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USA - XL Touring Video was chosen as video contractor for the Queen & Paul Rodgers North American Tour 2006, which is promoting their recent live DVD and CD release, Return of the Champions.

XL worked closely with video consultant, Aubrey "Po" Powell, one of the founding members of the influential 1960's album cover design groups, Hipgnosis, which is responsible for many of the famous Pink Floyd album sleeves, as well as Led Zeppelin and Bad Company.

President of XL Touring Video, John Wiseman says: "It was exciting to hear from Robbie Williams, who I had the pleasure of working with on Pink Floyd years ago. Then to find out that Po was also involved immediately made me realize that this was going to be a first class project and I was honoured to be

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New Zealand - Allen & Heath's New Zealand distributor, Jansen Professional Audio & Lighting, recently installed an Allen & Heath iDR DSP system in Auckland's Epsom Girls Grammar School.

Opened in 1917, Epsom is recognised as one of New Zealand's most prestigious private schools, and boasts an alumni, which includes New Zealand Prime Minister, Helen Clark; TV personality, Petra Baghurst; news presenter, Kate Hawkesby; and New Zealand's first female District Council judge, Dame Augusta Wallace.

Jansen were tasked with replacing the sound system in the School's main hall. Equipment includes Proel speakers, powered by Phonic amplifiers, all controlled by an Allen & Heath iDR-4 16x16 matrix mixer. There is also an accompanying PL-6 remote 8-fader panel controller, to simplify standard functions.

"The new sound system is very easy to use and I have been able to let the studen

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The Netherlands - Duran Audio has introduced the AXYS IntelliDisc-DS90 - which it describes as "the world's first fully integrated digitally controlled two dimensional loudspeaker array". The IntelliDisc-DS90, the company says, makes use of its DDS technology to allow users to manipulate the directivity of the array in two dimensions.

DDS stands for Digital Directivity Synthesis - an advanced array control optimizationconcept. DDS is based on a specially adapted "constrained weighted least-squares" optimization algorithm. Starting from a desired direct SPL distribution in a hall or space, the optimum output filter for each array channel is calculated. In other words, the desired 'illumination' of the hall or space is 'mapped back' to the array, instead of mapping the arrayresponse to the hall, as would be done with a conventional loudspeaker array.

Using DD

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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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UK - Leading names in UK theatre architecture and consultancy will be providing facts, figures and ideas at the Theatre Engineering & Architecture Conference 2006. Speakers will include Mark Foley, Susie Bridges and Jonathan Adams, along with consultants, Anne Minors, Neil Morton, Iain Mackintosh, Andy Hayles, Michael Holden and Richard Brett.

These speakers will be complemented by a number of international players - including Himanshu Burte from India, Sergio Pascolo from Italy, Martien van Goor, Louis Janssen and Gerbrand Borgdorff from the Netherlands, Gerry van Hezewyk from Canada and Duncan Webb, John Coyne and Peter Rosenbaum from the US. Representatives from many other countries will be involved in the debates and discussions about the form of auditoria, backstage facilities, uncomplicated spaces for drama, and theatre building on a budget. Present booking from overseas r

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USA - Robe Show Lighting's ColorWash 250 AT fixture has won the Best Lighting Product at the 2006 Club World Awards.

The Club World Awards is sponsored by leading US club trade magazine Club Systems International. It is dedicated to recognising the very best of club venues, products, people and experiences in North America - and everything that makes them cutting edge, or spectacular. This year's Awards event was staged at Crobar 24 @ Nocturnal in downtown Miami, on the scenic rooftop patio.

The Awards nominations were whittled down to four or five per category, and the tough job of judging was undertaken by 10 industry experts, picked from all sectors of the business.

The ColorWash 250 AT won because it is one of the most versatile products of its genre on the market, and it ticks all the club world check boxes - it's feature packed, well priced

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Germany - A golden CA 106 was presented to Michael Mandel, member of the executive board of Neumann&Müller (N&M), on 29 March at the ProLight&Sound exhibition in Frankfurt, to mark the sale of the 10,000th CA 106 to N&M in December 2005.

In 1997, N&M (one of the largest event technology suppliers in Europe) challenged Kling & Freitag to develop a small, lightweight and economical speaker for speech applications. In the spring of 1998, say K&F, the CA 106 took part in a comparative test with products from other manufacturers and emerged as the winner. Since then, N&M have added around 350 of the speakers to its hire stock. "The CA 106 is incredibly reliable. Most of the damage to them results from negligent use," says Michael Mande, technical director of N&M.

To date, the CA 106 has seen success in more than 30 countries around the world, say K&F.

(Lee Baldock)

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USA - ESTA has announced that BSR E1.6-2, Entertainment Technology-Serial Manufactured Electric Chain Hoists, is available for public review until 22 May 2006. It is a continuation of the BSR E1.6 powered rigging system project, which has been split into two parts: BSR E1.6-2 dealing with electrical chain hoists used in entertainment applications and BSR E1.6-1 dealing with other powered winches. This document, BSR E1.6-2, covers the design, inspection, and maintenance of serially manufactured electric chain hoists having capacities of two tons or less and used in the entertainment industry as part of a performance or in preparation for a performance. The public review response form and the draft standard, which is free, are available here.

In addition to being asked to review the document t

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Germany - City Scene is a newly created high-end multi purpose venue that combines the needs of the performing arts, theatre, musical concert and club worlds. The sound system was designed by Terje Engedahl from Lyd-Systememer AS together with house engineer Jon Karstensen and features 24 channels of Lab.gruppen C Series amplification supplied by AVAB/CAC, Oslo, Norway.

The facility was built around a former nightclub in the Hotel City at Fredrikstad, Norway. To facilitate live performances a stage was added in an earlier atrium. City Scene's capacity (in theatre mode) is 448 persons; 330 on the main floor and 118 on the mezzanine developed around the old dance floor.

City Scene has already played host to a diverse range of performances including, Cityfjolls til Fjells (a comedy theatre production), Olsenbanden Jr. på Cirkus (musical theatre with a circus theme)

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UK - Stylised and sleek British four piece Kubb have just recently played a sold out show at London's Shepherds Bush Empire to support their 'Mother' album. It was a taster to a Spring UK tour of universities, clubs and small theatres and the summer festival circuit. The show was designed and operated by Neil Trenell who has previously designed shows for Lucie Silvas and Daniel Bedingfield. Neil has worked with Kubb on various showcases over the past year gradually building the show into what it is today.

The lighting rig features 24 James Thomas Engineering's PixelLine 1044s, 10 moving fixtures, bars of pars, bars of ACLs and floor pars. Neil discussed various lighting ideas with the band. With these taken into consideration and the practical implications of a smallish rig he set about the design. He explains: "I wanted to create a very high impact show with a lot of shado

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Canada / USA - CAST Software has formed an alliance with BOXX Technologies Inc of Austin, Texas, which increases the usability of CAST's Vivien - Virtual Event Designer and WYSIWYG Production Design Suite - the popular pre-visualization tools for the entertainment industry. Testing completed by CAST revealed that running WYSIWYG on a BOXX 7400 Series Workstation increased overall functionality by producing Shaded Views and Renderings up to four times faster, opened large files quicker, and general application performance proved to be much more responsive, say CAST.

"Partnerships such as this continue to make our users happy because we deliver what they desire - the opportunity to use tools that constantly improve their design experience," says Gilray Densham, president of CAST Software. "As innovators in this field, we offer solutions that increase productivity, p

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UK - Blackout, specialists in rigging and drapes, have launched the Easi-Build Pipe and Drape offering an unprecedented level of functionality.

The Easi-Build Pipe and Drape system comprises heavy bases with adjustable telescopic horizontal and vertical aluminium poles and can accommodate any drape. The system is neatly packaged for easy transportation in boxes or carry bags requiring minimum labour at maximum speed in any location.

"Our Easi-Build Pipe and Drape system is aimed at all customers. Never before has it been so quick and simple to erect a temporary drape structure," says Steve Tuck, managing director at Blackout.

(Chris Henry)

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Germany - KV2 Audio used the recent ProLight&Sound show in Frankfurt to demonstrate its much-vaunted VHD speaker system. As part of the newly established 'Live Sound Forum' the VHD system was put through its paces twice a day throughout the show in an outside area specially put together for manufacturers to demonstrate their loudspeaker systems.

KV2's Jonathan Reece-Farren says that the system looked quite out of place being so small in comparison to the mass of arrays and subs around it - so much so, that he had to point out which were the KV2 speakers before each demonstration. Using only two flown VHD 2.0 mid/high enclosures per side, with accompanying subs on the ground, they proceeded to "amaze all that heard it" say KV2.

Reece-Farren commented: "We've all waited a long time for this, but the reaction from those who came along has made it all worthwhile. In

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Germany - Unveiled at the recent ProLight+Sound show in Frankfurt, NEXO's new GEO D tangent-array sound reinforcement system will be launched in the UK by Fuzion plc., the French company's exclusive UK distributors.

A long-anticipated addition to the company's successful GEO S and GEO T tangent-array designs, GEO D features NEXO's patented, third-generation Hyperbolic Wavesource. Equally innovative is the cardioid GEO SUB bass/sub bass cabinet, which arrays from the same over/under bumper as GEO D, and offers unrivalled pattern-control from new, proprietary NX242 TDcontroller digital filter sets.

Five years experience with GEO Series flying and stage-stacking systems have yielded the most rigging-friendly NEXO sound reinforcement system to date. Equally at home on or above the stage, using a single, elegant hardware system, GEO D can be deployed in minimum arrays of four units

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UK - XL Video UK is supplying Westlife's 2006 Face To Face arena tour - which follows hot on the heels of their number one album of the same name and chart-topping single, "You Raise Me Up".

The tour is up-tempo and innovative to match the massive energy of the new stage show, which is being artistically directed by Alan MacDonald and Will Baker (renowned for their work with Kylie).

XL has supplied Westlife's video requirements since their first Coast To Coast tour in 2001, and video has always been an integral element of their live work.

This year, with the musician's positions located offstage either side; video once again takes centre stage along with the boys (Nicky Byrne, Shane Filan, Kian Egan Mark Feehily). Some truly spectacular screen interactives include "Uptown Girl" when the boys - choreographed by Priscilla Samuels - dance in un

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USA - Lightning Strikes Inc, the US-based designer and manufacturer of award-winning SoftSun and Lightning Strikes lighting products for motion picture, television and event production and other professional and industrial applications, has appointed David Heffelfinger as vice-president of engineering. In this newly-created position, Heffelfinger will have management responsibility for R&D, manufacturing and other engineering-related functions.

Prior to joining Lightning Strikes, Heffelfinger founded and served as chief technical officer of Gray Wolf Laboratories LLC, an imaging technology company in the environmental monitoring industry. He has held many executive-level engineering positions within life science companies including Alpha Innotech Corporation, BD Biosciences, and Bio-Rad Laboratories. He received his B.S. and M.S. in Physics from Wayne State University and an Exe

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Germany - In an expanding market in Europe, PROEL has announced at Frankfurt, the establishment of a representation office in Holland.

Managed by René Poelman, the structure will begin to operate in April, and will be distributing and selling all products from PROEL Universal division: lighting and sound reinforcement systems, die hard cables and stage boxes, microphones and wireless systems, stage accessories, stinger amplifiers and the famous tamburo drums.

The complete installation line (ceiling speakers, horn speakers and 100V line transformers to name just a few), will also belong to this wide portfolio as well as the ultimate home division created by the Italian company. This features home entertainment furnishings for large screens, Plasmas, LCDs, realized by the American design trend leader Bell'o, and distributed by PROEL in many European countries including th

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UK - Sanyo has introduced a new and uniquely developed weatherproof, flat panel LCD screen which it says will open up a host of outdoor display and advertising opportunities.

Both developed and made in the UK by the Sanyo factory in Lowestoft, the 32" panel is suitable for both interior and exterior uses, and can withstand a range of weather conditions as well as harsh environments, such as dusty or humid conditions. The IP56-rated LCD display includes a lightweight aluminum frame covered by an acrylic front panel.

The high-resolution LCD panel boasts a high brightness level, high contrast ratio and wide 176° viewing angle, say Sanyo. It is aimed at various outdoor applications such as point-of-information, outside broadcasting of TV events, advertising, branding or sponsorship at open-air corporate events, and displaying television or drinks promotions in a pub gardens

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UK - Carlsbro Electronics and DARE Professional Audio have announced details of an exciting collaboration that sees the two long established award winning companies utilizing each others expertise in design, technology and marketing to launch a range of four P.A systems aimed at the professional live and installation market.

The Four systems ranging from the G8 2.5k rig to the G15vs2 system at 5.5k are capable of handling any application from a small conference and the most demanding installation, to Churches and full live concert applications. Each system comes complete and is driven by Carlsbro's stunning Powerline series amplifiers housed in a flight case together with a digital processor and pre programmed equalisation scenes, all leads and cables and birch ply robust cabinets that have been designed and hand built in the U.K.

All four systems are being launched with some

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Germany - Bosch Security Systems has added a 50-W (rated power) model to its range of high-efficiency, EVAC-compliant horn loudspeakers. The new model, the LBC 3484/00, is specially designed for use in public address and voice alarm system applications that require a high level of sound pressure, such as industrial sites and sports grounds.

All three speakers in the range (490 mm/50 W, 490 mm/35 W and 355 mm/25 W) are robustly constructed in corrosion-proof aluminium with a PVC edge profile for protection against impact damage. With a maximum power output of 75 W, the LBC 3484/00 employs a high-efficiency driver that provides excellent sound reproduction. The loudspeaker is also available as separate horn and driver to allow a choice of combinations when installing.

The new loudspeaker has provision for incorporating circuit boards for Bosch's Plena and Praesideo Voice Alarm S

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UK - Lisburn-based Zest Audio has completed the installation of a PA system for the Corpus Christi Church in West Belfast, built as part of an inner-city regeneration programme. The church is a new-build, designed for congregations of up to 400.

Commissioned to provide the PA by the M&E Consultants, Zest installed the system using Clock Audio MR66 automatic mixers, QSC ISA amplifiers, Phonic EQ and crossover processing, AKG hard-wired microphones, Shure radio microphones and Community loudspeakers throughout.

Commenting on the choice of Community loudspeakers, Zest MD David Honeyford said: "For intelligibility and vocal quality, the Community loudspeakers and excellent with very high output from such compact, discreet boxes. As with all modern church installations, aesthetics were an important consideration. Well controlled dispersion from the distributed CPL27 and CPL42

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Belgium - When d&b audiotechnik's Belgian partner Amptec learnt that the country's national French speaking broadcast company RTBF was looking for a new sound system, they took the opportunity to introduce them to a d&b PA system. "It all started about two years ago," said Amptec's David Liebens. "We did demos for them at the 'Festival de Jazz à Liège' in 2004 and in 2005 using a Q-Series loudspeaker system."

Amptec knew that RTBF would be releasing a specification for a PA system for the Eurovision for Kids 2005 competition and would be inviting interested companies to tender. "We invited a number of key RTBF technicians to one of d&b's user seminars run by John Taylor and there is no doubt that they learned a lot about their approach to quality sound," said Liebens.

Shortly afterwards, RTBF invited a number of companies to propose a suitable s

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