UK - Vertigo celebrated the worldwide launch of Vertex at PLASA07 this week - where the joystick-controlled 3D flying system scooped a prestigious PLASA Award for Innovation.

The first use of Vertex was in the making of the latest Harry Potter movie, and the system is now available from Vertigo, the London and Pinewood based rigging, motion control and entertainment structures specialists, for sale or hire worldwide.

Designed and engineered to fly people, cameras and objects across large areas in real time without complicated programming, Vertex is billed as the first 3D flying system that can be controlled and programmed in real time via a joystick. This system has been designed to ensure the simplest of set-up and control with the highest technical capability. Crucially, it is certified to the most stringent (BGV-C1) safety standard.

Unlike other flying systems, moves can

USA - Elation Professional reports that its two new 6-channel dimmers - the RMD-620 and DP-640B - have been granted UL approval. Both models are hybrid Dim/Switch packs; the RMD-620 is a 19" rack mount unit, while the DP-640B is an upgraded version of Elation's popular DP-640 model.

"We are very pleased that the RMD-620 and DP-640B have received UL approval. This signifies that they have met or exceeded the most rigorous safety standards in the industry," said Eric Loader, director of sales for Elation Professional. "We anticipate a widespread demand for these two new dimmers from clubs and installations where UL-listed lighting gear is required, as well as from lighting designers and rental businesses who want to offer their customers the highest assurance of safety and professionalism."

The RMD-620 comes with a standard terminal output panel on the r

USA / UK - The Renkus-Heinz Audio Operations Network (RHAON), what the company calls "the first practical technology to offer maximum control over self-powered loudspeakers", has made its public débute as a full production product at PLASA 07 (9-12 September 2007), in the shape of the all-new Sygma SG Series loudspeakers.

RHAON from Renkus-Heinz offers an industry-first combination of integral amplification, DSP, digital audio networking, control and monitoring, which will available for the entire Renkus-Heinz powered product lineup, the company says. Under the headline 'Maximum Control', RHAON technology will become a standard option in every new Renkus-Heinz powered loudspeaker, beginning with the all-new Sygma SG Series.

Also now shipping is the RHAON-Empowered CF Series, which brings RHAON and the CF Series' exceptional technologies to a broad market acros

UK - Avolites launched the latest in its series of pearl consoles - The Pearl Tiger - at PLASA 2007. The Pearl Tiger is a powerful, streamlined 10 roller playback version of Avo's most popular 'live' lighting console.

Aimed at a wide range of sectors and applications, the Pearl Tiger is equally suited for small theatres, conferences, schools & colleges, small to medium scale productions or production companies, tours, venues and nightclubs, says the company.

The Pearl Tiger is fully show compatible with all Avo Pearls and shows can be loaded and swapped between these consoles.

(JIm Evans)

UK - Martin Audio has incorporated a number of "significant improvements" throughout its Blackline Series of loudspeakers.

Drivers and crossover networks have been improved and all low-frequency drivers used in two-way systems now benefit from the addition of aluminium demodulating rings to minimise the variation in voice coil inductance as the coil moves in the gap. The result is improved midrange clarity and reduced intermodulation distortion at high excursions, ensuring that the sound balance and quality are maintained even at high levels, says the company.

In the development of the Blackline Series special attention has also been given to matching the directivity of the low frequency drivers to the HF horns in the crossover region. This has been achieved by careful choice of LF cone profiles, together with improvements in crossover design.

The new design ethos

UK - At London's PLASA07, Nexo unveiled the new NXAMP, the first product to be developed jointly by Nexo and Yamaha, and which Nexo believes to be a truly ground-breaking development.

A little over two years after Nexo and Yamaha announced the formation of a strategic alliance for product development and distribution, the first fruits of the collaboration were revealed at Earls Court.

The integration of amplifier, available in two 4-channel sizes, with the Nexo TDController is a cooler, cleaner and more efficient solution which will bring cost and operational benefits to live use as well as fixed installation, says the company.

The TDController function provides crossover, sensed amplifier control and system alignment, using digital software algorithms to combine this calibrated data with sensed voltage and current measurements, precisely controlling the temperature and disp

UK - As we reported during the PLASA Show last week, this month has seen DiGiCo unveil its concept of the future, the SD7, in front of 120 of its distributors, sound engineers, designers and rental companies who were invited to an exclusive party held at London's Tower Bridge and then again at London's PLASA07.

The SD7 is based around a new technology developed at DiGiCo, called Stealth digital processing, and could ultimately bring a whole new dimension to digital mixing, says the company.

"The party was mainly to celebrate our MBO," says DiGiCo marketing director David Webster. "But it also gave us the chance to let our guests have a sneak preview of what we're working towards. The SD7 is purely a concept, but who knows what the real possibilities could be."

Stealth is a culmination of embedded FPGA and the new Tiger Sharc from Analogue Devices. John St

France - The first 1800W followspots ever to go on the market will shortly be available from French followspot specialists, Robert Juliat. Two models will be available, a long throw version named Victor (7-14.5°) and its short-throw counterpart, Flo (13-24°).

The Victor and Flo have been modelled around the new 1800W MSR DE, hot restrike, lamp, which has been developed in co-operation with Philips to offer a high output of light in a very compact unit.

Despite physical dimensions which match the 'LDI 2006 product of the Year' 1200W HMI Super Korrigan, there is an increase in light output of up to 50% on the 1200W models, a fact which Robert Juliat director, Francois Juliat, is happy to promote.

"We are now offering in the same compact format and design as the 1200W but with the equivalent light output of a 2500W," he explains. "The compact size (less t

UK - An interactive, low energy light bulb installation designed by Jason Bruges Studio and commissioned by Greenpeace has been moved to the front of house feature space at the 100% design exhibition which begins this Thursday (20 September) in London.

Exhibition organisers have recognised that the combination of style and efficiency embodied in Bruges' Light Garden will be a major draw for the show and a groundbreaking example of low energy technology. Jason Bruges has designed a fully interactive, dimming garden of light, which at its brightest will dazzle observers with its intensity whilst consuming a fraction of the energy of its exhibition neighbours. The installation is presented as part of Kinetica's latest group show - In Flux.

In addition, a completely new type of energy efficient bulb, produced by small scale manufacturer Varilight, will feature in the instal

UK - Digidesign announced at PLASA 07 the concurrent release of two important upgrades for its Venue live sound environment. Available for both the D-show and D-Show Profile mixing consoles, the D-Show 2.6 software upgrade adds several key new features including support for Aviom Pro16 Series personal monitoring/mixing devices via Digidesign's new ANO A-Net Output Card.

"We are very excited about the release of DShow 2.6 and the ANO A-Net output card," states Digidesign live sound market manager Robert Scovill. "D-Show 2.6 offers many new workflow and setup enhancements aimed at making a live sound mixer's job even easier, as well as making the system engineer and contractor's task simple when dealing with numerous Venue systems.

"Our ANO A-Net product offers some never before seen hardware features and software integration that Aviom users are sure to find

Denmark - DPA Microphones has announced the launch of the DPA 4017: a short and lightweight shotgun microphone. "DPA already has a strong position in TV drama and film environments, due to our broad range of microphones," says sales and marketing director Poul Koza. "With the 4017 we're fulfilling a long-term demand for a high-end shotgun mic to provide strong directional qualities for boom applications in film, TV and applications when suppressing unwanted noise is essential.

"When a regular cardioid is not directional enough, or a miniature cannot be mounted on the speaker, a shotgun is the answer, and we feel we the 4017 addresses these issues perfectly."

DPA carried out extensive R&D to create a high-end shotgun mic with extremely smooth off-axis responses. The company says it has also pushed the limits to produce a shotgun which combines high spec

Germany - beyerdynamic has introduced the DT 60 PRO in-ear headphones. Designed for use with in-ear monitoring systems, the DT 60 PRO "provides extremely accurate audio reproduction combined with effective sound isolation in loud environments".

Innovative direct coupling of the DT 60 PRO's transducers help to provide users deep bass, balanced mids and clearly defined highs, says the company. The in-ear headphones also offer additional sound isolation from ambient noise. To ensure an ideal fit, the DT 60 PRO comes equipped with three different pairs of silicon ear pads. Users have an option of black, white and beige models, allowing the headsets to be inconspicuous.

"For monitoring applications, professionals are looking for superior sound reproduction as well as safe volume levels," explains Paul Froula, beyerdynamic's pro audio manager. "The high leve

UK - ETC's PLASA Award for Innovation for its Eos lighting control system has meant a hat-trick of Awards for the company. This is the third such honour that the Eos has won, following product of the year awards at LDI at the end of 2006 and Showtech 2007 in June.

ETC's CEO Fred Foster says: "It is truly gratifying to receive this PLASA award, as well as the other recognitions that the Eos system has received. And it particularly validates the creative efforts of the Eos development team, lead by Dennis Varian, Anne Valentino and Dan Duffy."

(Jim Evans)

USA - ETC has released an update for its newest and most advanced lighting control system to date, the Eos. Version 1.2 is designed primarily to provide support for Net3 Radio Focus Remote (RFR) units and Universal 2x10 fader wings, although many other features and improvements have been added.

In addition to the RFR and fader wing support, other major enhancements in v1.2.0 include improved features such as Undo/Command history. This command allows you to sequentially undo the last actions taken, including record, update and delete functions. A Redo command is also included.

Up to 1000 snapshots can be stored and recalled, which reconfigure selected portions of the desk and external monitors to their condition at the point the snapshot was stored.

Curves may be defined and edited to 100 points of granularity. These then can be assigned to dimmers in patch, or to cues or cue

USA - American DJ has added three new mobile effects to its On-The-Go Series - the Deco FX, Hyper FX and Warp FX. Targeted toward beginners as well as experienced performers, each of these additions to the On-The-Go series is modelled after a larger, more complex and/or more expensive American DJ effect that is not part of the series, says the company.

"With these three new fixtures, we've taken some of our best-selling effects and re-interpreted them to fit the On-The-Go model by scaling down their size and weight and simplifying their operation," said Scott Davies, general manager of the American DJ Group of Companies. "Our new Deco FX, Hyper FX and Warp FX are designed for anyone who wants an effortless and affordable way to enhance their performance with an interesting variety of great, professional-quality effects. If you're a DJ, musician or entertainer who

UK - The last twelve months have been a busy and prolific period for French digital mixing console manufacturer, Innovason. Several products have made their debut this year.

The most important development is the FM-8VB 8-in/8-out plug-in effects module offering 32 effects engines. Compatible with all Innovason audio racks, the new module will ship in December.

Further processing capability comes in the form of the UM-8PO universal output module. Replacing all previous output modules from the company, the UM-8PO combines analogue and digital processed outputs for the first time ever in any digital mixing console. Equipped with eight XLR outputs that are configurable (in pairs) as analogue, AES or even ADAT, each output benefits from a powerful and comprehensive range of processing including 31-band graphic EQ that is easily upgradeable via firmware updates.

Another important

USA - D-Tools reports that its System Integrator 5 (SI 5) has been named a 2007 Custom Retailer EXCITE Award recipient. Each year Custom Retailer invites nominations of products that stand out for being innovative, high performing and solutions oriented for the custom installation professional.

"We're pleased to be named as a 2007 EXCITE award winner," said Adam Stone, president and CEO of D-Tools. "We have developed SI 5 with the singular goal of making the best software in the industry, and our main objective is to deliver that innovative solution to enhance our customers businesses. We are truly honoured to be recognised for our company's achievement."

(Jim Evans)

UK - DMi D&M Installation has announced two new DVD players from Denon Professional - the DN-V210 and DN-V310. These players feature a host of high end features and professional AV functionality, principal among these being the inclusion of a High Definition Multimedia Interface for feeding uncompressed HD video signals to an HD flat panel display, projector or HDMI specified AV receiver, says the company.

The DN-V210 and DN-V310 are equipped with all of the standard functions required for CI and professional AV applications. In addition, a number of advanced features extend the operational flexibility and range of potential applications for these players: these include Hide OSD, Change Wallpaper, NSTC/ PAL conversion, and different Auto Play and Repeat modes. The DN-V310 includes a RS-232C serial port for additional control and networking capability.

The Hide OSD function all

Germany - On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of one of the world's best-known studio microphones, the exclusive U 87 Anniversary Set is now available from Neumann. This special edition, in a classic style case, is offered with unique product features, the company says. In addition to an elastic suspension and a signed certificate of authenticity with serial number, the set includes an exclusively designed pop screen.

Wolfgang Fraissinet, president of marketing and sales, explains: "Visually, the entire set is very impressive due to the combination of polished nickel parts with the traditional Neumann matte nickel look. The set will definitely increase in value over the years."

(Jim Evans)

UK - PLASA07 saw the launch of the new Twenty Clamp from Doughty Engineering. The Twenty Clamp received an overwhelming welcome from end users and distributors alike, says the company.

Manufactured from pressure die cast aluminium the Twenty Clamp has been designed to eliminate truss damage usually associated with Steel Hook Clamps.

This neat and compact clamp has a SWL of 20 Kg and can be secured to tubes of 48 - 51mm diameter with just two turns of the Doughty knob. Luminaries are secured via a captive M10 or M12 bolt in the base of the clamp.

(Jim Evans)

UK - An unusual feature of Litestructures' impressive stand at this year's PLASA Show in London was the large number of visitors from the world of professional audio. The focus of their interest was one of two brand new products Litestructures unveiled at the show, LiteMast.

As MD Adrian Brooks explained: "The tremendous rise in popularity of line array sound systems within the concert and touring sector of the pro-sound marketplace has created a problem. They need to be flown, and many venues do not have the facility to easily do this. LiteMast provides a convenient, labour-saving and cost-effective solution, hence the interest from this area, with both manufacturers and hire companies enquiring."

The company also launched LiteBarrier, a modular crowd control system with advanced features and superior ergonomics, designed to hold back the pressing hordes. Commenting

Denmark - Based around the same principles as the Jem Roadie X-Stream, Martin Professional's rugged Roadie Compact is a powerful, condensed version for venues that need instant fog or haze coverage of large areas.

The Roadie Compact features a twin block design. Dual, high-output 1.5KW heat exchangers work with a high performance fan to provide long, stage-filling projections. Versatile and capable of casting a variety of effects from a controlled haze to a high-density fog, the Roadie Compact can also be positioned vertically for geyser effects or towers of fog.

On board controls allow for independent smoke possibilities with full functionality capable from a remote control (accessory). Control via DMX is a standard feature. Designed to accept a variety of fluids for different effect options, a large 9.5 litre fluid container and easy remote fluid connection mean fluid refill

USA - Nemetschek North America has announced the release of the latest upgrade to the VectorWorks line of precision design software: Designer, Architect, Landmark, Spotlight, Machine Design, Fundamentals, and RenderWorks.

Two years in the making, VectorWorks 2008 features a new name in addition to new features and enhancements developed with the direct input of VectorWorks users. VectorWorks 2008 offers new technology to optimise workflows, enrich presentations, and facilitate collaboration, says the company.

VectorWorks 2008 offers interface improvements, placing at the user's fingertips the exact controls needed to finish designs with little wasted effort or distraction. A new heads-up Data Display bar brings precision drawing into the user's line of sight, with the ability to switch quickly between mouse and keyboard inputs.

A new View bar consolidates often-used viewing

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