UK - Celestion yesterday announced Nigel Wood as the company's newly appointed Professional Products general manager. Wood is an accomplished senior commercial manager in the engineering sector with a global background in OEM sales and marketing, third party distribution and operations and will report directly to CEO Frank DiGirolamo.

Before joining Celestion, Wood served as technical and marketing manager at Icore International, a market-leading specialist engineering company, offering aerospace and industrial technical products to major OEMs. Here he was responsible for corporate engineering activities as well as being accountable for one of three internal industrial business units. Prior to this, Wood had built his career as a senior manager at two global engineering organisations, with an impressive track record introducing creative solutions to maximise efficiency and incr

UK - Pure Distribution, a division of Stirling Audio, has been successful introducing Audix microphones to new artists around the UK, since taking on the distribution earlier this year. The Finn Brothers are the latest fans, using a selection of the products on their current tour. New Zealand born Neil and Tim Finn spent nearly a decade as one half of Crowded House, and made it big in Britain and the US in the early 90s with the multi-illion selling album Woodface.

Audix has supplied a selection of microphones for use on their worldwide tour, for which the duo play a range of musical instruments, from keyboards to ukuleles. Both brothers use OM-6 dynamic vocal microphones, the CX-111 studio condenser mic is put to good use on their guitars, while a variety of Audix drum and percussion mics can be found across the stage. Their current tour has taken them around the US and

UK - KV2 Audio introduced the new EX 12 active full-range speaker system at the recent PLASA show in London. In development for the last two years, KV2's goal was to create a speaker that would "redefine the 12" two-way category", as the company's Marcelo Vercelli explains: "The EX 12 is a high precision, high performance speaker aimed at installed sound contractors, rental companies, churches, and the AV industry, who need a product that will deliver absolute clarity and resolution along with throw and wide coverage."

The components have been especially developed - for the bass/low-mid a 12" Transcoil design where the use of a secondary coil on the speaker's magnetic pole piece eliminates voice coil inductance, resulting in a much improved transient response, increased dynamic range and significantly lower distortion, say the company.

The compr

USA - Since 1981, Florida-based Full Sail Real World Education has offered instruction in sound reinforcement and concert lighting, developing a full program in 1998 and adding the 13-month Show Production & Touring Associate of Science Degree Program. Their overall goal is "to provide students with the knowledge to enter the live event industry with the practical and technical tools required to succeed in many career paths."

Specifically, they say the Show Production Degree program is dedicated to technical theory, engineering skills and design concepts within several key areas of the entertainment industry, of which audio is a significant part. Full Sail has recently added a DiGiCo D5 Live digital mixing console to its impressive roster of sound equipment to allow students access to the most up-to-date products during their training for the world of live events.

UK - August saw the end of the summer festival season as crowds of revellers gathered from all over the UK for the annual V and Carling festivals. Both V and the Carling festivals have become established highlights of the UK summer event circuit and are renowned for their parallel shows over the same weekend.

In its ninth year V attracted its biggest crowd of over 130,000 music fans to the host sites; Hylands Park Chelmsford and Weston Park Staffordshire. Over 40 bands performed at the festivals with big name acts The Strokes and Muse headlining the main stages. Other main acts included The Pixies, The Charlatans, Dido and Pink.

SSE Hire supplied the audio equipment for both the V Main and NME stages at both sites. The main stages utilized identical Nexo Geo T systems with Alpha delay towers. The FOH mix was via two Midas Heritage 3000s working on a flip-flop system with one e

UK - The latest extension to Bulgin's Buccaneer range of waterproof Ethernet connectors is an 'overmoulded' version of the pre-wired patchcords. Bulgin's Ethernet Buccaneer provides environmental sealing to IP68. Combining industry standard RJ45 connectors with the proven Buccaneer characteristics, this connector system provides a secure, reliable and practical solution to harsh industrial environments.

The body of the new 'overmoulded' patchcords is moulded directly over the pre-wired connector onto the cable. This type of construction can offer distinct advantages; the body forms a seal around the cable so no separate cable gland is needed, the cable is secured so no retaining cage is required and, as the termination is sealed, the connector is completely tamper proof.

A Polyurethane (PUR) cable jacket has been chosen for the cable. This presents very good mechanical propert

UK - A slew of news was on offer from French digital audio networking specialists Digigram. EtherSound, its patented real-time Ethernet-based audio networking technology, now provides bi-directional capability over a single cable as well as adding higher sample rate conversions at 88.2, 96 or 192 kHz. The EtherSound licensees, which currently include NetCira by Fostex, Nexo, Bouyer, InnovaSON and Auvitran, will announce their plans to implement the new features independently, says Digigram.

The company has added an Entry Level Agreement to its EtherSound licensing scheme; the move is aimed at enabling pro audio manufacturers to bring EtherSound-compliant products quickly to market with minimal development investment. Meanwhile, Auvitran has been appointed as the first Authorised EtherSound Implementor.

New product includes the ES220 and ES220-L Ethernet Audio bridges, joining

UK - Allen & Heath hosted an anniversary party during PLASA on the walkway of London's Tower Bridge to celebrate 35 years in the pro audio business. Around 70 guests from its network of overseas distributors and the press attended a dinner with special guest speakers from the original management team - Andrew Sterling and Ivor Taylor - who joined the company in 1969.

Allen & Heath's managing director, Glenn Rogers, commented: "For anyone in the manufacturing industry to survive 35 years and to still be continually expanding is a phenomenal success. Allen & Heath has an extraordinarily innovative past and we are heading towards a bright and exciting future. Here's to the next 35 years!"

The evening also acknowledged the individual achievements of Allen & Heath's international partners, with the presentation of the annual distributor awards. Pro Audio Marketing in Germ

UK - London's Regent Street was transformed to host a spectacular international festival at the beginning of September in support of BBC's charity Children In Need. Attractions included musical and theatrical performances, exhibitions, dance and a Victorian fairground. The entire street was closed for the day to make room for the festivities.

The day was officially opened by four-time Olympic gold medal winner Matthew Pinsent followed by a performance by popular classical band Amici Forever. Other acts included Asian pop group Punjabi Hit Squad, Inspiration choir and Peter Andre. Many shops on Regent Street also opened their doors to host in-store concerts by up-and-coming musicians. SSE Hire provided audio services for the live music element of the day, using a combination of Nexo Geo T and Nexo Alpha speakers at the BBC/Bovis Sound Stage. More Nexo Alpha was supplied for the Z

China/Spain - As well as the Olympics, another sporting event that created high interest in China this summer was the International Full Contact Kick-Boxing championship, which pitted China against Japan's best and received nationwide television coverage. Kick-Boxing, one of the martial arts sport disciplines, has thousands of followers throughout Asia and is extremely popular around the world. The D.A.S. distributor in China, Concord Trading Co. Ltd., was the official sponsor of the event in which the Chinese fighters won by five rounds.

Due to the large size of the venue and the number of people attending, a wide variety of systems were used to provide adequate coverage for everyone. The main PA was made up of ground stacked Aero 28 line array systems. Concord also installed eight CA-28 mid-hi packs and four CA-215 subwoofers for the event. Around the ring the systems comprise

UK - Shure Distribution UK, the exclusive distributor of Shure, QSC Audio, Phonic and Sound Devices, showed new products from each of its represented manufacturers at the PLASA Show. Shure showed its new SLX Wireless Systems, ideally suited to installed sound applications and working bands, delivering superior audio quality in an easy-to-use and quickly configurable package. Offering Shure's patented Audio Reference Companding technology, along with an innovative set-up featuring automatic synchronization, SLX supports up to 12 compatible systems per frequency band (country dependent), say the company.

From Phonic was the new MU range of compact mixers, fully-featured and competitively priced, and ideal for a variety of applications. Also on show, the new RoadGear range from Phonic, which is a fully integrated mobile sound solution. Housed in a stylish, durable, moulded case th

UK - Voice alarm loudspeaker specialist Penton, exhibiting at the PLASA Show's Architectural Audio & Visual on the Upper Deck for the first time, showed off three new products.The PMC4/T and PMC4/TC are high impact ABS plastic enclosures, treated with UV inhibitors and sealed against water ingress. Inside are an 80mm diameter mid-range treated coned loudspeaker and a 4W / 100V line transformer. The speaker has wide-angle dispersion of 180° and a frequency response of 220Hz-12kHz.

The Sentry6 / RTC is a vandal-proof loudspeaker in a cast aluminium cabinet, containing a 140mm diameter dual coned loudspeaker and a 6W / 100V line transformer. Further protection is afforded by a steel front chassis and epoxy powder-coated grille. Specifications include wide-angle dispersion of 140° at 1kHz, extended frequency response of 200Hz-18kHz and 92dB at1m sensitivity.

The PWC6/T and PWC

UK - Last week's PLASA 2004 event was the platform for Belgian manufacturer Apex to launch Intelli-X - a new digital speaker-management processor which complements the successful Apex Intelli-Q Real-time System Optimizer. The Intelli-X features four analogue and digital inputs and eight analogue outputs, and houses a large amount of DSP power. Every input has a user-settable delay, a 30-band graphic EQ, a 10-band full parametric EQ and two shelving EQs. The 4x8 matrix has no routing limitations and so can be freely configured to suit all professional needs, say the company. Every output has a user-settable delay, high- and low- pass filters including Butterworth, Bessel and Linkwitz-riley types at all available slopes, two shelving EQs, an 8-band full parametric EQ, a fully-adjustable limiter and phase reversal. All these processes are simultaneously available all the time, there

UK - One of the UK's hottest restaurants and nightspots, Tiger Tiger, has opened its newest location in the Scottish city of Aberdeen. Offering a high-end environment for lunches, happy hours and late night dancing, the club has other locations in London, Leeds, Manchester, Portsmouth, Glasgow.

Club owners, London-base Urbium plc, is also the proprietors of several other leading venues in the UK, including Oxygen, Wax Bar, Warwick, Motion and the Zoo, and has established a reputation for creating environments with exquisite visuals and leading edge sound.

The Aberdeen Tiger Tiger boasts several distinct areas over three floors, including the Tiger Bar, Club, Restaurant, Club Lounge, Lounge Bar and Oriental Bar, each with its own unique vibe and soundtrack. Systems integrators Green-i Ltd. designed the signal routing and remote integration, based on the model it created last ye

UK - Mackie is used this year's PLASA show to preview its new family of live sound consoles - the Onyx 80 Series. Like the successful Mackie Onyx small-format analog mixers introduced earlier this year, the Onyx 80 Series consoles feature all-new analog circuitry, a full compliment of Mackie's flagship Onyx microphone preamps, and the renowned "British Voiced" four-band Perkins EQ.

The Onyx 80 Series consoles will be offered in four sizes: the 24-channel Onyx 2480, 32-channel Onyx 3280, 40-channel Onyx 4080, and 48-channel Onyx 4880. All four models incorporate features that any hardcore live engineer will appreciate including eight aux sends with stereo link function for up to four IEM mixes; an aux/group flip function; an 10x2 matrix; four mute groups; eight stereo aux inputs; and an optional rack-mountable redundant power supply. The master section and channel stri

UK - At the PLASA Show last week, Midas announced the appointment of Shuttlesound as the UK distributor for all Midas products with effect from 1 October. Shuttlesound already handles all Klark Teknik product as well as Midas Venice; taking on the rest of the Midas range, therefore, is seen as a natural move that will enable UK customers to obtain all Midas and KT products from a single source.

Sales and marketing director for Midas and KT, David Cooper, commented on the decision: "By moving distribution to Shuttlesound, we're effectively doubling our resource base for Midas service and technical support. In other words, in addition to everything we already offer the customer out of Kidderminster, we can now offer the same facilities from Shuttlesound's London base," says Cooper. "That is to say a huge demo facility, stock of emergency spares and a fully trained

UK - The PLASA Show was the launchpad for the latest offering from French company InnovaSON, the compact and lightweight Sy48. "The Sy48 has been tailored to meet the needs of those looking for a mid-priced digital live mixing console without wishing to compromise on power or flexibility," commented Nick Cook, sales and marketing director at InnovaSON. "It also has the benefit of being designed by a company with 10 years' experience of producing digital live boards, and over 400 consoles on the road around the world. We've combined functions and features from our large format Sy80 with new ones added in response to user feedback and packaged them in a compact and lightweight surface to create what we believe is the digital live mixing console the mid market has been waiting for."

The Sy48 incorporates major features from the large-format Sy80 digital mixing

UK - Having made its inaugural appearance on the Prize Stage at the PLASA Show, the first DiGiCo D1 Live left Earls Court immediately after the show to go out with Concert Sound for Katie Melua's European tour. Matt Manasse, Melua's FOH engineer, was on hand during PLASA, helping to demonstrate the D1. "Obviously there's not been much time for me to work with the console prior to this," he said. "But as with the D5 Live, it's an incredibly intuitive interface, so I'm already confident in my ability to go out there and use it. I think it's going to be a great asset on the Melua tour."

"DiGiCo is a very agile company," adds Concert Sound's Tim Boyle. "David Webster really pulled out all the stops to get us the console in time for this tour. They're constantly reacting to what the market wants and needs and I think they've come up trumps again wi

UK - The Institute of Acoustics (IOA) marks its 30th anniversary at its Autumn Conference Dinner to be held on 6 October 2004 at The Oxford Hotel, Oxford and has arranged for Dr Leo Beranek - "father" of acoustical consulting and the Internet - to speak at the Dinner.

In 1948 Beranek co-founded the American consulting firm Bolt Beranek and Newman, later BBN Technologies, famous for its wide ranging influence in many aspects of acoustical engineering and computing and credited with establishing what is now know as the Internet.

Now in his ninetieth year, Dr Beranek continues to pursue his consulting interests in concert hall and opera house design. His breadth of knowledge and experience will surely result in a fascinating address. Members of the Institute and others can reserve seats at the dinner separately from attending the conference.

Details are available from

UK - High-end amplifier manufacturer MC2 Audio has reported having an extremely successful PLASA Show last week, with interest in its new E45 lightweight, switchmode amplifier surpassing expectations. "There's been a lot of interest in our E Series range of amplifiers since their launch last year," comments MC2's Ian McCarthy. "The demand for a high quality amplifier suitable for the touring market was something we were confident we could fulfil. We've had an astonishing uptake on the E Series and the only thing we need to do now is keep making them as fast as we can!"

The E45 (2250W/channel into 4 ohms) features 2250W/channel into 4 ohms; Mono bridged mode - 6400W/channel into 4 ohms; Proprietary designed, progressive switching rail output; All-new low distortion limiters with adjustable threshold points for extra speaker protection; Sophisticated power con

Ireland - Dublin-based AV Rental Company CAVS has recently incorporated a Subsidiary Company called Celtic Sound Ltd. This Company has been established to handle the management of the recently purchased V-Dosc concert system. The initial inventory of 24 V-Dosc, 16 SB218 Subs, plus LA Amplification and XTA DSP sees a new direction for CAVS - hence the establishment of Celtic Sound.

Fran Quigley, managing director of CAVS sees this development as follows: "We have experienced a huge increase in our audio contracts over the past two years and some of these projects prompted the idea for the purchase of a large format concert system. Ireland is a unique market - and as we saw a gap in that market, we decided to fill it. Celtic Sound Ltd is a dry hire audio company, providing equipment for rental only. We present V-DOSC as a turnkey system package including the cabinets, amplifi

UK - d&b audiotechnik has just released information about the latest addition to its Q-Series, the Q10 loudspeaker. The Q-Series applications stretch from single loudspeakers right through to large multiple cabinet line arrays all sharing the same fundamental requirements; precise control of directivity maintained to the lowest possible frequency. A single Q10 loudspeaker, with its wide horizontal dispersion pattern, is ideally suited for use in the near field. It may also be used for this application in larger Q-Series loudspeaker systems.

The Q-Series now consists of four loudspeaker types; the Q1, Q7 and Q-SUB launched last autumn and the new Q10 loudspeaker. The Q10, along with the Q1 and Q7, are passively crossed over two-way loudspeakers sharing the same physical size, shape, weight and driver compliment (a 1.3" exit HF and two 10" LF drivers), whilst the Q-SUB i

UK - Reviewed as 'one of the best yet', V Festivals 2004, the two-site event which started in '96, enjoyed a strong line-up of artists, ever-swelling crowds and good weather. Sennheiser UK supplied a full range of evolution mics for the Music Choice Stages at Chelmsford and Stafford, through Capital Sound Hire who provided the sound for both. Sennheiser also had a backstage booth to provide support throughout the events.

The mics supplied included e935 for lead and backing vocals, e865 for lead vocals if a condenser was required, e614 condenser overheads, e609 for guitar cabs, e602 for kick-drums, e604 clip-on for drums and e903 for snare. Commenting for Capital Sound, project manager Martin Connolly said, "We were really pleased with the Sennheiser mics, which impressed throughout. Both FOH engineers, Mark Javitt and Dave Worcester, reported that they were very happy with

UK - Continuing a 12 year relationship, the recent Edinburgh Festival Fringe saw Delta Sound once again supply the audio requirements for the Assembly Rooms. The venue comprises of six spaces, with capacities ranging from 80 up to 750. For 25 days it puts on a marathon 56 shows each day, running from 10.45am until two o'clock the following morning.

As the spaces are not used as performance venues for the rest of the year, rigging, draping, seating, power, sound and lighting all have to be installed to create a professional theatre experience for the paying public. Delta Sound's brief was to supply a PA and foldback system in each space, carefully tailored to the individual room.

"In all venues; the aim was to have equal coverage in all areas, without it sounding amplified," says Delta Sound project manager Steve Lutley. "The other big challenge was dealing with

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