The guest speaker at next week's meeting is Steve Andrews from the DTI's Office of Science & Innovation who will update members on the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances Regulations) Directive which passed into UK law on Saturday 1 July. The agenda will also address PLASA's recent lobbying activities and its appointment of a political & parliamentary consultancy, which led directly to the tabling of parliamentary questions on RoHS. Energy Minister
Lee Engineering also has a reputation for thoroughly scrutinising each new piece of equipment before it goes out. "The kit goes straight into the workshop," says director Phil Leedal. "We are a sales rep's worst nightmare as we won't sell anything that we know will give us grief."
One of the company's major accounts is right on its doorstep - Lancaster University's nine colleges and Student Union nightclub, The Sugar House. In the past, each of the colleges had operated its own indepen
"Designed for sound reinforcement, fixed install and studio applications, the UK-manufactured LA Audio range brings fresh thinking to every application, adding functionality, reducing complexity and optimising sound quality throughout," say JHS.
"Sound quality is our first principle," says LA Audio's founding designer, Steve Buchanan. "All of our products are are designed to deliver maximum headroom, minimum noise and distortion, with the most intuitive user interface possible."
LA Audio's product ran
Offering a range of study options from specialised short courses and workshops through to full time audio and post courses, Alchemea has a policy of using only the best equipment in its classrooms, and has equipped itself with DPA microphones.
"We chose DPA because we believe in giving our students the best mics available, so that when they go out into the real world they have realistic, high quality benchmarks to base their choices and opinions on," says Alchemea lecturer and certified Pro Tools instructor Neil Pickles. "Put simply, you can't tell if a microphone is
"Secondly, we offer a very flexible service and are quick to respond. We provide the best possible pre- and post-sale service, offering personalised advice, turning repairs around quickly, loaning replacement mics if necessary and always trying to find the best solution for any situation."
A large part of DPA's marketing activity is worki
Entertainment for the 300 guests was provided by The Gerry Richardson Trio and various members of The Newcastle Big Band, an outfit whom Sting often played with before being catapulted to fame with The Police.
Providing the audio system for the party was Yorkshire-based Viking Sound & Light Ltd whose proprietor Steve Williams has worked with Sting on a number of occasions. "We needed to supply a compact FOH system that would give maximum clarity but, due to the very limited electrical supply in the venue, be simple to power," says
"Sound Marketing West has a great history in commitment and support and market development in the pro audio industry," says Aviom Western regional sales manager Loren Molinare. "They serve everyone from music stores to A/V rental, commercial and industrial contractors and consultants, data products distributors and broadcasters. We're looking forward to a long and prosperous relationship with SMW."
The Canoga Park, CA-based manufacturer's representative adds Aviom's full range of personal monitor mixing systems and audio networking technologies to its impressive lineup of audio, video, data, lighting and production lines. SMW's client roster also includes Amek, TASCAM, Polycom, LG and Harman companies AKG, Cro
"Our analogue sales dispute the general impression that digital consoles appear to have conquered the live performance market," says Midas and Klark Teknik sales and marketing director David Cooper. "The ease of use, sonic quality, long-term reliability and safe return on investment offered by Midas consoles are still proving the all-important factors for many live applications. It's also apparent that the recent release of our XL8 live performance system, rather than shifting emphasis from our analogue range, has reinfo
The aim is to make employers, trainers, youth workers and teachers, and young people themselves, aware of the risks they face in the workplace and what they should be doing to mitigate them. WiseUp2Work is sponsored by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and supported by the National Youth Agency and the British Chambers of Commerce.
National WiseUp2Work Day is being staged at a time when many young people are embarking upon their careers or starting work experience placements, and are at the highe
"Our brief was to install a new system that was compact, simple to put together and very easy to use," says Crystal Clear's managing director, Nick Fatkin. "The main components of the system are Van Damme Black Series multicore cable and VDM connectors, all of which was supplied by VDC Trading. We also specified stage boxes and an Allen & Heath mixer, along with Shermann speakers that are permanently mounted on RSJs."
Client response to the new sound system has b
RCF's Phil Price says: "With the introduction of the MQ 50C, this now enhances the Monitor Q range. Because it combines both excellent sound reproduction with ease of installation, it makes it an ideal speaker for both retail and bar venues and high fidelity AV Audio situations."
Installation of the MQ 50C is fast and efficient using the built in rotating hooks; no additional brackets or rings or other supports are required says the company. It weights 2Kg and can be mounted as a conventional ceiling speaker. The fabric dome tweet
Version 1.2 of the popular daVinci software features a number of new capabilities that make the software more efficient and even easier to operate for end-users of varying technical backgrounds. New to daVinci 1.2 is the Auto-Connect function which automatically locates a Biamp component and its network settings, and then quickly loads compo
Jon Lord from Deep Purple performed on the main floating stage that night amongst many other extraordinary artists such as the Transe Express in Maudits Sonnants, the jaw dropping flying French phenomenon. Suspended by a telescopic crane, this turning musical chandelier leads the movements of the suspended musicians. Using a lighting system integrated into the structure, the visual variations orchestrated by the music enforces the sonar at
Sound design was in the hands of the Stolberg enterprise FeedBack GmbH, together with sound engineer Cedric Beatty (a Grammy nominee for the Joe Zawinul World Tour Album). The sound system consisted of 20 Nexo Geo T4805s, four Nexo Geo T2815 downfills and six Nexo CD18 subs, powered by 14 Camco Vortex 6 amps and processed by 6x Nexo NX 242 TDcontrollers.
Bernd Schmitz, managing director of FeedBack, explains the choice of system. "In our opin
The system comprised nine per side (three wide by three deep) TA-890H mid/high cabinets flown left and right of the stage on a Serious Stages' Lunar Boom, with a further six TA-890L 15" bass cabinets and two TSW-218 18 inch horn-loaded bass cabinets ground stacked left and right. An additional two TA-890H cabinets per side were also ground stacked, with another pair in the centre to produce the correct sound image and with ei
Norwood's programme, Keep It Straight, has seen the Giant Records artist sharing his story with over 650,000 kids across the US and overseas. Norwood opens each date with a musical performance, warming up to his audience and creating a bond that enables him to share his own experiences, from his roots as the son of a preacher to his success as a performer, including his own struggles with drugs and alcohol.
Helping Norwood's message reach the students is a state-of-the-art sound system donated by Community Professional Loudspeakers. The Chester, Pennsylvania-based company outfitted Norwood with four XLT46E three-way bass reflex cabinets an
Burton was already using a pair of HS3000s for overheads but was looking for a new microphone for the snare. After a couple of meetings on the last tour a side-facing pencil microphone was designed, able to be placed close to the drum without presenting such a large target for the drummer and, when placed on a stand, less likely to move. The pick-up pattern and handling is ideal for loud sources such as drums, say the company, and so far it has seen action not only on Prodigy shows but was used in its first outing in Serbia for a show with Balkan superstar Ceca in front of 150,000 people.
On the fir
The historic theatre, built in 1926 and eventually falling into disrepair, re-opened in 2001 as a performing arts centre following years of renovation work by the all-volunteer Stadium Theatre Foundation. Since re-opening, however, sound quality within the theatre's Grand Hall was not up to expectations, leading the foundation to seek a professional solution.
The shoebox-shaped Grand Hall offers approximately 1,100 seats split between the main floor, balcony and side boxes. Its ample stage now hosts more than 90 events a year, including concerts, theatrical productions and lectures.
The new system was implemented by ATR/Treehouse of nearby Providence, Rhode Island, with input and support from Stadium The
The band's FOH sound engineer Will Markwell says: " Adlib have supplied a great system and really looked after us. Everything has gone extremely smoothly and above all they are really nice people." The short DCFC tour was overseen by Adlib's own Steve Cole and James Neale.
It ended at Brixton Academy in London, where the system was configured as 10 VT 4889 elements per side with six Adlib DF4 subs, a favourite Adlib cabinet combination yields.
The top four cabinets in the flown VT array were arranged to maximise coverage across the Academy's cavernous stalls and balcony.
The VerTec was powered by Camco Vortex 6 amps and the subs by
The ultra lightweight (12KG) and compact enclosure is made from tough polypropylene and is designed to be stand-mounted, arrayed or even used as a floor monitor. The enclosure also features multiple M8 rigging points for ease of installation.
The Titan 12 is designed using the Wharfedale Pro proprietary 90 x 60 Elliptical Waveguide Horn and Titanium HF compression driver, reducing HF distortion and diffraction. The custom heavy-duty moisture proof 12in LF driver is unique to the Titan 12. Built to last, the Titan 12 features a rugged protective grille wi
Cowen was given a solution to support Jonny's pedalboard. This consisted of two cable runs, each 12.5m in length. The first cable featured Van Damme Instrument Cable / Mains in a pliosil loom, while the second featured Van Damme Instrument Cable / Speaker Cable in a pliosil loom. VDC also supplied various loose connectors, blank panels and speaker reels.
The new loom is already being put through its paces in various European venues and television studios as the band undertakes promotion for their second album, Razorlight, launched this month.
"VDC has done a fantastic job and the loom is working perfectly," Cowen says. "The design is straightforward but the quality of the cabl
The Hudson Hotel, the latest addition to the 21-strong Festival Inns portfolio, is the result of merging a former post office, night club and office block into a complete leisure operation, including 31 technology-led bedrooms, The Hudson Bar and Hudson Club. To fulfil the brief of providing cutting-edge technology the company turned to Edinburgh-based Dynamic Productions.
Dynamic's project manager Graeme Anderson has brought all his expertise to bear over the three hotel room floors, ground floor bar/reception and basement nightclub, where he has worked magnificently to convert a space with restricted ceiling height into a vibrant, atmospheric dance venue.
Working within the confines of a Grade-B restrict
"With HK Audio, we succeeded in taking probably the most innovative German manufacturer of sound reinforcement systems into our distribution range. Especially with the Lucas systems, HK Audio has an extremely attractive offer for the Italian market. With the help of the Lucas display, we will establish the brand in many Italian music stores and thus, expose the consumer to the products of HK Audio and their excellent sound quality," says Claudio Bugari, owner and managing direc
