The FOH 48 channel Allen & Heath ML4000 VCA console at the Jeddah Economic Forum 2004.
Saudi Arabia - HAV Productions, a division of Allen & Heath's Saudi Arabian distributor, Halwani Audio Visual, designed and managed the audio system for the recent Jeddah Economic Forum (JEF) 2004, selecting a 48 channel Allen & Heath ML4000 live sound VCA console to mix the audio.

This annual Forum, first held in 1999, has become the region's strategic 'think tank', focusing on local, regional, and international economic and social issues, and setting the benchmark for business gatherings across the Middle East. This year's prestigious guest speakers included former U.S. president, Bill Clinton; HM Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan; HE Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey; HE Rafik Hariri, former Prime Minister of Lebanon; HE Mr. Yengeny Primakov, President of the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of the Russian Federation, and former Russian Prime Minister; and HE Mahathir Mohamad, former Prime Minister of Malaysia.

For the past three years, the JEF has been held in the main ballroom at the Jeddah Hilton Hotel, the largest conference venue in Jeddah, therefore demanding an equally impressive sound system. "We selected the ML4000 because we needed an intuitive desk with plenty of aux sends, VCA capability for grouping, and dual functionality to handle monitors and FOH. The desk's 23 busses adequately catered for the large number of feeds required," comments Halwani Audio Visual's managing director, Bassam Halwani.

"The ML supplied audio for the F.O.H, stage monitors, front fills, and three lines of delayed speakers flown on trusses. The output from the ML4000 was fed into an Allen & Heath DR66 signal processor, fitted with a delay card and pre-programmed to control the levels, delays and EQ of the live conference audio, as well as playback for background music and film footage. The desk also fed separate mixes for the interpretation system - providing four language translations - and audio to 12 broadcasting stations. A feed was also established for an online webcast, and a fibre optic link to the Hilton Hotel's in-house AV system. The ML4000 performed admirably throughout the event and helped make the forum a great success."

Additional FOH equipment comprised a Whirlwind active signal distribution system, Crest Audio CA Series amp rack, various signal and FX processing equipment, a time-aligned Tannoy Ceiling Speaker system, and a Tannoy Superdual FOH and stage monitor system.

(Sarah Rushton-Read)


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