Germany - Pioneer Pro Audio has appointed SLD Distribution as its new distributor in Germany. The Fürth-based company distributes a number of leading international industry brands across the audio, lighting and AV sector. Its CEO Daniel Danzer has more than years experience in the audio industry, and in particular, the nightclub sector. He founded SLD Distribution last year to be a hub for installation, planning, rental and distribution of pro AV. SLD Distribution works closely with an established network of systems integrators and offers planning, advice, training and certification associated with all its brands. Daniel Danzer comments, “We are very pleased to be representing Pioneer Pro Audio. The brand has a formidable reputation for sound and build quality. Where other brands manufacture plastic loudspeakers, Pioneer Pro Audio takes a different approach which I
Sweden - Östermalms Saluhall in the Swedish capital of Stockholm is one of the world’s premier food halls and a cultural institution in its own right. First established in 1888, the beautiful building is classified as a historical monument. It has recently reopened after the most extensive renovation project in its 130-year history. Four years on and 130m euros later, the food hall has regained its former glory and developed into a modern and sustainable trading venue, complete with a Genelec Smart IP loudspeaker solution for the Saluhall’s largest trader, Lisa Elmqvist. Having expanded operations considerably over the years to include a gourmet restaurant as well as the food stall, Lisa Elmqvist now occupies nearly one-third of the hall’s newly renovated star-shaped space. In order to find a suitable audio solution to cover the various zones, Lisa Elmqvist tur
Greece - Located in Porto Rafti (near Athens) Nakal is one of the city's most popular beach bar restaurants. The seaside restaurant offers a fusion and multi-cuisine dining experience with the signature of executive chef Dimitri Skarmoutso, the bar an endless list of classic and signature cocktails prepared by bartender/mixologist Aris Chatziantoniou and sounds are selected and spun by Maria Papidaki and VKD Djs. The idyllic venue recently had a leading edge Outline sound system installed by the Italian manufacturer’s Greek distributor, Mega Event. London-based sound designer and engineer John Karampelas made the first contact with Mega Event’s headquarters in Pallini (Athens) around December, requesting a preliminary proposal for a high quality audio solution for Nakal. The company’s team for the project comprised consultant Konstantinos Vaidanis, installation s
USA - What once was a 300-seat movie theatre Bristol Riverside Theatre (BRT) is located in the historic district of Bristol Borough in Eastern Pennsylvania. The theatre itself, built in 1937 and reopened as a performance hall in 1986, is well-known for bringing local and national artists to the stage, producing over 200 performances each year. Earlier this year, BRT invited Eric Tucker, of New York City’s Bedlam Theatre to direct a production of King Lear with a fresh interpretation of the Shakespearean classic. The show ran for several weeks, starting 28 January and ending 16 February 2020. When the production required a sound design, BRT re-enlisted the talents of consultant and sound designer, Brad Ward to assemble it. “One thing I liked about Bristol was the size, it’s a very intimate venue, you don’t need a lot of speakers to achieve the result you
Austria - Since its inception in 2011, the Woodstock der Blasmusik festival has been attracting crowds of up to 60,000 brass music fans each June to Ort im Innkreis in Austria. With brass aficionados obliged to stay at home by COVID-19, this year the organisers treated them to an evening of livestreamed performances from the festival site, featuring eight bands and mixed from an Allen & Heath dLive system. The FOH and broadcast audio rig for this online incarnation of Woodstock Der Blasmusik was supplied and managed by Martin Bröll of Greenbee Records Studios, working closely with the festival’s technical manager, Mario Schwarz, who oversaw all aspects of the audio, video and streaming. With eight bands, three stages and over 60 inputs to look after, Martin chose his DM32 MixRack as the core of a dLive system running the PA sound, broadcast mix and interc
UK - Hastings-based rock heavyweights, Kid Kapichi, stamped their name firmly onto the hide of the UK rock scene last year, and just before lockdown they played their local venue, The Printworks. The band is fronted by Jack Wilson and Ben Beetham and for this gig sound engineer Alfie Rolph made sure that they performed to 200 ecstatic fans upstairs through a Martin Audio Blackline XP12 / XP118 PA rig, supplied by partners Old Barn Audio (OBA). “The Martin Audio speakers represented a huge upgrade,” said Wilson, “and we’ll now be looking to use them for all future events of that level.” Alfie Rolph, an employee of OBA, and one of the Printworks’ sound techs, reviewed the existing sound system and decided it was time for an upgrade. “Although it was a tried and trusted system, I knew that for Kid Kapichi’s last gig here, these local legends needed a
South Africa - In a live stream filmed at MGG Productions in Sandton, and hosted on SACIA's YouTube channel, the technical production and live events industry announced the launch the national campaign #LightSAred, to be held on 5 August 2020. Sharif Baker, chair of the TPSA, announced that the technical production and live events industry will be spearheading a symbolic resistance campaign that will see buildings across the country lit up in red on 05 August. "The colour red is the international colour of emergency," Baker explains. "We are following the example set by our colleagues in Germany and the UK in lighting our national monuments red to highlight the desperate plight of our industry under current lockdown policies and regulations." Baker went on to emphasise that the #LightSAred campaign is not affiliated with any political body or ideology. "We are simply a
APAC - Alwyn Wong has joined Symetrix as their new regional sales manager overseeing the Asia-Pacific region. Wong comes to Symetrix with over 20 years of experience in the professional audio industry. He was first introduced to audio DSP’s while working on a system installation for the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur in 1998. He later spent six years at Harman Professional as a technical sales engineer, and then as a senior application engineer. Most recently, Wong came from Peavey Commercial Audio where he was the technical manager overseeing the APAC territory. “It is my honour to work for one of the top Audio DSP brands where I can utilise my expertise in network audio,” says Wong. “With my ample experience in the Asia-Pacific market, I feel confident that we can navigate the audio-visual landscape and produce favourable outcomes.” Won
USA - Austrian AV technology manufacturer AV Stumpfl has appointed Conor McGill as a global business development manager with a special focus on the US media server market. McGill is the former director of strategic partnerships at Float4 in Montreal. At aV Stumpfl, he will focus on growing the customer base of the media server system Pixera. "I first used an AV Stumpfl product for a projection mapping project at a NFL football stadium in the USA four years ago. That project was a smashing success and every interaction I've had with the company since has been stellar,” says McGill. “I feel very fortunate to have found my way to the company and am looking forward to working with old and new customers alike on cutting edge media projects with Pixera," says McGill. In 2018, AV Stumpfl GmbH established AV Stumpfl Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia, and has continued to gro
UK - Realtime video manipulation expert Green Hippo has introduced “a small-yet-powerful” media server to its range, the Hippotizer Nevis+. Featuring all of the creative power of its well-known bigger brothers, Hippotizer Nevis+ is designed to provide a smaller, inexpensive solution for video creation, visualisation and playback, with all of Hippotizer’s software features as standard. The Nevis+ is a half-rack or wall-mount unit offering one display port 1.2 output with software-based EDID management, two network ports and the latest versions of Hippotizer’s user-friendly tools including SHAPE 3D Mapping, PixelMapper and the multipurpose pre-visualisation tool, all built into its Hippotizer V4 software. “We’ve designed the Nevis+ for a broad range of less demanding applications, including live music and theatre tours, corporate events and TV OB/on lo
Rwanda - The first S12T Streamline OB van for the African continent has been successfully delivered to Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA). Built and outfitted by Broadcast Solutions in Germany in just three months, the Streamline S12T is a truck/box body combination with one extension for up to 14 workplaces. Accommodating up to 12 cameras, it also features the first Lawo mc²56 MkIII console for the African continent. Arthur Asiimwe, director general at Rwanda Broadcasting Agency, comments, “We were looking for a flexible OB truck that is easy to deploy and to operate. The vehicle’s fast delivery time and perfect price-performance ratio were further decisive criteria for contracting Broadcast Solutions with the production and delivery.” At the heart of the vehicle’s audio section, Broadcast Solutions installed a Lawo mc²56 console with 32 channel strips and a L
UK - Audio manufacturer Powersoft has supported Leeds-based audio integrator, Audioserv, in creating a vast audio system for Roxy Ball Room, Roxy Leisure’s bowling alley and bar experience in Birmingham. The American style venue harbours a 10-lane bowling alley, which also includes a bar, creating a vibrant experience with the help of a modern audio system. Audioserv, who have also provided audio systems for over 15 of Roxy Ball Room’s locations, took on the task of providing and installing audio equipment for the venue, with support from Powersoft audio distributor CUK. “We’ve been working with Roxy Ball Room since the beginning of the brand in 2013,” explains Pete Rollinson, technical director of Audioserv. “For the Birmingham venue, we designed a system to give consistent coverage across the whole space, with an added impact in certain areas of the venue
UK - Cranborne Audio is now s shipping the Camden EC2 - a 19” rackmount, dual-channel preamp based on the award-winning Camden 500. Camden EC2 combines two Camden mic/line/hi-z preamps featuring Mojo analogue saturation circuits with two reference-quality headphone amplifiers and discrete line mixers for zero-latency, direct-monitoring during tracking. Featuring two reference-quality headphone amplifiers with independent line mixers, the Camden preamps can be monitored directly using headphones connected directly to Camden EC2’s front panel. Use headphones during mic placement to find the sweet spot of the instrument/source or create zero-latency artist mixes by combining the preamp signals with external playback from the Aux Input ¼” jacks on Camden EC2’s rear panel. Camden EC2 also utilises Cranborne Audio’s C.A.S.T. system for distributing audio aro
USA - Anaïs Mitchell’s hit musical Hadestown has worldwide attention since making its Broadway debut at the Walter Kerr Theatre last April. Directed by Rachel Chavkin, the show boasts an all-star audio production team, led by sound designers Jessica Paz and Nevin Steinberg. Included among the show’s audio gear are DPA Microphones’ 4066 mnidirectional Headsets, 4061 Omnidirectional Lavaliers and 4099 Instrument Mics. When Chavkin expressed to the pair that her direction for Hadestown was to have the theatre feel like a concert hall, they immediately knew that microphone selection would be especially important. “For the actors, who are all double mic’ed, we chose a combination of DPA 4066 Omnidirectional Headset Mics with backup 4061 Miniature Omnidirectional Mics attached to the frame,” says Paz. “I greatly appreciate the discreet profile of the 4061s a
Germany – The town of Bendorf, on the outskirts of Koblenz, has been staging its Summer In The City festival for many years. And even the COVID-19 pandemic was not going to stop proceedings this year. Operating as a weekend-only event for its first decade - in the Kirchplatz, a square in the centre of town - this year it managed to get permission to run through until the end of August. This was on the proviso that the event was restricted to 300 seated and socially distanced seated guests, part of a maximum capacity of 350 (including artists, technical crews and staff). The sound system that will take it right through the summer season is a Martin Audio WPC, acquired by Michael Enchelmaier’s rental company, Event & Veranstaltungstechnik Enchelmaier (EVE). This is the centrepiece of a complete technical infrastructure provided by the company. A customer of
Canada/Europe - Bluesound Professional, specialist in distributed audio ecosystems for commercial spaces, has announced the addition of four new distribution partners covering key territories in Western Europe. The new distributors are Gaplasa Pro (Spain), M-Pro (BeNeLux), Magnelusa (Portugal) and Polar (UK). “We are delighted to be able to welcome another four great distributors to our European team. We are fortunate to be able to work with some of the best distributors in the business. Having worked with most of these companies before, this new relationship for Bluesound Professional will prove viable as this will help cover almost all of the key European territories,” said Graeme Harrison, vice-president and general Manager, Bluesound Professional. Bluesound Professional is continuing its efforts to grow its distribution network. Since its launch at the Integrat
Spain - Lynx Pro Audio has introduced Juno, its latest commercial audio loudspeaker series. The Juno series are weather-resistant two-way full range loudspeakers for indoor and outdoor applications, able to withstand the elements. The Juno series comprises one 6" low/mid-woofer with one 1" HF driver (JN-6T) and one 8" low/mid-woofer with one 1" HF driver (JN-8T), both with line transformer as standard and available in black or white. Their discreet design and small size makes them suitable for installation in commercial centres and meeting rooms. Outside, they provide an option for background music systems, pools, beach clubs, waterparks and cruises.
Germany - HK Audio has unveiled Premium PR:O D2, the latest addition to the PremiumPR:O family of loudspeakers. The Premium PR:O D2 series consists of five DSP-controlled full-range and multifunctional speakers (the PR:O 110 XD2, PR:O 112 FD2, PR:O 112 XD2, PR:O 115 FD2 and PR:O 115 XD2), as well as the PR:O 210 Sub D2 and PR:O 118 Sub D2 subwoofers. The PR:O D2 series uses premium components and DSP electronics with advanced FIR filtering for intuitive and practical operation, and their low-resonance wooden cabinets for powerful bass reproduction offer a maximum sound pressure of up to 132 dB. In line with the modular principle, the speakers can be combined flexibly for the most varied of requirements, from standalone, 2.1 and monitor setups to full-stack applications, says the company. “These combination options make Premium PR:O D2 suitable for a wide range of ins
UK - The M4 motorway might cut a swathe through the centre of Boston Manor Park in Brentford, London, but where the Junction 2 Festival is concerned it is anything but a dividing presence. In fact since 2016, discerning fans of electronic music have gathered together between its pillars and beneath its road-deck to witness sets by some of the very best DJs in the world. Junction 2’s mission was always to concentrate on delivering the best production values. The focus lies away from VIPs and plastic tents, preferring to concentrate resources on delivering quality sound and high production values against this fittingly industrial backdrop. Junction 2 has grown organically over its four editions to become one of the capital’s most popular electronic festivals and this year’s event, due to be staged in June, was sold out. Events this year have of course been decimate
Germany - Lawo has released new software with additional options, functionality and security features for its line of radio mixing consoles, Ravenna / AES67 mixing engines, and VisTool GUI Builder software. “The business of radio continues to evolve, and Lawo is committed to upgrading and improving our tools to match industry needs,” says Johan Boqvist, senior product manager, radio. “This upgrade gives users new tools to tailor their Lawo radio equipment to meet their unique on-air and production workflows. And they will benefit not only radio clients, but TV production and audio infrastructure users as well.” The first major feature introduced with Radio Software v6.6 is a new license package for Lawo’s versatile Power Core DSP mixing / routing engine: Power Core EDGE. This license provides an entry-level configuration designed specifically for deployment a
UK - Similar to other musicians who had found themselves restrained by the coronavirus lockdown, five-piece UK band Mamas Gun, widely known for their album Golden Days, was struggling to find a way for all band members to play together remotely without latency or other issues. A solution was found in the form of Tin Pan Studio, which allows remotely based musicians to jam, rehearse, create, record and perform music together over the internet in realtime. Thanks to this innovative technology, Mamas Gun was able to deliver a successful live stream concert as part of the global #DontStopTheMusic music initiative by Sennheiser. When the pandemic hit, Doug Hunt, live sound engineer and MD of Doug Hunt Sound & Light, had all his work cancelled, so he started looking for ways to help bands perform together remotely over the internet. “Like everyone else, I came up sho
USA - The Audio Engineering Society (AES) has released preliminary details on the upcoming International Conference on Audio for Virtual and Augmented Reality (AVAR), set to take place in its own online virtual venue on 17-19 August. The event will serve as a hub of innovation for the latest research in the fields of spatial audio and technology for virtual, augmented and mixed reality, with a focus on technical solutions and recommended practices in the field. “The necessity to take AVAR 2020 fully online is ideally suited to the Conference content,” says Matt Klassen, chair. “Our attendees can plug in entirely, create an avatar and participate and interact inside a virtual environment. One of the primary advantages of holding the conference in VR is the very compelling nature of the 3D audio for small group conversations - a big step up from flat screen teleco
The Netherlands - Doka nightclub inhabits the basement of the colourful Volkshotel in southeast Amsterdam. With a maximum capacity of 200, Doka bills itself as the place where “listeners become dancers and vice versa”. To meet that mission with something more nuanced than the conventional high-volume, high-distortion club PA, Doka hired pro audio distribution and integration company Firm4 to install the unconventional loudspeaker and subwoofer designs of acoustician Tom Danley. Four Danley SH50 full-range loudspeakers and two Danley TH118 subwoofers give Doka’s patrons an audio experience. “The old system wasn’t meeting the high standards that Kerwin Groot, Doka’s chief sound engineer and Julian Chaptal, the club’s producer and programmer expected,” explained Robert Pigeaud, representative of Firm4. “Kerwin reached out to us because he had heard Danle
Germany - Optocore has further extended its M-series of interfaces, with the announcement of the MADI-SRC. This exists in the shape of two new hardware boards with either four fibre or four BNC MADI SRC (Sample Rate Converter) ports. This means that any combination of devices from the M-series (comprising M8-OPT, M8-BNC, M12-OPT, M12-BNC, M12-OPT/BNC) can be now equipped with these Sample Rate Converters for MADI streams. With this new feature customers can use stand-alone or networked MADI routers, with streams in different sample rates. In addition, the new M-series SRC will be available in DiGiCo mode, and can be connected to the DiGiCo optical loop providing MADI SRC streams. Speaking of this latest development, Optocore application engineering manager, Maciek Janiszewski, stated: "MADI SRC is a very useful and unique feature. Our R&D team worked tireless
