Australia - The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) has often been a first adopter of new technologies in the audio sector. The centre recently made the choice to add two new DiGiCo Quantum 338s to its digital mixing repertoire. Soundcorp - a Diversified company (SADC) are a supplier and integrator of professional AV systems nationwide. As one of MCEC’s approved suppliers, they were on hand to coordinate delivery of the consoles and provide local support. “The Quantum 338 offers a fairly dramatic step up in connectivity and processing within the DiGiCo workflow, and so was the logical choice when MCEC enquired about the acquisition of new workhorse systems,” notes SADC’s Scott Jamieson. “As its team is already very familiar with the DiGiCo eco-system, we were excited to provide them with the latest Quantum iteration as the upgraded capabilities
Spain/UK - PLASA has reached an agreement with Spain’s AFIAL to strengthen their partnership and deliver more benefits to members. The new relationship will allow the two trade associations to expand their joint activities, which in the past year have included collaborations for the #WeMakeEvents campaign. Described as “the most important national AV association on the Spanish scene”, AFIAL represents manufacturers and importers of sound, lighting and AV technology in Spain and owns the Madrid-based AFIAL exhibition. A joint statement says: “This collaboration was born from a solid and necessary union during the pandemic, that has evolved allowing the associations to continue to work intensely to support their members and the sector. This agreement will bring benefits for the members of AFIAL and PLASA.” PLASA MD Peter Heath, director Nicky Greet and bo
UAE - Creative Technology Middle East (CTME) has announced further senior appointments. Chad Smith is named project manager in the live events division. He has over 11 years of experience throughout the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia. Projects he has worked on include as Diriyah Season, World Air Games, Amway ALS & NPF Business Forum in Singapore, UAE National Day and many globally broadcast sporting events to take place in Saudi Arabia. Nick Fenton has joined CTME as an AV project manager with over seven years of experience in the live events industry across the Middle East and South Africa. Over the years, he has worked on various large-scale projects, such as Jazz Fest, Red Fest, Arab Hope Makers, World Economic Summit, Dubai Rugby Sevens and Atlantis New Years Eve events. Sam Connolly has been appointed head of lighting for the Middle East region. H
Italy - Powersoft has announced that version 2.2 of ArmoníaPlus - an update which enables integrators to share projects and work collaboratively in the cloud - is now available to download from its website. The update makes it possible to access and collaborate on projects remotely from anywhere in the world, says Powersoft. Primarily designed for systems engineers, but available in both ArmoníaPlus skins (Install and Live Sound), the new feature allows users to save projects in a Microsoft-based cloud, in addition to on a local drive. Project owners are then able to access and work on files remotely from any internet-connected PC, as well as invite their colleagues to collaborate on the project via a simple email link. When used to share projects, ArmoníaPlus 2.2 offers ‘an intuitive, user-friendly platform tailor-made for collaboration’. After jo
UK - Martin Audio has announced the latest release of its control software VU-NET (2.2.2), which alongside new firmware for iKON amplifiers, implements new features. First, pre-set support has been added for Martin Audio’s constant curvature loudspeaker, Torus T12, including when it is also used in conjunction with its partner cardioid subwoofer, SXC118. Secondly, Martin Audio iKON amplifiers can now be added to the Q-SYS ecosystem within the Q-SYS Designer software. Features can be controlled from the software, Q-SYS compatible UCIs and GPIO logic ports integrated into Q-SYS cores and peripherals. These control features include gain and muting, sleep and standby and alarm notifications, as well as amplifier snapshot recall. Dom Harter, managing director, comments: “The much higher than forecast demand for Torus has taken us a bit by surprise so we are delighted t
UAE - The Dubai Expo opened its doors last Friday, 1 October, with Van Damme cabling playing a key role. NMK Electronics, Van Damme’s export partner in the Middle East, was asked to provide Van Damme cables for the Expo which was rescheduled from 2020 due to the pandemic. Van Damme Quad Microphone, Black Series 2×1.5mm speaker as well as Tourcat 6A S/FTP was selected for the job. Many kilometres of each are being used to ensure crisp sound to the many speakers throughout the venue. as well as for the many lighting fixtures needed for the miles of pavilions the expo has. All of the cables were chosen for their ruggedness and ability to stand up to pressures of a busy and dynamic environment, as well as outstanding flexibility and performance. NMK was able to supply the cable from a significant stock holding in its warehouse in Sharjah. To finish, Neutrik and Switchc
France - The centrepiece of Roland-Garros in Paris, the 15,000-capacity Court Philippe-Chatrier, host to one of the most anticipated events in the tennis calendar and the only Grand Slam tournament to be played on clay, has received a major makeover with the completion of a new retractable roof and night lighting installation. The project also marks a new era of sound for the fabled court, with the installation of an L-Acoustics K Series PA, which was managed by the French Tennis Federation (FFT) with the support of French acoustic and audio consultant, Scenarchie, and installed by integration company, SNEF. The global renovation programme at Court Philippe-Chatrier was launched three years ago after the court was almost completely rebuilt to accommodate the strengthening required for the retractable roof, which weighs half that of the Eiffel Tower and was finally comp
UK - Outdoor event specialist Ethix has been supplying its services to high end corporate clients and the live events market for the past 20 years. The company made its first investment in DiGiCo consoles a couple of years ago, purchasing two SD12 consoles and SD-Rack systems through HD Pro Audio. Before lockdown, the consoles were working constantly, and the investment now sees them ready to take on the challenges of the restart of live events. “The SD12 ticks all the boxes,” says Ethix director, Paul Jones. “It’s the most popular console across the festivals that we work on and we had noticed for some time that the monitor engineers’ desk was almost always an SD12. “The SD12 is such a versatile console and can do anything from a basic, generic set up to those that are really complex. We can do pretty much anything with it and it’s really rider friendly,
Canada/USA - Having famously removed his left ear, Vincent Van Gogh would have missed the full impact of the Immersive Van Gogh exhibitions currently selling out in nine North American cities and coming to at least eight more before the end of 2021. What the visitors hear is integral to the complete experience, with the all-enveloping projections of the artist’s paintings enhanced by an original musical score reproduced through Meyer Sound loudspeaker systems. All audio and video technology for the nationwide rollout is supplied and installed by Production Resource Group (PRG). Immersive Van Gogh is produced by Toronto-based Lighthouse Immersive, with the company’s director of production Sean Richards charged with supervision of technical systems at all locations. Richards notes that while the importance of visuals is obvious, the role of audio often is ove
USA - Audinate has announced full availability of the Dante Application Library software development kit (SDK). Previously available to a select few, Dante Application Library is an SDK for PC and Mac that provides software developers with an ‘easy-to-use conduit to the greatest installed base of audio devices on earth: products and solutions connected via Audinate’s Dante, including microphones, speakers, signal processors, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and more’. “Dante is the native language of professional audio,” comments Nick Mariette, senior product manager at Audinate. “The success of any audio software application hinges upon customers being able to easily connect to audio devices in the system they are using. More and more audio devices connect via Dante’s AV over IP. Dante Application Library brings Dante network functionality directly into applications,
Spain - La Citi at Barcelona’s popular La Maquinista retail centre is not the kind of dining experience one normally expects to find in a shopping mall. The outdoor rooftop space is a celebration of culinary diversity and pop-up and food-truck dining, with a choice of the type of vendors more commonly found at festivals and street food markets. Creators of the 1000sq.m specially designed experience have spent years meeting in food-truck markets and directing some of the leading restaurants on the city’s culinary scene. Gastronomic kiosks and pop-up stalls feature vendors like the Van Van Chicken Bar, Chivuo's, The Fish & Chips Shop, Mosquito Asian Tapas, Dos Coyotes, Taiyaki Born Japanese waffle bar and Café Crem specialty coffees, as well as a bar and a cocktail counter. Billed as a ‘street food and cultura urbana’ La Citi also presents ‘cultural workshops
USA - Brooklyn-based Volvox Labs (VVOX) tapped into the disguise Extended Reality (xR) workflow with Unreal Engine to create a visual experience for Dubfire’s recent live streamed concert from The Met Cloisters Museum in New York City. Part of the Sonic Cloisters virtual electronic music series, which explores the parallels between techno and the art of The Middle Ages, Dubfire’s xR performance was the first time that the Cloisters had undergone such a digitally-enhanced display of its artwork. “It was amazing to be able to take this project into such a location for one day and basically launch a full xR experience without any kind of rehearsal,” explains Kamil Nawratil, creative director at VVOX. “We would never have thought of delivering this kind of project without the disguise and Unreal Engine workflows. The creative possibilities, the photorealism of
USA - In early August, the San Diego Symphony celebrated the grand opening of its new outdoor performance space, The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, after a 13-month delay due to Covid. The centre sits on the edge of the bay in Downtown San Diego, serving as a gathering ground for live performances and public city events. Solotech specified and installed all AV equipment, including a Clear-Com Eclipse HX Digital Matrix system with integrated FreeSpeak II Digital Wireless Intercom, HelixNet Digital Network Partyline and LQ Series of IP Interfaces. In previous years, the symphony had been hosting outdoor performances, from June through September, weather-permitting, in a temporary manner with a portable stage and AV equipment they would bring to the site with each performance. The goal for this new venue was to create a facility designed specifically for elevated outdoor performan
USA - The up-and-coming Miami neighbourhood of Brickell is not only recognised as the financial district of the city, but it is rapidly developing into a much sought-after residential area. And with that comes a demand for bars and restaurants. 8Street Brickell is a boutique bar owned and operated by Mark Meram with a capacity to host VIP parties and DJ sets whilst also offering an intimate hangout for locals, as well as international and national tourists visiting the city. Mark’s vision was to create a sophisticated modern twist on a classic Speakeasy style, with the interior of this venue creating an homage to the style and design ethos of the 1920s. Including wood and button tuft upholstery and a soaring and undulating ceiling enhanced with LED lighting. 8Street Brickell was designed by Callin Fortis and his team at Bigtime Design Studios as part of a new
Australia - Griffith University recently collaborated with Videopro, ThreeOneFive Innovations and Harman Professional Solutions to create an immersive active learning space using AMX networked AV solutions. Founded in 1971, Griffith University is a public research university in South East Queensland with five physical campuses spanning three cities, and a sixth digital campus. With more than 50,000 students and 200,000 respected alumni, Griffith University is one of the world’s top-performing universities. “The client requested a high-tech solution to connect two rooms so that staff could deliver multiple lectures without having to travel across campus,” said Chris Duckworth, owner, ThreeOneFive Innovations. “They also wanted to improve the learning experience for students with state-of-the-art solutions. To create a class-leading engagement space, we selected
UK - After two years away from the fields of Daresbury, Cheshire, LarMac LIVE delivered the electronic music festival cinch presents Creamfields with a line up of artists including Tiësto, Eric Prydz, Chemical Brothers, Carl Cox and Basement Jaxx. Event specialists LarMac LIVE produced Creamfields’ return alongside its familiar technical partners. “It’s like we’ve never been away,” said Ian ‘Lar’ Greenway, director of LarMac LIVE. “We’ve run countless scenarios and drafted numerous budget versions over the last two years, so when the time to get our first acts on stage and deliver finally came, it was really quite special.” LarMac LIVE’s number one priority for Creamfields 2021 was to get the festival set up in a safe working environment. “We knew there was going to be challenges, but I felt quite strongly that as long as we got th
USA - Martin Audio’s advanced Wavefront Precision (WPL) line array was out in force at the 38th Annual Norfolk Waterfront Jazz Festival in Virginia recently, headlined by David Sanborn and Boney James. Local service company (and Martin Audio partner) Soundworks of Virginia have been providing sound services for this, and many other events promoted by Festevents in Norfolk, VA over the past decade. Historically the client has asked Soundworks to set up systems at the Town Point Park, along with a ‘back up’ system indoors at the multipurpose, 11,000-cap Norfolk Scope, so that in the event of sudden bad weather they had an indoor option ready to go. “This year it was obvious the weather was going to be bad the entire weekend, so we just set the system inside the Norfolk Scope,” reports company president and senior engineer, Grant Howard. Generally used as
Germany - To cater for post-pandemic live events, Alex-SOUND has added JBL Professional VTX Series loudspeakers and Crown power amplifiers to their inventory. Based in Berlin, Alex-SOUND is a one-stop shop for casual and professional events, providing audio-visual system rental, photography, DJ services, catering and more. With COVID restrictions lifting and live events making a comback, Alex-SOUND decided to invest in a cutting-edge audio system. The company turned to Audio Pro, the Harman Professional Solutions distributor in Germany, to upgrade their inventory with JBL VTX A8 line array loudspeakers, VTX B18 subwoofers and Crown I-Tech 4x3500HD power amplifiers. “Despite the pandemic, it made sense for us to invest in the JBL VTX A8,” said Stefan Mendelsohn, owner, Alex-SOUND. “The VTX A8 is an incredibly versatile, high-quality speaker. Not only does
Nigeria - Love of Christ Generation Church has a rich history, founding multiple locations and fostering a forward-thinking faith in the UK and Africa. Its most recent congregation, opened this September, is a newly built cathedral on Landmark Beach in Lagos. The impressive, modernist building can accommodate 5,500 worshipers across its two main spaces to host church services, choir practice, bible classes, and more. Ghana-based Amsons Audio was contracted to design and install the audio-visual system for this new building. The contract was the company’s first major project in Africa, and owner Eben Awuah knew it demanded a no-compromise approach. He centred his audio system around L-Acoustics K Series loudspeakers. “My business partner, Charles Amoah, and I were in Abuja consulting on one of the biggest churches in Ghana when I got a call from Reverend Mother Abim
UK - #WeMakeEvents has launched a supporter scheme to bring more useful resources and services to campaign backers. Members of #WeMakeEvents Supporters get free access to webinars hosted by the campaign and PLASA in the past - including on topics such a Brexit, HR, IP, and various technical sessions – as well as credit checks for UK-based companies. Other benefits include free entry passes to the PLASA Show and PLASA Focus Leeds and an invite to #WeMakeEvents’ Zoom calls. “Launched at PLASA Show 2021 in London last month, #WeMakeEvents Supporters has already seen a large uptake, demonstrating the ongoing high level of engagement to protect and promote live events and entertainment,” says the campaign in a statement. “Supporters can opt in to be listed on the webpage to add strength to the global movement which continues to amplify the voice of the industry a
Norway - Pixotope has added three names to its senior global leadership team. Ben Davenport joins Pixotope as VP for global marketing, taking charge of Pixotope’s international communications strategy. Ben has established a 20-year career in B2B marketing for the technology, media, and entertainment industries, heading up leadership positions at AmberFin, Dalet Digital Media Systems, and most recently, working as head of portfolio & marketing strategy for Vidispine at Arvato Systems. After seven years as enterprise account manager at Avid, David Cheng has been appointed as VP sales & marketing EMEA at Pixotope. In his role at Avid, David focused on the sales of Avid video solutions, connecting and coordinating with some of the biggest international media companies, such as Viacom, Comcast, and Discovery. Travis Sims has become Pixotope’s strategic
USA - Harman Professional Solutions has introduced the JBL-LCT 81C/TM metric lay-in ceiling tile speaker and the JBL-MTC-CSTeth1 retrofit safety tether for JBL Control 10, 20 and 40 Series ceiling speakers with press-in grilles. The LCT 81C/TM delivers high output intelligibility for classrooms, offices, paging systems, airports, retail stores and any place where speech and music clarity are critical. This low-profile speaker features an efficient 200 mm dual-cone driver with 1-inch voice coil and high-performance transformer. Its wide 100-degree conical dispersion pattern translates to broader coverage with fewer speakers, and its high 96 dB sensitivity means loud and clear sound even at low tap settings. Installation is quick and easy: Simply remove a standard 600mm x 600mm ceiling tile and lay the speaker in its place. With a shallow depth of just 103 mm (4.1 inches
South Africa - Bad Weather is a creative technical production house based in Cape Town. The company has been using real time technology to create interactive experiences for massive public attractions since 2017. Today, the company has enhanced its portfolio with end-to-end streaming solutions for virtual production built on StreamWorks by Stage Audio Works – a platform comprising hardware and software as well as support and expertise. When the pandemic struck in early 2020, Bad Weather, like many, was forced to revaluate its product and service offering. “Our philosophy revolves around creating a bridge between creative and technical to bring experiences to life,” explains Bad Weather creative director, Jonathan Bandli. “When the live events sector effectively ceased to exist overnight, the transition to virtual solutions offered us a means to continue to service ou
South Korea - To provide high-quality sound that elevated the audience experience, TechDataPS Co equipped the Yangsan Culture & Arts Centre audio solutions from JBL Professional and Crown Audio. Opened in 2002, the Yangsan Culture & Arts Centre is dedicated to promoting the arts community in Yangsan City, including hosting a wide range of performances. The venue includes a nearly 800-seat grand concert hall, a mid-sized 300-seat outdoor stage, a small 167-seat indoor hall, an exhibition room and a practice room. TechDataPS reported that the centre requested a user-friendly audio system with powerful subwoofers in order to deliver pristine and impactful sound quality to all seats, but the venue’s deep balconies made even coverage a challenge. The installation team selected JBL speakers and subwoofers alongside Crown amplifiers. TechDataPS installed JBL V
