USA - The Bellamy Brothers play over 150 shows, large and small, annually. Several years ago, pro audio veteran Tim Thomas stepped up as act’s production manager via his production company, ShowPro, LLC. With the help of just two Danley SM80F loudspeakers and a Danley DNA 20k4 Pro amplifier (with integrated DSP), Thomas works his magic to give the brothers consistent sound regardless of the circumstances or venue. “Apart from some big festivals where the PA is provided, the Bellamys typically play shows for between 500 and 3,000 people,” explained Thomas, who, in addition to all things live-sound, has headed ShowPro, LLC. his full production and installation company, for over two decades. “House systems are always hit or miss depending on the venue. We were traveling with our own system, but as they started to get more outdoor dates, I knew we needed something that
USA - The 19th Annual Latin Grammy Awards Show, held on 15 November at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and broadcast live on Univision, brought together Latin music’s future and past. What they all had in common was the audio, thanks to the deployment of four DiGiCo consoles for the show. Comprising two SD7 FOH desks, two SD10 consoles for monitors and eight SD-Racks, the equipment was supplied by Firehouse Productions whose VP Mark Dittmar and system technician David Crawford designed the event’s sound system, with Luis Espinal serving as a system tech. FOH music mixer Ron Reaves and production mixer Andrew ‘Fletch’ Fletcher both used SD7 consoles, while monitor mixers Mike Parker and Mike Bove used the SD10 desks. “The DiGiCo consoles are a very powerful platform to work from on shows like this, where the engineers are potentially confronted with co
USA - Microphones and wireless systems from Audio-Technica were employed at the Country Music Association’s CMA Country Christmas broadcast event, shown on ABC on 10 December. Audio-Technica’s third-generation 5000 Series frequency-agile true-diversity UHF wireless system powered the vocals for the event: Dustin Lynch sang through an A-T ATW-C6100 capsule, and Michael W. Smith and The Isaacs both used the A-T ATW-C5400 capsule. The show, which was taped on 27 September, also used an assortment of wired A-T microphones, including eight A-T AT4050 large-diaphragm condenser microphones used on the choir, an AT4050ST large-diaphragm stereo condenser microphone used for the backline grand piano, and an AT5045P cardioid condenser microphones (stereo pair) on Diana Krall’s piano. Clean Wireless Audio Owner Jason Glass, the wireless RF coordinator for the CMA on t
USA - Evanescence’s latest album Synthesis is a dramatic, orchestral-backed reworking of many of the band’s most beloved songs, plus a few new ones thrown in for good measure. To properly preserve the atmosphere of the recordings on a live tour supporting the release, the band performed its shows accompanied by orchestra members that were hand-picked in each city and brought together by the tour’s conductor, Susie Seiter. Furthermore, fans of the group got a special treat on the most recent second North American leg when violinist Lindsey Stirling joined as a co-headliner, featuring songs from her album, Brave Enough, and acted as an electrifying extra member of Evanescence for specific songs like Hi-Lo. LMG Touring of Orlando has worked with Stirling extensively in the past and served as the full-service audio, video, and lighting provider f
South Africa - Comic-Con Africa, a three-day event showcasing comic books, science fiction/fantasy related film and TV, as well as similar popular arts, was hosted for the very first time in South Africa at the Kyalami International Convention Centre in Midrand, Johannesburg. MGG was appointed as the main technical supplier for the sold-out event, enjoyed by over 45 000 superheroes, villains and sidekicks. Geeks, gamers and superheroes were spoilt for choice with an enormous exhibition area and were enthralled by gaming panel discussions, cosplay contests and a chance to rub shoulders with celebrities like Travis Fimmel of Vikings fame. MGG meticulously executed the technical setup for Comic-Con Africa, that included a main stage, four pre-screening rooms, two VS gaming areas, kids’ entertainment area, an MTN outdoor stage which included a VIP and screening area, an
Indonesia - The Indonesian Choice Awards 5.0 NET, presented by the NET TV Network, aimed at families and youth audiences, is one of the leading entertainment events in the country. “For an entertainment and music event of this magnitude and size,” explains Sadat Effendy, technical director at Total Audio, the company that produced the show, “there is only one sound system we had to consider. That’s Clair Brothers. The Indonesian market loves Clair Brothers speakers because they always deliver.” This event always coincides with, and marks the anniversary of, the NET TV Network. This year is its fifth anniversary and the Indonesian Choice Awards show did not disappoint. Performing for an audience of 9,000, local and international musical acts filled out the evening of awards and tributes for the best in movies and music. Effendy says: “An event of this p
USA - Located in Melborne, Florida, Church at Viera holds four modern worship services in two different venues each week using Allen & Heath dLive, GLD and SQ Series mixers for FOH and streaming broadcast and a ME-1 Personal Mixing System for monitoring. Production director Eli Higginbotham, alongside technical director Brock West, leads Church at Viera’s production team. “We had an older digital mixer with reliability issues,” says Brock. “So, when I came on board, I looked for a replacement. We considered several brands but there wasn’t another console in the same class and price range as the dLive.” The church has standardised on Allen & Heath digital mixers for FOH, broadcast and their Youth Centre. “The architecture is very similar so it’s easy to train a volunteer to mix in one space and then move them to another,” says Eli. Churc
USA - On Sunday 30 September at Pine Trails Park, the Actions for Change Food and Music Festival Fundraiser took place. Born out of the tragedy of the 14 February Stoneman Douglas shooting in Parkland, FL, its goals were to provide healing by bringing love, light, and hope through the arts, register people to vote, raise national awareness about gun violence, and raise funds for organizations committed to helping all our nation’s youth. There was a good mix of speeches in addition to both live and recorded music to keep the action going and, to ensure the best audio performance, a loudspeaker system drawn from the Aero Series 2, Action, Road, and UX catalogues of DAS Audio was utilised. Dynamic Productions USA of Orangeburg, NY, a full-service events production company, was contracted to handle the sound reinforcement requirements for the festival. Brian Rosenblum, t
USA - E-sports - the world of competitive video gaming - has become an international phenomenon, with millions of fans watching both in person and on Internet livestreams, rooting for players that might take home millions of dollars in winnings. Where better to build a premium Esports venue than in the gaming capital of the world - Las Vegas? That’s what Allied Esports International set out to do, with a new venue in the Luxor Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. “Our mission was to build a turnkey infrastructure to do many different live events, as well as produce content in a style and quality that meets or exceeds current broadcast standards,” says Drew Ohlmeyer, head of content, Allied Esports International and Esports Arena Las Vegas. To repurpose a former nightclub space, Allied hired CBT Systems to design and build an A/V system tailored for high-availability streaming
Kuwait - In a move that has significantly enhanced the meeting and conferencing experience of its corporate customers, the Sheraton Kuwait has upgraded to the latest wireless conferencing system from Sennheiser. Implemented across the property’s two large ballroom-style conference facilities as well as its many meeting rooms of varied sizes, the audio specialist’s ADN-W system delivers crystal clear audio conferencing with the convenience of flexible and secure wireless connectivity. Intuitiveness and customer satisfaction were priorities as Eng. Mohamed Monieb, maintenance manager at Sheraton Kuwait explains: “Our hotel’s world-class facilities meet the needs of very large to extremely intimate gatherings and the wireless conferencing system allows the equipment to also be ‘right-sized’ exactly as per customer requirements.” Beneficial for Eng. Mo
USA - K-array has launched K-array USA. With a new facility located in the greater Boston area, the Italian manufacturer will directly oversee operations of the sales, marketing and service of K-array's audio solutions in the States. The new operation is headed by K-array global business development director, Rusty Waite and will work alongside manufacturer representatives SG Western (California, Nevada, Arizona), Media Concepts (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi) and On The Road Marketing (New York City, New Jersey) who will cover their respective territories to grow the brand in the market. "It is the right time for us in regards to the company's growth to invest more of our resources into the expansion of K-array in the United States," explains Waite of the structural update and distribution change. "It increases our accessibility and provides
Canada - Solotech has named Daniel Méjean as vice-president (strategic sourcing) effective 14 January 2019. In this new position under the direction of Nicolas Lavoie, chief financial officer, Méjean will actively contribute to the performance of the rapidly growing sourcing department as a key player in strategic planning, as well as long and short-term alliance building with suppliers and partner. Méjean has over 20 years of experience in strategic sourcing management and direction in large-scale companies. (Jim Evans)
UK - River Audio has installed a new Martin Audio WPM line array in the main hall at Plymouth University. The university wanted to replace its small vocal PA in this location with an upgraded system that would be suitable not only for speech but also music and drama performance. When a delegation of the University’s AV technicians attended a live sound training course with the local Base Sound, to improve their mixing capabilities, they were introduced to Martin Audio’s signature sound, and were immediately impressed. After reviewing various systems they opted for the WPM line array and chose Base Sound sister company, River Audio, to supply and install six of the WPM tops, flown each side of the proscenium, with and a pair of WX218 subs on the ground, all running from a pair of Martin Audio iKon 8-channel amps. As the two clusters are trimmed around 6m from
UK - Adlib was back on the road with pop rockers 5 Seconds of Summer - fresh from winning the 2018 ARIA Award for ‘Best Australian Live Act’ - supplying a Coda sound system, monitors and an Adlib crew to work alongside the band’s engineers Phil Gornell (FOH) and Pavan Grewall (monitors). Richy Nicholson project managed for Adlib, Sam Proctor was the systems engineer on the road and he worked alongside Marc Peers - another talented Adlib engineer - who co-ordinated all things in monitor world. Phil and Adlib have worked together before on several previous tours including All Time Low and Bring Me The Horizon; the Liverpool based company has been his preferred equipment supplier for the UK and Europe since around 2010. The decision to spec Coda was a joint one made by Phil, Richy and the Adlib team. Adlib has used it very successfully on numerous tours, even
USA - d&b audiotechnik will unveil a new addition to its SL-Series line array family – the KSL – at the NAMM show in California from 24 January 2019. The KSL System is a smaller sibling of its big sister, GSL, and brings the benefits of d&b’s SL lineage, including full range broadband directivity, extended LF response and advanced rigging options in an accessible size and performance package. KSL is designed for sound reinforcement needs of any genre, mobile or installed, from large scale arenas, stadiums and festivals to medium scale applications such as clubs, theatres, houses of worship and performing arts venues. KSL and GSL work independently or as perfect playmates; an ideal match in terms of tonality, headroom, coverage, planning and deployment infrastructure. Werner ‘Vier’ Bayer from d&b Product Management comments: “The S
USA - Rupert Neve Designs has appointed Tim Hurrell as European sales manager for Rupert Neve Designs. Josh Thomas, general manager & co-founder of Rupert Neve Designs, comments: “We are immensely lucky and proud to bring on Tim Hurrell as our European sales manager. As the company continues to grow, we needed to find someone to support us further in the European markets. Tim’s extensive experience makes him the ideal partner.” Hurrell adds: “The Rupert Neve name is synonymous with professional audio products, and I’m delighted to have the opportunity to help Josh and the team grow their presence in Europe. Having spent my career in the pro audio industry as a reseller, running Avid’s pro audio business and co-founding a professional audio-specific marketplace, I look forward to working with Rupert Neve Designs’ great network of European resellers an
UK - POLAR has announced the appointment of Andrew Plunkett to the post of business development manager for public address/voice alarm. Andrew joins POLAR after 15 years at TG Baker where he gained wide-ranging experience in the design and distribution of public address, voice reinforcement and voice evacuation equipment. An experienced project manager, Andrew has worked across diverse markets including industrial, leisure, education and most recently, on large-scale stadium installations and joins POLAR to develop this area of its business. As well as liaising with new and existing customers, Andrew’s system design expertise will help introduce the commercial ranges in POLAR’s portfolio to organisations whose core business is not necessarily focused on audio installation alone. Stuart Leader, director of POLAR Integrated Solutions, comments: “It’s clear that
UK - Finnish bluegrass rockers Steve ‘N’ Seagulls, have recently hit the UK for a series of shows supporting their third studio album Grainsville - released earlier this year - while accompanied by an Allen & Heath dLive Wings system. The band’s set-up comprises a dLive C1500 surface (fitted with a Waves V3 card, which is used for multitrack recording, virtual soundchecks and running plug-ins during live shows), an IP8 remote controller and a CDM32 MixRack. The Wings set-up was chosen due to the customisation options and its size - which is perfect for flying. FOH engineer, Antti Laitila, explains: “Steve ‘n’ Seagulls tour around the world all the time, so I was looking for a compact and good sounding console for fly-dates. I’d heard a lot of great things about the dLive-series from my colleagues, so I decided to give it a try. “Pete Ka
Poland - Tommex Żebrowscy Sp. J. has recently completed the design and installation of the audio system for the new Centrum Praskie Koneser in Warsaw, Centrum Praskie Koneser is a modern urban space combining restaurants, apartments, shops, commercial premises, a museum, an indoor exhibition centre and a hotel. The complex also has a large open public square, which is also used to host exhibitions and cultural events. The Centrum Praskie Koneser is a project that incorporates the revitalization and adaptation of the post-industrial buildings of the Koneser vodka factory. Once employing more than 400 people, the factory could produce a quarter of a million bottles of vodka a day, with globally recognized brands including Wyborowa, Luksusowa, Żubrówka, Żytniówka and Siwucha. In addition to the main production buildings, the original complex included warehouses, work
Canada - Solotech has announced the appointment of Mitchell Sadofsky as sales director, effective 10 December. Sadofsky holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and Business Management (Double Major) from the University of Massachusetts. He has been working in business management for about 15 years. His areas of expertise include, among others, account management, and sales growth planning and analysis in large-scale companies such as Peerless Electric and Alico Lighting. “Thanks to his solid experience in business development in Ontario, Mr Sadofsky was the natural choice for this position. We are looking forward to engaging his skills and leadership,” says Philip Giffard, president, sales and integration division. (Jim Evans)
Russia - The popularity of BroaMan’s Route66 AutoRouter with Optocore technology has continued apace since the streamlined version of associated company BroaMan’s Route66 first debuted on the Coldplay tour. Since then the Route66 AutoRouter has featured in a slew of high profile installations, including the Westfield Centre in London, Europe’s largest shopping mall, and Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, redeveloped for the FIFA World Cup. The attraction of the device is that it offers Auto Routing and an intelligent fibre patch bay (replacing the traditional patchbay) - this functionality powered by Optocore -making it suitable for installations with multiple connection points and mobile stage boxes as well as live events and broadcast. Initially compatible with stand-alone Optocore networks and DiGiCo fibre loops, BroaMan has announced that the same functionality is n
USA - One thing that pretty much any experienced touring mix engineer can agree on is that you always pad your input/output number request to a certain degree because rare is the tour where those needs will not increase as the tour progresses. So it might seem odd that when the current Post Traumaticsolo tour by Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda got started, mix engineers Mike Fanuele and Kevin ‘Tater’ McCarthy were sharing a single DiGiCo SD12 mix surface. After that first show, the SD12 was shipped off for the tour’s Asian and European legs, and McCarthy, who has been associated with Shinoda for more than a decade, spec’d a pair of DiGiCo's ultra-portable SD11i desks for the promo tour that preceded the Asian dates. He says he’s fielded more than one question about why he made that choice. “A lot of people have asked me why I choose the SD11i,” he reports.
UK - Ever since starting out back in 2012, production company Sussex Events (SEL) had been running exclusively point source loudspeaker systems in its rental inventory. But by January 2017, popular demand was suggesting that it should switch its attention to a line array solution. “Our point source systems were starting to be pushed to their limits,” admits co-founder Robert Watson. “Therefore we needed something that would cover the upgrade and also fit within our budget, enabling us to tap into a bigger market by taking on work to that we couldn't have delivered without the new system.” So after a long search, guided by dealers Leisuretec, the Hailsham-based company chose a new Martin Audio scalable resolution Wavefront Precision Compact (WPC), SEL had set some stringent criteria. “We wanted a system without compromise on either audio or build quality, exp
Europe - RCF Group has acquired DPA Microphones from The Riverside Company. The deal comes into effect in the second half of January. DPA’s brand name and management will remain unchanged and production will continue as normal at the Danish company’s manufacturing plant in Asnæs. All existing sales channels will also be maintained. Arturo Vicari, CEO of RCF Group, comments: “Since my early days I have been fascinated by the world of microphones. Our portfolio already represents excellence in pro audio and we are very proud to add to our roster DPA – a company that also represents excellence in the microphone industry. We can now offer the complete audio chain, from microphones to speakers for the satisfaction of professionals around the world.” Kalle Hvidt Nielsen, CEO of DPA, adds: “We have come a long way during the past few years. Share of sales c
