UK - Wakestock, which takes place in Abersoch, North Wales, is Europe's largest wakeboard music festival - a watersport/music combination which is proving highly popular. Sound, lighting and power for the event was provided by Cheshire-based VME.
The event was staged over three locations: Pwellheli inner marina and Abersoch main beach were used for the wakeboard competition, while Penrhos was the music site, where headline act Kosheen was supported by the Ordinary Boys, Snatch and others. It took two and a half days to set all power, lighting and sound equipment across the site.
PA for the main area was Kling & Freitag's Access system: four T9 and T5 cabintes, with 12 B5 and four B10s as subwoofers, powered by Lab Gruppen amplification. At front-of-house were a Yamaha PM4000 and an Allen & Heath ML5000. For each desk was an outboard rack carrying a Yamaha SPX 900 and SPX 2000, a dbx 162SL comp/limiter, a TC Electronics D2 delay and a Lexicon PCM 91. All gates and compressors were from Drawmer. For the Friday DJ night with Adam Freeland, Stanton Warriors and others, FOH engineer Matt Jones used the K&F Access system without any EQ. He was a little concerned about the Kling & Freitag speakers, having never experienced the system before, but as soon as the first sound-check was over he relaxed, impressed with the sytem.
Lighting designer Glen Johnson used a Wholehog II with an extension wing to control a rig consisting of mostly Martin Professional fixtures, with eight Atomic 3000 strobes, eight MAC 2000 profiles, four MAC 2000 Washes, 12 MAC 500s, eight MAC 600s and a
UK - Established in 1990, Sound Division has come a long way since its roots as a sales and service provider in the DJ technology field. Since the restructuring of the company in 2000, managing director David Graham has worked hard to develop other areas of the business with the result that now, some four years on, Sound Division is a much broader-based concern. Today, the company encompasses contracts and installations as a key area of its market, and a thriving entertainments and corporate events division run by Chris Baxter, which trades under the name of 'Sounds Good To Me' - as well as its traditional hire and sales operations.
While Sounds Good To Me is a side of the business that has always done well under Baxter's direction, and continues to do so, Graham is particularly pleased at the way in which business has taken off for the contracts division. Over the last two to three years, Sound Division has earned itself a formidable reputation as one of the premier suppliers and installers of audio, AV and lighting systems to London's most prestigious bars, clubs and restaurants.
"Our hard work has paid off," observes Graham. However, as he points out, it's not by chance or happy coincidence. "When we changed direction in 2000, we made it one of our goals to move up to the premier league in this market, and I think our portfolio of installations, both completed and currently on our books, proves that we've come a long way towards achieving our aim." As if to echo this sentiment, Sound Division has recently been nominated Installer of the Year in t
UK - PLASA 2004 heralds the first Prize Stage alongside the PLASA After Show Bar, set to run from 6-8pm on 12, 13 and 14 September. The Prize Stage is the brainchild of DiGiCo marketing director, David Webster, and is sponsored by nine of the entertainment industry's major players: Avolites, DiGiCo, Lab.Gruppen, Lighthouse, Meyer Sound, Mobil-Tech, Sennheiser, Stardraw and XTA Electronics.
Each evening, the sponsors will be giving away exciting prizes in a free draw for show attendees who have obtained an entry form from the companies involved and comply with the necessary criteria. There will also be the chance of winning a joint prize of £1000 for those who have visited each company and had their 'Prize Passport' (available from each of the sponsoring exhibitors) fully stamped.
"We're very excited to be able to put something like this together," says Webster. "We believe that it's going to be a great draw for the PLASA Top Deck bar area, and a great opportunity for the companies involved to show their products in a new and exciting way. We're all looking forward to a very successful first year and hope there will be many more to come."
"We're really pleased that we were able to accommodate the Prize Stage," adds PLASA show director Nicola Rowland. "We feel that it will add a new dynamic to the PLASA area on the Top Deck and help this section of the show to achieve its full potential."
(Lee Baldock)
UK - Massive Attack's summer festival tour was a high impact combination of electronics and visual expression, with James Thomas Pixelline fixtures and United Visual Artists' Dragonfly II software amalgamated into arguably the brightest show of the summer season. For those unable to prize their shades from their craniums after dark - this was the gig to be at!
The band wanted a visual departure from last year's LED wall, which featured low-resolution imagery. They favoured a less technical stage look, but also wanted to continue with digital technology: this provided the starting point for lighting designers Andy Hurst and Vince Foster and the UVA team, who came up with the concept of a super low-res horizontal wall of Pixelline - 151 pixels wide by 161 high - with gaps in between the units.
Highlighting the band in silhouette, the Pixelline wall served as a dynamic (and very bright) backdrop for largely video originated visual that were played onto it. In practical terms, the wall consisted of four custom banks of eight Pixelline fixtures each, with a Pixelline width space in between each batten. These were designed and constructed by Utopium Lighting for easy transportation and rigging, and toured to all shows on the itinerary as 'specials' for Massive Attack's powerful set.
UVA added a DMX interface to Dragonfly to link the Pixellines, via an Avolites USB-to-DMX box, to the control PC. The computer rack consisted of two custom-built machines with 2.8GHz P4 processors, 1Gb RAM, 60Gb hard drives and G Force 4 video cards, running two channels of video.
The Pixellin
UK - Fed up with the usual freebies given away at trade shows? Then make sure you visit the ETC stand at PLASA 2004 for a chance to win one of its brand new, easy-to-use portable SmartFade consoles, worth £800! ETC is giving away a certificate good for one SmartFade 1248 each day - to have a chance of winning, all you have to do is visit ETC stands F39 or F40 to register your name in their Daily Draw.
While SmartFade is ideal for first time users, educational establishments and amateur groups, it nevertheless offers all the control performance required by lighting professionals. With three operating modes, SmartFade offers a simple Two Scene mode with 12 or 24 channels for novice users, or Normal mode, providing 48 or 96 channels with 288 or 576 memories and 48 sequences for more experienced users. DMX512 input facility also allows SmartFade to be used as a sophisticated backup for any DMX512 lighting console.
(Lee Baldock)
UK / USA - The Effects Company, UK manufacturer of a range of Special Effects products has announced an agreement with Jireh Supplies of Lawrenceville, Georgia - to distribute their range of products throughout the USA. Jireh is an established company which will carry a good stock inventory of the complete range of Effects Company products, which will be promoted to their existing and new customers, in conjunction with their manufacturers' representatives.
Managing director of The Effects Company, Martin Blake, says: "We have always sold directly to the end user or 'trade installer' in the USA but many enquiries 'go dead' when they cannot purchase directly in the USA. Now customers can purchase from Jireh Supplies, knowing their requirements can be shipped immediately from stock and have the full back-up and service of a reputable company. This pro-active sales agreement will also mean that two exciting new products specifically aimed at the USA marketplace will be finalised in the coming year."
Gene Byce, of Jireh Supplies explains: "We are truly excited about the potential of all of the products from the Effects Company. The quality and ease of use is extraordinary. The match between Jireh Supplies and the Effects Company is a great fit."
Jireh Supplies and The Effects Company will be participating at LDI 2004, in Las Vegas - with the full product inventory on display. Visitors to the stand will also have the opportunity to witness live demonstrations of the spectacular CO2 Jet system and the Cirrus Lowsmoke.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - In the last few weeks, DHA has supplied gobos to all of the new shows heading into London for the autumn, including Mary Poppins, The Woman In White, Saturday Night Fever and Bat Boy.
For Saturday Night Fever, at the Apollo Victoria, lighting designer Gavan Swift specified eight custom gobos for Martin MAC 2000s and two custom gobos for Selecon Pacifics as well as 204 stock MAC designs and 44 stock conventional designs. The Pacific gobos of the 'dancin' man' and 'halo' parts of the logo were used to light the logo on the show's front gauze. The gobos and lighting rig were supplied by Stage Electrics in Bristol.
Stage Electrics are also supplying the equipment for the new Cameron Mackintosh/Disney co-production of Mary Poppins, which will open in Bristol before transferring to London. Howard Harrison's lighting design includes 193 stock gobos for moving lights (a mixture of ETC Revolutions, Vari-Lite VL3000s and VL2000s and MAC 2000 Performances), 174 stock gobos for Source Fours and six custom gobos for Source Four Zooms - window patterns to match the windows in Bob Crowley's set. Harrison is also using seven of DHA's Digital Light Curtains as part of his rig.
Already in London are The Woman in White, the new musical from Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Bat Boy, a new production of the New York off-Broadway hit. For The Woman In White at the Palace Theatre, lighting designer Paul Pyant is using ETC Revolutions, ETC Source Fours and Vari-Lite VL3000s fitted with gobos from DHA to complement the projected scenery d
UK - Chris Cronin of Total Fabrications Ltd has announced the formation of Total Solutions Group, established to manage a suite of well-known brands associated with trussing in the entertainment industry.
Sitting under the umbrella of the Group will be the brands Total Fabrications, Slick (one of the oldest truss manufacturers in the industry, purchased by Total Fabrications in 2003), T2 (the Award-winning, high-specification safety truss), Total Training (the new rigging training initiative set up by the company) and New Wave (the decorative trussing brand which has won numerous awards). New Wave is marketed by TSG for its US-based sister company Total Structures, which remains separate from the new TSG structure.
Some of the Group's brand names - Total Fabrications, T2 and Slick - are available for manufacture under license in other countries around the world, through technology transfer agreements. Currently, Prolyte - one of the world's largest manufacturers of truss - is a licensed manufacturer of the T2 system, while the Group has also announced a recent agreement with African Aluminium Trussing, which now offers the Total Fabrications range from its factory in Johannesburg, South Africa. Owner Robert Frey says: "AAT is extremely honoured to be manufacturing trussing for the international arena under the Total Fabrications banner. We feel it is an outstanding opportunity for South Africa to showcase to the rest of the world that our company is able to manufacture trussing to international standards. With the many years of trussing experience and expertise beh
UK - Scottish lighting specialist black light has formally launched its new Glasgow office, adding a significant string to the bow of Scotland's Lighting Company. Based in the Parkhead area of the city, the new office has actually been open for several months, during which time general manager Iain Weir has been building up the business, stock levels and developing relationships with a range of clients on the western side of Scotland and northern England. "Giving the office an initially low-key opening was a deliberate policy," says Iain. "That way we could ensure that everything was in place and working at 110% efficiency before the official launch."
"The new office shows black light being both proactive and reactive," adds managing director Gavin Stewart. "There is an enormous range of projects on the western side of the country, which we are now right on the spot to serve as a lighting supplier and advisor. It also means we are able to respond to client requirements very quickly, if you need something that we don't have in stock, we'll ensure it's available at very short notice - and then permanently available in the future."
Before joining black light full-time, Weir was a regular client of the company in a range of technical, stage management and lighting design positions, so he is ideally placed to serve client needs most efficiently. "As a client myself until recently, my bringing that experience into the company means we will have the essential 'client's eye view' in the Glasgow office as well as the Edinburgh
France - Digigram, a world leader in innovative digital audio network solutions, announced recently that US based Jimmy Kawalek has been hired as worldwide business development manager for the licensing program of Digigram's patented EtherSound technology.
"There are few people in the world that have as much knowledge and market insight in professional networked audio as Jimmy has. He knows exactly what pro audio manufacturers need to efficiently implement audio networking and remote control capabilities into their products, and he has a proven track record of creating long-term business relations, which are beneficial for all parties. We are very happy to have him on board," said Philippe Delacroix, Digigram managing director.
Kawalek added: "I am very excited to join Digigram and to be part of the EtherSound team. The more I learn about this incredible technology the more I realize its tremendous potential in all sectors of the pro audio industry. My market experience tells me that EtherSound's ultra-low latency along with its ease of operation makes it ideal for many different market sectors."
The 25-year pro audio veteran joins Digigram after three year's with Peak Audio, a division of Cirrus Logic, where he was in charge of business development for Peak's CobraNet technology. Previously, he occupied various sales and marketing positions with Group One, dbx Professional, Allen & Heath, Crest Audio, QSC Audio, EAW, and Renkus-Heinz. In addition to his responsibilities for worldwide sales of EtherSound licensees, Kawalek will also be in ch
UK - Production Services has announced the upgrading of its SP Series power amplifiers - despite the fact that the existing designs have provided sterling service with only one breakdown (due to operator problems) over the last 12 months from all the SP Series amps in use worldwide, say the company.
The changes start with the front plate, machined from 10mm thick aluminium block. Superior airflow has been achieved as well as making the amplifier more robust. According to the manufacturer, everything about the amplifiers has been upgraded from transparent output limiting through components to general design and layout. The result, the company says, is improved reliability and sonic performance - with no price increase.
(Sarah Rushton-Read)
UK - As part of an ongoing exterior lighting upgrade, London's National Theatre has purchased a number of colour changers from Ambient Lighting Ltd, the UK distributor of Italian lighting manufacturer, Griven.
The fixtures purchased by the NT are the 1000W Colosseo CYM units from Griven's dedicated 'Architectural Dimension' range. The fixtures have been installed by the NT's own staff to light the exterior north face of the Lyttelton flytower, viewable from Waterloo Bridge and surrounds.
Ambient Lighting reports that the NT will host a continuous demonstration of the fixtures during the evenings of this year's PLASA Show, so that interested parties can see the unit in action in a real environment. The Colosseo will also be on stand at PLASA, alongside the 4000W xenon Kolorglobe fixture, aimed at large-scale architectural installation.
Greece - Bon Studio S.A. won the contract to install the audio infrastructure in three of the most contemporary stadia in Europe, used recently for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Drawing heavily on the product portfolio of Harman Pro group companies for whom they handle distribution, Bon Studio was able to meet the specifications laid down for the Pampeloponissiako and Panthessaliko Outdoor Stadia, and Nikaia Indoor Stadium. When some of the designs were later modified to achieve optimum sound quality, Bon Studio were able to comply with the revised requirement.
The new 24,000-seat Pampeloponissiako stadium in Patra was built in order to stage the Olympic football tournaments. Bon Studio installed the sound reinforcement system in the stadium's main arena plus sound reinforcement and public address systems in the internal peripheral areas. Using EASE predictive software, the aim was to accomplish a sound level of 105 dB (+/-3dB) and a frequency response of 60Hz - 16kHz, as a result, four clusters were eventually deployed, two at the centre and two at the sides of the stadium. Side clusters comprised four speakers and the central clusters of eight, making a total of 24 JBL VerTec VT4888 mid-size line array enclosures. These are augmented by JBL Pro Application Engineered (AE) speakers in the shape of 14 AM4212/64 and 12 x AC2215/00 enclosures. Amplification is provided by 35 Crown CTs amplifiers, controlled via an IQ Network and Crown's proprietary IQwic software. Sited in the stadium's control room are two Soundcraft consoles - a Live 8 and LX7, with broadcast c
UK - Captained by Dan Heasman, Clarion Events took a day off from the organization of the PLASA Show to take on a Pro Sound & Light Invitation XI - led by Lightfactor Sales' Paul DeVille - in the annual D&M Professional (previously Hayden Labs) Cricket Challenge.
DeVille's motley crew included three members of the press corps - Charles Ward (DJ Magazine), Lee Baldock (Lighting & Sound International) and Gez Kahan (MI Pro) - all of whom acquitted themselves with distinction. Also present were PLASA's Matthew Griffiths and Shane McGreevy. However, the man of the match award was won by D&M's Miles Brooke who, batting late in the innings, brought the Industry XI's sorry-looking tally up to a respectable score.
This is the sixth time the two sides have met in the picturesque Berkshire village of Littlewick Green, the home club of D&M Pro's Simon Curtis, who organizes the fixture. Clarion managed to snatch the title back for the first time in three years, reaping the fruits of the establishment of the Earls Court Academy of Cricketing Excellence in 2001 . . .
The winning captain received the award from Paul DeVille and Simon Curtis before the 22 players (give or take) tucked into the traditional barbecue. Later, reflecting on the defeat, Paul DeVille commented: "Last year's victory was down to my superb tactical captaincy, whereas this year I was let down by the team."
UK - Charcoalblue, the UK's newest theatre consultancy, was formed in February of this year by three theatre professionals who had previously worked together at Theatre Projects Consultants - namely Andy Hayles, Jon Stevens and Jack Tilbury. Hayles explains: "We decided that the time was right to branch out on our own. It wasn't an easy decision, but we had a clear vision of what we wanted to achieve."
Each member of the team has a strong background in the theatre. Hayles was previously chief electrician at Richmond Theatre Royal. Stevens has worked at the RSC in Stratford, toured with Opera North and was head of sound at Glyndebourne Opera. He still does lighting design when he gets a chance - most recently The Makropulos Case at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin. Tilbury began his career as a theatre production manager, and went on to project manage for Imagination at the Millennium Dome. "We're all committed to continuing to work in theatre and live events whenever we can: the only way to really understand the problems theatres face is to work in them," notes Stevens.
In September, the team will be completed with the arrival of architect and auditorium design specialist Gavin Green, another ex-employee of TPC. Green's entire career has been spent designing performing arts buildings, giving him an insight into the particular problems they present. Green commented: "Deciding to leave wasn't easy, but it's been very amicable and we've kept a close relationship with Theatre Projects."
That relationship has formed the beginning of Charcoalblue's
Denmark - Danish PA company DPA Soundco has supplied various sound reinforcement systems to the Roskilde Festival over the past 12 years, but this year, for the first time, the company equipped two stages with Nexo GEO T Series tangent arrays. The company reports the system received unprecedented praise over a diverse range of performances, from the Scissor Sisters to the Royal Danish Opera and a variety of world music.
DPA Soundco's system designer Gorm Jakobsen was responsible for PA on three of Roskilde's six stages, including the 11,000-capacity Arena Stage (the second largest), and the Ballroom stage, which hosted the world music events. In the past, Jakobsen has used systems including Turbosound's Floodlight and Flashlight and, last year, the JBL VerTec. He comments: "They all worked, although, of the three, the line array was the best design for the space. However, this year, we used GEO T for the first time, and it was absolutely perfect. I've never heard anything like it in this tent."
The system was set up with 14 T4805s and two T2815s in each of the left and right arrays. The eight CD18 sub-bass units either side of stage had to be positioned about 10m away from the speaker hangs, giving an additional benefit of powerful sub bass in the outer areas of the tent. "We didn't tune anything on the PA," says Jakobsen, who was baby-sitting the artists' engineers at the Midas Heritage 2000 desk. "We had flat EQ throughout, just a notch filter at about 3k. The only processor I used with the system was the new EQ station from TC Electronic.
&
UK - Setting new standards in efficiency, 32 companies have been identified in the latest Plimsoll Portfolio Analysis - Sound Equipment as getting the very best from their people. The consequence for companies in the rest of the industry is that to compete, they will need to axe as many as 1300 jobs in the next 12 months.
By getting the most from employees, these 32 highly efficient companies are delivering nearly 45% more sales and four times the profit per person of an average UK sound equipment company. Typically, they are generating £208,000 sales per person and £13,000 profit per person. Last year, the average UK sound equipment company achieved £143,000 sales per employee and a mere £3,000 profit per employee.
At most risk of being left behind, 20 companies have been identified as only generating an average of £81,000 per employee. Their spend on salaries is far too high for them to be competitive, consuming 35% of sales. This figure should be 20% or less. If these companies are to catch up with new standards of productivity, 1300 jobs could be at risk.
David Pattison, senior analyst at Plimsoll Publishing, maintains: "As I see it, it is very easy to fall for the 'we need more people' screams from your staff. You have to watch this. It is vital to keep your sales per employee ratio and perhaps more importantly your percentage of sales used for salaries under control.
If you take nothing from our industry analysis at all, just remember three key facts. Get your sales per employee up to or above £143,000, your spend on salaries to 20% of sales
UK XL Video's busy Corporate division continues to expand with the acquisition of event AV specialists' Event Technical Services. Event Technical Services' former directors John Hooker and Malcolm Whittall have now joined XL Video's proactive account handling team, which recently expanded with the addition of Phil Goddard and Greg Rice.
"We're delighted to have John and Malcolm onboard" says XL's Lee Spencer. "Their collective experience, industry knowledge and contacts are a great asset to our busy and growing Corporate department, and their energy and enthusiasm fits perfectly with XL's future plans."
Together, the pair bring over 40 years of combined industry experience to XL. They will be responsible for designing, and project-managing the supply of complete corporate AV systems for XL's diverse range of events and shows. Whittall's broadcast live event engineering background - which includes working for the BBC and the independent sector, as well as 10 years freelancing - is expected to come into its own at XL.
"I'm really looking forward to working with the UK's premier live video rental company" states Hooker, "XL has all the right technology, resources and attitude in place for our business and contacts to expand further."
(Jane Cockburn)
UK - Newly-formed Muse Research has launched with Receptor, a sophisticated but simple-to-operate VST instrument and effects player for studio and live applications. The problem with many VST instruments and effects is that they are difficult to use and set-up, but the Receptor's intuitive front panel with knob controls, makes it easy. But the 2U rack-mountable, multi-timbral sound and effects Receptor makes the task of using plug-ins as easy as "dial and play". Using proprietary Muse software, Receptor can run VST software from the best developers in the world without the complexity and fragility of a computer.
Receptor's mixer-like architecture combines up to 16 different audio sources, which can be either internal VSTi instruments or external analogue/digital inputs. Each source is then routed through its own inline effects matrix, allowing three VST plug-ins to be configured in every possible parallel/series arrangement.
Receptor provides architectural support for as many as 16 simultaneous VSTi instruments and 57 VST effects, while processing external inputs using its front-panel high-Z input, its rear-panel balanced analogue inputs, or its S/PDIF digital input.
(Sarah Rushton-Read)
UK - Temporary power distribution systems used in the entertainment and events industries will be significantly affected by the changes to the UK phase and neutral colour-coding for cables. We are currently in a transitional period with installers now able to implement the changes although the new regulations take full effect in April 2006. As these new changes permeate through the industry, there will be many situations where potential hazards could arise from the mixing of new and old colour schemes, most critically where temporary equipment is hired from more than one supplier for an event, or where suppliers have not yet made the expensive wholesale change to the new colour scheme.
Several PLASA members and readers of L&SI have already expressed concern about the new system and the potential safety issues. To discuss the implications in a wider context, PLASA is holding a discussion session during the forthcoming PLASA Show to highlight the hazards and explore means of overcoming them, thereby promoting a safer working environment in the entertainment industry and also helping to make the change as seamless as possible.
The session will take place at 12.30pm on Wednesday 15 September in the new purpose-built seminar theatre on the show floor. Anyone concerned with the specification, installation and maintenance of temporary power distribution systems is invited to attend and readers of L&SI and PLASA members can register to get free tickets for the session.
To register to attend for free e-mail the address below stating that you wish to attend the Working
UK - A.C. Lighting's Audio division has supplied the West Yorkshire Playhouse with two Yamaha DM1000 audio mixing consoles as part of an upgrade of the venue's sound equipment. Since opening in March 1990, the venue has established a reputation both nationally and internationally as one of Britain's most exciting producing theatres, and is the largest regional repertory theatre outside of London and Stratford. The Playhouse produces 16 of its own shows each year in its two auditoria, approximately a third of which are world or British premieres.
When the theatre wanted to replace the existing sound mixers in its two auditoria - the 750-seat Quarry Theatre and 350 seat Courtyard Theatre - they approached A.C. to supply the two Yamaha DM1000 consoles. As a certified Yamaha digital dealer, A.C. were able to offer an extensive in-house consultation and after-sales backup service, including advice on getting the best out of the consoles from digital audio product specialist Alex Hadjigeorgiou, a 24-hour telephone helpline/technical back-up and product training.
Glen Massam, head of sound at the venue commented: "The majority of our shows are plays with pre-recorded sound effects and music, usually original. More recently we have been experimenting with 5.1 surround sound. The shows tend to have complicated soundscapes, layering track upon track. It is therefore imperative we are able to accurately recreate the audio on a show by show basis, which is where the DM1000 comes into its own."
One of the DM1000's first shows will be the theatre's forthcoming prod
Canada / USA - Cast Software introduced Vivien, a new software application for event and meeting design, at Event Solutions in Washington last week. The new product was received with overwhelming response, say Cast.
Vivien is an integrated solution for event design and rollout, designed to meet the needs of planners and designers servicing corporate events, special functions, incentive meetings, tradeshows and parties. The program is built on a specialized CAD engine that allows users to design any space in 3D. The Vivien 3D library contains a comprehensive collection of items, including tables, chairs, décor, AV, architectural, banquet, and staging items. Users simply click and drag the items into their virtual space. Everything is tracked by a database and paperwork component for issuing floor plans, layouts, reports, order sheets, schedules, and renderings.
"The show was a great success for Cast," says Bob Mani, VP sales and business development. "There was tremendous excitement about the product. The word spread quickly - customers were literally referred to our booth by other exhibitors. I think we have the potential to make a really important contribution to the industry."
Cast Software was among the 135 exhibitors at Event Solutions Expo held in Washington, DC from 28-31 August. The 8th annual show featured a full program of education, speakers, events, and exhibits.
While still under development, Vivien is scheduled to release in the first quarter of 2005. Cast Software will again exhibit the product at The Special Event Show i
UK - Stagetec Distribution will again be sharing a stand with Compulite at the PLASA show, helping with the launch of a range of new products, these will include the first showing of the new Vector Green console, the smallest in the range, but with the same power and flexibility of the larger versions. Vector Green still utilizes two powerful processors to ensure maximum stability and has all the features of the larger consoles with one built-in colour touch screen and one external monitor, 10 playback faders, a separate crossfade playback, four on-board DMX outputs and a further 12 over Ethernet. Vector Green is designed to follow on from the popular SparkTOP system by providing an extremely light and portable, yet powerful control console. It will be supplied complete with a clip-on cover to enable it to be easily carried around.
The Vector iControl is designed around the Compaq iPAQ pocket PC, and utilizes Ethernet to communicate with the Compulite Vector console, either cable or radio via an Access Point. With its backlit colour LCD screen it provides important editing features including channel, spot and memory selection, cue and cue list recall and recording, dimmer testing, fixture highlighting plus access to the five Vector wheels and wheel banks.
To complement the Vector range, PLASA 2004 sees the launch of a whole new range of consoles designed to provide the optimum combination of affordability and flexibility. All consoles in the Dlite range will feature a built in touch screen plus external monitor, 20 playbacks, a dedicated A/B crossfade playback, i
USA Having spent the last three years with Vari-Lite, Sean Hoey has returned to High End Systems to take up the position of sales manager for the south eastern US. Between 1991 and 2001 Hoey was HES sales manager of various US regions, prior to being appointed director of American sales. Hoey said of his return: "I'm home. I'm optimistic about where the company is headed, and I'm very glad to be back where I belong."
CEO Frank Gordon commented: "We couldn't be more pleased to have Sean back at High End. He brings years of valuable industry experience, and we welcome him to our sales team as we move further into the digital lighting market."
(Barry Howse)