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UK - For over four decades, Neil Sedaka's timeless standards have helped change the face of popular music. With countless hit singles, and platinum and gold records, he is recognized as one of rock and pop music's legendary pioneers. On Friday, 7 April, 2006, Neil performed at London's Royal Albert Hall (RAH), which was filmed for a worldwide DVD release.

Ollie Jeffery, technical show manager at the Albert Hall explained the production, "We were originally asked by Neil Sedaka production team to provide a three colour wash and a special for the Piano. We developed from a three colour wash to a comprehensive lighting rig using a mixture of generic and moving lights."

They felt that the best light to give good images on the backdrop would be the new Mac 700 Profiles whic

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UK - DPA Microphones are making their first-ever appearance at PLASA 06 on the stand of UK distributor Sound Network, stand R42.

DPA is one of the leading microphone brands on the market today. The Danish range of mics have become a standard for theatrical and orchestral work as well as for live, recording, installation and house of worship applications. In addition to showing established products such as the 4066 omnidirectional and 4088 cardioid headband mics, which feature DPA's miniature mic technology, there are several new products on display at PLASA.

The SMK4061 Stereo Microphone Kit is a stereo recording solution aimed at project studios and for discreet mic setup on stage. The kit packages two DPA 4061 high quality omnidirectional miniature microphones with a variety of mounting accessories. These include the BLM6000 Boundary Layer Mount, which can be used in conjunc

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Italy - Proel will introduce a number of new audio products, including its latest NEOS range of active and passive loudspeakers, at the PLASA Show. The NEOS range has been designed to give high quality acoustic performance in a cabinet that is both lightweight and compact, say Proel.

The NEOS cabinets feature B&C custom transducers, neodymium magnets, titanium diaphragm HF drivers, and an asymmetrical rotatable 1" horn. The bi-amplified active versions are powered by Class D power amps with switching power supply, and onboard DSP.

The cabinets are built from 15 and 18mm birch plywood, coated with a highly resistant anti-scratch Protector-coat paint finish, have a double angle flange (0° or 7.5°) and integral M10 flying points.

Also from Proel is the new Sound Processor line, the result of a detailed series of developments by the company's Sound Reinforcement R&D

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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 - L-Acoustics UK has supplied its first Powered cabinets for an installation at the Winchester Family Church. Will Bradshaw the group technical director comments: "Due to the internal shape of our Stanmore Lane Church we had always struggled to achieve a clear sound from the live worship band and any singer or Minister on stage. We just couldn't reach all parts of the auditorium clearly with the original PA system. We were already in dialogue with L-Acoustics as they are working on a much bigger project for our main building in the centre of Winchester, so we asked them to solve this particular problem. After viewing the building and with careful consideration, the Solution was to provide a pair of the new L-Acoustics 112P powered speakers mounted high up left and right of the stage. The result was staggering - crystal clear sound in any part of the auditorium, even in the

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UK - Hawthorns have released a unique new facility on their website to assist hire customers quickly build a specification and get an idea of budget costs. "The new online Hire shop is a fully automated system which allows customers to view each item from the thumbnail picture gallery, select individual products from our extensive hire stock, check the pricing and build up a quote," said Simon Wood, general manager of Hawthorn's. "It will make getting a budgetary quote so much easier for customers as they can do it at anytime, 24/7, 365 days a year and the system even remembers to add in the essential auxiliary components."

The system produced quotes may be saved and sent to the Hire team experts at Hawthorn's for confirmation of specification, formalisation of pricing and confirmation of equipment availability. "We are already receiving excellent feedba

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UK - As part of their 25th Anniversary celebration, Vari-Lite will take PLASA attendees on a walk down memory lane this year. On display in the PLASA café will be a complete historical retrospective of the Vari-Lite product line from the prototype VL0 to the VL2416. The newest additions to the Vari-Lite range, including the VL500 80V automated luminaire, will be on the PRG Europe stand (J38) alongside this extraordinary retrospective, say the company.

All the fixtures, excluding the VL0, will be operational, allowing show patrons to once again see the VL1 automated luminaire - the famed luminaire that began the automated lighting revolution in 1981 - back in action. Vari-Lite invites visitors to take a moment to stop by and remember when you first used the VL2 or when you first saw the VL6.

Also on hand during portions of the show will be Jim Bornhorst and Rusty Brutsch

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UK - Creative sound specialists CP Sound were called in by Mike Filpi, owner of Clapham Old Town's newest Italian gastronomy - Mooli - to design and install a sound system for the new establishment.

CP Sound has delivered sound solutions for a variety of top class restaurants up over the last five years, including several flagship venues for the Conran Group and a number of leading independents.

CP's Colin Pattenden previously worked with Filpi on several high profile projects whilst he was a project manager at the Ignite Group (Eclipse Bars, Bouji's, etc). "We stated with a challenging situation" says Pattenden "The restaurant was already built when they decided a proper sound system was vital to the ambience". The CP team therefore undertook the task of installing the system and leaving the venue pristine behind them.

Mooli's is a small main room with a

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USA - With the introduction of the new SQ-CP1 Mobile Crank-Up System, Global Truss America has made it possible for lighting users to keep their feet on the floor as they assemble overhead rigs of hanging effects and fixtures.

The SQ-CP1 Mobile Crank-Up System is a cost-saving, all-in-one package that includes two square pieces of truss, the necessary support bars and two crank stands - everything you need to erect a fully loaded, stable rig without having to climb a ladder.

"You can stand there and hang your lights at eye level, then crank 'er up," said Ken Kahn, general manager of Global Truss America. "That's why crank stands make it so much easier to rig your lighting, especially if you're a solo act. Plus, the SQ-CP1 Mobile Crank-Up System's strong lightweight aluminium trussing is simple to assemble - no tools are required, and all the connector pins you n

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USA - Four new projects were started at ESTA's Technical Standards Program's working group meetings held by ESTA recently in Fort Worth, Texas. Anyone interested in joining a working group to work on these projects is invited to join. Information about joining a working group can be found at http://www.esta.org/tsp/working_groups/index.html. Anyone objecting to one of these projects because it is unnecessary or conflicts with an existing standard is invited to send his or her objections to the e-mail address given below.

BSR E1.33-200x, Extensions to E1.31 (DMX512 Streaming Protocol) for Transport of ANSI E1.20 (RDM) is a project to develop a set of extensions to E1.31 to support ANSI E1.20 functionality. The basic E1.31 protocol can be described as 'DMX512 over Ethernet'. It is intended to be suitable for implementation in hardware with very limited resources. The E1.33

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Hong Kong / Thailand - Artistic Licence Hong Kong has announced its latest dealer appointment: Vichai Trading has been appointed as main dealer for Thailand. Vichai Trading is one of the leading AV and lighting integrators in Thailand. With 23 years' experience, they are well placed to launch the Artistic Licence product range into Thailand, say Artistic.

Vichai's project credits speak for themselves, including such prestigious installations as Bangkok University and the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel. The extensive range of control and data distribution products available from Artistic Licence is a perfect match with the range and complexity of projects regularly undertaken by Vichai Trading.

Patiyuth Gludnim, Vichai Trading sales manager comments: "It is an honour to be appointed as an Artistic Licence dealer for Thailand. We look forward to offering the extensive range of Ar

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Austria - On 29 July, Vienna welcomed one of the world's leading trance DJs, DJ Tiësto, to the Heineken Green Room. Debuting at the event was Martin Professional's new laser, the RGB Laser 1.6. The Martin RGB Laser 1.6 is a Class 4 cool white light laser capable of generating deep saturated colours. It features simple plug-and-play operation, hundreds of pre-installed effects, and a cooling system that eliminates the need for expensive and bulky water cooling, say Martin Pro.

Supplying the laser effects for the show was Solaris Media. "The Martin RGB Laser 1.6 is a very positive surprise," commented Heimo Hanserl, owner of Solaris Media. "Besides the RGB Laser 1.6 we used two green 5W and one 10W lasers which were controlled by an external DSP, therefore we had to take data lines which was very time-consuming. The Martin RGB Laser in contrast was ready to play wi

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Belgium - Conveniently based in Ranst near Antwerp in the north of Belgium, the ASP Group has just been nominated as a new L-Acoustics V-Dosc Partner and dV- Dosc Provider for Belgium. ASP Audiologic, the pro-audio department of the ASP Group, focuses on the professional audio market demands and has an extensive stock of specialised audio equipment.

Yves Quireyns, managing director of ASP Audiologic says: "During the 22 years that we have been in the business, we have extensively tested many systems, this one being by far the best we have ever heard. It sounds fantastic in every location and leaves it's competitors far behind."ASP has already invested in 18 dV- Dosc, 16 V- Dosc, 6 dV-Sub, 16 SB218 subs and L-Acoustics amplifiers.

When ASP is asked why they made the choice to go with L-Acoustics, they say that "the superior quality of the L-Acoustics systems, com

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UK - At PLASA 06, Soundcraft will show a wide range of mixing surfaces, including the new flagship digital board, the Vi6, via the latest addition to the GB family (GB2), to the UREI 1603/1605. There will also be a selection of other sound desks on show.

The Vi6 has been designed using the proven reliability of Studer's Vista series of consoles, and more importantly perhaps, uses a derivation of the Vistonics user interface to allow the engineer to intuitively operate the desk. Vistonics II uses the same type of touch-screen colour LCD monitor with integral rotary controls and switches to provide a 'where you look is where you control' user interface.

The GB2 is available in frame sizes from 16 to 32 channels, each with two full-function stereo channels. The desk has been designed for smaller installations in churches and performance venues, or for small touring sound systems.

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UK - Flightcase specialists 5 Star have produced another high-end console based around Pioneer professional DJ products. The brand new Pioneer DVJ-1000 player is the focal point for this particular 'Special Projects' console, which houses two of the new units along with the popular DJM-800 mixer - allowing DJs to integrate visuals into their sets.

The console was conceived by 5 Star's in-house design team, in close collaboration with Pioneer Europe NV, and the brief was to produce the pro DJ and VJ 's dream console.

As a one-off, it will be used to demonstrate 5 Star's design and manufacturing capabilities. "Most consoles of this nature will be completely unique, and are designed and built to individual specifications," explains 5 Star's sales manager, Andy Harford. He adds that several specialist consoles have been manufactured for pro users and companies, but the l

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UK - A.C. Lighting Ltd, the exclusive UK distributor of Litec truss and rigging products, has recently taken its first stock delivery of the new QX30S series of truss. Litec's S series has evolved from their most widely used truss QX30, and features improved characteristics and overall appearance.

The popular end plate system has a new design, produced from a new aluminium alloy that is heat treated to ensure even greater strength and provide a bright polished appearance. The diagonal chords have been re-configured and their diameter changed to improve the aesthetic appearance and increase the overall strength of the truss. The new S series trusses still employ the same dual connection systems of bolt kits or fast connection kits as the existing range, to ensure full compatibility between the lines.

The new design features will be carried over into the rest of the Standard and

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UK - Leisuretec Distribution will be exhibiting the Blues System, manufactured by Global Design Solutions, at the PLASA Show this year. The Blues System comprises LED fittings and control systems designed for use in front and back-of-house technical areas. Ideal for theatres or performance spaces of all types, the Blues System represents a modern, affordable solution to performance blues, cue-lighting and emergency lighting installations.

The BlueBeam (spot) and BlueDome (flood) LED fittings produce very little heat, and use an integral 0-10V onboard dimmer allowing each fitting to be dimmed to suit the environment. Both products fit onto a standard electrical conduit box, or can be mounted directly onto a conduit back-box for easy integration with existing building infrastructures. BlueBeam and BlueDome can be used for interior and exterior applications and are designed as a lo

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UK - XL Video UK is supplying Barco O-Lite tiles, Element Labs control, Chroma-Q ColorBlocks and two V4 Catalyst digital media servers for dance act Daft Punk's headline shows on their current European and Japanese festival tour. It's the band's first tour since 1997, and their distinctive pyramid shaped set was designed to maximise impact.

The set was originally conceived for a one-off at the Coachella Valley Music Festival, where it was such a success that they decided to tour the design involving four separate but linked layers of video.

The pyramid is the show's main visual device, and is reliant on all the video technologies working in unison with the lighting cues. LD Martin Phillips is looking after the general visual aesthetics, and he suggested that the tour needed a dedicated video partner, hence XL Video UK's involvement in the project. Project manager Phil Mercer s

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The Netherlands - For the tour by the popular Dutch singer Jan Smit, the rental company Triple Showtechniek invested in an extensive audio package that included systems from Electro-Voice, Klark Teknik and Midas.

Jan Smit first achieved stardom in his native Holland nine years ago. Since then, the vocalist has matured into an internationally acclaimed performer whose tours are among the most successful and lavish productions in the pop business.

The rental company responsible for Smit's upcoming tour of the Netherlands and Germany is Triple Showtechniek based in Purmerend. With a view to achieving perfect results acoustically, the Dutch touring company's audio specialists launched an investment offensive ordering an extensive package of Electro-Voice, Klark Teknik and Midas pro audio systems from the Dutch EV distributor, Electric Audio B.V and Midas Consoles Holland.

The sh

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Germany - Martin Schlockwerder has been appointed to international sales and marketing manager at Hannover-based speaker manufacturer Kling & Freitag. This division was previously taken care of by Michael Kinzel, who left the company recently.

Schlockwerder was previously employed as the branch manager of Gahrens & Battermann GmbH in Hamburg. Before that, he gained experience in sales and marketing and project management at renowned media and entertainment companies. As a professional musician, a free-lance sound engineer and a project manager, Schlockwerder has well-founded knowledge of the professional audio market.

With a new colleague in the sales and marketing team, Kling & Freitag will be emphasising the increasing relevance of the international market for the company. Schlockwerder will have the opportunity to expand his network of global contacts at the PLASA Show (10-

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USA - HME announces the appointment of Technology K.A.R. of Egypt; Audiopro SRO of the Czech Republic; Venuetech LLC. of the United Arab Emirates; Lydrommet AS of Norway; Audigys of Greece; and Gotham AG of Switzerland as the latest international distributors to join HME's Pro Audio network.

Founded in 1996, Technology K.A.R. has provided communications solutions for over 10 years, featuring wireless systems for the professional and broadcasting markets throughout Egypt. Audiopro SRO is the leader in communications solutions for the Czech Republic, featuring specialised audio systems for professional and broadcasting markets. Venuetech offers full support and services for professional audio and broadcasting markets for the United Arab Emirates.

Lydrommet is Norway's leading distributor for sound systems. Audigys offers audio-light and vision integrated turnkey solutions. Gotha

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UK - "Reliability is one of the things that sets us apart from the competition," said Simon Wood, sales and marketing director at Stage One. This was demonstrated recently when, for the 13th year running, Stage One's set building expertise was called into play for one of the most high profile AGM's in the business calendar, that of Marks & Spencer. Held at the ICC, Birmingham, Stage One was asked by Jack Morton Worldwide to build extensive sets for a registration area, main auditorium and an exhibition area.

"Repeat business is vital in our industry and the fact that we've been working with many of the same clients for a number of years is testament to the quality of our work," said Simon. He added, "Our clients know that we can consistently produce a top quality service on time and on budget."

Stage One's work in the main auditorium included: bui

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