UK - Leading names in the history of music production joined forces recently to help launch Studio Sonic, a state of the art demo studio facility for Sonic Distribution based at Canalot Studios, London.
Marking Sonic Distribution's fifth anniversary, Rupert Neve, one of the most important figures in the development of pro audio equipment, gave a speech to mark the occasion and demoed some of the latest products from Rupert Neve Designs. Famed producer Bob Clearmountain (Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney and many others) and the head of sE Electronics, Siwei Zou, were also on hand to mark the occasion.
The facility boasts cutting edge studio and live rooms kitted out with the latest hardware and software, with users being able to demo the latest releases from Apogee, sE, Ghost Acoustics, Waves, Rupert Neve Designs and iLok.
James Young, MD of Sonic Distribution, commented, "We've always put the customer first and this demo suite is the latest and greatest instalment of that philosophy. It's a fantastic new facility and ideal for our customers to come along and try out all the latest hardware and software releases in a top quality, professional environment. They get the best advice and the chance to get hands on and try before they buy product."
(Jim Evans)
Eire - Dublin-based Just Lites joined forces with Robe UK to stage an open day at its facility in the north of the City that showcased all the latest products available from Robe. This included the new DigitalSpot 5000DT moving head projector and Robe's new Series 700 moving light fixtures.
The two day event was attended by a stream of lighting designers, programmers, operators and rental companies, all of whom took a great interest in the products.
Just Lites is run by three brothers, Paul, Ian and Alan Smith. It is one of Ireland's most successful and best known lighting rental houses. They have invested in over 200 Robe fixtures in recent years, used regularly for all their shows, events and festivals, and have also supplied them to a variety of installations.
Robe UK's sales director Ian W Brown and technical manager Nathan Wan went to Dublin to put the new products through their paces and show off their functionality to all those attending.
"We use Robe products all the time," says Paul Smith. "It's important that our clients, designers and technicians are aware of the latest technology available, specially as Robe has been so proactive in launching new products in the last six months."
Leading Irish LD's attending included Darragh McAuliffe (currently lighting director on the Sugababes tour); Liam McCarthy (Elvis Costello, Clannad and Mary Black) who has worked with Just Lites since they started 15 years ago, plus Cormack Jackson and Kevin Saunders.
Ian W Brown adds, "Ireland is an incredibly buoyant market, there's lots of
Germany - Now under the Bosch umbrella, EVI Audio came up with a new concept for its presentation at this year's ProLight+Sound in Frankfurt. This included a live stage and a new open-plan booth design. The predominantly white décor combined with the lavish dimensions of the booth to create a sense of light and space, symbolising the birth of a new era that began with the acquisition of former parent company Telex by Bosch in September of last year, says the company.
Robert Pletz, marketing services Europe, who was responsible for the trade fair presentation, points out: "Although the booth had a fresh new look to it, we remained faithful to the values for which we are known and the strategies that have served us so well in the past. Never before, in fact, have we applied our adage The demo makes the sale quite as consistently as we did this year."
This year, Bosch had guitarist Jan Stürmer and singer Tiffany Kirkland performing daily at the booth, whilst on the Agora Stage, the Californian all-girl ACDC tribute band ThundHerStruck turned in electrifying performances throughout the fair, as did the newly created EV Funk Alliance.
(Jim Evans)
UK - Paul Roughton is the new face representing Stage Electrics on the London scene, having joined the existing business development team of Darren Beckley, Matt Townsend and Chris Patton.
For over five years prior to joining Stage Electrics, Roughton worked in the West End for The Really Useful Theatre Group. He was the deputy chief electrician at Shaftesbury Avenue's Lyric Theatre, and then most recently at The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, where he worked on shows including Anything Goes and The Producers.
Roughton will be splitting his time as a business development manager between long term hires and installations from the London office, working closely with the existing team. "My previous experience will allow me to bring a user's perspective and insight, to make sure our customers receive the best possible service, " he says.
(Jim Evans)
USA - American DJ says it has taken the LED par can to "a new level of brightness and professionalism" with the introduction of its new Pro Series which includes the 64B LED Pro par can, 64P LED Pro par can and Punch LED Pro colour wash.
The 64B LED Pro black-finish par can and 64P LED Pro silver-polish par can are equipped with 181 bright 10mm LEDs (36 red, 85 green and 60 blue) that combine to create smooth palettes of colour. Identical in every way except for their exterior finishes, these par cans are flexible enough to be used as spotlights or uplights. A convenient dual bracket system allows them to be hung securely or set squarely on the ground, says the company.
The Punch LED Pro complements the two Pro Series par cans by functioning as a wall wash effect with fast or slow colour change operation. Featuring an ultra-bright Punch Panel with 252 powerful 10mm LEDs (81 red, 81 green and 90 blue) for extra 'punch', the Punch Pro LED creates long washes of colour that serve as backgrounds for performances of all sorts and sizes.
"Whether you are in a band, part of a stage performance or just want to add background colour washes to an installation, our new Pro Series is the perfect stage lighting solution," says Scott Davies, general manager of the American DJ Group of Companies. "Thanks to their super-bright 10mm LEDs and professional features, these three fixtures will brilliantly light up any performance environment with rich, vibrant colour."
In addition to smooth RBG colour mixing, the 64B LED Pro, 64P LED Pro and Punch LE
UK - Christie's working relationship with the Harrods brand has been extended with the installation of an LX66A 6500 ANSI lumen digital projector in the Harrods Estates office in Mayfair.
The system integrators were London-based Handy AV, who in just five years have built up an extensive portfolio of clients in their specialist areas of providing a complete systems approach to corporate and retail. Their product supply ranges from their specialist own-branded HandySCREEN and interactive HandyTOUCH displays (such as those showcased at the Hayward Gallery on London's South Bank) as well as mainstream A/V utilities.
Christie's long association with Harrods extends back to the Peter Pan window display during Christmas 2003, which was followed up with the permanent installation of two Christie S+16K 16,0000 lumen DLP projectors, firing onto a vast 4.7 x 3.5m portrait canvas inside Harrods' main Door 5.
Harrods had been attracted to Handy AV's fully interactive display at the Instore Show back in 2004. "They were then invited to our corporate showroom in Islington and were impressed with our partnership status," says Handy AV director, Aubrey Wright.
Following a site survey, Aubrey Wright specified the Christie XGA LCD projector in tandem with their 100in diagonal HandySCREEN Contrast Screen, a high gain lenticular screen with anti-reflective surface. The screen is mounted in a rigid-support 2m x 1.5m custom aluminium frame suspended from the ceiling.
"This produces a wide angle of view without hot spot and it's homogenous in terms of
USA - Bandit Lites provided lighting for the first annual 'Volscars', an awards banquet for The University of Tennessee's athletic departments. Lighting director Will Twork used a combination of Martin MAC 2 Ks, 600s and 500s, High End Cyberlights and Coemar LED pars and ETC Source Fours to light the event, all controlled by a Whole Hog II.
Twork said that the vibe he was going for was similar to that of the Oscars or Grammy Award Shows. He designed a warm look for the awards section of the evening and a cooler look for the dinner. MAC 500s and 600s were projected on the ceiling to provide backlight for the room.
Martin MAC 2000 Performances were used to animate triangle-like structures covered in white fabric, which were placed on either side of the video screens.
In transition between gigs with Brian Wilson's world tour and lenny Kravitz, Twork says, "I am very thankful to be able to do events such as the Volscars when I have some time in between tours. Since I am on the road a lot, it is always nice when I get the opportunity to contribute to local events."
(Jim Evans)
UK - When the award winning team at ElectricFly Productions took on the task of designing the UK and European leg of Jarvis Cocker's new tour, they turned to Maxedia as the digital media server for the job. Using the artwork on Cocker's latest album Jarvis as the foundation for the stage design, Nick Jevons created a rig, rich in LEDs and deep in novelty.
Most of the early design was created on Martin Show Designer, back in the ElectricFly studios. This was then manipulated and pixel mapped using Maxedia.
"As we did all the programming in the office, when I got out on site it was all there, I just had to tweak it a bit," says Jevons. "When we got it up and running at the first venue of the tour, we realised it was too tight a fit, so using the Maxedia I was able to do some quick pixel mapping and reconfigured the graphics in just ten minutes. The show still had the same feel and it still had the same movement and textures, which was great."
Maxedia's comprehensive content library has also meant that all the visual extras of the show were already there for the taking. "Apart from a few things such as the arrow, which I took from the album cover, I haven't needed to put my own content in. I'm just using the standard Maxedia content which I then tweak a little to make it the way I want," adds Jevons.
(Jim Evans)
Japan - The second Midas XL8 live performance system to be sold in Japan has been delivered to PA company Zero-db by EVI Audio Japan.
Established in 1997, Zero-db has become well-known for its application of innovative solutions to the live music scene in Japan. The company has invested heavily in Midas technology over the past decade, with analogue consoles including XL3, XL250 and Heritage featuring on its inventory.
"When we heard that Midas was to launch its digital console, I instantly decided to add it to our rental stock," says Zero-db president Mr Shunji Izawa. "As I've been using Midas products for a long time, I was assured of its ease of use and reliability of operation. Perhaps most importantly, we also know we can rely on the Midas philosophy towards concert sound and the audio quality we've come to enjoy from their consoles."
EVI Audio Japan held a training session on the system's arrival into the country, and the XL8 had its debut at a rock concert in Tokyo. One of Zero-db's front of house engineers, Mr Junya Ito commented, "The sound is fantastic, with high quality EQ and dynamics. When it comes to operation, everything I need to touch is on the surface in front of me. Immediately after getting my hands on the control surface, I felt ready to operate it in a live environment. The show was wonderfully successful, and the XL8 did a great job."
The new XL8 then embarked on its first major project for veteran Japanese rock band Moon Riders, who performed concerts in Tokyo and Osaka.
(Jim Evans)
UK - A Radical Lighting RADlite NG1 digital media server is in action on the current Australian Pink Floyd UK arena tour which has just kicked off again with a completely new design for 2007. The RADlite is being used for soft-edging and masking images, movies and effects being projected onto a 60ft wide upstage arched surface with a 5m diameter circular truss hung in front of it.
Lighting director Phil White and show projectionist Chris Gadd were instrumental in getting RADlite specified for the tour, having used the system before and knowing that lighting and video supplier Entec has also invested in RADlite systems.
Visuals are looked after during the show by Gadd, along with White and video aficionado Richard Hutton. These three are joined by super-tech Simon 'Boff' Howarth, another Entec regular, and rigger Danny Spratt. Lighting has again been designed by Dave Hill, who stepped the production values up yet another level this time around with the addition of the upstage arch, echoing one of the classic structural fundamentals from Pink Floyd's seminal Pulse tour.
All video content for the Australian Pink Floyd's three-hour show is produced by Damian Darlington and Bryan Kolupski. This is streamed into the RADlite via a capture card, and then edge-blended in the system to create the 60ft wide image needed to fill the arch shaped screen with projections from two Christie LX100 projectors. "There's no other cost-effective product on the market that can touch RADlite on this function," says Hutton.
(Jim Evans)
USA - Despite the dizzying success and exploding fan base of Arcade Fire over the last year, their current Neon Bible Tour has the remarkable feel of a very intimate show, say observers. Lighting designer Paul Normandale put together a stage design that kept things slightly less assuming, but just as bold and entertaining as the band's theatrical performances. Using a mix of Martin moving lights, LEDs and some projection, the show achieves a powerful, energetic feel that is at the same time close and informal.
"There is a real emphasis on the band's performance," says Normandale. "It is definitely not an R&R show." Having specified MAC 700 Profiles on several recent projects, he chose them again as the main spot for his lighting design, while the MAC 250 Wash served as the foundation of dynamic colour on the band and background.
He continues, "We needed a smaller system that was adaptable for a diverse range of venues and festival situations. The MAC 700 is a perfect compliment to the MAC 250 Wash in terms of the level of output and their compact size. Especially in space conscious situations - like when there are ten band members on stage."
Andy Scott from Lite Alternative who supplied the gear agrees. "The MAC 700 profile and MAC 250 Wash units are great for these kinds of theatrical shows; they have a big light output but won't take up too much room on the truck. As usual Martin's products are very reliable. The MAC 250 Wash is still one of the best smaller moving light fixtures with a great output."
The Ne
UK - As the UK distributor of HME's range of advanced wireless intercom products, Orbital Sound reports that it has recently been awarded HME's Outstanding Distribution Award for the second time. Orbital earned the award by continuing to deliver the DX wireless intercom series, which comprises the DX 200 and DX 100, to the UK's broadcast, live performance and installed sound markets.
Recent organisations that have embraced the DX200 system include The Royal Court Theatre, Scottish Opera, Queens Theatre Hornchurch, Grand Theatre Wolverhampton, Royal Welsh College of Music & Dance and Hull Truck Theatre Company.
HME's sales director John Kowalski comments, "Orbital Sound followed up 2005 with such an amazing performance in 2006. HME systems can be found throughout the live performance and broadcast markets in the UK and Orbital Sound is behind this. We're proud to be associated with such a great company."
Orbital's head of sales Tom Byrne adds, "We are honoured to have won this award - the DX series really has proved itself across a host of application environments and we feel is set to become an industry standard. The WH ComLink also added potential in 2006 and we're anticipating some very exciting HME product innovations to premiere later this year."
(Jim Evans)
Denmark - Martin Professional is introducing two new foggers in its expanding Magnum range of durable fog machines. Tough enough to meet the demands of any nightclub or special event, and ideal for DJs and performers of all types, the Magnum 1200 and Magnum 1800 foggers feature an all new, sleek design, says the company.
Features include a remote control storage compartment, rugged aluminum handle, easy accessibility for quick service, and large fluid containers for long runs. Also included is a new timer remote control to accurately set both fog output and on and off timing.
Soft start electronics give a smooth, low-noise output at the low end while operation is continuous at reduced output levels. Both machines are also daisy chain capable. A lid-up fluid container is included to easily view low fluid levels even when the machine is placed in a dark corner.
Featuring the power of an 850W heat exchanger, the aesthetically designed Magnum 1200 delivers an even and heavy punch of fog. Its 2.3litre fluid capacity gives impressively long run times. Housed in a sturdy compact casing, it is useful as a full fog or light enhancing effect. The Magnum 1200 houses state-of-the-art digital electronics and options include a DMX module and hanging bracket.
The Magnum 1800 is a high-power fogger suitable for any installation or special event where a rugged yet flexible fog machine is required. It is powered by a 1,150W heat exchanger while a large 3.8litre fluid capacity (1 US gallon) provides the capacity for long runs.
(Jim Evans)
UK - Leisuretec Distribution and Global Design Solutions (GDS) are coming together at ABTT to showcase the Blues System.
GDS will also be showcasing its new i Stage Managers Desk which was manufactured for the Royal Welsh College of Music Drama and Art in 2006, since then the company has supplied three more desks for major UK venues and are working closely with both the British and Irish Stage Managers Association for both consultation and advice.
(Jim Evans)
UK - Fuzion plc has announced a series of regular, affordable training courses through May, June and July on the latest Compulite consoles, Dlite and Vector.
The course includes both introductory and advanced levels, with topics covering media-server connectivity between Hippotizer and Catalyst, LED matrix programming, Timecode programming with MIDI and SMPTE, and Networking awareness.
All courses will take place at Fuzion's offices in Walton-on-Thames, and run from 10am to 5pm (including lunch with refreshments). The courses are already booking fast and have limited spaces, says Fusion.
(Jim Evans)
Latvia - GaCo is one of the oldest sound, light and stage rental companies in Latvia. Recently it celebrated its 10th anniversary. For the birthday show with 150 guests, lighting designer Maris Meness used one grandMA light, grandMA video and three MA mediaPC servers.
The main idea of the event was to bring together all customers, partners and producers to celebrate together and to show how the company has grown in the past years.
The grandMA light and the MA mediaPCs were used to display logos, bitmap effects etc. on five screens: "It was a good chance to show to Latvian entertainment people what you can do with a grandMA," said Maris Meness.
(Jim Evans)
Europe - UK-based wireless specialists dAFTdATA, Belgium-based Luminex, manufacturers of Art-Net products, leading UK rental company Essential Lighting and French equipment distributor Sonoss, all joined forces to send the first "eDMX" wireless DMX signals across the Channel from France to England, as reported in the latest issue of Lighting&Sound International.
The link up took place on 15 March between Cap Gris Nez, west of Calais in France, and the White Cliffs of Dover in the UK. The distance covered was, according to GPS, 20.82 miles/ - believed to be the world's longest ever wireless DMX signal transmission to date.
The experiment germinated from a meeting between dAFTdATA and Luminex at LSI's wireless 'shootout' in 2006. Discussions ensued which resulted in them working together to produce systems that talked to each other. dAFTdATA's Chris Crockford and Fabrice Gosnet from Sonoss, Luminex's French distributors, then started thinking about various ranges of equipment and maximum distances - and the Entente Cordiale project (ECP) was born - an Anglo French experiment to prove that DMX could be beamed internationally across the channel between different manufacturer's equipment.
dAFTdATA approached the UK authorities with regards the legality of the event, and Spike Hughes, manager of Dover's Rescue Co-ordination Centre (Coastguard) gave permission for the Project to use the Coastguard Station at Dover as the signal reception point. This is very near to the site of the first England-France ra
UK - Sitting quietly in Bristol harbour, one of the UK's most quirky - and in some ways historic - venues has recently had a sound and lighting makeover, including the installation of a major Turbosound loudspeaker system.
Owned by DHP, the Motor Vessel (MV) Thekla gained notoriety in the 1980s as The Old Profanity Showboat, run by well-known eccentric and former Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band main man Vivian Stanshall.
The makeover includes a complete new lighting and sound rig, supplied by Stage Electrics. The hold is still the main performance area, which sees six Turbosound QLight TQ-445 full range enclosures, four TQ-425 bass units and two TSB-118 subs installed, controlled by two LMS-D24 digital controllers and driven by Turbosound-badged MC amplifiers.
On stage six Turbosound TXD-15M wedges are used for foldback, while the bar area in the main room also sports four QLight TQ-310 full range cabinets, which act as delays / fills, with a further LMS-D24 controller and MC2 amp.
The bar on the upper deck also features four QLight TQ-308s and two TSB-110s, controlled by a further LMS-D24. The FOH system comprises an Allen & Heath GL3800 console, with XTA, dbx, TC Electronics and Yamaha outboard.
With an audience capacity of around 350, Thekla Social (as the ship is now called) specialises in live music and club nights. "The venue needed a high quality system that would sound great for both live music and general club nights," says Stage Electrics Ed Gamble. "But it was also vital that it was a system a wide variety of incoming bands would be happy w
Canada - To maximize support, shorten lead times and improve price competitiveness in the European market, Adamson Systems Engineering is announcing a new European support and sales structure.
As of 1 April 2007, Adamson is implementing factory direct sales to distributors, and countries without established distribution, throughout Europe. Previously, France based DV2 managed all EU territories, but now maintains distribution duties for France and Belgium exclusively. DV2 will continue to contribute as a key partner to the overall support throughout Europe.
Countries with established distribution are France & Belgium (DV2), Spain (Lambda/2), Italy (Reference Laboratory), The Netherlands (Sound & Light Import), Denmark (Nordic Rentals), Czech Republic (Mediatech Spol.sr.o.), Greece & Cyprus (Enttech S.A.) and Russia (I.S.P.A.).
Adamson has retained Andy Weingärtner in the chair of European sales manager, thus continuing the sales support for both existing and new customers. All sales will be processed through the Adamson headquarters in Canada, where Adam MacGillivray will act as the European liaison for all factory direct sales, distributor sales and new customer inquiries. Adamson is also announcing the addition of Jochen Sommer to its line-up as a key technical support contact for Europe. DV2's Didier Dal Fitto will continue his role as a senior support manager, working together with the Adamson technical team throughout Europe.
The first phase of the improved support structure includes a series of service centres opening in the UK (Luton), Netherlands (Ma
Italy - FBT has announced the launch of the new HiMaxX series of professional powered polypropylene moulded speaker systems.
The HiMaxX40a is a 2-way, professional powered polypropylene moulded speaker system featuring: built-in 500W rms power amplifier in Class D (PWM technology) for the LF woofer; built-in 150W rms power amplifier in Class G for the HF compression driver; +4dB (measured at 1mt with music signal) increase, thanks to the higher power, to a woofer granting a lower power compression and to a more sophisticated limiting circuit.
Also key to the series is a new FBT proprietary 12" neodymium magnet woofer. B&C custom made, it has a more efficient ventilation system resulting in a 1.5dB reduction of power compression and a more rigid cone for increased reliability and sensitivity. The internal coil has 75mm (3") diameter for greater power handling and reliability.
(Jim Evans)
UK - Pro audio manufacturer, Allen & Heath, will be introducing a fourth control surface to the iLive digital mixing console system, joining the existing iLive-122, iLive-144 and iLive-176 at the forthcoming ABTT show.
Designed for smaller venues, the new iLive-80 is the smallest in the range of control surfaces, providing 80 control strips grouped in two sections each with four banks, with an LCD display above each fader for labelling and colour-coding. The channel controls for preamp, filter and EQ are laid out across the top of the surface, while a colour LCD touch screen presents a graphical view of the processing and access to the automation and set up screens.
Also new to the show is the WZ³12M monitor mixer, a rackmount/desktop console which combines the design principles of the industry-standard MixWizard Series with many modern monitor facilities, implemented in the recently launched GL2800M monitor mixer. Furnished with 16 mono mic/line inputs, the desk boasts 12 mix outputs, which can be assigned as either mono or stereo pairs to take advantage of the recent trend towards personal monitoring.
Allen & Heath will also have the GL2800 and GL2800M models from the GL series of multipurpose consoles on display.
(Jim Evans)
USA - ETC has released version 4.3 of the control software for the Congo and Congo jr lighting control consoles. This software update is mainly designed to provide system features such as multi-user operation and support for streaming ACN, the new lightweight single-direction protocol used to transmit whole DMX universes over Ethernet.
Many other smaller improvements have also been made. The update also allows Congo Offline Editor and Congo Client PC to run in a standard Windows frame. This makes it possible for the application to run on lower spec computers.
(Jim Evans)
UK - HSL pulled out all the stops to deliver in excess of 700 Pulsar Chroma Heart LED fixtures to illuminate the set of the new ITV games show Golden Balls for LD Tom Kinane.
Golden Balls is an Initial-produced 40-part series being recorded in TV6 at the BBC's Wood Lane Studios. It is directed by Simon Stafford and Julian Smith and aired daily during the 5-6pm prime time slot on ITV1. Presented by veteran comedian Jasper Carrot, it is a game of luck, intuition and barefaced bluff as four contestants battle it out to win - or loose - thousands of pounds.
HSL's project manager Sean McGlone comments, "We already had 150 Chroma Hearts in stock and allocated for this project, and then at the last minute, it was decided to increase the level to over 700 units. Rising to the challenge, Sean decided to purchase the additional 600 units and Pulsar decided they were going to build them."
Even after making this decisive move, it was still touch and go as to whether they would get the extras delivered and installed in time for the first show - but everyone at Pulsar and HSL worked hard to ensure it all happened. "HSL were absolutely brilliant," says Tom Kinane. "There were no ifs, buts or maybe's. Everything was just sorted and happened. That's one of the many reasons I like working with them - great positive energy."
The stunning set designed by Chris Webster is semicircular and features the Chroma Hearts ensconced into the myriad of holes all across its surface. "You are somewhat limited for choice in terms of lighting i
UK - The concrete is dry, the first crowds have walked the terraces, and just after Easter it was time to test the sound. "When we were approached to test the house sound facilities at the new Wembley Stadium in conjunction with a concert system set-up, we were of course delighted," said Mike Lowe of Britannia Row Productions Ltd. "We expect to be servicing many shows here over the coming months and years, so the opportunity to be the first to get a real feel for the building was not to be missed."
Over three days (11-13 April) Britannia Row crews rigged the stadium for 'end on' and 'side on' concert configurations. "We rigged an EV Xline system off 15 metre SmarTmasts from Summit Steel as for a main stage system, and then added Outline Butterfly delays off 11 metre masts out in the field. The system was then linked into the house EAW installed system and we spent a great deal of time walking up and down the three levels of the grandstands listening, measuring, and tweaking."
In attendance for the Stadium were Joe O'Herlighy and Steve Jones of Vanguardia, and Mick Williams and Laurence Dunnett on behalf of Honeywell (responsible for the house system installation) and the system designer, James Hurst. "Besides myself, Bryan Grant and Roly Oliver, we also brought in several regular Britannia Row top system techs," added Lowe.
That's a muscular team of audio experts. "Absolutely: from our point of view it was an incredibly worthwhile exercise," concluded Lowe, "we wanted to expose as many of our top system guy