Mexico - The City is the result of an ambitious project, the brainchild of owner Mike Kelly and general manager Kurt Jansen, to create some of the world's leading nightclubs in the very centre of Cancun, Mexico. Every detail of the decor and technological solutions has been carefully evaluated and selected to create a high quality finished product. The City's three-dimensional façade grabs attention with a variety of architectural styles forming the club's logo, and hinting at the surprises waiting inside. With 9,000sq.m of space and a capacity of 5,000, The City extends over various levels: a nightclub, a beach club, a lounge area, a restaurant and terrace bar.
The 2,500sq.m nightclub lies beneath a vaulted ceiling, and has a spacious disco floor, as well as two exclusive areas for private parties and VIPs. Nine bars located on the three levels operate around the clock. The N
UK - The new digital platform from Midas is now well under way, with many parts of the system having already reached testing stage. Indeed, after undergoing many weeks of rigorous testing at the factory, Midas felt confident enough in its new digital EQ to ask engineer and known analogue champion Robbie McGrath to come and try the new EQ for himself.
According to Midas-KT sales and marketing director, David Cooper, it was an interesting moment for all concerned. "We've known Robbie for a very long time, and we know him to be a die-hard fan of Midas analogue consoles, especially of the legendary XL4 EQ. We also know him to be extremely outspoken and not afraid to say exactly what he thinks; indeed he's gone on record a number of times to say that while a digital console may have its uses in certain applications, if it's impeccable audio quality you're after, then nothing can
IK - Klark Teknik celebrated its 30th birthday at PLASA 2004. Founded as Klark Teknik Research by brothers Phil and Terry Clarke in 1974, the company quickly became known for its innovative approach to design and development, a vision and principle which Klark Teknik continues to uphold today.
The world's very first digital delay and reverb units were created in Klark Teknik Research's laboratory, and their descendants remain in common usage all over the world to this day. However, it was the company's concepts for equalization devices that really changed the world of professional audio. Its earliest designs eventually matured into the world-famous DN360, that incidentally celebrates twenty years this year as the standard graphic EQ for audio professional everywhere.
Klark Teknik continues to remain true to the founding principles of the Clarke brothers: innovation in design f
Denmark - Martin has added to its Ego collector range of DJ effects with the Ego X4, a DMX controllable flower effect that projects sharp graphics and new gobo designs. This highly individual 250W effect houses a combined colour/gobo wheel and features new radical gobo designs unlike any other effect light. Top quality projection optics combine with a precise manual focus adjustment to produce extremely sharp, detailed projections.
Besides the benefits of customized DMX control, the Ego X4 can operate in either auto or music trig mode. In trig mode variable behavior tuning allows DJs to adjust how aggressively the effect reacts to music. A remote control is also available. The Ego X4's cool, composite design houses a powerful 250W, 1000-hour halogen lamp. Combined with a bidirectional parabolic reflector with highly reflective mirrors, projection is exceptionally bright.
Germany - More than 1,400 guests from German advertising companies and agencies recently attended the premier day of The Big Picture. Invited by SevenOne Media, who market the ProSiebenSat.1 satellite TV group, they were able to enjoy a interesting LED setting as well as a spectacular show inside the Duesseldorfer Schauspielhaus.
The concept of Hamburg-based set designer and architect Juergen Hassler (Hassler Entertainment), the show was technically realized with assistance from CT Germany. The full-service providers and LED specialists supplied the complete technology package, including more than 100sqm of Barco LED modules and 12sqm of VersaLIGHTGUIDE, in tandem projection - as well as the technical project management and full on-site service.
Almost 300 modules of Barco ILite 6 LED were inserted into a uniquely sized LED ring measuring 18.5m in diameter. The LED, whi
UK - Vision Systems has announced that Tutondo, an Italian-based audio and communications systems integration service company has become a certified channel partner for the Millbank public address solution.
Tutondo has considerable experience integrating audio and public address systems across a range of vertical markets. It offers services that help its customers fulfil the goal of synchronizing their IT, audio and communications needs.
"The powerful out-of-the-box functionality of Millbank will enable us to build and deploy best-of-breed public address systems more quickly and efficiently" said Domenico Nadal, president at Tutondo. "This, coupled with Vision Systems reputation for supporting partners with exceptional education and support, convinced us to commit to selling this solution over other alternatives"
UK - White Light Events recently added another category of celebration to its growing portfolio: an 18th birthday party. White Light Events were brought into the project by Flying Tortoise Event Design based in Battersea, South London, whose design for the party took the colour scheme of Shocking Pink, White and Zesty Green as a starting point. From this they created a series of fun, abstract, stylish environments set over three marquees: reception, dining area and nightclub. Collectively these accommodated around 120 guests, most of whom were aged between 18 and 20. The evening's design style was carried through to the catering and lighting elements. "Flying Tortoise had very specific ideas of what they wanted; our job was to turn these into reality," comments White Light Events' lighting designer and project manager Jason Larcombe - adding, "it was very liberating
Ibiza - DJ Dan Tait plays an exclusive 90-minute DVD set at the Space, Ibiza Closing Party using the Pioneer DVJ-X1. The event was sponsored by Pioneer Pro DJ and held in conjunction with DJ Magazine
Following the launch of the new Pioneer Pro DJ DVJ-X1 unit in March 2004 at the Musikmesse Show in Germany, the Pioneer Pro DJ team has joined forces with Space, Ibiza and the UK's DJ Magazine to create a dramatically different club experience taking place on Sunday 3 October.
Advancing upon the freedom of expression the CDJs provided; Pioneer Pro DJ's DVJ-X1 unit allows DJs to play DVDs of tracks, for which they have prepared suitable visuals, and to affect them spontaneously in real time. Blurring the boundaries between audio and visual art forms within one unit, this technology is set to enhance the existing experience of club goers worldwide. Pioneer Pro DJ's groundbreakers in
USA - Hair care company Paul Mitchell recently drew together the top dealers and salon stylists for a week-long meeting in Las Vegas. The Paul Mitchell Signature Gallery 2004 at the Mandalay Bay featured business meetings in the morning, with a runway of exotic hair-styles parading in the afternoon.
Through it all, a High End Systems Catalyst Pro v3.0 Media Server added hair-raising highlights to the corporate coiffure, the company say. LD JJ Wulf specified Catalyst along with 48 High End Systems Studio Spot CMY automated luminaires and a Flying Pig Systems Wholehog IIconsole for control. PRG provided the production gear.
Wulf explains the set-up: "We had 24 of the 4-k projectors using both Catalyst outputs. (Note: the Sanyo PLC-XP46 projectors used in this event are the same projectors used in the DL1 Digital Light fixture.) I also controlled the video switching through
UK - Global Design Solutions, the creation of Matt Lloyd and Richard Cuthbert (previously of Stage Electrics), launched at the PLASA show this September to massive industry interest (see September L&SI). The company boasts many strings to its bow in both technical and commercial arenas and is developing new global products specifically related to the technical entertainment presentation industries - R&D for two of which is already well underway.
"We're bringing new, innovative ideas to the marketplace and creating solutions, says Lloyd. "We've identified gaps in the market and are using our expertise and imagination to create forward thinking design ideas which we'll licence to manufacturers and end users."
Alongside product development, GDS will offer design engineering and business development consultancy - the specialist fields from which both directors hail.
UK - Audio Visual Consultants (AVC) of Edinburgh and Electrosonic has announced that AVC has become a member of the Electrosonic Group. AVC was founded in 1981 by Sandy Bolton in Edinburgh, and recently has operated as a partnership with the active partners being Douglas Bolton, Mike Buchan and Les Bushby. Over the years, AVC has gained a strong reputation as Scotland's leading AV systems integrator in the heritage market, and as an important supplier and integrator in the corporate and educational markets. AVC also has a significant service business.
Recently the partners in AVC decided that they could serve the needs of their market better as part of a larger group - at the same time Electrosonic Ltd was looking for ways in which it could expand its geographical coverage. Because the companies know each other well, having traded together since AVC's founding, their coming tog
UK - Bandit Lites UK supplied full stage and audience lighting equipment to the recent massive Miller Strat Pack show at Wembley Arena. This momentous event celebrated 50 years of the legendary Fender Stratocaster guitar. Event proceeds were donated to the Nordoff Robbins music charity.
The line up saw a role call of the great-and-the-good in the world of guitar heroes from past and present - starring Dave Gilmour, Gary Moore, Amy Winehouse, Phil Manzenera, Brian May, Joe Walsh and many, many more. Bandit worked with producers, Field Services (production manager Pete Edmonds), and lighting designer Baz Halpin collaborated with set designer Mark Fisher to produce a look that comprised a primary scenic truss overstage - in the shape of the reversed Fender "F", constructed from A-type trussing sections plus and a selection of custom-built pieces. Measuring approxim
UK - As part of Watford Palace Theatre's £8.7million refurbishment scheme, sound expert Orbital has supplied a d&b audiotechnik system - significantly augmenting the venue's potential as a contemporary facility. With generous funding from the Arts Council of England Lottery Board, Watford Borough Council and hundreds of individual donors, Watford Palace Theatre is set to re-open this Autumn and will be at the centre of cultural life in Hertfordshire. The inaugural production is a modern interpretation of William Wycherley's The Country Wife .
Under the direction of Architects - Burrell, Foley, Fischer, the Edwardian theatre has been expanded and completely re-designed to offer a state-of-the-art facility. As a repertory theatre, it will produce up to 10 productions a year and will work with local schools and amateur theatre groups to truly represent the community.
USA - Color Kinetics Inc, the US manufacturer of LED lighting systems, has been awarded another US patent that extends the coverage of its core methods for controlling LED-based illumination. This latest US patent extends coverage of core methods for controlling LED-based illumination, including use of standard DMX512 protocol.
Patent number 6,788,011 relates in part to an LED-based lighting system comprising a user interface and an addressable controller that receives a network signal: it attempts to include any and all such protocols, among them DMX512. This allows control of colour, intensity, and the creation of dynamic effects in both standalone and networked environments. The patent extends Color Kinetics' coverage of techniques for controlling the output of LEDs beyond pulse width modulation, for which it received a controversial earlier patent.
UK - At the risk of casting clouds this autumn, the latest Plimsoll financial analysis has some unwelcome news for those involved in the UK sound equipment industry. Overtrading appears to be affecting the industry as 68 significant players chase sales at the expense of profitability. Whilst the behaviour of these overtrading companies has yet to impact on all of the 236 companies involved in the analysis, almost half have seen their profitability decline.
There analysis identifies three distinct types of company behaviour now prevalent in the industry. According to Plimsoll, 68 of the companies featured in the report are losing money. Typically they are delivering -3.8% margins, yet their average sales growth is healthy. The report questions whether their strategy of capturing market share at the expense of profit sustainable. A further 84 companies hardly break even, typicall
UK - The popularity and reputation of The Wells Summer School, where dancers from The Royal Ballet instruct children from 8 to 17 years, has expanded and this year embraced three major dance areas - all converted to professional dance floor standards courtesy of British Harlequin plc.
Francesca Filpi has been organizing The Wells Summer School for three years now, based at the Beechwood Sacred Heart School in Tunbridge Wells, Kent and held this year over a period of ten days in August. Here a relationship has been forged between The Wells teaching faculty from The Royal Ballet and Harlequin providing roll out dance floor solutions. In the main hall of the school, Harlequin covered the hard parquet wood floor with Harlequin Studio flooring, which was also the choice to cover the wooden flooring in a large marquee erected in the school grounds. The solution for the Auditorium wood
UK - Scotland's Lighting Show 2004 has been hailed a major success by organizers, exhibitors and visitors alike. Taking place from 24-25 September, the event was held at black light's Edinburgh headquarters. Although only in its second year, the show had grown considerably from the 2003 event. A clear demonstration of how seriously the show is already being taken by the industry was the fact that, although just eight days after the end of London's PLASA trade show, a range of heavyweight industry suppliers had made the journey north to exhibit their products and services.
"Even we were surprised at how the show has taken off in just its second year," said black light managing director and show organizer Gavin Stewart. "It was a fantastically successful event and the feedback from all round has been extremely positive. Scotland and the north of England are hotbeds
USA / Latin America - Production Resource Group (PRG) provided a complete lighting package for the live broadcast of Univision's Premios Juventud, the first annual award show on Spanish-language television honouring popular Latin stars. Broadcast throughout Latin America, the show was seen by over 23 million viewers in the US alone. It was the second highest-rated awards show in history on Hispanic television.
Entertainers featured in the show included Mexican superstar Thalía, Colombian heartthrob Juanes, and pop music sensation Paulina Rubio. The stars gave performances and received awards on an expansive stage that was decorated as a dance club, complete with a DJ booth and V.I.P. lounge area. The show's production crew included lighting director/programmer Felix Peralta, lighting director John Daniels, Catalyst programmer Jason Rudolph, head electrician Angus Sinex, and mov
USA - Technical specs may change from tour to tour but the one constant for any itinerant sound engineer is their laptop computer. Freelance engineer Sean Sullivan's laptop, combined with Metric Halo's Mobile I/O 2882, has become an essential piece of gear on the road. It provides critical signal analysis and metering tools via Metric Halo's SpectraFoo software, while the MIO gives him signal routing that is frequently unavailable in touring sound systems. As Sullivan observes: "Here I am with my laptop and my Mobile I/O and I'm pretty much carrying all the tools that you could ever ask for. Whether it be analyzing a PA or mixing an album, it's got everything built into it."
SpectraFoo incorporates standards-based level metering, high-speed, high-resolution spectral analysis, the unique Phase Torch, correlation metering, triggerable waveform display, power balancing, a
UK - Drapes and rigging specialist Blackout was recently appointed by MTV Networks Europe to realize an elaborate Gothic set at the recent MTV Icon event. This was an exclusive live tribute to rock legends The Cure, staged at Old Billingsgate in London.
Featuring performances and testimonials from artists and celebrities influenced by the band - including Marilyn Manson, Razorlight Blink 182, AFI and the Deftones the event will be beamed across MTV Europe's Networks of 120 million homes from October 2004.
Blackout's project manager, Kevin Monks, headed the team and collaborated closely with the MTV Networks Europe production management team. Blackout rose to the challenge of designing and supplying a trussing structure in line with the building restrictions imposed by Old Billingsgate's Grade II listed status.
The atmospheric Gothic set designed by Simon Beresford required o
Sweden / Norway - Visual act, the Swedish stage automation specialist, has recently completed the installation of a new control system for the Norwegian Theatre in Oslo, involving the replacement of drive electronics for 119 fly bars and point hoists. The system installed is capable of operating all the drives simultaneously, as was ably demonstrated during the testing period, when the company's technicians made the most of the empty stage by programming continuous movements and effects involving all 119 drives.
The latest version of Visual act's operator desk was selected as it is especially designed for permanent installations, providing an ergonomic work area suitable for many hours of use on an everyday basis. Three operator desks were installed - one of which is wireless and can be moved to the house for rehearsals.
The control system has fully redundant servers and po
UK - ESL Ltd of Southend supplied the sound and lighting at this year's Daily Mirror Labour Party Conference Party, held on the Wednesday night of the convention at the Grand Hotel, Brighton. Their brief was to supply a state-of-the-art sound and lighting system for a live band and disco for the 1000 delegates who attended.
ESL's Mike Glover took the company's brand new KV2 Audio sound system to the event, which had been purchased just a week before following a demonstration at this year's PLASA show. The System was made up of ES1.8 subs, ES2.5 bass and the ES1.0 mid/high cabinets - all driven by KV2's EPAK amplifier/processing package. Glover says: "Even though we had not used the system in a large venue or in a live situation I had complete faith in what the equipment was capable of producing. We have had long discussions with Andy Austin-Brown from KV2 and this gave me
USA - Ani Difranco is currently singing her new works on her 'Vote Dammit!' tour, designed to encourage individuals to make their voices known via voting. Political songwriters, activists, comedians and other guests add individual touches to each show along the way. Helping enhance her songs and message every night is a High End Systems Catalyst Pro v3.2 Media Server, along with a rig full of Studio Beam automated luminaires, all supplied by lighting contractor See Factor.
Long-time LD Phil Karatz has used Studio Beams before, but this is his first time to take out Catalyst. He says: "The Catalyst system has worked out great. I used mostly custom content but I also used a bit of the stock content - I like a lot of the art that shipped with version 3.2. I got a lot of content from Ani's office - she has cool art on her records. I also used digital pictures I have taken from