Business

Details
UK - Entec Sound has made a massive investment in d&b's new J-Series line array sound system, boosting stock in time to help service it's hectic summer order book.

The west London based company has purchased sixteen J8 elements, four J12s and ten J-Subs, together with twenty two D12 amplifiers to power it all and four flying frames to hang it.

This follows on from Entec's major purchase of d&b's first generation of Q-series line array two years ago - which has been on the road for them constantly ever since.

The J-Series has been specifically designed to provide high-power-high-quality audio for arena and stadium shows, and any large spaces requiring very high clarity audio including outdoor shows and festivals.

Entec's head of sound Dick Hayes says: "It made complete sense to carry on the d&b route when this product was released, allowing us to offer d&b for all our

Details
UK - Orbital Sound has announced its appointment as the exclusive UK dealer for Zaxcom's revolutionary TRX 900 wireless radio mic system. Representing a major advancement in the art of professional wireless, the TRX 900 system is a remarkable product line that is designed and manufactured by New Jersey based Zaxcom, says the company.

Orbital's head of sales, Tom Byrne says: "The TRX900 system simply re-writes everything we have become used to in radio mic technology. It adds enormous potential both to our rental fleet and our sales inventory as it has been designed from the ground-up for use in contemporary broadcast and theatre applications. Gone is any sense of compression, no noise reduction, companders or de-emphasis. Instead the TRX 900 offers a totally open and natural sound with a dynamic range of 114dB."

Setting a precedent as a versatile and reliable tool, s

Details
Poland - With a Papal visit guaranteed to generate vast outdoor crowds in Poland during May, the country's biggest screen rental company TRIAS needed to ensure that it could provide such numbers with the best possible view. The company therefore invested in a large quantity of Lighthouse R12 outdoor screen.

"The Polish event market is growing rapidly, so to keep our leading position we have to grow at a similar rate - or even faster," says Zbigniew Klonowski, TRIAS' managing director. "Everything we do is focused solely on our clients, so we had many discussions with our events partners and clients on which LED screen to buy. All agreed that the Lighthouse R12 is the best one for outside events."

"A particular advantage of the R12 is its high resolution and brightness, which means that it benefits a large proportion of the kind of huge crowds that witn

Details
UK - Event 2006, John Hornby Skewes & Co's trade-only music show held recently at the company's head office site in Garforth, West Yorkshire, proved once again to be a success on the pro audio side. Both JHS Pro Audio specialist sales managers, Neville Raine and Stuart McKay were on site during Event's four-day duration to discuss and offer advice, along with HK Audio's own team of Andreas Mayerl and Christian Stumpp.

With a variety of new HK Audio product ranges coming onstream and various upgrades of established existing systems, Event had plenty to offer new and existing pro audio customers. To set the scene, trade visitors to the show site were greeted with the sight of a fully-flown hang of Cohedra on a line array tower, matched by a tower hang of the new Cohedra Compact (CoCo) system, offering an ideal opportunity to assess the performance of the systems. Already, Cohedra

Details
USA - Global strategy and technology consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton of McLean, Virginia recently installed one of the largest Symetrix SymNet audio networks ever built for an upgrade in their 147-seat corporate meeting space known as Newman Auditorium.

"In 2002, we recognized a need to redesign and upgrade our AV systems to showcase the latest advances in technology and to better serve the complex needs of our clients," said Gary L. Hall, for Booz Allen. "So in 2004, we began execution of a project to overhaul thesystems in the auditorium."

The Newman Auditorium was originally constructed in the mid-1990s and installed with the current AV technology of that time. Ten years later, Newman Auditorium's aging systems were under constant use and stress so Hall, along with colleague Edwin Morman, worked with Rick Winde, national accounts director, for Profes

Details
UK - Induction loop manufacturer Ampetronic is now running its training programme for installers, architects, consultants, facility managers and sales professionals.

The training programme covers a broad range of topics from DDA legislation and standards, specifying loop systems for different situations both simple and complex, amplifier specification, input audio design, loop installation, survey and commissioning to system maintenance.

"A good loop system requires careful design - far too many systems are installed without consideration of the loop configuration, the input audio systems and the need to provide intelligibility," explains Ampetronic managing director Julian Pieters. "As a result, we see many systems which fail to provide benefit to the hard-of-hearing or meet the requirements of legislation. We are committed to changing this through the educatio

Details
Germany - One of Nexo's most successful distributors, Camco GmbH, has supplied the first five Geo D systems in Germany to prominent rental companies, which are already using the new technology for events as diverse as World Cup football and the Bach Festival in Leipzig.

Artecom in Berlin and Dresden, Babbel + Haeger in Bergneustadt, Hermes Music in Kamen, Veranstaltungstechnik Linke in Leipzig and NPB Veranstaltungstechnik in Neunkirchen are the Geo D pioneers. Reflecting the different specialisations of all these companies, the Geo D systems are already being deployed in a wide variety of applications, from corporate and industrial events to live music and sport.

Three companies - Artecom, Hermes and NPB - have been using Geo D for events that were part of the World Cup Football Championships, and Veranstaltungstechnik Linke took Geo D to the Hessentag in Leipzig for the Bach

Details
USA - In 2000 when Bayside Chapel in Barnegat, New Jersey was making plans for a new church building, Bayside's technical director Bob Seibel put in a call to consultant Tom Young of Electroacoustic Design Services in Oxford, Connecticut. Six years later, the church completed the long journey of fundraising, breaking ground and construction by installing a new sound system featuring Danley Sound Labs loudspeakers which went live in June 2006.

"When we first met, Bayside Chapel was renting a local high school auditorium, but were in the initial planning stages for their own church," said Young, a well-known figure in electroacoustic design for churches. "Around the time, I had listened to several new loudspeakers designed by Tom Danley and was impressed with the pattern control, the phase response and their very natural sound quality. I've kept tabs on his designs

Details
UK - Top DJ mixer manufacturer, Allen & Heath, hosted a party to celebrate the launch of its pioneering MIDI controller/mixer - the Xone:3D. The event, supported by Traktor creators Native Instruments, was held at leading nightclub, Fabric, and comprised comprehensive demos from Ralph Lawson (2020 Soundsystem) who uses Ableton Live 5, and Chris Liebing & Speedy J who both use Traktor DJ Studio.

DJs, retailers, press, and select Xone and Traktor users, were given a step-by-step explanation of how to construct a DJ set with the 3D, introducing clips and samples from the software - mapped to any of the 3D's 86 MIDI controls, which are in the form of faders, knobs and jog wheels - and syncing other music sources via the 3D's USB soundcard.

Guests were also treated to two two-hour live sets from the demo DJ's and a warm up set by London-based Alt*Ctrl, where the full potential of t

Details
UK - Thanks to good teamwork and preparation, lighting co-designers Andrew Bridge and Alistair Grant recently brought Broadway classic Show Boat to the Royal Albert Hall in just four days.

Staged over 15 days in June, Show Boat was the first musical ever to be performed at the Royal Albert Hall and the duo faced a very tight timescale as Grant reveals: "The challenge was to create a musical in four days from fit-up to public performance, compared to the usual four to six weeks for a West End production."

To compound matters co-designer Andrew Bridge's time was limited - he was involved with re-creating The Phantom of the Opera in Las Vegas. It was this constraint which helped shape the decision to make it a co-design with the pair sharing equal billing.

The solution was provided through teamwork, as they re-united with their Sinatra collaborato

Details
New Zealand - Hailing from New Zealand, Fat Freddy's Drop is a seven-piece soul, funk and reggae band which is developing a major following on the world music scene. As well as having big selling records and winning awards in both New Zealand and the UK, Fat Freddy's Drop's reputation is built on by its live shows. The band tours heavily, playing to sell-out crowds across New Zealand, Australia and Europe.

Because of the punishing live schedule, a key requirement for the band's audio equipment is reliability, as well as needing the guarantee of excellent sound, and XTA equipment is at the heart of the band's live rig.

"I've been all round the world with XTA gear," says the band's front of house engineer Richard McMenamin. "Countless times I have prayed before checking my rack in with the 'gentle' airline baggage handlers, but XTA processors have never let me dow

Details
USA - XL Video's UK and Los Angeles office teamed up to support Radiohead's 2006 North American Tour. Des Fallon of XL UK worked with production designer, Andi Watson, to bring the tour to the company, while XL Los Angeles' John Wiseman is managing the North American leg.

XL provided 10 Sanyo projectors in custom made hanging frames which Andi used with six dome camera's and five static mini camera's for the month long theatre tour. Touring on behalf of XL LA is Damion Gamlin.

The tour commenced in Philiadelphia on 1 June, and is concluding on 30 June at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles.

(Chris Henry)

Details
UK - SL Retail has completed a sound installation at the FX Leisure group of fitness clubs in the North of England. The company installed a Versatile Video Foreground music system into the FX club in Stalybridge, which allows gym users to choose from thousands of video tracks, while maintaining the correct ambience within the club itself.

FX leisure - which owns five clubs in the region - approached SLR with a dilemma. How to allow customers freedom to choose their own music, while ensuring that the music was suitable for the time of day, or type of activities going on? SLR suggested installing the Versatile Video system into the manager's office and fully profiling the music for every session of the day. A networked, separate remote selector unit was then fitted into the public area of the gym, where customers can choose from the selection of profile tracks available.

Keith B

Details
UK - Stage Electrics is providing full technical and site production, transport, logistics, marketing, ticketing and administrative infrastructure for the Summer Sounds Spectacularseries of events around the South West of England.

Incorporating ten 5000 capacity green-field sites, the 21 concerts over 10 weekends feature four different formats of entertainment - a Queen / Abba tribute night, the Blues Brothers party, a Rat Pack tribute and a Glenn Miller Band. The shows are tailored to attract families and holiday-makers across the region.

Tour production manager John Radford is working with a team of up to 28 people and three 45 trailers of equipment plus a selection of site vehicles, landrovers, people carriers and cars. Other key personnel include Jono Rose (technical project manager/lighting designer) Jon Rimmer (site manager), Chris Vass (sound design), Brian Clear

Details
Ukraine - Valencia-based loudspeaker system manufacturer D.A.S. Audio reports that its Aero line array systems have rapidly become the PA system of choice in a number of European countries, including Ukraine.

The Aero 48 large-format line array was used at the 'Samsung Tour' which took place in the city of Dnepropetrovsk. More than 25,000 people showed up to see the Moscow band Korni (Roots) with band leader Sergey Dubov. Six Aero 48 systems were flown from each wing of the stage.

The same system was used for the Europe Days event, staged in the famous Europe Square in Dnepropetrovsk. The event, held on 3 June, had as guests singers the Iryna Bilyck and Disco Avaria.

The equipment was provided by the Ukrainian rental company "StormLine", a partner company of "Indigo Music Company", D.A.S. distributor for the Ukraine. The Aero 48 provided excellent coverag

Details
UK - XL Video is supplying three dual output Catalyst digital media servers, a Catalyst DL1 moving head projector, a Barco SLM R12+ and six Sanyo PLC XP56i projectors for the much heralded Sam Buntrock revival of Sondheim's Sunday In The Park With George.

The show has just transferred to the Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End after a popular opening run at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

Visual designer Tim Bird's animated versions of (George) Suerat's pointilliste technique are a vital element of the show and bring a whole new 21st century dimension to the stage. They reflect the artist's ability to create huge compositions with tiny, detached brushstrokes of contrasting colours, too small to be distinguished when looking at the entire work, yet resulting in paintings pulsing with luminosity.

XL Video were initially recommended to Bird as a technical partner by a l

Details
UK - The Who started their 2006 European with an exclusive gig at Leeds University, the venue of their landmark 1970 Live at Leeds. Also celebrating a return to the venue was Showsec, having been awarded the contract to manage audiences at the venue.

This was the hottest ticket in town, quite literally with the soaring temperatures in the intimate venue packed with 2,100 fans. The band showed why they're still at the top with a set comprised of classic tunes spanning the bands four decades inter-dispersed with new material from the soon to be released Wire & Glass rock opera.

Leeds University recently appointed Showsec to manage crowds at all of the shows at the famous Student Union Refectory venue and associated events (such as the recent Tetley Hall Ball) for at least the coming two years. Showsec worked at the venue through the nineties until four years ago.

Details
UK - The recent upgrade of Hatfield Swim Centre in the London suburb of Hertfordshire included a new communication system designed and installed by Stuart Graham's company Clarity in Sound, Light and Vision. Under the direction of health and fitness manager, Amanda Morris, Graham designed a four-zone system, selecting 26 QSC AD-CI52T ceiling speakers to be distributed across the two floors, powered by a QSC CX 204V, four 200W 100V line amp, and fed by two 5-play CD players. He also provided mood enhancement in the swimming pool with some inspired LED effects and a 26in LCD screen in the gym.

Graham thought long and hard about the multi-zoned design solution before coming down in favour of the white, easy-fit AD-CI52T's in this arduous environment. The AD-CI52T's feature an unusually wide frequency range and the ability to deliver higher SPLs. Coupled with wide and even dispersio

Details
Afghanistan / Iraq - Multimedia service providers Presentation Services Ltd (PSL) have helped The Sun newspaper provide a touch of World Cup magic to troops in the desert war zones.

Up to 12,000 hard-working British troops have a vital job to do in Afghanistan and Iraq, so The Sun teamed up with the RAF and PSL to launch Operation St George and let them share the World Cup frenzy via specially-tailored big screen packages.

Aware of the multimedia support offered by PSL (from events such as the Beckhams' World Cup send-off party), The Sun contacted the Potters Bar-based company to see what they could offer.

"The problem we faced was that since this equipment would be going to a war zone we would not be able to send our own technicians - and so we had to make it simple to operate by non-skilled personnel," said PSL's project manager Stuart McLaren. "I had to pu

Details
USA / UK - DiGiCo has announced its intention to incorporate DiGiCo LLC into DiGiCo UK Limited as a wholly owned subsidiary, thus strengthening its global operation.

"Essentially, for our customers, nothing will change," says DiGiCo's managing director Bob Doyle. "The existing US team, including Alan Nichols and Taidus Vallandi, will remain the same. We simply feel that bringing the US into the same structure, both operationally and financially, as the rest of the DiGiCo world will enable us to share our resources in a more effective way and so provide an even better service to our customers."

(Lee Baldock)

Details
USA - The Great American Country Network (GAC) again produced a 4 of July Television spectacular on the banks of the scenic Tennessee River in Nashville and enlisted the services of Bandit Lites to make the event the shining star of the year in Nashville. Butch Spyridon from the City of Nashville put together a world-class staff to produce the event. The staff included Dennis Freeman and Chuck Young as production managers and Mike Frogge as lighting designer. Console operators were John Lucksinger and Larry Bostser.

The Nashville Symphony Orchestra was accompanied by country music legend Ronnie Milsap, current country superstar Josh Turner, and one of the newest sensations on the scene Danielle Peck. The star filled evening was a huge success capped of by one of the largest fireworks displays in the US on the 4 July. This event is recognised as the third best 4 of July extravaga

Details
UK - Built by Sir Christopher Wren in the 1680s following the Great Fire of London, St. Bride's parish church in Fleet Street is one of the Capital's best-known monuments - and as a place of worship dates back as far as the 6th century.

Long associated with the printing and newspaper industries, St. Bride's today stages a wide variety of events - from normal Sunday worship to lunchtime concerts, weddings, conferences, editors' forums, lectures and memorial services.

The broadening nature of the programme meant that serious limitations were being exposed in the existing public address system, and broadcast/multimedia specialists, Interactive View, have specified the replacement of the old sound rig with 16 discrete, ultra-compact Martin Audio AQ6 loudspeakers, as part of an overall package. These are powered by three Martin Audio MA900 amplifiers and optimised using Allen & Hea

Details
UK - ETC is organising a series of training courses for its Congo lighting control console in London at the end of July and throughout August. The basic course (running on 25 July, and 2, 16 and 23 August) covers Congo's major functions, including navigation and programming of the console. The advanced course (26 July, and 3, 17 and 24 August) features an overview of the soon-to-be-released version 4.2 software, including channel layouts, editing dynamic effects, new track editing, using multiple sequence lists and much more. Training is hands-on, with no more than two people per console.

The courses will be held at ETC's new demo room at the company's North Acton facility (which also gives attendees the chance to see ETC's amazing themed reception area) and cost £25 per person per day, including lunch.

For more information, telephone ETC on 020 8896 1000, or to book, us

Details
UK - Hawthorn has worked on Walk the Walk's London MoonWalk for the fifth year running. This year, as well as supplying the London Moonwalk held in Hyde Park, Hawthorn is supplying both The MoonWalk Edinburgh and The Sunwalk Bristol.

For the London Moonwalk, Hawthorn provided lighting, staging, rigging and power distribution for the whole site, plus a sound system for the interior of De Boer's pink 8,500.00sq.m marquee, which was large enough to host over 15,000 bra-clad walkers for a pre-marathon pasta party.

Hawthorn's rigging specialists installed Prolyte ground support truss which supported over thirty 6m long banners, as well as PSL's LED videowalls. "We are thrilled to be working on the Edinburgh and Bristol events and look forward to continuing our relationship with Walk the Walk over the coming years," said Hawthorn's MD, Martin Hawthorn.

"Moonwalk is

  1. Robe in the Mix
  2. Spotlight on World Cup Germany 2006
  3. grandMAs on Eurovision
  4. Premier Mount joins D-Tools MVP
  5. Creative Technology expands inventory
  6. ESTA: Draft Standard available for review
Page 807 of 1813

Latest Issue. . .