Kelsey Acoustics, leading manufacturer and supplier of professional audio and lighting cables, supplied a number of Kelsey 100 touring multipin connectors, looms and breakouts to ATG Spectrum for its recently-completed installation in Studio 3 at the BBC's Television Centre in Wood Lane.

Studio 3 is the new home of the Top of the Pops and Later with Jools Holland broadcasts, and the request for Kelsey's involvement came directly from the sound supervisor responsible for both programmes. Mike Felton explained: "We were temporarily housed at Riverside Studios for TOTP whilst the move and refurb was going on, and SSE were supplying all the monitoring and PA facilities. They use Kelsey's 32-way multicore as standard, and having used it ourselves, Gary [Clarke, sound supervisor TOTP] and I immediately requested that a compatible line system be installed in Studio 3. It entirely fitted

The Entech 2002 Conference program features workshops and seminars in areas of lighting, design, rigging, audio, projection and even the business needs of a DJ. Sessions includeIntroducing the Line Array; The Future of Systems Integration and ProAV Technology; Venue Design Forum; Digital Live Sound Mixing; Lighting Designer Forum; Rigging Workshop; Stacks and Racks; Motor Training School; Location Sound Recording; Trends in Facilities; The Art of Designing with Moving Lights; We Are Surrounded (Surround Sound); and The Changing Face of Post Production.

Entech 2002, Australasia’s leading entertainment technology trade show, will be held in Sydney’s Darling Harbour from 4-6 February 2002. For further details on the conference programme and exhibits, visit the web address below:

In the first major revision to the Renkus-Heinz Synco Touring System since its introduction four years ago, Synco Europe has announced a single, new mid/high cabinet to replace the long and short throw cabinets currently in use across the Synco Network. The Synco Network members (Ampco Pro Rent and PAS Audio of Holland; DEE Sound and Light and Flashlight/APR of Belgium; R G Jones of the UK and Puro Audio of Portugal) agreed on a programme of updating their current stock of equipment with the latest technical updates. The result is a radical change from all of the network’s current MH 60-40 (40 degree vertical dispersion) and MH 60-25 (25 degree vertical dispersion) cabinets to the new standard long-throw cabinet, the MH 60-30."It has not only entailed a major change in Synco Network logistics and planning," comments Fred Heuves, managing director of Synco Europe. "Th

Synonymous with the grass roots of concert touring, Skan PA's work portfolio has expanded under the judicious eye of directors, Chris Fitch and Abby Llewellyn, into something that is quintessentially British. They have recently simultaneously supported Orbital and Gabrielle - the latter on an exclusively British tour lasting two months, running an all-British sound rig. The company has followed up the successful beta-testing of the new TQ-310 enclosures with the band Tindersticks, by using them as infills with Gabrielle. The tour also sees a new departure for Skan, using TSW-721 subs for the first time. The tour also features continued successful use of specially manufactured 'overhangs' - provisionally designated the TFL-760HF.

Skan’s Chris Fitch says that Turbosound's willingness to listen to the requirements of PA companies, such as Skan and Britannia Row, is the reason for th

Ad Lib Audio‘s new JBL VerTec series line array system is out on its first UK dates with the Ministry of Sound’s student union tour - a demanding, action packed environment demanding the very best in audio.

Ad Lib first used JBL’s Ver-Tec system in the late summer when they ran a system in the VIP tent of the Ministry’s massive event at Knebworth Park. Ad Lib and Ministry’s crews, plus assorted DJs, were so impressed with VerTec that they decided to use it for the upcoming tour. Ad Lib were hired as audio contractors for the events, and decided to purchase their first VerTec speaker enclosures - in a deal completed at PLASA with UK JBL distributors Arbiter Pro Audio.

Ad Lib’s Dave Kay and Ben Baker are crewing the Ministry tour, using 12 ground-stacked VerTec VT4889 boxes - plus their own Ad Lib subs - to create a high energy sound concentration in

Having already made a lot of friends in the live music industry, XTA's versatile SiDD processor is proving itself an essential tool for sound engineers in the corporate market. Sound engineer Richard Waghorn is a regular SiDD user who has used the units on product launches and conferences for a range of high-profile clients, including Honda, TNT, DHL and One-2-One. He recently used the units at a management conference for global fast food retailer McDonalds, held at the Hilton Metropole hotel in London.

The conference hosted 1000 delegates and required 24 channels of audio, which comprised four lectern mics and a range of tieclip mics, plus VT stings and other playback elements. The sound was broadcast to the floor via Funktion One Resolution 2 loudspeakers. A major drawback of corporate events is that they often take place in venues which were not designed for amplified audio. SiDD pr

Visitors to the Serpentine Gallery might have wondered what was going on when LA-based artist Doug Aitken brought his New Ocean exhibition to Kensington Gardens, London Crowning the mixed media installation, which included 20 video projectors supplied by DVS, and audio throughout the building supplied by Total Audio, were two Coef Show 250 scanners (programmed on a Compulite Spark console) - supplied by i-Vision in conjunction with Fentura Productions.

Britannia Row Productions has recently signed the V-DOSC Network Agreement to join the worldwide network of L-Acoustics V-DOSC Partners since December 1st.

Since its foundation in 1975, Britannia Row Productions has developed a worldwide reputation, specializing in audio design, project management and the supply of sophisticated sound equipment with sound engineers and technicians for major events and concert tours. Britannia Row Productions has been using L-Acoustic systems for its tours and projects for several years. Britannia Row Productions will receive their first delivery by mid-December of a complete arena system.

Innovation - Turbosound’s official installer in Tyne and Wear - was recently commissioned to supply and install the sound system for a ‘wild west’ theme bar in Newcastle. Purpose-built on two floors, Buffalo Joe’s is the latest and now the largest theme bar to hit The Quayside, with a capacity of up to 1000 people.

Hosting a schedule of live entertainment six days a week - which includes a DJ throughout open hours, cabaret, live PA and bucking bronco - the owners considered the sound system to be a major priority. Innovation tendered successfully, and the company designed and installed the sound system, the main backbone of which is 12 Turbosound TCS-259 speakers positioned discreetly amongst the wild west props throughout the ground floor, six TCS-35 speakers set on the first floor, six TCS-118 subwoofers placed throughout the ground floor, along with one THL

In a relatively new application, XTA's DP324 dynamics controller, or SiDD (Seriously Intelligent Digital Dynamics), has been chosen for use with the in-ear monitoring system for Sophie Ellis-Bextor and her band. A total of five channels were used under the control of monitor engineer Sean Busby-Little, who commented: "SiDD is a very versatile unit because it has so many functions, which are all easily accessible for a live gig situation. A lot of digital units tend to be a bit slow to access the parameters but I have not found that with these, everything is very user friendly . . . You would normally have to have at least three units chained together to achieve what you can do with one of these so the size of it is an added bonus, all the toys you need and it's only 1U."

SiDD (the DP324) is a powerful processing unit incorporating Brick-Wall limiting, input EQ, High and Low p

Musselburgh, a seaside town just outside Edinburgh, is home to the Cube, a brand new 1,200-capacity club over two floors built from the ground up by local entrepreneur Alfredo Alongi. This impressive venue has the distinction of being the UK's first EViD installation. This new range of elegant ellipsoid loudspeakers from Electro-Voice designed specifically for contractors made its UK debut at the PLASA show earlier this year.

Installers Starstruck Sound and Light were responsible for specifying the EViDs. Starstruck's Kenny Taylor admitted that he had in fact specified another brand until Shuttlesound's Andy Murray walked in with an EViD to show him. "It was definitely a case of the right product at the right time," said Taylor. "Visually the EViDs look stunning - a real departure from the usual black box scenario - and being EV, I was fairly convinced they'd sound good

Shuttlesound has appointed Virgil Lund to its sales team. According to senior sales manager, Sean Maxwell, Lund's appointment completes "the strongest sales team we have ever had, with expertise across all areas of the professional audio market." Lund's particular speciality is in MI and the rental market, having come from almost a decade in MI and pro audio retail with the Academy of Sound where he held the position of assistant branch manager. "I'm extremely customer service-driven," explains Lund, "and I'm delighted to have the opportunity to develop my skills and passion for sound reinforcement across such a broad customer base with a wide range of products from prestigious brands. Having spent nearly 10 years on the other side of the counter, I think I'm in a good position to anticipate exactly what customers want from a supplier and make sure we deliver it!

Young Voices is an annual event featuring competing choirs from local schools. This year's shows have taken place in some of the UK's largest touring circuit arenas - Newcastle, Sheffield, Manchester and Birmingham. The show is different to most in that the 'choir' consists of 7,000 schoolchildren! To fit this amount of people into an arena takes up most of the available space.

Canegreen were chosen to supply audio for this year's event because of their experience in this field. Faced with the task of providing a full performance system with total coverage for the attending audience, together with a comprehensive fold back system for 7,000 choristers (and band) and with the added complications of set up restraints because of rehearsals, they decided to use the new EAW 760/761 line array system.

Canegreen managing director and Yes fan Yan Stile said: "We'd previously used this ne

Mackie Industrial, the contractor products division of Mackie Designs, has introduced the DX 10E Expansion Card for the Mackie Industrial DX8 digital audio mixer and signal processor. The DX 10E Hardware/Software expansion kit transforms the DX8 into a sophisticated programmable 8x10 matrix mixer with enhanced signal processing capabilities. The kit also includes upgraded control software and an improved user interface.

"We've said since the introduction of the DX8 late last year that we were creating a platform capable of supporting the needs of systems integrators into the future," comments Costa Lakoumentas, product director for Mackie Industrial. "The DX 10E turns the DX8 into an incredibly powerful matrix mixer and signal processor unrivalled in functionality and value. Whether you need a sophisticated matrix mixer, a speaker processor, a paging controller or any on

As tribute bands go, the Australian Pink Floyd are a touch different: for a start they imitate a band that, on stage at least, have virtually no physical presence, so they are relieved the task of attempting to look like them.

Lead guitarist Steve McElroy - the David Gilmour of the band - does make some small gestures towards his cipher, the mic stand arrangement is identical, with the tuner strapped just so off a separate stalk. He even manages those strange facial gestures during the guitar solos that I remember so well from my time working with Gilmour in the early eighties. But essentially this is all about the music, and they don’t make a bad fist of it - indeed The Times is quoted on the band’s flyer as saying: "Probably the greatest tribute band in the world," which, in the wider scheme of things, places them on a par with Carlsberg Lager, entirely appropri

CP Sound has just completed phase one in a major new club sound and lighting installation, in the Cellar Club at Reynolds nightclub in Stafford, West Midlands. The intimate 150-capacity space has vaulted ceilings, with arched passages snaking mysteriously below ground level. Above are two additional floors which are currently being developed and which will soon to become an integral part of what will be a much larger venue.

The sound system is all JBL, supplied by JBL's UK distributors Arbiter Pro Audio. The Cellar's dancefloor area features four JBL MS112 top speakers and two MS125S subs. The bar is serviced with four of the new JBL Control 29s, with Control 24 speakers also in the toilets. For the DJ booth, CP Sound supplied Technics SL1210 turntables and an Allen & Heath Xone:464 mixer, complete with a Denon DN-1800 twin CD player. The mixer was chosen to provide the facility of liv

Autograph Sales Ltd, an authorized distributor for Digital Talkback, has reported an excellent response to the company’s new DTB-2001 system since its launch at the PLASA Show in September. One of the major advantages of the DTB-2001, say Autograph, is its total compatibility with all two- and four-wire communications systems, including Clear-Com, for which Autograph Sales is the UK distributor. In addition, the DTB-2001 is the first system of its kind to exploit DECT technology, widely used in the telecoms industry. This form of digital frequency agility saves set up time and is licence exempt in the EU and many other countries worldwide.

Autograph Sales has sold and shipped over 30 Digital Talkback units since the product was launched at September's PLASA show. These units went to a variety of users, including broadcast clients, theatre and concert service providers, such as Gr

Yamaha’s eagerly-anticipated new DM2000 digital mixing console was launched last month at an uncommonly extravagant presentation in Birmingham.

The city was chosen for the corporate facilities of the ICC, the hospitality of the city centre’s main restaurant strip and the proximity of the following morning’s Sound Broadcast Equipment Show (SBES) at the NEC - for which Yamaha’s event provided a significant curtain-raiser.

In another world-launch coup for the Japanese company’s UK operation, Yamaha-Kemble UK’s sales and marketing director Ricci Hodgson hosted a dramatic unveiling of the DM2000 amid dry ice and thunderous sound effects. This was followed by a detailed description of the DM2000’s specifications by Terry Holton, head of the R&D team in London, for which the new console represents a major evolutionary step from the hugely successful

Outline has launched the new H.A.R.D. 212 'low-profile' stage monitor, ideal for no-nonsense television studio and live band applications. Its unique acoustic architecture, with a folded waveguide (patent pending) for reproducing mid/high frequencies, has enabled the cabinet's maximum height from the floor to be limited to just 33cm, combining compactness with high quality performance.

Fitted with three neodymium loudspeakers - 2 x 12" woofers and a 3" compression driver loaded with the waveguide, the H.A.R.D. 212 can produce a maximum SPL of 135dB (AES), 141 peak, from 60Hz to 17kHz, with an almost constant polar response over a listening distance of between 0 and 3 metres. Another interesting feature of the enclosure is its lack of susceptibility to feedback, even at high SPLs, say Outline. The use of speakers with neodymium magnets has allowed the system's weight to be red

MC2 Audio has announced the appointment of three new international distributors since the PLASA Show in September. The company has welcomed to its network of agents worldwide IS Music Trading, based in Tallinn, Estonia; Triangle Sound & Image, based in Lebanon; and Prolight, based in Warsaw, Poland. MC2 Audio director Ian McCarthy told PLASA Media: “We are looking forward to working with our new partners to take our products forward in these exciting new markets and we wish them every success."

Classic Sound, the UK's only dedicated 5.1 film and classical music facility, has taken delivery of a TC electronics 6000 surround sound effects unit supplied by distributor HHB. Classic Sound’s 6000 unit is networked to the main 5.1 mix room and the facility’s two editing suites, where it is being used for DVD and film projects and 5.1 mastering work.

Neil Hutchinson, director and co-owner of Classic Sound, say: "Since opening last March we have seen a steady increase in the number of 5.1 projects we are handling. A large proportion of our workload is now for 5.1-based product such as DVDV, DVDA, SACD and cinema release."

He continued: "The TC 6000 was an obvious addition to our equipment list as it complements our already extensive range of outboard reverb units, which include two Lexicon 480L and 300L units and two TC5000 reverbs."

TC Group, the Danish parent company of TC Electronic, TC Works, and TC-Helicon, has made an offer to the shareholders of TGI plc to purchase their holdings in the company. TGI plc, listed on the London Stock Exchange, is a holding-company comprising four companies representing individual platforms on the pro audio market - loudspeaker manufacturers Tannoy and Martin Audio; Swedish company Lab Gruppen - manufacturer of power supplies and high-end amplifiers, and GLL - a manufacturer of speakers for the in-car market.

"The purpose for wishing to merge with TGI plc is actually quite simple. It is a matter of creating synergy between the TC technology in digital audio processing and TGI's years of experience in developing, producing and marketing speakers. By combining digital technology from TC and the speakers developed and produced within the TGI plc Group, we will be able to devel

Cadac Electronics has extended its successful series of technical seminars, announcing a new programme for 2002. Kicking off on 23 January at Cadac's UK premises in Luton, the 2002 schedule is focusing on Quality Engineering for Live Sound Applications - combining practical presentations on Balancing and Shielding, EMC, Gain Structure, as well as comparisons between Digital and Analogue console design approaches.

The monthly seminar series is designed to provide sound operators, engineers, designers, installers and consultants with an invaluable insight into key engineering and design issues, based on Cadac's extensive design expertise. The seminars are led by sound and console design expert Tony Waldron, formerly head of sound at London's Royal National Theatre.The Cadac Sound Seminars for 2002 reflect Cadac's corporate philosophy of sharing information and providing an educational fr

Kent's event of the year went off with a bang, as 12,000 people gathered at Hop Farm for a night of fun, fireworks and pop, with performances from acts including Hear'say, Liberty, Jo Breezer, Right Said Fred, Thymes 4, Dodgy, Supersister, A1 and the All Stars.

PA Company SRD group supplied for the event a GAE Director FOH system which consisted of four flown mid/highs per side married with two bass cabinets whilst additional cabinets and bass support were ground stacked. Monitor duties where handled by a mixture of GAE Modular II, Pro-Stage and 152TM cabinets all powered by QSC Powerlight amplifiers, with PL218s, 230s, 236s, PL6s and even PL9s being pressed into service. On the microphone front all wired and wireless microphones were Shure, with Premier Series Wireless fitted with Beta58 and 87 capsules seeing the most vocal action on the day.

In-ear monitoring was again Shure, with

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