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USA> - Crown's Xs Series amplifiers are proving a solid, cost-effective choice for powering installed sound systems in houses of worship, the company reports. Jeff Gefke of Calvary Audio Ministry recently chose the Xs Series for Calvary Chapel churches in Visalia, California and Rio Grand, Texas, while another installation using Xs Series amps by Calvary Audio Ministry is currently underway in Oceanside, California.

The power range and versatility of the Xs Series makes it easy to match amplifier power to the requirements of the various loudspeakers used in an installation. For example, in Visalia, a single four-channel Xs 4300 and two Xs 700 amps power the JBL AE Series LCR system, with channels to spare for stage and side-fill monitors, and Xs 700 amps power the subs. Commenting on the performance of the system, Gefke said, "During the Grand Opening with over 1000 people

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UK - London-based production company John Henry's Ltd (JHL) has updated its already substantial monitor system inventory with a major purchase of 40 QSC PowerLight PL236 amplifiers. QSC's distributor, Shure Distribution UK, filled the initial order and provided the product in newly commissioned monitor racks. JHL's special projects manager Pepin Clout said: "All our front-of-house amplifiers are QSC, so it made perfect sense to maintain that continuity. That said, we conducted an extensive market evaluation of all available product, which effectively confirmed our decision that QSC amplifiers continue to be our best investment, based on sonic transparency and performance, power-to-weight ratio, and reliability."

JHL is active not only in live television broadcasts, but are well-established in the concert touring, corporate, and showcase arenas, which places rigorous

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UK - This Christmas Elumin8 was asked by the fashion house Alexander McQueen to design its Christmas windows for the London, New York and Milan stores. The brief was to create something that was high tech and used the innovative elumin8 lamps while at the same time creating an atmosphere that was romantic. Another requirement was that the display was easily transportable and simple to install. Each hanging tree banner is very thin, light and semi transparent and are simply rolled for transportation.

The panels designed by Ginco and the McQueen team are based on a hand drawn Christmas tree, but with a very cotemporary feel and have been programmed to slowly fade and increase luminosity, giving a slightly misty effect to the forest. Richard Kirk, managing director of Elumin8 said: "The Christmas trees really show the creative potential of the elumin8 product, they have transc

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Hong Kong - Hong Kong based Sound Projects agent Shalom AV recently supplied the sound equipment for a worship concert at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium for 2500 people. The 'Stream of Praise concert is performed by a famous Christian worship team that tours around Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the USA. Equipment used for the event comprised: Six SP-4 Diamond (Sound Projects' hybrid line array system) each side flown as line array, four SP-4-15 subwoofer, two SP-4 Diamond as front fill, two SP-2 as centre front fill and two SP-2 as side fills.

Shalom AV Technology successfully served the annual event for the seventh time this year and has already been asked to quote for several other projects because of the outstanding success of the event.

(Sarah Rushton-Read)

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UK - The Tussauds Group have purchased two HK Audio LUCAS 1000 self-powered active systems for use in the Ma Garrita's Bar feature, part of the new Splash Landings Hotel at the world famous Alton Towers Theme Park and entertainments complex.

The client declared themselves to be very satisfied with the quality and flexibility of their existing inventory of HK Audio active enclosures, in the form of Actor AT112A 400W 12"/1" mid-high and AT115S 400W 1 x 15" subs, which are relied on to provide high performance portable sound reinforcement solutions for a wide range of applications throughout the park, the impressive performance of these units meant that Alton Towers technical manager Simon Horsley immediately looked to HK Audio to fulfil Alton Towers' requirement for further systems.

Consequently, LUCAS 1000's were selected as the ideal choice, based on their abi

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Australia - From humble beginnings as a meeting place for Italians in the Western suburbs of Sydney, Club Marconi now provides sporting, entertainment, educational and social services for a whole community of varying cultures and origins. The Club recently extended its facilities to include a 1050 capacity multi-purpose music venue - the Casa Nightclub - with an impressive sound system based around Allen & Heath's iDR DSP system.

A good sound system was high on the agenda for this new project, so Marconi appointed Sydney's leading AV contractor, Total Concept Projects (TCP), to manage the audio installation. The new music venue is a dual function auditorium, which is used as a nightclub and to stage concerts for the numerous high-profile local and international artists who perform at Club Marconi. The design brief consequently specified a split system that could be used equally

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Germany - Mercedes Benz celebrated the 100 year anniversary of its Untertürkheim plant near Stuttgart recently. A ceremony was attended by 300 of Germany's movers and shakers from the political, business and social worlds and events on the main stage were displayed on two huge systems of G-LEC ClassicFrame, which were attached to the facade on each side of the 14 story Mercedes Benz office building.

With both displays measuring 245m², the 140 frames of ClassicFrame, controlled by 12 graphic computers, were used to display live video feed from the events on the main stage. With such a large rig required, ClassicFrame was the only product for the job as owing to the lightweight façade of the building - a video wall would have brought the building down!

Richard Profe, media and lighting designer at Munich and Stuttgart based design company TLD, had been waiting to specify the

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USA - Production Resource Group (PRG) provided a combined lighting, audio, and scenic solution for the latest tour of the popular rock band, Scorpions. PRG's service package includes a conventional lighting rig with Icon control system, a V-Dosc audio system with Midas consoles, and several scenic flats for the band's stage. All of the items were packaged together in PRG's Las Vegas operations depot, which contains a full-service scenic shop and over $50 million in lighting and audio equipment.

"Being able to prep and load all of the equipment and scenic elements from a single operations facility enabled us to respond quickly to the band's needs," stated Mark Coleman, a PRG account executive for the tour. "And by co-packing the items, we were able to save the band significant shipping costs."

The first portion of Scorpion's Unbreakable tour began on October

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Europe - Tom Waits headed to Europe in November to play an eight-date sell-out tour. Monitor engineer Derek VanOrd, who was out with Waits for the first time, chose an InnovaSON 48-input console for use on stage.

VanOrd had first used an InnovaSON console on an 18-month tour with Ben Harper following a recommendation from US PA company Rat Sound. "It seems as if everything is going digital now and eventually you're going to have to make the jump," says VanOrd. "There was a month of band rehearsals prior to the Ben Harper tour so that was a great opportunity to learn to operate a new digital console."

Thanks to his intensive use of InnovaSON with Harper, VanOrd had no hesitation in specifying another board as monitor console for the Tom Waits tour. The console's small footprint, combined with onboard dynamics and EQ, perfectly suited the four venues Waits pl

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UK - The Times London Film Festival, presented by the British Film Institute, is Europe's largest public film event. This year, the 48th annual festival attracted over 116,000 admissions, 280 of which were screened from 60 countries. In addition to an impressive roster of film premieres, many of which are introduced by the film's director, producer or stars, the extensive schedule of festival activities include prestigious opening and closing night galas, after-film VIP parties, industry and public forums, education events, lectures and celebrity interviews. Premier PR, who handles many of the film premiers and after-film parties, turned to Sound Division to provide sound and lighting effects for two high profile parties.

The first was for Chinese director, Zhang Yimou's latest film, House of Flying Daggers. The exclusive after-film party for 500 guests was hosted at Lon

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USA - In order to make the most of an impossible schedule, lighting designer John LaBriola turned to Dallas-based Portal Design Services for help with the Backstreet Boys summer tour of Asia. The band was due to play a night in Beijing and one in Shanghai before moving on to five sold-out nights at the Yoyogi Gym in Tokyo, Japan. LaBriola and lighting director Jason Deboer were to have no production rehearsals for the large-scale arena and stadium-sized shows.

A portable WYSIWYG visualization system from Portal Design Services proved to be the solution to the problem. Portal shipped the self-contained system directly to LaBriola's house so that he could program the show in his home office. "I was able to complete the vast majority of the cueing at home," remarks LaBriola. "The pre-programming was all about information management. We could swap fixtures around in

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Europe - Digigram has announced the appointment of five new European distributors. The company says its new partners will guarantee sales, consulting, and support for Digigram's entire product range (sound cards, networked audio devices including EtherSound products, and audio management software) in their respective vertical markets.

Apex n.v. (www.apex-audio.be), headquartered in Paal-Beringen, will serve the broadcast/MI and public address markets (installed sound and sound reinforcement) in Belgium and Luxembourg; the broadcast and MI markets in Bulgaria will be served by Techno Bulgaria (www.techno.bg), headquartered in Sofia; Naaden-based Media Utilities BV (www.media-utilities.nl) will look after the broadcast and MI markets in the Netherlands and Audio Media Professional AS (www.audio-media.no), headquartered in Oslo, will serve the broadcast and MI markets in Norway. F

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UK - Digital media solutions specialists Projected Image Digital has been appointed as the exclusive re-seller for High End System's Catalyst digital media server software as well as an authorised Apple Ltd reseller. This will enable PID to continue offering the most cost-effective, highly flexible bespoke digital media packages to lighting designers and visual artists working in all areas of entertainment, leisure and the arts.

PID, which has established itself as a leading solutions-based digital media service over the past two years, says that the deals with High End and Apple allow them to offer the latest software-only versions of Catalyst, together with an array of new features and playback hardware at highly-competitive prices. Catalyst Pro software features eight layers, two video outputs, MIDI Show Control input, four serial control devices, three RS422 (Sony 9-pin pr

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UK - When the 26-lane Tenpin Bowl in Gloucester was gutted by fire almost a year ago, owners Tenpin Ltd saw the opportunity to upgrade the design template, and establish a blueprint for the future. The £4.2m multi-zone rebuild of the 500-capacity venue includes an American Pool area, Café Bar and three interlinked conference facilities - in addition to the lanes themselves. It operates from 10am until midnight seven days a week. And when Kevin Hughes' Technation (UK) Ltd successfully tendered for the sound and vision element of the rebuild, he decided to break from the company's traditional speaker brand and use Nexo PS 10s for the first time.

Hughes explains: "While I was familiar with the Nexo PS range I had never installed it before. I was determined to measure all the specs alongside the brand they had been using previously. I looked at dispersion pattern and SPLs, a

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Ireland - The Prince Bar in Athlone, Ireland, has undergone a large-scale refurbishment programme. The new design is wholly suited to the bar's active lunchtime trade but can also be revolutionized into a warm, up-beat haven in the evenings. Owner John Callanan of the Callanan Group wanted something contemporary and attractive, and knew that a good lighting design would be the key to the look and identity of the venue, so he brought in ICAN Technology, who has previously worked on similar projects all over the country.

The large Prince Bar was divided into zones, each with its own innovative décor and purpose to meet varying customer requirements. Downstairs is the carvery area, sandwich bar and a modern lounge and bar section, another small cocktail bar and various seating areas, subtly divided from the rest of the floor plan for privacy. The main fixtures that were used to c

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UK - Pantomime season, and White Light reports that it is supplying equipment to pantomime productions of all scales - from complete lighting rigs for West End theatres to additional effects or moving lights for smaller venues expanding their house rigs to provide the extra sparkle that these shows demand. The list includes no less than 12 different versions of Snow White! Among the shows using equipment from White Light in London are a number productions by Qdos Entertainment, one of the leading national pantomime producers: these include Beauty and the Beast in Hayes, Dick Whittington in Richmond, Peter Pan in Southampton and Southend, Aladdin in Tunbridge Wells and Wimbledon, Snow White in Woking, Cinderella in Wolverhampton as well as the West End pantomime Snow White at the Victoria Palace Theatre. White Light's equipmen

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UK - A colour-matched Martin Audio architectural PA system has been specified and fitted in the new Riverfront Theatre in Newport. Containing a 493-seat main auditorium and 150-seat studio theatre, gallery and conference facilities, the audio installation work in the arts complex was undertaken by AJS Theatre Services, working to a tender document produced by Carr & Angier to a sound system design by Peter Mapp.

AJS followed the formula they had established so successfully with the similarly-configured Brindley Arts Centre in Runcorn (where Carr & Angier were again the consultants). "Martin Audio is our preferred loudspeaker for an installation such as this," confirmed AJS project manager, Chris Coates. "It produces good quality sound - crisp and round - and is perfect for this kind of environment. On top of that the support we receive from Martin Audio has been

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UK - Leading corporate audio specialist Audio Alliance has become one of the first rental companies in the UK to buy the new Meyer Sound SIM 3 audio analyser system. Director Oliver Driver has until now been hiring its predecessor, the award-winning SIM II, since becoming a qualified SIM engineer nearly two years ago. As SIM 3 offers increased power and added features, at a fraction of the original size and cost, it was an easy decision to upgrade, says Driver.

Being so simple to set up and operate with such fast response times, SIM 3 is ideally suited to Audio Alliance's style of business - short-term turn around projects. Driver says: "Although many of our clients may not necessarily understand SIM 3, they are all intrigued and extremely impressed when they watch what it can do and how it seems to SEE sound!"

Soon after arriving at Audio Alliance's Manchester wa

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UK - Newtown-based sound specialists, Sound Induction Systems (SIS), has completed two installations which combine Sennheiser SDC 3000 digital conference and Sennheiser IR systems. The first system was for Monitor Facilities Management at Monmouthshire County Council and the second for the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority HQ in Brecon.

Monmouthshire County Council assessed a number of other systems before arranging a demonstration of the SDC 3000 system with SIS and Sennheiser's John Willett. "In the end," said Phil Nicholes of SIS, "there were two deciding factors, clarity of sound and simplicity of use". The system supplied was an SDC 3000 with 57 delegate units and, as the installation is for permanent use, all wiring is concealed. In addition to the delegate mics, two Sennheiser evolution wireless systems also feed into the system for use in present

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UK - Chatham's Central Theatre has enlisted Marquee Audio to upgrade its PA system as part of the first phase of a number of technical upgrades for the venue. The managers at the Central saw Marquee and the Turbosound PA as a winning combination, having had the opportunity to evaluate the merits of different systems, brought in by various touring production crews, at first hand. Technical manager Chris Stevens said: "These days we get a lot of musical shows, amateur productions of musicals and '70s bands coming through and so we needed a flexible, essentially rock 'n' roll PA. We had been exposed to a lot of Turbosound systems, which deliver a good sound, and when we were ready to upgrade the old system, one of the visiting sound engineers recommended that we include Marquee Audio in our list of companies."

The managers had devised a 'wish list' which included a healt

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UK - Gavin Stewart, managing director of Edinburgh lighting specialist black light, is evidently planning for the company's long-term future with his family. Evidence of this was provided in December when his daughter won an award for lighting design. Robin Stewart won the award for her snowmen design, which was included in the Christmas illuminations for Dunbar, East Lothian. Proof of how far forward her Dad is looking is that Robin is aged just four and three-quarters! "In truth, I was as surprised as anyone," says Stewart, "but it's fantastic to see that Robin is already aware of lighting and is looking at it with a critical eye."

Stewart admits that it may be a few years before his daughter is in a position to succeed him as managing director, but he can't help wondering if this is a sign of things to come. "Of course it's way to soon to wonder what

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USA / China - Loud Technologies, in cooperation with Amoi Electronics, has opened a new distribution and sales office headquartered in Shanghai, China. This office will manage the distribution of Mackie, EAW, EAW Commercial, Tapco and SIA branded professional audio products throughout China.

"The establishment of Loud China will allow us to better leverage our highly complementary professional audio brands throughout this expansive market," commented Loud Technologies director of international sales, Dave Christenson. "With the Mackie, EAW, EAW Commercial and TAPCO product ranges at their disposal, the Loud China office will have the ability to service a broad range of professional audio markets, from individual musicians to large-scale commercial installations and Chinese government ministries."

Loud China has already established a key alliance with Jing

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UK - A Kinesys Elevation 1+ control system and its fully programmable proprietary Vector software is being used as a major dramatic effect on The Darkness's current UK arena tour. This was specified by lighting designer Rod Clay, it's supplied by lighting contractor Neg Earth, and is being operated on the road by Barry Branford.

Clay wanted some large moving elements to his rig, both for general dynamics and for those big 'rock statement' moments. Four moving pods -previously incarnated as a back wall effect for the show earlier in the year - have now evolved into the overhead rig. Once the precision, speed and flexibility of the Kinesys system was demonstrated to Clay at Neg Earth - Clay describes it as, "The most reliable and accurate I have ever used" - he had no hesitation in integrating it into his rig.

Branford and lighting crew chief Nick Barton went to Kine

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UAE - tsg, the Chesterfield-based media programming and installation company has completed its most demanding music profiling assignment to date, after candyrock, the media programming arm of tsg, was tasked with providing themed background music to 40 separate locations within the Madinat Jumeirah Hotel in Dubai.

Set in the shadows of the world-renowned Burj Al Arab, on the Jumeirah beachfront, the Madinat Jumeirah is a development of grand scale, even by Dubai standards, and on completion will be a self-contained city covering a 40-hectare site with two grand boutique hotels - each comprising 300 guest rooms and suites, 340 guest rooms in stand-alone courtyard villas, a souk-style retail complex and the region's largest conference and banqueting facilities - together with a 500-seat theatre, a spa and a nightclub.

With nearly 100 audio zones and eight processor locations t

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