The Veris range of speakers took pride of place on the Community (CUK) stand. Good for anything from a small dance studio to the demands of a big club environment, Veris sports 18 models, mostly two-way cabinets, with - at the top of the range - three 3-ways and two dedicated subs. All are of plywood construction, with Community's ownwell-known Dynatech voltage protection. Available in the UK in early '07.
Also on the CUK stand, the Kind products, offering install quality multi-channel amplifiers (MCX and KDL range) with integral digital limiters, perfectly complement Veris, said a spokesman. So too Ethersound products from Digigram - also available through CUK Ltd.
AKG (Harman Pro) gave its new large diaphragm, multi-pattern condenser microphone, the Perception 400, its first European outing at PLASA. The Perception, which features selectable cardioid, omni and figure-eight polar patterns is also equipped with a 10dB pad, bass cut filter and spider shock-mount. The introduction of the 400 completes AKG's range of large diaphragm microphones.
Just four years old, and appearing at PLASA for the first time, EM Acoustics (distributed in the UK by Autograph Sales) showed off their new DA1, a single 18" (utilising a Precision Devices driver) sub in a 9ft folded horn capable of reproducing high SPLs down as low as 30Hz, with a recommended upper roll-off at 200Hz.
Sharing the stand was Global 9, another new company to the PLASA show, showing their G9-G series of six installation speakers. Four cabinets are full-range and based variously on 6.5", 8", 12" and 15" drivers; low-end grunt can be added with either the G-212B (2 x 12") or the G218B (2 x 18") dedicated subs.Specialist analogue desk-only manufacturer APB also shared the stand with EM and Global 9. Having showed their prototype Spectra Series console last year, the full production version is now available.
Chevin Research were showing their new range of line level and audio amps on their stand at PLASA. Launched last year at Frankfurt, the S-Series are available in 100, 50 and 70V line configurations, where as theA-Series amps - increasing in power from the A2000 at 1.2kW through to the A6000 rated at 3kW into 2 ohms - were also on show. Bob Metcalf, UK sales manager, commented: "This has been a really good show for us. We have had a lot of distributors visiting the stand and we have been getting some great feedback on service."
UK - Marquee Audio have carried out a discrete sound system installation for the new, prestigious Club Bar & Dining, an upscale restaurant and bar in London's Soho, on the site formerly occupied by The Sugar Club.
Situated in Warwick Street, the venue comprises an informal bar and dining room with 80 covers on the ground floor, and a downstairs cocktail lounge bar, with seating available for 100 people.
The operation is a joint venture between successful Soho operator Brenhan Magee, and entrepreneur and Crystal Palace FC chairman Simon Jordan. Magee has worked with The Breakfast Group over the past 11 years and was instrumental in setting up bars and restaurants including Jerusalem and recently Salvador & Amanda.
Having been heavily involved with the Breakfast Group over the years, and worked on the sound system installation at Salvador & Amanda, Marquee Audio tendered succe
The occasion of Martin Audio's 35th anniversary saw attention firmly fixed on three areas of product development. In monitor world, the smooth lines of the new LE Series follow on after a decade of success with the 400 and 700 models. The LE1200 and 1500 sport a 12" or 15" with a 1.4" compression driver onto a 'differential' horn producing pattern control narrowing from 100° to 60° as you move back from the wedge's main axis. The LE2100 model is a bi-amp 3-way version with 2x12".
The Longbow addition to the Wavefront line array system was seen at last year's show: main features are an extended low-end response, down from 50Hz to 35Hz, and added SPL, now 142dB continuous in the high end.
Martin also featured 'Engineer' on it's stand; a matrixing product with some exclusive extra features, it is made by Team Projects in Holland. Besides the expected f
Marquee Audio were showing the range of Optocore PTP32 point-to-point fibre network audio distribution system and the new DD6 interface that can provide access to Ethernet ports on the network. On similar lines, sales director Andy Huffer demonstrated the Auvitran range of EtherSound networked audio interfaces, including the AVB32-ES Ethersound AES/EBU bridge
UK - Leading UK-based amplifier manufacturer MC2 Audio Ltd. has expanded its lightweight (switchmode) E Series with the E4-75 power amplifier.The E4-75 comes after 18 months of development - working closely with distributors and users - and is designed for use in a wide variety of applications, including touring monitor racks.
The E4-75 is a 4-channel amplifier capable of producing 750W RMS per channel into four or eight ohms; it has automatic impedance sensing and changes the power accordingly. MC2 had been receiving requests for such a unit since the E-Series came onto the market in 2003, they report. Much of the R&D has been spent addressing the use of onstage monitoring. Inputs are via four XLR sockets, which can be linked to the next channel via a rear panel switch providing greater flexibility to supply more speakers with the same input signal. Each channel has a separate
Apex had two new products to present to visitors at the show in the form of the dBC-8 compressor/limiter and dGB-8 eight-channel noise gate. These products were on display along with the company's flagship Intelli-X loudspeaker management system.
BSS Audio (Harman Pro) announced installations of SoundWeb across Europe, including the Norwegian Parliament building, Do & Co in Austria and the Rome Underground utilising London Architect and HiQNet: "Programming the DSP gain structure, using HiQnet London Architect couldn't have been easier," said BSS distributor Edisco's project manager, Gino Fioravanti.
On the Raycom-SBS stand, international sales director Bardy Hayes was on hand to demonstrate the SLS range of Planar Ribbon Loudspeakers from the USA. Their outing at PLASA was the first in the UK and Hayes was happy to discuss the advantages of ribbon technology. With high power handling and low distortion, the units are ideal for line array and this is implemented in the RLA/2 and RLA/3 'true line arrays' as well as the PLS8695 self-powered column array, the LS6583S compact line array and the PS8R full-range double 8" two-way studio monitor.
Formula Sound introduced the ZMR-80 Modular Zoning system at PLASA. The concept allows the installer to configure the systems for differing applications with possible 2-12 outputs or zones and 2-6 inputs. Paging is available via a paging module to all zones as is remote source selection and volume control via passive remote panels in any zone.
As reported in this month's news, it was announced at the show that two further licensees have been added to EtherSound's fast-growing stable - Peavey Electronics and Yamaha. Peavey says that Crest Audio amplifiers and mixing consoles are to be its first products with EtherSound capability. Yamaha, who told press that the EtherSound license is part of its mission to create "the future of music and sound", feels that EtherSound provides a reliable solution in integrating Yamaha digital consoles into a networked audio system which includes products from multiple manufacturers.
Ebsel Pro Audio is a London-based partnership between manufacturer Seltron Components and DJ promotion company Eclectic Breaks, who have come up with a new product - the Pro X Fade crossfader. After meeting at PLASA in 2003, they fused ideas and came up with this robust, long-lasting, high quality crossfader. Users can adjust the tension, lag time etc, and it plugs into all existing mixers. They enjoyed a busy show and invited top DJs to demonstrate the product, including DJ Roc Raida from the US, DJ 2Tall from the UK and others.
MC2 Audio were proudly showing a product previewed earlier in the year at Frankfurt. The E475 has just come into production and the company was happy to announce that it already has 100 units on back order. The4-channel amp can provide 750W per channel and is designed for touring monitor systems.
Tecpro2 - currently being Beta tested - is the new offering from Canford Audio, consisting of a Master Station and extender unit. It's more powerful than the original Tecpro unit and with additional extender units offers up to four individual full duplex comms circuits. Additional useful elements include remote mic kill and an 'announce' feature. It will be retro-compatible with previous Tecpro products.
Duran Audio were previewing an extension to its successful Intellivox system at PLASA. The updated versions now incorporate HF drivers, improving the steerable array's frequency response up to 18kHz.
In the last year, Duran Audio has enjoyed several high-profile installations with one of the latest being in London's King's Cross and the Berlin Hauptbahnhof in Germany, where AXYS Intellivox and AXYS IntelliDisc-DS90 were installed respectively. The latter was the first installation for the IntelliDisc product, the world's first fully integrated, digitally controlled, two-dimensional loudspeaker array. Joining the team on the stand was new marketing man, Ian Bowler, who is charged with overseeing the AXYS brand.
USA - After spending eighteen years in the world of finance, Langston Holland finally fulfilled his lifelong passion for sound, and his dream of a professional audio career, when he founded Soundscapes almost three years ago. Located in Pace, Florida, just outside of Pensacola, the popular regional sound production company services the church market across the Southeastern United States. "About 95-percent of our work is done withchurches, Christian concerts and Christian youth outreach events," Holland explained.
Holland heard about a new company called Danley Sound Labs, founded by audio pioneer Tom Danley. "I read about Danley Sound Labs in the ProSoundWeb forums," he said. "I had always been interested in Tom Danley's ideas. Reputable people in the industry were writing positive things about the products, so I checked them out."
Shure Distribution's extensive stand was evidence enough that this company provides more than just microphones: "We are a one-stop shop for our customers," said new marketing manager Uzo Onuora. With new products from Radial Engineering, a new distribution deal for Shure (including a range of DI boxes and mic splitters), Shure's very own Performance Gear radio microphone systems, Sound Devices' range of recording devices including the 702 and 722 two-channel units to name just few, visitors were treated to a feast of shiny electronics! The Sound Devices units were proving popular: the 702 records only onto removable Compact Flash cards, while the 722 is also able to record directly to its internal 40GB hard drive or Compact Flash.
"We have had a lot of really good quality customers come and see us on stand," enthused Onuora.
A dizzying array of new products was on display from Sennheiser, not least TourGuide 2020-D, a digital, six-channel, rechargeable headset system that automatically turns on when the head band is opened by the wearer. A personal volume control is built into the body of the headband - which hangs below the chin and is easily viewed - so too the channel selection. Weight is just 65g.
The A5000-CP is a circular polarised helical antenna that provides a more robust solution to difficult or cluttered stage environments. The A5000 is linear across the entire wideband range 450-960MHz; its unique propagation characteristics mean greatly reduced dropouts.
Also new, Sennheiser's SDC 8200 is a fully RoHS-compliant conference and interpretation system.
A smaller, smarter body pack transmitter, the SK 5212 runs on just one AA cell (six hours), is more frequency agile, and possesses a two
Once again, Yamaha have done the Japanese thing and made an already good product even smaller and more affordable with the addition of a new digital desk, the LS9, aimed squarely at the small format analogue mixer market. In two variants, 16 or 32 channels, the LS9 uses many of the usual recall features from the highly successful M7CL launched at PLASA last year.
An ever-strengthening range of amplifiers sees the addition of the TN amplifiers, a range from 1900W to 2500W output (stereo at 2 ohms) and using Yamaha's high-efficiency, patented 'EEEngine'.
By licensing the Ethernet-based standard (announced worldwide from the PLASA show) Yamaha has made EtherSound networking technology part of its inherent strength, making the integration of Yamaha digital consoles into audio networks even easier. Plus, three new EtherSound-enabled DME Satellite models were added to the recently-launched
German loudspeaker manufacturer K.M.E. presented the CBA700D self-powered sub and the QL1215 down-fill unit at PLASA this year. The CBA700D contains a 15" direct radiating driver and Class D 500W amplifier, and is designed for use with K.M.E.'s CSA range. The QL1215, on the other hand, complements the company's PANO line array by giving 120° horizontal dispersion from two 8" and two 1" compression drivers.
LMC Audio wins the prize for 'worst fake shivering mummy' on a stand at this year's show - although the ghoul did make an amusing background to the Monday evening's Awards ceremony. However, even a shaking rubber mummy is more scary than a new digital mixer (which was, of course, the company's point) so anyone making it past the vibrating monster could marvel at the latest offerings from Soundcraft in the shape of the Vi6 and M7CL digital console from Yamaha.