.
“This change helps our customers get just the right size Dante Domain Manager package with flexibility to scale as they grow,” says Neil Phillips, senior product manager at Audinate. “Many smaller installations can benefit just as much from Dante Domain Manager as larger ones, and now it’s easier than ever to get the security and control that AV managers need.”
Dante Domain Manager version 1.2 is available for immediate download. Existing customers can take advantage of new editions if they have a Support and Maintenance agreement in place. All Dante Domain Manager licenses are perpetual and non-expiring.

USA - Harman Professional Solutions has introduced six new products that address today’s meeting and lecture spaces, utilising software-based conferencing platforms like Zoom and Teams as well as meet many capture, switching or window processing needs.
The debut includes four new Precis PR-Series matrix switchers supporting up to eight sources and eight outputs, the new Precis PR-WP-412 windowing processor to dynamically window up to four sources, and the new UVC1-4K HDMI to USB 3.0 capture device. Whether used individually or together, these products ensure incredibly impactful collaboration at a powerfully competitive price point.
Suitable for affordable yet beautiful video routing in small to medium installations, the new Precis PR-Series Matrix Switchers are available in four configurations - 4x2, 6x2, 4x4 and 8x8. All models include best-in-class capabilities like pixel-for-pixel video reproduction, fast switching, comprehensive EDID management, HDMI audio de-embedding, an open control API, and a simple-to-use web interface. The PR-0402 also supports auto-switching to provide touch-free video switching in small applications.
The new AMX PR-WP-412 combines a 4x1+1 windowing and a 4x2 seamless matrix switcher in a single, compact unit. Collaboration in meetings and distance learning can be enhanced and amplified with included technologies like seamless switching, class-leading 4K60 4:4:4 video quality, integrated audio breakaway, an open control API, and a simple-to-use web interface.
The new UVC1-4K capture device solves the immediate

UK - Recently launched UK manufacturer Optimal Audio has announced the appointment of distributors in China, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam.
Optimal Audio, part of the Focusrite Group, manufactures a one-stop solution of control, amplification and loudspeakers for small to medium sized commercial installations, with a focus on supporting multi-zoned venues.
Newly established Guangzhou Guidance will distribute the brand in China. With team members who have considerable experience of the Chinese audio industry, the Guangzhou-based company has quickly established a dealer network across the country, and sees big potential in promoting Optimal Audio to the education and conference sector, as well as the broader markets of hospitality and retail.
In Thailand, Bangkok-based ProPlugin is an established company with a strong dealer channel network supported by a variety of retail and online stores. Its dynamic team sees Optimal Audio’s fresh approach to function and style as perfectly meeting the needs of its very broad base of customers.
ALVO Technology has been appointed as distributor for Singapore. Its experienced and dedicated team serves a wide dealer network and online platform, and is confident that the ease of installation of Optimal Audio’s turnkey, end-to-end solutions will prove very popular with integrators and end-users alike.
Completing the quartet is Duc Proaudio Technology of Ho Chi Minh City, who will handle distribution for Vietnam. The company has an impressive track record in the country’s audio installation sector.

UK - Sonosphere, in conjunction with Metropolis Studios, has created a new mix room at its home, the Power House, Chiswick, London. The Munro Acoustics-designed, Dolby certified studio has a centrally located mix position, with comprehensive immersive audio monitoring designed to cater for all surround formats. The control room pursues an ambitious and flexible new ‘hub studio’ approach.
“The plan was to make the studio as versatile as possible,” states Sonosphere commercial director Jamie Gosney. “We started out looking at building a room for podcasting and immersive content creation for games and other VR simulations. However, in terms of the music market, Dolby Atmos is very much the standard. So we decided to ‘have our cake and eat it’, and build a room to fully meet the Atmos specifications: an immersive monitoring environment capable of 11.1.8 Dolby Atmos, currently the highest Dolby resolution studio in the country.
“The room has been equipped for all possible formats, including having a Dolby Atmos Mastering Suite server. ”Three Neumann KH 420 tri-amplified monitors are soffit-mounted to the front wall (with one KH 420 horizontal, beneath the video screen). Twin Neumann KH 870 subwoofers flank the three-way monitors, with low frequency response down to 18Hz.”
A key mission was to ensure clean and extended low frequency from the twin subwoofers, with the required isolation to accurately judge tone-shaping a full octave below the effective range of many monitoring systems.
Part of the mix room construction involved ne

UK - Bradford-based Pro Audio Systems has announced the recruitment of Peter Butler and Callum Hall to the posts of business development director and audio sales respectively. For more than 30 years, Pro Audio Systems has supplied professional audio for sales, hire and installation, offering bespoke system design and comprehensive technical support to a wide variety of clients. As the company emerges from the turbulence of the Coronavirus pandemic, demand for its services remains stronger than ever.
Peter Butler joins as business development director in a role dedicated to improving efficiency and profitability, identifying new opportunities in the marketplace, and addressing potentially beneficial additions to the company’s portfolio. Peter began his career in a retail position at JSG music in Bingley. Moving into audio sales and hire at The Music Company (TMC), he enjoyed fifteen successful years, latterly as a director, before joining AC Entertainment Technologies where he established the AC Audio division.
Pro Audio Systems MD Brian Lumb comments, “Peter and I go back a long way, having worked together at JSG Music in the mid ‘80s. He is a well-liked, highly respected professional, whose technical knowledge, combined with an in-depth understanding of the industry, fits the profile of Pro Audio Systems to a tee.”
Audio Sales recruit Callum Hall graduated from Birmingham City University in 2015 with a BSc in Sound Engineering and Production, after which he worked as a freelance engineer on a variety of small theatre tours, including stint

Poland - A new restaurant in the Polish capital of Warsaw has been equipped throughout with Martin Audio BlacklineX series loudspeakers.
The system was supplied by Phono Media, Martin Audio’s Polish distributor, and installed by High Shine, run by Jakub Ołdak, with whom they have worked closely for many years. The entire AV project was under the specification of AV system designer, Michał Malczyński.
SLA Warsaw is situated right in the heart of the city, and combines restaurant, nightclub (with dancefloor) and cocktail bar. Hence a potent sound system was required as part of an advanced AV solution that would cater for several different scenarios.
“This is an extremely interesting space, with a design which transfers guests from the centre of the city into the heart of the jungle,” say Phono Media. “The most important requirement from the investor was that the sound system had to provide the best quality possible and perform several functions: hi-fi quality background music during the daytime and after dark a full-on disco sound with sufficient bass. This needed to be distributed evenly between all rooms - the main space in front of the bar and the dancefloor, with all communication between the rooms.”
To achieve this, Michał Malczyński specified a total of four Blackline X10 and 12 Blackline X8, respectively reinforced with an SX212 subwoofer and a pair of SX110 subs. In-fills are provided by six Martin Audio ADORN ACP-55T.
Maciej added that BlacklineX had been the obvious solution and their recommendation was taken on tr

UK - Ready to Drop is a new sound art installation conceived and created by Orlando Gough and John Del ‘Nero. Inspired by the thousand twangling instruments that hummed around Caliban’s ears in The Tempest, it will be presented at the Brighton Beach Basketball Court over seven nights from 20 - 26 August.
Whilst walking together through Gough’s hometown last year, the two were struck by the energy, joy, competition, and communication of the court and its users, from basketball players to roller skaters. Ready to Drop is their response to this poetry in sound, field recordings of the collective sounds made by people at play on the basketball court and those of the adjacent dingy stand, the wind and the sea, combined with original composition.
The hour-long sound installation will be played on a continuous loop each night, filling the air with ghostly echoes of the previous day. Ready to Drop will run from after dark until mid-morning, 22:00 - 10.30, surprising local night owls and the early swim and breakfast crowd alongside sound art aficionados and passers-by.
Ready to Drop is produced by Artichoke. The piece will also be available in stereo version on Artichoke’s platform on the Bloomberg Connects app. Helen Marriage, CEO / Artistic Director of Artichoke, says: “I am so excited about Ready to Drop, the first of three major new projects we are producing in the second half of this year.
“Artichoke is always about the live experience and we want to show how outdoor arts can revive and renew

UK - Audiologic worked together with Sound Source AV to deliver a sound system upgrade at the Stockton Parish Church that delivers a well-balanced and personal audio experience for all its attendees.
Built in 1712, Stockton Parish Church prides itself on being a diverse, lively and charismatic church with its attendees and community set at the heart of everything they strive to deliver, led by Minister Mark Miller.
As with many historic and complex buildings, delivering an exceptional audio experience is somewhat a challenge. Stockton Parish Church as a project was no different. With its previous set up, the church suffered audio which was non-uniform throughout the listening area and speech intelligibility was poor due to the acoustics of the space. A level of uniformity was required to ensure all attendees received the same listening experience, no matter where they were in the building.
Sound Source Audio, a small business installing AV solutions to organisations (particularly places of worship) across the North-East of England, were commissioned with the project and worked with Audiologic to deliver the right solution. The project was a long time in the preparations and the acoustics in the environment meant the design process was critical.
Audiologic worked with Sound Source Audio to help arrange a series of trials which showed the Nexo Array system - two hangs of six GeoM620 cabinet arrays a side, with two ID24 fills and LS600 subs all powered through two NX1AMP4x1 amplifiers.
Minister Mark Miller comments: “We wanted to upgrade

Japan - Twenty years ago, the city of Kumagaya in Saitama Prefecture opened its Cultural & Creative Centre to offer cultural entertainment to locals and tourists. The centre is named Sakura MATE – Sakura, for the cherry blossoms, which are the symbol of Kumagaya, and MATE, for Music, Art, Theatre and Expression.
For two decades, Sakura MATE has hosted a diverse mixture of various traditional and contemporary performances using a sound system that, more and more, became inadequate for the venue. The city turned to Sigma Communications to recommend a sound system upgrade, which took place over three years.
The centre boasts an open-air Wind Theatre, a small Moon Hall, and the principal Sun Hall, which seats a thousand people in its shoebox-shaped auditorium. The multi-story space was built with side and rear balconies to create a sense of unity between performers and the audience. Drapes and other devices allow the Sun Hall’s room to be adapted to different performance genres, and a large door on the rear wall can be opened to join with the outdoor Wind Theatre.
“The original sound system deteriorated to the point where it was no longer safe to use. It was also placed in a way that resulted in irregular SPL coverage and areas with poor intelligibility,” explains Hiroyuki Kurita, sound engineer at Sigma Communications. Constant volume and equalisation adjustments were necessary to compensate for this degradation. “We needed to ensure that the new system would deliver clean, clear sound, no matter where you are in the hall,” he says.

USA - ClearOne has announced the market introduction of its new Versa Mediabar, the company’s first professional quality all-in-one audio and video capture device that combines the ‘simplicity of a soundbar with the power of ClearOne’s intelligent audio capture and 4K camera technologies’.
According to ClearOne chair and CEO Zee Hakimoglu, the Versa Mediabar provides high-quality visual collaboration, audio conferencing, and UC applications from a single integrated device, offering the simplest solution available for offices, conference rooms and home offices with virtually no setup required.
“The number one thing we hear from dealers and customers is that they need video conferencing equipment that looks and sounds excellent but also works right away, every time, without training or troubleshooting. That’s exactly what the Versa Mediabar delivers,” Hakimoglu said. “With a compact design that can be mounted on a wall or attached to a video display, the Versa Mediabar connects via a single USB cable to elevate the soundbar concept into a powerful tool for virtual collaboration that includes AI-enabled auto-framing and people tracking.”
The Versa All-In-One Mediabar features a built-in 4K Ultra HD camera with a 110-degree ultra wide-angle field of view and a four-element microphone array with 360-degree voice pickup and intelligent DSP that provides acoustic echo cancellation (AEC) and automatic noise reduction to ensure crystal clear audio capture. The camera combines electronic pan, tilt and zoom functions (ePTZ) with artificial i

USA -bStudio Technologies has announced two new party-line (PL) intercom kits that utilise Dante Audio-over-IP networking. These new kits allow customers to purchase a bundle of Studio Technologies intercom products at a reduced price point.
The Party-Line Intercom Kit 1 (DPL-KIT-01) includes a Model 5421 Dante Intercom Audio Engine and four Model 372A Intercom Beltpacks. Party-Line Intercom Kit 2 (DPL-KIT-02) again includes a Model 5421 Dante Intercom Audio Engine but with four Model 373A Intercom Beltpacks. These new offerings enable personnel to easily implement a high-performance, Dante-enabled PL intercom system in fixed and mobile broadcast facilities, post-production studios, commercial and educational theatre environments, industrial, and general entertainment applications.
“We’re pleased to offer our customers a cost-effective means of implementing a small, Ethernet-based party-line intercom system,” says Gordon Kapes, president of Studio Technologies. “Arriving in a single carton, users can easily deploy a flexible, high-performance system that leverages their existing network infrastructure. These kits can also be an excellent learning ‘tool,’ providing a great way to begin the transition to an IP-based communications environment.”
The Model 5421 Dante Intercom Audio Engine is a compact 1/2-rack unit that supports 16 Dante receiver (input) and transmitter (output) channels. Only a Gigabit Ethernet network connection with power-over-Ethernet (PoE) capability is required for Model 5421 operation. Users can configure the 16-cha

Israel - The city of Ashdod, one of Israel’s largest international cruise and cargo ports and southern Israel’s only outlet to the Mediterranean, through which much of the country’s citrus crop is exported, hosts a number of industries and a petrol refinery, but excavations have traced this vibrant city’s roots back to the 17th century BC.
Funded by the city’s municipality, Ashdod recently launched Ashdod Lights, a tour enabling visitors to walk round five key locations hosting high-impact AV art installations, including video art projections on buildings and water screens, projection mapping, lighting and laser effects and holograms.
Tel Aviv-headquartered pro audio company Gidron Levitan, Italian manufacturer Outline’s Israeli distributor, was commissioned to provide the audio systems for this high-profile project and company owner, sound engineer and musician Eytan Gidron, explains the brief received.
“It was for crystal-clear powerful sound covering large areas from loudspeakers which had to be weather-proof, as all five installations are outdoors. I therefore immediately suggested Outline Stadia speakers to the audio consultant, as each Stadia 100 is actually four line array elements in one box, specifically designed for this type of application, thanks also to unbeatable weather resistance.”
For the projection mapping on the facade of the Ashdod municipality building, six Stadia 100 and six custom weather-proof DBS 18-2 subwoofers are installed, as well as six OutSIDE-coated VEGAS 12 CX as surround speakers.
The c

UK - Amplifier manufacturer Marshall has built a recording studio next to their Milton Keynes factory in the UK. “This has been a passion project for the Marshall crew,” said commercial director Alex Coombes, “our ambition was to build a versatile and flexible commercial multimedia facility to serve the modern entertainment market, and at the same time to promote young talent and give something back to the artist and producer community.”
The spacious new-build facility is on the site of an old theatre, adjacent to the Marshall factory. The live room has a stage with lighting and PA, along with an artist green room, bar and reception area – with the large recording control room featuring a 40-channel vintage Neve 8048 console. The self-contained studio has the benefit of ample parking in front and a ready supply of Marshall amps and Natal drums.
Producer Chris Sheldon (Foo Fighters, Feeder, Therapy?) has already been in the studio recording rockers Bad Touch. “I love the new Marshall Studio – a fantastic live room big enough to track a band – in fact, big enough to track a decent-sized orchestra comfortably. The vintage Neve desk sounds glorious… anything coming through those mic pres sounds, well, better! A great microphone selection to cover all eventualities and if you can’t see something you like, lots of equipment is pretty much two minutes away in the factory.”
A loading bay with ramp leads directly to the stage in the 273m2. Marshall live room, with a reduced ceiling-height area for more intimate recording located in fro

USA - As the coronavirus pandemic took hold in Southern California in early 2020, spatial audio pioneer Herbert Waltl relocated his mediaHyperium operation to a disused music school, where he has outfitted a former recital room with an 18-speaker Neumann KH Line studio monitor system.
The system flexibly switches between Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 Reality Audio immersive music formats without the need to reposition any speakers by combining a 7.1 layout with nine height and three floor-level speakers.
Waltl, an award-winning producer, musician and technology evangelist who founded mediaHyperium in 1996, had been planning to build a new studio before the pandemic. For years he had mostly been working at Skywalker Sound in the Bay Area, for the last five years in partnership with Eric Schilling, a recording engineer and broadcast audio mixer with a long list of Grammy and Emmy Awards to his name. But when the new virus forced everyone into lockdown and the music school closed, “We said, the best thing, the safest thing, because of the pandemic, is to work out of here,” says Waltl.
Neumann KH 420 tri-amplified midfield mains plus a pair of Neumann KH 870 bass-managed subwoofers are deployed. Five Neumann KH 310 tri-amped near field monitors on stands – three across the front plus left and right height channels – support the overhead channels of Sony’s object-based 360 Reality Audio. Hanging from the ceiling and positioned slightly closer to the mix position per the recommendations of Dolby Laboratories, four Neumann KH 120 bi-amped near field s