Sound

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14 December 2016

Aside from a few short jaunts and various one-offs at major festivals, The Cure Tour 2016 - which played 33 shows in North America this spring and is now journeying through 34 shows in 17 European countries - marks the first real outing for the band since the release of its 13th studio album, 4:13 Dream, and subsequent tour in 2008.

In anticipation of this year's worldwide tour, Britannia Row added a large quantity of new L-Acoustics products to its already bursting arsenal

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14 December 2016

Following in the footsteps of the popular ATM350, the ATM350a is capable of handling 159 dB max SPL, a 10 dB increase over its predecessor. This allows the mic to cope with an even greater range of extremely powerful, dynamic sound sources. Like the ATM350, the new mic features a cardioid polar pattern that reduces side and rear pickup and protects against feedback. The mic's in-line power module incorporates a switchable 80 Hz hi-pass filter to help control undesired ambient noise.

"Th

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14 December 2016

Eighteen Sound has designed its new iD Series transducers to couple with Powersoft's Differential Pressure Control (DPC) technology. This is the core technology of the innovative and patented IPAL (Integrated Powered Adaptive Loudspeaker).

To implement this technology Eighteen Sound has adopted the Powersoft amplifier hardware module, IpalMod, which overcomes the limitations of traditional transducers to produce unparalleled output at low frequencies. It does so by featuring a zero latency pressure-sensor feedback, applying real-time correction to maximise Eighteen Sound high efficiency 18" and 21" transducers. This provides unparalleled output at low frequencies.

In taking the decision, Eighteen Soun

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14 December 2016

Tuesday 24th focuses on making sound as sound designer John Leonard looks at recording sound effects; Tom Espiner demonstrates Foley Sound techniques and guests look at using QLab v4. A panel of award winning sound designers will finish the day by discussing how they create their designs.

Wednesday 25th focuses on music, with an introduction to synthesis from Sarah Angliss; a masterclass from Richard Brooker on working with musicians; a brief history of music and a panel of sound designers Donato Wharton, Adrienne Quartly, composer Paul Clark and a couple of other guests discussing how sound designers

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14 December 2016

A recent $150m, 320,000sq.ft addition to its headquarters includes a 43ft climbing wall, a 66ft indoor Ferris wheel, and a 2,000-seat theatre-in-the-round. Acoustics By Design, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, designed a sound reinforcement system centred on 10 of Danley Sound Lab's precision-pattern controlled SH-69 loudspeakers and an honest BC-415 subwoofer for Acuity's theatre, and Camera Corner Connecting Point, Green Bay, Wisconsin, installed it.

"Acuity will use the theatre for ongoing staff training and its quarterly, company-wide town

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14 December 2016

The 22,000 m2 building is located within the UNESCO World Heritage site of the city's Old Town, and is a multipurpose venue equipped with two concert halls, a cinema hall, conference rooms, rehearsal rooms, a restaurant, press room and underground parking.

Supplied and installed by Konsbud Audio, the system consists of 16 ME-1 personal mini mixers and two ME-U hubs, divided between the Concert Hall and Chamber Hall.

"The ME system is primarily for on stage monitoring in the main performance halls but the ME-1s can also be moved to other rooms in the venue if required, as there are conveniently located connection points for the mixers in other ar

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14 December 2016

With most of the acts they are involved with, they become an extra band member and the gear they choose is crucial for connecting with their audiences. This is why both companies recently invested in DiGiCo SD9 consoles, supplied by the manufacturer's Belgium distributor, Amptec.

"I was new to the DiGiCo family, but was immediately convinced it was the right way to go when the Stealth Core 2 update was announced for SD9," says Frank. "Stealth Core 2 dramatically increases processing power from the exi

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14 December 2016

Mike Darling is again the charismatic and friendly production manager for the tour.

Adlib's Simon Pettitt designed the lighting. It's his second tour with The Specials in the LD role following a successful autumn 2014 campaign, at which point Simon was freelance before joining the award-winning Liverpool company full time in 2015.

Simon's concept for the 2014 run was formulated after meeting with the band, where references ranged from David Byrne to Pina Bausch. The design was repackaged and refreshed for the 2016 tour, largely remaining unchanged but taking the opportunity to clean up the floor package design into cleaner lines of fixtures.

The sho

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14 December 2016

Sound engineer Julien Prouti

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14 December 2016

He continued, "With a high-resolution monitoring system, such as ATCs, and a minimal-cabling setup, the differences between different cable manufacturers are obvious. But even if you can hear the differences, which cable is 'correct?'"

The team at TransAudio Group argued about it for years... until they met Steve Seropian, the happily obsessive inventor of the Accusound cabling concept. "Through extensive product development and beta arrangements with the best ears in the business, Steve has ensured that there is no weak link in an Accusound cable," Lunde

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14 December 2016

The focus of the house, which is known far beyond the city limits as MuKo, is on operettas and musicals, and increasingly also on ballet performances. As the sound system of the auditorium got old, a modern solution was being sought that would satisfy the needs of the 520-seating, acoustically demanding room and would match the stage program as well.

The company HFE professional studio technology from Leipzig was responsible as an advisory and executing service provider for the installation. Hans Hermann Hönsch from HFE explains, "I've known Alcons Audio for a long time and recommended the Alcons LR7, because the system is in my opinion particularly well sui

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14 December 2016

Integral to this studio is the Pyramix audio workstation with a MassCore engine to provide ultra-low latencies and allowing users to have enough power to mix very high track counts simultaneously. This studio is also equipped with Merging's Horus which provides excellent AD/DA conversion quality and supports up to DSD256 and DXD (352.8 kHz PCM).

The high number of I/O channels necessary are easily accommodated via the RAVENNA/AES67 protocol which uses one Cat 5e/Cat 6 cable to connect to Pyramix. Channel routing can be done remotely using the same connection, providing the ultimate in convenience with superb sound quality.

The Dean of the Sound School, Professor Tong Lei summar

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14 December 2016

In the intervening years, Middlesex University has become a world-class institution with campuses in Dubai, Malta and Mauritius adding to its extensively re-developed Hendon site. The remodelling of an underused quadrangle situated around previously isolated wings of the College Building has completely changed the face of the Hendon Campus and has transformed the space by means of a strikingly modern and innovative glass roof. Part of a phased £14m masterplan, this newly created area is used throughout the year for a number of special events and presentations.

The Sir Raymond Ric

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14 December 2016

The festival's focal point is the Jahrhunderthalle, a former boiler house for the vast Krupp steelworks in Bochum. Its acoustics provide many challenges for audio engineers, but this year a Yamaha RIVAGE PM10 console helped to tame the sound for the opera Alceste.

Jahrhunderthalle is a unique venue. Originally built in 1902 as a temporary exhibition venue in Dusseldorf, the following year it was relocated to the Krupp site and converted to generate power for the steelworks. In 1991, 20 years after the works closed, the unrestored building was returned to entertainment use. Since 2003 it has been the main stage complex for the Ruhrtriennale.

The m

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14 December 2016

The studios were host to a three hour live-to-air broadcast by BBC Radio London, hosted by Robert Elms and Gary Crowley, as well as a performance by the cast of School of Rock - The Musical. Live Audio production in the studios was handled by John Henry's Ltd, contracted for the event by BBC Radio's senior live music producer Andy Rogers. For the consoles, John Henry's supplied a Yamaha PM5D-RH, two QL5s, a QL1 and an M7CL-48.

The live broadcast was hosted in Studio 3 and featured three stages. On one a PM5D-RH was

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14 December 2016

The DW Pendant houses 36 long-life 3W LEDs (18 cool white + 18 warm white) for variable shade projections of white light. It features full colour temperature range control from warm white tungsten (2,900K) to cool white daylight (6,800K) for a wide choice of shades. Its uniform flat-field output and 41° beam angle make for a highly effective wash luminaire whether flooding a stage in uniform shades of white light or functionally washing a seating area, foyer or other space. Variable dimming curve modes and strobe effects enhance its dynamic capabilities.

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14 December 2016

DMX-Buffer is an economical alternative to an opto-splitter when there is a need to run DMX over distances greater than the standard limit of 300m. It rebuffers the DMX signal and offers full support for RDM.

Housed in a protective metal case and powered from a standard 9V PSU with a DC jack , DMX-Buffer is simple to use. DMX-Buffer XLR uses a standard 5-pin male XLR connector that is terminated internally. The output connector is an 5-pin female XLR connector. DMX-Buffer is also offered with Ethercon connectors (DMX-Buffer RJ45) to enable use with Cat5 cable.

DMX-Clarify is offered in the same form factor. It offers similar functionality to DMX-Buffer, but operates permanently in 'data fix' mode

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14 December 2016

With software release 5.8 the consoles now feature Module ISO, which enables users to prevent certain settings from being loaded from snapshots, respectively create partial snapshots that only affect certain channels or modules. The update also provides seamless RAVENNA AoIP integration for Neumann DMI-8 digital microphone interfaces.

"We are seeing a significant demand from customers to use our audio consoles in install, HOW and live sound environments. Therefore, we continue adding features tailored to these kind of applications", explains Hervé de Caro, live sound specialist at Lawo.

In addition to the new feature set, Lawo also announced a new interface card for its modular Nova73 processing and r

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14 December 2016

"We needed a greater auxiliary count and a more flexible workflow than the existing FOH mixer could provide, plus the monitor system was no longer reliable, so the church decided to replace both systems with a higher capacity system that can easily handle the most demanding services," explains Matt Bayly, technical arts director at Eastgate.

After researching and seeking advice from AV consultants, the church enrolled its team of volunteers to test out different mixers before a purchasing decision was made.

"It was a unanimous decision - everyone preferred dLive as it had a superior work-flow, was more user friendly and it sounded incredible," say

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14 December 2016

The awards event was produced by Lipfriend Rodd International. Producer David Davies, and technical director, Robert Lipfriend contracted PRG XL Video to supply rigging, and lighting for the show which was filmed and broadcast by BBC Music.

The lighting design for the show was created by award-winning designer, Nigel Catmur. PRG XL Video's account director, Chris Walker worked with a rigging brief which needed to accommodate both lighting and video elements, all of which moved during the show. Chris explains, "We worked with the design from Nigel Catmur, which included lighting, LED screens, and masking trusses.

"Our rigging team, led by head rigger, Chris 'Karrit' Ha

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14 December 2016

Fitted out with Martin Audio's radical CDD (Coaxial Differential Dispersion) sound reinforcement in time for its consecration in November, the church is described as "an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church based in the Eastern Mediterranean, with members spread throughout the world". Due to the war in Syria, the community of Syriac Orthodox Christians in Britain has grown considerably.

The Church employs the oldest surviving liturgy in Christianity, the Liturgy of St. James the Apostle, and uses Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic spoken by Jesus Christ and his Apostles, as its official and liturgical language.

OBA was one of several companies asked to tender, and was awarded the contract largely as a re

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14 December 2016

The group has just installed a new d&b audiotechnik loudspeaker system into its theatre in Herning town centre, which will be used for both conferences and live music events.

The decision to select d&b was made by a team of in-house and external professionals after presentations and listening tests. MCH's head of sound, Tommas Hviid Kristensen, commented, "We wanted a premium brand system that would be rider friendly for both in-house and visiting engineers, so we asked a number of companies to tender. Each company set up a mono hang of their system so that we could hear them in the theatre and then decide which we preferred."

Lars Baun Freder

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14 December 2016

The sister festivals are held every year in Croatia's medieval town of Pula in the ruins of the town's 150-year-old Fort, 'Punto Christo'. Providing the lighting and video aspects for both Outlook and Dimensions was UK lighting, rigging and production expert Fineline Lighting, which has been involved in the festivals since 2012.

"This year we looked after The Void, Mungo's Arena, The Stables, Noah's Ballroom, The Moat, The Garden and the main stage," says Fineline Lighting's managing director Rob Sangwell. "The two festivals celebrate EDM and soundsystem culture, so lighting and visuals are always high on the agenda."

Sang

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14 December 2016

Johnny is absolutely delighted. He could hardly believe it when he opened his FB page and found Zero 88's congratulations message, "I was so excited. I will use the new console to control many more performances," he declared.

The competition was extremely well received and open to anyone working with, using or owning a Zero 88 lighting control product - desks or dimmers - or even anyone even thinking about it!

Entrants snapped a photo of their Zero 88 product 'in control' in a real lighting environment and submitted this together with a short caption to the Zero 88 team via social media or Email. The entries were examined closely by a panel of experts