South Korea - The Seoul Foundation for Arts & Culture (SFAC) recently commissioned the installation of a Martin Audio MLA Mini /MSX loudspeaker array in its new Youth Arts Centre. Funded by donations, the facility has been designed for young people in the Korean capital to fulfil their artistic potential, and put them in touch with other creative hubs around the world via the internet. Founded in 2003, the Foundation had been seeking to create Seoul as a platform where diverse values of culture and art could be expressed, and The Youth Arts Centre was created as part of this activity. The facility itself had originally been donated by a private school foundation named Wonsuk. Situated in the Chungjeong-ro district of the city, the 1,500sq.m space itself consists of a cafe, office, multipurpose hall, conference rooms and practice room, along with a complex fun
Germany - The City of Oberndorf am Neckar in the state of Baden-Württemberg this summer played host to a five-week programme of outdoor live entertainment labelled Kultursommer 2020. Created by events specialists dts Veranstaltungstechnik GbR, and taking into account the impact of the global Coronavirus pandemic, this ambitious undertaking required detailed logistical planning, careful organisation and the highest level of production support. The organisers assembled a wide-range of acts from a variety of genres for the outdoor shows, from top metal bands Rage and AXXIS, Classic meets Gypsy with Zorana Memedovic and Heinze Costabel, to comedy and cabaret with Heinrich del Core and Dui do on de Sell. With more than 25 years experience in the sector, dts recently invested in a Coda Audio system, and decided that Kultursommer 2020, with its requirement for versatile hig
The Netherlands/USA - British loudspeaker manufacturer PMC has been chosen to provide the speakers for the presentation of an immersive audio experience at the first international exhibition devoted to the life of The Rolling Stones. Entitled The Rolling Stones - Unzipped, this touring exhibition opens on 14 November at the Groninger Museum in The Netherlands. PMC’s speaker systems are also being used during the mixing of the audio soundtracks for the showcase event in Dolby Atmos at Capitol Studios, LA and PMC’s own Dolby Atmos mix studio at Highland Park in LA. The Groninger Museum was host to a legendary concert by the band in 1999 and will house the exhibition until 28 February 2021, before it begins a tour around the world. Fans of the band will journey through the band's legacy, ending with a special finale experience that takes the visitors into an i
USA - COVID-19 has changed everything. “This pandemic has forced creative people to have to get creative about everything, even things we usually take for granted,” says Tom Worley, operations manager at 3G Productions, Inc. (3G), a live production, sales, and systems integration provider. Thus, this summer 3G turned its Los Angeles facility into Sixth Sense Creative House, a flexible production space able to accommodate live events, film and audio recordings, and live streaming from its sound stage. Key elements in the success of this initiative are two DiGiCo SD12 consoles and a new Quantum7 console, as well as two SD-Racks fitted with 32-bit Stadius mic pres, all on a single Optocore network. The desks are also equipped with DiGiCo’s new DMI-KLANG card, an immersive in-ear mixing expansion that can be mounted directly into a console equipped with DMI slots for nativ
USA - Danley Sound Labs has announced that Skip Welch, currently director of sales, will take on additional responsibilities as head of marketing. Welch’s new combined title will be director of sales & marketing. “Skip spent his first seven years at Danley in the roles of Eastern regional manager and national sales manager,” said Jeff Pulliam, general manager at Danley Sound Labs. “He knows the audio industry inside and out and understands the growing niche that Danley holds within it. That, together with his native marketing sense and artistic abilities, make Skip the perfect person for the new role of director of sales & marketing.” Welch added, “Although the pro audio industry, like so many industries, is facing difficult times, Danley is looking to the future with new projects and innovative technologies. Our team is energised and excited! I l
USA - Denny McLane has joined Symetrix as the new manager of the customer experience team. McLane began his career as the president and owner of Sound Techniques in North Hollywood, CA, where he designed and installed sound and video systems for churches, auditoriums, theatres, and provided live sound production for producer David Foster and his roster of artists. He later spent seven years at BSS Audio (Harman Pro) presiding over sales and support for Soundweb London for the Western US and most recently held the position of Consultant Liaison with Atlas-IED driving architectural projects toward their product offering. McLane is a true expert at bridging technical products and integrator/end-user needs. “We're very excited to welcome Denny to the Symetrix family,” stated Dan Lynch, Symetrix VP of marketing. “As the leader of the customer experience team, Denny's
UK - BrightSign has announced the BrightSign AU335, an audio player with ARC and eARC support that can distribute up to three zones of audio to soundbars and AV receivers. “Our new player strikes a balance between affordability and power, making it the ideal solution for virtually any setting where sophisticated, high-quality audio is called for,” explains Jeff Hastings, CEO, BrightSign. “Whether simply providing background music or powering the display of complicated consumer electronics products at retail, the BrightSign AU335 is up to the task.” Besides multi-zone audio support, the AU335 has physical buttons, proximity sensors and more via USB, GPIO or Ethernet connectivity. This enables customers to control the volume and toggle between devices with ease. The BrightSign AU335 includes a free subscription to BSN.cloud Control Cloud for easy access to realti
UK - Sam Jones has his own show on Insanity Radio, an award-winning FM and online station based at Royal Holloway University in Surrey. Since March, he has hosted Insanity’s Friday night Lockdown show - from Cardiff - with flatmate Alex Williams. Presenting a show remotely has its challenges, but Jones has done as much as possible to ‘studio-fy’ his spare room, excluding as much noise as possible. When the coronavirus lockdown struck, he had already taken the decision to invest in a new microphone, having suffered in the past from a few reliability issues. Looking for great value, great audio and a robust piece of equipment, he decided to go with the Mackie EM-91C large-diaphragm condenser microphone and loved what he got: “Just taking the mic out of the box gives you that feeling of solidity. I figured that if the audio is as good as the build quality, it’
Switzerland - Basel Music Academy’s renowned Electronic Studio Basel (ESB) is being upgraded with Lawo IP technology, enabling future prospective sound engineers to be trained on two Lawo mc²36 audio consoles and accompanying compact I/O units. The Lawo installation at the Basel Music Academy (Musikakademie Basel) will also be used for recording contemporary electronic compositions, performed by ensembles small and large, as well as entire orchestras. The new audio mixing system, which was installed by Swiss system integrator SLC Broadcast, includes two identical 24-fader Lawo mc²36 consoles and corresponding interfaces (supporting MADI, Ravenna, AES/EBU, analogue operation). The two stageboxes each provide 32 mic/line inputs, 32 line outputs, 8 digital AES3 inputs, eight digital AES3 outputs, eight GPIO, a Ravenna port, and a MADI Tie-Line Port (SFP). Also p
Japan - Alcons Audio pro-ribbon systems made a considerable impression on the Japanese professional audio market in July, as the company’s new Japanese distributor E’Spec Inc. held a demonstration event at the Abeno Ward Citizen Centre in Osaka Despite the difficulties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, well over a hundred audio professionals attended the event on 14 July, which was split into three sessions to ensure effective social distancing. They included audio engineers, system designers, rental and sales companies. Alongside PowerPoint and video presentations, practical demonstrations of Alcons pro-ribbon systems included the LR7 / LR7B micro line-array, LR18 / LR18B compact mid-size line-array, the VR8 compact versatile monitor, VR12 mid-size versatile monitor, RR12 point-source array module and the BF151mkII compact subwoofer. A variety of sources
Europe - Exertis has announced a number of senior appointments across its international division. Christer Svärd is appointed managing director for Exertis Nordics. Christer was previously the CEO of Higab AB, a company that builds, manages, and cares for properties in Gothenburg and before that, he served as CEO of Volvo Parts, a global spare parts distributor. “Being able to take charge of Exertis operations in the Nordics, in an exciting industry with a really strong owner, was an attractive prospect that I could not refuse. I have extensive experience in the supply chain and leading businesses with great growth potential which I hope fits very well into Exertis Nordics,” said Svärd. Exertis Nordics also welcomes Helena Byström as supply chain director. For the past six years, Helena worked as a logistics manager at Zinzino, a direct sales company for
Europe - Yamaha’s new RM-CG dynamic beam-forming ceiling array microphone and RM-CR conference processor are the heart of the new intelligent ADECIA conferencing solution, which ‘applies automated room tuning and dynamic, multi-beam tracking to the challenges of today’s and tomorrow's conference environments’. Designed to provide flexible audio intelligence for the meeting spaces of today and tomorrow, ADECIA can be used in a wide variety of locations and situations, says the company. Available from Q1 2021, this solution is based on Dante audio networking and comprises the new RM-CG dynamic beamforming ceiling array microphone, the dedicated RM-CR conference processor, Yamaha’s iVXL1-16P line array speakers and the optimised SWR2311P-10G PoE+ switch. ADECIA is easy to install, set up and operate. The heart of the system is the RM-CR conference processor, whi
USA - LEA Professional has appointed LVX Marketing as the company’s sales representative for Southern California and Nevada. LVX Marketing was founded in 2013 by industry veterans John Hernandez and Ed Ulibarri and between them they have over fifty years of experience working with professional audio manufacturers. “I was originally introduced to LEA Professional a year ago and their innovative technology has always stayed in my memory,” said John Hernandez, co-founder of LVX Marketing. “I’m proud that today we can announce our partnership with this nimble, groundbreaking company.” Hernandez adds, “We saw how well they understood the market and took care of their clients and knew we would work well together. They produce pioneering, aesthetically pleasing products at a great price point with exceptional service. Not only are you buying high quality a
South Korea - The Ulsan Sports Complex hired audio integrators TechDataPS Co., and Daeseong Media to upgrade the sound system in its Ulsan Complex Stadium with a Harman Professional audio solution. Built in 1970, the Ulsan Sports Complex includes Ulsan Complex Stadium, which was the original home of Ulsan Hyundai FC and features a capacity of 19,471. Today, the stadium is home to Ulsan Citizen FC, which competes in Korea’s K4 professional soccer league. Located between the Yaksacheon and Dongcheon rivers, Ulsan Sports Complex also includes an auxiliary stadium, the Dongcheon Gymnasium, Dongcheon National Sports Centre, a basketball court, foot volleyball court, futsal court as well as a youth concert hall. To improve sound at sporting events and create an entertaining environment for fans, TechDataPS and Daeseong Media equipped Ulsan Complex Stadium with an audio s
Australia - Revolution Acoustics has appointed Exertis ProAV Australia to distribute its full line of SSP6 Multiducers, RevNet 2140 Amps, Pendant 360 and UBIQUI T360 commercial audio solutions in the region. “Revolution Acoustics delivers a truly immersive audio experience in every type of commercial environment through constant-SPL, completely consistent audio coverage throughout the listening space,” comments Exertis ProAV Australia president & CEO, Kevin Kelly. “Their SSP6 Multiducers take transducer technology to a whole new level of crystal-clear quality, bringing a more compelling audio experience to listeners. We are excited to introduce this remarkable line to our resellers.” Nick Cocks, Exertis ProAV Australia general manager, adds: “Retail stores, restaurants, office lobbies, hospitals, classrooms, workplace break rooms, transportation centres a
UK - Initially launched by PLASA in response to calls from its membership, the #WeMakeEvents campaign aims to raise awareness around the current plight of the live events sector and how it urgently needs financial support in order to survive the COVID-19 crisis. The initial response resulted in a collective Day of Action on 11 August, with creative expressions across the country, including over 700 buildings lit up in red and other activities that culminated with 4,000 socially distanced event professionals lining bridges and the bankside of the Thames, expressing their need for support with the red alert theme. (Read extensive coverage of the Red Alert day of action in LSi September – out now!) In order to r
USA - If you’re in Northwest Georgia, it’s not hard to find a Rock Bridge Community Church campus. Its six locations, one of which is in a suburb of Chattanooga near the Tennessee state line, make it easy to be part of this contemporary worship-style church. It’s also easy on the ears, as five of Rock Bridge’s venues - Calhoun, Chatsworth, Ringgold, and Dalton’s Stage 123 and historic 1,165-seat Wink Theatre - now have L-Acoustics A Series constant curvature line source sound systems, each of which sound nearly identical thanks to the use of the manufacturer’s new M1 measurement tool suite. “The A Series is a very cohesive system,” says Steele Beaty of Skylark Audio Video, the Oklahoma City-based integrator that designed and installed the PA for all five worship spaces. “The Wide boxes have a 30-degree vertical pattern, and the Focus has a 10-degree v
Romania - The Expirat music venue brand was established in 2002 and is a popular open-format music club / live music venue in Bucharest. Owned by Andrei Șoșa and his wife Raluca, they opened their first location in Vama Veche (on the beach) and the following year a second venue appeared in the Romanian capital. However, in 2016 the latter relocated from its city centre basement home to its current venue, a medium-size warehouse within the Halele Carol complex. This is an industrial architectural jewel similar in aspect and logistics to the Melkweg Oude Zaal in Amsterdam, located at the edge of one of Bucharest’s historic landmarks: Carol I Park. Since its relocation, Expirat has become a flagship venue for both the local live music scene and the go-to dance club for Bucharest’s clubbers who revel to the sounds produced from a Martin Audio W8LM Mini Line Array in
Greenland - A compact Allen & Heath SQ-6 console was on mixing duty for one of the world’s most remote festivals recently. The annual Qooqqut festival brings music and culture to an isolated shore in the Nuuk fjord complex, cradled by the dramatic mountains of western Greenland. Organised by Greenland’s cultural centre, Katuaq, this year’s festival was held on 14-15 August. With no roads, no phone signal and no Internet onsite, Qooqqut 2020 offered a rare opportunity to step outside the everyday world and experience a diverse programme of music, workshops and traditional sports.Tickets were capped at an intimate 250 for each day and the event was planned in close cooperation with the authorities to ensure compliance with Covid 19 guidelines. Katuaq’s sound technician, Angunnguaq Larsen, mixed FOH for the event from a 48 channel SQ-6 console, with an iPad ru
UK - The new Kam Quartet Eco is a complete, easy to operate, professional multi-channel UHF wireless microphone system. Four colour-coded cardioid hand-held microphones are included in the KWMQ4E - Kam Quartet Eco package. Powered by two1.5V AA batteries, these microphones, with an uninterrupted working distance of up to 60m, transmit audio signals to the Quartet Eco UHF Quad multi-channel receiver, operating between 863.30 / 864.30 / 863.80 / 864.80MHx frequencies. As with all Kam wireless systems, compact is again the theme, with the road-ready, lightweight metal-cased mains driven (PSU supplied) UHF Quad receiver featuring enhanced muting, individual volume controls for all four microphones, RF/AF LED signal indicators and 4 balanced and unbalanced audio outputs. This UHF receiver also includes a pair of adjustable, omnidirectional antennas that are also removable
Germany - DirectOut has expanded the capabilities of its Prodigy Series with the release of new firmware for both Prodigy.MC (Modular Audio Converter) and Prodigy.MP (Multifunction Audio Processor). “We are immensely proud to share this major update of the series,” comments DirectOut CEO/CTO, Claudio Becker-Foss, “The lockdown had a huge impact on all of us; it has changed and will continue to change the industry. Considering the circumstances, we are extremely happy that we could use this time to continue our work on the Prodigy Series in order to provide customers with this exciting update.” Originally planned solely for Prodigy.MP, the update considerably expands the potential application scenarios of Prodigy.MC by adding FastSRC and EARS (Enhanced Automatic Redundancy Switching). FastSRC is a bidirectional, low-latency asynchronous sample-rate convert
USA - The history of Cary Alliance Church in Cary, North Carolina stretches back to the 1970s, and the church has occupied a few different properties and worship spaces in that time. Although arguably not the “churchiest” of its locations, Cary Alliance Church currently occupies a 600-seat multipurpose room. As the times have changed, so has Cary Alliance’s service style. Local AV integration firm AVCON recently designed and installed a Danley Sound Labs sound reinforcement system that supports a more-contemporary service style. “Cary Alliance Church moved into their new building about 12 years ago, and AVCON provided the sound system,” explained Frank Yarborough, president and CEO of AVCON. “At the time, the church’s style was more traditional, and the sound system met their more modest needs. But they’ve certainly evolved with the rest of the world i
Indonesia - Wanting to upgrade its acoustic system and provide an enhanced guest experience, the Playmaker Café hired IMS Indonesia, to design and install Harman Professional audio solutions featuring JBL Professional loudspeakers. The Playmaker Café is a dining and entertainment destination in Thamrin, Jakarta. Opened in October 2019 and founded by the football presenter Ophan Lamara, Playermaker Café is a popular hangout spot for locals and tourists alike. The establishment consists of a restaurant, meeting rooms for corporate professionals as well as a lounge, which hosts live music events twice a week and includes two mini billiard tables that add a sporty, energetic vibe. “Playmaker Café required a world-class sound system that would allow customers to further enjoy the ambiance,” said a spokesperson for IMS Indonesia. “The system had to be dynamic and a
Germany - Pioneer DJ Germany and Chauvet DJ have taken a major step to meet the growing demand for livestream productions by collaborating on a multi-functional broadcast studio. Located in Chauvet DJ’s German headquarters, the new facility is fully equipped to accommodate a range of production needs, from talks and product demos, to DJ sets and live band performances. The production ready studio is outfitted with over 25 Chauvet DJ fixtures. A full set of Pioneer DJ equipment is also in place, including the DJM-V10 Mixer, a DJS-1000 Performance-Sampler and the All-in-One unit XDJ-XZ. For Chauvet DJ and Pioneer DJ, the new collaboration is the result of a longstanding friendship between the two companies in Germany. “We already had an excellent partnership in the past,” says Marcus Gierkens, country manager from Pioneer DJ Germany. “Collaborations at trade show
