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USA - Stanton has introduced the DJ Pro 3000 professional headphone, which it says include the best of its previous models - includng swivel and folding capabilities for maximum comfort and a detachable cord - and add new features such as high- and low-pass filters and blue beat LEDs, complementing the silver look. With a pair of 50mm Neodymium drivers capable of handling the high headphone output of most DJ mixers (and the low frequency response needed for precise mixing), the DJ Pro 3000s are capable of reproducing a wide frequency range clearly and accurately, while the built-in low and high-pass filters can be adjusted to taste, making it easier to mix off the kick drum or hi-hats.

Designed for maximum comfort, the DJ Pro 3000s employ a spring-loaded rotating ear cup that make

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UK - Pearce Hire promoted its three specialist divisions, united as a production package, to event organizers at this year's Showman's Show. The three divisions - audio, lighting and temporary power - have invariably worked independently, or in various combinations at events over the years. The new package will now combine the specialist skills and equipment of the three divisions.

The company believes that event organizers will experience improvements in efficiency if they deal with a single contractor supplying these three key areas of production, as it gives one point of contact for the client, maximising co-ordination between the services on site. Secondly, clients will experience reduced production costs through economies such as transport and crewing levels.

Pearce Hire's owner, Shaun Pearce commented: "We have been surprised at various shows this year by organizers

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USA - Brent Barrett has returned to Bandit Lites after a 22-year absence. Barrett originally started with Bandit in 1977 and toured with Conway Twitty. He continued working with the company until 1984, when he was retained by the group Alabama as lighting designer. He went on to become production manager for the group, and toured with them from 1981 until 2003.

Michael Strickland, Bandit Lites CEO, said: "Brent brings Bandit Lites a wealth of knowledge and many industry connections. I could not be more pleased to have him back home." Barrett is also pleased to be back at Bandit, commenting: "I am delighted that Michael has given me this opportunity, it feels great to be back."

Barrett's new role will be that of business development officer, working from the Bandit Lites Nashville office.

(Sarah Rushton-Read)

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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

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USA - The Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center in Dayton, Ohio recently opened its doors to rave reviews, both for its architecture and for its superb acoustics. The $130 million complex includes a rehearsal hall, a condominium and office tower, and a restaurant, but it's the 2,325-seat Meade Theatre - new home to the Dayton Opera and the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra - that is the major masterpiece.

The Meade Theatre is a proscenium theater modeled in the style of a European opera house. Seating is arranged in the orchestra main floor, along with three tiers of loge and balcony seats. The theater expects to run a wide range of programming, from the Philharmonic and Opera shows to nationally touring Broadway productions to community-based performing arts groups.

Jaffe Holden Acoustics (JHA) of Norwalk, Connecticut served as the acoustic design consultants on the

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Australia - Mid-way through their Australian tour, Russell Crowe and his band, '30 Odd Foot of Grunt', decided to add some more grunt to their lighting effects with two Pulsar ChromaBanks. Neale Mace, managing director of Entertainment Installations, who supplied both lighting and audio for the tour, explained: "I'd seen them in the factory and really liked them but I needed to use them on a gig to get a good idea of how they would perform and what we could do with them. For the size of venues we were playing, we already had quite a large moving light rig. We decided to place the ChromaBanks behind the drummer where we used them for straight colour as well as a strobing effect. The strobing effect was great and looked really good when used in conjunction with strobing movers. We also used some of the macros that are built into the units, which we then controlled on a fader.&q

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UK - Leading manufacturer Trantec has recently supplied its innovative PT1 UHF wireless Personal Trainer system to Pennyhill Park Hotel and Country Club's brand new luxury Health Spa, the Pennyhill Spa, which is the home to many celebrity and VIP guests including the England Rugby team.

The Exclusive Hotel Group - owners of Pennyhill Park - commissioned Installation Technologies Ltd (ITL) to design and supply a sophisticated personal audio system, which would provide broadcast quality sound offering background music as well as access to all broadcast media from anywhere in the Pennyhill Spa, without any visible or audible speakers. John Matcham of Installation Technologies specified Trantec's PT1 wireless system and collaborated with Trantec's engineering team from the outset. Configuring the system to meet The Exclusive Hotel Group's exacting specifications, together they overc

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UK - UK Trade & Investment has become the new single identity for the UK Government's business support organization, British Trade International, and its operating arms Trade Partners UK and Invest.UK.

The aim of UK Trade & Investment is to help UK companies build their international business and to encourage foreign direct investment. With teams based in 200 markets around the world, and a regional network that provides local knowledge right across the country, UK Trade & Investment is able to provide specialist advice and tailored programmes to help UK exporters and inward investors achieve business success in the global market.

This new identity reflects the increasingly close relationship between trade and investment work within the organisation and its continuing commitment to provide an integrated service - delivering business opportunities through a global network.

Si

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UK - When front-of-house sound engineer Huw Richards brought the master faders up each night on Mis-Teeq's recent UK tour, he had more than the band to consider: "This show is by no means quiet. There were times when we were measuring 115-118dB (peak) just from the kids screaming!"

Northampton-based Tour Tech provided adaptable PA configurations for the varied range of venues played: "I was lucky enough to tour two PA systems," says Richards. "dV-Dosc and L'Acoustics ARCS, and at Hammersmith we used V- Dosc with dV-Dosc down fills, and ARC in and out fills. "Tourtech were very generous and basically supplied anything we wanted with very little added expense. For this type of tour it was ideal to be able to pick and choose what to apply to each venue with such flexibility."

System control was XTA across the board and the dynamics rack saw XTA'

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UK - Audio-visual specialist Integrated Circles has launched a new addition to its range of solid-state audio and video players - the SoundStore MP3 - offering solid-state audio playback and 10-year warranty for constant daily operation. Integrated Circles' latest product boasts high quality stereo playback as standard, vastly extended programme duration, built-in audio amplification and the option to interact with lighting and other special effects. Its ability to store up to 127 discrete audio passages makes it an ideal tool for Oral History playback, amongst many anticipated uses.

"Over the past 25 years we have dealt with a lot of different clients and their individual requirements," says Integrated Circles founder and technical director, Simon Beer. "With the SoundStore MP3 we aim to meet as many of these needs as possible. This latest addition to our product

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Germany - As most moving light programmers have at some time experienced, automated fixtures and the profile in the lighting desk do not always match. This is often due to new fixtures or fixture software having not been implemented by desk manufacturers or because the fixture profile has to be written from spec sheets with no potential for checking against real life units.

Since the inception of the grandMA series, MA Lighting has given the option to programmers of modifying or even creating new fixture profiles directly from the desk. However, until now, there has never really been any common place for programmers to share information with the result that operators across the world may well be repeating the same programming processes on the same desks for the same units.

To cut down on wasted time and energy MA have developed a new website (address below), where users can be

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UK - 'Celebrating the spirit of beauty' was the theme at this year's Pantene Pro-V Style Awards, held at the Royal Albert Hall. Stage Electrics was contracted by Big Chief Productions to design and project manage the technical elements of the show, which included lighting, sound, set and staging.

The set design for the event comprised a backdrop of white sails, stretched in a variety of shapes framing a central entrance through which guest presenters would appear. The design required an extension to be built in front of the existing Albert Hall stage, as the client wanted to use the stage as a dance floor for the after-show party. Over 100 pieces of Maltbury Metrodeck, three pallets of chipboard and 200m of white vinyl flooring later, the Stage Electrics team had built a custom stage extension that followed the curve of the arena and met all of the venue's Health and Safety requ

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Germany - With little more than 18 months to go to Showlight 2005, the search is on for those contributions that make Showlight one of the most stimulating and rewarding event in the lighting diary.

Taking place in Munich, at the beautiful Prinzregententheater, Showlight 2005 will look forward to tomorrow's technology, to the ideas and equipment that will take lighting design into the next decade. The show will also look back at what has been achieved in the worlds of theatre and television, film, concert and architectural lighting design. A major part of the Showlight show is devoted to presentations, of 15 to 45 minutes, by people working within the lighting industry. The organizers are now inviting ideas for papers from lighting designers and directors, scenographers and equipment manufacturers - although sales pitches are not welcome!

Six main topics have been chosen for b

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UK - Meyer Sound's UK distributor Autograph Sales has confirmed orders for almost 50 of Meyer's new UPJ-1P loudspeakers at PLASA 2003, a product which was unveiled for the first time at the show. Manchester rental company Audio Alliance, which is building up a rapidly-growing inventory of Meyer stock, ordered eight UPJ-1Ps "unseen and unheard" following its first purchase of eight UPM-1s earlier this year.

"Even though we hadn't heard the UPJs, we knew the ethos of Meyer products and had no doubt that they would fulfil our expectations," says Audio Alliance director Oliver Driver. "We used Meyer's MAPP Online before the loudspeakers arrived to design a system for their debut, a theatre show. On the opening night the press commented on the "excellent sound". Since this show, the UPJs have completed numerous corporate events with very positivecom

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UK - Digital media solutions specialists Projected Image Digital has announced a preferred dealer agreement with Element Labs for its Versa TILE product. Versa TILE - a colour mixing light tile that utilises video inputs - was launched at PLASA 2003 where it won the PLASA 2003 Product Excellence Award for Design Excellence in Lighting.

In keeping with Projected Image Digital's profile at the cutting-edge of digital media technology, Versa TILE is an important and complimentary addition to the PID range, which includes Catalyst, RADlite, D-Tek and an ever-expanding selection of digital content. Negotiations started at PLASA in September, and the deal was confirmed last week in London. PID's David March and Rob Fowler have known Element Labs' Nils Thorjussen and Claas Ernst for several years - all four previously worked together at High End Systems.

"Versa TILE is an innova

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Regular readers of PLASA's electronic newsletter, Standards News, will be aware of the recent problems experienced by some PLASA members when renewing their insurance premiums and the massive hikes they have been faced with. In response to this problem, the Association of British Insurance (ABI) has launched a new initiative to reward businesses that can demonstrate good health and safety practices with greater access to Employer's Liability (EL) insurance.

This new initiative is said to benefit smaller firms, trade associations and other similar bodies, who will be able to submit their health and safety schemes to an ABI committee for an assessment of the scheme, which will then be held up against best practice features that they, as insurers, would expect to see.

The ABI assessment committee will consist of senior underwriters, and details of the assessments will be sent by the ABI

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USA - Visitors to the Entertainment Technology Show - Lighting Dimensions International (LDI) will have the opportunity to see prototype devices networked with draft versions of the control protocols E1.11 (DMX512-A), E1.17 (ACN) and E1.20 (RDM) at the ESTA Interconnectivity Pavilion in booth number 121. These control protocols are being developed by the Control Protocols Working Group, part of ESTA's Technical Standards Program, and are designed to take us into the next generation of self-configuring and almost limitlessly extensible lighting control networks. Equipment from a variety of manufacturers will be shown communicating bi-directionally with equipment from other manufacturers, demonstrating the progress that has been made in developing these protocols and the benefits of voluntary, consensus standards developed in ESTA's open industry forum.

The Entertainment Technolo

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Germany - The recent IFA (International Funk Ausstellung) in Berlin, an exhibition of audio-visual technologies, saw the first co-operation between Super Audio CD (SACD) and Alcons Audio, with the high-resolution Compact Disc being demonstrated via Alcons audio systems on both the SACD stand and the official SACD press event.

SA CD is the new multi-channel Compact Disc standard developed by Sony and Philips: its Direct Stream Digital (DSD) Encoding offers multi-channel, high-resolution sound, with a frequency response five times greater than other audio CDs. SACD is supported by the majority of the industry.

The Super Audio CD stand was a new promotion initiative of the joint industry supporters of SACD, aiming to acquaint a large audience with the unique benefits of SACD. On the stand, a large six-channel Alcons system was installed, consisting of five VR12 loudspeakers (12&q

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UK - VME Hire Limited has announced the formation of a new sister company, VME Sales Ltd. The new company will take over UK sales and distribution for the German speaker brand Kling and Freitag along with the Apex range of audio processing equipment, and its current complement of pro-audio products.

VME Sales also announced the appointment of Tom Blackwell as UK sales director. Prior to his appointment, Blackwell was UK area sales manager (Midlands and North) for Sennheiser. In conjunction with these announcements, VME Hire Limited and VME Sales and Events Limited will move to new premises, taking them from Alderley Edge, Cheshire to a 20,000sq.ft unit in Congleton, Cheshire.

VME Hire Limited and VME Sales & Events Ltd will be exhibiting in the SBES Exhibition at Docklands Arena on the 26-28 November 2003.

(Sarah Rushton-Read)

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USA - IAG is expanding its Professional audio team worldwide from 1 November 2003. After pioneering IAG Pro's launch in the US over the past two years, Lance Schmidt moves up to the role of president of IAG Professional, global sales and marketing.

Steve Woolley, IAG managing director, said: "Lance has done a great job setting up our Pro operations in the US, and has now accepted the challenge of managing our international sales and marketing to distributors worldwide. Lance has excellent experience in the international marketplace and adds a powerful dimension to our business."

IAG also announced that Tom Linklater is taking over the reins in the US as president of the professional division, IAG America. Tom is an industry veteran with extensive experience in sales, marketing and product management, in high-end pro, SR and studio. Steve Woolley commented: "We a

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USA - The 2003 Lollapalooza tour, which hit the road this summer, is employing Stanton's Final Scratch system. As the tour's resident DJ Alex Graham explains: "The Final Scratch system creates a synergy between the convenience of digital and the preferred feel of vinyl."

Graham found the Stanton Final Scratch system to be the ideal choice for his Lollapalooza gig, allowing him to bring massive amounts of music along without having to carry crates of records and CDs. "Final Scratch was the heart of my entire DJ booth," says Graham. "Although I did have a pair of CD players at my disposal, I rarely used them. I found the combination of Final Scratch with my PowerBook G4 to be far more preferable." The number one reason Graham cites is that, for him, the Final Scratch interface is truer to the feel of spinning actual vinyl than playing CDs.

H

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USA - On 27 October 2003 Eastern Acoustic Works (EAW), a Loud Technologies brand, launched a Spanish version of the EAW web site. The new Spanish site includes much of the same information that can be found on the EAW main site including product specifications, 2D and 3D cabinet drawings, processor configurations, as well as contact information for dealers and EAW's Application Support Group (ASG).

Karen Anderson, director of marketing communications at EAW commented: "Since its founding 25 years ago, EAW has established a solid reputation for making key technical information accessible to our customers, which is the best way for us to assist contractors and system designers to specify EAW speakers for their installations. This new web site now allows us to better serve our Spanish-speaking international markets."

(Sarah Rushton-Read)

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