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UK - Soundcraft has announced the extension of its versatile Multi-Purpose range with three new mixers all featuring no less than 32 Lexicon 24 bit digital effects.

The new Soundcraft effects mixers use the same AudioDNA processor featured in many of the Digitech and Lexicon outboard products, including the highly respected Lexicon MX500. The consoles also boast a user settings store function, three parameter controls, tap tempo and 32 effects presets.

The first new mixer in the range is the Soundcraft FX16ii. Already established as a popular console, the Spirit FX16 has been offering professional audio solutions to musicians since 1997. 10 years on, Soundcraft has brought the FX16 into line with its professional range using the latest 24-bit digital Lexicon effects processor a

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UK - Welsh rockers Manic Street Preachers are on the road in the UK, touring their eighth album Send Away the Tigers. These are the band's first touring shows for two years and Preacher Nicky Wire promises, "Springsteenesque long sets, working-class rage, make-up and dumb punk fun".

This is the Manics' first tour with SSE Audio, although the band and its front-of-house engineer Dave Cooper made use of Nexo Geo T array systems at a large radio show at Christmas (XFM's Winter Wonderland). However, recent developments have transformed the PA system they last used. The implementation of NXStream, an all-new suite of loudspeaker processing software for Nexo's loudspeakers, has proved so successful that John Penn of SSE Audio reckons "I've got a new PA system."

SSE is currently upgrading all its Nexo NX242 TDcontrollers, the second-generation digita

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Malaysia - With its strategic location at the hub of the central business district and its purpose-built facilities, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (the Centre) has become one of the Malaysian capital's competitive assets. It raises the city and Malaysia's profile by providing a world-class venue to both major international conferences and trade fairs plus the colorful entertainment sector for international concerts, musicals and family stage shows.

Realising a gap in the market for high-end sound systems, Orange Events, a preferred supplier for sound, lighting and AV systems of the Centre, aimed to enhance the existing sound system by improving overall sound quality, coverage and capacity to handle events in large venues such as the 3,000-seat auditorium, Plenary Hall.

After thorough research and technical consideration regarding the exact requirements of the Centre, Oran

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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 Netherlands - Color Kinetics Inc, the Boston-based manufacturer of LED lighting systems, has announced that it is to be acquired by Royal Philips Electronics in a deal worth approximately $791 million. The acquisition is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2007.

Color Kinetics has achieved over 15,000 installations worldwide with its LED lighting technology, and has famously amassed a powerful patent portfolio encompassing 71 issued patents to date. The company licenses its technology throughout the lighting industry, and has worked alongside government agencies to promote the advancement of LED lighting as the best long-term choice for energy efficiency. "The acquisition by Philips will dramatically fortify the combined company's reach and efforts to make its technology the de facto platform for intelligent L

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UK - - Last year, Butlins Holiday Resort in Minehead carried out a major sound and lighting refurbishment, with a view to rolling the model out at their other Resorts in Skegness and Bognor Regis. This aim has now been realised, and the new technology infrastructure was completed at both sites this Spring by the Birmingham-based Cloud One Group.

The pro audio specialists have enjoyed a close relationship with Butlins Resorts over a 15-year period, and during this time they have regularly specified Martin Audio sound reinforcement systems on their projects.

In addition to the new W8LM Mini Line Array installations in Skegness and Bognor Regis, Cloud One also made some enhancements to the original W8LM installation in Minehead - initiated by Martin Audio's Brad Watson and Butlins' Technical Manager Dirk Peace.

This has resulted in all of Minehead's premium entertainment venues

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UK - Rising interest rates are bad news for many - but they could be a lifesaver for some businesses, according to commercial analysts Plimsoll Publishing.

"Our research shows over a third of UK sound equipment companies are in more debt than they have been at any time in their history," says David Pattison, senior analyst at Plimsoll. "Rising rates are a useful wake-up call. Many of the companies in question have been enticed by low interest rates and the lure of easy debt secured on rapidly rising property prices, and so have been able to cover up flaws in their business strategies - effectively buying time. There is just enough time left for these firms to look seriously at their balance sheets and change direction."

If companies reduce their level of debt and streamline their business models, they may have a future, according to Plimsoll. But if they ig

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USA - Morin Productions, the US distributor for Outline Audio Products, recently took a musical walk through the seven deadly sins when its Butterfly line array was used at the Boston Conservatory's Heaven & Hell production. The show, an adaptation of Joe Jackson's 1997 concept album of the same name, gives a modern slant on sin, including a sloth enjoying a super-sized soda in front of a mega TV screen. The production featured an uncluttered set and featured the talents of both Conservatory students and audio professionals.

"I have 97 separate mute scenes for the 75 minute show," said Heaven & Hell FOH guru Nick Joyce, a veteran live sound engineer who mixed the show on a Crest X8 provided by Marathon Sound from Salem, NH. "The production seems simple to theatre-goers, but it's a complex audio production with rapid-fire lines and singing in singles

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Greece - The final of the Soccer Champions' League on 23 May, in which Liverpool and Milan faced one another in the former Olympic stadium in Greece's capital, was broadcast to an estimated 1.2 billion viewers worldwide with a little help from two SoundField DSF-2 digital microphone systems. The multi-capsule microphone heads for both systems were rigged in the stadium to provide simultaneous phase-coherent 5.1 and stereo stadium ambience and crowd response for the HD and SD transmissions.

A single world transmission feed, authorised by UEFA and its exclusive media partner TEAM Audio AG, was used to provide TV companies from all around the world with their SD and HD pitch coverage. On the night of the match, the world audio feed was mixed by Robert Edwards of UK broadcast sound specialists Video Sound Services, assisted by Frank Mosch, the technical head of sound at Belgian comp

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USA - One of the highlights of a visit to the famed Opryland resort in Nashville is taking a cruise on the General Jackson Showboat. Visitors can enjoy dinner and a stage show while sailing along the Cumberland River in this 300ft vessel, which is styled to resemble a 19th century paddlewheel riverboat.

But while it's steeped in Old South tradition, the General Jackson has gone strictly 21st century in its theatrical lighting. A new package of intelligent fixtures from Elation Professional was recently installed in the boat's Victorian Theatre, a majestic two-story dinner theatre where the main stage shows are held.

The room's lighting had previously consisted primarily of conventional par cans and Ellipsoid fixtures, but the boat's entertainment and design staff felt it was time to upgrade. "They wanted to move 100% into intelligent lighting," said Peter Vaque of Sp

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UK - Media programming and system design company tsg, has installed an Audica Professional MICROseries audio system in the new Cruise store in Chester.

Established in 1984, Cruise is one of the UK's leading luxury retailers, with a reputation not only for designer brands, but also as a showcase for fresh, innovative fashion. Their stores house a selection of menswear, womenswear, footwear, bags and accessories from some of the world's leading brands.

Operating with formats of larger mainline and smaller specialist stores, Cruise Chester is the company's second stand alone footwear, accessory and bag store, stocking international labels including Gucci, Chloé, Dior, Jimmy Choo, Vivienne Westwood, Dolce and Gabbana and Paul Smith. The timber-framed building developed for the new store dates from 1664 and incorporates many of the site's original features including an Eliza

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UK - PSL, one of the UK's leading rental & staging services companies, has, in the last three months, invested £1 million into the latest audio, video and projection equipment, to keep its inventory right at the cutting edge. "And that won't be the end of it. It's part of our ongoing fleet upgrade programme," says PSL MD Gary Davis. "We are planning further purchases in autumn 2007."

Providing rental & staging event management and technical services, PSL has become a prominent supplier to the events industry. From company conferences to a Pet Shop Boys tour to the Farnborough International Airshow, PSL is able to provide a comprehensive package of technical services and staging, or specific expertise in video projection, lighting or AV, says the company.

The bulk of this spring's investment has been in the latest Christie Roadster S+20K and S+8K proje

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Germany - The Porsche Arena, an events location in Stuttgart's Neckar Park that opened in May 2006, recently took delivery of a lifting system from ChainMaster that will be used to manoeuvre the video cube.

The system consists of four 2,500 kg VarioLifts with two chain-falls each and a computerised control system for installation work. The ChainMaster controller not only synchronises the drives but also supervises the loads. The Porsche Arena is capable of accommodating up to 7,500 people at a time for corporate events, sporting functions and concerts.

(Jim Evans)

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UK - For all the logistics of massive, high profile live music tours, it's often live shows designed for a very young audience that prove just as gruelling and technically challenging for production crews.

Created in 1999 by Tell-Tale Productions (now WISH), The Tweenies is a highly successful BBC television series aimed at 3-6 year olds. Over 300 episodes have been made, with arena-sized tours also giving the television audience a chance to see the popular Tweenies characters in the flesh, rather than through the television screen.

2007's Enchanted Toyshop tour has seen the Tweenies do a UK theatre tour for the first time. The more intimate venues mean that children can get even closer to their heroes, but with no compromises on the quality, fun and excitement of the show itself.

The tour began on 16 March and runs through to 27 October, taking in no less than

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UK - PLASA has relaunched its prestigious Awards for Innovation, which will be joined for the first time this year by the new Gottelier Award, named in memory of Tony Gottelier - the leading designer, innovator and industry commentator who died in 2006.

Designed to reflect excellence in new products in lighting, sound, engineering, AV and staging - the PLASA Awards for Innovation were first established in 1992 and have since been presented annually during the PLASA Show, which this year runs from 9-12 September at Earls Court in London. The Awards have a justly deserved reputation for identifying high quality, innovative new products early in their life and many previous winners are now firmly established in their fields.

Judged by a panel of respected industry professionals, products nominated for the Awards compete for one of eight Innovation Awards, plus an additional troph

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USA - Symetrix is showing an all-new product for its Integrator Series at InfoComm 2007. The Integrator Series is a new group of products providing integrators "extremely high value within application-specific packages". The Integrator Series uses the proven technology embodied in the SymNet|Network Audio Solution DSP toolbox, says the company.

The second product in the new Integrator Series is the Deuce 722, designed to solve numerous everyday audio processing problems for integrators. Built upon the success of the Symetrix 322 DSP Engine and the 9022 before it, the Deuce 722 packs everything into a 2x2 DSP unit.

Paul Roberts, director of sales, states, "We've been considering customer feedback provided on the 9022 and 322 for years, rolling all of it and more, into the Deuce 722. The 722 might be the most versatile piece of audio equipment under $1,000 release

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UK - HSL supplied full lighting production, rigging and crew to stages 1 and 2 at the O2 Wireless Festival at Harewood House in Leeds and the Sony Eriksson Arenas at both Leeds and London Wireless sites.

HSL was working for Neil MacDonald's Clockwork Productions who were appointed by promoters Live Nation to co-ordinate all the Leeds site's technical production requirements. On site, HSL's crew of 11 was led by project manager Mike Oates assisted by Debbie Owens. They collaborated closely with main stage production manager Mick Brown.

Taking Saturday night main stage headliners' Kaiser Chiefs as the starting point in terms of building lighting rig, HSL brought in designer Andy Liddle to liaise with all the headliner LDs - Susan Sasic for the White Stripes (Friday), the Kaiser Chiefs' Richard Larkum (Saturday) and Sunday headliners Daft Punk's Martin Phillips - Three top bands

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USA - With its strong focus on multimedia, the New Vision Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, TN, has become one of the fastest growing Houses of Worship in the mid-South. To accommodate its burgeoning congregation, the church recently constructed a new Worship Centre, while converting its former main worship chapel into a Youth Centre. The construction/renovation project utilised high-tech lighting and staging products from Elation Professional and Global Truss.

Located in a college town - the home of Middle Tennessee State University - the church wanted the new rooms to reflect its orientation toward youth, said Peter Vaque of Springtree Media Group, which provided lighting, staging, audio and multimedia. "New Vision has always had a large following among college students and young people," said Vaque. "It has prided itself on being very state-of-the-art in the area

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UK - DarkSide Industries has launched the new Tractel Black range into the Entertainment Industry. For over a century, Tractel has been one of the world's leading lifting gear companies, with a formidable reputation for quality. Now Tractel and its exclusive UK entertainment industry distributor DarkSide Industries, have worked together to market Tractel Black - a comprehensive range of lifting gear that's been specially developed with venues and theatres in mind.

"This is a range of really high quality lifting gear, that suits exactly what entertainment professionals are looking for," said DarkSide's MD, Martin Green. "Tractel Black chain blocks are lightweight but incredibly strong - the 1t unit only weighs 12kgs. That weight advantage is really important, especially in touring situations."

The range also includes beam clamps in 1t, 2,t, 3t and 5t sizes.

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UK - The Willow Foundation is a charity that works with seriously ill young adults, offering them a range of 'Special days' which aim to provide a chance to escape the pressures of their daily routine and share quality time with family and/or friends. The charity was founded by ex-Arsenal goalkeeper Bob Wilson and his wife Megs, in memory of their daughter, Anna, who died of cancer aged 31.

Every special day is of the young person's choosing - it could involve fulfilling a lifelong dream or it could simply offer an opportunity to bring some much-needed normality back into their lives. The Foundation will endeavour to fulfil the special day request however imaginative and, if possible, exceed expectations.

To date the charity has organised and funded special days for young adults living with a wide range of serious conditions including amongst others; cancer, motor neurone dise

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UK - XL Video, the Hemel Hempstead based audio visual rental company, has acquired the business, assets and name of Midlands company Show Support Limited.

Show Support Limited, the Bromsgrove based AV rental business (a former Mice Group plc company) was placed into Administration on Tuesday 19 June 2007 (partners in the professional services firm Grant Thornton UK LLP were appointed Administrators). The business, its trading name and assets have been acquired by XL Video Limited the UK arm of XL Holding BVBA for an undisclosed sum.

Chris Mounsor XL Video Joint MD commented, "We have worked closely with Show Support over the last few years and we believe with our support this business and its people will make a valuable contribution to our UK growth strategy."

(Jim Evans)

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Germany - Just six months after completing their last major European tour, Angelo Kelly and his high-calibre backing group hit the road again. The most recent tour took in 10 venues, kicking off in Bochum's Zeche on 24 May 24 and ending in the Kantine in Cologne on 10 June. Between these two home matches were engagements in Holland, Poland, Denmark and the Czech Republic.

As with their last European outing at the end of 2006, Kelly & Co. relied on systems from EVI Audio for the production, including Electro-Voice microphones, Klark Teknik equalisers and Midas mixing consoles.

(Jim Evans)

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