Details
UK - Stand-up comedy, for all its apparent simplicity in projecting the spoken word to large theatre audiences, can be anything but straightforward. The real challenge is to deliver an intimacy through coverage consistency and intelligibility because if the audience misses one word, the joke's not funny.
Martin Audio loudspeaker arrays have proved their worth regularly, reinforcing a multiplicity of leading stand-ups - none more so than Michael McIntyre. In 2015 they successfully deployed an MLA loudspeaker array via their rental partners Capital Sound for the artist’s Happy & Glorious tour, and they have repeated the formula for the current Big World Tour. With the exception of play-in/play-out music, this is 100% spoken word.
This time around, the

Details
Japan - Since its founding in 1902, the American School in Japan has sought to provide its students with a well-rounded education. This is very apparent in the diversity of its student body, which includes youngsters from 47 different countries, as well as in its diverse programme of music, theatre, and conferences.
Recently, the school enhanced the infrastructure that supports its educational and arts programs by adding four Chauvet Professional Maverick MK2 Spot fixtures from PRG to its multi-functional theatre/auditorium. The new 440W LED moving fixtures join the full complement of conventional units in the school’s lighting system to give it greater flexibility.
“We have been looking to make our lighting system more versatile to meet the varied demands we place on it,” said Ed Gilmartin, theatre manager/resident lighting designer at the American School in Jap

Details
USA/Europe - Harman Professional Solutions has announced the immediate availability of the Studer Vista 5 Black Edition console. Built upon the tradition of the successful Studer Vista 5 M3 mixing console, the new Vista 5 Black Edition brings even more advanced capabilities to the platform with the addition of the industry-leading Studer Infinity Core processor.
Studer Vista Black Edition consoles were designed to deliver the flexibility and advanced features of Vista mixing surfaces to a more cost-conscious market, bringing Studer’s legendary sound quality to even more applications, including radio and TV broadcast, OB trucks, houses of worship, performing arts, and more.
“The response to the Studer Vista 1 Black Edition has been very strong,” says Mark Hosking, director, broadcast sales at Harman Professional Solutions. “The larger Vista 5 Black Edition open
featured content

Indochine X PixMob Fan Immersion

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's - 40 thousand LED pixels on a ceiling!!! Indochine's whirlwind tour transports fans to another level of the live experience - immersing them from floor to ceiling with PixMob's X4 wristbands, and an LED ceiling made entirely of its NOVA Minis! With the vision of Indochine's creative team, PixMob used its LED fan-technology to turn attendees and venues into an ocean of effects, and a starry sky of LED magic. Très très cool!

Read more about the Indochine tour in the latest issue of LSi

Details
USA - The TiMax Immersion Zone spatial reinforcement and immersive audio experience lands at Infocomm 2018 in Las Vegas, in conjunction with Renkus-Heinz in Demo Room N101. A selection of static and dynamic spatial 3D audio segments rendered by TiMax onto a multi-channel immersive audio system will feature as part of the Renkus-Heinz hourly loudspeaker demonstrations. Presenters will also be localised by TiMax object-based spatial reinforcement.
In use will be the TiMax SoundHub 500Series software featuring StageSpace, the latest release for the globally renowned and evolutionary TiMax SoundHub suite of immersive audio processors.
TiMax StageSpace groundbreaking AutoCalc tools provide automatic rendering of adaptive spatial audio objects for the product’s varied applications in professional audio Performance, Presentation and Experience sectors.
AutoCalc adapts

Details
Europe - Ayrton’s ultra-compact MiniPanelFX unit was exhibited for the first time in mainland Europe at Prolight+Sound 2018 last month.
First launched at PLASA 2017 in London, MiniPanel-FX is a diminutive version of the MagicPanel-FX, and the first Ayrton product to undergo a miniaturisation process. This multi-function luminaire may be small in dimensions but it is mighty in output, with a zoom spread of 3.6° to 53°.
MiniPanel-FX is fitted with four of Ayrton’s 65mm square lenses arranged in a neat 2 x 2 configuration to form an extremely powerful beam and wash light with immense creative possibilities. Its four 35W RGBW multi-chip LED emitters are paired with a high-efficiency optical system to deliver up to 2,400 lumens from only 200W power consumption. Sophisticated 4-colour mixing and high CRI readings gives “an incredible range of colours from pastels an

Details
UK - Keeping up with a hectic workload being experienced across all companies, Blackburn based lighting and video rental specialist the HSL Group has again increased its investment spend to keep up to speed with the newest technologies.
“This will help service ongoing and upcoming projects across all sectors - rental & staging, theatre, television, sporting events and concert touring. The rapid pace at which the technology is changing and the fact we want to keep ahead of the game is driving this, together with an increase in demand. It’s vital that we can continue offering our clients the very best options for all of their shows, events and creative projects,” commented HSL’s Simon Stuart.
Fixtures like the.Robe MegaPointe and the Martin MAC Encore have really made their mark, together with products from GLP, SGM and Vari*lite. Other top brands on the re

Details
Europe - Lighting control manufacturer Visual Productions has concluded a distribution deal for Belgium with Audio Visual Lighting.
Audio Visual Lighting technical manager Luc Buytaert approached Visual Productions to discuss distribution. The timing could not have been better for Visual Productions. For the past months Visual Productions account manager for Belgium, Maarten Donath, has been successfully developing the market working directly with installers, designers and local resellers. It was clear that the interest in and usage of the core products in Belgium was rapidly growing.
A full distribution deal was exactly the required next step. AVL is a well-established distribution company serving both the Dutch and French speaking markets in Belgium. Alongside sales manager Yolanda Eliano, Buytaert has built a successful distribution company which has gained an outs

Details
USA – For nearly two decades, ETC’s LDI Student Sponsorship has given students a way to gain experience, make connections and launch a career, and to attend the LDI tradeshow with all expenses paid. Applications for this year’s Sponsorship are available at www.etcconnect.com/LDISponsorship, and due by 8 June 2018.
ETC’s LDI Student Sponsorship includes roundtrip airfare to the LDI tradeshow, which will be 19 to 21 October this year, along with hotel accommodation, all meals, a full conference pass, a student reception to meet people in the industry, and exclusive ETC swag. Students in their final year of undergraduate study, graduate students, and students from outside of North America who are studying at the university level at the time of the LDI show, and who are studying lighting design, theatre technology, stage machinery, or closely related fields, are eligible

Details
Europe - In the field of outdoor event and broadcast production, adverse climate and other environmental conditions can impact negatively on the performance of equipment and the ultimate quality of production work.
Environmentally sealed connectors are in great demand for heavy-duty and harsh environment applications with entertainment equipment like PA systems, lighting, signage and LED screens. So, for critical production applications, in the most challenging conditions, there is now a range of resilient and reliable solutions, in the shape of Neutrik’s new TOP product range.
The new series includes the powerCON TRUE1, etherCON and XLR products, which have been certified in accordance with IEC 61076-2-103, IEC 60320, UL 1977 and UL 498, and which now also meet the requirements for outdoor use and UV resistance as laid out in UL50E.
“It is now possible to

Details
USA - A complete Avolites light and video integration system featuring the brand's latest Arena lighting console and two Ai R4 Media servers, was used to drive the lighting and video content for the 21st annual D.I.C.E Awards, held at the Mandalay Bay hotel, Las Vegas.
The D.I.C.E (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Awards celebrates the latest innovations in interactive entertainment in the video gaming industry. For its 2018 edition, the event's long-term lighting designer Joshua Schultz worked alongside Andre Huff, director of Limelite Design, who were tasked to deliver a light and video presentation within a set design of clean, structural lines to accompany the awards ceremony.
"Chris Wu from Hatch, one of the awards' production partners, let me run with the design this year," says Schultz. "I took a lot of my inspiration from the intro video to the Awards,

Details
USA - Providing an appropriately intense visual backdrop for The National on its current global tour in support of its seventh album, Sleep Well Beast, is a 13-universe Michael Brown-designed lightshow that is being run with a ChamSys MagicQ MQ500 Stadium console.
The Nashville-based LD, who has been a ChamSys user since 2009, selected the MQ500 for this tour because the power and versatility of the console, particularly its effects engine, allow him to pull together diverse visual elements to match his client’s distinctive sound.
“The National are a unique band,” said Brown. “Their music and performances can vary from very intimate textural moments to all-out eruption. Their front man Matt Berninger embodies the escapism of a true performer. He can go from contemplative to this madman on stage amidst the dense backdrop of a mixed meter ballad and compl

Details
USA - An early practitioner of Trip Hop, Bonobo was among the British DJs that influenced the course of electronic music in the 1990s. Later, he pushed the genre in a new, softer direction by blending his sound with elements of jazz and Hindu music. More recently, Bonobo has been at the forefront of the trend among DJs to work with bands, as he’s done on his tour in support of his Top Ten album Migration.
Backed by his band, Bonobo has created a more atmospheric sound that blends his jagged synths with instrumentation. In keeping with this expanded sound, the visual backdrop at his live shows, which is created with projection video, has become more about storytelling. Supporting this new look at Bonobo’s 23 March appearance at San Francisco’s Midway music hall was an engaging lightshow created by Bryce Cherpelis of 12BC Pro that was anchored by a collection of

Details
Slovenia - Cankarjev Dom – Slovenia’s leading cultural and congress centre - has added Robe Spiiders, plus more BMFLs Blades and CycFX8s to its already extensive stock of Robe moving lights which also includes Pointes. They now have around 150 units.
The largest of five performance venues in the Cankarjev Dom complex is the 1650 capacity Concert Hall and in addition to these are the foyers and two galleries and conference rooms also used for events. It’s both a co-producing and a receiving house staging a wide variety of shows, events all year round, from opera to dance, popular music to choral, orchestra to drama and everything in between. Some venues and spaces are also hired out for corporate events and conferences.
Each venue has its own lighting rig and all of them need dynamic and flexible lighting to deal with the diverse programming, however some kit is a

Details
UK - Full technical service provider Hawthorn has added Barco’s UDX-4K32 large-venue laser projector to its already extensive inventory of high-end projectors. Representing an investment of over £500,000, the company has added six of the units - the flagship of Barco’s UDX laser projector platform - to its fleet.
Launched last year, the UDX-4K32 provides 31,000 lumens of light output, 4K resolution, and the specification and performance of high-end laser projection in a compact and easily-transportable chassis. By featuring Constant Light Output (CLO) functionality, the UDX-4K32 also guarantees peace of mind by providing constant brightness and colour reproduction over time. On top of that, the UDX platform offers the widest colour spectrum in the industry. Without compromising on brightness, the UDX colour quality matches the renowned Xenon quality and outperforms the

Details
Mexico - Omnia Dayclub and Casa Calavera, two venues within the stunning Vidanta Los Cabos complex, presented a challenge for Dublin-based design and installation company Audiotek: how to provide banging nightclub sound in an open-air venue, whilst making sure that spill to the surrounding parts of the complex was minimised. The answer was a multiple source L- Acoustics Kiva II system.
Located in the Vidanta Los Cabos resort on the southern-most tip of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, this is the first project in a $150m investment deal between Grupo Vidanta, Mexico’s leading resort operator and tourism developer, and Hakkasan Group. A day-to-night experience designed by New York architects Rockwell Group, the resort includes four new venues: Omnia Dayclub; and restaurants Casa Calavera, Herringbone, and Shore Bar.
“We have always been firm believers of the so

Details
UK - PLASA Focus Leeds provided the perfect showcase for new brand, Sixty82 to unveil its trussing and staging systems to the UK rigging industry - receiving an overwhelmingly positive reception and much interest from visitors.
Matthew Millward, rigging sales manager for Sixty82's UK distributor, A.C. Entertainment Technologies Ltd (AC-ET), which featured the brand on its stand commented: "It's fantastic to be working with Sixty82, whose team needs no introduction to the industry. There was a huge amount of goodwill and interest from the rental companies, technicians and venues we spoke to. We expect to receive lots of enquiries in the coming months - it's exciting times."
AC-ET's specialist rigging product division, which is based in the company's Leeds Northern sales office and warehouse, will handle Sixty82 enquiries and hold stock there.
Sixty82 Co-founder,

Details
Mexico - Ganesha Producciones is one of the latest rental and production companies in Mexico to invest in Robe Spiider LED wash beams, which were recently delivered by distributor Showco and much anticipated by owner Gerardo Hernández and his team.
The company was founded in 1996 by Gerardo and is based in central Mexico City. They are involved in technical production for many prestigious cultural events including government organised and sponsored shows and expositions, and also supply lighting, video and sound to corporates, music concerts and other shows. The company also has an architectural lighting division.
Gerardo has kept Ganesha tightly focussed on its core business. There are currently 20 full-time employees and they work with up to 80 regular freelance designers and technicians during the busy periods.
Gerardo has been a loyal Showco client for some

Details
UK - The #SaveStageLighting campaign continues to gain momentum, following a busy open-forum event held today (11 May) at The National Theatre in London.
The event was a chance for those involved in entertainment lighting to learn more about the proposed 2020 EU Lighting Regulations, and the impact they will have on every level of the industry, from lighting designers and end users, to manufacturers, suppliers and installers.
Under the proposed new legislation, due to come into effect on 1 September 2020, there will be a minimum efficiency of 85 lumens per watt and a maximum standby power of 0.5W on all light sources (lamps or self-contained fixtures) to be sold in the EU. The result would be that most of the light sources used for entertainment lighting - from tungsten to even the newest LED fixtures - would not meet the regulations.
At today’s event, key figu

Details
UK - The call for papers deadline for Reproduced Sound 2018 - Putting Sound in its Place is fast approaching. Abstracts (150 words) for papers plus a short biography of up to 150 words should be sent to linda.canty@ioa.org.uk by Friday 18 May 2018.
Organised by the Electroacoustics Group of the Institute of Acoustics in collaboration with ABTT, AES, APRS & ISCE, the event is staged at The Bristol Hotel, Princes Street, Bristol, 27-29 November 2018. The 34th Reproduced Sound Conference will focus on all aspects of electroacoustics.
Authors are encouraged to include practical elements in their presentations and could be allocated extra time if required.
(Jim Evans)

Details
USA - New York based ARX dealer Markertek has supplied the San Francisco Opera with the ARX USB DI Plus USB audio interface for its computer to audio system interface requirements. The USB DI Plus is designed to interface any USB equipped computer - in particular, notebook computers - with the balanced inputs of professional sound systems.
The San Francisco Opera has been thrilling audiences in San Francisco since 1923 and is known for commissioning numerous world premieres, training some of opera's greatest young artists and being one of the world’s leading opera companies. Fitting perfectly into the theatre environment, the USB DI Plus features a straightforward ‘Plug in and Play’ design with a robust solid steel chassis and no external gain/volume control to make it as tamper proof as possible.
As part of a range of Audibox USB Audio Interfaces from ARX, the

Details
Singapore - Mahajak Trio recently supplied veteran audio director John Simpson with a Studer by Harman Vista 5 digital mixing console for the second season of Asia’s Got Talent.
Asia’s Got Talent is the regional version of the popular Got Talent franchise. The show’s record-breaking first season established the live reality competition as the region’s most powerful platform for launching Asia’s next generation of star performers.
Produced by Astro Productions, episodes are filmed live before a studio audience at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore and Pinewoods Iskandar in Malaysia. Astro hired Mahajak Trio Electronics to provide the show with a broadcast audio mixing solution with premium sound quality and an intuitive user interface. Mahajak selected a Studer Vista 5 mixing console for its innovative features and user-friendly operation.
Page 911 of 3465

Latest Issue. . .