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France - Nicolaudie reports that Easy Stand Alone has continued to evolve over the past few months, with new tools being added constantly. Efforts have been focused in an increasing architectural market, for which the SLESA-IP1 interface has proved a great success, says the company.

"Soon we will launch a new feature allowing control of several DMX universes in stand alone mode," says a spokesman." Because of the increasing number of DMX channels required by large LED installations, we added a tool to control several DMX universes simultaneously. This is possible using SLESA-IP1 interfaces synchronised with each other, all within the same local network."

(Jim Evans)

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Turkey - The 21st International Izmir Festival was held this summer at the Izmir Open Air Theatre from 10 June to 14 July. The renowned event hosted a Bejart Ballet and the occasion marked the first appearance of the L-Acoustics Ultra-compact Kiva Line Source Array WST (Wavefront Sculpture Technology) speaker system.

Emre Defne, technical director, ELIT, L-Acoustics distributor in Turkey, comments: "The electro-acoustic simulations we ran with the 3D modeling Soundvision software demonstrated that Kiva would be the most suited system to ensure proper and even coverage of the 3,500 audience. The compact size and elegance of this system was particularly suited for such an application which typically requires the most discreet sound system integration.

"The configuration consisted of two LR arrays of six Kiva elements and two Kilo complementary low frequency extension e

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Germany - Vogtland-Arena Klingenthal provided the setting for this year's FIS summer Grand Prix final in the special ski-jumping discipline. 50 ski-jumping contestants from 13 nations competed against each other in order to gain the last world cup points in the German Czech winter sports centre at Europe's state-of-the-art ski-jumping arena from 5 - 6. October.

The event attracted 13.600 enthusiastic fans, amongst others from Japan, Poland and Germany, presented as a live television broadcast. KS IT & media service/Jobel productions provided the technical organisation for live transmission, sound and technical infrastructure.

Eight K.M.E. sound systems, each comprising three line array tops QL 906 and three bass QLB 118s were placed around the ramp (approx. 160m long x 40m deep) after previous simulation in the stadium. Power supplies and signal infrastructure were also put in

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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 - Following hot on the heels of the launch of its new AudioCore control software at PLASA07, UK digital signal processor manufacturer XTA Electronics has launched an all new version of its website.

The website retains all the best features of the previous site, plus a few more useful bits and pieces, says the company.

"XTA has always been an accessible company," says group sales director Bill Woods. "We want everything we do to reflect that, so an overhaul of the website seemed logical. Subscribing via RSS feeds gives you access to our news pages to find out what we've been up to and also get technical advice that will cover most of the usual queries."

(Jim Evans)

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UK - In the world of high-fashion retail, Abercrombie & Fitch has remained a frontrunner with its popular, youthful brand of casual apparel. When the successful retail and catalogue operation decided to create a new class of flagship stores, they sought top-of-the-line audio systems for them that were in line with their reputation for quality and style. The A&F team found the right fit with Meyer Sound's UltraSeries self-powered loudspeaker systems.

Each of the three locations selected for the new stores - on New York's Fifth Avenue, at Los Angeles' The Grove shopping centre, and in London's Mayfair district - has been designed for maximum audio and visual impact. "The vision for these stores was to design a retail environment that is as much about fashion as it is entertainment," says David Schwartz, Abercrombie & Fitch's director of audio/video technology. "We w

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USA - San Francisco-based JK Sound provided three large-scale concert sound reinforcement systems - all featuring EAW UX8800 digital processors with Gunness Focusing technology as well as EAW line arrays and concert loudspeakers - for a recent sold-out concert by DJ Tiësto at San Francisco's Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, with several other DJ performances held simultaneously in adjacent rooms.

JK Sound, headed by owner Michael Lacina, assembled the three concert systems within a very tight timeframe. The auditorium system included left and right hangs of EAW KF760 Series line arrays flanking the large stage, with additional KF761 modules on the bottom of each array to supply wider dispersion.

A large VIP area at one side of the stage received additional reinforcement from four EAW KF650 three-way loudspeakers on top of dual EAW Avalon DC2 subwoofers. Meanwhile, the systems de

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Italy - RCF has confirmed its new commercial partnership with Leifull Enterprise (Hong Kong) in China.

Leifull specialises in the lighting and sound industry and boasts over 10 years of progressive development. Although its headquarters are in Hong Kong, the company has branches in Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing in Mainland China.

One of Leifull's strong points is its ability to provide its clients with design consultation, installation and debugging, as well as after-sale services.

During their recent visit to RCF in Italy, Mr Zhou and Mr Huang were able to listen to RCF products in the company's demo room and also to meet the RCF team.

Mr Zhou, Leifull's chairman, commented: "It's a pleasure for us to have the chance to distribute such a well known Italian brand throughout China."

"This is a very important step of our strategic course," says Federi

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UK Liverpool Football Club's new dedicated TV station, LFC TV, launched with its first broadcast on 20 September 2007. Set and scenery contactors, Stage One, were closely involved in the project after LFC TV and award winning production designer Nick King asked them to build the entire studio set.

Located in a former Bryant and May match factory, the state-of-the-art 80 sq.m studio was designed to give each programme a distinctive look and feel. Stage One started by laying a laminated floor, which was inlaid with stainless steel strips, helping to separate the space into several distinct areas.

Centre studio, a seating area was constructed, comprising of a 4m diameter manual revolve upon which was sited four light boxes, two custom-built settees (in LFC red) and a Perspex and laminate central table.

In order to provide a variety of backgrounds for the various camera angles,

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UK - Edinburgh-based installation company, Dynamic Productions consolidated its expansion into the area of hire management, taking recent delivery of a VHD touring and installation system from KV2.

Dynamic's system comprises two VHD 2.0 mid-high enclosures and four each of VHD 2.16 and VHD 1.21 subwoofers, with two VHD 2000 and a further two VHD 3200 power amplifiers. The purchase complements the company's existing inventory of KV2 Audio's ES System which launched Dynamic's initial foray into the hire market in 2006.

The new system has been in constant use. Dynamic director Graeme Anderson comments, "From the other hire companies that have used it, to bands and DJs that have played on it, the response has been excellent. Both systems are compact and easy to transport and set up but have the power to far outperform anything else I've heard."

Edinburgh's major dance

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UK - Draping and stage machinery specialists J&C Joel has manufactured a new set of deep red front tabs, complete with a scalloped top border featuring intricate appliqué work, for the Sunderland Empire - just in time for the venue to celebrate its centenary.

For the busy receiving house, operated by Live Nation for Sunderland City Council and subject to a £4.5 million refit in 2004, the new curtains were "the icing on the cake" according to technical manager Mel James. The last set of new front curtains was installed in 1972.

The project was managed by James Wheelwright with Neal Cartwright, sewing workroom manager, overseeing the manufacturing process and working painstakingly on the final design, including making two site visits to ensure every minute detail was correct. Neal also co-ordinated the physical installation.

Joel's brief was to bring the

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Germany - A spectacular event to celebrate 60 years of Volkswagen vans held in Hanover, Germany, attracted an impressive 71,000 visitors. Atman, Croatia's leading AV specialists supplied and installed a giant digiLED d11R screen for the duration of the festivities.

Volkswagen van fans travelled from as far away as Australia, Portugal, Russia, the Ukraine, Denmark, Poland, the UK, France and Holland to celebrate the occasion. The celebrations started with a special convoy through Hanover from the Volkswagen factory to the showground hosting the event.

All the event festivities, including presentations and prize ceremonies, were relayed onto the digiLED screen from an OB truck on site. A concert by The Who ended the celebrations in spectacular style.

A total of 108 modules created the 83.64m² screen. Measuring 10.56m high x 7.92 m wide, the 12 x 9 module configuration dominat

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Italy - Peterborough-based rental company Moore Audio is confident that it can now offer clients an irresistible upgrade in the speed, quality and cost-effectiveness of its services, thanks to the purchase of a new Electro-Voice XLD line array system.

Proprietor Richard Moore, who started the company four years ago, says that, because EV's XLD technology is so quick to put in place, "We no longer need the hours, even days, of set-up time in expensive function rooms. We can get the PA up and running faster than ever before, and that works out more cost-effectively for my clients."

Moore Audio has purchased from Shuttlesound - Electro-Voice's UK distributor - a system which initially comprises 12x XLD281 3-way ultra-compact cabinets, but, after just a few shows with the new boxes, they are already planning on supplementing the inventory with subwoofers and additional 2

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USA - Constantine Zachariou, engineer and project manager for Washington-based audio/video design firm Avidex, was contracted to handle the audio renovation of the downtown Seattle Art Museum. Zachariou chose Symetrix' SymNet DSP systems to be at the heart of each of the museum's six new audio systems. His objective was to upgrade the museum's audio systems to handle the museum's many uses while still ensuring transparent, easy operation for the museum staff.

The downtown Seattle Art Museum, a crown jewel in the city's vibrant cultural life and home to works spanning human history across many cultures, recently underwent an $86 million renovation and expansion that dramatically increased its gallery space, created a new shop and restaurant, and propelled its audio systems into the 21st century.

Zachariou's designs replaced antiquated analogue systems in the 100-seat Nordstrom

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USA - Wybron has announced that it will be giving away RDM (Remote Device Management) responder source code with a royalty free license at LDI. The license is available to any recognised manufacturer of professional lighting equipment who wishes to add the RDM protocol onto their devices.

"Since we launched our InfoTrace System last year, our customers tell us they really want all of their professional lighting devices to communicate and give maintenance and troubleshooting feedback," said Larry Turner, CEO of Wybron. "By giving away the RDM source code, we hope to support the professional lighting industry's universal adoption of the RDM standard."

"We think RDM is especially important because it gives users the ability to secure vital information from individual devices, making it easier to maintain and troubleshoot the entire installation," sai

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UK - Allen & Heath has announced Version 3.0 of the 'Xone Mixed in Key' harmonic mixing software. Using a patent-pending process for key detection, the new version provides even more accurate results - including multiple keys for more variety - and integrates seamlessly with top DJ software, says the company.

"The new version detects keys like a human musician. To accomplish this task we hired two professional musicians to analyse hundreds of songs. Their results were entered into the latest artificial intelligence technology to teach Version 3 the technique," explains Mixed In Key designer, Yakov Vorobyev. 'Xone Mixed In Key' creates perfect mash-ups, and gives you the ability to sound like a DJ maestro."

'Xone Mixed in Key' is Windows and Mac OS X-compatible software, which analyses MP3 and .WAV files, identifies the key of a track, and highlights which other

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UK - XL Video has taken delivery of 20 new Barco FLM HD 18K projectors including lenses and lamps, worth 2 million Euros.

XL Video UK's MD Lee Spencer explained that the purchase is the latest in XL's ongoing commitment to offering their clients the very latest and best available technologies.

A number of the new Barco HD units will be based at the Bromsgrove, West Midlands offices of Show Support (an XL Group company). XL's HD units are making their debut on the new Take That tour which kicked off last week.

(Jim Evans)

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UK - Bristol-based fabrication specialists Fineline designed and built a customised automation control system for the spectacular scenic crane that featured prominently on Darren Hayes' recent UK tour.

The crane, originated by Hayes' show director/designer Willie Williams, is based on a real origami bird made by Hayes and was a major set centrepiece of the performance. It was built by Total Fabrications, who asked Fineline onboard to deal with automating its five moving parts - the head, beak, tail and wings.

The crane was cleverly disguised as part of the projection screen until the final quarter of the show when it was dramatically revealed - unfolding origami style - to its full measurements of 6.8m high and 8.2m wide with the wings open.

Fineline's Dave Harris worked closely with Total's Mervyn Thomas on the project. Charlie Kail was brought onboard by Williams as consul

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USA- At LDI 2007, Clay Paky will present on the market for the first time the new Alpha Beam 300, a 'hybrid' fixture able to produce a concentrated, extra-bright beam of light. Effects include CMY, 8+1 colour wheel, eight gobos, linear frost, 0-100% dimmer and stop-strobe.

Clay Paky will also be showing a number of new and recently introduced products.

The Alpha Spot HPE 300 is billed as "compact, light, very silent, easy to install and extremely bright (16,000 lux [15°] at 5m), with superior graphic and optical performances.

With the same optical, lighting engineering and constructional qualities as the Alpha Spot HPE 300, the Alpha Spot 300 is fitted with two 8+1 colour wheels combinable together, 15 gobos (eight fixed and seven rotating), morphing effect, rotating prism, 0-100% Dimmer on dedicated channel and stop/strobe.

The Alpha Wash 300 is a compact, light

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UK - Philips Lumileds' chief technology officer, George Craford, was honoured last night with the Innovation Prize in Energy and the Environment at the 2007 Economist Innovation awards, held at The Science Museum, London.

Dr Craford's research work at Philips Lumileds and previously at Monsanto and Hewlett-Packard has enabled the product innovations that have seen the LED transformed into a viable, energy efficient replacement for traditional incandescent and fluorescent light sources. Philips Lumileds LUXEON LEDs are now used in applications from architectural and entertainment lighting to retail and office luminaires and even vehicle headlights.

Tom Standage, business editor at The Economist, said, "George Craford and Roland Haitz's pioneering work on the development and commercialisation of LEDs means that the proportion of human energy consumption attributable to ligh

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USA - Bandit Lites recently finished a lighting installation at the newly opened Randy Parton Theatre. The North Carolina theatre features Randy Parton,brother of country music megastar Dolly Parton, in a live music variety show. In addition to Parton, the venue will showcase a variety of entertainers.

The Randy Parton Theatre is a 1,500-seat show palace with state-of-the-art sound, lighting and video. Bandit sales and design associate, Chris Barbee was hired to be the lighting and rigging system designer and project manager for the permanent installation.

Barbee chose to use six High End Systems DL2s, 16 Martin MAC 700s, 18 Martin MAC 600s, six High End Studio Command 700s, 80 Source 4 Lekos, 100 Source Four PARS and 100 PAR 64 fixtures. 50 Chauvet COLORrado1s were added as truss and set toners as well as eight Chauvet COLORado3s. The lighting package was finished off with 15

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UK - As one of the architectural jewels of the UK's south coast, Chichester Cathedral has been calling people to worship since 1106. In doing so it has set standards for longevity that few buildings can hope to equal, let alone electronics in today's society which is driven by technical change. But the Ampetronic induction loop amplifiers installed in the cathedral back in 1990 are proving that durability isn't just the preserve of stone and mortar.

Linked into the cathedral's 100v line audio system, the Ampetronic induction loop system was installed in the cathedral's main worship areas, comprising five ILD9 loop amplifiers and an ILC5 combining unit.

Despite having provided 17 years faultless service, it would be reasonable to assume that after such a time, the system may well be in need of refurbishment. This was the case with the entire audio system, when contractor RG Jon

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