USA - Biamp today announced that Matthew Packer will serve as the new regional manager for the North Asia/Pacific region, which includes Mainland China, Hong Kong & Macao, Taiwan, Japan and Korea. Effective immediately, Matthew Packer assumes responsibility for the coordination and support of regional distributors and channel partners, as well as the maintenance and development of successful integrator relations throughout the region. Based in Beijing, Packer will report to Graeme Harrison, Biamp Systems' vice president of international sales.
Commenting on the announcement, Harrison said: "The size and scope of the installations that Biamp is specified for in the North Asia/Pacific region demand that our sales team has a solid understanding of the region, the industry and the people who make these projects successful. Matthew's technical expertise and real-world experience
UK - Leicester concert venue De Montfort Hall has recently installed an M7CL to use for a variety of rock concerts and theatre performances. The desk was purchased from London and Birmingham based LMC Audio who bought 10 of them shortly after the launch at PLASA 2005.
De Montfort Hall's head of sound, Alan Smith, who first came across M7CL desks when both Bjorn Again and League of Gentleman used them at the venue, is clearly delighted with the new console. "In conjunction with our in-house PA system the results are truly impressive," he said. "It's very easy to use, in fact it's almost like an analogue desk in digital format. We've trained up 10 people to use the desk and without exception, everyone walked away thinking it was a great piece of equipment. It normally takes about 5 minutes to get a handle on the desk, everything is right there in front of you,"
UK - Harman Pro UK has installed an integrated audio solution, incorporating a new JBL VRX 932LA line array, as part of a major refurbishment of Aston University's Great Hall, in Birmingham. The installation, in partnership with Quadrant Visual Solutions, is the first in the UK of the new compact JBL line array series.
The Great Hall, within the imposing domed Aston Webb Building, dates back to 1900. A multi-function facility, as well as providing the largest lecture theatre on the campus, the hall is also used for seminars, presentations, examinations, graduation ceremonies, and performances and concerts of all kinds. Last refurbished during the 1960s, the current project was intended to bring it up to fully modern standards for presentation and performance.
Working with Harman Pro UK as a strategic partner, Quadrant put together a tender to provide a flexible, and aesthetica
UK - RF Specialists Trantec is pleased to announce that Cardiff based Stage Sound Services has added another 12- channels of Trantec's S6002 wireless UHF radio mic system to its expansive rental fleet.
With this latest acquisition Stage Sound Services now boasts 30- channels of Trantec's acclaimed S6000 range. This includes 16- channels of the internationally award-winning S6000 8-way system, and seven units of its sister twin receiver version - the compact S6002.
Recognised for providing advanced solutions for live events, theatre applications and corporate presentations, SSS's Trantec fleet has augmented its potential to supply reliable and flexible systems designs, no matter how challenging the application.
The Trantec ranges fit perfectly into Stage Sound Services' portfolio, which comprises industry standard brands including, d&b audiotechnik, Digico, Soundcraft and All
The Netherlands - Norwegian (Lapland) hire company Lydfiksern heard about the Sound Projects line-array Linex, deciding to order a first set of 12 Linex cabinets, without even having heard the system!
MD Thomas Mikarlsen says: "We purchased Linex because we heard fantastic reports from users in Norway. The weight and efficiency suited our needs. We found competing systems to have twice its weight and size. People we trust regarded Linex as a better sounding system. Easy setup was important too. We had never worked with any Sound Projects system before, and regret that now!
"The first concert we did with Linex was a jazz concert of the famous Norwegian quartet Tore Brunborg. Because the height of the venue was limited we could only fly three Linex per side. This was no problem; we got perfect coverage from the suggested SPArC settings (the Sound Projects line-array ca
UK - Following Chitty Chitty Bang Bang's successful three and a half year run at the London Palladium the production took to the road last December to embark on a three year national tour. Currently being staged at the Manchester Palace Theatre the show is set to move to Birmingham, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Bristol and Southampton.
The show's automation supplier Stage Technologies has been working with Delstar Engineering and Stage Services on this project to make a number of significant changes to the original control system to cater for the touring production. The challenging design modifications were necessary to create a transportable set and also adhere to restrictions on the removal of stage flooring in the receiving venues.
The magical flying car was previously flown by a large mechanical arm that raised the car through the stage floor. For this touring production t
UK - 5 Star Cases has designed and built a series of 20 custom flight cases to house Color Kinetics' new iColor Cove QL LED fixtures, for rental company Richard Martin Lighting.
In total, the cases hold 400 strips of iColor Cove. They are based on the popular 'Light Industrial' specification and were designed by 5 Star's Phil Lawrence working to a brief from RML's Steve Wells.
Light Industrial is becoming popular due to its expedient weight - made possible due to the carcass being constructed from 6mm plywood - and the strength is not compromised as the cases use the same basic fittings found on the heavier Industrial specification.
RML's black laminate exterior and full corporate branding were also part of 5 Star's brief. Each case houses 20 iColor units in two areas, one set of 10 in the base while a further 10 in a removable tray. Both areas of the case incorporated CNC r
UK - UK mixer manufacturer, Allen & Heath Ltd., has signed a £9m secondary management buyout (MBO) with Close Brothers Growth Capital Ltd. (CBGC), a provider of combined equity and debt funding. The move marks the successful exit of 3i, who backed the original MBO in 2001, and an increase in the management's stake in the company, giving them majority control.
The MBO team is led by Allen & Heath's managing director, Glenn Rogers, who has fronted the company since the early 1990's, along with board members Dave Jones, finance director; Bob Goleniowski, sales director; and Tony Williams, operations director. Peter Adams continues as non-executive chairman, whilst James Blake, who led the transaction for CBGC, will also join the board.
"As is common with investment companies, 3i has supported a small, growing company and made an excellent ROI. After five years and a pe
USA - Production Resource Group, LLC (PRG) has been honoured by the U.S. Department of Defense for supporting its employees who participate in the National Guard and Reserve Force. The award was presented on behalf of the Office of the Secretary of Defense by the New York Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR).
Recognizing PRG's above and beyond commitment to the Nation's Reserve Component personnel, ESGR presented the company with its 5 Star Statement of Support Certificate. PRG also is listed on the National ESGR website as a 5 Star Level Supporter.
"We are grateful for the sacrifices made by our employees and all men and women in our nations military," says Jere Harris, chairman and founder of PRG. "We are glad to do what we can to support them while they serve."
"Employers can support their personnel by holding jobs open a
Germany - Genelec Oy: was awarded a prestigious MIPA (Music Industry Press Award) for Best Innovative Product for its latest 8000 series of monitors at the Musikmesse, last month.
This award has become the 'Grammy' of the Musical Instrument and Pro Audio industries. Fifity-eight music press magazine from all over the globe cast their vote to make Genelec winner of the category.
The 8000 Series of near-field, two-way systems took two years to develop. It features a new approach to enclosure design; driver technology and active electronics to further reduce distortion and provide an outstanding performance.
All three models in the 8000 series feature die-cast aluminium, minimum diffraction enclosures (MDE) which have large internal volumes, softly curved edges and outstanding strength to help reduce linear and non-linear distortion. They also incorporate Advanced Directivity
USA - Electronic Stockroom, a leading West Coast consumer electronics distributor specializing in high-end audio and video electronics, today announced they will open a branch serving the Pacific Northwest territory of the United States.
"We are very excited to bring our experience and expertise to this new market," said Glen O'Brien, president of Electronic Stockroom. "We have developed a strong presence in California, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii and look forward to providing our first-class service to the Pacific Northwest."
Part of the Edge Group of distributors, Electronic Stockroom serves the custom installation and custom home integration markets, addressing the professional integrators' need for 'just-in-time' inventory management by offering on-site and next-day availability of virtually all products they distribute. Some of the premium product lines
Germany - Last October, EtherSound announced its 2006 development roadmap for the open digital audio networking standard, which is fully compliant with IEEE 802.3x Ethernet specifications.
At ProLight & Sound, the EtherSound development team delivered on a key milestone: a proof of performance demonstration of the new ES-Giga System Transport technology, which is optimized for the expanded bandwidth of Gigabit Ethernet (IEEE 802.3ab). The demo ran throughout the show, and showcased an Ethernet network handling both PCM digital audio and control data.
"ES-Giga is a System Transport technology because in addition to 512 channels of PCM audio data, it offers a dedicated 100 Mpbs for generic Ethernet data traffic," explains business development manager Jimmy Kawalek. "This allows ES-Giga users to run a variety of software programs that monitor and control devices fr
Belgium - One of the most famous and revered venues in Europe, the Ancienne Belgique otherwise known as AB has always carefully protected its reputation as a groundbreaking venue. From its early beginnings, through acts like Blondie, The Ramones and Lena Lovich, to the present day with Starsailor, Rufus Wainwright or Heather Nova, AB has come to be known as the place to play for up coming bands.
No surprise then when the technical director Marc Vrebos chose to invite all serious pro-audio manufacturers to demonstrate their latest sound systems when the time came for renewal of the house PA. "The previous system had been installed in '96, we knew fromour own experiences, and from listening to what touring sound engineers told us, that the time had come for a line array," he said.
AB's head of sound Tom Janssen, assisted by Sven Van den Broek, AB's longest serving in-h
UK - Entec Sound became the first UK rental company to use d&b audiotechnik's new J8 (80 degree) and J12 (120 degree) line array cabinets along with the new J-SUBs on a major gig - six nights at the Royal Albert Hall in London for the high profile Teenage Cancer Trust shows.
A dynamic range of international bands and artists included Goldfrapp, Anthony & The Johnsons, Bloc Party, Razorlight, Judas Priest, The Scorpions, The Cure and comedian Ricky Gervais who opened the week long event.
Entec Sound has serviced the event for the last six years and seen it grow from a single night to the six gig event it is today. Over the years they have sussed out the nuances of the venue and fine tuned the art of creating a successful sound design. However, the major sonic challenge still remains - ensuring the system sounds equally as good for the different performance genres - from
USA - Color Kinetics have announced its growing presence in the European market with the appointment of two new distribution partners in the UK. In addition, the company will support the local lighting industry as a new member of the European Lighting Designers Association (ELDA).
Color Kinetics' Q4 2005 revenues from European sales increased 102% year over year, including contributions from the UK market. Color Kinetics' lighting systems are applied in many notable local installations. Most recently they were used to light the beacon atop a 22-story residential tower in London's Tabard Square - allowing it to change colour according to barometric conditions. As the atmospheric pressure changes, the colour of the beacon changes, providing a measurement of weather conditions that is visible for many miles across the city.
Other installations include Plantation Place, Great Ormo
France - GearSourceEurope and Martin Professional France, have officially announced that they have reached agreement to work together, marketing and selling used equipment, which is available from Martin's customer base in France and the Maghreb
Bruno Garros, general director of MPF had realised for some time that he needed to find a partner company to handle an increasing number of requests from clients to assist in selling their used equipment, freeing up vital capital, and allowing them to invest in brand new Martin equipment.
Garros says: "We looked at the market and knew if we were going to refer our customers to someone, we needed to find a partner who could represent us with a high degree of quality and professionalism. GearSourceEurope with their partner in the US, GearSource Inc. have almost four years experience selling used equipment from their highly developed
UK - The controversial UK tour of Jerry Springer - The Opera opened at theTheatre Royal, Plymouth in January and continues to twenty-one other venuesover the following six months.
Olivier award-winning sound designer, Mike Walker, adapted his design to allow for fast turnarounds and variety of venues. "The show is playing for a week in most venues, so, at the design stage, it was imperative to make sure that the system was easy to configure.
"There is a reduction in cast size from thirty to twenty-one and a smaller orchestra of six rather than eight, so inputs were able to be reduced accordingly.
"It was important for me that the engineers moving the show have sufficient time to get the speakers in the right position, focussed precisely and working together as a system, rather than throwing in lots of speakers and then trying to equalise them in order t
Germany - Zero 88 Chilli dimmers and ChilliNet panels have taken control of the lighting system in the new vehicle showroom at MAN's state of the art truck factory in Munich.
The Munich based MAN factory is the head office of MAN Nutzfahrzeuge AG. The original plant was built in 1955. As the biggest factory in the MAN manufacturing group this Munich site sets industry standards in the economic manufacturing of high-quality vehicles. Their recently modernized showroom offers customers a high-quality and modern environment in which to shop.
The design requirements for the new lighting control system in the show room were clearly stated. Flexibility and reliability with simple installation of the equipment were the main criteria for this project. The features of the Chilli lighting control system matched this brief and complimented the futuristic features of the show room.
UK - It is an unusual situation for a lighting designer to be briefed to: "on no account light the leading performer". However this is exactly the situation that Andrew Bridge found himself in when lighting Sinatra at the London Palladium this year.
Directed by David Leveaux, Sinatra opened in March and is realised via a hybrid of technology and live action. The production mixes video footage of ol' blue eyes himself with a live band (music arranged by Gareth Valentine), accompanied by live backing singers and dancers (choreographed by Stephen Mear).
Bridge's brief was to create atmosphere and dimension for the 24 strong band and the live dancers - without upstaging Sinatra. However it was not easy to light the live performers when the leading man appears as a video image anything up to eight meters tall! Sinatra manifests on nine separate screens of va
UK - Video Europe, one of the UK's broadcast hire companies specialising in sporting events, has recently invested in an INNOVASON Sy48 digital mixing console complete with stagebox and several I/O cards supplied by SSE Hire.
SSE's digital systems manager, Richard Willis, stated that Video Europe was delighted with its latest addition to their inventory. "They specifically wanted a small footprint, high performance console capable of handling a full mix for live TV yet that remained compact and lightweight enough for easy transport around the globe. One of their engineers mentioned that INNOVASON might be a good choice, so they approached us for a demo. Once they saw for themselves the amount of processing power housed in such a stripped-down and accessible format, they didn't need any further convincing."
The Sy48's first job was live international cricket coverage
UK - Sound Division has recently supplied a fully portable and modular PA system for the Bradford & Bingley building society, complete with custom-built branded flightcasing and accessories. The PA system was designed and built to the B&B's specifications for use on a number of events ranging from internal team meetings to communications roadshows to staff parties.
The system is based on a pair of JBL Eon 15-G2 full range powered loudspeakers on Proel stands and a Soundcraft Folio E6 six-channel rackmount mixing desk with a Pioneer PDM426 six-disc multiplay CD player and two Shure UHF PGX24/SM58 radio mic systems. Sound Division also supplied a custom-built flightcase with a 10U mixer slope and 4U of rack space beneath it to house the mixer, CD player and radio mic transceivers.
B&B's Dean Butterfield is pleased with the end result. "Sound Division have been very helpful
Monaco - The Principality of Monaco may be one of the smallest nations in Europe, but its reputation for elegance, luxury and sophistication spans the globe. The tiny country's riches are founded on events of worldwide renown such as the Monaco Grand Prix, and the draw of glamorous entertainment venues such as the world-famous Monte Carlo Casino.
The company responsible for running much of Monte Carlo's leisure programme is the Société des Bains de Mer, which owns a number of hotels, bars and nightclubs, as well as the casino itself. Maintaining quality is a top priority.
Yves Hubert, is the technical manager responsible for audio at some of the top venues, including the Salle des toiles - a multi-purpose lounge that hosts live music, discos and a number of events for television, particularly when the annual Grand Prix circus comes to town. Built in the 1970s, th
UK - Bandit Lites is supplying full lighting production for blues legend BB King's last ever UK tour. Still vibrant and enthusiastic at 80, King has decided that it is finally time to take a break from the rigours of the road! The tour is co-headlined by another guitar hero - Gary Moore.
Lester Cobrin, Bandit's business development manager, says: "It was an honour and a privilege working on what was billed as BB King's farewell tour. I have absolute respect for the 'King of the Blues' and will never forget seeing him on stage at his final show at Wembley."
Lighting designer Mark Wheatley has worked with Moore for the last four years, and he came onboard to light both sections as BB doesn't have permanent sound or lighting engineers.
It's the first time Wheatley has worked with Bandit, describing the experience as "Absolutely excellent". The famousl
Germany - Klotz Digital was recently awarded a contract from North Rhine Westphalia's Parliament to replace the existing public address system with a Varizone announcement and evacuation installation at its facility in Duesseldorf. The building includes eight levels including a circular plenar hall, separated parliamentary party and administration areas, two basement garages and a variety of assembly rooms and offices, housing round about 500 employees and 182 members of the parliament. Klotz Digital's PA system will link 1,700 loudspeakers spread on all levels of the building.
The bigger areas such as the casino, entrance hall and car parks will be provided with a traditional 100V PA system from Klotz Digital, while Varizone will primarily be used for feeding the offices. A Vadis 880 main frame will control audio routing and signal processing throughout the facility. The instal