UK - For Spectre Studios, virtual production (VP) is not a new field. Prior to the pandemic, the company was already using real-time engines and virtual production technologies for their work on Hollywood blockbusters and, last year, set up ICVFX full-service LED VP studio in conjunction with Big Picture, part of the NEP Worldwide Network, using Brompton Tessera LED processing power to drive ROE LED panels.
The climactic moment for Spectre, however, was in November, when the company participated in Epic Games’ Unreal Build: Virtual Production event, where a small number of creative studios across the world were invited to showcase their next-generation tools and techniques which are set to transform filmmaking industry. Brompton Tessera SX40 4K LED processing was used for the video piece that Spectre showed at the event.
“Unreal Build: Virtual Production<

Israel - Kley-Zemer’s professional division KZPRO were chosen to supply a JBL Professional audio system for the 60-year-old Bloomfield Stadium during its extensive three-year renovation project. The installation was a cooperation between independent consultant Harel Tabibi, integration company Barkai and installation company The Charmer Group.
Bloomfield Stadium, home of Hapoel Tel Aviv, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv football clubs, first opened in 1962. In addition to hosting three football clubs, the veteran stadium has accommodated many musical acts including Celine Dion, Rihanna, and Pixies.
In 2016, the stadium was closed for a massive three-year renovation, which included expanding the capacity to 29,150 seats, making it the third-largest football stadium in Israel. Barkai was brought in to outfit the newly renovated stadium with a sound system that

Germany - Coda Audio has announced the appointment of Wilhelm & Willhalm Event Technology Group as a dealer partner in southern Germany. Founded 30 years ago, Wilhelm & Willhalm is based in Munich and will offer the complete Coda Audio portfolio with immediate effect, including all high-end reinforcement systems for pro sound applications, as well as a comprehensive range of loudspeakers for fixed installation.
Ton Groen, Coda Audio Deutschland managing director, is upbeat about the new sales alliance. “We are more than happy about this partnership,” he says. “Wilhelm & Willhalm has long been one of the most important players in our industry. We expect this new cooperation to result in an even greater market share for our high-quality systems, significantly widening distribution of our solutions. We have gained an excellent sales partner in Southern German

Australia - Meyer Sound has launched a direct, non-exclusive reseller network for the sales and marketing of its loudspeaker solutions in Australia and New Zealand starting January 2021. The new business model allows for greater factory-direct support to Meyer Sound customers in this growing market.
“Audio Brands Australia has been a fantastic partner and has helped us grow Meyer Sound’s brand awareness over the past three years,” comments John McMahon, senior vice-president. “Learnings from the pandemic suggest that moving to a more direct model will benefit customers in this important market.”
Over the decades, Meyer Sound products and technologies have earned widespread acceptance in Australia and New Zealand, with a number of systems installed in recent years. Examples include Telstra Theatrette Melbourne, Australian Outback Spectacular, and Townsville Ci

France - 25 years after the launch of the 15” point source cabinet PS15, Nexo has unveiled the P15, its new top-of-the-range 2-way passive/active speaker which offers a combination of heritage and contemporary design engineering.
This model completes the P+ Series, a range of powerful compact speakers which offer advantages of scalability, compatibility and performance to multiple market sectors, many of which are currently adapting to new operational models.
“The versatility of the P+ Series is especially relevant at this time,” comments Gareth Collyer, Nexo’s sales & marketing director. “As venues and production companies have to redefine indoor and outdoor audience areas to accommodate social distancing, the portable power and interchangeability of the P+ Series cabinets is very useful. The P15 is the ideal multi-purpose audio product for theatres, cu

India - Assistive listening specialists Contacta Systems has entered the Indian market with a new partnership with pro-audio distributors, Audcomm.
The relationship will introduce the complete Contacta range of hearing loops, RF, IR and window intercom systems to Audcomm’s customers across the country.
Managing director, Puneet Kumar Kain, said the partnership will enable them to access new opportunities: “This is an exciting cooperation for Audcomm which will further strengthen our distribution network.
“With more than five decades of innovation in assistive listening technologies, Contacta’s high-quality portfolio will assists us in maximising opportunities which we couldn’t previously because of not having the right products in our range. We will ensure success for Contacta in India and look forward to a long-lasting partnership.”
During the

UK - Sound BAFTA Winner Robert Edwards is one of the UK’s leading television sound supervisor/directors and an elected Fellow of the Institute of Professional Sound. This accolade is the result of 45 years of work and a credit list of productions that includes opening and closing ceremonies for the Summer and Winter Olympics, and TV shows such as X Factor, Harry Hill’s TV Burp, The Masked Singer, Britain’s Got Talent, The Wheel, Michael McIntyre’s Big Show and Celebrity Juice
It was this last’s production during lockdown that saw him head into what was previously his home cinema and, with a few tweaks, turn it into a home studio / office, relying on a DiGiCo S21 mixing console to deliver his broadcast mix.
“Timeline Television, who are based at Ealing Studios, found that the producers of the show wanted to do

USA - When the 2021 NAMM Show had to be cancelled due to continued COVID concerns, the association pivoted its focus by creating a digital alternative known as Believe in Music Week, running from 18-22 January.
L-Acoustics reports that it is fully supporting NAMM this month by sponsoring a virtual marketplace booth, where it will be hosting a comprehensive line-up of eight video sessions on a variety of topics, all with live Q&A. Visitors can also book online meetings with L-Acoustics team members, chat live, and receive special access to swag and an exciting giveaway.
Of particular note will be the booth’s keynote session, Contour XO IEM Origins Story, moderated by FOH engineer Chris Rabold (Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé). This will be a Zoom ‘fireside chat’ discussion with L-Acoustics founder and president Dr. Christian Heil and JH Audio founder an

Italy - D-Tools System Integrator is a comprehensive software solution for AV system integrators that improves operating efficiencies by streamlining the entire project workflow - all through a data-driven process that leverages an extensive, integrated product library which now includes Powersoft’s product range.
Powersoft’s partnership with D-Tools provides D-Tools software users with Powersoft’s detailed specification, along with dealer-specific pricing, which minimises time users spend on building catalogues or AV proposals. The software benefits users further by managing budgets and sales, improving opportunities, accurately tracking revenue and expenses, and, due to all of this, increasing profitability, says the company.
In the webinar, Powersoft will teach users how to work with Powersoft’s products within D-Tools’ software. AV system integrators wil

Europe - BroaMan and Spiritland OB will co-host a Zoom-based webinar on 14 January, at 14.00hr GMT (15.00 CET, 9.00 EST).
BroaMan’s point-to-point fibre transport solution, based on the Repeat48WDM platform, was selected by one of the UK's leading OB trucks - Spiritland One - to provide a multi-format stagebox system to run multiple video, audio and data signals between stage and truck.
Co-hosts, Spiritland co-founder, Antony Shaw, and BroaMan technical sales manager, Maciek Janiszewski, will present a case study on this advanced system design, and how they evolved such a compact custom solution. The session will incorporate an interactive Q/A.
BroaMan itself offers customised fibre solutions as well as standard devices for every application that requires IP/SDI/HD/3G video transport or routing.
Webinar is at

Germany - For more than 100 years, Goldbäckerei Grote has been serving its customers in the Sauerland region. In addition to 17 cafés and bakeries, the fourth generation of the family business has now also opened a gastronomy location directly on the shores of Lake Sorpe (Sundern). For the first time, an all-day concept has been introduced, where customers are provided with hot and cold dishes, cocktails and regional specialities. The upper floor is designed as an event area.
The company Event Active from Schmallenberg was commissioned to equip this space with the appropriate audio-visual technology. Managing director Noel Büchte stated, "Goldbäckerei Grote wanted to offer a high-quality event location with its Heimathafen [events space]. Therefore, we planned the technology so that the products could be perfectly integrated and deliver an excellent performance.”

The Netherlands – Tasked by a Regional Public Health Service with finding an effective solution for a new COVID-19 testing centre to enable its 18 test bays to signal for technical assistance, Backbone International turned to tried-and-tested event production technology from digital communications specialist Green-GO.
The company, a leading production management and temporary infrastructure specialist with operations worldwide, is well used to delivering the best technical solutions for any number of environments. Faced with this signalling challenge as part of a systems integration project for a testing facility in Eindhoven, they turned to Green-GO, and its Beacon call indicator units. Developed for the event production industry, the Green-GO Beacons have a transparent outer case and light up when receiving a call.
Backbone’s Daniël Zwaan explains, “The testin

Norway - Bølgen Kulturhus in Larvik is a multi-purpose, multi-use venue that welcomes thousands of patrons annually for concerts, cinema, and theatre presentations, as well as conferences and events of all descriptions. With the recent installation of an Adamson Systems Engineering E-Series PA in its main hall, Storsalen, Bølgen has extended its already substantial capabilities to present the wide variety of programming it offers and the diverse range of events it hosts.
Previously, Norwegian distributor Benum provided Bølgen with Adamson rigs for the venue’s other two, smaller performance/event spaces: eight IS10, four IS119 subs, four PC5, and two D120 amplifiers in ‘Sanden Scene’; and eight S7, two IS119 and two D120 for Blåboksen.
In the Storshalen space, Benum has now installed a system comprised of 20 E12 (flown 10 per side), six E219 subs, and four S7p

Europe - German networked audio and interconnectivity specialist DirectOut has announced a collaboration with the Italian-based team of Vivivaldy to establish a tailored service for uncompressed audio transmission over public WAN connections.
Driven by the success of the first Lockdown Rock projects which allowed artists and audio professionals to work together remotely in real-time, the experts from both companies decided to join forces and create an ‘out-of-the-box’ solution.
Luca Giaroli, product manager at DirectOut, comments, “Our products deploying Ravenna technology have already proven their worth in remote production and broadcast environments. Since the constraints of the pandemic have forced large parts of the audio industry to shut down their businesses, we were thinking about lowering the entry-level of this technology for the pro audio industry. For

Europe - Global event production company PSAV has announced that it will begin to operate under the Encore name as part of a planned move to align its portfolio of companies, including Hawthorn and AVC Live, under a master brand.
Announced in March 2020, the move “solidifies the company’s desire to unify its operations and deliver industry leadership through end-to-end creative, production and technology services to its meeting planner customers and hotel partners, taking them far beyond traditional AV services”.
“This is an exciting day for our family of companies,” said Ben Erwin, president and CEO. “In a world changed by the pandemic, the Encore brand and new icon signal a forward focus. It puts our customers at the centre as we offer new platforms and tools to enable them to continue to meet and seamlessly connect in person and virtual audiences. We hav

UK - 2021 sees the Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) celebrate the diamond jubilee of its foundation. The Association will be marking this milestone with a year of online activities, and a resumption of the popular face to face in-person events when restrictions allow. It will also take the opportunity to dip into the rich depths of the ABTT Archive in order to share videos and interviews. Plus there will be more seminars, new awards, and events throughout the year.
“It is a privilege to be part of the ABTT in its 60th year and to participate in its diamond jubilee,” says Robin Townley, CEO of the ABTT. “It is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the role it has played throughout its existence in supporting those engaged in the design and construction of places of entertainment as well as those delivering technical and production support to live perform

UK - PLASA is hosting two free webinars this week on how to apply for the second round of grants from the Culture Recovery Fund (CRF).
Taking place on Wednesday 13 January from 10am-12pm and Friday 15 January from 2pm-4pm, these webinars will be hosted by Caroline Taylor, an independent expert with a proven track record in successfully applying for £15m in Arts Council England funding, including the first round of the CRF and the ACE Emergency Fund.
During each webinar you will explore the main application questions in detail which will help you submit a strong application. You will also learn about Grantium, the new Arts Council application portal which you are encouraged to register for prior to the webinar. Additionally, each webinar will have a dedicated Q&A section to answer any specific questions you may have regarding the application process. Following the

USA - Albert Grossman – music industry guru and manager of Bob Dylan, The Band, Janis Joplin, Odetta, and Peter, Paul, & Mary, among many others – founded the Bearsville creative complex in the 1970s in Woodstock, New York. Sadly, Albert died while the Bearsville Theatre was still under construction, and his widow, Sally Grossman, saw it through to completion in 1989.
The John Storyk-designed theatre remains part of a complex that included restaurants, residences, the Utopia production studio, and a recording studio. The Rolling Stones, Isley Brothers, Ozzy Osbourne, REM, Peter Tosh, Phish, Dave Matthews Band, and many others recorded at the studio. The theatre is set to re-open with a Danley sound system in place.
“Woodstock obviously holds a special place in music history, starting with the ‘Sound-Outs’ of the 1960’s that inspired the much larger Wood

USA - LEA Professional has announced a partnership with C&E Marketing Pro to serve the company’s growing customer base in Florida.
“LEA Professional represents everything we look for in a partner - innovative, agile and run by a highly experienced expert team,” said Mike Sajecki, president and CEO of C&E Marketing Pro. “Their industry first technology has gained a lot of traction in the market and we look forward to helping them grow their presence further in Florida.”
C&E Marketing Pro will represent the full suite of LEA Professional Connect Series amplifiers.
“2020 was a difficult year for the pro audio industry, but at LEA Professional we have aggressive growth plans for 2021. Our offerings address many pre-existing challenges which are now exacerbated by the pandemic. By coupling leading amplifier technology with proven IoT expertise,

Thailand - Upgrading its facilities, the Montatip Hall, Udon Thani International Convention and Exhibition Centre hired integrator Mahajak Development Co to design and install Harman Professional network AV and lighting solutions throughout its meeting spaces.
Continuing to establish the province of Udon Thani as a growing business centre, the Montatip Hall, Udon Thani International Convention and Exhibition Centre is a premier enterprise venue. The facility covers 25,000sq.m and features 80 meeting rooms, several banquet halls and a convention and exhibition centre that accommodates up to 5,000 people.
“The client wanted powerful, flexible AV and lighting systems to support events of any scale, reinforce brand image and ensure customer satisfaction,” says Pongsakorn Kanchanachayphoom, project director, Mahajak Development Co. “It was challenging to design the a

Italy - Located on the coast of the Gulf of Portofino, in Santa Margherita, Italy’s Covo di Nord-Est, or the North-East Lair, has recently undergone an extensive rebuild with a new audio system. Originally built in 1934 as a private residence, the venue quickly became a popular club during the 60s and 70s, and after storms ravaged the venue in late 2018, it has once again opened its doors to the public.
“After the storm in 2018, we undertook a complete rebuild the entire venue,” said Stefano Lo Sardo, owner of Vibra Service and project manager for this build. “But we didn’t just want to rebuild, we wanted to upgrade, and that meant a new audio system that would rise up to the challenge.”
Together with Italian distributor Audiosales, they designed a completely new sound system. Featuring both Martin Audio speakers and subwoofers, the system was supported by

France - New sonic technology developed in France by Amadeus was revealed in a new artistic work during a ceremony presided over by Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, to celebrate the renowned French writer Maurice Genevoix as he was entered into the Panthéon.
Within the scope of the Armistice Day commemorations, French author Maurice Genevoix, who wrote the four-part Ceux de 14 (The Men of 1914) about World War I, joined other luminary writers such as Voltaire, Rousseau, Dumas, Hugo, and Malraux, along with revered figures from culture, science, and politics in France’s secular temple, the Panthéon.
For the celebration, the President of the French Republic commissioned a work from two major figures of the contemporary art scene, German painter and sculptor Anselm Kiefer, and French composer Pascal Dusapin. This is the first public co

Middle East - L-Acoustics has announced the appointment of two regional industry experts to support existing partners and grow the company’s presence in key vertical markets. Over the last decade, the region has been supported by L-Acoustics sales manager, Peter Owen, who will now concentrate on developing key territories in Russia and Eastern Europe.
The appointment of a new, dedicated and locally based team will allow the company to nurture new and closer relationships in the Middle East, India and East Africa. Chris Mead, sales manager for the Middle East, India, and East Africa will build relationships and develop business in the region while Rahul Samuel, application engineer for the Middle East and India, will provide technical support, design assistance and training to partners and projects throughout the area.
“The Middle East and India regions are very div

UK - Cranborne Audio and UK distributor Sound Technology have announced immediate availability of the Camden EC1 which combines the Camden preamp technology with a reference-grade headphone amplifier ‘to elevate your audio interface’s front-end to a professional level’.
“We designed Camden EC1 to make it easy for musicians, vocalists, podcasters and video producers to achieve elite-quality recordings and reference headphone critical listening,” says Sean Karpowicz, managing director and founder.
“Camden's unprecedented performance allows you to vastly improve the quality of your tracks,” says Elliott Thomas, product manager. “Using its ‘Mojo’ control, Camden EC1 goes from extraordinarily clean and natural sounding, to thick, vintage-style analogue saturation that can add that ‘magic colour’ to your tracks.”
The Camden EC1’s reference-

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