Italy - RCF has confirmed its new commercial partnership with Leifull Enterprise (Hong Kong) in China.

Leifull specialises in the lighting and sound industry and boasts over 10 years of progressive development. Although its headquarters are in Hong Kong, the company has branches in Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing in Mainland China.

One of Leifull's strong points is its ability to provide its clients with design consultation, installation and debugging, as well as after-sale services.

During their recent visit to RCF in Italy, Mr Zhou and Mr Huang were able to listen to RCF products in the company's demo room and also to meet the RCF team.

Mr Zhou, Leifull's chairman, commented: "It's a pleasure for us to have the chance to distribute such a well known Italian brand throughout China."

"This is a very important step of our strategic course," says Federi

UK - Edinburgh-based installation company, Dynamic Productions consolidated its expansion into the area of hire management, taking recent delivery of a VHD touring and installation system from KV2.

Dynamic's system comprises two VHD 2.0 mid-high enclosures and four each of VHD 2.16 and VHD 1.21 subwoofers, with two VHD 2000 and a further two VHD 3200 power amplifiers. The purchase complements the company's existing inventory of KV2 Audio's ES System which launched Dynamic's initial foray into the hire market in 2006.

The new system has been in constant use. Dynamic director Graeme Anderson comments, "From the other hire companies that have used it, to bands and DJs that have played on it, the response has been excellent. Both systems are compact and easy to transport and set up but have the power to far outperform anything else I've heard."

Edinburgh's major dance

Italy - Peterborough-based rental company Moore Audio is confident that it can now offer clients an irresistible upgrade in the speed, quality and cost-effectiveness of its services, thanks to the purchase of a new Electro-Voice XLD line array system.

Proprietor Richard Moore, who started the company four years ago, says that, because EV's XLD technology is so quick to put in place, "We no longer need the hours, even days, of set-up time in expensive function rooms. We can get the PA up and running faster than ever before, and that works out more cost-effectively for my clients."

Moore Audio has purchased from Shuttlesound - Electro-Voice's UK distributor - a system which initially comprises 12x XLD281 3-way ultra-compact cabinets, but, after just a few shows with the new boxes, they are already planning on supplementing the inventory with subwoofers and additional 2

USA - Constantine Zachariou, engineer and project manager for Washington-based audio/video design firm Avidex, was contracted to handle the audio renovation of the downtown Seattle Art Museum. Zachariou chose Symetrix' SymNet DSP systems to be at the heart of each of the museum's six new audio systems. His objective was to upgrade the museum's audio systems to handle the museum's many uses while still ensuring transparent, easy operation for the museum staff.

The downtown Seattle Art Museum, a crown jewel in the city's vibrant cultural life and home to works spanning human history across many cultures, recently underwent an $86 million renovation and expansion that dramatically increased its gallery space, created a new shop and restaurant, and propelled its audio systems into the 21st century.

Zachariou's designs replaced antiquated analogue systems in the 100-seat Nordstrom

UK - Allen & Heath has announced Version 3.0 of the 'Xone Mixed in Key' harmonic mixing software. Using a patent-pending process for key detection, the new version provides even more accurate results - including multiple keys for more variety - and integrates seamlessly with top DJ software, says the company.

"The new version detects keys like a human musician. To accomplish this task we hired two professional musicians to analyse hundreds of songs. Their results were entered into the latest artificial intelligence technology to teach Version 3 the technique," explains Mixed In Key designer, Yakov Vorobyev. 'Xone Mixed In Key' creates perfect mash-ups, and gives you the ability to sound like a DJ maestro."

'Xone Mixed in Key' is Windows and Mac OS X-compatible software, which analyses MP3 and .WAV files, identifies the key of a track, and highlights which other

UK - As one of the architectural jewels of the UK's south coast, Chichester Cathedral has been calling people to worship since 1106. In doing so it has set standards for longevity that few buildings can hope to equal, let alone electronics in today's society which is driven by technical change. But the Ampetronic induction loop amplifiers installed in the cathedral back in 1990 are proving that durability isn't just the preserve of stone and mortar.

Linked into the cathedral's 100v line audio system, the Ampetronic induction loop system was installed in the cathedral's main worship areas, comprising five ILD9 loop amplifiers and an ILC5 combining unit.

Despite having provided 17 years faultless service, it would be reasonable to assume that after such a time, the system may well be in need of refurbishment. This was the case with the entire audio system, when contractor RG Jon

Finland - Although a quartet of classically-trained cellists playing heavy metal seems a most unlikely phenomenon to take the musical world by storm, since 1993 Finnish band Apocalyptica has been gaining an ever-growing fan base by doing precisely that.

With a new album 'Worlds Collide' just released, the band has now set off on a major, two year world tour, with a DiGiCo D5 console at front of house and a D1 at monitors.

The band's FoH engineer Michael Bauer has been a DiGiCo user since 2003 when, with no real training, he did his first show on a DiGiCo console with the Leningrad Cowboys.

"The show was in Norway and, after a quick introduction by the sound guy, I started working with the console. Within half an hour I felt comfortable, which was surprising as it was the first time I had used a digital desk and I was feeling a bit nervous!" says Bauer. "For me

UK / India - Allen & Heath, has appointed SunInfonet as its exclusive distributor in India. The company will manage the sales, distribution and service of the complete Allen & Heath product line from their HQ in Delhi.

"The audio market in India has grown dramatically over the past couple of years resulting in an increasing demand for more sophisticated AV systems and higher end professional products. Consequently, it made sense for us to appoint SunInfonet, who has been one of our key dealers in the region for some time, and are very knowledgeable about our products," comments Allen & Heath's sales director, Bob Goleniowski.

"SunInfonet already distributes Shure, Camco and Nexo products, so the addition of Allen & Heath has strengthened our portfolio. We are very pleased to be representing the brand, which is well known in India and our appointment means we can

Denmark / France - As part of a major restructuring of its international distributor and dealer network, DK-Technologies has announced the appointment of Monitoring Company to distribute is entire range of audio and video metering products in France.

Based near Nice, Monitoring Company is headed by Jean-Baptiste Lannoy and has over 20 years' experience in the music, video and broadcast industries. Among the many top brands the company represents are Evertz, Marshall and ASTRO.

"We use our extensive in-house technical knowledge to ensure that our customers are provided with exactly the right equipment for their needs," says Jean-Baptiste Lannoy. "We select products for distribution on the demands of the market and every product we stock is thoroughly tested to ensure that it meets our rigorous specifications. Our belief is that quality is cheap because by distrib

USA - Masque Sound, based in East Rutherford, New Jersey has taken possession of their first Adamson rig. The newly released ultra compact true line source series Metrix was first demoed to sound consultant and designer Duncan Edwards earlier this year, while still in its prototype stages.

Edwards demoed a few different systems provided by several sound companies bidding for a specific youth themed musical tour, but the size specifications coming from the production design team were limiting, leaving fewer options to contend for the tour.

This Musical was originally an American TV Movie released in 2006, and quickly became this family channel's most successful movie with 7.7 million viewers in its premiere broadcast in the US. The film's soundtrack was the best-selling album of 2006, and has since morphed into movie sequels, books, concert tours, musical tours, video games and

Italy - Outline Butterfly, in the experienced hands of Britannia Row Productions, is ready for the only Italian date on Amy Winehouse's European tour, due to be staged at Milan's Alcatraz on Friday 26 October 2007.

The rig will comprise 36 CDH 483 Hi-Packs and 16 Subtech 218 SP subs, all powered by Outline T9 power amplifiers bought by the London rental company, thanks to which - they stress - the line arrays manufactured in Brescia has reached "new heights". The system engineer for the Milan event and the entire tour is Italian Davide Lombardi, who's been on the Britannia Row team for some time.

This is the artist's second tour with Britannia Row's Butterfly; the previous (UK) one was held in January and its sound quality met with unanimous acclaim from the top UK PA men, FOH and system engineers, says Outline.

(Jim Evans)

India - Bangalore-based V-Dosc Partner J Davis Prosound & Lighting provided a V-DOSC system on the occasion of the Mysore Utsava Festival which took place at the end of July.

This unique cultural event featured over 300 performances from artists such as Kunal Ganjawalla, Shreya Goswal, Shaan to Udit Naraya, just to name a few. Each day saw a crowd averaging 10,000 spectators with an audience culminating at 15 000 on the closing day of the festival. The sound system consisted of 10 V-DOSC per side and eight ARCS.

The National newspaper The Hindu reported: "Both sound and lighting systems were top notch and they brought a tremendous contribution to the general atmosphere of the festival and definitely enhanced the listening pleasure of the audience."

(Jim Evans)

Norway - Clear-Com has been chosen to supply a fully digital Eclipse Omega matrix intercom system with FreeSpeak 50 for use throughout Norway's newest and most prestigious National Opera House, Nytt Operahus, in Oslo. Eclipse Omega and FreeSpeak50 digital wireless beltpacks will provide the communication backbone for the 38,500sq.m facility and its large production and sound crew.

The Opera House is the largest cultural building to be constructed in Norway and an important symbol to the nation. The building houses 1100 rooms as well as a 1,350-seat performance auditorium and a small 400-seat auditorium. The Opera House will employ over 600 people, including production and sound crew who will be utilising Clear-Com's FreeSpeak wireless beltpack for point-to-point communication.

The Clear-Com system chosen by the Nytt Operahus includes a 64-port Eclipse Omega Digital Matrix cont

UK - Allen & Heath's digital and analogue mixers were employed to manage FOH and monitor sound reinforcement at a new UK festival, which included performances from Echo & The Bunnymen, From The Jam, Badly Drawn Boy and The Bluetones.

Organised by promoters, the Gum & Glue Co, Falmouth Bay Events Square Live was held in the Cornish port over the August bank holiday weekend, providing two evenings of diverse musical entertainment.

The Exeter branch of Sound2Light Productions was chosen to provide all the sound, lighting and staging equipment, with support from Cornwall-based Allen & Heath. The new iLive digital system - comprisingan iDR10 stage rack and iLive-144 control surface - was selected for FOH, with a 32-channel GL2800M dedicated analogue monitor console.

Reflecting on their first event with iLive, Sound2Light director, Richard Jordan, commented, "Initially I was

UK - Helen & Douglas House held their most successful ever fundraising event on Saturday 15 September whilst commemorating their 25th anniversary, over £155,000 was raised on the night with Stage Electrics supplying a full sound system, AV equipment and technical crew.

Based on a circus theme, the ball was held in a stunning big top tent with a helter skelter built right into the twinkling roof. Magicians, 'birds of paradise', juggling stilt walkers, a carousel and the Honda Racing F1 Team simulator car added to the fun, while celebrity guests including Trinny Woodall, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Alex James (Blur), Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Richard Hammond and James May added the glamour.

The complete sound system for the event supplied by Stage Electrics included the PA in the Big Top utilising Function1 and L-Acoustics equipment, background sound reinforcement in the bar a

Finland - High End Systems has announced a new partner agreement with Soundata Oy in Helsinki to supply HES products to Finland's entertainment and television markets. Soundata is active in a variety of fields including lighting, AV contracting, live sound and studio technology.

Juhani Vitikka, Soundata CEO and partner for Soundata says, "We are excited about representing High End Systems products in Finland, as the country is known for a unique variety of entertainment - perfect for High End's unique products."

Soundata showed off the new product line at Audiovisual 2007 in Helsinki. The international trade fair is the most important professional event of the year in the Nordic region for professionals, designers and decision-makers in the audiovisual and corporate event markets. Soundata's booth demonstrated Road Hog and Wholehog 3, as well as Showgun and DL.2.

M

UK - Blitz has recently completed internal investment with a value of £100k following the purchase of additional High Definition (HD) broadcast graphics systems for its already impressive rental fleet.

Blitz has invested in one of the world's most advanced graphics systems Chyron HyperX with Lyric PRO. The HyperX supports one or two independent HD/SD-switchable channels and simultaneous HD animations on two channels for "truly stunning graphics play out". Blitz has also added the Pixel Power Clarity 5000. It is a multi-format, multi-channel hybrid graphics system which includes SD and HD character generation with embedded still store, video clips, 2D DVE, real-time 3D and audio capability.

The systems have already been used in many high profile events, including, the Rugby World Cup and will be used at the first NBA (US National Basket Association) basketball g

USA - : Symetrix has named Sanecore Audio Co. Ltd., Shenzhen, China as their 2007 international distributor of the year. Sanecore is recognised as one of leading distributors of both consumer and professional audio products in the Asian marketplace.

Commented Paul Roberts, director of sales for Symetrix: "Over the past twelve months Sanecore. has shown a tremendous dedication to the Symetrix brand and their growth in sales is indicative of this. Mr. Jun Zhu and his staff have been exemplary in their adoption of Symetrix technology and its implementation into the Chinese installed sound market."

(Jim Evans)

USA - Community Professional has appointed pro audio veteran Rod Falconer to the position of regional sales manager for the Western US region and Canada.

With more than 25 years in professional audio sales, Falconer comes to Community from Sabine, where he was director of sales. Previously he has held positions in sales and marketing at SLS Audio, L'Acoustics, JBL Professional and AMX. Falconer will be responsible for outside sales management in Canada and the western half of the United States.

(Jim Evans)

Italy - The Vatican decided to invest in a new conference system for the prestigious Sala del Sinodo (Synod Hall). The system chosen was a DCN Next Generation consisting of interpretation, camera control, PC control and 364 positions with flush-mount units and nine positions table top DCN Concentus.

The flush-mount units offer the same functionality and performance as the table top DCN Concentus systems while enabling tailor-made fixed installations to be built into tables and arm rests. The flush-mount units consist of a microphone, loudspeaker and microphone activation button, simply combined in a strip and finished with matching end-caps.

(Jim Evans)

USA - Renkus-Heinz was forced to evacuate its factory in Foothill Ranch, California, as the wildfires that have devastated large areas of California in the past few days came within 250 yards of the 50,000sq.ft facility. All employees left the building safely and structural damage was averted by a combination of the dedication of firefighting teams and a sudden change in direction of the wind. The factory has since reopened.

A rapid decision was made by the company to evacuate to protect employees and vital documents as the Orange County Fire Department fought to contain the inferno that has already left one dead, scores injured and over 1,000 properties destroyed. US President George Bush has declared a state of emergency in California.

Renkus-Heinz VP of Operations Rik Kirby said that although the atmosphere had become smoky in the early morning there had not been an undue s

UK - The Event Show, which takes place in January 2008 at Olympia in London, has confirmed that Barry Baker, the Health and Safety Executive's head of entertainment and leisure section, will be present to take questions from event organisers on day two as part of the Access Sessions.

Barry Baker and his team will discuss the changing nature of health & safety for events, includingthe Control of Noise At Work Regulations 2005 which came into force in April last year and how it has impacted on live music events. The team will also cover Working At Height Regulations as well as future trends that will affect event organisers.

(Jim Evans)

UK - Cirrus Research has introduced a new, extended '2-12 Year' warranty for its doseBadge personal noise dosemeter system. Under the terms of the new scheme Cirrus' standard two year warranty can be extended by a further ten years, at no additional cost, provided that the instrument is serviced and recalibrated by either Cirrus Research or by an authorised service centre. The move is a direct result of Cirrus' confidence in the strength and reliability of the doseBadge, says the company.

"The doseBadge is unique in the market place", said James Tingay, of Cirrus Research. "It's robust, yet lightweight metal construction and self-contained design, with no external controls, fragile displays, cables or microphones, has resulted in a system which can withstand the most hostile of working environments. The wearer can't break it by knocking or dropping it. They can't

Japan - Renowned Japanese jazz vocalist and Electro-Voice RE510 microphone endorser Takako Afuso celebrated the release of her new album Mabui No Uta at Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall on 1 September, joined by a band including a host of musicians from her two prior hit recordings.

Sound reinforcement for the sold-out event was an all-Bosch Communications Systems affair, with a plethora of Electro-Voice microphones, various EV loudspeakers powered by new TG and CP amplifiers, with Midas mixing consoles and Klark Teknik digital signal processing and equalization.

(Jim Evans)

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