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USA - Element Labs has appointed Steve Simard as sales director for North America. The appointment forms part of Element Labs' continued growth strategy. Simard brings to Element Labs over 10 years experience. Prior to joining Element Labs, he spent over 12 years refining his skills in the fields of display technology integration and project technology, working closely with retail developers, building owners, brands and advertising agencies alike.

A graduate of Kennedy Western University's business program, Simard consolidated his skills and industry expertise in various positions with technology firms such as Barco and Saco Smartvision. He will be based in Atlanta, Georgia.

(Jim Evans)

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UK - City Theatrical has provided more SHoW DMX equipment to specialist lighting contractor Howard Eaton Lighting for Cameron Mackintosh's new production of Oliver! now playing at The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in London's West End.

SHoW DMX is used on the production to provide DMX control to dimmers and smoke machines mounted on a large scenic flying piece, which would otherwise have entailed a complex and troublesome cable run to the already crowded theatre flying grid.

For many years, WDS Wireless Data System, SHoW DMX's forerunner, provided London's West End shows with wireless DMX, and the new technology of SHoW DMX is rapidly establishing itself in London, on Broadway, in Las Vegas, and in other venues around the world.

The production lighting designer for Oliver! is Paule Constable, and the senior production electrician is Gerry Amies. Lighting equipment

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USA - For the 51st GRAMMY Awards Show, Audio-Technica supplied over 250 of its microphones, including an impressive array of hard-wired mics and Artist Elite 5000 Series UHF Wireless Systems.

The team working on this year's GRAMMYs featured many top-tier contributors who returned to ensure the success of this landmark event. The sound system was provided by ATK AudioTek with FOH (front-of-house) Engineers Ron Reaves and Mikael Stewart, while the broadcast audio was supervised by Phil Ramone and Hank Neuberger, leading members of the Producers & Engineers Wing of The Recording Academy. New York-based XM Productions/Effanel Music were onsite with their L7 remote truck to create the music mix, facilitated by music mixers John Harris and Eric Schilling.

For the home audience, CBS once again delivered the most advanced form of HDTV, with 1,080 lines of picture resolution and 5.1-ch

featured content

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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The DPA 4011 cardioid has been in production for 20 years this year. To celebrate this important milestone, DPA is offering the 4011-TL with a special 11% price discount via local representatives. This includes a free-of-charge engraving, allowing customers to own a personalised version of one of the best quality microphones available. This offer is valid till the end of April 2009.

"When the 4011 was launched in 1988, its use was entirely aimed for the studio," says DPA's co-founder Morten Stove. "However it has become just as popular on the live stage, due to its fantastic specifications."

Over its 20-year history, the DPA 4011 has become the mic of choice among professionals for handling high SPLs while simultaneously delivering a clear, well defined sound. Noted for its flat on-axis frequency response, the 4011 is also extremely linear off-axis, making it idea

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USA - As the latest addition to QSC's AcousticDesign Series, the AD-S28T surface mount subwoofer is acoustically matched to all other offerings within the AD Series. Shipped with a spec sheet revealing a continuous power handling capacity of 250 watts and capabilities for managing up to 700 watt peaks, the new subwoofer has a 70/100 volt multi-tap transformer with 8-ohm bypass, frequency response of 42 Hz-165 Hz, and sensitivity of 94 dB (1W/1m).

Central to the AD-S28Tw's high performance prowess are a pair of 8" woofers outfitted with polypropylene cones for added protection in humid environments. The loudspeaker's bandpass enclosure incorporates a pair of chambers: one that is completely sealed, and another with a large port. Giving added precision to low frequency extension down to 36 Hz, the highly efficient design is further complemented by an onboard low-pass filter s

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The Netherlands - Alcons reports a very successful ISE show. Playing on home-turf, many international clients and interested potentials, among which of course many Dutch, stopped-by the stand. Highlights were the CR1 3-way ultra-compact AV / Digital Cinema sound system and the LR7 micro pro-ribbon line-array.

MD Tom Back states: "We participated at ISE three years ago and the attendance and importance of the show has grown significantly, also for us as a sound system manufacturer. The response from our visitors was very positive, although most of them mentioned that they would like to see a more "focused" show lay-out, with a concentrated pro-audio section, making their visit more efficient. Other than that, great show, good meets and leads."

(Jim Evans)

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USA - Roger Daltrey and Pete Townsend, founding members The Who, have used Shure microphones onstage for more than 40 years. Their energetic live shows are often highlighted by Daltrey swinging his microphone - a standard Shure SM58® - over his head in wide arcs. Now, the rockers famous for punishing their equipment explain their loyalty to the microphones that have been taking it for so long in the new Shure Reason Why advertising campaign.

The band is just one of the artists appearing in the campaign, which features performers talking candidly about why they have remained faithful to Shure microphones throughout their careers. Other performers appearing in the series include Maroon 5, Brad Paisley, G. Love, Martina McBride, and The Black Crowes. Each ad also promotes the artist's latest album release, concert tour, and website.

"Performers all over the world

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UK - Recent industry news headlines claiming that Ofcom has made assurances to the PMSE (Programme Making & Special Events) sector about its future use of spectrum, as well as promises of compensation for equipment made obsolete by the changes, have been greeted with caution by PLASA.

The claims in the news give the impression that Ofcom will make suitable alternative spectrum available UK-wide for the PMSE sector, and that compensation or 'funding' will be made available so that users of the spectrum do not have to bear the costs of replacing radio microphone equipment.

However, PLASA's technical resources manager Ron Bonner, a member of the BEIRG (British Entertainment Industry Radio Group) steering committee which is campaigning against Ofcom's proposed measures, says that we should remain very wary of Ofcom's plans. He told L&SI: "The recent headlines should be treate

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Slovakia - The Slovakian staff of Mercedes-Benz held their Christmas party in the Park of Culture in Bratislava. LASA, a rental company based in the city, was responsible for the equipment and a Cobra-4 line array system from Dynacord provided the sound.

The main PA comprised eight Cobra-PHW, four Cobra-4-Top, and two Cobra-4-Far enclosures. Stanislav Lehen of LASA cited a number of reasons for his decision to invest in a Cobra-4, "For one thing, Cobra-4 provides outstanding sound quality. It also provides easy handling and enormous flexibility: with Dynacord's Cobra system, anyone can provide sound reinforcement for small, medium-sized, and even large events."

To counteract the long reverberation time of the main hall in the Park of Culture, LASA set up two delay lines (at 35 and 50m). Mercedes-Benz was so pleased with the results of their Christmas party with Cobra

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USA - The HBO open signal presentation of 'We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration' at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC served as the nation's televised kickoff of the 56th Presidential Inauguration. Captured live at the National Mall, the event drew hundreds of thousands to see and hear a lineup including Bruce Springsteen, Beyonce, U2, Sheryl Crow, Shakira, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, and others.

Sound reinforcement for the concert was courtesy of Clair Global and was mixed-for-air by veteran television production mixer Ed Greene. Wireless chosen for the event included 16 channels of Shure UR4D systems, using various combinations of bodypack and handheld transmitters, many of which sported SM58 capsules.

The Clair system spanned two miles from the Lincoln Memorial steps to the Capitol using a combination of the Lititz, Pennsylvania-based company's i5 and i3 enclosu

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USA - Southern California-based Sound Image Inc. has agreed to purchase over 800 I-Tech HD amplifiers for its tour sound business. "Our customers are extremely demanding and I-Tech HD gives Sound Image the ability to take our system performance to unprecedented levels," stated Dave Shadoan, president of Sound Image Inc. "At Sound Image we have always prided ourselves on providing the best sound possible to the clients we serve."

Sound Image's touring division is known as a provider of premium live sound systems, working with major artists such as Rascal Flatts, Jimmy Buffett, Eric Clapton, and Taylor Swift to name a few.

At its core, I-Tech HD features a new user-inspired DSP engine co-developed with BSS called OmniDriveHD. The new processing engine features Linear Phase FIR filters that offer "unrivaled crossover performance for sonically pure tunings

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USA - Crown Audio has introduced the new I-Tech HD Series - an introduction which, the company says, "dramatically resets expectations of what a professional-grade touring amplifier should deliver in terms of performance, processing, integration and ease of use".

At its core, I-Tech HD features a new user-inspired DSP engine co-developed with BSS Audio and Linear Phase FIR filters that offer unrivalled performance, the company says. I-Tech HD boasts Crown's Class-I amplifier technology, new software and a wide choice of input options including CobraNet and the all-new LevelMax limiters (Peak, Thermal and RMS).

Developed in conjunction with sister company BSS Audio, the next generation OmniDriveHD DSP engine at the heart of I-Tech HD is built on a new architecture specifically optimised for fast and efficient audio processing to provide tour and contracting profession

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USA - Shure Incorporated has selected Highway Marketing of Dallas, TX, as its new sales representative in the mid and south central United States. The company will be responsible for sales of the complete Shure line of professional audio products to retailers and systems contractors in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas.

"Scott Baker, Steve Simmons, and the entire staff at Highway Marketing bring several decades of combined experience and proven success in our industry to our team of independent sales reps," said Jim Schanz, director of US field sales for Shure. "They have a thorough understanding of our constantly evolving industry from the perspective of dealers and manufacturers. We are confident they will continue their success and help grow our business in the region."

"Highway Marketing is thrilled to be representing Shure," said Baker

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Turkey - Thomas Cook's award-winning annual conference took place in Antalya, Turkey in December 2008. The two back to back conferences catered for over 2500 of Thomas Cook's managers from across the business, over a six-day period.Produced and staged by drpevents, part of the DRP Group, the conference included spectacular outdoor welcome evenings, a Strictly Come Dancing competition, two closing ceremonies featuring singer Candi Staton, and two prestigious gala dinners, which included award ceremonies.

The Strictly Come Dancing evening was one of the highlights of the conference as staff that were paired with professional dancers got the chance to compete with their colleagues from all over the business. A week of full auditions were staged at drp studios in the UK.

Ian Ruhback, senior technician from drpevents explained the lighting for the conference: "So

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UK - Litestructures supplied a key feature for the latest European tour of the American boy Band New Kids On The Block (NKOTB).

This was the first time Litestructures worked with the band. Production manager Bobby Schneider contacted Litestructures to supply a circular lift which would be located in the middle of the crowd, and would be able to hold the band and rise to up to 6' high.

Litestructures came up with a concept of adapting one of their standard Scissor lifts with a circular 12' diameter LiteDeck staging system - all used from the company's hire department.

The end result was a success and the lift acted as the centre piece of the show and toured with the band for three weeks. In smaller venues, the lift was replaced with a static 12' diameter circular LiteDeck.

Ben Brooks, hire manager at Litestructures comments: "It was a fantastic opportunity for Litestru

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UK - Leading production companies and individuals contributed skills, equipment and resources to make the 2009 Barnes Charity Ball, staged at St Mary's Church in London, a memorable fundraiser for the Under Tree Schools project in Sudan.

Richard Lambert was asked to help with the lighting, and a few conversations later, he'd enrolled the help of some of the industry's finest to help too. These included Noreen O'Riordan of Entec Sound & Light who provided the lighting rig, and Michael Althaus of MA Lighting who supplied the control system. Production management was undertaken by Ryan Brown of Entec and programming by Liz Berry, with additional help and operations by Jonathon Lyle.

The overall lighting design was completed by Richard, who said: "People and companies in the lighting industry are truly amazing! It's great to be able to help with something like this and incred

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USA - Dover International Speedway's recently-completed Victory Plaza is home to Miles the Monster, NASCAR's most enduring mascot and one of the world's tallest fibreglass structures. Towering some five stories above the Speedway's famed Monster Mile, the statue's glowing red eyes and menacing grin preside over the many ceremonies and dedications at the Plaza.

Powerful sound surrounding Miles is provided by Community WET-Series loudspeakers, chosen for their ability to deliver clearly over the roar of dozens of stock cars and thousands of fans in any weather.

(Jim Evans)

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UK - Experienced audio professional Fran Hunter has joined Red Square Audio where he will be primarily involved as technical sales manager, but will be also working closely with founder Paul Nicholson on demo and training activities in support of both the Innovason and Tannoy lines.

Hunter has been working in studio and live professional sound for over 15 years. He has been involved in work as varied as rebuilding a Neve room for a London studio, working in studios across Europe, firefighting (in some cases quite literally!) through the night on major tours and festivals, and completing live multi-track recordings for artists such as Prince.

Paul Nicholson comments: "It's great to have Fran on board. We are coming to the market with two amazing products, the Innovason Eclipse and the Tannoy VQ LIVE, and Fran's experience and knowledge will enable us to deliver the very h

Details
USA / UK - 2008 was a successful year for Eat to the Beat Inc, part of the Global Infusion Group. From becoming the in-house caterer at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD, and the Virgin Mobile Festival in Baltimore to the ATP festival in upstate New York. Several major tours of the US were also undertaken. The company has truly established itself as the caterer of choice for the discerning palette.

Coldplay- international touring artists utilized the company's services twice in '08. Long-standing Eat to the Beat team member Heidi Varah, led the catering crew. Along with her were Darren Shead and Jesse Davies creating "delicious and inspired meals" daily.

These meals were complemented by the work of Pauline Austin and Sarah Money with salads and freshly made desserts. Rounding out the team on the front line, Jessie Collins and Peter Kostandelos looked after t

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USA - Auralex Acoustics is creating performance art of its own in the Blue Man Groups' newest rehearsal space with its acoustical treatment products. The internationally successful group recently moved into its new NYC recording and rehearsal facility and immediately recognised the need to balance the acoustics of the space, specifically the voice over booth and the live performance room.

"When we moved into the new space, we had to get the vocal booth as dead as possible," says Chris Mulhauser, musical instrument manager of Blue Man Productions. "Auralex played a big part in that through their StudioFoam and T'Fusor Diffusors products, they work great."

(Jim Evans)

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Korea - An Allen & Heath iLive digital mixing system has been selected by the Bethel Independent Church in Seoul, Korea. The iLive system - comprising an iDR10 MixRack loaded with 48 inputs and 24 outputs and iLive-144 Control Surface with 16 inputs and 8 outputs - was chosen because of its ability to cater for a diverse range of events, which includes services, gospel singing and rock concerts.

"I am very proud that we have the iLive system installed. We host a rock concert at least once every two months, as younger generations are involved in the Church's activities, and this system has the capacity to manage all the requirements. I also like the sonic quality, which is natural, clear and warm. My dream has come true," says Pastor T. N. Park.

The 930-capacity venue also installed a Renkus-Heinz line array, a Dolby surround sound system, and a 450" centre scree

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