Pro AVL Asia July-August 2021 by Blank Canvas Publishing Ltd

ProAVLAsia July–August 2021

LIVE SOUND LIGHTING RECORDING INSTALLATION AV BROADCAST POSTPRODUCTION July–August 2021

WOW FACTOR W Melbourne arrives in style

ARADHANA’S NEW MUMBAI FACILITY

NEWCASTLE COUNCIL’S LIBRARY OF THE FUTURE

GUANGZHOU SHOW REPORTS

MICA (P) 001/06/2021

THE JAPANESE VENUES CHOOSING L-ACOUSTICS

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Singapore: MICA (P) 001/06/2021 PPS 1604/05/2013(022953)

T902 T904 Processing and networking, now with even more power. DRIVING HUMAN AUDIO EXPERIENCE

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BETTER-SOUNDING WORLD

Audioversity offers training programs that can help anyone who works with audio deliver better sound for enhanced impact and communication in a broad range of applications. Refine your craft through a comprehensive selection of seminars, webinars, and self-training materials designed to build skills quickly and effectively.

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Contents Volume 20 Issue Four July–August 2021 NEWS BUSINESS ISE arrives in Barcelona

DISTRIBUTION Analog Way creates full-service centres in APAC

APPOINTMENTS Harman appoints Amar G Subash as VP

EDUCATION Christie takes its solutions on the road

PROJECTS Robe illuminates Chinese nightclub spectacular

FEATURES WOWING AT THE W Marriott Intl’s hippest brand arrives in Melbourne

CHERRY PICKING Japanese concert halls turn to L-Acoustics for upgrades

TRENDING LIBRARY Australian city council invests in futuristic facility

DOUBLED DUBBING Aradhana opens another Mumbai studio

SWING OUT SISTER Chinese reality TV show promotes female musical talent

GETSHOW First of two 2021 Guangzhou tradeshows goes ahead

PROLIGHT + SOUND GUANGZHOU Sue Su reports from the show floor

BUSINESS LETTER FROM AMERICA Dan Daley on pandemic-related crew shortages

LETTER FROM EUROPE Phil Ward ponders the Europe-wide 5G slowdown

COMPANY PROFILE A look at historic UK manufacturer HH Electronics

COMPANY PROFILE tm stagetec celebrates its first decade

TECHNOLOGY Audio Precision discusses modern production line issues

NEW PRODUCTS The industry’s most comprehensive product news

ANALYSIS CEO Christine Schyvinck on three decades-plus at Shure

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Editor’s note Email: cmoss@proavl-asia.com

We bring you two tradeshow reports in this issue as the GETshow and Prolight + Sound Guangzhou returned to their respective venues in May. While neither reached pre-pandemic levels – probably because of an absence of overseas visitors – they were nevertheless busy and upbeat as the Chinese industry reconvened in person to swap news of products and projects and do some serious networking – much-missed in many other parts of the world. See our reports on p64 and p66, respectively. Talking of networking, the ISE local events have now gone ahead in Barcelona and London, and as our July–August issues were going to print, some of us at Blank Canvas went along to the first day of ISE@London. After 15 months of very little contact – aside from via the videoconferencing of which we’ve all wearied – this was a welcome return to something that felt a little bit like life as we knew it. While both events were small, there was a buzz of excitement behind the facemasks as eye contact was made between people who hadn’t seen each other for months. And with many in the UK industry now having received at least one vaccination, there was a relaxed camaraderie in the mask-free bar area as people delighted in being together again, and a genuine feeling that we are finally coming through this. You can find our online news report and video footage of ISE@London on our websites.

Contacts

inside 54

GENERAL MANAGER Richard Lawn

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Sue Gould

SENIOR REPORTER Simon Luckhurst

T: +44 1892 676280

rlawn@proavl-asia.com

sgould@proavl-asia.com

T: +44 1892 676280

PRODUCTION MANAGER Adrian Baker

EDITORIAL COORDINATOR Karen Wallace

SALES ASSOCIATE Carolyn Valliere

T: +44 1892 676280

abaker@proavl-asia.com

kwallace@proavl-asia.com

T: +1 562 746 1790

DIGITAL MEDIA MANAGER Nick Smith

VIDEO EDITOR Chris Yardley

SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR

T: +44 1892 676280

nsmith@proavl-asia.com

cyardley@proavl-asia.com

cvalliere@proavl-asia.com

Jessica Ubhi jubhi@proavl-asia.com

BEIJING OFFICE Frank Shao

GUANGZHOU MANAGER Sue Su

CIRCULATION Marne Mittelmann

T: +86 10 8652 5184

T: +86 13609001455

F: +65 6491 6588

frank@proaudioasia.com.cn

COVER: W Melbourne Hotel PRINTER: Times Printers Singapore LICENCES: Singapore: MICA (P) 001/06/2021; Malaysia PPS 1604/05/2013 (022953) All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the copyright owners.

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PUBLISHED BY: 17 Upper Grosvenor Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 2DU, UK

@ProAVLAsiaMagazine July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 3

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NEWS

ISE arrives in Barcelona

Equipson. “Customers haven’t been able to meet face-to-face for more than a year. Everybody is excited to meet again and you can feel that. We have been saying to the world that these events can be done in a safe way and so we have to demonstrate it to the world – this was the opportunity to do it.” Added Heinz Pfannenschmidt, founder and CEO of IC Audio: “Barcelona ISE is small but fine. There’s a feeling of restarting the business in a positive mood. We’ve met some Spanish clients and also a few international ones.” “Barco attended ISE 2021 in Barcelona to connect with our customers. We have been in virtual video sessions for too long and we needed to meet face-to-face. The future is hybrid which means there will be some video, there will

More than 50 exhibitors took booths inside the Fira WORLD

Making its Barcelona debut, ISE Live & Online welcomed the AV industry to the first in-person and hybrid event to take place at the Fira de Barcelona Gran Via venue since November 2019. The two-day physical exhibition featured more than 50 exhibitor booths, in-person keynotes and roundtables, as well as the concurrent ISE Digital programme. “This event is important for the AV and live events industries, and for the city,” Integrated Systems Events managing director, Mike Blackman commented. “It’s been a 17-year journey to get to Barcelona so it’s bittersweet not to make the big bang we’d hoped for our debut, but we know the value of live events for forging trust, deeper business relationships and driving business. I hope this sends a message of confidence to cities around the world that live events can be safe

and successful. We’ll be back in Barcelona, with all our might, in February 2022.” ISE’s first hybrid event combined live and digital content, achieving 1,431 in-person attendees on Day 1, and 990 on Day 2 in Barcelona. Over 8,000 registered for ISE Digital, which featured 120 live sessions generating 13,759 unique views, 107,718 minutes watched (1,778 hours) and 442 online chats. All visitors within the venue had a negative Covid-19 anti-allergen test result prior to entry and wore FFP2 NR facemasks while inside. The feedback from exhibitors indicated that the hybrid has been largely positively received. “After the first day of the show we are happy to say we made the right decision to exhibit as we have been busy all day with customers,” said Juan Jose Vila, CSO,

The Amate booth be some conference calling but there’s going to be a lot more face-to-face. Meeting back with our partners is what gives us energy,” explained Peter Pauwels, VP sales EMEA at Barco. Oriol Massague, field marketing manager at Panasonic, added: “After more than a year without events and exhibitions, we were excited and delighted to meet people face-to-face again. From lenders, buyers, systems integrators, distributors and sellers – everybody.”

Martin Audio and Interfacio win Queen’s Award for Enterprise WORLD

UK companies Martin Audio and Interfacio have each won a Queen’s Award for Enterprise. The loudspeaker manufacturer has been recognised with an Enterprise for Innovation award for its Wavefront Precision optimised line arrays, while the AV recruiter received the Enterprise for International Trade award in recognition of its consistent non-UK growth experienced between 2014 and 2020. The Queen’s Award for Enterprise is the most prestigious business award in the UK. “It’s an honour to win such a prestigious award and very fitting to do so in our 50th anniversary year,” said Martin Audio managing director, Dom Harter. “Wavefront Precision arrays have become our fastest ever selling line array format suitable for both install and live sound applications and the Queen’s Award for Enterprise underlines both its innovation and commercial success.” “We are extremely honoured to be receiving this award and would like to acknowledge the hard work and commitment shown by our whole team in delivering consistent results for

differences in communication and business cultures. Recent search project successes for clients in Norway, Denmark, Austria, Germany,

Joan Amate, Amate’s VP and CTO, added: “We were one of only three major PA loudspeaker manufacturers exhibiting, so the sector was fairly underrepresented. Nonetheless, there was definitely a significant amount of visitors from the sector among attendees, and we had valuable conversations and exchanges with people; some of whom we had not met before and others we had not seen for some time. There is obviously no reasonable comparison with the usual scale of an ISE but, as a local regional event, there was the sense that there was the opportunity for contacts and conversations that might otherwise have been drowned out in a full-on international event.” “Over the last year-and-a-half, AV professionals have showed their determination to stay connected virtually, while anxiously awaiting the opportunity to convene together in person,” concluded David Labuskes, CTS, CAE, RCDD, CEO of AVIXA. “Through the commitment of many, from exhibitors to the Fira, the City of Barcelona and the government of Catalonia, we were able to gather in person to learn, network and celebrate the world of AV at ISE Barcelona. It was wonder ful to welcome the AV community back together and we get to do it again at ISE London.” With the doors of the Fira now closed, the organiser looks to 23–24 June (yet to take place at the time of writing) for its follow-up networking event in London, which will include live keynotes and roundtables from the Main Stage, and an onsite pub built inside the venue for attendees to reconnect with industry friends, colleagues and contacts. www.iseurope.org

Tradeshow news SOUTHEAST ASIA: With travel restrictions still in place, InfoComm Southeast Asia 2021 will not take place in October in Bangkok. Instead, show organiser InfoCommAsia is presenting the AI-powered GoVIRTUAL event on 21 and 22 October, promising intuitive business matching, live product demos, virtual showcases and webinars. WORLD: Following a decision by the IBC Partnership Board, IBC2021 will now take place from 3–6 December at the RAI in Amsterdam. The exhibition was originally scheduled to take place in its usual September slot; however, feedback from survey respondents indicates that December would be a better timeframe in terms of both vaccine rollout and health and safety protocols.

our clients and candidates around the world in what continues to be a fast-changing and often challenging market,” commented Interfacio founder and managing director, Richard Wear. “Recruiting in international markets requires experience, expertise and high sensitivity to

France, Italy, Spain, Russia, China, Canada and the US illustrate the depth and strength of the capability we now have internationally.” www.interfacio.com

INDIA: InfoCommAsia has announced the cancellation of its in-person InfoComm India 2021 show slated for mid-September, instead presenting a fully digital edition powered by the AI-enabled GoVIRTUAL from 15–16 September 2021.

www.martin-audio.com

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OPTIMISED SONIC PLEASURE

Award-winning and patent protected, Wavefront Precision optimised line arrays deliver unsurpassed control, coverage and consistency of signature sound to unite your audience. martin-audio.com

Unite Your Audience The Martin Audio Experience

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NEWS: BUSINESS

K-array targets new markets with KGEAR launch WORLD

Italian speaker manufacturer K-array has unveiled a new line of audio solutions with the aim of introducing state-of-the-art technologies with its products targeting budget-sensitive yet highly demanding applications. Named KGEAR, the new brand’s portfolio has been divided into two segments – High Performance and Installed Sound. The complete portfolio includes a range of column systems, line arrays, ceiling and wall-mount speakers, subwoofers and amplifiers for everything from large venues and commercial buildings to room-sized, residential environments. “Over the past two years we took the chance to re-focus ourselves and start dreaming and designing in a different, challenging perspective to draw on the very essence of K-array and apply it to create a more accessible product line, without sacrificing the quality and performance we are known worldwide for,” said Alessandro Tatini, K-array co-founder, CEO and president of R&D. “KGEAR is an idea we’ve been carrying with us for many years now,” added co-founder and CFO, Massimo Ferrati. “Being able to invest and dedicate our time and effort to make it come true in such a special moment is the result of a deeper process we have undertaken

GF82 a long time ago. We’re proud to make this addition to our path and give a new expression to our innovation.” To date, the manufacturer has been liaising with established K-array distributors throughout APAC and MEA to expand its dealer network for the new solutions. The K-array China subsidiary

together with the manufacturer’s China distributor, Artsound, unveiled the brand in person for the first time at the Prolight + Sound show in Guangzhou recently. “Two of the most interesting products we are launching are our GF22 and GF82 columns,” explained KGEAR global sales and marketing

manager, Lorenzo De Poi. “Featuring the same tiny column format, these two speakers are substantially different. The GF22 is a 2x2-inch full-range point source speaker, while the GF82 is an 8x2-inch mini line array that benefits from K-array’s PAT (Pure Array Technology). Thanks to their compact and neat design, these two speakers are perfect for low eye impact indoor and outdoor distributed sound applications where either coverage or extreme directivity are required. “Another exciting product is the GP8A, our PA column system with an 8-inch active subwoofer unit and a 4x2.5-inch line array column module,” furthered De Poi. “This compact system is very easy to set up and features Bluetooth connectivity which also allows you to pair two units together in True Wireless Stereo mode. It also has a built-in mixer with two mic inputs and reverb, a USB/SD player and separate controls for the subwoofer unit level. It’s the perfect companion for an acoustic duo, a cocktail party, a small event or a loud karaoke session at home.” Following the launch, K-array will add KGEAR training modules to the K-academy for anyone seeking more information on the new line. www.kgear.it

Sonova acquires Sennheiser consumer business WORLD

After revealing plans in February to concentrate on its three pro business units, Sennheiser has found a partner for its consumer division: provider of medical hearing solutions, Sonova. Headquartered in Switzerland, Sonova will acquire the Sennheiser consumer business, adding headphones and soundbars to its hearing care portfolio, which includes hearing aids and cochlear implants. Sonova will build on Sennheiser technology, combining it with its own expertise and strengths in the field of innovative hearing solutions. Under the joint

Sennheiser brand, the companies plan to work together permanently to provide customers with audio solutions and premium products into the future. “The combination of our strengths provides an excellent starting point for future growth,” said co-CEOs, Andreas and Daniel Sennheiser, in a joint statement. “We are convinced that Sonova will strengthen the consumer business in the long term and capture the potential in the best possible way – especially in the market for speech enhanced hearables as well as true wireless and audiophile headphones.

The brothers describe the move as one of the biggest changes in Sennheiser’s 75-year history. “We strongly believe that it is the right step, as it will enable sustainable growth for all business units – including for the consumer business which will continue at Sonova.

“In both companies – Sonova and Sennheiser – there are great people behind the innovative audio solutions: teams full of passion and motivation who work continuously to create new hearing experiences for customers around the world – whether with true wireless headphones or hearing aids. The exper tise and years of experience of these teams will complement each other in the future and grow together in the new consumer unit at Sonova.” Sonova will take over the development and production areas of the Sennheiser consumer division, with all Sennheiser employees af fected by the new par tnership transferring to Sonova.

The partnership will allow Sennheiser to concentrate on its strengths and resources in the pro audio, business communications and Neumann divisions. “In pro audio, with a focus on digital services, we intend to further strengthen our excellent position in the global market,” continued the CEOs’ statement. “In business communications, we will greatly expand our product portfolio in the coming years. Our goal is to be present with our products in the majority of meeting rooms and lecture halls around the world. And Neumann, with its legendary products, is already one of the world’s best-known brands for studio-grade audio solutions. Here, too, we will focus on digital workflows in the future and further expand the business.”

CEOs Daniel Sennheiser and Dr Andreas Sennheiser At the same time, change creates new perspectives, opportunities and ideas for the future. We look forward to exploring these with Sonova, breaking new ground together and strengthening the Sennheiser brand.” www.sennheiser.com www.sonova.com

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NEWS: BUSINESS

Focusrite Group acquires Sequential UK

Focusrite Group has announced the acquisition of US synthesiser manufacturer Sequential, led by electronic instrument designer and Grammy winner Dave Smith. Sequential has become a wholly owned subsidiary of Focusrite plc, its day-to-day

operations and product development remaining unchanged and under the guidance of Smith and his team. The move brings the Sequential line of instruments into Focusrite Group’s growing product portfolio which includes new installation brand, Optimal Audio. “We’re excited and pleased to add Sequential’s instruments and pedigree to Focusrite Group’s portfolio of world-class audio and music production tools,” commented Focusrite founder, Phil Dudderidge. “Dave Smith’s history as an innovator speaks for itself. From his creation of the world’s first fully programmable polysynth, the Prophet 5, to his co-invention of MIDI, Dave has literally changed the world of music several times. We’re looking forward to continuing his history of innovation and expanding the global market for Sequential’s instruments.” Sequential has been a leading force in the resurgence of analogue synthesisers over the last decade. Its instruments, which include the Prophet 5 Rev4 polyphonic synth, Pro 3 hybrid monosynth and Prophet X Samples + Synthesis keyboard, are a mainstay of performing and recording artists. “With Focusrite, we’ve found an ideal home and

a perfect cultural and technological fit,” commented Smith. “Phil Dudderidge and his team have a long history of quality, vision and focus on what musicians and audio professionals really want. We’re excited to join such an industry

Dave Smith powerhouse and contribute to our mutual success. I expect great things.” Added Tim Carroll, CEO of Focusrite Group: “Sequential is a premium analogue synth brand with a big stake in music creation. The products are exceptional, the company is run extremely well and the passion of the people at Sequential aligns perfectly with our Focusrite Group ethos. It’s tremendously exciting to be able to bring Sequential into the Focusrite family, further the incredible journey that Dave Smith started and keep growing together.” Alongside the new acquisition, Focusrite Group now encompasses the Focusrite, Focusrite Pro, Martin Audio, Optimal Audio, ADAM Audio, Novation and Ampify brands. The group has stated that Sequential will benefit from greater resources to expand its global markets and future R&D efforts.

EVE Audio celebrates 10 years

Ve N

GERMANY

Founded in Berlin in May 2011, EVE Audio is celebrating its 10th anniversary this month. Founder and CEO, Roland Stenz, started the company with more than 25 years of experience in pro audio and electroacoustic design, a passion for music as a classical musician and an aim to bring the best possible products to the market. The company launched a decade ago with a complete range of studio monitors consisting of two-way, three-way and four-way monitors and a range of subwoofers, all outfitted with onboard DSP technology. “The use of an inbuilt DSP offers many more options,” commented Stenz. For me as an engineer with my aim to design very userfriendly devices, I always wanted to implement DSPs into studio monitors for greater performance and more flexibility.” The manufacturer also adopted Air Motion Transformer technology developed by Oskar Heil in the early 1970s, in which a folded diaphragm works in a powerful magnetic field. Stenz’s large Air Motion Transformer is unique

to EVE Audio’s main monitors, while a very small μAMT is exclusively used in the SC203 desktop loudspeaker. One feature all EVE studio monitors have in common is the one-push knob operation which can be accessed from the front of the monitors. “The last thing I want to do in my studio is fiddle behind my monitors for settings, especially when that should be done precisely,” Stenz continued. “It must be easily accessible, so the idea was born for a single front-knob operation and the result is our smart-knob that we use across our product range.” EVE Audio’s latest innovation is the SC3070 compact three-way system, and the manufacturer is celebrating its 10th anniversary with the newly developed four-way monitoring system, SC4070. Over the past decade, EVE Audio has established a worldwide distribution network, making its products available in over 50 countries. www.eve-audio.com

www.focusriteplc.com www.sequential.com

L–R: Roland Stenz and Kerstin Mischke

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NEWS: BUSINESS

Vega Global collaborates on hybrid working with New Wave Workspace APAC

AV and IT systems integrator, Vega Global, has expanded its collaboration with New Wave Workspace to deliver a flexible workspace platform across the region, focusing on Indonesia, Japan, Hong Kong and Malaysia. The par tnership builds on Vega’s ability to provide flexible digital booking and scheduling solutions to businesses and organisations that are returning to the workplace post-Covid. The companies’ par tnership began in 2018 when they star ted to offer intelligent scheduling Software as a Ser vice (SaaS) integrated into Crestron hardware. They have since worked together to deliver enterprise room and desk scheduling solutions to new and existing clients. Vega and New Wave are now poised to deliver hybrid workplace and digital office solutions that can potentially decrease real-estate costs while keeping employees safe and productive. “We are seeing growing demands from our clients needing practical, intuitive room and desk booking, scheduling systems; it means we need to work with a company that truly understands our client’s workspace,” said Heather Li, Vega’s director – digital workplace. “New Wave Workspace will add tremendous value to Vega’s digital workplace business as well as the clients we ser ve. We are indeed excited about this par tnership.” Added New Wave Workspace’s commercial director, Nica Faustino: “Vega’s presence, exper tise and experience across Asia Pacific is truly remarkable. This par tnership has grown from an initial conversation with Matthew Deayton a couple of years ago. Vega has invested many in-countr y resources all pulling into one direction to help customers to obtain the best return on investment from their workplace. As companies return to the of fice post-pandemic, Vega and New Wave Workspace are poised to play a critical role in a safe return to the of fice with our flexible workspace platform that enables the hybrid workplace and the digital of fice. We do look for ward to the next chapter in our par tnership with Vega Global.” Vega’s Indonesia’s countr y manager, Melvin Halpito, said the New Wave Workspace solutions would of fer the region a successful return to work strategy. “As we all return to a new normal, our clients are looking for better ways to adapt and of fer their teams a safe

and flexible working environment,” he said. “We have been promoting this new workflow by working closely with architects and interior designers in the region. Combined with our full AV/IT systems integration ser vices, the New Wave Workspace platform is a per fect par tnership for our market.” www.newwaveworkspace.com www.vega-global.com

CONTROL FREAKS.

C S-S E R I E S. On-board DSP and optimization give you unparalleled power, with revolutionary control over every performance environment. This is Adamson’s legendary sound, evolved for the networked future of professional audio. E X PLO R E C S-S E R I E S AT P OW E R. A DA M S O N SYS T E M S.C O M/C O N T RO L

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NEWS: BUSINESS

d&b launches new service-focused business WORLD

Following its acquisition of UK-based AV provider SFL Group, d&b audiotechnik has announced the creation of a new service-focused business entity called d&b solutions GmbH & Co KG. Operating independently from d&b audiotechnik GmbH & Co, the new company will focus on delivering a higher level of service and integration, and end-to-end installation and production solutions to customers. The newly formed d&b solutions will have separate, independent business structures reporting to the d&b Group. Amnon Harman (d&b group CEO), Jens Nilsson (d&b group CFO) and Michael Aldinger (d&b solutions director finance and operations) will all serve as its managing directors. “d&b solutions is born out of customers’ increasing demand for the integration of full AVL solutions,” explained Harman. “We see a rise in requests for manufacturer support in design, planning and integration services as well as new

Amnon Harman

Tom Jeffery

buying behaviours regarding system ownership and managed services. The creation of d&b solutions as a standalone business entity under the d&b brand will address these developments and accelerate our solution offerings across the entertainment technology market.”

The establishment of d&b Solutions and the acquisition of SFL are cited as natural next steps in the execution of the company’s long-term strategy to become an audio technology and solutions company and will further enable it to offer end-to-end expertise

Barco enters partnership with Ideal Systems

in project development, manufacturing, system planning, installation and maintenance. While prominently UK-based, SFL specialises in event production, installation services and equipment sales, internationally. Following the acquisition, the whole SFL team will join the d&b Solutions business under the new name of SFL Group – a d&b solutions company. “The team at SFL is excited to be part of something new and innovative in an industry that we have served with passion for 30 years,” said Tom Jeffery, MD, SFL Group. “SFL built its business and reputation on putting people and service first. We share not only the d&b strategic focus on complete solutions but also a similar set of values and company culture.” www.dbaudio.com www.sflgroup.co.uk

WORLD

Barco has entered into a partnership with Asian broadcast, cloud and AV systems integrator, Ideal Systems. The alliance boosts Barco’s presence in visualisation and processing solutions while raising Ideal Systems profile in corporate AV. Singapore-based engineering teams from both companies are working closely to develop solutions with IP video technologies to increase the functionality of their solutions. Singapore has become a broadcasting base for rolling out Asiaspecific material and international content due to its sophisticated digital infrastructure and high technological penetration.

Many conferences, tradeshows and corporate events have started to incorporate digital tools and experiences to enhance engagement for physical and virtual attendees. In Singapore, hybrid events have gained importance during Covid-19, with government support given for hybrid events as well as actionable roadmaps and safety measures. The pandemic has also pushed companies towards a hybrid model of remote and in-office working and, with widespread adoption of video calling across the world, many meetings will become virtual or

QSC Communities for Developers goes live ONLINE

L–R: Ideal Systems’ Fintan Mc Kiernan and Barco APAC’s Gan Ta Loong “It’s necessary to look for ways to improve broadcasting system and livestream experiences to step up in terms of virtual engagement and interactivity,” said Gan Ta Loong, managing director, SEA and VP, immersive experience, Barco APAC. “This is why we are excited about this partnership, as we believe that Ideal Systems will strive with us to make a difference in the broadcast and AV space. We are already witnessing a more digitised approach to managing events and in the corporate world. Hybrid models have emerged as a desirable solution for the future – one that integrates digital and in-person platforms to maximise the best aspects of both for companies, staff, organisers, speakers and attendees.”

hybrid. The two companies believe that their partnership will address customers’ needs for innovative hybrid collaboration solutions as well as a better overall customer experience. “Barco, like Ideal Systems, has a long history and excellent track record of delivering quality solutions and excellent support to their customers,” commented Fintan Mc Kiernan, CEO of Ideal Systems. “These shared values and a common customer base from our broadcast to our AV markets coupled with a focus on innovation make Barco the ideal partner for us.” www.barco.com

QSC has launched a new online global developer platform called QSC Communities for Developers. The concept has been designed to enable an engaged and scalable technical community of individuals and organisations to collaborate with the Q-SYS ecosystem. The new platform draws a community of active “citizens” who can access a wide array of development tools, with direct access to QSC engineers and ecosystem partners together with an online forum to exchange ideas with colleagues around the world. QSC Communities for Developers includes fully searchable access to any Q-SYS development resource, including a library of approved plugins, code exchange, sample scripts, design files and user components together with an advanced Q-SYS SDK help system. It also offers access to private and public forums, ideation groups with the opportunity to share cutting-edge ideas and problem solve with peers, QSC advanced application engineers and ecosystem partners. “We looked to create a modern development platform where AV and IT users

can come together in an authentic way, learn from each other and speak freely with QSC experts,” explained QSC Q-SYS Control product manager, Greg Mattson. “It will also serve as an incubator for some of the brightest minds and ideas in our industry. The best ideas have always come from our developers and users, and we hope they use the platform to propel their systems and their developer careers while serving the greater good of the community and the Q-SYS ecosystem.” “The unique technology foundation of the Q-SYS platform gives developers the freedom to create an ecosystem of solutions,” furthered QSC Alliances and Ecosystem VP, Jason Moss. “This community enables unlimited possibilities to create and innovate at the software level within Q-SYS, so all you need is the ingenuity, support and the right tools to make it happen. For the citizens of QSC Communities, this platform provides the tools and support needed to create new opportunities.” www.qscaudio.com

www.idealsys.com

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Evolution Wireless Digital

Evolving With You. Evolution Wireless Digital raises the bar by providing the highest dynamic range of any wireless system currently on the market, utilizing advanced features that simplify your setup and guarantee the most reliable connection. Maximize efficiency by taking full control with the Sennheiser Smart Assist app and automatically coordinate frequencies with ease. Increased bandwidth and the lowest latency make it the most powerful tool for those who put quality and performance above all else. www.sennheiser.com/EW-D

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NEWS: BUSINESS

S vi

Equipson gives LightShark its own brand identity WORLD

Spanish manufacturer Equipson has announced that LightShark will adopt its own distinct brand identity, having previously been sold under the WORKPRO range. The LightShark name entered the market in 2017, with the aim of delivering intermediate level

already recognising it as a separate brand. So this move is a natural progression that makes the public acceptance official and gives the range its own identity within the company. From now on, LightShark will have different verticals that are attuned to the market’s specialised

EAW extends “Made in USA” values USA

Eastern Acoustic Works (EAW) has brought the assembly of its MKD installation-focused loudspeakers inhouse to its Whitinsville, Massachusetts, headquarters. The dedicated assembly space came online in November 2020 with the production of the new MKD1200 Series and customisation of existing products, such as the QX and MK lines. With two stations for assembly, the 226m2 space is now in full operation. “EAW is proud to once again be assembling product in the US and is looking at additional lines that would be a good fit for the new assembly space,” explained EAW president, TJ Smith. “Many of EAW’s products are offered with configurable options, such as multiple horn patterns, rotatable horns and transformers all in black, white and weather-protected cabinets. Conducting final assembly of these products in Whitinsville allows us to respond to customer

demand faster and carry less inventory. Assembly in Massachusetts also saves a significant shipping cost.” In addition to assembly, the new manufacturing space also houses quality control and testing. The shift towards inhouse assembly for this line has enabled the company to build on-demand to better meet client requirements and project timelines. “The production floor is immediately in front of the engineering team, which allows any potential problems to be identified and improvements to be made in real time,” added Smith. “This results in near-term quality improvements and a faster time to market for new products. The space provides a platform for future production expansion as the organisation learns and new products are added.”

L–R: Chema Magraner, Alejo Cervera and Juan Jose Vila products not limited by their feature sets. As the LightShark ecosystem has evolved, the manufacturer now feels the time is right to become a standalone brand with its own division, which will encompass product development, sales and marketing teams. “LightShark products are so different from any of our other product lines that they require an individual approach to R&D, sales and marketing,” explained Juan Jose Vila, CSO of Equipson. “The range has become incredibly popular – to the extent that customers are

needs and an entirely separate staff who will be responsible for all aspects of its success.” Vila added: “We have a clear roadmap of developments for the future, which will increase LightShark’s range and bring new and even more innovative control products to market. It is a very exciting time for the company, and we are looking forward to building on the incredible success this range has already had.” www.lightshark.es

www.eaw.com

Zoom takes virtual events seriously ONLINE

Zoom is launching a new virtual events platform in a bid to try and recreate the inperson conference experience. Zoom Events will launch in the summer and builds on the company’s paid events marketplace, OnZoom, which was in beta development and was primarily intended for smaller businesses. The new solution caters for organisations of all sizes, now allowing large enterprise businesses to manage, host and monetise internal or external events, with features such as ticking, attendance tracking and integrated networking. “It’s an exciting time to be at Zoom where the pace of innovation continues to accelerate,” said Oded Gal, chief product officer at Zoom. “We know that people are looking for flexibility

in how they attend events in the future. The hybrid model is here to stay, and Zoom Events is a perfect solution for our customers who are looking to produce and host customer, company and public events with an easy, yet powerful solution. This is another way we’re helping customers scale to meet consumer demands and the evolving virtual and hybrid landscape.” As part of the launch of Zoom Events, OnZoom will be rebranded and folded into Zoom Events, and can be either private, or searched and explored publicly. Zoom Events can be used with an existing paid Zoom Meetings or Video Webinar licence. www.zoom.us

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XL trussing folds into Forsc Ink setup PHILIPPINES

SIXTY82 Doughty Asia has shipped a large order of “big fold” trussing to one of the most prominent and dedicated rigging and staging rental companies in the Philippines, Forsc Ink. The order to Quezon City consisted of more than 125m of 1m, 2m and 3m sections in addition

to tower model L sleeve blocks for use with XL101F foldable and L52S non-foldable 52cm truss sections. The 1m-high XL 101F folding truss offers a maximum span of 36m and a weight threshold of almost one tonne. The unique folding feature allows XL 101F trussing

to be reduced to one-third of its unfolded volume when stored and being transported. “We are seeing strong traffic increase in Metro Manila, which will most likely only increase after the pandemic,” commented Forsc Ink president and owner, Philip Santos.

“This new folding truss enables us to use our existing truck fleet, while still being able to transport the ever-growing truss spans required, thanks to the huge potential for volume saving. The new sleeve blocks fit not in the new folding truss and can also

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NEWS: BUSINESS

Shure and Barco collaborate to bring wireless videoconferencing WORLD

Shure and Barco are combining their remote audio communications and easy-to-use wireless technologies for any meeting space. The collaboration extends the concept of BYOD (Bring Your Own Devices) to virtual and hybrid meetings with the Shure Audio Ecosystem now pairing seamlessly with Barco ClickShare Conference. Barco ClickShare’s Hybrid Working Research Study predicts a rise in hybrid meetings (meetings featuring both in-person and remote attendees) in the next 12 months. More than half of employees surveyed prefer to host video calls from their laptop, compared to an in-room system (19%) or their smartphone (18%). Additionally, in Shure’s recent State of Meetings Report, 96% of professionals cite frustration with their virtual meetings, most of which are related to audio. “Customers can rely on powerful and certified solutions with Shure networked audio solutions and our ClickShare Conference products,” commented Barco VP of global alliances, David Fitzgerald. “This offers customers an engaging videoconferencing experience with high-quality audio and easy, seamless wireless conferencing. Hybrid collaboration has never been easier and is just one click away.” The ClickShare technology is in response to the increasing need for BYOM (Bring Your Own Meeting) in the workplace. With BYOM, users can walk into a meeting room of any size, plug in the ClickShare Conferencing Button and easily host a videoconference from their own device. Apps are shared wirelessly to the room display and benefit from the same AV setup of the room while using preferred conferencing solutions. Audio quality is improved when using Shure’s Microflex array microphones incorporating steerable coverage technology. Keeping the agenda on track, Shure’s IntelliMix DSP delivers echo- and noise-free and intelligent mixing, whilst eavesdropping is prevented courtesy of Shure Audio Encryption. “Built for the hybrid workplace, customers, clients and students will feel like they’re in the room with you when you use Shure’s market-leading wireless and array microphones with Barco’s ClickShare Conference

system,” commented Shure director of technology partnerships, Paul Gunia. Shure’s DSP IntelliMix P300 and ANIUSBMATRIX are also certified for ClickShare Conference. Flexible signal routing allows for connectivity between rooms, laptops and mobile devices. Shure and ClickShare operate with leading third-party videoconferencing platforms, including Zoom and Microsoft. www.barco.com www.shure.com

SMALL BIG

FORM FACTOR

IMPACT

MEDIORNET FUSION 3 & 6 • Standalone IP Converter & Multiviewer • Miniature SFP frame for UHD / HD / SD • Installable close to signal sources or destinations • For full IP or IP-SDI hybrid solutions

DIGITAL SIGNAGE

CONNECTIVITY SDI

IP Gateway App J2K/JXS

MULTIVIEWER 16 x 1

JPEG-2000 / JPEG-XS En- / Decoder Apps

IP VIDEO

HDMI ETHERNET FIBER SDI

16x1 / 9x1 / 4x1 MultiViewer Apps

FUSION 6

SOFTWARE-DEFINED

DISTRIBUTED

SCALABLE

FUSION 3 FLEXIBLE

accommodate our existing S52 Prolyte truss and towers, making it very easy for us to use SIXTY82 trusses and towers.” www.sixty82-doughty.com

www.riedel.net

/VIDEO

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NEWS: DISTRIBUTION

Analog Way creates full-service centres with DMT and KKI APAC

Analog Way has announced the creation of full-service centres supported by its exclusive distributors in Asia, Kinoton (KKI) in Korea and Digital Media Technology Co Ltd (DMT) in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. “We know that our products are typically used in mission critical installations and so we see a need to offer the best available localised service to our customers in the region,” said Guy de Souza, Analog Way’s vice president for Asia. “We are convinced that the expertise and commitment to professional services that DMT and Kinoton bring to the table will provide our customers now with a more complete experience.”

Both DMT and Kinoton were appointed exclusive distributors for their respective markets in 2020. Since then, training and certification have been organised to ensure their technicians are equipped with the knowledge to handle any service requests and, if required, replace parts. With these capabilities in place, the French manufacturer can now provide customers with service turnaround times ranging from 24–72 hours, depending on the request. “We are delighted to be among the few selected to collaborate with Analog Way on so many different levels,” commented Desmond Stou, general manager of DMT. “Being an authorised service centre is not just about repairing the machines, it is also about bringing Analog Way, DMT and the customers closer together in a tightly knitted community.” “On behalf of KKI, we feel that having this service centre in Korea will enable us to give our customers a more enhanced service experience from now on,” added Edward Bae, vice president of Kinoton Korea.

ChamSys appoints Aura Visual System for Thailand and Myanmar THAILAND

Aura Visual System has been appointed as ChamSys distributor for the country, in addition to Myanmar. Formed at the beginning of this year, Aura Visual System will represent the entire range of lighting consoles from the UK-based manufacturer. “We are very excited about this agreement,” said Aziz Adilkhodjaev, international sales and business development manager for ChamSys. “Aura Visual System shares the same philosophy that has guided ChamSys since our founding. Like ChamSys, AVS is totally dedicated to customer education and aftersales service.”

Added Pankom “Aof” Klaykum, CEO of Aura Visual System: “We are extremely excited to be working with ChamSys. First of all, the company’s level of quality and support is second to none. Also, we feel that the MagicQ range of consoles is a great match for customers in our market, because it offers fantastic flexibility at an attractive price. It’s also great to see the QuickQ range of consoles with network control with such an easy-to-use system. That series makes it perfect for our hotel market.” www.auravisualsystem.com

www.dmtpro.com www.kinoton.co.kr

New Vietnamese distribution partner for DTS VIETNAM

“When approached by DTS to represent this already well-established brand in the Vietnamese market, and after learning more about the future vision of the brand, we found that our goals aligned,” said Ben Lee, country manager at A&L Vietnam. “We are looking forward to the opportunity to work together to serve the Vietnamese market.” “Acoustic & Lighting System Vietnam carried out their job in the best possible way, training

Pequod Acoustics selects Alive Solution as South Korean partner

professionals and offering a first-class level of expertise to each client,” added Carmen Savarese, international sales manager at DTS. “It is my absolute pleasure to work with these guys; they are constantly looking towards the development of significant relationships of trust with customers, suppliers and partners, so I am sure that this cooperation will be successful.” www.dts-lighting.it

liked our style and the work we have done in Singapore and Vietnam. I discovered that he had worked with Soundus Corp who I knew very well and respected, so when Adam told me he was going to create his own company, the discussion about giving him the distribution was immediate.” The distributor intends to promote the range both at their new showroom as well as through exhibitions and collaborations with various artists. “Alive Solution really are the perfect partners for us, because they are both strong on the technical side but they also have many connections with festivals and club installations,” continued Dani. “We will ship a system composed of Shockwave and Hydra super sub shortly and are very excited to start again in such an important market.”

KOREA

products are most suitable for many different places where conventional products are difficult to use. The product itself is like a sculpture, and this makes it very interesting for users.” “As you can imagine, during this period it’s been challenging to maintain relationships with clients and even more so to take on a new distributor,” stated Pequod chief sales officer, Leo Dani. “Adam and I started communicating about 18 months ago. He

Adam K from Alive Solution

www.pequodacoustics.com

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Pankom “Aof” Klaykum

Alive Solution has been appointed as the exclusive distributor for the full range of Pequod Acoustics loudspeakers in South Korea. Based east of Seoul in Gyeonggi-do, Alive Solution’s CEO Adam K was initially struck by the visual characteristics of the product line. “The products have a different design from other manufacturers – the original shape of the horn has been maintained but it is combined with a really original design. I think the Pequod

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www.chamsysusa.com

www.analogway.com

Acoustic & Lighting System Vietnam (A&L) has entered into a partnership with DTS Lighting to expand the Italian brand’s presence in the Vietnamese market. After three decades of serving the Southeast Asian market, A&L has established itself as one of the region’s most reliable distributors, providing the market with the know-how and aftersales support, as well as products and solutions, for the country’s lighting requirements.

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NEWS: DISTRIBUTION

Ceeco takes on Marshall Electronics for India INDIA

Marshall Electronics, a provider of video, audio and multimedia systems for broadcast video, pro AV, pro audio and OEM applications worldwide, has appointed Ceeco Technologies as its distribution partner. Key to the partnership will be the promotion and sales of Marshall’s UCC products lines, which include its USB cameras. “Marshall is excited to be working with Ceeco Technologies as their reach and expertise in the India market will be a great resource for us,” commented Tod Musgrave, director of cameras at Marshall Electronics. “Marshall is excited to expand its geographic

focus to India covering major cities like New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune and Kolkata, through Ceeco.” “Ceeco Technologies provides the focus and commitment to customer service that Marshall is looking for,” says Rahul Bhasin, director, Ceeco Technologies. “Ceeco Technologies is excited to expand its offerings to include Marshall’s product portfolio and will carry forward its customercentric approach and operational strengths to India’s ever-growing market.” www.ceeco.in www.marshall-usa.com

The Ceeco team

our portfolio to align with these changing technology demands,” commented Sean Tobin, chief operating officer, Midwich APAC. “This new

distribution agreement with Huddly means we can facilitate sought-after, seamless technology solutions for the channel and their clients by aligning with brands we already represent and have solid relationships with.” Huddly’s solutions combine hardware and software with artificial intelligence to create products for video collaboration, regardless of whether people are working from a home office or within a traditional office environment. The solutions cover a wide range of scenarios, providing a high-quality video meeting

Global agreement with Midwich brings Huddly into APAC APAC

Midwich Group has announced the APAC launch of Huddly products as part of a new global distribution agreement with the Oslobased video experience products manufacturer. The agreement expands the unified communications and collaboration (UC&C) offering for Midwich throughout APAC and the broader market. The full range of Huddly products are immediately available to Midwich channel partners throughout Asia Pacific. “Recent acquisitions demonstrate our commitment to UC&C and the need to expand

experience for a variety of soft codecs including Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet as well as the recently announced partnership with the Mersive Solstice Pod solution. “Midwich Group is an ideal global distribution partner for Huddly and we are excited to extend our successful cooperation with a global agreement,” said Stein Ove Eriksen, CEO, Huddly. www.huddly.com www.midwich.com.au

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NEWS: APPOINTMENTS

Harman Professional Solutions unveils Amar G Subash as new VP and GM of Asia Pacific ASIA

Harman Professional Solutions has promoted Amar G Subash to the position of VP and general manager, Asia Pacific. Reporting to Harman Professional Solutions’ senior VP of global sales, Jaime Albors, Subash is tasked with enhancing the strength of Harman’s brands including AKG, AMX, Martin, BSS, Crown, dbx, JBL Professional and Soundcraft to drive growth throughout the region. Overseeing the teams in the Australia, Japan, Korea and Singapore offices, Subash will chart a course for further expansion in Asia Pacific territories. “Amar has an excellent track record of working closely with our valued channel partners, systems integrators and end customers, accelerating growth and improving customer engagement,” commented Albors. “At a time when our industry is evolving rapidly, we need a proven leader who can strengthen our industry-leading brands and deliver the holistic, integrated solutions that customers require. With a deep knowledge and experience in the Asia Pacific region, Amar is the perfect executive to help us

Amar G Subash accelerate our business and capitalise on the exciting business opportunities.” Based in Singapore at Harman Professional Solutions’ Asia Pacific headquarters, Subash will lead the team to serve the region’s customers with comprehensive integrated systems,

including solutions for corporate, education, government, hospitality, large venues, tour sound and lighting, cinema, broadcast, retail and ecommerce. “It is an absolute honour to lead Harman Professional Solutions’ APAC team as we

explore newer growth opportunities in the Asia Pacific region,” furthered Subash. “With an industry-leading portfolio of iconic brands, we have the unique ability to provide our customers both standalone and integrated solutions across audio, lighting, video and control applications. I look forward to working closely with our channel partners, customers and other stakeholders to elevate their experiences” Subash joined Harman in 2017 as finance director for Professional Solutions APAC before taking on the role of director for channel management and operations two years later. In 2020, his responsibilities expanded to lead the Audio Solutions portfolio for Asia Pacific. As the holder of a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Nagpur University, Subash commenced his finance career at Lucent Technologies before taking on leadership positions at Tyco Fire and Security India (now Johnson Controls) and Ariston Thermo in Singapore. pro.harman.com

Jayaraman joins Bosch Charlie Day joins IST as global partner manager WORLD

Ramesh Jayaraman WORLD

Bosch division Building Technologies has announced the appointment of Ramesh Jayaraman as senior vice president and general manager, business unit communications. Jayaraman assumes global leadership for the Bosch Communications family of professional audio and communications brands: Bosch conference and public address/voice alarm, Dynacord electronics and software, Electro-Voice loudspeakers and microphones, RTS intercom systems and Telex aviation headsets and radio dispatch solutions. “It’s exciting to be joining the communications team during this time of change and opportunity,” commented Jayaraman. “It has been particularly energising to see how Bosch has proactively adapted to the new challenges brought about by Covid – one of my first priorities is to build on this momentum, leading our business into new areas for growth in alignment with our customers’ evolving needs.”

Jayaraman joins from Harman Professional Solutions, where he served as vice president and general manager, Asia Pacific. Prior to that, he held positions at Ariston Thermo Group and Tyco Fire and Security. He started his career as a consultant in Europe and has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Delhi College of Engineering and an MBA from the University of Illinois. “I’m impressed with the passion of our team members – the strength of the culture here is clear,” Jayaraman continued. “It all starts with the customer, and I see great potential for our continued growth into new markets, driven by increased brand awareness and focusing our deep engineering expertise and resources into products that make sense for today’s end users. I’m looking forward to working closely with our customers, partners and colleagues around the world, gathering input to achieve these goals.” www.boschbuildingtechnologies.com

International Sales Team (IST) has announced the addition of Charlie Day as IST global par tner manager. Day will lead development, nur turing and provision of ongoing suppor t for the company’s growing por tfolio of broadcast manufacturers. “Charlie has been managing director of a successful broadcast system design, sales and content deliver y firm for more than 25 years,” stated IST company director, Darren Frearson. “His success is highly complementar y to what we’re doing with IST, so our instincts told us that he would be an ideal fit, and we weren’t wrong.” “I have represented leading audio and video manufacturers worldwide for decades, always with an eye to ensuring that, as technology and industr y requirements changed, my clients were able to navigate those changes and find the ideal solution for their business and budget,” commented Day. “IST’s sales team as a Ser vice [STaaS] model is a contemporar y adaption to changing circumstances and happens to be one with which I am entirely comfor table because I already know that it works.” The company explains that the STaaS concept ef fectively eliminates the overheads associated with directly employing international staf f, such as the burdensome complexities of local employment laws as well as the financial implications of establishing and funding an ongoing local

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Charlie Day presence. “Day-to-day relationships with manufacturers and suppliers are crucial,” fur thered Day. “Explaining and maintaining IST’s approach over the alternative DIY headache is a task that I relish, equipped as I am with the tools and evidence of the exceptional range of business-critical benefits that can boost IST clients’ bottom line. It’s all about the success of our customers.” www.internationalsalesteam.com

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NEWS: APPOINTMENTS

Listen Technologies promotes Franklin USA

Wireless listening solutions provider Listen Technologies Corporation has promoted Kim Franklin to vice president of marketing, where she will be responsible for leading brand strategy, corporate marketing and communications, digital marketing and public relations. Franklin joined Listen Technologies in 2014 and has been instrumental in driving channel development through solutions marketing, events, campaigns, corporate branding, advertising and communications. She will lead the marketing team to achieve strategic growth and advance Listen Technologies’ digital marketing investment. “Kim’s transformational leadership style

sets her apart, and her understanding of Listen Technologies’ brand and the intricacies of the global pro AV channel make her an invaluable asset to our team and a perfect fit for this role,” said Jonathan Stanley, chief experience officer at Listen Technologies. “Kim’s contributions will be vital to evolving our brand and digital marketing strategy, and we are proud to promote her to this leadership position.” Franklin has built a strategic team to support Listen Technologies’ sales and corporate goals. “Listen Technologies is full of great people working hard to bring unique solutions to customers and I am incredibly proud to support all of them through various

marketing initiatives,” she commented. “It is extremely gratifying to help the sales teams at Listen Technologies and our channel partners solve their customers’ listening challenges. We enable people to have better experiences and connect to the people and places they love.” Franklin has a bachelor’s degree in business with an emphasis in marketing, completed AVIXA’s AVEC Master’s Program and regularly participates in other courses. She is a member of Women in AV and participates in local Women in Tech events and marketing groups. Kim Franklin

www.listentech.com

Makarand Karanjkar joins Michael Day takes the Wohler as CEO and CTO helm at Tolka WORLD

Makarand Karanjkar has joined Wohler Technologies as its new CEO and CTO. Moving from a leadership position at Amazon, Karanjkar has previous experience at Dolby and brings a wealth of technical and engineering expertise to the new position. The company’s current CEO and CFO, Michael Kelly, will retain the CFO role and has also been named chairman of the board. Over the past two years, the video, audio and data monitoring solutions manufacturer has been focused on developing new IPbased products that incorporate the latest broadcast formats. Its iAM-12G-SDI was the first in-rack monitor to offer optional Dolby Atmos decoding using a softwareonly solution and has since been adopted by major networks and streaming services across the globe. With a strong technical background, Karanjkar will continue to drive Wohler’s strategic roadmap. “With a strong brand built on customer trust and solid engineering, Wohler is well positioned to continue to offer exciting, market-leading products and solutions,” Karanjkar commented. “As the industry transitions to IP workflows, I look forward

WORLD

Makarand Karanjkar to building on this momentum and working closely with our customers to offer the next generation of innovative, scalable monitoring products.”

Tolka has announced a new addition to its management team with the appointment of Michael Day as the company’s chief executive officer. His role will include spearheading the company’s expansion as a global producer of equipment, software and services for the broadcast telecommunications market. “Tolka is a dynamic company with proven talent for software development and systems integration,” commented Day. “One of our key objectives is to partner with set-top box and TV display manufacturers around the world so that they can extend the competitive appeal of their products with versatile new features. Tolka has a heritage of turning ideas into total solutions that meet the demands of traditional as well as IP-based television viewing, profiled content delivery and person-to-person video communication. An excellent example is CastMark, a highly secure cloud-based watermarking implementation which allows broadcasters to protect their content from unauthorised infringement.” A telecoms industry veteran with over 30 years of experience in broadcast

technology and business management, Day has worked closely with Tolka since its formation in 2015. As CEO, he will supervise corporate, commercial and technical activity both at Tolka’s Atlanta headquarters and research facility in Taiwan. www.tolka.tv

Michael Day

www.wohler.com

Silaban brings marketing experience to Citra Intirama INDONESIA

PT Citra Intirama has appointed Johannes Silaban as marketing manager, overseeing marketing activities for the distributor and subsidiaries that include House of Piano. PT Citra Intirama, which celebrates its 40th anniversary next year, represents MI brands including Gibson, Marshall, Pearl, Roland, Steinway & Sons and Zildjian, while its pro audio portfolio includes Celestion, RenkusHeinz, Samson and Soundking. Silaban previously spearheaded marketing communications at Melodia from 2012–2016. Among his notable achievements, Silaban developed the first professional musical instrument e-commerce site in Indonesia with the launch of melodiamusik.com, and led the Melodia Group subsidiary,

Johannes Silaban

Music School of Indonesia (MSI), to offer a one-year diploma course in Contemporary Music Per formance. Silaban has returned to MI and pro audio having spent five years as director of operations for Raffles Education Corporation. Here, he held the positions of college director at Raffles Design Institute Colombo and assistant VP for Sri Lanka Operations Raffles Education in Singapore. “Having promoted big brands such as Harman in the past and gained a thorough understanding of musical instruments and pro audio, I am excited to be leading PT Citra Intirama into their next phase of growth,” commented Silaban from the company’s Jakarta headquarters.

“By leading a marketing transformation programme that will strengthen the digital presence of the group and building an e-commerce system, Citra Intirama will be elevated to international level.” PT Citra Intirama’s senior manager of sales and marketing, Michael Harryanto, is enjoying working alongside Silaban in this newly created role. “In terms of sales, Citra Intirama has been a very strong force for years,” he said. “Now with Johannes’ expertise, extensive experience and 360° marketing vision, the company is capable of strengthening and extending connections to all its customers.” www.citraintirama.com

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NEWS: APPOINTMENTS

New appointments for Christie

offering videowall and AV solutions. He also held roles as a sales director for Attila Cybertech, which provides cyber security solutions, and regional sales manager at Christie’s Singapore office. The manufacturer has also appointed James Li as executive director, China cinema, to lead the manufacturer’s cinema team for the countr y. Li will handle sales-related, direct and indirect management of marketing, product management, customer ser vice and technical suppor t.

SINGAPORE/CHINA

Christie has appointed Jason Yeo as senior sales manager, enterprise – Southeast Asia. Leading Christie’s Enterprise sales for the Southeast Asian market, Yeo will work closely with other sales team members to explore opportunities and establish stronger sales channels to expand Christie’s market share.

Yeo has more than 15 years of experience in the APAC AV industry, specialising in technical solutions, business development, channel strategies and sales team management. He was formerly general manager/sales director of Datumstruct CFS, where he managed the Singapore operations and led the sales team in

Simon Godfrey joins Wharfedale Pro WORLD

IAG (International Audio Group) has recruited Simon Godfrey to the role of sales director – professional audio. Godfrey has an extensive background in pro audio sales and distribution, including a lengthy stint at UK console manufacturer, Midas, and sister brand Klark Teknik. “I am delighted to join the IAG family,” said Godfrey. “There are fantastic opportunities at this time, especially for value-for-money and durable products – features that Wharfedale Pro has become renowned for. As the global pro audio markets continue to show signs of recovery, it’s a very exciting time to take up this new role. I look forward to working with our distribution partners

WORLD

Søren Høgsberg has been appointed as executive vice president of sales and marketing for DPA Microphones. As a former executive with many of Denmark’s leading corporations, Høgsberg will call on his global experience to strengthen the coordination of the microphone manufacturer’s sales and marketing initiatives. “In an effort to further increase DPA’s impact in the global market, it has been our recent goal to bring sales and marketing together under one functional, joint management team,” said Kalle Hvidt Nielsen, CEO of DPA Microphones A/S. “In recognition of these continued efforts, I am incredibly excited to introduce

www.christiedigital.com

PMC appoints Dan Zimbelman WORLD

Simon Godfrey around the world to grow the business and to support sales.” www.wharfedalepro.com

Søren Høgsberg assumes responsibility for DPA’s global sales and marketing

Søren Høgsberg

Jason Yeo

Søren Høgsberg as the newest member of the team. With his extensive experience from large acoustical corporations, Søren has an ideal background to help lift DPA to an even stronger position. Søren will have the overall responsibility for our global sales and marketing organisation, which includes product management, customer care and corporate service.” Høgsberg most recently served as vice president of international sales at Demant A/S, a leading international health care company focused on hearing aids, audiological equipment and personal communication. He also previously held senior positions at Vestas Wind System A/S and GN Store Nord A/S, which is among the top 20 traded companies in Denmark. With DPA’s background also rooted in the hearing aid industry, Høgsberg’s knowledge of miniature audio devices will prove useful in managing DPA’s sales and marketing teams. “There are similarities from my previous positions that I can bring to my new role with DPA, and I look forward to learning and growing the brand,” commented Høgsberg. “I can really sense and feel that DPA is something special. I have a wonderful feeling about stepping into a more focused company, where I can help to further develop DPA’s exceptional culture.”

Following a 30-year association with console manufacturer API, Dan Zimbelman has taken on the role of senior export business development manager at British loudspeaker manufacturer PMC to lead the professional studio export business. Zimbelman will use his extensive industry experience and contacts to develop relationships with key clients and provide specialist advice on all aspects of studio monitoring. Working closely with PMC partners and resellers around the world, he aims to maximise training and support needed that will grow sales in local markets.

Jeff Willcocks. “Throughout his career, Dan has worked in the upper echelons of the professional studio world and having someone of his calibre on the team at this critical time is an enormous benefit. He understands our industry inside out and shares our philosophy that quality and customer service should always be at the top of the agenda.” Added Zimbelman: “Having the chance to handle international business development for the most impressive brand of studio monitors in the world was an opportunity that I just couldn’t pass up. I am looking forward to building

Dan Zimbelman In a career spanning nearly 50 years, Zimbelman has held many key positions in the pro audio industry, including recording engineer and studio owner. During the mid-1980s, he spent three years helping Rupert Neve launch the Focusrite brand of signal processing equipment in the USA before moving to API where, as director of sales, he helped the company regain its reputation as a leading global audio brand. “PMC is undergoing a period of incredible growth globally as our extensive range of high-quality monitoring products are having a significant impact on the development of new formats such as Dolby Atmos music mixing,” commented PMC’s CEO,

on the amazing success that PMC has achieved. It is going to be an exciting challenge to use my experience and the strong relationships I have developed over many years to grow the influence of PMC worldwide. Introducing the smooth, transparent clarity and power of the PMC sound – both in stereo and immersive formats – to the professional audio community worldwide is so complementary to my work with API. As soon as the Covid pandemic is past, I will be visiting our customers and partners around the world.” www.pmc-speakers.com

www.dpamicrophones.com

18 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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NEWS: APPOINTMENTS

NewTek appoints country manager for India/SAARC

leading the region,” Tadke commented. “At NewTek, we use innovation and technology to fundamentally change the way video is created and used, allowing more people to share their stories, experiences and ideas with the world and enjoy doing it. As the new regional manager, my goals are to further develop existing partner relationships while looking to further strengthen NewTek’s presence in the market, better serve our existing customers and gain new ones.”

INDIA

NewTek has appointed Rohan Tadke as regional manager for India/SAARC to build up its business in the region. Tadke previously held management positions at WyreStorm and Harman International. As NewTek sells 100%

through its global channel partners, he will be focusing on existing relationships and growing the partner network in the region. “India/SAARC presents a huge opportunity for NewTek and I am very excited to be

Rohan Tadke

www.newtek.com

Ross turns its attention to audio WORLD

Ross Video has announced that Stephen Brownsill has become the first ever product manager dedicated entirely to audio. Martin Soukup has also joined the company in the new role of VP of product development, where he will work within the office of the CTO and will help develop and coordinate the company’s strategy in relation to product development methodologies, technology and coordination. Brownsill began his career as an audio recording engineer before graduating into audio postproduction and eventually managed broadcast operations for Fox and Walt Disney Television in the UK. He then joined Miranda Technologies and ultimately Grass Valley, working as a product specialist and solutions architect, before joining TSL Products as audio product manager. “I’m extremely pleased to be joining Ross and breaking new ground as the company’s

Stephen Brownsill

Martin Soukup

first dedicated audio product manager,” Brownsill commented. “The company’s reputation as an end-to-end solutions provider continues to

grow around the world and of course audio is a highly important element of the live production environment.”

Soukup joins Ross with over 25 years of experience in product development, having held senior R&D, applications development and solutions architect roles with a variety of technology companies. He has led large teams in electronic design, embedded software, highperformance networking, cloud, data analytics and machine learning industries. “Ross has successfully walked a very pragmatic path over the last few years, balancing the emergence of IP with developments in 12G-SDI and remote production,” Soukup noted. “We have amazing innovation across each of our product lines but, of course, a company of our size needs to prioritise and make smart decisions about where to focus our resources.” www.rossvideo.com

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NEWS: EDUCATION

Christie takes its solutions on the road

CHINA

Christie and its distributor Zhongqing Yingye Group are organising a series of roadshows across nine cities to showcase its latest projection and integrated solutions for applications including cultural tourism, staging and performing arts, theme parks and attractions, corporate venues and showrooms, museums and science centres. The roadshows will be held in Guangzhou, Beijing, Nanjing, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Changsha, Hangzhou, Jinan and Xi’an over a three-month period beginning 17 May. This follows the inaugural tour of five cities that Christie undertook last year. “These roadshows had been tremendously popular as we’re literally showcasing our newest technologies right at the doorsteps of our customers, allowing them to experience our products and solutions like never before,” said Michael Bosworth, executive vice president,

to reach out to new customers, reaffirm our strong commitment to this marketplace and strengthen our brand presence.” Among solutions being demonstrated are the high-performance Christie Griffyn 4K32-RGB pure laser projector equipped with 34,000 lumens; the upcoming Christie Inspire Series laser projector designed for showrooms, training centres and meeting rooms with brightness options of up to 9,600 ISO lumens; plus a 3D projection mapping demonstration on a model of an ancient tower 3m tall x 6m long, using three 20,000-lumen Christie HS Series 1DLP laser projectors, Pandoras Box and the Mystique automated camera-based alignment and recalibration solution which allows users to quickly install, align, calibrate and maintain multi-projector systems. enterprise, Christie. “We see a lot of value in organising these roadshows. Not only can we

maintain close ties with our partners and old friends, they also provide us with opportunities

www.christiedigital.com

Powersoft launches free, Earn CTS points from Datapath’s online training certified training courses ONLINE

ONLINE

Datapath’s AVIXA-accredited training course is now being run virtually. Hosted online and running over two days, the How to Set Up and Troubleshoot a Datapath VSN Controller session allows AVIXA’s Certified Technology Specialists to earn renewal units towards their certification by completing the programme.

“In light of Covid-19 related travel restrictions, it is important that we adapt to ways to keep our customers and partners fully familiar with our latest AVoIP technology,” noted Datapath training manager Ignacio Viloria. “We are committed to education and sharing best practices in the AV community and to be able to do that online, as well as supporting CTS

accreditation, is something we are immensely proud of.” Renewal Unit (RU) programmes must feature experienced instructors with clear evidence of qualifications in the session topic. Each class must contain at least one relevant learning objective or industry-related purpose, relate

to a specific exam topic area and exam level and conclude with an assessment tool to demonstrate participants have grasped the objectives. Following accreditation from AVIXA’s CTS renewal committee, attendees will earn five RUs towards CTS and CTS-I certification. www.datapath.co.uk

Xian seminar for ETC

Powersoft has launched a new series of certified training courses on its website. Offered free for all users, the website training is divided into two sections: Webinars, where all its recent webinars have been published, and E-Learning, where the live sound and install courses are available for anyone who wishes to take them. Additionally, a new OEM course for manufacturer and OEM partners will also be released in the coming weeks. The E-Learning platform has been designed as a one-stop destination for online training, with certification gained competition. The courses cover three main areas of the audio market – live sound, install and OEM technologies – and are split into basic, intermediate and advanced levels. “Created by our in-house experts, these courses are for anyone working in the professional audio market, so they can operate with specialist understanding on audio systems and gain expert insight into our audio products,” said Marc Kocks, Powersoft’s application engineering consultant manager. In the Live Sound and Install courses, users will be taught how to utilise Powersoft products to deliver the best sound quality to future

audiences. As well as providing a concrete overview of the ArmoníaPlus platform, the courses will give users a complete overview of how to build effective sound systems that can be tailored to the specific needs of the installer. The OEM course, aimed at manufacturers and OEM partners, will enable trainees to gain a deeper understanding of Powersoft’s core technologies and learn how to implement them in order to upgrade their products using the manufacturer’s ecosystem of OEM solutions. www.powersoft.com

CHINA

ETC dealer Hangzhou Yidashi Technology Development recently held a seminar at Xian Concert Hall, co-hosted by the China Entertainment Technology Association (Xian Office) and Philharmonic Theatre Consulting. The seminar began with an opening speech by Chang Xinping, a representative of the China Entertainment Technology Association (Xian Office), and a presentation by Wu Jian Bo, CEO of Yidashi, about the company’s services and entertainment lighting developments. There were also presentations from Yidashi’s technical manager Wang Xiaoquan, and training manager Tang Xiaotu. The latest ETC

products were demonstrated, including the newly launched Source Four LED Series 3 with XDLT Lens, fos/4 panel lights and the Eos lighting console. Special guest Professor Feng Dezhong from the Central Academy of Drama, known for his lighting designs for stage, film, and TV, shared his insights into the latest lighting technology. “I’m amazed by the excellence of ETC’s products; they’re professional and good quality,” he said. “The colour mixing system can accurately output lively colours which enrich every set and stage.” www.etcconnect.com

20 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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NEWS: EDUCATION

Calrec offers free training for Dolby Atmos ONLINE

Calrec has announced the launch of a free educational training module for mixing live broadcasts in Dolby Atmos using the Calrec Brio console. The manufacturer explains that the need to train people on how to mix in Dolby Atmos has grown rapidly through increased demand from service providers who want to deliver their live events in Dolby Atmos. The latest training modules explain how to create and monitor immersive mixes with a variety of inputs quickly and easily on Calrec’s compact Brio console. “Mixing in Dolby Atmos enables the ability to place an audio source freely within a threedimensional environment; not only within

a 5.1 or 7.1 bed, but also overhead,” said Henry Goodman, Calrec’s director of product development. “Many larger consoles have features which make this easy, but assistive features on smaller desks can also help reduce the workload when it comes to NGA mixing for live broadcasts. For live broadcasts, all the Dolby Atmos work is done in real time in the mixing desk rather than in postproduction; there are no retakes in live TV so mix engineers have to get it right the first time, as well as create additional outputs for host and international mixes, plus surround, stereo and mono versions.” www.calrec.com

Pro Tools Dolby Atmos Production course WORLD

Having identified an increasing number of audio professionals transitioning from traditional stereo and surround formats to Dolby Atmos, Avid and Dolby have announced they are bringing the first Pro Tools Dolby Atmos training course and certification to market. Accessed through the Avid Learning Partners programme, the self-paced training course covering the integration of the Dolby Atmos Renderer with Pro Tools consists of 40 hours of self-learning, 18 hours of instructor-

led training and a professional certification exam. Upon completion of the coursework and passing the exam, candidates will earn the Avid Certified Professional: Pro Tools | Dolby Atmos certification credential. The new PT210D Pro Tools Dolby Atmos Production course will enable Pro Tools mixers to recognise the components of a Dolby Atmos content creation studio and outline workflows for creating immersive audio in Pro Tools. They will also learn

techniques for working with Dolby Atmos beds and objects, Pro Tools session management, Dolby Atmos Renderer configurations and final delivery formats. “The Dolby training course builds on Avid’s global training and certificate infrastructure,” commented Avid Audio Solutions senior director of product marketing, Rob D’Amico. “This course provides core learning opportunities to fill the need for Dolby Atmos training and validates the skills and

competencies of sound technicians and engineers to prepare and deliver Dolby Atmos content. For students, this course addresses the lack of formal learning related to immersive audio. Launching the Pro Tools Dolby Atmos course and certification and building it into the Pro Tools learning paths and certifications accelerates their education and career path.” www.avid.com

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July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 21

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Christie resurrects the Bee Gees in Queensland AUSTRALIA

An LED videowall installed along Bee Gees Way, a 70m walkway in Redcliffe, Queensland, is celebrating the musical career of the band who rose to international fame in the 1970s. The Gibb brothers – Barry, Robin and Maurice – migrated from England to Redcliffe in the late 1950s and went on to have a career spanning four decades, selling over 200 million albums. With a viewing area of 5.3m2, the screen is made up of Christie Apex Series LED tiles with a pixel pitch of 2.5mm. Arranged in a 5x4 array and fitted in a custom-built weatherproof enclosure, the Apex Series LED videowall is used to play exclusive interviews with Barry Gibb – the group’s sole surviving member –

and home movie footage, along with greatest hits such as Stayin’ Alive, How Deep Is Your Love and Night Fever. The Apex Series LED wall brilliantly complements other memorable Bee Gees monuments. The walkway was opened in two stages in 2013 and 2015 and features more than 60 captioned photos and 13 album covers, a 70m mural and life-sized statues of the musicians. “We are delighted that the Moreton Bay Regional Council has selected Christie’s highperformance and dependable LED videowall to highlight the musical achievements of the Bee Gees,” said Wayne Clem, business

Bee Gees Way development manager for Australia and New Zealand, Enterprise, Christie. “The Apex Series is perfect for displaying the most memorable moments of the Bee Gees captured on video. It delivers 4K@60Hz resolution, HDR10

compatibility, built-in Clearview technology and low-brightness enhancements for incredible visual experiences.” www.christiedigital.com

Harman provides systems for Korean cultural centre KOREA

Harman Professional Solutions has collaborated with TechDataPS to equip Geumsan Daragwon cultural and welfare centre’s concert hall and small performance theatre, which host plays, musicals and concerts. TechDataPS deployed a combination of JBL, Crown, AKG and AMX systems to support a variety of events. The team used JBL VTX A8 loudspeakers, AC28/95 compact loudspeakers, JBL VTX B18 subwoofers, VTX M20 stage monitors, Control 26CT-LS ceiling speakers, CBT 50LA-1 column loudspeakers and LSR305 powered studio monitors in both venues. The JBL systems are powered by Crown I-Tech 4x3500HD, DCi 4|600N and DCi 4|300N amplifiers and the rooms have also

been equipped with AKG C414 XLII and C451 B condenser microphones. AMX MCP-108 Massio control pads to provide control over the audio systems. “The project at Geumsan Daragwon was a unique one, considering the sheer scale of the establishment and its requirement to create immersive audience experiences across the venue,” said G Amar Subash, VP & GM, APAC, Harman Professional Solutions, APAC. “We would like to thank our partner TechDataPS for satisfying the client’s requirements with industry-leading systems from Harman Professional Solutions and delivering engaging listener experiences.” pro.harman.com

Robe fixtures illuminate Chinese nightclub spectacular CHINA

Amsterdam-based design studio Live Legends has carried out production design and implementation of a lighting, video and laser system at the 1,200-capacity nightclub OT Cities Gui in Nanning, part of the Noa Group. The Live Legends team of principal designer and show director Daan Oomen, set designer Stefan Peters and senior lighting director Serge Patist specified 270 Robe moving lights at the heart of the lighting design. Central to the visual concept is the rich local culture, particularly of the ancient ethnic Zhuang tribe, introducing Chinese Xiuqiu (silk balls), the Zhuang bronze drums and other ancient ritualistic objects into the design. “Our goal was to bring the beautiful culture of this minority to a new audience and mix it with modern technology to connect Zhuang history, via the OT Cities brand,” explained Oomen. The Zhuang drum forms the centrepiece of the VIP table main room, its curvature the inspiration for eight pods in the ceiling filled with segmented scenic blades and lighting fixtures. Columns and spiral staircases rise to two levels, including VVIP areas on the balconies, with arches and shuttered “windows” backlit with LEDs. The show unfolds between 9.30pm–6am, with timeframes unlocking lighting, video, laser and automation sequences fused with dance and

Robe fixtures in OT Cities Gui in Nanning display performances. The Robe fixtures join approximately 1,430 other light sources to create impact during the show. Thirty-four MegaPointes are rigged at the back of the stage, in the arches running down the centre of the room and one in each circular pod centre. Ninety-four Pointes are on larger arches, above dance stages around the room and along

the sides, covering the larger areas in beam effects. “Their brightness, versatility and high impact were perfect for the job,” stated Oomen. The Pointes and MegaPointes blast across the 40m x 26m room from multiple angles. Sixty Robe Viva CMYs are rigged on a large arch around the stage, forming a visual gateway between the stage and audience areas. A

versatile fixture was needed here to contrast to the beam-orientated Pointes and MegaPointes, so the Viva CMY was chosen for its zoom and gobo options, as well as compact size. Seventy-six LEDBeam 150s have been rigged vertically up pillars around the room and above the spiral staircases. All the Robe fixtures were supplied by Shanghai-based Live Culture Transmission (LCT), a Robe distributor in China. The lighting has been programmed via a grandMA3 control system which is also used to trigger other visual elements like video, lasers and automation, complete with safety height and speed limits, all of which run during the timecoded shows. disguise 4x4 media servers running the video content are currently controlled remotely from Live Legends’ HQ in Amsterdam. Much of the lighting programming was also visualised here in advance, as was the show music composed by Joos van Leeuwen and video content created under the supervision of Ad de Haan. Bram De Clerck, Robe’s global business development manager, stated: “We are very proud and honoured to be part of this high-end club installation. It has been a fantastic collaboration with both the Noa Group and Live Legends.” www.robe.cz

22 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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NEWS: PROJECTS

ClubMulwala chooses Exterity IPTV and digital signage system AUSTRALIA

ClubMulwala has been a focal point for socialising in the Mulwala district of New South Wales, Australia, since it was founded in the early 1950s by the local sub-branch of the Returned Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen’s Imperial League of Australia. The resort provides live entertainment, dining, resort accommodation, day spa and beauty services, plus sport and social activities. In 2019, ClubMulwala’s owners decided to upgrade its AV facilities with a deployment that would meet with the evolving expectations and needs of its members. The existing facility-wide TV system was based on an old analogue design and only offered standard definition TV and a limited number of channels. Furthermore, there was a feeling that it lacked modern media such as digital signage to communicate efficiently with guests around the resort. The

Extremity digital signage at ClubMulwala

club turned to The Avit Group to keep pace with the changing demands of its clients. “The club is in quite a remote part of NSW, and two of the main requirements were reliability and ease of use,” explained Brad Magri, operations manager for The Avit Group. “We had worked with Exterity on other projects and it has all the features the club needed but, more importantly, the technology has never let us down.” The project, which spans the entire club, including the gaming lounge, lounge area, bar, Alfresco Gaming and café areas, was planned around a multi-phase deployment to ensure that the club could remain open throughout the installation. The first part of the project was a replacement of the core video distribution system that Avit upgraded to an Exteritybased IPTV solution, and which is integrated with a Crestron control function to allow staff to easily manage screens and audio equipment via a simple control deck. The TV quality has been upgraded to full HD with the option to deploy 4K as required in the future. In addition, each of the 28 screens across the gaming lounge has digital signage capability that is supported by four dedicated,

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ClubMulwala’s casino portrait mode LCD screens that run marketing and other promotional messages to visitors. All management functions are delivered from the Exterity AvediaServer central server and ArtioSign software and, following a short training session provided by Avit, the club’s facilities team has been able to run the system independently, including creating their own promotional material without any further assistance.

“The new IPTV system offers great picture quality and has proven incredibly ease to use – it definitely enhances the entire guest experience,” said Alan Rowe, CEO at ClubMulwala. “We are looking forward to finalising the project and upgrading the rest of our facility to offer our members modern and engaging communications and entertainment throughout the club.” www.exterity.com

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24 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

PAA Pg4-47 News.indd 24

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Drive In Ultra, the territory’s firstever outdoor drive-in concert, took place over three evenings at the 36,000m2 Central Harbourfront, hosted by vocalist and actor, Ronald Cheng. L-Acoustics rental partner Engineering Impact, which has over three decades of experience putting on large-scale concerts in Hong Kong and tours across Greater China, designed a system using Soundvision to provide coverage across the area. L-Acoustics application engineer Frieda Lee worked with Engineering Impact on show preproduction. “Engineering Impact’s stellar track record of various outdoor shows had prompted Ronald Cheng’s production team to get them onboard this project,” Lee explained.

Managers to rapidly tune the system and be ready for the show.” The main rig consisted of 12 K1s per side, flanked by an additional 12 K1s on either side as side fill for the wide outdoor drive-in concert area. Twelve SB28 subwoofers stacked in four columns of three enclosures on each side of the middle audience area, and two stacks of six SB28s on each side area, provided low end. Twenty-four L-Acoustics LA8 amplified controllers drove the line arrays, while 10 LA12Xs powered all subs. LA Network Manager also proved crucial during the show. “Array Morphing allowed the engineer to adjust the contour EQ of the system during the performance to maintain a perfect balance, despite the

Added Engineering Impact head of audio Chan Wai Fung: “Front of house engineers working on previous shows had always felt confident with L-Acoustics systems. They knew that the long throw capability of K1 would be able to deliver unrivalled performance in providing a homogeneous frequency response across a large audience area. Hong Kong is a bustling city, and it doesn’t afford us the luxury of long setup times. Preparation needs to be precise. Once the system was loaded in, we used the signal routing and alignment capabilities of LA Network

varied types of music performed during the concert,” said Chan. A review from local online news outlet HK01 specifically mentioned the sound, reporting: “The L-Acoustics ecosystem, which includes design and show control software, along with the loudspeakers themselves, result in concert sound that’s enjoyed by both the audience, and the sound crew, who have a great time mixing on it.”

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Sony camera sheds new light Vijau also cites the VENICE’s Rialto Camera Extension System (CBK-3610XS), which enables the cinematographer to remove the sensor block and extend it up to 5.5m away from the camera body with, he says, no loss of image quality. This allows him to acquire shots remotely with the same 6K image quality and functionality. Since its launch in September 2017, Sony’s VENICE has been endorsed by leading auteurs including James Cameron, whose Lightstorm Entertainment was the first company to announce the use of the Sony VENICE for principal photography

when the upcoming sequels to Avatar were announced. Shot by acclaimed cinematographer Russell Carpenter, ASC, Avatar 2 is slated for release in December 2022, followed by Avatar 3 in December 2024. Inspired by the choice of VENICE, cinematographer Aseem Bajaj spoke to colleague Russell Carpenter who was using the prototype of the VENICE to shoot the Avatar sequels. “He briefed me about VENICE and asked me to try it out. I tested the camera and fell in love with it,” said Bajaj, who used the camera for the first time on Bhuj: The Pride

DoP Kartik Vijay harnesses the agility of Sony VENICE on the set of Yeh Ballet ASIA

Two of India’s leading cinematographers Kartik Vijay and Aseem Bajaj have been reacting to the increased agility of the VENICE, Sony’s first full-frame movie camera. Both report an expansion of visual horizons and increased opportunities for visual storytelling in their work. Recently this includes use of the new digital camera on Yeh Ballet (2020), a Netflix original film directed by Sooni Taraporevala; Ji Hun (The Soul), a Taiwanese supernatural movie released in January 2021; the last three chapters of My Name is Andrea; Bhuj: The Pride of India, directed by Abhishek Dudhaiya; and Mayday, directed by Ajay Devgn. Yeh Ballet, shot by Kartik Vijay, follows two underprivileged dancers who escape their backgrounds to pursue dreams of performing ballet on a world stage. The screenplay demanded a visual narrative of shadowy streets, cramped corridors and rows of windowless houses as well as keeping pace with the energy of the dancers. There was also a need to explore occasionally dark interludes of individual introspection, requiring maximum dynamic range.

“That’s when I heard about Sony VENICE,” Vijay revealed. “With the VENICE, you could actually hot-swap between two base ISOs. You didn’t need to reboot the camera to jump from the first to the second base ISO and vice-versa.” According to Vijay, he was able to swap from ISO 500 (for higher light levels) to ISO 2500 (for lower light levels) in two seconds.

of India, a historical war drama starring Ajay Devgn and directed by Abhishek Dudhaiya. One twilight scene confirms the wider possibilities enabled by the VENICE’s signal gain: keeping a devastated airbase as grimly realistic as possible, the use of artificial light was ruled out. Bajaj instead exploited the ability of Sony VENICE to shoot in the dark. “I decided not to use any light and decided to shoot this sequence wide open and rate the camera at ISO 2000,” he explained. “We could barely see the shot with our naked eyes, but the Sony VENICE wonderfully captured the action.” Director Abhishek Dudhaiya and DoP Aseem Bajaj on the set of Bhuj: The Pride of India

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26 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

PAA Pg4-47 News.indd 26

DoP Kartik Vijay frames a shot on the VENICE with Cooke anamorphic/i prime lens for the movie, Ji Hun (Image courtesy of Rise Pictures)

www.sony-asia.com

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Calrec Type R takes heart in RRI INDONESIA

Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI) has upgraded its Jakarta facility which hosts the Voice of Indonesia (VOI) channel with IP networking technology based around a modular and expandable Calrec Audio Type R IP-based radio system. RRI is having to compete with ondemand web streaming services by extending its live event coverage. While attempting to broaden its appeal by catering for increasing listener demands, a more cost-effective live production solution was sought as a result of declining lower advertising revenues. In addition to remote IP production and AoIP networked systems, the tender demanded reliability, simplified operation, high audio quality and ease of expansion features. JAA Systems’ Indonesian partner and system integrator Promidi Audio was awarded the contract to supply a design for the full turnkey project. The audio-over-IP network integrated into the VOI studios and editing rooms are interconnected with IP managed switches that adopt AES67, Ravenna and Dante protocols. A Calrec Type R IP-based radio system plays a central role in the redesign, and dual layer six-fader panels have been integrated into the main on-air and standby studios. While the outside broadcast system also incorporates a Brio36 console, the compact RP1 remote production systems simplify event production and reduce the overall operating costs. In specifying this setup, RRI has become the first broadcaster to deploy it in the ASEAN region. Primarily specified for offsite events, Calrec’s Remote Production RP1 enhances OB mixing before being transmitted to the VOI studio. The remote audio returns to the studio are enabled with a pair of Prodys QuantumONE codecs networked to Calrec’s RP1 system via a Dante AoIP module. The mix can be further edited on the Dante-enabled Brio36 console. For smaller live events, the Prodys QuantumW is employed as a portable OB IP audio codec. Offering flexible IP networking capabilities, Merging Technologies’ Anubis, Hapi and Horus converter and monitor interfaces together with the Pyramix digital audio workstation (DAW) software are being utilised within the RRI production editing suites. Merging’s Aneman (Audio Network Manager) open platform provides management, monitoring, routing

RRI’s VOI project, Type R adopts AES67 as the main interoperable AoIP network format, but it interlinks with Ravenna in the production studios and Dante that is used for OB operations. This was the first instance of Calrec’s RP1 system being supplied to Indonesia as it allows RRI to facilitate remote mixing and control between the studio and the OB event.” Despite being well-versed with AoIP technology, the adoption of various protocols and formats operating on the same broadcast network challenged Promidi Audio. “In our adoption of fully fledged audio-over-IP technology, RRI’s VOI project is a first in Indonesia,” said Promidi Audio MD, Chossy Pratama. “Selecting the right professional IP-managed switches and fully understanding the technical configurations were key factors in our success. With IP technology, JAA Systems supplied and provided efficient

Production studio 1 and configuration of all the IP-networked audio devices. JAA Systems also added an Ovation event and cue sequencer system. Interfaced to the AoIP network, an Orban Optimod 8700i audio processor ensures consistent audio quality and loudness levels.

On-air studio Calrec’s Type R solution is becoming widely regarded as the next-generation IP radio mixer and routing network among radio broadcasters. “The ongoing transformation and adoption of new IP technology simplifies radio broadcasting and provides ease-of-use operation,” commented JAA Systems director, David Chan. “This leads to greater creativity and productivity when producing radio content. For

remote support to us at a time when no overseas representatives were allowed to enter Jakarta. The transformation in radio technology highlighted by the VOI project serves as both a showcase and a reference for future RRI radio station upgrades throughout Indonesia.” www.jaasys.com www.rri.co.id

Commercial audio. Done differently. optimal-audio.co.uk

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NEWS: PROJECTS

PK Sound powers BoomBoomRoom CHINA

Located in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region’s second-largest city, the 1,000-capacity BoomBoomRoom spans three floors. In addition to the main room there are several themed halls and VIP areas. The audio system centres around PK Sound’s T10 Install line source element, which packs the performance of the robotically controlled Trinity family into architecturally focused enclosures. The main arrays flanking the stage comprise seven T10 Installs per side, with additional arrays of three elements each serving as rear delays. The DJ booth features pairs of PK’s CX215 point source loudspeakers and Klarity 218

The BoomBoomRoom in Liuzhou City, the latest addition to Singapore’s Disen Kaine nightclub group, has been installed with a PK Sound audio system by Polar Audio, the Canadian manufacturer’s local distributor. “We pride ourselves on delivering an elite and luxurious nightlife experience across our growing network of clubs, and high-impact audio

powered by PK Sound plays a big part in that at the BoomBoomRoom,” commented Disen Kaine Group’s Kane Lin. “Thanks to PK Sound’s technology, we’re able to very precisely direct sound to maximise clarity and impact throughout the venue, and the company’s reputation for hard-hitting low end means the club can easily live up to its name.”

subwoofers for monitoring, with an additional four CX215s at the lip of the stage for front fill. The system also includes four Gravity 218 subwoofers beneath the main stage and two boosting the rear delay hangs, while a dozen CX800 subs are distributed throughout the venue. “BoomBoomRoom is our latest collaboration with Disen Kaine Group, who insist on a worldclass guest experience in every one of their clubs,” said Polar Audio’s Hawking Yuan. “The Trinity family delivers incredibly clean, clear and powerful sound and has been drawing top performers and massive crowds.” Added Trevor Grenier, senior partner support at PK Sound: “It’s great having partners like Polar Audio proudly representing the PK brand and collaborating with esteemed companies like Disen Kaine Group to create powerful experiences for music fans. Their work at the BoomBoomRoom speaks for itself and we look forward to supporting them as they continue to build PK’s profile in an increasingly important market.” www.pksound.ca

Sony brings flexibility to new Nine Networks HQ

AUSTRALIA

Nine Network has recently completed one of its most ambitious broadcast engineering projects to date, constructing a state-of-the-art studio and headquarters at its new home in North Sydney. At the heart of the installation was a wide variety of Sony equipment. “We required a mixture of fibre-attached system cameras, set up as a mix of robotic pedestals, traditional pedestals, jib and handhelds,” explained Stephen Willmott, Nine Network Studio’s live technology and automation specialist. “We also required high-quality all-in-one pan/tilt/zoom-capable cameras for smaller studios. Overall, we required SMPTE 2110 compatibility where possible, ease of use, a networked camera control system to enable multiple control rooms access and control of cameras, a

potential path to 4K and excellent quality pictures.” The cameras would also be used across five floors of a high-rise office block, and it was the Sony cameras’ quality, functionality and reliability that impressed Willmott and the Nine engineering team. “The Sony cameras fulfilled our requirements as they have native 2110 available when using the system cameras and the HDCU-3100 CCU,” he explained. “The Sony multicamera system allowed for a variety of control options, including traditional MCUs and RCPs as well as a software MCU. Then the BRC-X1000 and BRC-X400 cameras also integrated seamlessly into our Vinten robotics control servers.” Being able to use all Sony cameras has allowed the network’s operators to easily

control any camera in the facility and match them quickly. “The familiarity with the systems has enabled our team to hit the ground running. The ability to remotely manage the HDCU base stations through a web inter face has also allowed our team to quickly and easily make configuration changes. Picture-wise, the images coming out of the range of Sony cameras has been consistent and high quality. They have not skipped a beat.” Nine is using Sony equipment across all of its studio programme, from six hours of live morning television to spor ts hosting and panel shows, and news programmes at night. A typical environment at the new state-of-the-ar t HQ consists of a studio with a mix of predominately Sony’s HDCU-3100 or HDCU-3500 cameras, with a number of BRC cameras for additional angles. Smaller studios use BRC cameras exclusively and there are a few “standup” style positions where on-air talent can just walk up to a camera, put on a mic and star t broadcasting, which also use BRC-X1000 cameras. “These studios can be used in any of our control rooms,” Willmott added. “When in a manual production, the

cameras are controlled from a central technical position in our operations centre. When in an automated production, control of these cameras is passed to the co-pilot automation operator in that control room and they can also be assisted by a TD if required.”

In addition to the cameras, Nine also deployed over 90 Sony LMD series monitors throughout the facility. These are used for reference, editing and general review applications. The professional monitors were combined with numerous large display panels used for multiview applications. “Since launching the facility, we have commissioned another studio with five additional cameras to service our expanding sports commitments, a commentary booth with a BRC-X1000 and a temporary guest Covid isolation studio. The Sony cameras are central and critical to all of this and give us the ability to create and broadcast any production quickly and efficiently,” concluded Willmott. pro.sony

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L-Acoustics A Series puts swing into dinner in Bangkok

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THAILAND

Live music enthusiast and restauranteur Nicha Uengkhao has installed an L-Acoustics A Series constant curvature line array system at his relocated Jab Pae Chon Kae restaurant For five years, Jab Pae Chon Kae had become known for providing a dining experience alongside live music, from rock and pop to EDM. Uengkhao, who had been admiring the L-Acoustics sound at live events for many years, took the oppor tunity of the relocation to contact Vision One, L-Acoustics’ cer tified distributor and integrator for Thailand, to advise on a system for the new venue. Having attended Vision One’s launch of the affordable A Series in 2019, the Jab Pae Chon Kae team had already begun to discuss the possibility of upgrading their sound. “We knew that the new location, close to the popular The Circle community mall, but also not too far from our original space, would give us a unique opportunity to widen our audience,” explained Uengkhao. “We knew that the A Series would offer a superior live music experience to diners.” “The team at Jab Pae Chon Kae called us in to survey the new venue and propose an L-Acoustics system that would work well, both in terms of sound coverage and SPL requirements,” added Vision One COO, Tanapat “Tony” Mongkolkosol. “Soundvision proved what we thought: that we could give the restaurant a touringquality sound system with arrays of A10 that would really showcase the dynamic music programme on offer. A10 offered the quality the restaurant desired, while staying within their budget.”

The team at Vision One worked with L-Acoustics Soundvision 3D acoustic modelling software to design a system that would give consistent coverage to the space, which includes a main dining/dancing area with high ceilings flanked by two more intimate areas with lower ceilings to the left of the main space. The main area system consists of arrays of five L-Acoustics A10 Focus, with a single A10 Wide at the bottom, per side.

An A10 array Panflex sets the top two enclosures at 90° to throw towards the back while keeping sound off the walls, while four more A10s are set to 110° for wider coverage in front of the stage. Six L-Acoustics KS21 subwoofers supply low end, while two L-Acoustics X12s provide coverage to the venue’s left wings. L-Acoustics LA4X amplifiers drive the system, along with an L-Acoustics P1 processor to upscale the input signal to 96kHz digital, and to bridge AVB and analogue audio with a low latency and maximised bandwidth. “It’s a great feeling to be settled into our new, high-profile location, and to have the sound system that we’ve been waiting for, for over five years,” commented Uengkhao. “We’re excited to offer this vibrant new experience to our clients.” www.l-acoustics.com www.visionone.co.th

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NEWS: PROJECTS

AGB Events takes the train at Parrtjima festival AUSTRALIA

AGB Events has produced a travelling installation on the Ghan, a 900m luxury train that travels the 2,797km stretch between Darwin and Adelaide, for NT Tourism. The installation was part of Parrtjima – A Festival in Light, delivered by the Northern Territory Major Events Company on behalf of the Northern Territory Government. Three of the train’s carriages were wrapped in Aboriginal artist Chantelle Mulladad’s Crossroads work, used in the external and internal dressing of the Ghan carriages, which featured in the Merging Kultcha installation at Parrtjima. The free 10-night festival showcases the oldest continuous culture on Earth through the latest technology on the 300 million-yearold natural canvas of the MacDonnell Ranges. Turning a whole railway carriage into a travelling Parrtjima light installation, AGB Events used digital imagery from the 2019 light and sound Ranges Show which had been projected onto 2km of the MacDonnell Ranges. Projected onto the entire width of the 1.6m-high Ghan carriage, with interior printed graphics measuring 16.7m x 17.15m each side, the installation was accompanied by a musical composition and narration. The 10-minute show included a welcome from AGB First Nation’s advisor and

Parrtjima curator, Rhoda Robert AO and was narrated by Australian actors Aaron Pederson and Benedict Kngwarraye Stevens. Lighting designer was Richard Neville and was supplied by MPH Australia and Mandylights. Musical composition and sound design was delivered by Damian Robinson and supplied by the Central Australia Aboriginal Media Association (CAAMA). AGB Events worked with Adelaidebased technical partner Novatech, which delivered the entire projection and control system including FujiFilm Z5000 HD projector and 2.7m x 1.6m screen covering the width of the carriage. RGB

DMX controllable lighting and an L-Acoustics audio system immersed viewers and the entire system was programmed and operated using a QLab control system.

All AV and lighting was programmed and monitored from Novatech’s Adelaide operations. The only authentic Aboriginal light festival of its kind, Parrtjima connects visitors to the country with new artworks, light shows, performances, workshops, live music, films and talks introduced each year. “We are always looking for new ways to expand the reach of the annual Parrtjima programme,” said Anthony Bastic, CEO, AGB Events. “This is a new initiative and particularly significant given the Ghan’s importance to Central Australia. There’s also a great synergy with the artwork Crossroads by Chantelle Mulladad which we’ve utilised in this installation and also the Merging Kultcha installation at the Alice Springs Desert Park. “In developing creative concepts like this, it reminds us of the importance in connecting people. On this occasion, by involving the Ghan with Parrtjima, we’re highlighting pathways and moving forward which ties in with the Future Kultcha theme for Parrtjima 2021. The Ghan connects people and Parrtjima connects people through light.” www.agb.events

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Showtec equips historic Bangkok hotel with Audac

Bangkok’s Montien Hotel, opened by Her Majesty Queen Sirikit of Thailand on Valentine’s Day, 1967, has undergone a renovation which includes an upgrade of audio solutions, from input sources to speaker endpoints, provide by Audac. The Belgian manufacturer’s exclusive Thai distributor, Showtec Co, was appointed as AV consultant for the entire project. Showtec Co star ted work in the ballroom, fitting 66 CELO8 ceiling speakers and 18 CELO8S ceiling subwoofers powered by four DPA616 16-channel Class-D amplifiers, with M2 multimedia digital audio mixers and six DW5066 digital all-in-one wall panels providing multifunctionality. The BGM system, which encompasses the gym, poolside bar, garden lounge and mezzanine lobby, is output via a large variety of Audac products, including 72 CIRA5 QuickFitTM ceiling speakers and 12 ATEO6 wall speakers powered by four PMQ480 quad-channel amplifiers. Speech

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THAILAND

requirements are taken care of by three M2 multimedia digital audio mixers, while a CMP30 audio player looks after music sources such as CD player, MP3 player and an AF/FM tuner, with six DW5066 and nine DW3020 wall panels connected to the M2s to adjust the volume. Several spaces needed to be approached separately, including the ground-floor lobby which was equipped with 16 CIRA5 QuickFit ceiling speakers and a DW5066 wall panel for control, with eight CIRA5 QuickFit ceiling loudspeakers and another DW5066 for the lobby bar. Showtec Co also installed systems into two meeting rooms, each comprising 12 CELO6 ceiling speakers and three EPA104 quad-channel amps, with MTX48 four-zone audio matrix systems together with MWX45 wall panels controlling the two dif ferent zones. www.audac.eu

2XX FM upgrades with AEQ AUSTRALIA

The two main studios at Canberra’s oldest community radio station, 2XX FM, have been renovated with the addition of two AEQ Forum IP digital audio mixers. With programming including cultural, spor ts and political content, 2XX FM has been on air since 1973 and is now also online. The installation, configuration, commissioning and training was carried out by Broadcast Components,

PAA Pg4-47 News.indd 32

AEQ’s local par tner in Australia, in communication with AEQ’s central technical ser vices in Madrid. Central switching is handled by an AEQ Netbox MX unit that functions as the central router of the all-IP installation. Designed for on-air broadcast control, the modular AEQ Forum IP incorporates automatic monitor cut, coughcut, faderstar t, signalling control,

control signals for the automation of external equipment, management of external communications and intercommunication. It provides AoIP multichannel input and output modules with up to 64 input and output channels compatible with AES67 protocol via Dante. www.aeq.eu www.broadcastcomponents.com.au

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NEWS: PROJECTS

INSEAD Business School adopts Barco’s weConnect

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As part of a move that started several years ago, INSEAD business school has launched GO-Live, a platform that helps students continue their learning from anywhere in the world, based on Barco’s weConnect vir tual classrooms. With GO-Live powered by weConnect, the multicampus institution has taken a distinctive approach to live vir tual teaching, following two broad principles. The first is being learner-centric. “You want to keep the learner empowered, active and engaged so that they’re immersed in the experience, just as if they were there face-to-face,” said Peter Zemsky, deputy dean, dean of innovation, professor of strategy and innovation. “The other key principle is to allow faculty to bring their deep skills of creating magic in the classroom from a face-to-face world to a live vir tual setting.”

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and the learners can freely collaborate and access shared breakout content, as well as content from the main session. Learners can ask questions, chat with peers, answer polls and quizzes, draw or add pins to the whiteboard. The feature also allows on-demand access after the live session ends, helping instructors to optimise future classes and learning outcomes based on the user analytics on par ticipants’ engagement. www.barco.com www.insead.edu

SI SERIES P10 und S210 VERSATILE INSTALLATION TOOLS

PROFESSIONAL

With the new SI SERIES HK Audio has unveiled a family of speakers tailored to meet the needs of today’s installation market. The two new S210 V and S210 P subwoofers complement the P10 column speakers in the low-frequency range. For use in particularly demanding outdoor environments, both the P10 and S210 P are tested and Marc Remond, vice president of meeting and learning experiences, Barco APAC, added: “The competition in the education sector in Singapore has intensified tremendously. With the pandemic, online education is now truly global. Unable to travel, students can join any programme from their home. It is vital for universities, business schools and training institutes to now embrace digital platforms that are built for teaching and learning, and not for vir tual meetings. Solutions like Barco weConnect help improve student par ticipation, collaboration and engagement, regardless of whether the class is vir tual, hybrid or traditional with all students onsite. INSEAD recognised the need to enable interactive and productive learning experiences online ver y early on. By adding such new digital capability to suppor t its future growth, the leading global business school has gained a significant competitive edge while improving the online teaching and learning experience for both educators and students.” Barco has recently added an enhanced breakout rooms feature to weConnect for high-quality interaction and engagement. The new feature will ensure that the instructors stay fully connected to their audience while keeping a steady flow for the session

certified with IP 66 protection class. The combination of dustproof as well as water proof mid/high unit and subwoofer is unique worldwide and delivers uncompromising audio quality even under the most difficult environmental conditions.

Certified for voice alarm (EN 54-24:2008)

Certified ingress protection class IP 66 (EN 60529, applies to P10 and S210 P)

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P10i/j: low impedance (16 ohms), 300 W (RMS), 128 dB SPL (10 % THD)

P10i/j TR: 100/70 V transformer, 3 power taps (150 W max.), 125 dB SPL (10 % THD)

Extensive mounting accessories for walls, ceilings and for flown installations

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Meyer Sound rejuvenates Sydney Theatre Company AUSTRALIA

Sydney Theatre Company (STC) has reopened its home venue, The Wharf, at Walsh Bay following a two-year closure for a total renovation. The technical upgrade has included the installation of a Meyer Sound system based around the company’s new Ultra-X series supplied by Soundcorp, a Diversified company. The system was designed by Meyer’s Bob McCarthy and Josh Dorn-Fehrmann using Spacemap Go, the manufacturer’s new tool for spatial sound design and live mixing. STC’s Playing Beatie Bow has become one of the world’s first theatrical productions to use dynamic spatial effects provided by the new technology based on the Galaxy network platform using Milan and a new iPad user interface. The system renewal was the latest stage of a decades-long relationship between the theatre and Meyer Sound. “We did explore options from other manufacturers, but over the years we’ve been happy with the UPJ and UPM loudspeakers, which we could easily integrate into the new systems,” explained sound and video manager, Ben Lightowlers. “More importantly, we were very impressed with the new Ultra-X loudspeakers. They are excellent for vocal clarity, which is paramount as the dialogue must be out front. But they are also exceptional for music.”

The Wharf Spacemap Go reconfigures the system to accommodate the 420-seat Wharf 1 Theatre’s different seating configurations, including end-on, L-shape and in-the-round, as well as sound effect source locations specific to a particular production. Sound designers can also leverage the spatial sound possibilities of Spacemap Go. “When Spacemap Go came along during this renewal project, it was exciting to have that added dimension,” Lightowlers continued. “I’m responsible for assuring

our sound designers have access to a system that will afford them full creative potential. You don’t want them to think too much about the system itself, so they can focus on their ar t and what they want to communicate with sound. The fact that you can control Spacemap Go from QLab via OSC made the Meyer Sound solution an easy sell.” David Bergman, sound designer for Playing Beatie Bow, was the first to use the new technology, allocating up to

20 outputs from QLab as direct objects for Spacemap Go. “The composer, Clemence Williams, and I have been loving the way we can run various trajectories throughout the show,” he said. “Some trajectories are doing slow circles around the audience while some randomly zig-zag. It’s been great to move around sounds like wind, reverbs and solo instruments that other wise would be static. I love how democratic it makes the show. No one misses out and ever y show will feel slightly different, even from the same seat.” Spacemap Go was introduced after Bergman’s sound design was already well under way. “We have just star ted exploring the capabilities,” he said. “The next time I would love to build more specific spacemaps and trajectories, with more intricate recalls from QLab.” Added Lightowlers: “It’s exciting to have a new system that is one coherent palette and have it backed by outstanding suppor t. Some companies will sell you the boxes and then you are on your own, but that is absolutely not the case with Meyer Sound. The ongoing suppor t, especially regarding additional configuration setups, has been outstanding.” www.meyersound.com

Several manufacturers to equip NBC Olympics for Tokyo Games JAPAN

NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, has selected various manufacturers to provide support for its production of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, which take place in Tokyo, Japan, from 23 July – 8 August. Six Calrec Artemis consoles will be set up in NBC Sports’ International Broadcast Center (IBC) in Stamford, Connecticut, with a 64-fader Artemis and a Brio console in the Main Control Room in Tokyo. Also in Tokyo will be a 32-fader Artemis Beam handling the audio in the 4K control room for immersive audio broadcasts, and two 40-fader Artemis consoles used in NBC Olympics’ fly packs for immersive beach volleyball and golf production. There will be full IP routing in the IBC so all Calrec consoles will have AoIP interfaces connecting a variety of fixed format and modular Hydra2 IO to an IP router. For the remote production workflow, six RP1 units will connect the NBC Olympics studios in the IBC with Stamford control rooms, as well as two studios onsite in Tokyo, basketball and volleyball venues to their home control rooms. Two Brio consoles will also be in use at the downtown studios, splitting the audio for redundancy between the RP1 and Brio.

NBC Olympics has turned to Xytech’s ScheduALL for a ninth consecutive Olympic Games to deliver advanced enterprise resource and transmission optimisation solutions in order to coordinate the highly dynamic environment of the Games. NBC Olympics will be able to leverage the expertise of Xytech’s software and services to orchestrate the logistics of people, equipment, locations and transmission feeds. Xytech’s ScheduALL manages critical information, such as video router assignments and satellite uplink scheduling, and automatically passes the information to downstream systems to facilitate on-air coverage for each feed. Rocket Surgery, Ross Video’s in-house creative and professional services division, will also be providing Voyager, the latest generation graphics rendering solution (based on the Unreal 4 engine from Epic Games) along with production crew to integrate the graphic elements designed by the NBC Olympics graphics team and operate the technology on the air. NBC Olympics will use Telestream’s Lightspeed Live Capture and Vantage media processing platform to per form

a unique, mixed HDR/SDR workflow which will save time and enable editing teams to work on both the SDR and HDR products during the editorial process simultaneously. Amagi will deploy its cloud playout platform, Amagi CLOUDPORT, and live sports/news automation solution, Amagi LIVE, to create Olympic Channel’s live coverage in UHD. With HEVC playout and mezzanine-quality UHD encoding, Amagi CLOUDPORT architecture has been designed for video transmission over IP, especially for a global and premium live sporting event such as the Olympic Games. RTS has been NBC Olympics’ broadcast intercom partner for over 25 years. The

manufacturer has supported the NBC Olympics production team on its transition from analogue to IP, which has enabled all its local and global locations to act as a single virtual location, thanks to RTS Trunking solutions. The installation for NBC Olympics’ coverage will be full IP, comprising over 600 ports and leveraging two RTS technologies: OMNEO high-quality audio for local communication and RVON for international comms. www.amagi.com www.calrec.com www.rossvideo.com www.rtsintercoms.com www.telestream.net www.xytechsystems.com

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25/06/2021 15:37

NEWS: PROJECTS

Crowded House back on tour with d&b audiotechnik NEW ZEALAND

Crowded House have just completed the scaleddown To The Island tour in their homeland, having planned to spend 2021 touring globally. A d&b audiotechnik system was chosen for the tour, one of the first national outings by any act since the pandemic hit. Western Audio recommended and supplied d&b KSL and GSL systems with ArrayProcessing for the North Island leg of the tour. The system needed to provide the flexibility and dynamic range for venues from 2,000-capacity indoor spaces to 8,500-capacity arenas. “In the arena, the relationship between mains and sides was so smooth, I often found I could rotate the side around more than usual – about 55–70° – and still have great coverage,” commented the tour’s systems tech, Bjarne Hemmingsen.

Crowded House’s 2021 tour With no limitations of mass gatherings or social distancing requirements, the band performed at packed venues night after night, with d&b’s

line array optimisation software function, ArrayProcessing, assisting the crew to deliver consistant sound throughout.

“The show sits at an average of 94–97dBA at FOH and applying ArrayProcessing really optimised the tonal level across the coverage area and made a huge difference for the people in the back rows,” continued Hemmingsen. With just one or two nights between shows, the crew also benefitted from the SL-Series’ quick rigging and powerful d&b software suite for efficient planning and predictable coverage. “The compression rigging on the SL-Series is really efficient and easy,” said Hemmingsen. “Large arrays can be rigged with only two people and transiting the flying frame on top of the array helps a lot with time and truck space. I really enjoyed using the system and the feedback from everyone was excellent. I look forward to using it again in the future.” www.dbaudio.com

Martin Professional lights up garden atrium SINGAPORE

Harman Professional Solutions has partnered with Light Collab to install the garden atrium at the Parkroyal Collection, Marina Bay hotel with a Martin Professional lighting solution. The hotel in the city’s central business district required a lighting system for an immersive treetop experience, including a short light show that could be programmed for hourly performances. The hotel’s goal was to transform the garden atrium into a futuristic

world of light and sound, complementing the work of architect John Portman and the

Orchidea hanging floral sculpture by artist Richard Lippold. Light Collab’s design included Martin MAC Quantum Wash fixtures selected for their tight beams, wash fields, colour palette and uniform colour mixing. Light Collab also selected Martin Rush MH 6 Wash fixtures for complex, immersive visuals and Martin Thrill multi-fx LED fixtures to deliver laser, strobe and rotating multi-beam effects. “A unique venue like Parkroyal Collection, Marina Bay

requires a phenomenal lighting setup,” said Amar Subash, director, channel management and audio solutions, Harman Professional Solutions, APAC. “It is a privilege to add to the allure of this magnificent venue. We would like to thank our partner Light Collab for delivering unparalleled quality and innovatively deploying our solutions to celebrate nature in this one-ofa-kind space.” pro.harman.com

NAS upgrades PA system at Gold Coast football club wanting a proper system for a while, so after successfully applying for one of the Covid grants, we decided to go ahead with it.” Noosa Lions FC approached production company Event-X to upgrade its existing PA system, a single-powered speaker on a pole with a USB Bluetooth dongle wireless mic system which was being used to cover the main oval. Systems were required for three zones: the clubhouse, field 1 and field 2. With a capacity of 100, the clubhouse is hired out for events and fitness classes. A pair of dBTechnologies Opera 12 active loudspeakers have been installed at each corner, fitted on Quik Lok QL/950 wall brackets. Audio sources are BYO devices and a PC input, so NAS supplied a Cloud BT-1 Bluetooth receiver connected to a line input of a Cloud CX263 mixer via Cat5 and

AUSTRALIA

Noosa Lions Football Club on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast has installed its first permanent audio system, supplied by local distributor, NAS Solutions. The club, established in 1973, has around 700 members across all age groups. “The club didn’t have an audio system when it was constructed,” explained club administrator, Rebecca Whisker. “We’ve been

an FPA-1 adapter. A 3.5mm-to-RCA Quik Lok cable connected to the CX263 provides connection to other BYO devices. “Staff operate the individual zones. If they want to send audio to a zone, they just select the input source and turn the volume up – it’s all done by front panel control,” said Brendon McDonald, Queensland integrated systems account manager at NAS. “Bar managers and people from sporting organisations aren’t always technically savvy. In the end the customer wants something that’s easy to use and that’s why I push the Cloud products.” Covering the main field 1, seven inDesign ID-MH158 loudspeakers are installed under the eaves facing the field. Event-X specified two supplementary dBTechnologies Opera 12s focused onto the seating area for added bottom end and musicality. Custom Perspex covers protect the Ashly CA1.04 amps from Queensland’s occasional horizontal rain. A Parallel Audio M2000 dual wireless handheld mic system with remote antenna kits has also been provided. Field 2 has a further six inDesign ID-MH158 loudspeakers, while the canteen is installed with a single Inter-M CU9120 column fed off a smaller amp and paging mic. “The client was incredibly happy with both the coverage and also the clarity of the new system,” said Michael Williams, director of Event-X. “It completely changed

the way they operate as a club; they’re able to communicate more effectively for their carnivals and six-a-side programmes, which previously wasn’t possible.” “Members love that we can have the music going all the time,” added Whisker. “We used to have one speaker blasting across the field, but the new loudspeakers let us easily talk to everyone while still hearing music and announcements clearly.” www.nas.solutions

36 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

PAA Pg4-47 News.indd 36

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Li-Trans puts AJA’s KUMO at the heart of Taipei’s CEO1950 TAIWAN

Making its debut in 2020, CEO1950 is a versatile event space and cultural centre located in the heart of Taipei’s Zhongshan District. To support everything from concerts and musical performances, to art exhibitions, fashion shows and beyond, CEO1950 features a state-of-the-art AV system designed by Li-Trans to broadcast audio and HD imagery throughout the venue, which includes a lush outdoor garden, spacious interior rooms and a gourmet French cuisine restaurant. Central to AV operations is AJA’s KUMO 1616-12G router, which enables staff

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to route high-bandwidth video signals over 12G-SDI to any monitor within the venue or to the central switcher during livestreams or recordings. “Since opening, CEO1950 hosts an average of 3–4 events each week, requiring a reliable AV system capable of handling rigorous uptime demands,” shared Kevin Shi, CEO, Li-Trans. “AJA products are known for stability and they allow venue staff and operators to work with peace of mind and 100% trust that they won’t lapse or fail during live events, recordings or streams.”

The KUMO 1616-12G compact 12G-SDI router sits at the heart of CEO1950’s workflow, used in tandem with a KUMO CP 1U control panel for operation and configuration. During events, the KUMO 1616-12G receives all incoming HD SDI source signals and routes feeds to any of six Chimei HDMI display monitors, a Sony VPLCH370 video projector or an HD Sony switcher. Incoming source signals are shared from a Panasonic AW-HE40S HD pan/tilt camera capturing live content, dedicated cables that connect to the stage and other areas in the venue, and a desktop computer running video or graphics content. Signals from the desktop computer and the stage reserved cable are scaled and converted from HDMI to SDI with AJA’s ROI-HDMI Mini-

Converter, then distributed to the KUMO 161612G. For outgoing KUMO 1616-12G signals, AJA Hi5 Mini-Converters are used to drive all venue HDMI monitors by converting incoming SDI signals to HDMI. The event workflow also includes an AJA 3G-AMA for embedding and disembedding mixed audio and sending audio feeds to the KUMO 1616-12G for routing. “No matter the event or workflow demands, the KUMO 1616-12G simplifies routing and allows CEO1950 to host world-class events,” added Shi. “The team has been extremely satisfied with AJA’s product quality and reliability, as well as the workflow flexibility provided by KUMO.” www.aja.com

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July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 37

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Martin Audio WPM helps solve acoustical issues at Shibata venue JAPAN

The 916-capacity hall at Shibata Civic Cultural Center in Niigata Prefecture has been installed with a Martin Audio Wavefront Precision Mini (WPM) sound system. The upgrade has helped to tackle longstanding acoustical issues at the venue, which opened in 1980.

WPM to be the perfect solution to resolve those issues. We were aware that the WPM optimisation system would deliver the same sound characteristics throughout all audience areas, and that we could control the reflections, which affect performers and musicians onstage. Of course, I tested this with the actual products in a venue, and the result was exactly as we expected, so it was an easy decision to proceed with.”

Astera illuminates Year of the Ox AUSTRALIA

Astera Titan Tubes and NYX Bulbs were used by Paul Wells from Sydney Props Specialists to create a piece of art to celebrate the Chinese New Year. A large, illuminated ox was constructed in collaboration with Sydney Event Services and displayed at Darling Harbour for three weeks. The work was commissioned by Sydney’s Harbour and Foreshore Authority, which had requested an internally lit steel-framed structure with stretched fabric skins. Wells went to work with Mitch Hancock from Sydney Events Ser vices on the ox, which was 1.16m wide and 2.4m long. With the timeframe too tight to complete the structure in hand-welded steel, the pair proposed 3D printing, which was executed by a giant printing machine at Composite Images in Ar tarmon. Two Titan Tubes were used to illuminate the body, with the bulbs

positioned to spread lumens down the limbs and into the head to achieve an even glow. The Titan Tubes were secured using Astera mounting clip options, with the NYX Bulbs fitted into waterproof light sockets mounted directly inside the ox. The electrics were fed in and out through one of the hind legs into the waterproof mounting plinth. The client requested four dif ferent colour combinations, and Wells and Hancock used the Astera App to animate the lighting and create a sequence that scrolled between all four lighting designs. It had initially been planned to light the ox only at night but, as the Asteras proved equally ef fective in full daylight, the installation was kept running 24 hours a day. www.astera-led.com

The centre’s audio systems are managed by electrical contracting company, Niigata Shomei Giken. “The audience area has quite a unique shape, and you can see the stage at an angle of almost 180°,” said Mr Inomata from Niigata Shomei Giken, who is in charge of sound operation in the hall. “It is generally difficult to create consistent sound in a venue of this shape.” The venue, designed by architect Shozo Uchii, had also been experiencing acoustical problems caused by reflections to the stage. “We have been taking care of Shibata Civic Cultural Center for many years, so we knew the problems they suffered from, and what was required for the operation,” added Mr Ikeura from Niigata Shomei Giken. “I believed

A total of 20 WPM elements have been installed into the 916-capacity, semi-circular hall, which features upper-balcony seating, with Blackline X8 cabinets used for infill, X12s for stage monitors and XD12s for side fill. The system is driven by Martin Audio iK42 amplifiers, which are connected via a Dante audio network. “I had given up solving this problem because it was outside the range of adjustment,” continued Inomata. “However, WPM is a different story, as it can clearly handle these issues. Yamaha Sound System took responsibility for tuning the system and everyone is 100% satisfied with the consistency of the sound field. The sound characteristics are similar everywhere in the auditorium, as WPM is deployed for both proscenium and as side columns. With WPM we can provide top-class sound quality to audiences at all events.” www.martin-audio.com

Harman systems power Cambodian charity concert CAMBODIA

Telecommunications provider Smart Axiata has called upon Nano Sound to provide sound reinforcement for the Smile charity concert at Aeon Mall Sen Sok City, Phnom Penh. Nano Sound deployed JBL, Crown and Soundcraft solutions to deliver the concert, which raised money for Kantha Bopha Hospital and Angkor Hospital for Children. The Aeon Mall Sen Sok City shopping centre features a 1,500-seat performance hall that hosts concerts, weddings, tradeshows, conferences and gaming competitions. According to Nano Sound, Smart Axiata required a high-quality audio system that could be adjusted for a variety of performance types, with coverage for two different stages as well as the venue’s lobby. The Harman system installed by Nano Sound included JBL STX 815M main speakers with STX818S subwoofers, STX 812M floor monitors

and VTX F15 multipurpose loudspeakers powered by Crown VRack 4x3500HD amps. This was supplemented with a portable system of JBL EON 610 loudspeakers. Soundcraft Vi3000, Ui24R and Notepad-12FX mixing consoles were used throughout the event. “Aeon Mall Sen Sok City is an admirable cultural hub, and the variety of events hosted in the venue demand robust solutions that deliver top-notch audio quality,” said Amar Subash, director, channel management and audio solutions, Harman Professional Solutions, APAC. “We would like to thank our partner Nano Sound for being involved in every step of creating an immersive experience for the visitors, and for selecting premium Harman audio solutions to achieve the desired result.” pro.harman.com

38 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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NEWS: PROJECTS

CCTV uses Pixotope for first true XR live show CHINA

The Consumer Rights Day Gala broadcast by China Central Television (CCTV) featured a 1,000m2 LED wall powered by Pixotope, a specialist in mixed reality solutions for live media production. Since early 2020, the broadcaster has been expanding its virtual production capabilities for programme delivery, working with Pixotope on a range of AR projects. The Great Wheel production company designed and implemented live graphics using Pixotope’s engine throughout the two-hour slot, which provided information about consumer habits and business practices of major brands. Traditionally, CCTV has built real-world sets for its Consumer Day broadcast, but the studio found it could improve quality and flexibility by installing an LED wall, which wouldn’t have the same restrictions as a physical set. With Pixotope driving live graphics on an LED wall, a range of diverse content could be displayed in real time and environments changed easily.

officer at Pixotope. “Great Wheel is one of our earliest customers, using Pixotope for a range of high-profile TV and live event projects since 2019. Great Wheel’s projects have helped us improve the technology by providing real-world case studies and outstanding feedback – all of which are opportunities for us to analyse and develop – we can’t wait to see what Great Wheel and CCTV produce next with Pixotope.” CCTV studio’s curved 50m x 10m LED wall covered the entire floor in a 30m-diameter semi-circle. The broadcaster used up to four Pixotope engines at any one time to power the live broadcast graphics and create a large-scale set extension. Presenters were surrounded by LED screens displaying logos, CG graphics and animation. This was the first time CCTV had implemented true XR for a live show, claiming its success as a positive first step towards bigger future projects. “We’re continually developing Pixotope’s features, but seeing the technology used to

RTM installs Densitron IDS

such great effect on live TV at this stage is incredible,” said David Stroud, chief product

www.pixotope.com

MALAYSIA

Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) has installed an Intelligent Display System (IDS) from Densitron for its broadcast facilities in Kuala Lumpur. Densitron IDS, a vendor-agnostic control and display layer, integrates with and controls all critical media infrastructure products such as playout, automation, scheduling, building management and AV systems. The UI allows users from any level to deliver multiple complex applications at the touch of a button. The install at RTM includes displays, display drivers, servers, I/O interfaces, table lamps, touchscreens and wall lamps. It was specified and completed by local systems integrator, Mahajak Trio Electronics, and is compromised of 135 IDS devices located throughout RTM’s TV and radio studios and control rooms, edit suites and public spaces. “IDS provides RTM with exceptional visibility of what’s happening in all active and inactive areas,” explained Reuben Such, global business director at Densitron IDS. “It not only delivers RTM with crucial live information, but it monitors multiple aspects of system health and alerts users to any event that may require attention.” RTM presented Mahajak Trio Electronics with a must-have list for its display and control needs. In addition to 43 IDS large format displays, IDS

touch panel controls were also required for the broadcaster’s primary control rooms to display mic live, on air and indicate if a telephone is connected or ringing. Screen design layouts, branding logos and backgrounds can be switched and updated via an easy-to-use web interface. Scrolling and prioritised text messages can be shared with all displays or specific groups on the system for a predetermined amount of time. Each studio that uses IDS can access reference-quality pip tones from the Greenwich Time Signal. “The flexibility and detail IDS provides for RTM at its visual fingertips is remarkable,” said Lee Chin Kah, senior project manager at Mahajak. RTM’s system also gives an overview camera display outside each studio, allowing activity to be observed without disruption. It offers visibility of all security cameras, while the control room touchscreens allow interaction between studios. “RTM is already making additional plans to develop and deploy new aspects of the IDS technology to suit its evolving needs,” Lee continued. “One of the many benefits of IDS is that it’s so easy to configure it to do precisely what is required, wherever it’s needed.” www.densitron.com

Harman cinema technology chosen for Ceylon Theatres SRI LANKA

Dynamic AV Technologies has equipped Ceylon Theatres Regal Cinema Dematagoda with a Harman Professional immersive cinema audio solution. The 85-year-old Ceylon Theatres chain currently operates six locations, the latest being a three-screen facility in the Colombo suburb of Dematagoda which required sound systems for all three cinemas. Ceylon Theatres hired Dynamic AV Technologies to equip each cinema with a Harman Professional cinema audio solution comprising JBL loudspeakers and Crown amplifiers. “Working on a cinema project with Harman is easy, as they are extremely supportive in all aspects of design and commissioning,” said Mohan Abeyasinghe, managing director, Dynamic AV Technologies. “This was the first time that Dynamic AV did the commissioning without the physical presence of the Harman team. The support we got from Harman was completely virtual due to the lockdown; however, it was as good as them being with us. The client is happy with the installation, as is our team.” In two of the cinemas, Dynamic AV Technologies installed JBL C221 ScreenArray cinema loudspeakers augmented with JBL

8320 compact cinema surround speakers. In the third room, the team installed JBL C222 ScreenArray cinema loudspeakers and 9300 cinema surround speakers. All rooms are equipped with JBL 4642AD dual subwoofers and the systems are controlled by JBL CPI 2000-CH cinema processors and powered by Crown DSi Series amplifiers. Dynamic AV Technologies selected the JBL 200 Series ScreenArray speakers as they provide a compact footprint and have been designed for small- to mid-sized cinemas. The series features patent-pending Dual Dissimilar Arraying and Acoustic Aperture Technology, designed to deliver even coverage and accurate sound reproduction to every seat of the cinema. “It is exciting to see that Regal Cinema has the first installation of JBL C-Series Cinema Speakers in Sri Lanka,” said Aditya Todi, senior director of sales and marketing, Harman Professional Solutions, India & SAARC. “We are pleased that JBL and Crown products enhance the cinematic experience that this theatre house provides to its patrons in Dematagoda.” pro.harman.com

40 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Hibino partners with ROE Visual for virtual production studio JAPAN

The Hibino Corporation, one of Japan’s largest AV providers, has entered into virtual production by partnering with ROE Visual to open a dedicated VFX studio in Tokyo. The studio is equipped with Ruby RB1.5F LED panels which Hibino is premiering for this market, creating a 12m x 4m main screen. Carbon CB5 is used for a LED ceiling, with two side screens for fill-in lighting. The environment can be used for commercial shoots or virtual events, creating a fully immersive experience. The two companies enjoy a longstanding relationship. “Ever since our first cooperation, we have known that we can put our trust in ROE Visual products to perform as promised,” said Junichi Imokawa, director and managing executive officer of Hibino Visual Group. “Making an entry into the virtual production market early on, ROE Visual has both the expertise and experience to pull this off. In our view, their work on Disney’s The Mandalorian series is proof of their capability. We’re thrilled to be the first company to use this purpose-built LED panel, the Ruby RB1.5F.” The Ruby RB1.5F has an anti-reflective surface and is able to achieve 85% of

Hibino VFX Studio 3

Rec.2020 colour space. The studio also uses disguise Render Stream for in-camera VFX. Two RX machines are used to render content, ready for the inner and outer frustum. “We like to work with companies that are always ahead of the curve,” continued Imokawa. “Using the latest technologies available translates in the services we’re able to provide for our clients.”

Added Grace Kuo, sales director of ROE Visual: “We’re proud of the wonderful partnership with Hibino, extending over 10 years already. As long as I have known them, Hibino always has been in a vanguard position, offering the most innovative technologies and solutions to its client base.” The new studio opened to customers on 1 June, and held an open house from 2–4 June to offer Hibino’s customers a taste of incamera VFX and virtual production techniques. www.hibino.co.jp www.roevisual.com

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July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 41

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PRODUCTS NEWS: PROJECTS

NEWS: PROJECTS

ideo Daonupgrades SD brings intelligibility to Seosan City rtainment with Lawo Multichannel Dante audio interfaces Council with KV2

it travels across connections by controls, and can act as a primary mixer implementing HDCP (High-bandwidth KOREA SONIFEX HAS released a series AVN-A108 allows for eight should thewhile deskthe need servicing. Digital Content Protection). of new Dante audio interfaces Mixing and analogue audio andbyeight audio I/O areinputs handled an JPEG 2000asallows Dante Korean distributor Appointed KV2 Audio’s analogue audio outputs. Nova17 central core Packaged 512x512 AV to create 4K multi-screen in December 2019, Seoul-based Daon to convert balanced analogueexisting Lawo digital router. This has been expanded with environments, audionumber SD already hasdistributing an impressive additional I/O cards to handle new external where required, deploy and the of projects to itsand name, despite sources, such as bringing phone lines into manage videowalls using Cat-5e restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 the routers and providing external outputs cables and switchers. It simplifies pandemic. The most recent has been the to new IP codecs. The monitoring system the installation use of system in the installation of aand new sound conference rooms hall that of make main conference the use Seosan CityAVN-AIO4 and AVN-A108 has also been expanded so that the entire workflow, from studio to transmission, is now of both video and audio. ‘Although Council municipal building to improve automatically monitored and controlled by the the Dante AV Module is designed intelligibility. Nova17. toSeosan be codec-agnostic, we felt it is a city located 125km south “One big benefit for SoDrama! was the cost was in thewith bestainterests of our of Seoul, population of around savings realised by upgrading existing Lawo OEM customers to have the codec 175,000. The City Council, which has in asays 1U form both audio line inputs and outputsequipment,” to Tan. factor, “Nova17 is ainterfaces very already integrated partlocal of theregion, turned increasing weight as in the use Neutrik connectors, are Dante AoIP for integrators andflexible engine and canXLR easily be upgraded Dante AV SD Product Suite,’with local e AV Product to Daon after Design consultation AV professionals. The AVN-A104 with Dante Their AES67 and to currentcompliant technical standards. original explained Lee Ellison, CEO of their services. o offer ‘visually partners who recommended use PoE for power. is still helping in Lawo technology Audinate. h low latency “Our task was to improve the quality multichannel audio interface investment inputssave, 10 years later.” rk’. The design of the sound in the main assembly hallprovides four analogue audio them www.audinate.com www.sonifex.co.uk the copying of of the municipal council building with and four analogue audio outputs, www.intopix.com re’scontent Poweras 98FM studio www.lawo.com eo particular emphasis on intelligibility,” said

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Daon SD director, B S Koo. “It also had to blend harmoniously with the hall’s interior for minimal visual impact. We feel it is important to provide a full analysis of the characteristics of the space in order to deliver the best possible solution.” Daon SD opted for four compact, full-range ESD25 loudspeakers in white. Due to their low profile, the speakers are visually discreet and have been developed for speech and programme reproduction. They are supplemented by two of the recently launched ESD Cube speakers. Installed at the back of the room, these ultra-compact 5-inch loudspeakers act as delays to the main system. “The previous system had a real problem with intelligibility, which tended to be compensated by increasing the volume. This was extremely uncomfortable for

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delegates, resulting in stress, listening fatigue and shorter attention spans,” commented Koo. “The new KV2 system has completely solved those issues – speech is now crystal clear throughout the room, regardless of who is speaking or where you are seated; the experience is the same throughout. Consequently, as intelligibility has increased, overall volume levels have actually been reduced, which vastly improves listening comfort.

Delegates and lawmakers emerge from sessions far less fatigued than previously, resulting in greater efficiency. “This is their first experience with KV2, which wasn’t a brand they were familiar with, but they trusted me when I said it would be the best solution. I’m pleased to say that all the City Council members are delighted with the results,” concluded Koo. www.kv2audio.com

Offers the broadest interoperability with future, current and legacy RTS products – supports Dante-compatible OMNEO IP technology; allows seamless connectivity between analog two-wire, four wire and digital devices

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Two ESD Cube speakers act as delays

42 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

July–August July–August 2019 2020 PRO PRO AVL AVL ASIA ASIA 73 37

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NEWS: PROJECTS

MECC gets back to work with Robe AUSTRALIA

Mackay Entertainment and Conference Centre (MECC), a complex of nine different venue and event spaces located in Mackay, Australia, has invested in Robe’s new highpower FORTE luminaires, making it one of the first venues in Australia to deploy the new model. The purchase also included 12 new Robe Spiider LED wash beams. The decision to buy FORTES was underlined by MECC’s previous experiences with the Czech manufacturer – with nearly 100 fixtures already, including 30 DL7s and a mix of profiles and Fresnels that directly replaced 36 2K Fresnels in the main theatre in 2019. The last batch of these DL7s arrived together with three RoboSpot systems and BMFL FollowSpots, a move that was driven by MECC’s head of AV, Mark Blake. Blake and MECC head of lighting Dan Grace were both instrumental in persuading the local government officials who oversee MECC’s operation that the time was right to convert the theatre to a full LED stage lighting rig. Moving forward, LED is now a prerequisite for any new lighting investments and “it made sense to keep brand consistency throughout the venue and we enjoy a great relationship with our supplier Kennedy Amplifier Hire Service and Australian distributor Jands,” confirmed Grace.

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KENNY MORAN ON USING MERGING+ANUBIS AND ITS NEW MUSIC MISSION

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one that would last us well into the future,” he enthused. In a normal year, MECC would stage a vibrant mix of around 350 diverse events across all venues, halls and spaces. Following the pandemic, activities at MECC are starting to pick back up and the next six months are looking like the venue will be delivering a regular calendar of shows as well as plugging any gaps with the demand for events, conferences and shows that could not happen in 2020.

L–R: Dan Grace, Mark Blake and Allyssa Tonks The new FORTES and Spiiders will mainly be utilised in the convention centre halls as part of the main production lighting rig. The other eight FORTES and six Spiiders on order are destined for the main auditorium; however, all these newest fixtures will be interchangeable according to requirements in the different venues. When it came to the FORTES, initially the pair had been thinking in terms of a BMFL for power and versatility but, as the time approached to make this particular investment, so did the requirement for it to be an LED source. Grace then received the FORTE spec sheet and was “highly impressed”, especially by the two rotating gobo wheels, the shuttering system and the 1,000W LED. “I knew without even seeing it that this was the perfect luminaire for our venue, and

“I don’t always get excited with new gear, there’s so much good stuff out there I tend to use what I know and like. But every once in a while something comes my way and I sit up and take a listen. This box gets it! Sound quality and AD convertors second to none. Mic pres, line inputs and 6 outputs - mastering grade DA’s and small enough to fit in a backpack…” Mobile Sessions has to go anywhere and be anywhere with a no compromise studio, Merging + Anubis gets it! Kenny Moran - Engineer / Producer Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, Earth Wind & Fire, The Great Gatsby Soundtrack, J-Lo, Carly Rae Jepson…

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NEWS: PROJECTS

Ross chosen for Xiamen TV live marathon coverage

CHINA

Xiamen TV commissioned a new 4K UHD OB truck for April’s World Athletics Elite Platinum Label Road Race, which saw 12,000 competitors tackle a 42km course weaving through and around the city. Ross Video’s Carbonite production switcher and Ultrix routing/ AV processing platform were chosen to perform video switching and signal processing duties, alongside a combination of openGear and NK router products also in the mix. With an audience of around 10m viewers, Xiamen TV broadcasts across five main

channels, serving the port city of Xiamen and surrounding region within Fujian province. The annual marathon, which has become the most famous in China, attracts elite national athletes as well as thousands of club and amateur runners. “The Xiamen marathon is an important national event in China, and our coverage of the race is seen far beyond our province,” said Mr Huang, chief engineer at Xiamen TV. “We knew we wanted to invest in our first-ever 4K UHD vehicle for this year’s event, but we needed reassurance that the solution would be reliable

Nexo GEO unites ancient and modern in Korea

and that we would have immediate access to technical support. We found the Ross sales and technical teams to be highly responsive, and

we have loved working with them. They really gave us peace of mind that we were making the right choices. The Ultrix, especially, is an incredibly powerful platform that offers amazing performance for its size. Problem-solving innovation like that really makes a difference to us when we’re working in a stressful situation to tight deadlines.” With the streets of Xiamen back to normal, Huang was able to reflect on the event. “I am satisfied that we made the right choice with Ross,” he said. “The solutions were cost-effective but, more importantly, very easy to use. A marathon is often a story of personal and individual struggle. Our main focus should be on telling the story of the race and the challenges and triumphs of the participants; we shouldn’t be worrying about any technical or ‘back room’ issues. Ross has really helped us to concentrate on content creation with complete confidence in the performance and stability of the system.” “It’s been a pleasure working with the team at Xiamen TV,” added Mark Cooke, Ross director of sales for Asia. “They’ve invested in a powerful and highly flexible production vehicle that will deliver impressive return on investment and, like the best marathon runners, will keep on performing mile after mile.” www.rossvideo.com

KOREA

A Nexo GEO M12 line array system was used for a “Chosun Pop” concert held in Jeonju City, fusing the Pansori genre of traditional Korean music with pop styles and modern instruments. The region made a significant contribution to cultural traditions during the 500-year Joseon Dynasty, also written as Chosun. This was the last Korean dynasty out of which, in the late 17th century, a new form of musical storytelling evolved. Pansori began as folk entertainment, merging with other genres including classical and rap in recent years. Performing as the sEODo Band was South Korean singer-songwriter Seo Jae Hyun, who has popularised Chosun Pop, the fusion of Pansori with pop music. Audio rental house Plan24 provided a ground-stacked Nexo GEO M12 line array system with MSUB18 subs

and the new Nexo P12 point source cabinets as vocal monitors. The combination delivered a powerful sound which drew praise from the audience and performance officials, as well as main vocalist, sEODo. “I could really feel the presence of the M12 Series, particularly on the band sound, where the system was able to express fine adjustments,” said Plan24 owner and FOH engineer for the concert, Gyeong Shin Park. “It is hard to believe that a single 18-inch cabinet [MSUB18] can contribute such tight and punchy bass. I was also impressed that I only had to set up and align the sub with a delay, and I was able to create a great sound using the provided preset. No special tuning was required.” www.nexo-sa.com www.plan24.co.kr

Plan24 provided a ground-stacked Nexo GEO M12 line array system with MSUB18 subs

TVS chooses Calrec Brio36 MALAYSIA

JAA Systems has supplied, installed and commissioned a Calrec Brio36 broadcast audio mixer for the news studio of TV Sarawak (TVS), part of the Sarawak Media Group. Owned by the state of Sarawak, TVS is a new linear TV channel providing news and programming from the state, as well as other parts of Malaysia. TVS can be watched nationwide via the Astro platform and Digital TV’s myFreeview. TVS released a tender for a digital audio broadcast mixer at the end of 2020, for which JAA Systems was invited to bid with the Calrec Brio36 by main systems integrator, Ideal Systems. The Brio36 was chosen after a thorough evaluation of its features including its compact size, 36 dual-layer faders, loudness metering, AutoFader/AutoMixer, up to 5s delay on each signal path and audio quality. JAA Systems supplied and installed a Calrec Brio36 mixer with Dante card and Br.IO stagebox. The mixer has been installed into the broadcaster’s production control room, while the Br.IO stagebox is located on the news

studio floor. The Dante card is being used to link to another existing live sound mixer. “We are happy with the decision to choose Calrec’s Brio36 mixer,” said Mohd Helmy Ibrahim, head of broadcast engineering and studio operations at TVS. “The audio mixer suits us well and the workflow is straightforward. It is a simple, user-friendly broadcast audio desk with a very reasonable price tag.” Added JAA Systems director, David Chan: “We are glad to have another broadcaster in Malaysia choose the Calrec Brio36 as their broadcast audio mixer. The fact that the Brio36 mixer is so popular is a real testament to the fact that it’s well-designed for live broadcast and production applications. It is a great compact mixer that is flexible, powerful and user-friendly. A big thank you to TVS for choosing the Calrec Brio36 mixer.” www.tvstv.my www.jaasys.com

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PMC monitors chosen for Busan Sound Stage KOREA

A wide range of PMC professional studio monitors have been installed at Busan Sound Stage, a new audio postproduction facility established to help the region develop its film industry. Located in Busan City’s Haeundae-gu area, the new facility is owned and operated by the Busan Film Commission and has five studios including a Dolby Atmos ADR/rerecording room equipped with a PMC system comprising twotwo.8, result6 and twotwo sub2 monitors. Three of the four remaining rooms, which are dedicated to Foley, editing, mastering and education, also feature PMC result6 and twotwo sub2 monitors, all supplied by PMC’s South Korean distributor, Music Metro. “PMC monitors were chosen for this facility because they offer very high-resolution audio that allows us to hear elaborate sound in perfect clarity,” commented Brandon Han, general manager at Music Metro. “Our customer particularly liked their consistent balance at every level, especially the deep low frequencies. Everyone is really happy with their performance and the sound they are delivering.” Korea’s first film production support organisation, Busan Film Commission has played a crucial role in strengthening the city’s film and video industry. As well as supporting over 1,000 films and videos, the commission has expanded Busan’s film

industry infrastructure by building studio and postproduction facilities and supporting local companies related to the film industry. As a key part of its remit is education, it has also established the Busan Asian Film School, which lays down the foundations of industry professional training. The opening of Busan Sound Stage is designed to help film companies complete their projects without having to travel to the Korean capital, Seoul. “The film and video industry in Busan is still quite weak compared to the metropolitan areas, with most of the projects consisting of independent, low budget movies,” explained Chang-gee Hond, production manager at Busan Sound Stage. “Going to Seoul to carry out ADR, mastering and editing is timeconsuming and expensive, so the Busan Film Commission decided to set up professional ADR facilities to help the local industry. The entire first floor of the commission’s headquarters was remodelled to make room for the studios.” Busan Sound Stage is now handling projects for many of the city’s film producers and directors, with recent projects including corporate promotional videos and a short movie filmed in the Busan area. Although most of the work is ADR, some customers are using the facility to record and mix music for films. www.pmc-speakers.com

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NEWS: SPECIAL REPORT

Vive la République The Nexo P12s awaiting installation

One of Singapore’s leading educational institutions, Republic Polytechnic (RP), has taken delivery of a Nexo loudspeaker system for its live audio requirements across the campus IN PREVIOUS YEARS, PORTABLE SYSTEMS have been hired to host a growing number of music and dance events at RP, including the Ignite! festival on the lawns outside The Republic Cultural Centre (TRCC). Designed to provide greater audio quality control while enhancing the ROI over the long term, RP decided that the time had arrived to take stock of its own portable system. Following an open tender process, Matrix Resource was awarded the contract to supply the audio solution. An inventory of 16 Nexo P Series passive loudspeakers were selected on account of their power, versatility and portability on campus. Each coaxial model combines a 12-inch LF woofer and 3-inch HF diaphragm attached to a standard 60° x 60° horn that can be rotated to a 90° x 40° or asymmetric pattern. Modular directivity is made simpler with a quick release Magnelis steel grille providing access to the horn magnetic flanges. Capable of producing a peak SPL of 138dB, the 20kg plywood cabinets come with speaker suspensions and tripods. With a footprint to match the P12 making it particularly useful in flown applications, an additional four L15 15-inch subwoofers were selected for extending the LF performance down to 40Hz. Capable of producing a maximum SPL of 139dB, a crossover has been set at 85Hz when paired with the P12 enclosures. Operating in either standard and cardioid modes, the 35kg sub is equipped with threaded inserts and an M20 insert for suspending and mounting tops. A portable rack of five Nexo NXAMP4x2MK2 amplifiers

Billy Tan (Matrix Resource) with Lawrence Tan (Yamaha Music Asia) outside Republic Polytechnic and a power distributor provides sufficient headroom power and DSP requirements. “The P12 is highly versatile and we regularly deploy the cabinets as low-profile stage monitors or as a suspended PA system with the included speaker suspensions, brackets and tripods,” explains RP production coordinator, Daniel Hgalel. “There are presets for monitor and front of house mode, with different cutoff frequencies depending on whether the P12 is being used as a standalone full-range cabinet or with the sub. The portable system can be simply placed on

trolleys and rolled into position on walkways across the site. We don’t require additional transportation to roll the flight cases, as the maximum distance is a 10- to 15-minute walk.” Having operated on rented M7CL consoles for events in previous years, Hgalel is now enjoying mixing on a Yamaha CL5 control surface. “It is extremely intuitive with a much more responsive touchscreen,” he adds. “The interface is similar to that of the M7CL, but it’s smaller and the compact CL5 comes with more channels. I can even type in what the channel is without having to write labels

manually.” Connected via Ethernet for real-time plugin processing and monitoring, a Waves SoundGrid enables the use of MultiRack featuring the SoundGrid Pro bundle. “At some point in the future, we will welcome external engineers onsite to use the Waves SoundGrid stagebox interface.” Serving as an interface between the Nexo amplifiers and the two Yamaha 64-channel CL5 consoles employed for FOH and monitoring mixing, two Yamaha SW1P-16MMF network switches extend Dante audio networking capabilities. Microphone inputs are routed to two Yamaha Rio3224-D I/O rack units to create a combined 64-in/48-out digital matrix. Connected to two TIO1608-D I/O racks, a TF5 console equipped with an NY64-D I/O expansion card for transmitting up to 128 channels (64-in/64-out) rounds off the sale by Yamaha Music Asia to Republic Polytechnic. “The Dante network setup is simple to use and dare I say it: plug and play,” adds Hgalel. “You don’t need to understand the system in depth as you can learn the basics and operate it straightaway. So far, we have only deployed the system for livestreaming and postproduction setups. Although we may be allowed to host a limited live audience onsite, we plan to stage and record this year’s Ignite! indoors, before streaming it over YouTube and other platforms at a later date.” Vive la revolution. www.matrixresource.asia www.sg.yamaha.com

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FEATURES: HOSPITALITY

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AV technology in the WOW Suite blends in natively within the interior design

Melbourne can now proudly offer a W Hotel, befitting its status as a city that serves up a big slice of cool along with its hospitality. Richard Lawn (virtually) explores W Hotel Melbourne HAVING BEEN VOTED THE WORLD’S MOST LIVEABLE CITY for seven consecutive years by the Economist Intelligence Unit, Melbourne has a great deal to offer the discerning tourist. With riotous graffiti, an extensive arts scene, iconic laneways, fine cuisine, wineries and barista coffee on both banks of the Yarra River, exploring Melbs can prove to be an exhausting mission for the jetlagged tourist. Having crossed multiple time zones to reach this destination some 38° south of the equator, well-heeled visitors demand the finest hotels for their stay. When the investors of the Collins Arch development broke a block of ground close to the iconic Flinders Street station, a heavy gauntlet was laid down to the architect, various building contractors and of course the AV consultant. On behalf of its client Cbus Properties, Multiplex commenced construction on Melbourne’s newest landmark in 2016. Designed by SHoP Architects and Woods Bagot, the mixed-use development’s two 39-level towers are linked by an eight-storey skybridge spanning 14m. In addition to 49,000m2 of office space and 202 residential apartments, a new luxury hotel beckons at 408 Flinders Lane. Owned by Marriot International, W Hotel Melbourne comprises 294 rooms and 29 suites across 15 levels and finally opened its doors in January 2021. Specialising in AV, building technology, communications and videoconferencing, CHW Consulting was commissioned to oversee the AV design of the Collins Arch in April 2017. During an almost four-year intermission between conception and commissioning, CHW Consulting was rebranded as UT Consulting. Responsible for managing the hospitality portfolio at UT Consulting, partner Vivek Arya has been associated with many prestigious hotel properties in Australia. Accordingly, he headed up the UT Consulting team, overseeing the design, documentation and coordination of the technology package at the W Hotel Melbourne.

UT Consulting partner Vivek Arya

hotel chains possess unique traits, but generally stay well within their branded comfort zone. The W goes well beyond this mark.” From the lobby entrance to the 15th level WOW Suites, Hachem both demanded and inspired UT Consulting to deliver its best technological designs to date, charging the company with meticulously handcrafting each room to provide the seamless experience it had envisaged. Together with UT Consulting, the architect, interior designer and services engineer formed a technological design group that would meet regularly. “There were a substantial amount of resources and effort required to draw all of the elements together in a cohesive manner,” explains Arya. “Constant drawing iterations would follow the meetings. For a normal hotel project, that heavy, intense period lasts for a few weeks or months perhaps. For the W, however, it persisted for the best part of three years. From an AV perspective, we were presented with two main challenges. Firstly, the installed technology had to be concealed so as to not interrupt the flow of the space and, secondly, it simply had to work without failure or delay in operation.”

From the outset, Arya realised that the W would be very different. “The aspirations of the architect Hachem exceeded any luxury hotel I had previously worked on,” he comments. “CHW worked on the Mandarin Oriental in Melbourne, which was not your run-of-the-mill hotel with detailed design features. If you could categorise it like a whisky, it would fall into the Johnny Walker Blue Label top-shelf bracket. Following on, the W ambitiously wanted to establish itself in Melbourne by positioning itself on that same top shelf, offering a next level of luxury for expectant guests.” Upon entering the lobby, Hachem conceptualised a sensory experience like no other by blending modern luxury with bold individuality in which ambiance, artwork, lighting and music all play their part. “We had to fully envisage this luxurious setting that respects Melbourne as a culture,” continues Arya, highlighting the floor-to-painted-ceiling artwork. “Other

UT Consulting’s Elena Shchuchkina

The C

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FEATURES: HOSPITALITY Like UT Consulting, the appointed AV systems integrator commenced and completed the project under two different company names over a 30-month period. Having emerged as Australia’s biggest SI since 1979, Rutledge Engineering was incorporated into Diversified in 2019. Arya and his team, including consultant Elena Shchuchkina, had to ensure that Diversified engineers fully comprehended Hachem’s vision. Led by project manager Paul Moore, Diversified’s engineers placed their trust in proven technology including Crestron Cresnet and Q-SYS Q-LAN networks that adopt the invisible fibre and Ethernet AVoIP infrastructures. “Although Rutledge has worked on large hospitality projects including Crown and the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, we are perhaps not as renowned for our work in this sector,” comments W project field engineer, Adam Fandert. “However, we draw upon and apply our extensive experience from works in corporate facilities, government institutes, healthcare and sports stadiums such as the MCG and Optus Stadium. Having been provided with the W’s design together with the consultant’s brief and specifications, the team immersed itself in the works rather than worry about the client’s expectations. Paul would liaise with the architect, client and consultant before relaying changes back to the team on the ground. It was our mission to deliver a discreet, yet intuitive, easy-to-use AV system.” Diversified’s mission was largely accomplished with the routing of an orderly and highly efficient cabling infrastructure. Rackmounted hardware fixed into the back of house ELV rooms enable wireless tablets and wall panel interfaces via Wi-Fi and Cat6 connection. The inclusion of Crestron and Q-SYS technologies were selected for their proven reliability and ease-of-use features. Designed to integrate easily within a modern local area IT network, Crestron’s DM (DigitalMedia) NVX AVoIP solution simultaneously encodes, decodes and scales video transmissions while Q-SYS adopts the Q-LAN IT-standard protocol suite for AV distribution in addition to device discovery, synchronisation, control and management. The

BGM for the restaurants is supplied by a network of Quest QTC ceiling speakers addition of D-Link DGS network switches ensures real-time delivery and synchronicity of media streams across all connected devices. The digital signage and background music (BGM) servers are located in a rear room behind the main reception. “We received an interesting design brief, challenging us to conceal the AV so as to not interrupt the flow of the space,” explains Shchuchkina. “From the concierge desk, our design allows staff to connect portable music players locally or play centralised music sources as site-wide BGM. The vibe is set as soon as guests arrive in the Porte Cochere parking area outfitted with Quest ceiling speakers and continues seamlessly to the interior lobby and reception area. The music source is intended to relax guests while masking background noises.”

Each zone is equipped with ceiling speakers that can source BGM from either the centralised server or a local input. Together with an Australian Monitor CD and radio player, five Apple Mac Minis are connected via Cat6 to a QSC Q-SYS Core 110f processor. The selected source is then output and powered by Yamaha XMV4280 and QSC CXD4.3Q amplifiers to a network of Quest QTC 6-inch ceiling speakers in the Porte Cochere entrance, lobby, toilets and back of house areas. Powered by a single QSC CXD8.4Q amplifier, Quest QTC ceiling speakers in the three ground level restaurants – Cinder, Hung and Warabi – are individually controlled via QSC TSC-55w touch panels over the Cat6 network. Each back of the house control panel allows the duty manager to connect a personal music source or utilise the site-wide BGM system. In addition to a main PC, local video sources can be input to Attero Tech UNA610O-BT wall plates routed to a Crestron CP3 processor. The selected video is then output via HDMI to the LG displays fitted with LG STB-5500 and Amino H150 IPTV receivers. Just as the Crestron NVX and Q-SYS software programming presented few challenges for Diversified’s programming manager Gary Collins, the QSC TSC-7t and Crestron TSW-1060-B-S touch panel controls offer ease-ofuse source selection. Nearly 830m2 of conference, meeting and event spaces are located on the first level. With floor-to-ceiling glazing providing an abundance of natural light, the pillarless 426m2 Great Room is the largest space on offer. Studios outside add four separate spaces that can be used for breakout areas. A 4m x 5m LED wall can be installed at one end of the divisible room to deliver sound, light and elevated visuals, while a large artwork by Melbourne artist Ash Keating spans nearly 30m across the ceiling. W Melbourne has partnered with AV specialist Microhire to provide services and fully adaptable equipment for conferencing and events. “The W insisted that the AV technology had to blend in seamlessly and natively within the interior design so as not

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Diversified designed and engineered the interactive music station within the Extreme WOW Suite

The Curious Bar

A QSC TouchMix-8 in the poolside DJ pod provides an interface for mixers and turntables

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FEATURES: HOSPITALITY to distract the eye in any manner,” explains Arya. “They did not want a fixed standout front- and centre-style videowall as the focal point.” As such, UT Consulting designed an infrastructure for hosting events, including audio systems and video switching hardware, that can be controlled via the NVX platform. The fixed infrastructure includes JBL Control 30 ceiling and Quest MX601 surface-mount speakers powered by a single QSC CXD8.4Qn eight-channel amplifier in addition to Screen Technics projector lifts concealed within the ceiling and Crestron TSW-1060 touch panels in each division. “AV-over-IP technology provides flexibility for connecting multiple sources in any configuration for varied events,” adds Arya. The pre-function area has a network of daisy-chained Quest QTC2080i ceiling speakers and Samsung 22-inch displays for signposting visitors and promoting events. By focusing on venue flexibility, Diversified created sufficient patch points and tie lines to connect the various events spaces. The Great Room itself is furnished with 13 facility panels

The WET pool area features Tannoy surface-mount speakers and subwoofers

AV functionality for the four studios relies on Q-SYS processing and Crestron control

The pillarless Great Room set up in banquet mode

The Living Room lounge at the top of the hotel

including Ethernet, DMX, fibre, audio and video inputs. “An events company does not want a systems integrator to dictate how they should operate an event,” admits Fandert. “Therefore, we have provided an open-ended operation that offers maximum flexibility including direct inputs to the front of house system that bypass any DSP processing and direct inputs to ceiling speakers. We also installed extensive SDI tie lines that allow them to play and transmit SDI video to the projection systems or over the network.” Although projectors have not been installed, the projection screens and lifts are connected to Crestron DM-NVX-350 video transmitter and receiver end points for enabling touch panel control via the CP3 processor. The DM card chassis incorporates wireless AirMedia cards, IPTV and HDMI audio outputs. “Ultimately with this system, the operator decides how to broadcast video from different locations,” explains programme manager, Gary Collins. “Events companies can route signals directly to the front of house system without having to worry about being locked into a touch panel.” For videowall presentations, a pair of Martin Audio CDD-Live 15 speakers are patched in to provide stereo audio playback via the Q-SYS Core 510i. The same eight-channel output processor also enables assistive listening requirements to be fulfilled in each section courtesy of installed Univox SLS-5 master and slave hearing loops. AV room functionality in the four studios is maintained by a Q-SYS Core 110f processor and a Crestron DMF-CI-8 digital media card chassis hosting DM-NVX-350C/352C cards.

Visuals are provided for by Screen Technics projection systems and LG displays, while audio is entrusted to Shure Microflex wireless transmitters and a 100V line network of Quest QTC 2080i ceiling speakers powered by QSC CXD4.3Qn amplifiers. All four rooms are equipped with several technical panels with XLR connections for patching to the Q-SYS Core 110i. Between the lower elevations and the 15th level, the Ethernet infrastructure routes the Cresnet and Q-SYS networks to the control panel touchscreens in addition to the BGM and LED displays. An equipment rack on the 15th level houses a QSC CXD4.2Q amplifier powering the JBL Control 24C Micro speakers that provide elevator music for guests going up and down in the world. Those with privileged access can enter the WOW suites and Living Room lounge at the top. Crestron CP3 and Q-SYS Core 110f processors provide control and AV functionality for the Samsung displays coupled to LG soundbars, Quest ceiling speakers and HPI212S compact subwoofers, with audio signals from a BT audio receiver, local input sources or the main BGM. Featuring a large balcony with expansive views of the Yarra River, the 175m2 Extreme WOW Suite is the W’s version of the Presidential Suite. The interactive music station has been modestly described as a fresh take on an old-school jukebox but Diversified has added its own design signature to the property having been provided a licence to create a highly unique music source. “Following several meetings with the client, Diversified was invited to create an initial concept,” recalls national operations manager, Matt Edgcumbe. “We invited the client to view a prototype at our headquarters and they were sufficiently impressed. From that point, the concept really evolved.” A large semi-circular recess on a 90° curve in the Extreme WOW Suite hosts four LG HD displays interconnected in portrait mode. Marriott uploaded its unique Melbourne artwork for embedding into the digital signage software, and the four screens combine to create a touchscreen interface. This connects to a Spotify backend that is routed to the other WOW suites. “A lot of software development and programming was required to create backend functionality,” Edgcumbe continues. “One server manages the four LG displays with two different software packages – one maintains the backend integration with Spotify and the second is for the curved display user interface.” Other unique aspects of the hotel are the modern fitness facility and pool area, known as FIT and WET, respectively. Located directly below the WOW Suites under the gold roof of level 14, the indoor pool and poolside bar are provided with a DJ booth for special occasions and private events. A Q-SYS Core 110f processor hosts bidirectional audio streaming over a Dante network from the main BGM server and from the pool area to other hotel zones, differentiating itself from the other systems throughout the W. The eight-channel QSC CXD8.8Q amplifier powers eight Tannoy VSX8.2BP subwoofers in the

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FEATURES: HOSPITALITY wet deck, pool area and gym. Another CXD8.8Q amplifier is dedicated to a network of Tannoy CMS503 ceiling and AMS61CT surface-mount speakers. Networked to the Core 110f processor and network switch, the DJ pod is equipped with a QSC TouchMix-8. Resident and guest DJs simply connect their mixers and turntables into the pod. AV control parameters are provided by a QSC TSC-55w-G2 touch panel. “Ease-of-use functionality was an overriding factor when we designed the DJ booths in the hotel,” explains Shchuchkina. “It’s important that technicians or external parties can connect and easily set up for seamless operation. We also factored in the digital transmission of music from the wet deck area to the lounge.” For the corporate part of the Arch in the opposite West Tower, a background music system has been installed which the zones span across. UT Consulting also provided a design for shared amenities for residential levels, such as a private dining room and yoga and exercise spaces where an instructor can connect a personal source for a session. Unsurprisingly, the project was delayed for six months owing to the strict Covid-19 lockdown in Melbourne. “As much as it was not a huge struggle to get on- and offsite during that time, Diversified was restricted to just one person being allowed in any single room at any time,” explains Collins. “This was challenging, resulting in most phases of the works becoming drawn out.” Over the four-year design and build period, UT Consulting intricately and diplomatically navigated a path of excellence from the basement to the 15th level of the W by placing the guest first and foremost in their thoughts. After all, AV plays a supporting role alongside the signature scent, vivid artwork, strength of Wi-Fi signal, diversity of cuisine and crafted cocktails. “The guest experience is much more than just what is marketed,” reflects Arya. “It’s how the guest feels when walking into a room and what their technological expectations are. Today, you expect to press a button for an AV appliance to simply work.”

AV specialist Microhire supplied AV fixtures including Nexo GEO M speakers for events The client’s operations have not been sacrificed as a result. “For equipment such as projectors, there’s potentially no downtime for maintenance,” adds Ar ya. “The W Hotel amplified the expectation that a technological design not only needed to be completely integrated within the architecture, it also needed to be easy to operate from the hotel’s perspective, while providing a ver y high level of functionality and reliability. When you press a button, TVs and screens need to function, and should you want to change the sound, it happens almost instantly.”

Opening for business during a global pandemic was unfortunate timing. However, all the hallmarks of this project and the success of its delivery will be relished in a post-Covid world. With its city skyline views, irresistible cocktails, bold artwork and seamless AV technology, the W has concocted an experience like no other in this highly competitive city. www.onediversified.com www.utconsulting.com.au www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/melwh-w-melbourne

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FEATURES: ENTERTAINMENT

Osaka’s May Theater

A Kiva II system has been installed in the May Theater

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An SB15m sub with six Kiva IIs in white have been flown in the Sakura MATE Sun Hall to blend with the room

The ceiling and lighting in the Sun Hall have been designed to resemble a cloud

A spate of Japanese concert halls are turning to L-Acoustics systems for major upgrades. Caroline Moss looks at two venues that have recently installed systems from the French manufacturer JAPAN BOASTS A WEALTH OF PURPOSE-BUILT CONCERT halls, many of which began to appear in the late 1980s. A rush of construction during the 1990s added around 1,000 new halls over a 10-year period. As these venues upgrade older sound systems, many are turning to L-Acoustics. All systems are supplied by L-Acoustics Certified Provider Distributor, Bestec Audio. “Since 1996, when Bestec Audio became the L-Acoustics distributor in Japan, we have done over 400 fixed installations,” explains Bestec audio sales and marketing director, Hiroyuke Tanabe. “Our original customers were mostly rental companies who toured the halls using L-Acoustics, and the managers of the halls liked this brand so much that they began to choose L-Acoustics for their renovations, installing fixed systems. The main reason for this is that L-Acoustics is a globally recognised brand. We also believe that the extensive support we offer, including the use of Soundvision to support the correct design, together with our involvement in post-install coordination and post-opening maintenance, is another reason.” One of the latest to be installed with a system from the French manufacturer is the Sun Hall at the Kumagaya Cultural and Creative Center, aka Sakura MATE. The system has been installed incrementally as part of several renovation phases over the past

three years, beginning in March 2018. Sakura MATE is a municipal hall located in the city of Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture. The name is a combination of the Japanese for cherry blossom – sakura – which is the symbol of Kumagaya, known as the city of cherry blossoms, together with the acronym MATE: Music, Art, Theatre and Expression. Kumagaya is one of the hottest places in Japan during the summer months, with a temperature of 41.1°C recorded in 2018. As a service to the neighbourhood, the centre’s lobby is open to locals wishing to cool off during the hot season. Sakura MATE consists of the large Sun Hall, the smaller Moon Hall and the open-air Wind Theatre. The Sun Hall, an acoustic multifunctional hall with a seating capacity of 1,000 and a rectangular auditorium, has been designed to provide the best possible acoustics. As well as the main auditorium and rear balcony, the hall has multi-level balcony seating areas at each side, which increase the sense of unity between the stage and the audience. The stage is built over an orchestra pit, while stage curtains and other devices adapt the room to different genres of performance. On the rear wall of the stage is a large door which can be opened to join with the stages of the Wind Theatre and Sun Hall.

Three ARCS Focus speakers have been used each side of the Sun Hall

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FEATURES: ENTERTAINMENT

y Theater Sigma Communications, which is contracted by the city of Kumagaya to operate the hall’s stage, was consulted about updating the speaker system. “The reason why the city was considering replacing the speaker system was that the hall had been open for about 20 years, and the system that was being used had deteriorated to the point where it was no longer safe,” explains Hiroyuki Kurita, a sound engineer from Sigma Communications. “There was a point source system with speakers aiming at both the back and front of the hall, which resulted in a difference in SPL and poor intelligibility in some areas. To remedy this, we’ve been raising and lowering the volume level of each speaker and using EQ to

compensate, but we were struggling with feedback. We needed to make sure that the sound was clear wherever we were. “I had the chance to hear other systems that were brought in for concerts in this hall. As a live sound mixing engineer, I tried and used them myself. The updated equipment was selected after consultation with the city based on the opinions of my peers.” The system consists of three ARCS Focus loudspeakers per side, with one SB18m subwoofer per side underneath, housed in the wall. In the centre of the proscenium is a single SB15m sub with six Kiva IIs flown underneath in white to blend with the room. All are powered by three LA4X amplified controllers. Two X8 stage monitors, one per side, are mounted on left and right towers and driven by a single LA2Xi. The refurbishment was divided into three phases, with the side speakers installed in 2018, the proscenium speakers in 2019 and the networked audio system in 2020, when the amplifiers inputs were changed from analogue to AES. After the first year’s refurbishment, the venue found it difficult to run the new system alongside the old one, but reports that the second phase, when the Kiva II proscenium speakers were added, made it all worthwhile. “All the speakers have now been updated to the same brand, which makes the sound feel clearer and closer, like a curtain has been removed,” says Kurita of the new system. “No matter where you are in the hall, you can now hear the sound clearly.” In Osaka, a Kiva II system has also been chosen by the May Theater, also known as the Suita City Cultural Hall, where the large performance hall has undergone a renovation. Japan Advanced Technology Operations (JATO) was tasked with recommending and upgrading the hall’s point source system – installed more than 20 years ago – to line array, with the support of Bestec Audio. The venue has been on the Sound Engineers & Artists Society of Japan’s list of the Top 100 Best Halls by Acousticians since it opened in 1985. As well as the performance hall, the cultural centre includes a medium-sized hall, a reception hall and an exhibition space, and hosts concerts, operas, classical Japanese theatre, social gatherings and art exhibitions.

Satoshi Tanio, sound engineer at May Theater, together with his team, evaluated systems from several different brands for the 1,400-capacity hall. “The previous point source speakers were placed inside a speaker box, which made it impossible to deliver uniform sound quality throughout the auditorium,” he says. “We chose L-Acoustics because they are the pioneers and leaders in the development of line array speakers and because their systems all have good phase characteristics.” Knowing that the May Theater was working to a fixed budget, JATO’s Taiki Imamura proposed a Kiva II line array system. “I was confident that Kiva II, with its powerful SPL, offered the perfect balance between price and quality,” continues Tanio. Shigeru Matsuo from the installation team at JATO helped design the system with the May Theater team, which provided CAD files of the performance space, allowing JATO to precisely plot speaker placement. “During the design and installation process, we used L-Acoustics Soundvision 3D simulation software, which provided us with a clear idea of what the finished system will sound like throughout the venue,” explains Matsuo. The final configuration consists of a proscenium system of 11 Kiva II cabinets with two SB15 subwoofers flown behind. Eight Kiva IIs, two SB15m subs and one SB18i sub have been rigged at each side alongside one X12, acting as in fills, with eight X8is under the stage as front fills. Seven LA4X amplified controllers – placed behind the proscenium arch to minimise cable lengths – drive the system, connected to the mixing console via AES. A mobile system of six Kiva IIs with two SB15ms and two SB18s per side, plus six X12 and six X8 monitors and two LA8 amplified controllers, has also been provided for dance events that require more dynamic sound reinforcement. “The Kiva II system has dramatically improved sound clarity throughout the hall,” stated May Theater stage manager, Koho Maekawa. www.bestecaudio.com www.l-acoustics.com

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e of

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FEATURES: GOVERNMENT

Trending library

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An Australian city council’s futuristic digital library can effortlessly segue into council chambers for meetings. Richard Lawn finds out more about a new generation of community services WITH THE ADVENT OF THE DIGITAL AGE, TRADITIONAL LIBRARIES ARE investing in AV technologies to maintain their relevance within communities that are perhaps more familiar with an iOS device than a thesaurus. In a drive to stimulate memberships, a city council in Australia called in the experts to create a futuristic seat of learning that can be transformed into council chambers when required. The boundaries have been pushed, and City of Newcastle Council (CN) has significantly raised the virtual bar by incorporating a unique AV solution into its framework. In its quest to enhance engagement, collaboration and architectural integration of technology, CN awarded specialist building contractor Graphite Projects to initiate its library of the future. Emboldened by a vision to create a benchmark for technology-enabled, highly interactive and flexible spaces, the ambitious goal would illuminate 12 Stewart Avenue on the global map. In addition, a full office and call centre fitout formed a large part of the brief, together with mechanical and electrical upgrades on all six levels of the 7,000m2 development. The added requirement to transform the public space into council chambers with full discussion and conference capabilities outside library hours would take Graphite Projects, plus electrical and AV contractor Star Group, into new territories. Technology specialist Pereira Projects is renowned for applying its technical expertise within the digital domain, working collaboratively with clients and contractors alike. In the real world, however, partners Jamie Pereira and Jack Wilson understand the importance of socially networking a room. While attending a local industry group event, the partners were introduced to Graphite Projects. “It was a chance conversation and it quickly led to a discussion on the City of Newcastle Digital Library,” recalls Wilson, the company’s technology director. “Some days after our meeting, we received a request to conduct a peer review of the AV design at Newcastle Digital Library, where flexibility would be a central theme. Following our submission, we were engaged for the technical project management, overseeing the technology implementation across the entire project, working closely with and on behalf of CN, redesigning various aspects and collaborating closely with Graphite Projects, Star Group and all other trades.”

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FEATURES: GOVERNMENT

The digital library provides multiple interactive touchscreens

L–R: Pereira Projects’ Jamie Pereira, Jack Wilson and Grant Bates Having inherited an existing AV design, Pereira Projects adapted the specifications accordingly to meet its client’s evolving requirements. “This challenged us to seek new technology and products that would help us produce their library of the future and bring the project from concept to reality,” explains Pereira. CN demanded that the tech-heavy library would need to appeal to all age groups, with the archived collection requiring an advanced search mechanism for viewing digital material on large-format displays. Standout AV solutions within the library include 43-inch press readers and an interactive videowall. Content from wireless tablets and displays located on mobile digital bookshelves can be flicked by gesture control to a 4K 4x2 46-inch videowall. Being a public space, the ability for multiple users to simultaneously view different content on the videowall was vital. “The height would be critical to user engagement, so the wall needed to be lowered to knee level, allowing young children and wheelchair users to access multiple touchpoints and panels,”

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Jack Wilson tests the main interactive touchscreen

Pereira continues. The team was naturally concerned that non-tech-savvy members of the public would need to operate expensive AV equipment on a daily basis. “Following detailed analysis, we recommended the use of reinforced anti-scratch Gorilla Glass that can withstand the impact of a brick.” Following attempts to comprehend the original design specifications, Pereira and Wilson set up further discussions with the client. “In order to discover what their vision was and what they were trying to achieve, we set up a two-day workshop with the decisionmakers,” says Wilson. “The specified Ai, software, 4K screens and other technology meant nothing to us without an explanation of their concept. This was an important point for us as their internal team included technically advanced employees who harboured extremely high expectations.” By acting in the client’s best interests and reassessing what would be needed, Pereira Projects added value. “As an independent consultant, it is not in our interests to sell equipment to make a better margin,” explains Pereira. “The

fundamental question we posed to the client was ‘what do you intend these products to be used for?’ By closely studying everything that was put on the table, they proceeded to pull out anything they didn’t understand and add tech wherever there were gaps to ensure the systems were fit for purpose, reliable and priced right.” With this back-to-basics approach, Pereira Projects conducted further research before working closely with suppliers, making new calculations and negotiating on price. “One of the solutions we delivered were iPads that could flip content around the room,” continues Pereira. “We conducted proof of concepts on these, followed by Beta testing before submitting the iPads with interactive Cruiser software to CN for assessment. If we had bypassed this stage, CN would simply have received some random technology. It’s important to try and break everything beforehand as you don’t want anything failing once installed. Proof of concepts demonstrate that there’s always room for improvement, and we added several iterations along the way.” Connected by Ethernet cable to a Crestron DM-MD16x16 digital media switcher, a 22-inch wall-mounted touchscreen serves as the primary display for controlling all the AV parameters for the council chambers. HDMI inputs including Panasonic AW-HE38 PTZ camera feeds, far end video and presentation content are routed to the 16-input matrix via Crestron DM-TX-4K transmitters. These are output to recording and streaming devices, LG presentation displays, confidence monitors and screens integrated within the ceiling on Ultralift motorised lifters. Silence is not observed in the digital library. The video inputs are routed to a Biamp Tesira Server-IO processor and output to a QSC AD-C6T ceiling speaker network divided into three zones via a networked QSC CXD8.4Q eight-channel amplifier. A Williams AV WIR TX90 multichannel infrared transmitter serves as a hearing augmentation system over the extensive ground level. Weekly council chamber meetings are now hosted in the library, which can be transformed ingeniously into a videoconferencingenabled space. “No other multipurpose space that I have worked on previously adds as much flexibility,” says Wilson. “The complex video distribution systems that have been integrated into the council chambers and library systems drove a need for close consultation during the design review and commissioning phases to ensure that programming functioned as intended.” The previous council chamber meetings were hosted in an old building with little technology other than a limited analogue conferencing system. The conferencing solution for the new, convertible space with moveable furniture would need to provide complete flexibility, and so a wireless system was

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FEATURES: GOVERNMENT stipulated. “Ultimately, we opted for the wireless Shure MXCW platform,” explains Wilson. Configured for chairman, delegate and listener operation, each of the 26 MXCW640 units can be accessed via a 4.3-inch colour touchscreen depicting meeting information such as the speaker list, voting and interpretation channel selection. Shure eight-channel wireless access points assign clean frequencies to the units by maintaining two-way transmissions of encrypted audio and control signals. “The MXCW appealed to us as it operates for over 11 hours on a fully charged battery, is elegant in design and simple to use so that voting functionality can be enabled by either the CEO or Lord Mayor,” explains Pereira. “However, the design was not altogether straightforward. As this is not a fixed boundary system, we had to add cameras for tracking the speakers. Following consultation with the supplier, Jands, we conducted our own research before speaking to companies who specialise in sports applications before opting for a Panasonic PTZ solution. Each MXCW wireless unit is identified by a tag and number placed under the base and positioned in the same location for each session. When someone speaks into that microphone, the camera knows where that person is in the room and will track to their location automatically.”

The tech-heavy library needed to appeal to all age groups

A training room can be transformed into an emergency “war room” The council chambers also record sessions for livestreaming on YouTube. “We designed a livestreaming system prior to Covid-19, which had to be rolled out quickly during lockdown as a change in the laws meant that 12 people could not sit next to one another,” adds Pereira. “A requirement was made to livestream and conduct the council chamber sessions remotely via Zoom having originally selected a Facebook Live broadcast.” Meeting content can be managed on a 22-inch touchscreen with cues from an operator in the control room. “The technicians who control the sessions can start recordings and stream easily without having to press a million buttons and watch different screens,” he continues. “The speaking Lord Mayor or CEO has all the tools to hand, while the operator knows when to change material and sources or to occasionally change a preset such as a wide-angle view on the speaker tracker camera. The Lord Mayor has direct point-to-point communication with the control room operator and can also communicate with the others in the chambers.” Just as the council chambers have been incorporated into the library, a sixth-level training room can be transformed into an emergency operations “war room” at the touch of a button via a Crestron touch panel. In training room mode, an 86-inch LG display at the head of the table is the focal point for presentations and conferencing. As at the ground level, a centralised Crestron DM-MD16x16 switcher allows the adjacent spaces to be combined, and the entire level can be converted into a function suite for cocktail evenings and larger videoconferences. Inputs include Panasonic PTZ cameras with Biamp wired ceiling and wireless microphones, depending on the room mode. Remaining discreetly out of sight behind folding doors, four 65-inch wall-mounted LCD screens rotate into action when the space is transformed into a 20-person war room. This mission-critical emergency operations centre is designed for use during a state of emergency such as a flood or fire, connecting services such as fire brigade and police remotely via the digital infrastructure. The recovery team can make informed decisions based on the news, traffic reports and weather forecasts being simultaneously broadcast to the displays. Located 300m from Newcastle Harbour, the building’s rooftop terrace required a multizone audio solution. As well as the environmental challenges of salinity, direct sunlight and high

AV is discreetly concealed on the upper-level terrace seasonal rainfall, CN demanded that the audio components be hidden from sight wherever possible. Wilson modelled the audio coverage and relocated planters to provide an extensive space with clear speech intelligibility and balanced audio throughout. “To provide a truly immersive audio experience across the rooftop, IP65+ weatherproofed Sonance LS4T satellite speakers are fixed in trees, purpose-built plant pots and along the walkways,” explains Wilson. “Extending the lower frequencies from their berths within the ground, 20-inch barrel ‘mushroom’ LS12T subwoofers are buried in deeper sections of the planter beds. Sonance Landscape Series speakers are normally specified for very high-end residential applications, but their inclusion was warranted here to further distinguish the library’s ambitions.” The paved floor is built on a raised structure that conceals cables and conduits connecting the loudspeakers to a central Q-Sys Core 110f processor and QSC CX-Qn amplifiers in the comms room. BGM is zone-controlled to all external areas with Bluetooth connectivity for source selection and control. The space can be combined for staff announcements and outdoor presentations utilising Audio-Technica wireless ATW-T3202 handheld mics. A Crestron HD-MD4x1 switcher can output four HDMI sources including an IPTV input, a Crestron transmitter and receiver for the future provision of an outdoor LED cinema screen. The contemporary digital landscape has also been provided with podcasting facilities, with window blinds rolled down to reveal a greenscreen. The acoustically treated room is equipped for novices and professionals alike with a wireless presentation system, videoconferencing, small mixer and Røde Podcaster kit. “The podcast room was originally specified as a meeting room, but the library recognised that locals were increasingly demanding podcasts to host webinars and so on,” adds Wilson. “It was simple to create and has been highly popular.”

Various turnkey solutions have been implemented across other rooms on all six levels. A staff training room incorporates a presentation system with HDMI and wireless inputs, an 86-inch LCD, two Panasonic PTZ cameras and Biamp ceiling microphones for conferencing and recording. Five flexible meeting rooms and offices are equipped with Crestron Flex videoconferencing kits including tabletop and wall panels, presentation systems, soundbars, integrated mics and cameras for hosting videoconferencing. With Crestron control already central to the AV design, Pereira Projects focused on the GUI (Graphic User Interface) and deployment of the control app on the tablets. “The need to retain the same look and feel on all of their personal devices was a very important consideration,” explains Wilson. “The GUI that is common to all the wireless tablets glues the entire system together. An IT professional or programmer seldom creates the right design for the end user. It is our task as a consultancy to bridge the IT and end user worlds. At the outset, we prioritise the need for a customised yet simple GUI, so that the client can intuitively use the device without needing to learn how to use it. Having selected one of the three designs presented to them, CN now host automated events such as video and press conferences in a straightforward manner.” The 10-month project partly inspired the Pereira duo to enhance their vision statement. “We’re a technology company, but the people in the place come first,” explains Wilson. “The technology can be hidden and may be complex, but it has to work in the background. It is our task to take something quite difficult and make it simple to use. The common theme with all our works is that a lot goes on in the background to engineer a simple solution. It is not just a matter of putting in a Brand X panel because it’s good today – you need to know what happens if that falls over tomorrow and who’s going to look after it. The operational aspects need to be considered long after commissioning.” Having been inspired by the CN team, Pereira Projects, Star Group and Graphite Projects have created a technologically advanced public library that can livestream to partner libraries around the world. “CN has provided the community and its internal staff with something quite spectacular,” affirms Wilson. To integrate the substantial amount of technology into the building’s unique design, the project required significant coordination and collaboration between the architect, general contractor and other trade contractors without needlessly disturbing their mutual client. “In addition to adding value to the overall design, we had to get the best value for the client with extended warranties and project pricing,” adds Pereira. “We achieved significant cost savings in product procurement alone.” From Gorilla Glass to GUIs that just work, a successful AV consultant such as Pereira Projects needs to understand that the devil is in the detail. www.graphiteprojects.com.au www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au/library www.pereiraprojects.com.au www.star-group.com.au

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FEATURES: POSTPRODUCTION

sprea Finally “The Hussa to dem groun there treatm maxim Mun respo and s Dolby and d studio booth room, param mach workin archit the da a con I/O eq estab the co The speak for the surrou sub. T ampli instal Tools iPads this m Atmos

A dubbing session underway in studio C’s control room

The Dolby Atmos mix room has a 7.1.4 system of JBL 708is and an ASB6115 sub

Studio Aradhana’s Ashim Samanta

Doubled dubbing

As demand for OTT content grows in India, one of its oldest facilities has branched out, adding new dubbing suites and a Dolby Atmos HE studio. Caroline Moss reports on Studio Aradhana THE ORIGINS OF THE NEW STUDIO ARADHANA, WHICH has just opened in Mumbai’s Andheri West, lie with the late, celebrated film director, Shakti Samanta. Setting up Shakti Films in 1958, Samanta’s first feature film as a director, Howrah Bridge, became an instant hit. He went on to direct many more successful movies including China Town, Kashmir Ki Kali, An Evening in Paris and Aradhana. It was the latter film, released in 1969, which became one of the director’s biggest hits and provided his son, Ashim Samanta, with a name for his dubbing studio, Aradhana Sound Service, which he set up in 1985. Aradhana has always been on the cutting edge of technological developments in film sound on the subcontinent, making the move to digital in 1995 before most other studios and installing a Euphonix console in 2005, moving into software-based mixing and postproduction rather than working on the traditional hardware still being used by most Indian studios of that era. Samanta junior joined his father in the Bollywood movie industry after graduating from college in 1976. Alongside his own career directing nine feature films and 350 TV episodes, he moved into the world of audio postproduction, mixing films and dubbing foreign content into local languages. “In 1994, we started localisation of Hollywood films into Hindi and other Indian languages with Jurassic Park,” recalls Samanta. This was the first Hollywood film to be dubbed in the Hindi, Tamil and Telugu languages, and led to Aradhana working with leading film studios including Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Marvel, Disney and others. “Almost all of the films released in India from these studios have been dubbed by us,” continues Samanta, with understandable pride. As Amazon Prime, Netflix, SonyLIV and Disney+ joined the client list, more capacity was

Munro Acoustics’ Aashique Hussain needed to bolster the output of Aradhana Sound Service’s 420m2 facility in Andheri East, which houses three dubbing suites, one 7.1 theatrical mixing suite and a 5.1 OTT mix suite.

Accordingly, Samanta purchased a 200m2 unit in a commercial building located in the studio hub of Andheri West, around 15 minutes away from the original premises, which will operate alongside the existing facilities. “There used to be a recording studio here, but we had to start from scratch, tearing down all the walls to construct three dubbing suites and a Dolby Atmos HE mix studio,” he explains. With careful acoustic design needed to isolate the four studios, which will all operate simultaneously, Samanta brought in Munro Acoustics to design and reconfigure the space. “Kapil Thirwani of Munro Acoustics is the best in the field and we have known him for several years, so obviously we engaged the company for our new venture,” he says. Discussions about plans for the new studio began in mid2019, before a suitable premises had been found. Once Samanta had secured the business unit, Munro Acoustics carried out a feasibility test and started design work which was finalised in January 2020, with construction starting immediately. As the pandemic hit, Mumbai went into a strict lockdown between March and July 2020, and work came to a complete halt due to the government-imposed restrictions. “When the restrictions started to ease off, there were guidelines formed by the government and the building management regarding working and transportation hours, which in turn increased the timeline,” explains Munro’s acoustic designer, Aashique Hussain, who worked on the project along with the company’s acoustic engineer Cyril Thomas, as well as Thirwani. “There was a rise in the cost of the raw materials by almost 10% and the contractor also faced a labour shortage initially. To overcome this and reduce the

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FEATURES: POSTPRODUCTION spread of the virus, we stationed the labourers at the site.” Finally, Studio Aradhana was completed by March 2021. “The building is a fairly old one with deep beams,” continues Hussain. “There was an existing, defunct studio that we had to demolish completely, and we built the new studio from the ground up, with careful consideration of the beams. Additionally, there are existing studios in the building with no acoustic treatment, so we had to design the layout to achieve the maximum possible isolation.” Munro Acoustics techflow consultant Utkarsh Naidu was responsible for designing and fine-tuning the system architecture and signal flow scheme. The facility consists of studio A, a 15m2 Dolby Atmos HE mix room; studio B with a 7.5m2 control room and dedicated 5.5m2 ADR dubbing booth; and the larger, identical studios C and D with control rooms of 10m2 and 9m2 dubbing booths. “All the studios are connected to a central machine room, for which we designed the layouts and mechanical parameters,” he explains. “The client wanted a common machine room shared with the studio to maintain data security by working on local machines with TNC [Trusted Network Connect] architecture, so unauthorised persons wouldn’t be able to access the data. In order to achieve this, we equipped each room with a control surface which communicates with the computers and I/O equipment installed in the machine room. We also worked on establishing the signal chain and the electroacoustic design of the control rooms to conform to Dolby standards.” The 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos mix room has been installed with a JBL speaker system consisting of 11 708i passive speakers – three for the LCR channels, two for side surrounds, two for rear surrounds and four for overheads – and one ASB6115 passive sub. The system is driven by Crown DCi 8|600 and DCi 4|300 amplifiers located in the machine room. Other equipment installed includes an Avid S1 eight-fader control surface, a Pro Tools control dock, MTRX Studio audio interface and two Apple iPads. “We chose the Avid MTRX Studio as the main I/O, as this meant we were able to meet the Dolby specifications for Atmos HE,” continues Naidu.

All three dubbing suites are equipped with Focusrite Red 4Pre, Red 8Pre and Red 8Line Dante-enabled mic preamp/I/O units which are located in the machine room and connected to the Focusrite RedNet R1 remote desktop controllers over Ethernet to control audio parameters. All three suites have Pro Tools rigs and plugins from iZotope, Waves, Vocalign, Melodyne and Antares, JBL 705P and 708P studio monitors, Neumann U87 microphones, Presonus headphone amps and Sony MDR-7506 headphones. With the explosion in demand for OTT content in India showing no signs of slowing down, especially as the pandemic has confined people to homes and closed cinemas, Aradhana’s business has been booming. “We are dubbing content coming in from overseas, mainly in Hindi, Tamil and Telegu, from studios including Disney and Mar vel,” says Samanta. “At the moment, the content is being mixed in London, but they are planning to do some Atmos mixing here in the future. Additionally, we are dubbing Indian content for Sony into Bengali, Marathi, Kannada and Malayalam as well as the other three languages. And now, more content is star ting to originate in India, from Sony and Amazon Prime, Netflix and Disney+ Hotstar. Work has doubled over the past year because there is so much demand for it now. I have an extremely good team, some of whom have been with me for the past 40 years, who are excited and happy to be at work still, when many in the industr y have lost work. I have employed additional staff and I have raised salaries too.” Steady hard work and anticipation of what the Indian film market needs to develop has stood the Samanta family in good stead over the decades. As the countr y’s film industr y moves into yet another phase, their Aradhana studio group is again poised to ride the new wave of enter tainment consumption.

Studio B’s 7.5m2 control room

The dedicated ADR booth linked to studio B’s control room

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FEATURES: BROADCAST

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FOH engineer Naho Yamada from MSI Japan

Front

One of China’s latest broadcast hits combines reality TV with a musical talent show as all-female contestants battle it out for the top slot. Sue Su reports from Hunan MANGO TV’S ALL-FEMALE TALENT SHOW, Sisters Who Make Waves, has become a major hit across China since the first season aired last year. The muchanticipated second season went on-air just four months after the first one ended, with its April finale featuring popular singers such as Na Ying, Zhou Bichang and Joey Jung. With production values even higher than for the first season, which had already raised the bar, sound director He Biao designed a huge and complex wireless system for both the reality TV and the performance areas, using the new L-Acoustics K3 line array he purchased last year. This was the first-time use of K3 on a Chinese entertainment show, and the largest K3 system used on a show of this kind in Asia. “The sound requirements were greater than those of the first season,” says audio director Li Ming. “We wanted the performances to equal or exceed the sound of a top concert, and deliver a good experience to audiences both onsite and in front of the TV. We have worked with Mr He’s team for many years. From both a technical and an artistic point of view, they are one of the top teams in China.” The venue for this season was a hall in Hunan International Conference and Exhibition Center. Special staging, scenery and facilities were constructed for the show, which featured a reality TV element alongside stage performances, with both parts recorded in the same space at the same time. To solve the problem of crosstalk and reflection, the production team invested in sound insulation and absorption treatment between the two areas to provide acoustic isolation, allowing both areas to be used for simultaneous recording. The performance area was equipped with a main and a second stage, connected by a long, narrow T-section in the middle. A 60m-wide audience area on either side of the stages accommodated around 2,000 people. The seating,

Sisters Who Make Waves sound director, He Biao together with complicated stage mechanisms and lighting equipment, limited the flown weight of the sound system. “The first season was held in another venue, and L-Acoustics Kara was used,” continues He. “This season, the venue was relatively large but its load-bearing was limited. We needed lighter speakers with a high output, and L-Acoustics had just launched the K3, which was a perfect fit in terms of weight, SPL and bass performance for the show.” Launched last year, the dual 12-inch K3 is of a similar size to many dual 10-inch boxes on the market. The show’s FOH engineer, Naho Yamada from MSI Japan, is one of the first engineers to use K3 in Asia. “When I heard K3 for the first time, I thought its sound was very gentle,” she says. “I have used K1 and K2 three-way systems in this venue before but,

A total of 36 K3s in four hangs of nine covered the live performance area

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FEATURES: BROADCAST although the K3 is a two-way speaker, it has a similar energy output and can achieve a similar effect.” A total of 36 K3s in four hangs of nine were used to cover the entire audience, complemented by eight ground-stacked KS28 subwoofers divided into four groups. Two Kara cabinets were placed on top of one of the subwoofer stacks to provide front fill. Two further Karas provided front fill for the judges. The system was driven by 10 LA12X amplified controllers, six of which were powering the K3s. “In our original design, each column had six K3s but, after two episodes, live bands were added into the show for the first time. We added three more to each column, so that the whole system could achieve very high energy and wider coverage,” explains He. “The K3 is light in weight and is very good at reproducing low frequencies. It is particularly suitable for venues with load-bearing issues, such as

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Front fill Kara cabinets on top of KS28 subwoofers

L-Acoustics K3 cabinets are loaded in

theatres, or for use in the L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound system. Its two-way design also means one power amplifier can drive more speakers, which is a good return on investment.” The design and planning of the wireless systems was crucial given the complex radio frequency environment onsite. In addition to strong emissions from the neighbouring Hunan Radio and Television Center, there were numerous wireless camera, communications and intercom systems that could cause interference, and the show itself also needed a lot of radio frequencies. Five groups of 10 Shure UA874 active directional antennas with Belden 9913 coaxial cables for increased RF stability took care of the performance area, all of which were connected to a Wisycom MAT288 RF diversity matrix combiner and distributed to the receivers of the wireless system. More than 100 frequency points between 470Hz and 714Hz ended up being used across the site. Over 60 channels of wireless systems were used for performances at the show finale, which was broadcast live, with performers and hosts using nearly 50 channels of Sennheiser Digital 6000 and 9000 wireless microphone systems. Handheld mics were Sennheiser SKM 9000 with Neumann KK 205 capsules, with Sennheiser HSP 4 headsets using Digital 6000 SK 6212 beltpack transmitters. An additional 16 channels of Shure Axient Digital, mostly equipped with KSM8 capsules, picked up the bands and judges. In-ear monitoring (IEM) systems play an important role in TV production, and all live performances featured Shure PSM 1000 wireless personal monitoring systems, with 12 groups of transmission channels and more than 50 beltpacks on the finale. For the first time, He used the Contour XO IEM headphones launched by L-Acoustics and JH Audio last year to align the system. “It is very close to the sound characteristics of L-Acoustics,” he comments. “What you hear from the earphone and in the speakers is basically the same.”

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FEATURES: BROADCAST Wedge monitors were from the domestic Highend Plus brand, including A15 and smaller A8 models on the main stage, second stage and backstage area. Two bands performed in the finale with a changeover time of just five minutes. The sound team made two transport carts to convey musical instruments, microphones and cables to the stage in the 30s window available after the first band had finished playing. A five-person team handled the transition, connecting the changeover band, running a test for the FOH, monitor and OB engineers, and retreating. At the controls of a DiGiCo Quantum 7 console was monitor engineer Yang Fan. “There are a lot of performers in this show; in the early days, there were 30 performers and a big band with a string orchestra. Every performer had to listen to their own mix,” he explains, adding this meant his

L–R: OB engineer (language) Zhong Jihua, assistant Lei Jian, OB engineer (music) Lin Mengyang and assistant Shi Yang

Monitor engineer Yang Fan at the controls of a DiGiCo Quantum 7

Hangs of just six K3s were used for early episodes before live performances were added system had to deal with a large amount of IEM and wedge signals. The different mixes and fast changeover required between the two bands left in the finale also presented a great challenge. “The DiGiCo allowed me to quickly operate routing and switching scenes,” he continues. “It responds very quickly, allowing me to switch back and forth between artists and bands in a short time.” All shows apart from the live finale were recorded for future broadcast, with two consoles used to record performances: the aforementioned DiGiCo Quantum 7 and an SD5 for FOH. For the live finale, two further Quantum 7s were used as OB consoles for music and language mixing, respectively.

The four consoles shared a fibre optic loop composed of three DiGiCo SD-Racks. The finale included 18 songs performed live, for which He invited renowned sound engineer Lin Mengyang – with whom he’s worked for nearly 10 years – to take charge of music mixing for OB. Once this mix was completed, it was handed over to the language mixing station, where the final mix was carried out by Hunan TV sound engineer, Zhong Jihua, then sent to an OB van equipped with a Lawo mc256 console where the video was embedded. In addition to the stereo OB mix, the live broadcast finale also offered a 3D sound version using 3D binaural rendering technology. Several microphones were set up in the performance area to pick up the ambience. The 3D mix was carried out in another OB van equipped with a Stage Tec Aurus console connected via MADI to a Klang:fabrik immersive IEM mixing system from Klang:technologies, provided by distributor Rightway Audio. After the immersive mix was completed using Klang:fabrik, the signal was output to the Lawo mc256 for video embedding, and the stereo and binaural versions could be listened to at home using ordinary headphones. “Nowadays, the quality of network streaming and TV broadcasts is getting higher and higher,” says Xiong Zhaomin, the Hunan TV sound engineer who handled the binaural mix. “We have been researching how we can make the sound keep up with it; immersive mixing technology has been at the forefront of audio production for the past 10 years.” Xiong used five groups with a total of 40 sound objects to render the sound scenes in the show. “Binaural rendering technology is mainly aimed at viewers using headphones,” she continues. “This will give them a more immersive listening environment, and they will be able to participate more fully in the show.” Another Hunan TV engineer, Lai Fan, drew attention to the convenience of using Klang technology. “This is an effective production method because there’s no need to change all the signal chains, nor is it bound to any manufacturer. We only need Klang equipment to do the algorithm,” he explains. “The only downside is that it currently only supports headphones, not external speakers. As more and more people use mobile phones and headphones to watch programmes, we believe that binaural rendering is a way for audiences to appreciate better sound without adding any costs.” The reality TV area, fitted out with good acoustic insulation to provide a suitable recording environment, consisted of eight small rehearsal rooms, a larger, 30m2 rehearsal room and some public areas. Sennheiser evolution 500 series systems in all the rooms recorded the artists’ daily interaction and rehearsals using around 50 transmitters, each with one fixed and two portable receivers. So that the show director could communicate with each of the locations from a director’s station, He designed a public address system of JBL EON612 12-inch active speakers for each room. A large matrix to distribute routing signals was created on a DiGiCo SD12, which was also used to record artists’ dialogue during the show and relay it to the postproduction department.

All of the rehearsal rooms were equipped with independent systems consisting of an analogue console, microphones and speakers including A8, A15, CL15 and S22 models supplied by Guangzhou Highend Plus Technology Co. The audio team responsible for the reality TV part of the show also needed to track and record the artists, who lived together in five villas during the show, for more than 16 hours every day. The villas were equipped with Neumann KM 184 wired microphones to pick up their day-to-day conversations, with dialogue in the car to and from the venue captured by portable recorders.

The FOH DiGiCo SD5 console The entire sound system was moved in and set up in December 2020 by Shanghai Weifa Culture Media Center and Highend Plus. L-Acoustics and DiGiCo distributor Rightway Audio sent two engineers, Zhao Haozhi and Li Wenxi, to provide onsite support, with Sennheiser and Shure also providing engineers to assist in radio frequency planning. Viewers watching Sisters Who Make Waves were not only affected by the positivity and spirit of the female artists, who ranged between 30 and 50 years in age, but will also remember the strong bond created by the artists living and performing together over the course of the series. He’s team also established a strong bond of its own in this challenging environment. Working closely on two series running almost back-to-back, his team members helped each other to deal with the meticulous preparations and hard work necessary on such high-pressure live TV. “I always believe a good sound system is created by a good team,” He reflects. “All technicians need to be serious and responsible, because if a problem occurs, no matter how small, it will be infinitely magnified. Behind every outstanding show is the result of everyone’s joint efforts.” www.digico.biz www.l-acoustics.com www.racpro.net www.sennheiser.com www.shure.com

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BUSINESS: SHOW REVIEW

GETshow 2021 Sue Su reports from the exhibition floor at Guangzhou’s GETshow, which made a valiant attempt to approach pre-pandemic levels despite missing a year in 2020 THE 2021 GETSHOW WENT AHEAD IN MAY AS 100,000M2 of the Poly World Trade Center was transformed into three professional audio halls and six lighting halls, bringing together nearly 1,000 brands. In his opening speech, Wang Ruixiang, chairman of show organiser, Industry Association of South China Entertainment, said that this year’s exhibition had not been easy to put on, giving special thanks to the government, experts from across the country and exhibitors for their strong support. Major exhibitors returned to their usual positions in the main audio hall, Hall 1, including ACE (Harman, MA Lighting, Claypaky, Ayrton, Sennheiser), Huifeng (Martin Audio), Rightway Audio (L-Acoustics, DiGiCo), Pacific Budee (Letrosonics, PreSonus, Point Source Audio, Void, Linea Research) and Ruisheng (TW Audio). They were joined by exhibitors including Shanghai Taihe Technology (Fulcrum) and Denon dealer Haloavtech, located to the right of the hall’s entrance. Between Hall 1 and Hall 2, a 500m2 space was taken by iBO, while Zsound and Hertz (Nexo, Pequod) remained in Hall 2. Huifeng launched Martin Audio’s first constant curvature line array, Torus. President Hugo Guo introduced a video featuring Martin Audio’s CEO Dom Harter. “We are confident about the new Torus array,” said Guo. “It’s suitable for short/mid distance, and I think there will be more of these venues appearing in China. While the pandemic has definitely had a big impact on the global economy, its effect on the pro audio industry in China is not as big as we’d feared, and we even had a slight increase in business last year.” “Everybody’s been waiting for this show,” said Lu Xiubing, vice general manager of LAX. “The pandemic has reduced the opportunity to communicate face to face. I can see more new products at the show, and many of them are integration

Thumbs up from the team at Shanghai Taihe Technology products; markets like education and medical have not been affected by the pandemic at all. Demand for digital conferencing products has increased a lot as the pandemic has permanently changed the world. We can’t estimate how the overseas market will develop, but domestic demand is very high as the pandemic is under control.” Rightway Audio held a seminar on the second day of the show to launch L-Acoustics’ Creations and DiGiCo Quantum 225 consoles, with six companies appointed L-Acoustics’ Creations dealers at the event. “I am happy with the show as there are many visitors to our booth from different sectors,” said Rightway president, Tao Jianxin. “We have seen some effects due to the pandemic, with some projects suspended, but they are going to restart this year, and the impact has not been major. There is demand from home entertainment and live houses, but the theatre and rental company business has been more impacted.”

ACE had constructed 3D audio monitoring and live production systems and was demonstrating the Smyth Realiser A16 3D audio processor. “We’ve met lots of visitors who are interested in livestreaming and have many questions,” said Li Gang, sales director of ACE’s audio department. “I am surprised by the number of visitors; I think it’s almost reached the same level as before the pandemic,” said ClearCom’s regional sales manager and chief representative, Jeffery Wu. “It’s definitely impacted us globally, but if we’re only talking about China, the number of visitors and exhibitors here gives me great confidence. China has controlled Covid-19 very well, and I think we can expect a full resumption of the economy. In markets like logistics and medical, the demand for touch-free communication is increasing, but theatres and theme parks have been impacted a lot because they are still not able to fully open. However, we can see that the impact is reducing; the market is getting better and better.” Pacific Budee showcased its own AV IoT (internet of things) intelligent management platform, as well as distributed brands and products from Void in conjunction with its dealer. “The scale of the show is pretty big, but I don’t think the traffic has fully recovered,” said sales director, Hai Wei. SAE was showing two sister brands, Soundstandard and Soundard, showcasing the Soundard Mega 2500 analogue amplifier with digital display. “There’s been around 60–70% attendance compared to 2019, which is a relatively good rate,” said Zhang Shilai, manager of Ruisheng’s Beijing office. “The interval between this show and PLSG has been quite long, which has reduced traffic.” K-array and Ultimate Ears were being shown on PLA’s booth. “The domestic market is obviously restoring,” said Ben Lin, general manager of PLA. “The rental market is back again, but

Rightway president Tao Jianxin launches the DiGiCo Quantum 225 console the culture and tourism market has not recovered and the show probably only has 60% of 2019’s attendance. The livestreaming market is not as hot as last year; though online events are an alternative to real-life events, they can’t replace in-person experiences, especially now people can meet up again.” “We’ve had a good increase in business this year and are focusing on building our own brands,” said Zhang Pingfu, general manager of Ling Jie Enterprise. “I think Chinese manufacturers should let the world hear our sound.”

ACE audio sales director, Li Gang, was demonstrating 3D monitoring and live production systems

Launching Martin Audio’s Torus on the Huifeng booth

2021 Dates:

8–11 May

2022 Dates:

TBC

Venue:

Poly World Trade Center, Guanghzou

Attendance:

68,000

Contact:

www.getshow.com.cn

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BUSINESS: SHOW REVIEW

DMT held demos of Dolby and Clair Brothers systems

Rico Xu launches Optimal Audio on the Guangzhou Guidance stand

Stanley Yau from Jusheng Audiovisual

Jiang Yang from distributor, MYC China

The K

PLS Guangzhou

SE Audiotechnik’s Vinnie Xiong with the LD Systems MAUI P900

Sue Su reports from the China Import and Export Fair as PLSG returns to Guangzhou for the second time in nine months THE 3.5-DAY PROLIGHT + SOUND GUANGZHOU (PLSG) ended on 19 May as the temperature outside approached 35°C. Not even a year after the delayed 2020 event was held last August, PLSG was back larger than ever, with an exhibition area of 150,000m2 across 15 halls and 1,386 exhibitors – twice last year’s count and double the floorspace. Pro audio, communication and conferencing, media systems and solutions and KTV technologies were located in Area A, while Area B housed four lighting halls. Outside, brands including Martin Audio, Alcons, Coda Audio and SE Audiotechnik participated in the line array demonstration. As enthusiastic exhibitors held a series of events to promote their products, the organisers introduced new ideas with three “immersive experience zones” debuting in Hall 13.2 and Hall 12.2. However, the attendance rate has not fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels, probably due to the absence of overseas visitors and ongoing restrictions in parts of China. In the past, most Western brands except microphones were located in Hall 5.2. This year, as many exhibitors expanded their booths, some moved to Hall 4.2 including Yamaha, debuting the Rivage PM5 and PM3 console in China and holding livestreaming seminars from a dedicated room on the booth, and Top Plot (Nexo). The two largest exhibitors remaining in Hall 5.2 were Harman and Longjoin Group. Seven major distributors showed Harman’s AKG, AMX, BSS, Crown, dbx, JBL, Lexicon, Martin Professional and Soundcraft brands on a 720m2 booth. Harman also celebrated JBL’s 75th anniversary on the first night of the show at the W Hotel. “There is increased investment in domestic, education, government and corporate markets, while internationally, the AV meetings market will increase,” said David Lu, Harman’s senior director and DGM, China. “We will adjust our product strategies based on these changes.”

The Harman team Longjoin Group exhibited KV2, Waves, Alto and the Sennheiser Evolution Wireless G4-100 series, which the group has just taken on. “The pandemic may have had a downward impact on markets like KTV, but national projects and entertainment clubs are increasing,” said Jason Shi, chief representative of KV2 China Operations Center. “KV2 increased its share of these markets last year and we continue

to see growth this year as the government tries to boost the economy.” Jusheng Audiovisual (previously Ruisheng) displayed brands such as TW Audio, Seeburg, Harvey, RAM Audio, Phonic, AKG and Midas, with Seeburg’s PS series debuting in China. “PLSG’s visitor profile is wide, and our customers’ intentions to visit the show this year are even higher than in 2019,” said

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BUSINESS: SHOW REVIEW

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The K-array team launched KGEAR for the China market Xu Hao, general manager of Jusheng Audiovisual Shanghai Branch. “Many professionals and major systems integrators come here, and more visitors are looking for integrated solutions.” Many exhibitors who attended PLSG last year gathered in Hall 5.2, including Bosch (Electro-Voice, Dynacord), Tempo (Coda Audio), ST Audio (MC², ARX, Radian, EM Acoustics) and EAD (Alcons, Xilica, Ashly, Digigram). VUE audiotechnik’s China branch had a smaller booth but showed Avid’s Venue S6L console in addition to VUE products. VUE also sponsored the immersive PLS XStage in Hall 12.1, with the al-12 speakers as the main system. SE Audiotechnik showcased its M-F3A Pro ultra-compact active line array system and, as the Adam Hall distributor in China, an LD Systems MAUI P900 portable PA system. SE also held a videoconference product launch together with the German team at the nearby Langham hotel, attracting more than 200 people. “The traffic on the first day was still slightly slow, maybe because of the hot weather and flight delays,” said SE sales director, Vinnie Xiong. “Although the pandemic has had a certain impact on us, our domestic orders this year may be even better than in 2019, and the education and medical sectors have increased significantly.” Funktion One’s distributor Phoenix Audio showcased Vero VX as well as brands including Van Damme and TiMax. “Our entertainment market has always been stable, and people from the theatre and cultural tourism markets are interested in TiMax this year,” said director, Chris Zhang. “China has controlled the pandemic very well and the market is large, which may absorb some of the negative impact. However, if the world doesn’t return to normal, China can’t stand alone.” DMT (Clair Brothers), d&b audiotechnik, Shanghai Broadway Future (Meyer Sound) and Muse Technology (Amadeus) all showed immersive solutions in Hall 4.2. “Many companies are promoting their immersive solutions this year,” said DMT’s technical director, Johnathan Wang. In addition to showing brands like SSL, DPA and dBTechnologies, DMT collaborated with Dolby to show its entire ecosystem, with a room equipped with Clair Brothers systems targeted at clubs and bars. “The visitors are fewer than before the pandemic, but that’s OK, I’ve been busy every day and have seen people from different markets such as broadcast and theatre, as well as dealers and students.” Opposite DMT, EZpro showed many products from the 22 brands it represents, including EAW, Allen & Heath, Symetrix, Pan Acoustics and Visionary Solutions. “I think the show is back to normal; the organiser has done a lot of work to attract people including the immersive shows and Audinate training,” said Ji Xiang, senior director, marketing at EZpro. “There were lots of people on the first day. The demand for audiovisual meetings has definitely increased due to the pandemic. We are certified partners for both Zoom and Tencent meetings, and we focus on providing whole solutions. Uncertainty caused by the pandemic has had an impact on the global supply chain, which raises challenges for manufacturers, distributors and systems integrators.” d&b audiotechnik was highlighting Soundscape and had a demo area aimed at the home theatre market, which it is targeting. “The traffic on the first day was about 70% of 2019, but this met our expectations,” said Dickey Kay, senior business development manager of d&b Greater China, who

Richie Wang in the Adamson section of Realmusic’s stand

Etrend’s Hu Bin on its new, enlarged stand

Kan Wei on the DAS booth came from Hong Kong. “The impact of the pandemic on the live market, which accounts for a considerable share of d&b’s business, has been very large. I believe the live market will have to wait longer to recover due to the global situation.” Muse Technology showcased immersive solutions from Amadeus as well as the TTA Stagetracker II. PCI was demonstrating products from QSC, FBT and Kramer as well as Sennheiser’s TeamConnect Ceiling 2 microphone array. Martin Audio distributor Guangzhou Guidance showed the P.I. installation series and announced it would be distributing Martin Audio’s new sister brand, Optimal Audio. DAS Audio’s China subsidiary Ganguan AV invited two Peking Opera singers to perform on the booth, which attracted a lot of attention.

Bill Lee from SAE noted an absence of overseas guests Realmusic returned to the show with Adamson, NEXT-proaudio and E11EVEN Sound, while Avid distributor NDT attended the show for the first time. “We’ve mainly participated in broadcast shows before, but we’ve expanded our portfolio with Tascam, QSC and Sony,” said Herbert Zhao, general manager of NDT’s professional audio division. I’m satisfied with the quality of the audience; well-known sound engineers, as well as systems integrators and dealers have all come here, and we had no time to rest every day.” Distributor Etrend (Audix, HH, Audiofocus, Ecler) had taken a bigger booth this year. “The quality of visitors is better than in previous years,” said vice general manager, Hu Bin. “The impact of the pandemic has been big but there’s been a rapid growth in videoconferencing. The signs of recovery in the domestic market are obvious, but the prices of chips are rising globally. It is difficult to predict where things will go, but we believe the demand for AV will become more and more vigorous.”

In Hall 3.2, dedicated to conferencing, Taiden showed its newly developed hybrid conferencing system, while Audio-Technica was showing various solutions. New products for Artsound included K-array’s KGEAR and Allen & Heath’s ZEDi console as well as products from beyerdynamic and Brähler. Mipro had different wireless solutions for live, videoconferencing and portable applications. “We have optimised our digital products this year and brought products for the new 5.8G bands,” said marketing manager, Zhou Weijiang. Shure and its distributor Raylong commissioned a graffiti artist to paint microphones onsite, attracting a lot of attention. “The show is better than I thought, but I don’t think it’s fully recovered its prepandemic levels,” said Shure’s Jason Zhang. “The live market has been greatly impacted, but new markets like videoconferencing and livestreaming are increasing rapidly. Even as the pandemic subsides, this type of customer will continue to increase for a few years, which is a new opportunity for the industry.” SAE showed its two sister brands, Soundstandard and Soundard, and also had a Verity Audio listening room. “The traffic is around 70% of that before the pandemic, but almost double compared to last year,” said SAE founder, Bill Lee. “The absence might be overseas guests. The club market is expanding very quickly, but manufacturers need to catch up with the trend. Our supply chain is also facing big challenges due to the pandemic; many product lines are short of supplies.” Western transducer brands including B&C, Faital Pro, Celestion, Lavoce, Beyma, Fane and 18Sound all returned to PLSG. “For imported transducer brands, the business has actually increased,” said Kevin Lin from B&C’s distributor, Bai Sheng Audio. Audinate cooperated with 10 partners to hold Dante courses, as in previous years. “The amount of exhibitors has increased a lot,” said Steven Cai, Audinate’s marketing manager, APAC. “We are outside Hall 4.2, and it’s very busy as the demand for conferencing and commercial installation increases, and the number of visitors to Hall 4.2 are catching up with those in Hall 5.2.” Feedback from exhibitors would indicate that the Chinese market is largely restored, with fast-growing sectors including nightclubs, cultural tourism, conferencing and education. Even the live sound business, which has been the most impacted, is slowly catching up. But with no end in sight to the global situation, supply chain issues are becoming more and more prominent, and the AV industry may have to wait longer than expected to fully recover. The pandemic also seems to have permanently changed some of the ways in which we live and communicate. Manufacturers, integrators and distributors have already begun to deal with the challenges and changes.

2021 Dates:

16–19 May

2022 Dates:

25–28 February

Venue:

China Import and Export Fair, Guangzhou

Total exhibitors:

1,386

Attendance:

82,740

Contact:

www.prolight-sound-guangzhou. hk.messefrankfurt.com July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 67

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BUSINESS: COMMENT

A letter from America Anyone seen the crew? Dan Daley searches

VACCINATION RATES IN THE US HIT CLOSE TO 50% by the spring and cities and states began once again reopening venues and other gathering places, cautiously at first, but with enough momentum to suggest that live entertainment may yet rear its head this year. So why have so many artists and festivals, gored by the mournful economics of the pandemic, continued to remain reluctant on announcing tours or set dates, or are moving those dates and schedules yet again? The Foo Fighters postponed their 2021 touring plans a full year, from June this year to June 2022. Emo pop-punkers My Chemical Romance did the same with their 2021 tour, pushing dates for North America and Europe back to next year. There have been a few hardy souls that are planning on hitting the road this year. The Dave Matthews Band will do a summer run of dates starting in July. Country-rocker Luke Bryan had been scheduled for May but also opted instead to make it a summer tour. But there seem to be fewer than might have been expected given the rapid rollout of vaccinations in the US. People are still worried about issues such as new virus strains and symptomless transmission. However, there are dynamics beyond just fear and concern over illness at work

here. For starters, it’s estimated that several hundred music venues have closed permanently – back in January, Billboard published a list of close to 100 that had shuttered for good, and there have since been more. That takes a sizable bite out of the 3,000 or so venues that comprise the membership of the National Independent Venues Association, which is pretty much what Live Nation and AEG don’t already own. There are literally fewer places to perform in, which is as jarring as it sounds, and what remains will be increasingly corporatised. Then there is the problem of technical talent. Not every rigger, LD, FOH mixer, systems tech and video wrangler was able to ride out the pandemic pursuing their chosen careers. “No one [ever] saw a year without work,” Michael Strickland, CEO of Bandit Lites, told The Wall Street Journal. “As it continued, you lost people along the way mentally, physically, spiritually, economically.” That unprecedented year-plus without live shows and events has compelled hundreds if not thousands of technical personnel to move on to other ways of making a living and feeding a family, and – in the usual American twist – getting themselves and their families healthcare insurance. What’s more, that deficiency also creates problems for the future,

in the form of far fewer apprenticeships for younger workers who would otherwise have been out learning the craft. The trade schools have added live-show and touring technologies to their curricula in the past decade or so, but it’s never the same as being able to go out and apply that knowledge hands-on. Like other dilemmas created by the pandemic, the shortage of live shows and events, and the people to make them happen, will eventually be worked out. But what the landscape will look like at the end of this tunnel remains to be seen. Expect more automation, which is a typical marketdriven response to labour shortages, to change the nature of the work. I recently wrote articles in which a tour’s live sound mixer handled FOH and monitors, as well as a separate set of in-ears for a VIP group backstage while also recording the shows; and a major new club venue in New York where the FOH mixer also runs its lights and video. In one case, the tour management sought to cut costs; in the other, the venue management needs to conform to local social distancing and capacity regulations. But both also found that there are simply not enough trained people to go around at the moment. It all suggests that the future, on the other side of Covid, is going to be different. Perhaps very different.

A letter from Europe 5G development is beginning to lag behind in Europe. Phil Ward asks why JUST 18 MONTHS AGO, THE EUROPEAN BROADCAST industry was licking its lips at the opportunities for distribution and content posed by 5G mobile technology. Technical papers galore examined the new infrastructure steadily being built so that wireless internet could fulfil its destiny to replace – or at least seriously challenge – satellite services. For this to happen, 5G’s access to remote and rural areas had to be proven and established, and a new coalition between national broadcasters and mobile phone giants took shape. Excitement focused on the almost universal adoption of 5G among handset manufacturers, unlike other proposed mobile broadcast platforms like DVB-H and DVB-NGH. The other boxes it ticked included interactivity, object-based audio and VR, enabled by such abstruse manifestations as Mobile Edge Compute, network slicing and heterogeneous network orchestration. Rarely can broadcast engineers have quivered so tensely in their moccasins. Then Donald Trump dropped his bombshell. Although the US trade blockade with China directly affects only one handset maker – Huawei – it’s a big one: previous forecasts had tipped the company to overtake Samsung by the end of 2019, a consummation briefly achieved but now looking impossible. More pertinently the equipment supplied by

Huawei was already installed throughout the 5G backbone. It was like nearly completing the building of a house and suddenly deciding that one-fifth of all the bricks were the wrong colour. This won’t stop 5G. The EU has already stumped up €700m of investment into it, matched five times over by private tech companies as part of an initiative called the Horizon 2020 Programme. Ericsson, Apple, Nokia, Sony, Samsung and the rest are all right behind it, benefitting neatly in many territories from the abrupt repointing of Huawei’s supporting walls. But it will slow it down – and push up its costs – by varying degrees according to how individual countries and their broadcasters interpret and implement the ban. The UK, for example, is expecting to have completely removed Huawei from 5G networks by 2027; since 31 December 2020, EE, Vodafone, O2 and Three have not been able to buy Huawei gear for UK 5G, even though something like 20,000 base stations around the UK already have it – with BT a major customer. Across Europe, the picture is equally fuzzy. Although France is publicly seeking to strike a “middle ground” between the wholesale removal of Huawei kit and retaining the company as one of its suppliers, operators including Altice and

Bouygues Telecom have been ordered to purge it from most French towns and cities. Dutch provider KPN has excluded it from 5G plans, while Danish and Czech authorities have rubbed up against the Chinese company’s local presence by stirring up staff and cybersecurity issues. In general, though, it’s just Europe being typically Europe: that is to say, far less unified than it’s supposed to be. Several countries including Belgium, Denmark and Sweden have issued statements pointing out the lack of any evidence of security issues, weighing this doubt against the huge setback to telecoms and broadcast posed by anti-Chinese policy. Deutsche Telekom’s CEO Tim Höttges has gone even further, stating on the record that direct intervention in free trade on political grounds is morally indefensible, regardless of any concerns about national security. Meanwhile, Austria is refusing to commit to anyone’s Huawei-free 5G future. In attempting to find a consensus, the EU is avoiding any blanket guidelines – leaving member states to act independently – other than supporting all efforts to investigate and tackle security risks and issuing tighter regulations. With 5G likely to influence production as well as distribution, possibly even offering a way out of the spectrum squeeze, nobody wants a leaky roof.

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25/06/2021 15:56

BUSINESS: COMPANY PROFILE

The brand plays on

Richard Lawn explores the roots of British manufacturer, HH Electronics, and its development into a global brand together with Headstock stablemate, Laney Amplification

L–R: Adam Groves, James Laney and Lee Wrathe in front of their live stage in Halesowen THE ROLLCALL OF PRO AUDIO BRANDS ORIGINATING IN the UK is unrivalled. Following the birth of the Beatles and the British invasion of pop culture, the electrification of pop and rock music led to a rapidly emerging cottage industry of backline, synthesiser, mixing console and loudspeaker producers. As record sales soared and concert audiences grew, the erstwhile musicians and experienced stagehands who founded these enterprises went on to become pioneers and experts within the fields of broadcast, studio recording and live sound. Mike Harrison was one such entrepreneur. Global events in 1968 included the assassination of Martin Luther King, the Vietnamese Tet offensive and the release of the Beatles’ White Album. In the village of Harston near Cambridge that same year, Harrison founded HH Electronics. Together with Malcolm Green and Graham Lowes, he designed and manufactured the TPA and MA ranges of solid state, studio-quality amplifiers for an increasing number of recording and broadcast studio requiring higher SPL outputs. The hits kept on coming for HH in the 1970s, most notably with the advent of the iconic IC-100 amplifier and its unique, highly distinctive green electro-luminescent lit front panel. Musicians of the day including Marc Bolan of T Rex powered their electric guitars with the 100W RMS. Spurred on by this success, Harrison and the team developed the 412BL quadruple 12-inch speaker cabinet. Sales growth led to growing pains and a relocation to Bar Hill in 1975, where HH extended its range of sound reinforcement EQ. The MA100 five-channel mixer amplifier with a switchable spring reverb took a world tour together with the IC100L and Valve-Sound Bass. Innovatively designed to emulate valve amplifier distortion, the V-S Musician 100W guitar amplifier incorporated a V-S circuit encased in a block of resin to prevent copying by competitors.

In addition to demonstrating commitment to musicians by adding electric pianos and tape echo machines to its MI portfolio, HH widened its offerings beyond the stage to develop larger PA systems during the following decade. Studio and live mixing consoles ranging from an 8:2 configuration to a 24:8:2 footprint rolled out. With the development of dual concentric loudspeakers, concert sound systems including the Piezo series wrote themselves onto the international touring circuit riders. Led by acoustician Ed Forme, HH Acoustics loudspeakers were produced inhouse at the new Huntingdon headquarters with cast magnesium alloy frames to match the quality of the amplifiers and speaker cabinets. With an ever-increasing demand for high-power events and applications, HH duly delivered with the S500D and the V-series including the V800 MOSFET amplifiers. By 1989, the economic and manufacturing landscape had changed, leading to HH Electronics’ acquisition by another British wholly owned company. Operating within the Headstock Group today, Laney Amplification had been founded a year prior to HH Electronics by Lyndon Laney in the industrial and musical heavy metal heartland of Birmingham. As bass guitarist for Band Of Joy featuring a

Six years in and HH Electronics was rockin’ with the finest

Head

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BUSINESS: COMPANY PROFILE pre-Led Zeppelin Robert Plant on vocals, Lyndon’s intense interest in electronics coupled with his lack of funds saw him building what would become the first Laney amp in his father’s garage. As word spread of the tone supplied by Lyndon’s amplifiers, he was quickly supplementing his income with amp sales to many local musicians including Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi. Lyndon’s son James was a young schoolboy in 1989, but his memory of this acquisition remains sharp. “When my father acquired HH, manufacturing in the UK was still the norm,” explains James Laney, now CEO of the company. “The company was operating out of Cradley Heath, which was an industrial area characterised by woodworking, metalwork, transformer and speaker suppliers.” With industrial inertia setting into the area and traditional suppliers developing more inconsistencies, Laney’s vision was to incorporate HH’s technologies and resources for added self-sufficiency. “It was becoming increasingly hard to maintain a competitive edge as a UK manufacturer. By manufacturing and designing loudspeaker parts inhouse for ourselves, we were allowed to keep on the right side of that curve for many years. In addition to developing HH loudspeakers for Laney products, we continued to successfully develop the PA products within the HH catalogue as there was a lot of expertise in terms of metalwork and transformer designs.” A threshold was breached when it no longer became viable to manufacture anything other than high-end products in the UK. “Many of our managers came from engineering backgrounds and so they transitioned their skills to manufacturing operations overseas. By retaining the design and engineering inhouse, we had effectively established the current operations and principles of HH Electronics. When a manufacturer goes to the trouble of designing in the UK, the resultant product has to be unique and stand out, while for our main catalogue we deliver an optimum priceperformance balance.” Having stepped into Lyndon Laney’s shoes, James projects an aura of confidence and stability that owes much to his father’s legacy. “I am immensely indebted to my father for setting up a very good business model,” he says. “Those early years were never easy for him, but we are now benefitting from having a very solid base that allows us to continue investing back in ourselves. There’s no direct pressure on me to take unnecessary risks and my father remains in the background, but I do have a responsibility towards the brands and the people within the company.” In 2004, the Headstock Group consolidated its businesses into the current building and design centre in Halesowen with its extensive R&D, servicing and warehousing facilities. A solid financial basis serves as the bedrock below the West Midlands establishment. “As a family-owned business that does not entertain debt, we are liberated from having to report to venture capitalists or external investors who

Headstock Group CEO, James Laney

Ian Wright (centre) and LATAM sales manager Joey Gross Brown (left) with the crew from Puerto Rican distributor Rosado may be looking to make a turn on the business within 2–5 years.” A number of respected British brands including Amek and C-Audio were acquired and cannibalised. “The intention was for HH to exist alongside Laney, without it being sacrificed for its parts,” explains Laney. “For example, HH retains pedigree in touring products, but we need to consider what the current route to market might be and what our partners want. As much as I love the old IC-100s with the big glowing green panel, I am not sure that there is still a market for those heritage and legacy products, because portable backline has moved on over the past four decades. As we develop more products that are heading for the network, it remains difficult for us to offer the whole end-to-end solution to customers, so for the time being we will focus on amplifier and loudspeaker development. HH will also assert itself more in other sectors such as hospitality and houses of worship.” The current HH Electronics catalogue is divided between two distinct product categories. Systems integrators direct their attention towards the grouping of TNA array enclosures and ceiling speakers together with the M series of high power amplifiers. Active and passive ranges of portable VRE, VRC and TRE loudspeakers appeal to MI

The TNA-1800 speaker series

Low-frequency extension for the Tensor series is provided by the TRS-1500 subwoofer retailers and musicians. “R&D is currently focusing more on the installation catalogue, which will lead to quite a large number of product releases this year and into 2022. The Tensor and Vector active speakers were launched in 2019 to critical acclaim, before the world of live sound had to shut down.” HH Electronics appointed Adelaide-based industry veteran Ian Wright as its international sales manager in January 2011. Initially charged with managing sales channels in the Latin American and APAC markets, Wright’s enthusiasm and passion has taken the HH Electronics and Laney brands to a higher level. Having taken three years out of the industry to run a packaging company in Tasmania, Wright flew into Hong Kong during a family holiday to meet with Laney in a hotel room, making a sufficiently convincing argument that he was the right fit for the company. “It may appear strange for a British company to have their international director of sales based in Australia, but it works incredibly well for HH as he serves territories that represent huge growth potential for us,” explains Laney. “Ian’s always on the ball, works incredibly hard and, importantly, he isn’t a ‘yes man’.” Having worked closely together for over a decade, Laney and Wright make a formidable duo. “I had several opportunities to work with some big brands, but the fact that Headstock is a successful, family-owned business held

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BUSINESS: COMPANY PROFILE great appeal to me,” explains Wright. “When I first met the team at the NAMM Show, it felt like I’d been there for 20 years. There is an undefinable comradery, because it really is like being part of a family that gives you energy. Although I had long been familiar with both HH and Laney, I decided to take up the challenge to take the brand back to a time when it was truly considered to be a market leader.” Challenge accepted, Wright quickly immersed himself into the role of international sales manager. With a very basic command of the Spanish language, he pushed boundaries for HH and Laney in the APAC and Latin American sectors over seven years. Promoted to the position of global sales director in 2017, a wider geographical remit led him to expanding the sales force. “We have a distribution company with sales managers in the UK and we will soon have European and North American sales managers,” says Wright. “Latin America is a completely different market culturally, but we are blessed with a Paraguayan manager, Joey Gross Brown, who previously worked for Harman Pro and speaks fluent Portuguese and Spanish.” APAC and MEA is now managed by Singapore-based Generation AV. Founded by David McKinney who has been based in the region for two decades, Generation AV offers sales, marketing, demonstrations, technical support and system design for a select number of brands. “Reconnecting with my good friend and ex-Harman Pro sales manager David McKinney has been one of the highlights for me,” continues Wright. “Appointing Generation AV was a similar move to [the situation in] Latin America as I needed a professional company to focus on and develop the marketplace. David’s team bring a wealth of experience, connections and knowledge to the HH brand and are so far making excellent progress.” The extensive sales network that Wright oversees constantly provides feedback, which is duly channelled back to the sales and marketing and R&D teams in the UK. “With experience you gain an understanding of what the market needs and how as a manufacturer we can perform better,” assesses Wright. “I’m not professing to be an expert, but feedback from key relationships within a company need to be fed to R&D. Our sales teams provide reports that let management know where we are underperforming and what holes we need to fill within a product range. For a concept to turn into good business, you need to justify the R&D investment and be sure that you can sell enough products. Our engineers have great skill sets, but they are not out visiting customers and seeing what’s working and what isn’t.” Although Wright’s recent appointments led to accelerated sales growth, HH Electronics continues to operate a typical global distribution model, with Laney valuing an experienced partner with local connections and services. “We work with experts in territories ensuring that we can focus on product development here in the UK,” he says. “Many companies are tempted to increase product margins by going direct to market but, by cutting out customer support, education, servicing and 24/7 support, you’re

L–R: new o

DJ Johnathan Lewis specifies HH speakers for monitoring his sets

The T

on a downward spiral as you are removing fundamental services that are part of the sale. “It’s not just a case of importing the boxes, as a distributor is funding that inventory 90+ days into the future, having it shipped at expense, taking a hit on the exchange rate, negotiating complex duties, stocking it and then putting a credit line into the market whereby you might be repaid 60 days later. That’s a long cash cycle! The distributor is in the middle, investing all of this expertise, servicing the products, offering advice and marketing it, so it is very easy to undervalue what that service is.” The negative effects of the pandemic on HH Electronics were mitigated somewhat by a healthy demand for Laney guitar amplifiers from bornagain musicians taking to their instruments again during lockdowns. “I think the most annoying aspect of the pandemic was the inability to be able to see far enough ahead,” Laney recalls. “Generally, we

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look 90–120 days in advance in terms of supply and between six and 12 months in front in terms of product development. Instead, we were contemplating what to tell our staff on a Monday morning on Sunday night. I had to provide a motivational memo for the week not knowing what to say but, ultimately, you just get on with it. Fortunately, we had geared up to working remotely, having had new software installed in late 2019 to provide task management, traceability and communication in addition to videoconferencing.”

The TNiC ceiling speaker range

The HH team displays a certain camaraderie at trade shows

Assuming leadership qualities required for such a crisis, Laney soon realised that he had been relieved of those pre-Covid shor t-term distractions where he would have to make impor tant decisions in an often-hasty manner. “My first duty was to reassure all the team individually that their job remained safe and that they use this downtime constructively to focus on how we could better develop the business. Keeping the whole R&D team focused and working throughout the pandemic was vital. Our goal was to come out of this situation with more things to say.” One of the key team members motivated to spearhead HH’s for tunes was sales and marketing manager, Adam Groves. “The challenge brought by the pandemic has given us more drive to succeed than ever,” explains Groves. “Global audio markets may have been devastated for the last 18 months, but we decided as a group to be proactive from the ver y beginning. Therefore, from a sales perspective, we remained in constant communication with our global par tners, while also establishing new relationships around the globe. In terms of marketing,

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BUSINESS: COMPANY PROFILE can put through the business with ships stuck up the Suez Canal is somewhat different. Infrastructures have been hugely disrupted while freight and shipping has risen exponentially in cost. The supply chain remains in upheaval and so the cost of components has gone through the roof and are really difficult to source. Microprocessors and DSP chips, for example, that previously cost $2 are now $12.” Emerging from the pandemic fog with a fully galvanised and re-energised team together with a soon-to-be-revealed new product focus, HH Electronics is about to write the next chapter of its legacy. “As the world star ts to reopen, I am optimistic that there will be a lot of oppor tunities for growth where HH can capitalise,” concludes Laney. “The overriding thing our industr y needs right now is for people to live freely within their own countries and demand to be enter tained once again.”

L–R: James Laney, Ben Chen and Ian Wright at Prosound’s new offices in Taichung

The Tensor TRE-1201 and TRE-1501 full-range speaker systems

HH Electronics sales and marketing manager, Adam Groves

HH increased the generation of official brand content and fur ther developed par tnerships with both new and existing external influencers. Additionally, for product development, the team conducted an in-depth market research campaign by gathering input from our global customers to create lucrative product development strategies. There has been no downtime.” The borders closed in Australia on 15 March 2020 and do not appear to be reopening anytime soon. Frequent flyer Wright’s wings have been temporarily clipped but, like Laney, he has grasped the many positives accrued from the pandemic. “Ten years ago it would have been impossible to work like we have in the last 18 months, but I have been able to keep in touch with everyone from my home in Adelaide. The world’s a lot smaller with videoconferencing technology, although it will never substitute the one-on-one, in-person meeting because you cannot develop relationships online. Those real-world meetings are a little bit more candid than on a computer screen. “We used to spend a for tune on travel as our engineers flew to China ever y month and the sales teams constantly travelled around the world. In addition to all the planning that was involved, the hours I previously spent on planes, in taxis and hotels travelling really added up. We will have

to critically assess the viability of any travelling in future, because a video call may suffice. As much as I’d rather be out and about visiting customers in the market, I have relished my family time. Although it was hard to transition during those first few surreal months, I do not miss cer tain aspects of that pre-Covid lifestyle.” Like most manufacturers, HH Electronics has balanced buoyant sales in China with fluctuations in other APAC countries resulting from opening up and locking down the economy. “The project installation side of the business continued during the first 6–8 months with works that had already been committed to,” continues Wright. “Therefore, roughly 90% of our focus is now on developing installation products including systems, for which we have an exciting road map ahead of us. We have star ted by filling some holes in our current product lines.” As the situation develops, new problems have required Laney to make bold decisions. “Our stocks of por table PA initially gathered dust in the warehouse, but we have been selling large quantities recently, because others have cleaned out all their inventor y,” he says. “The market has been faced with no shipping, no production and no components. Demand may be amazing and the order book astonishing, but the reality of what you

L–R: Ian Wright, Dio from Chinese distributor Eatrend and Duncan Boniface Laney realises he is ver y much an anomaly who doesn’t fit the typecast second-generation owner. “One of my good friends identified second-generation owners as a problem in our industr y,” he reflects. “Luckily, he followed up by explaining that I was an exception to this. I don’t subscribe to the idea of what this business can give me in three years so that I can buy myself a Lamborghini or a big house. If that was the case, I know that I’m in the wrong business. We are a company that is ver y much in this for the long term and we enjoy what we do.” www.hhelectronics.com www.laney.co.uk

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25/06/2021 11:17

BUSINESS: COMPANY PROFILE

The tm touch

tm st

L–R: Mark Lownds and Treva Head hand over a new system for Sydney Trains

tm stagetec systems, the Sydney-based company celebrating 10 years in business, has grown rapidly from an arm of the Salzbrenner Mediagroup into a complete infrastructure and integration provider. Caroline Moss talks to the two men who made this happen

MINUTES INTO THE ZOOM INTERVIEW WITH TREVA HEAD and Mark Lownds, it becomes apparent why their business, tm stagetec, has soared to success over the past decade. The pair, whose initials prefix the name of their venture, are in per fect harmony, answering questions in turn, sometimes finishing each other’s sentences, and always in agreement. “We have quite a different company today from the one that we started,” muses Head of the firm he and Lownds launched in 2011 as Stagetec Mediagroup Australia under the banner of the German-owned Mediagroup Consortium. “We started off working from our sofas, just Mark and myself, with some assistance from the Salzbrenner Mediagroup HQ in Germany.” Initially, the company was set up to distribute Mediagroup products in Australia, designing the systems they were deployed in. Both have backgrounds in radio broadcast. Head had spent 10 years at Klotz Digital, upgrading radio stations around the country. He first encountered Lownds – who studied audio engineering at SAE before moving into IT and then broadcasting – at Nova Network, where they designed a digital system together. “We got to respect each other’s abilities and the way we worked in our design philosophies,” Head continues. “We came up with this throwaway phrase: ‘Oh, that’s the TM touch, that’s Treva and Mark’.” The seeds of their future company were sown. When Stagetec was looking for expertise on the ground in Australia for its new on-air console, Head jumped at the opportunity, taking Lownds along with him. “I asked Mark if he felt like a new adventure,” he says. “We started without an office and went for three tenders thinking that if we got one of them, that would be great. We suddenly got all three: a digital PA system for [suburban passenger rail network operator] Sydney Trains, the replacement of radio consoles at ABC and the replacement of stage management consoles at the Sydney Opera House.”

Mark Lownds conducts factory acceptance testing at the company’s first office The pair moved into a 100m2 office, quickly relocating to premises double the size before breaking a second lease to move into the 1,200m2 facility they and their team occupy today. “Sometimes we’re full, but we’re managing,” says Lownds. “When we first started, Treva and I had to do nearly everything, from engineering to finance, and we’d bring in freelancers and contractors. Eventually, we hired two or

three more engineering staff, then some dedicated project managers, then we needed some documentation people, and we just kept expanding.” The 35 staff members today are split across engineering, logistics, sales, management, administration, support and project management. A major milestone came in 2017 when, at the SMPTE show in Sydney, the company announced a change of name

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to tm from the p well a worki and n looke to evo to it. infras public there becau lookin ‘bring of tec that p To th that w “We d in a b for – neede put a With and o As t produ the c autho distri Track becom audio all of techn Hea organ Mark proble them that’s in the do it get ex excite The Trains comm

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BUSINESS: COMPANY PROFILE

tm stagetec’s Roland Aggio makes cables in the company’s second office to tm stagetec systems. “That was a big change for us, from selling products from within the group, to expanding the portfolio and becoming a distributor in Australia as well as a systems house,” recalls Lownds. “We went from working within the Salzbrenner group to being standalone and negotiating distribution and dealer agreements. We looked at what we were and how the company was going to evolve and realised there were three different parts to it. There’s the pro audio and broadcast side; there’s infrastructure, which is the railways and passenger and public information systems, as well as ICT support. And there’s systems integration, which ties everything together, because in broadcast and infrastructure alike, everybody’s looking for integrated products. We came up with the ‘bringing technology together’ tagline, because we grab lots of technology and bring it all together to make something that people want.” To this end, Head and Lownds began investigating products that would allow them to provide complete ecosystems. “We didn’t want to represent products that were just sold in a box, we wanted to know what else they could be used for – solutions that could help our customers fix what they needed,” Lownds continues. “We want to help our clients put an entire system together, and maintain it once it’s in. With most of our projects we like to have long-term support and ongoing relationships.” As tm stagetec systems took off in its new direction, more products were added to the portfolio. In January 2018, the company became a Dante Domain Manager (DDM) authorised reseller. Later that year, it took on exclusive distribution for Out Board’s TiMax SoundHub and TiMax Tracker in Australia, as well as Glensound. By 2019, it had become an Australian dealer for DirectOut’s range of pro audio connectivity, networking and bridging solutions, adding all of Merging Technologies’ products including new AoIP technology in early 2020. Head puts the company’s success down to its agility and organic growth. “We adapt very quickly,” he says. “Because Mark and I are both from engineering backgrounds, no problem is too hard. We like the challenges; we actively seek them. Our skill sets are mutually helpful to each other, and that’s one of the reasons why we started to work together in the first place. If something’s a struggle for me, Mark can do it and vice versa. We can solve complicated problems, we get excited about the technology and the challenge, and that excitement’s quite contagious; it brings people in.” The initial tender to provide a digital PA solution for Sydney Trains set a precedent for inventing solutions that weren’t commercially available, with the company designing a new

tm stagetec’s Ryan Van Der Meer building the POC for Sydney Trains

L–R: Mark Lownds and Treva Head celebrate 10 years in business network amplifier module for the job. “If the product doesn’t exist, we’re not too scared to make it ourselves,” asserts Head. “That’s what we did with Sydney Trains, and it solved a problem that needed a solution.” As the company evolved into its new incarnation from 2017, it began branching out into other areas. “Part of the idea behind the name change was to highlight the broader range of what we could do, such as systems integration, infrastructure projects and video,” says Lownds, referring to a more recent project for Sydney Trains for which the company provided temporary screens due to the closure of the Harbour Bridge for track repairs. “We provided them with a multimodal transportation display system, so we’re evolving, we’re not just doing audio anymore. I see video playing a big part because integrated systems are everywhere now, from a pub to a train station. Everybody’s got screens and audio systems, and you want them to work with each other. It’s the same with broadcast, even a radio station now is broadcasting with their cameras on the internet.” “There’s been a real convergence of technologies; we’ve seen audio-over-IP, for instance, really grow in the last 10 years,” adds Head. “It just makes sense that all the video comes along with that as well. And with people working remotely, a lot more things are coming together where people don’t have to be contained in one spot.” Which brings us to the inevitable subject of life during Covid. “The past year has made people think outside of the

box,” says Lownds. “Even here in Australia, where we don’t even have restrictions at the moment, we’re using video conferencing for meetings that a year ago, we would have driven to and met the person. It’s changed the way we work, but I don’t think it’s changed the technology yet.” “There’s been a catalyst to use it and to embrace it, but it all comes down to the network,” says Head. “When people join our company, we insist that they learn everything about networking, because all of the products need to interface with each other, and you need a good understanding of that. We teach them the full levels of Dante and IP standards. Something we talk about all the time is that broadcast engineering has been the best educational experience for us, because in a broadcast facility, you have to deal with everything as an engineer. You have to know how to do lighting, air conditioning, electricity, diesel suppliers; you learn about redundancy, transmitter sites, audio; you learn about people, how people interact with technology. So we try to instil a few of those things into our staff.” Another arm of the company is its online store, launched 10 years ago, and now coming into its own. “The interest just wasn’t there in the beginning, but we’re starting to see a bit more movement in that space,” says Lownds. “People just want to be able to log on and see if you’ve got stock and what the prices are, so I think that’s going to take off.” To ensure staff are fully abreast of technological developments, tm stagetec conducts a hybrid of educational procedures, combining certification programmes with internal training, including on-the-job learning. “We have junior staff members working with more senior people, holding formal training courses internally for senior staff as well,” says Lownds. “We also hire industry experts and consultants to come in and conduct workshops for us, occasionally.” Adds Head: “We carry out some specialist training as well, such as disability systems: how hearing loops work and how we should tune them. That’s been a sector for us that’s really grown. A lot of people aren’t aware of the systems that are in place for disabilities.” tm stagetec continues to grow and diversify, with multiple ongoing projects for Sydney Trains including a major upgrade for the Sydney Metro at Central Station and the digitalisation of PA systems across the rail network’s stations, plus DAB+ audio distribution systems for broadcaster SBS in Sydney and Melbourne as well as a job for the Parliament of Victoria. It might not be long before the company starts searching for premises number four after all. www.tm-systems.com.au

July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 75

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BUSINESS: TECHNOLOGY

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To the front of the line

Acoustic test manufacturer Audio Precision discusses the constraints of the modern production line and why it’s developed an all-in-one test solution to aid manufacturers AUDIO PRECISION’S CREDENTIALS AS ONE OF THE industry’s leading test equipment manufacturers are the result of more than 35 years of specialist expertise. Throughout this time, the company’s products have been pointing engineers in the right direction despite an ever-shifting technological landscape that consistently introduces new challenges and constraints to the way electroacoustic devices are tested. Founded by a dedicated group of four individuals back in 1984, the Oregon-based company offers high-performance audio analysers, software and accessories to help manufacturers design, validate, characterise and, ultimately, produce a range of consumer, professional and industrial audio products. With the increase in integration of audio into a wider range of products (for example, the voice-activated TV remote) and the explosion in demand for consumer electronics, manufacturers are, as Audio Precision director of marketing and sales

operations Eric Hodges explains, faced with both increasing device complexity and cost pressure. “The primary goal in test system setup, whether that’s setting up a new system, calibrating the system for a new shift or reconfiguring the system for a change in the device type being tested, is to get it done as quickly and efficiently

The APx517B Speaker Test Application

Audio Precision director of marketing and sales operations, Eric Hodges

as possible,” he says. “The faster you can get a product or component through the production process, including the testing steps which validate that it is going to perform correctly for the customer, the better. The last thing any manufacturer wants to be doing is shipping a bad product and they want to be able to find out whether they are or not as quickly as possible.” Compared to their more development-focused siblings, these test systems need to operate in an efficient manner as when it comes to the production line, any interruptions can quickly become expensive. To tackle this, Audio Precision felt the time was right to create a dedicated all-in-one unit to fulfil these specific production line testing demands. “People that have been around the audio equipment industry for many years traditionally think of Audio Precision as an R&D tool, and specifically for electronics,” notes Hodges. “They would not typically think of us in terms of acoustic test and/or production test. I understand that, but we’ve been adding functionality, both through hardware and in our software for both of those types of applications, whether it’s electronic or acoustic, and whether it’s R&D or manufacturing.” The goal of production testing is to ensure that the devices manufactured and shipped perform as intended, as any uncontrolled variability or tolerances, either in materials and

components or in the assembly processes, can negatively impact performance. The key question then becomes: what is the most effective way to test devices to ensure they meet specifications? If manufacturing test is viewed as a range, it’s anchored on one end by absolute quality assurance via full testing of the device. Here, the test strategy is defined by the product’s functional specification and every product assembled is tested to ensure that every element – connectors, speakers and microphones – works to specification. Such a test strategy is expensive, both in terms of the required equipment and the production time devoted to testing. At the opposite end of the range is simply not testing a device at all. Such a strategy is often employed in cases where the product is so inexpensive that investment in testing can’t be justified. Here, the customer is effectively the quality control process. Field failures and returns are the main indicators of a quality problem. Between these two extremes is a multifaceted assessment that compares the cost of test and the cost of failure. Depending on the value of a product or its brand perception, ensuring that no sub-par products reach customers might be a key factor in an overall product strategy. The determination of just how critical that is, or isn’t, can define the manufacturing quality standard and inform an appropriate strategy.

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BUSINESS: TECHNOLOGY “Creating the manufacturing test strategy for an audio device can be regarded as the need to balance costs, specifically the cost of test against the cost of failure,” explains Hodges. “While simple in concept, this can be a far more complex equation involving several variables. If it’s a lower value product, then I have a lower budget for testing, and so I might use a simpler solution. For situations like this, we have developed the APx500 Flex, which is our software paired with a soundcard. “For devices that command a higher price point,” furthers Hodges, “where the impact of shipping a bad unit is worse than for a lower value product, they’re going to have a better test budget and that’s where an integrated system like the APx517B is better suited. The decision is a reflection of what kind of product am I testing, and what the value of that product is or the brand it’s attached to.” Audio Precision’s APx517B ready-to-go system encompasses an audio analyser, power amplifier, headphone amplifiers and microphone power supply, along with the ability to add an optional digital interface. It boasts a setup time of less than five minutes, making it ideal for fast deployment on the production line. For lower-cost testing, AP’s APx500 Flex is a software audio analyser paired with an ASIO-capable audio interface. “These are the challenges that we’re tackling with the APx517B, and it’s a game changer when it comes to the production line testing of acoustic devices, i.e. headphones, speakers and speaker drivers, headsets, microphones, or any of the myriad electronic products with integrated speakers and/or microphones,” notes Hodges. “For audio devices, particularly acoustic devices like speakers, headphones and headsets, you were previously connecting things up and having to do a bunch of setup and configuration before you could even begin to run the tests. If you can save time in that setup and configuration, it’s a big deal. So, there was a recognised need for a dedicated system.” Prior to the availability of the APx517B and APx500 Flex solutions, manufacturers would have had to compile a production test solution from its various components. “The APx 1701 was our first step in this direction. It had all the important accessories for

A rub and buzz loudness measurement result testing acoustic devices, integrated in one system, and then it connected with a separate APx analyser. But manufacturing tests can be very cost-sensitive and space-limited, and the previous solutions still required the two boxes. The ability to smash those both together into one piece of hardware is a key improvement towards addressing that problem in a cost-effective, but performance-oriented, manner.” Yet as technology continually develops and evolves, so too must the test hardware and methodology to certify it. As the variety of smart devices entering the marketplace continues to expand, new challenges loom for companies like Audio Precision. “For us, everything comes down to having a passion for audio measurement and looking at ways we can continue

to innovate in that – addressing the problems customers are bringing to us and finding solutions to creatively solve those problems,” reflects Hodges. “At the moment, the proliferation of smart devices is driving certain new innovations, such as open loop testing, and we’re continually focused on how testing procedures can be refined as the smart devices category, in particular, broadens. But the other element is digital interfaces. Standards such as Bluetooth are continuously evolving and there are a number of new interface options out there. As people are constantly figuring out better ways to do things, then we also have to figure out a way to test it.” www.ap.com

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25/04/2021 12:13:13 25/06/2021 15:58

NEWPRODUCTS

INSTALLATION • AV • LIVE SOUND • BROADCAST • POSTPRODUCTION • RECORDING • LIGHTING A–ZCONTENTS

NEXO debuts its first column speaker NEXO has unveiled a new big brother to the iD24, and its first column speaker design, in the form of the ID84 THE NEW cabinet comprises eight 4-inch longexcursion neodymium low-frequency drivers paired with an array of eight 1-inch dome tweeters configured in a patented arrangement to maximise efficiency. It boasts a peak SPL output of 135dB and a frequency response of 90Hz – 20kHz, with the French manufacturer stating that it is equally competent for speech and music reinforcement, and able to perform as a front-ofhouse reinforcement system in its own right. The slim, 1m-long column is joined by two companion products, a low-frequency extension module (ID84L) and partner sub-bass (IDS312), which can be configured to provide a scalable solution for acoustically challenging architectures. Weighing 15kg, the ID84 measures 990mm x 150mm and is constructed from rigid, lightweight aluminium, with a steel spine to host the rigging system and facilitate the hanging of multiple cabinets. Magnelis side covers and front grille complete its aesthetic, while the enclosure is available as standard in black or white, with custom RAL colour options to match any installation environment. The ID84 offers switchable dispersion, with a choice of two vertical directivities selectable by a switch on the back plate – +0/–10° in Narrow Mode or +0/–25° in Wide Mode. Dedicated presets are available for each directivity. Sonically, the ID84 shares the same phase response as other NEXO loudspeakers, making it possible to pair with different models without the risk of comb filtering or the need for complex electronic adjustment. For long-throw applications, the ID84L lowfrequency extension cabinet has almost exactly the same footprint as the ID84 and contains eight 4-inch LF components. By doubling the line length, the vertical directivity of the assembly is increased in the low frequencies

while reportedly leaving the horizontal directivity unchanged. By coupling four units (two ID84s with two ID84Ls), the HF arrangements can be paired at two mid-points to produce cardioid radiation down to 90Hz. The ID84 can stand alone on a specially designed base plate or stacked on the dedicated IDS312 sub. The sub itself weighs 31kg and measures 1,160mm x 380mm x 350mm. Frequency response is 40–120Hz and the peak SPL output is 138dB. The enclosure houses three high-excursion neodymium drivers in a bassreflex enclosure design. The crossover between the IDS312 and ID84 has been designed to extend both the frequency response of the main speaker and the directivity by acting like a homogenous 2m-high sound source. www.nexo-sa.com

IDS312

ID84

Absen Aurora Series/Absenicon 3.0 97 Adamson IS-Series 81 AEQ Talent/Olympia 3 92 99 AJA T-TAP Pro/Desktop Software v16 Allen & Heath Avantis V1.1 96 90 ARX Systems Ultra deBalancer/USB Ultra I/O Ashly Audio AquaControl update 94 Audac Touch v2.5 94 94 Audio-Technica Wireless Manager version 1.2.0 Audix A127 88 84 Axiom CXL12A B-Tech AV Mounts BT7886 99 97 Barco OverView LVD-5521C and KVD-5521C Biamp Cambridge Qt X Series 91 86 Bosch Dicentis 3.60 Bose AMM108/AMM112/AMS115 80 95 Brompton Technology Tessera v3.2 Calrec Calrec Assist 93 81 Celestion AN2075 Christie Mirage SST-6P 98 93 Clear-Com Station-IC/EHX 12.1 disguise xR update/r18 84 89 DPA Microphones 4466 Core/4488 Core Dynacord MXE5 update 92 100 Elation KL Fresnel 8 FC ETC Source Four LED Series 3/Desire Fresnel 101 EVE Audio SC4070 93 Exterity AvediaStream m9605 93 83 Extron TLP Pro 1230WTG/SMP 300 Series GLP CL1/CL1+ 101 95 Harrison Mixbus DAW/Mixbus32C HK Audio S210 V/S210 P 80 Idea Pro Audio EXO SM16-A 84 98 Ikegami UHK-X700 JVC Professional Video GY-HC900 and GY-HC500 update 96 80 K-array KGEAR Klotz AIS LX4/LX5/VU series 88 88 Kramer CLS-AOCU31/CC and CA-USB3/AAE L-Acoustics L-ISA Studio/L-ISA engine update 94 85 Lawo Home/mc²36 in 48-fader layout LD Systems Zone X 1208/Zone X 1208 D 86 85 Lectrosonics DBSM/DBSMD LG BU60PST/BF60PST 98 86 Listen Technologies ListenTALK 2.0 Martin Professional MAC Ultra Performance and Wash 101 82 Merging Technologies HAPI MKII NewTek 3Play 3P2 100 79 NEXO ID84 Optimal Audio Zone controllers 82 82 Pan Acoustics P SW-112 Panasonic PT-MZ880 Series 98 82 Peavey Commercial Audio Aureus Point Source Audio Lavalier Switch Kit 89 100 Quicklink STS410 RCF P Series/M 20X V.170 81 Robe LEDBeam 350 101 ROE Visual GhostFrame 100 Ross Video Inception V15 96 Sennheiser MKE 400/XS Lav 89 Sharp NEC Display Solutions Europe E Series 97 Solid State Logic UV-EQ/SiX CH 92 Sommer Cable HI-HOIC 88 Studio Technologies Model 5422A/Model 5401A 90 Tascam TM-200SG/TM-250U 89 Tasker TSK401/C128/TSK1038/TSK902 88 Telos Alliance Telos VX 84 TOA SA-60D/MX-9200 81 TVU Networks TVU Remote Commentator 96 UNiKA PRO-DI series 91 Wheatstone Blade 4 90 Williams AV Convey Video 86 Wohler Technologies iVAM1-3 92 Yamaha AFC Enhance/AFC Image 79

Yamaha furthers AFC technology DESIGNED TO turn an acoustically dead environment into a reverberant space at the touch of a button, Yamaha has upgraded its Active Field Control (AFC) technology. Delivering 96kHz processing capability, AFC has now been expanded to include AFC Enhance for ambience control and AFC Image for acoustic image control. The dimensional reverberation control capabilities of AFC Enhance can be used to create acoustic spaces in which acoustic images are positioned and moved around by AFC Image adopting a GUI. The reverberation of a space is controlled while making use of the natural acoustic properties of the existing structure, but without adding artificial reverb to the source sound to create a different impression. Instead, AFC Enhance controls sound propagation within the actual space so that reverberation and

volume can be altered while the natural sounds of musical instruments and voices are maintained. The perceived positions of acoustic images within a space are controlled by AFC Image. With a conventional stereo configuration, the acoustic image will vary according to the listener’s position. Immersive systems,

however, allow acoustic images to be placed and moved wherever they are needed to produce the desired effect, with the position remaining absolute regardless of listener location. Unique features include a speaker zoning function that assigns object sounds to only the desired speakers within the system and binaural output for immersive

sound in headphones. Systems can be flexibly customised to integrate DAWs, mixers and tracking systems in addition to third-party hardware and software. Yamaha has also expanded its Adecia conferencing solution family with the new wired RM-TT Tabletop Microphone. The Adecia Tabletop Solution, like the Adecia Ceiling System, is based on Dante audio networking and comprises the dedicated RM-CR conference processor, VXL1-16P line array speakers and optimised SWR2311P10G PoE+ switch for a “comfortable and effortless remote conferencing experience”. With DSP technology built in to maximise voice capture, the RM-TT relays speech in high quality, with maximum flexibility and scalability. www.yamaha.com/2/proaudio

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PRODUCTS

K-array targets new markets with KGEAR ITALIAN SPEAKER manufacturer K-array has unveiled a new line of audio solutions with the aim of introducing state-of-theart technologies to its products targeting budget-sensitive yet highly demanding applications. Named KGEAR, the new brand’s portfolio has been divided into two segments – High Performance and Installed Sound. The range includes column systems, line arrays, ceiling and wall-mount speakers, subwoofers and amplifiers for everything from large venues and commercial buildings to room-sized, residential environments. “Two of the most interesting products we are launching are our GF22 and GF82 columns,” explained KGEAR global sales and marketing manager, Lorenzo De Poi. “Featuring the same tiny column format, these two speakers are substantially different.” The GF22 is a 2x2-inch full-range point source speaker, while the GF82 is an 8x2-inch mini line array that benefits from K-array’s Pure Array Technology. They have been designed for low eye impact indoor and outdoor distributed sound applications where either coverage or extreme directivity are required. The GP8A is a PA column system with an 8-inch active subwoofer unit and a 4x2.5-inch line array column module. The compact system is described as easy to set up and

Bose’s aim is clear with AMM FORMING THE first instalment of the new AMM multipurpose loudspeaker series, Bose Professional has created two fullrange loudspeakers and a companion subwoofer. Featuring a coaxial two-way design, the AMM108 and AMM112 loudspeakers can be used as mains, monitors, fills or delays for a specific role in a system or in multiple roles within the same system. Consistent voicing with the existing AM array module and AMU utility loudspeaker lines means that models

GF22

AMM series

features Bluetooth connectivity which also allows users to pair two units together in True Wireless Stereo mode. It also has a built-in mixer with two mic inputs and reverb, a USB/SD player and separate controls for the subwoofer unit level.

from all three lines can be mixed and matched. Designed to deliver consistent frequency response, clarity and symmetrical projection across the listening area, both the AMM108 and AMM112 designs incorporate a Bose Beamwidth Matching Waveguide. Located just behind the grille, the waveguide seals the acoustic volume of the woofer and features a unique vent pattern that controls LF dispersion for aligning the low- and high-frequency beamwidths at crossover. Weighing 13kg, the passive AMM108 incorporates a 1.7-inch compression driver and 8-inch woofer to deliver 110° x 60° coverage with 128dB peak output. Delivering 110° x 60° coverage with 131dB peak output, the AMM112 is equipped with a 3-inch compression driver and 12-inch woofer. Both compact enclosures include integrated carrying handles, 35mm pole sockets and seven integrated M10 threaded inserts.

www.kgear.it

HK Audio expands SI Series

S210 P FOLLOWING IN the footsteps of the P10i and P10j, HK Audio has added to its “System Integrator” Series with the S210 V (protection class IP44) and S210 P (protection class IP66). The S210 V subwoofer is equipped with two 10-inch woofers and a large bassreflex port, which reduces unwanted flow noise due to its exponential contour. The cabinet has been optimised for installation purposes and kept as flat as possible. There are several mounting points as standard, where the optional U-Bracket can be attached. This means it can be installed on walls and ceilings, or even flown. The IP44 rating means that the S210 V can be installed in protected outdoor areas.

The S210 P is equipped with two 10-inch woofers on the front and two 10-inch passive radiators on the rear. This is the first time HK Audio has used passive radiators in an installation subwoofer. These are specially designed transducers that, unlike conventional speakers, have no magnets and no voice coil. Instead, carefully tuned resonators with additional weight are used. This technology is said to deliver significantly increased low-frequency output compared to a simple, closed cabinet. The IP66 rating means the S210 P can be used in harsh environments. www.hkaudio.com

New DM pendant speakers Providing low-frequency extension down to 35Hz and 130dB peak output, the companion AMS115 subwoofer features a 15-inch neodymium transducer. The 28kg enclosure includes 12 M10 threaded inserts for suspension in permanent

installations and an integrated M20 threaded pole mount for hosting the AMM108 or the AMM112 loudspeaker for FOH or fill applications. Alternatively, the AMM112 loudspeaker can be paired with the ShowMatch SMS118 subwoofer for higher-output, extended-bandwidth systems. Designed for both background and foreground audio applications in commercial sound installations, Bose has expanded the DesignMax loudspeaker

series with a range of pendant models. Ideal for open-ceiling installations, each plenum-rated back can is designed with sleek aesthetics and provides a recessed single-point suspension system, enabling hardware and Euroblock connectors to be kept out of sight, and a service loop to be held and hidden for easy access. The existing portfolio of DesignMax in-ceiling and surface-mount form factors together with companion subwoofers are voice matched to the new IP55 outdoor-rated coaxial pendants. Ensuring a consistent listening experience by matching the coverage of the woofer to the pattern of the tweeter, the DM3P, DM5P and DM6PE pendant loudspeakers feature the Bose Dispersion Alignment system. Incorporating a 3.25-inch woofer and 0.75-inch tweeter mounted within the Dispersion Alignment system, the 30W-rated DesignMax DM3P model is the smallest family member. Operating within a frequency range of 65Hz – 20kHz, the 60W-rated DM5P is equipped with a 5.25-inch woofer and 1-inch tweeter and the DM6PE marries a 6.5-inch woofer and 1.25-inch tweeter for BGM and foreground applications. Low-frequency enhancement down to 40Hz is catered for by the 300W DesignMax DM10P-SUB 10-inch pendant subwoofer that incorporates a 10-inch woofer. Available in black or white, the DesignMax pendants can also be paired with various Bose DSPs and amplifiers to enable Bose loudspeaker EQ and SmartBass processing. pro.bose.com

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P 522

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PRODUCTS

Weatherproof sound solutions Adamson prepares for the great outdoors

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RCF HAS unveiled its P Series speakers that have been designed to “deliver excellent music and speech intelligibility in a compact, lightweight and weatherproof enclosure”. The IP55/UV-protected cabinet integrates into any outdoor and indoor environments. Rigging is described as fast and easy with the pre-mounted bracket or the multiple brass suspension points. The P 4228 and P 3108 are full-range, two-way speakers. The high-frequency section includes two constant directivity CMD horns, each loaded respectively with a 1.4-inch and 1-inch RCF Precision neodymium compression driver with a 2.5-inch and 1.5-inch diaphragm assembly. The low-frequency section in both models combines two 8-inch woofers with a 2.5-inch voice coil. The P 1108T and P 5228-L are full-range, twoway line array speaker modules. Respectively, the high-frequency section includes one and two constant directivity CMD horn-loaded enclosures with a 1-inch RCF Precision neodymium compression driver and a 1.5-inch and 1.75-inch diaphragm assembly. The lowfrequency section features one and two 8-inch woofers with a 1.5-inch and 2.5-inch voice coil. The P 1108T also features a selectable line transformer for 70V/100V applications. The P 2110T, P 3115T and P 6215 are full-range, wide-dispersion, coaxial two-way loudspeaker systems. The low-frequency transducer of the P 2110T is a 10-inch woofer with a 2.5-inch voice coil; for the P 3115T it’s a 15-inch woofer with a 3-inch voice coil. The low-frequency transducer for the P 6215 is a 15-inch neodymium woofer, while the high-frequency section combines a 1.3-inch neodymium RCF Precision compression driver

with a 2.5-inch diaphragm assembly centrally mounted in the throat of the LF driver and loaded on a constant directivity CMD horn. The P 8015S is a bass-reflex subwoofer equipped with a 15-inch low-frequency neodymium transducer and a 4-inch voice coil. It has been specifically designed to reinforce the low-frequency range in P Series speakers. Its single-piece, roto-moulded cabinet is fully UV protected and meets IP55 standards. The sub is equipped with 12 M10 brass inserts and a durable and corrosion-resistant stainless-steel U-Bracket and two spacers for 90° mounting. The aluminium grille cover is powder coated with a water-repellent fabric backing. In brief, RCF has released firmware V.170 for its M 20X digital mixer. The update offers improved system robustness and stability; an extended digital trim level to –30dB to +30dB for stream/SD card/drive input sources; a new Solo Clear function; a new main out After Fader Level (AFL) source option for output routing; and the ability to fix initial EQ settings after a factory reset. The Italian manufacturer has also introduced firmware V.1.60 for its Evox JMix8. The update offers improved Bluetooth communication for compatibility with the latest iOS and Android versions and fixes to brightness, unwanted display flickering in specific contexts and unwanted EQ settings loss. www.rcf.it

ADDRESSING THE fixed installation market, Adamson Systems Engineering has created a range of new products, including an extension to the IS-Series of installation loudspeakers and a suite of updated design tools. Ideal for marine and coastal venues, outdoor stadiums and open-air performance spaces, and other permanent outdoor installations, the IS-Series Weatherised models achieve an IP55 rating without sacrificing performance or aesthetics. Corrosion resistance and environmental sealing features are integral to the new design. Offering 100% corrosion resistance, all structural steel elements of the IS-Series Weatherised cabinets integrate a stainless alloy. The new models also feature an interior and exterior coating with a distinctive smooth finish to create a water-resistant seal for easy cleaning and removal of dirt, salt water or sand. Available for immediate download from the Adamson website, the Canadian manufacturer has updated its suite of design tools for

New design tools integrators. These include the Autodesk Revit and SketchUp libraries for the IS-Series, together with updated EASE and CAD files for the complete Adamson loudspeaker line. www.adamsonsystems.com

Back to school with TOA P 6215

Celestion adds AN other compact array driver CREATED FOR large-scale mini-array applications where multiple drivers are together, Celestion has added a 32Ω version of the AN2075 2-inch compact array driver. The latest addition to the AN range of full-range neodymium loudspeakers promotes itself for portable or discreet, low-profile sound reinforcement applications where actively controlled beam steering is used. The driver incorporates a neodymium magnet assembly and stiff aluminium cone that remains rigid to higher frequencies for

IS-Series

delivering a smoother response. A glassreinforced ABS chassis is common to all the drivers in the AN Series. Each square mounting frame accommodates close coupling of multiple units for maximising free air movement. Each of the drivers in the AN Series has been optimised using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) techniques to give a wider dispersion characteristic than conventional loudspeakers of this size. www.celestion.com

DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY for ease of audio setup in training rooms and classrooms, TOA Electronics has released the SA-60D School Digital amplifier. The 60W Class-D digital amplifier can be paired with one or two speakers, a microphone system and an external audio device or MP3 player. Weighing 1.6kg, the compact unit is equipped with two mic and two aux inputs together with a low impedance output connection (4Ω to 8Ω). Measuring 210mm x 70.6mm x 180mm (WxHxD), the steel-plated case is finished in an off-white paint that can be wall- or desktop-mounted in the classroom environment. The manufacturer has also released the MX-9200 mixer pre-amplifier equipped with up to nine inputs and two channel outputs. Four of the nine inputs have the option of phantom power. The MX-9200 has a frequency response of 30Hz – 20kHz and comes with various parameter settings, such as volume, bass, middle, treble and mute. These can all be controlled and adjusted remotely via

SA-60D an Android touchscreen device with a Bluetooth connection, giving the user the convenience of making parameter adjustments instantly within the room, even when they are not near the equipment. The MX-9200 has been designed for function rooms, training rooms and even small-scale house of worship applications. www.toa.com.sg

MX-9200

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PRODUCTS

Merging reveals a new HAPI face IN ADDITION to PT64 HDX and MADI cards, both current and future AD/DA interface cards slot straight into the MERGING+HAPI MKII. The mastering grade headphone amplifier now monitors full DSD256 material with volume control from the front panel and is capable of driving ultra-low to very high impedance headphones. A clear Plexiglas

front panel has been created with improved display and dimming options. Designed to complement Anubis SPS and MADI, HAPI MKII also retains the redundant power supply option and is fully compliant with ST2022-7 Seamless Protection Switching in addition to NMOS and ST211030 compatibility. With switch mode support,

there is no longer the requirement for an external network switch when using one additional networked interface. While each channel can now be routed individually, dual Ethernet ports allow Switch Mode operation for connecting an additional

Ravenna/AES67 device without the need for an external switch. www.merging.com

Pan Acoustics sub combines power with versatility AVAILABLE IN passive and active versions, German manufacturer Pan Acoustics has expanded its portfolio with a compact, multifunctional subwoofer. The P SW-112 features a specifically designed 12-inch HQ woofer chassis that drives up to 3,600W (peak) power and 131dB (peak) output level. The passive version of the P SW-112 is equipped with two NL4 connectors and processing presets for most amplifier brands are available. The active

P SW-112 | SP version offers a total of three input options from analogue and AES/EBU using the Pan Net interface or via redundant Dante networks. Sufficient headroom of the integrated amplifier promotes the connection of an additional passive subwoofer via the NL4 connection. Internal DSP control can be configured remotely on the inclusive software via the Pan Net interface’s USB port or directly via a Dante network connection. All active components are matched with the speaker and five-band parametric equaliser,

gain and delay (up to 370ms) are included. Housed in birch plywood, the low-tuned speaker is based on a ported design and is available in standard black (RAL 9005) or white (RAL 9010) with a structured texture, but customised colours are available upon request. Integrated ergonomic handles in addition to an M20 pole mount promote the P SW-112’s use for both installations and mobile events. www.pan-acoustics.de/en

Optimal Audio takes control

Peavey Electronics unveils Aureus

OPTIMAL AUDIO offers a one-stop solution of control, amplification and loudspeakers for smalland medium-sized commercial installations, with a focus on supporting multi-zone venues. The products are designed as a cohesive ecosystem, and at the forefront of the ecosystem are fourand eight-zone, powered and non-powered Zone controllers that have DSP at their heart. According to the manufacturer, there is currently nothing else at this price point on the market that has the functionality and versatility to allow such a quick and simple setup. They have a flexible three-band EQ plus bandpass filtering on every output, alongside limiters and delay – features that are normally associated only with premium-priced offerings. They are described as easy to install, intuitive to operate and can be desktop or rack-mounted with convenient front panel controls for sources and levels with full configuration via the WebApp. They also include an emergency alarm override. All models also feature four line and two mic inputs plus two HDMI inputs for TV and video sound. Compatible with any device, Optimal Audio’s WebApp is said to make system setup straightforward, allowing installers as much access as they require to configure EQs, devise presets and structure time-of-day routines. Once

DESCRIBED BY Peavey as its most accessible digital mixer to date, the Aureus comes with a 10-inch multitouch display and access to almost any control with just a couple of taps. The mixer gives users the ability to save and store presets, scene and entire mixes onto a USB drive. The onboard dock allows a tablet to be placed as a second screen, so users can monitor the mix while adjusting a specific channel or separate group on the mixer. The Aureus offers 14 dedicated encoders, nine motorised faders (100mm) and 45 dedicated backlit buttons. It can connect to just about any audio source thanks to its 16 XLR-1⁄4-inch, RCA, Bluetooth (stereo long range) and USB (A/B) inputs. Phantom power (48V) is available for microphones on the 16 channels and the mixer comes with 14 outputs, including 10 XLR, USB and AES digital. The unit also offers a wide selection of reverb and delay through Peavey’s built-in FX series digital effects (23 effects across two engines) with simple and advanced modes. The five-band EQ is fully parametric for control and precision on each frequency. With eight busses, two mains and four DCAs, the Aureus offers users flexibility, whether they are behind the panel or nearby with remote control via onboard Wi-Fi. Password-assigned busses allow each musician to not only have their own mix, but also to control it using any device

WebApp completed, venue staff can then be presented with a simple user interface which allows them to operate the system. Zone controllers can also be supplemented by wall-mounted controllers called ZonePad, available in one- or four-zone formats, which reportedly ensure that operation by staff is simple, intuitive and within easy reach. These controllers are said to complement any décor and enable selection and volume control of playback source. ZonePad features a single proprietary RJ45/Cat5 connection for power, audio and control. www.optimal-audio.co.uk

Zone Series

that can open an HTML5-compatible browser. Users can connect up to 10 devices simultaneously to adjust any aspect of the mix. The Aureus includes three programmable mute groups and six dedicated mute functions, along with dedicated controls on the solo function. Data I/O includes the onboard Wi-Fi and Ethernet remote, while computer connectivity consists of Ethernet, Wi-Fi and USB port. The unit also includes a 1.25-inch headphone jack. The mixer is rack-mountable, measures 165mm x 380mm x 495mm (HxWxD) and weighs 7kg. www.peavey.com

82 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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PRODUCTS

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DESIGNED TO allow multiple tasks to be seen and managed at the same time, Extron has launched the TLP Pro 1230WTG touchpanel in an ultra-wide format. Featuring a 12-inch 1920x720 resolution touchscreen, the lowprofile TLP Pro 1230WTG provides ample screen space to simultaneously display full AV system controls, video preview and annotation controls. An HDMI video preview input is included for supporting high-resolution, HDCP-compliant video from an HDMI source and annotation is also supported when used in conjunction with an Extron Annotator. The TLP Pro 1230WTG operates with any Extron IP Link Pro control processor or HC 400 Series Meeting Space Collaboration system. Customisation is made possible by changing the individual graphic elements within the Extron GUI Designer software. Devised initially to unlock features that can expand system functionality, Extron’s LinkLicense continues to evolve. A new LinkLicense upgrade has been made available to enable SMP 300 Series devices to ingest recording and livestream schedules of live and on-demand video content. The Ensemble Video Features Upgrade provides automated publishing workflows to enhance engagement in online learning, lecture capture, flipped classrooms and virtual meetings. SW USB Pro Series switchers serve as active USB hubs by supplying power to attached devices. The 1U, half-rack width

TLP Pro 1230WTG enclosure is extended with the addition of the SW2 USB Pro and SW4 USB Pro USB switchers. The latest two- and fourinput models facilitate USB 3.2-compatible switching between multiple host devices and multiple USB peripherals. Designed

to operate with USB-C and Thunderbolt hosts and peripherals with data rates up to 10Gbps, the switchers also support auto and manual host together with peripheral switching via RS-232 or Ethernet. The integrated HID peripheral ports support

hotkey input switching via a connected keyboard. The Host and Peripheral Emulation Mode provide “keep alive” functionality by continuously mimicking host and keyboard/ mouse communications within the switcher. The UCS 900 Series extends USB data signals from cameras, conference systems and peripherals – such as mass storage devices, keyboards and mice in pro AV environments – to a host computer over fibre-optic cable. The latest SuperSpeed USB extenders are compatible with all USB standards up to USB 3.2 and support data rates up to 5Gbps. The transmitter’s USB‑C host connection can be powered by the host computer and the receiver features a two‑port USB hub for connecting remote peripherals. The UCS FTR 900 Kit includes a transmitter, receiver, 10m cable, power supplies and ZipClip mounting brackets. www.extron.com

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July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 83

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PRODUCTS

Telos virtualises its VX VoIP system

No test for EXO SPANISH MANUFACTURER Idea Pro Audio is shipping the EXO SM16-A stage monitor. Measuring 470mm x 320mm x 512mm, the compact dual 8-inch active model has been designed as a low-profile cabinet for multipurpose applications. An integrated 1.2kW Class-D power module comes with 24-bit @ 48kHz DPS offering four selectable presets – stage monitor, close-field, full range and 100Hz HPF. The HF section of the SM16-A utilises a 6-inch magnetic assembly for a 3-inch voice coil and a 1.4-inch compression driver coupled to an 50° x 80° (HxV) horn for a controlled coverage pattern. Operating within a 72Hz – 18kHz (–3dB) frequency range, the EXO SM16-A is capable of producing a continuous SPL of 130dB. The rear section features

discreet Neutrik powerCON I/Os together with powerCON and XLR connectors. The 15mm/18mm birch plywood enclosure incorporates a steel grille, an integrated handle, 14 threaded M8 inserts and a tilt and lock U-Bracket promoting 36mm pole mounting and truss suspension. Dedicated transport, installation and rigging accessories are available, including a two-unit wheeled flightcase with power and signal cabling. www.ideaproaudio.com

Axiom unveils high-output stage monitor THE CXL12A is a coaxial stage monitor designed specifically for live sound, although the compact, low-profile enclosure also makes it suitable for theatre, TV, corporate and HOW applications. The monitor combines a highperformance coaxial transducer, a carefully designed cabinet and “powerful electronics” to provide very high SPL before feedback. The transducer’s coaxial design is said to offer a stable acoustical pattern in both the horizontal and vertical axes. The compact, single magnet neodymium motor reduces the delay between the two sources to help eliminate time and phase problems, and reportedly promotes high performance with a consistent weight reduction. The high-frequency range is reproduced by a low-distortion compression driver equipped with a 1.7-inch aluminium voice coil and polyimide diaphragm. The custom-designed horn provides a controlled dispersion of 50° x 70° (HxV), allowing consistent off-axis coverage. The 12-inch woofer employed in the reproduction of the low-frequency range is equipped with a 2.5-inch voice coil. Thanks to a special treatment process that makes the cone water repellent, the CXL12A is able to perform in adverse weather conditions and is therefore suitable for outdoor use.

The reduced size of the Baltic birch cabinet and the reduced weight are said to make the cabinet easy to transport and position onstage. A convenient dualangle pole holder allows the CXL12A to be mounted on a standard speaker stand for it to be used as a multipurpose FOH loudspeaker. The cabinet can be positioned with two different angles to the floor (35° and 50°) so it can be placed at differing distances from the musicians according to the size of the stage and the kind of monitoring needed. System processing is based on the Core LT DSP platform designed by Proel’s R&D laboratories, featuring high-per formance signal processing and high-definition 24-bit converters. The Core LT DSP makes it possible to set an optimal time alignment for the crossover filter resulting in a linear phase response. The correct acoustic filtering has been achieved using the Constant Power Crossover technique that, thanks to a particular phase relation, is said to result in a very smooth transition between LF and HF and an even dispersion in the crossover region.

THE TELOS Alliance has created a virtual version of its VX VoIP system that can be deployed on a broadcaster’s servers in the rack room, on shared servers in a centralised data centre or in the cloud instead of requiring dedicated hardware. The benefits of virtualisation include easier facility-wide upgrades, cost efficiency and automated deployment without site visits. Broadcasters can also scale VXs in size from a single studio to a facility-wide talkshow system to a multi-location system. VX includes Smart AGC coupled with the manufacturer’s three-band adaptive Digital Dynamic EQ, a three-band adaptive spectral processor, noise gating and Acoustic Echo Cancellation. HD voice calls benefit from VX’s native support of the G.722 codec, for improved caller speech quality. Whether users are new to IP networking, integrating with an existing AoIP network

or plugging into a Livewire network, they can integrate VXs into the ecosystem. For those new to IP audio networking, VXs will work with all console brands, networked or not, using Telos Alliance’s xNodes. Support for AES67 gives broadcasters the capability of integrating the solution into any AES67 or compatible SMPTE 2110-30 environments. Support for SAP advertisement means VX integrates alongside AES67-enabled Dante devices as well. The solution is available as either a subscription or one-time purchase. www.telosalliance.com

disguise improves support for Unreal Engine DISGUISE HAS improved its integration with the Unreal Engine as the demand for high-quality immersive content continues to rise in Extended Reality (xR) and virtual production scenarios. Originally intended for videogame development, Unreal is a photorealistic rendering, animation, physics and AI engine that has increasingly been adopted as the tool of choice for various video production requirements. The latest features introduced in RenderStream, disguise’s proprietary IP protocol that enables the hosting of Unreal content on dedicated disguise hardware, includes ACES colour management, DirectX12 (DX12) and Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) support from Nvidia. ACES (the Academy Colour Encoding System) is one of the leading colour management systems in the film and VFX space, and its integration in RenderStream means that users can now access its workflow end-to-end through the disguise system, enabling unparalleled colour quality for motion picture images.

The manufacturer has also implemented a pipeline that supports Unreal Engine running DLSS – a Nvidia technology that enables content to be rendered at a lower resolution and later up-sampled using a GPU-accelerated deep learning model to reconstruct the image at the higher resolution. The inclusion of DirectX12 support unlocks advanced rendering features such as ray tracing. In addition to improved Unreal integration, disguise’s r18 software launch includes the public release of disguise xR and the much-anticipated cluster rendering feature. disguise xR integrates with LED, real-time content and camera tracking technologies to power immersive virtual environments. The cluster rendering feature, meanwhile, has been developed in partnership with Unreal Engine to unlock new photorealistic content of the highest quality, detail and frame rate at any scale. www.disguise.one

www.axiomproaudio.com

84 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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Lawo finds a new Home WITH THE release of Home, Lawo has premiered a new management platform for IP-based media infrastructures. Home is natively built on a cloud-ready microservices architecture, enabling users to connect, manage and secure networked production setups from the ground up. Home provides centralised access and control for all Lawo hardware within a setup and allows broadcasters to conduct automated discovery and registration of devices, connection management, flow control, software and firmware management, scalability and security. Designed to simplify IP complexity, Home comes with automatic plug-and-play discovery of IP audio and video devices, which are registered with their name, location, status and type. This applies not only to Lawo products but to third-party solutions as well via NMOS. Discovered devices can be managed in a central inventory list, ready for access and configuration. The platform also provides a centralised mission control for the device management processes, providing fast and unified access to device parameters for control purposes. A user-friendly UI allows operators to access, set up and change stream configurations in one place before routing them across an infrastructure without the need for a separate controller. For large infrastructures, Home operates with a broadcast controller in the same setup and helps to speed up configuration and operation. Home is based on LUX, which is a UI language common to all Lawo devices and many of its functionalities where operators can access and edit device parameters quickly. Providing a simple yet robust security system of the media infrastructure and content creation, Home comes with a variety of security strategies. Unknown devices are quarantined when they appear online, but can be manually approved,

Home’s device management comes with a built-in quarantining process to separate unknown devices from the operational network via an IEEE802.1X-based routine that allows the exchange of signals with the Home network. The LDAP-based service allows users to authenticate either locally within Home or via their own corporate IT infrastructure. Finally, Home’s architecture also manages services such as transport layer security, network segmentation and other IT security mechanisms such as Radius. Cloud-native by design, Home’s architecture operates separately from hardware constraints. The platform is designed as functional blocks that provide microservices, which are self-contained and supply functionality to operators or other services. The scale can be expanded with additional services at any time on demand to increase its functionality. The Home platform is based on open standards including ST 2110, NMOS, IEEE802.1x and Radius and follows LUX,

Lawo’s unified experience design principles, which provide a consistent workflow across all Lawo IP products.

In other news, Lawo’s new second-generation mc²36 audio production console has received a new dual-fader operating bay that allows 48 faders in the same space as a 32-fader board. With DSP more than doubled from its predecessor, the new mc²36 with builtin A__UHD Core functionality offers 256 processing channels, available at both 48kHz and 96kHz, and natively supports ST 2110, AES67, Ravenna and Ember+. It provides an I/O capacity of 864 channels, with local connections that include three redundant IP network interfaces, 16 Lawo-grade mic/line inputs, 16 line outputs, eight AES3 inputs and outputs, eight GPIO connections and an SFP MADI port. Lawo has also announced a new software update for users of Lawo radio mixing consoles, Power Core mixing engine and On-Air Designer configuration software. V6.6 PL-003 represents a major upgrade to On-Air Designer, which is used to customise the functions of Lawo’s radio mixing consoles and audio cores, including the ruby radio console. www.lawo.com

mc236 in 48-fader layout

Lectrosonics packs more features into miniature transmitters WITH THE unveiling of the DBSM single battery and DBSMD dual-battery bodypack transmitters, Lectrosonics has extended its digital wireless microphone system family. The new units are fully compatible with the existing DSQD digital receiver, DCHR digital portable receiver and DCR822 compact dual-channel digital receiver, and feature a tuning range covering both the A1 and B1 bands from 470MHz to 614MHz. The transmitters include high-efficiency circuitry that extends AA battery operating times and offers RF power selections at 10mW, 25mW and 50mW. In addition, a selectable high-density transmission mode (HDM) provides tighter channel spacing, resulting in a doubling of operating frequencies per available spectrum. To ensure that the new high-density mode can be implemented, firmware updates for the DSQD, DCHR and DCR822 receivers in addition to Mac/PC versions of the Wireless Designer software can be downloaded.

Both the DBSM and DBSMD operate within a frequency response of 20Hz – 20kHz in standard transmission mode, providing a dynamic range of 112dB and a flat inband phase response. Both transmitters can be configured as recorders with files stored on a microSD card memory as a WAV (BWF) format

at a 24-bit/48kHz sample rate. The TA5M mic/line connector also serves as a timecode input for jam sync with master clocks on set, making audio file alignment quick and easy in postproduction. The internal clock provides accuracy of less than 1ppm for all-day operation. Furthermore, the microSD memory card can be used to update the units’ firmware in the field. The DBSM and DBSMD

respond to remote dweedle tone commands that are available via third-party apps including New Endian’s LectroRM and PDR Remote, which can manage the frequency, audio level, lock/unlock and recording settings. Housed in the same aluminium chassis as the previous generation SMWB and SMDWB units, standard accessories such as belt clips, battery eliminators and pouches remain compatible. The input wiring also remains the same as previous generations of SM series transmitters, promoting the use of existing lavalier and headset microphones wired for either servo-bias or universal inputs, together with adapter cables for line inputs and dynamic mics. The two-way IR port has been added for quick setup and data sharing between units, including frequency tuning groups and encryption keys when in shared key management mode. www.lectrosonics.com

July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 85

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Listen Technologies launches ListenTALK 2.0 THE MOBILE communication system ListenTALK has received a firmware upgrade that aims to overcome the challenges that distance, background noise, hearing loss and face coverings pose to communications. Listen Technologies reports that the new functionality makes it easier for interpreters and HOW guides using ListenTALK to listen to audio in one language and speak the words in another language without having to carry additional equipment. The upgrade is also said to enhance natural conversations by allowing three people to talk simultaneously. With the firmware update, interpreters can use one ListenTALK unit to hear a presenter’s message in their headset and speak the translated words to their audience using one unit hands-free. Listeners in the interpreter’s group can hear in their preferred language translated from the original source. Listeners can also use the push-to-talk feature to ask the interpreter

questions. Interpreters do not need to carry a separate receiver and transmitter or juggle two headsets or a microphone to hear audio from the presenter and listeners and to relay interpretations to listeners. Designed to support simultaneous interpretation in settings such as corporate

events, customer tours and worship services, ListenTALK also enables relay, or two deep interpretation, meaning an interpreter can listen to another interpreter translate the main presenter’s words and then

intelligence platform is the standout feature of Williams AV’s new Convey Video platform.

The solution is capable of real-time translation with the ability to transcribe up to 27 languages and 70+ dialects with up to 94% accuracy. In addition to real-time continuous translation, Convey Video aims to provide accurate speech-to-text transcription and archiving of all events. The solution can be integrated into an array of video environments with simple language selection and setup per formed

Williams interprets the action

PROFESSIONAL REAL-TIME language translation powered by Google’s artificial

Bosch increases connectivity

WITH DICENTIS software release 3.60, Bosch has made it possible for other interpretation services and systems to provide languages to the Dicentis system. Both external and in-system interpretation services work together based on the platform-independent Bosch conference protocol or the Windows .NET Application Programming Interface (API).

interpreter desks and the external system behave as one and the same system. The web server of the new 3.6 release extends what the manufacturer initially called synoptic control. Monitoring and controlling the participant and interpreter microphones was already easy with the synoptic room overview. It is now also possible to control the content

This functionality can be used for multi-room interpretation in a conference venue, but also makes it possible for service providers to offer remote interpretation. The external interpreting service behaves like an interpreter booth or desk in the Dicentis system, which enables the exchange of the “Language Quality Index”, the automatic relay between the two systems and the full control of the operator. If sufficient Dicentis Interpreter desks are available, Dicentis can even provide the floor fill for all languages. This makes the Dicentis

of the hall display: meeting, agenda and voting information can now be displayed. User interface elements like pie-charts or bar graphs can be dragged and dropped on a display layout to facilitate illustration of the total voting results. With this new release, the clerk can also use the web browser to open the meeting notes (including agenda, participants attendance and voting rounds) and the different voting round files (including authenticity check and printing possibility).

translate the words for his/ her own group. The system includes a software suite that lets venues name groups by language; up to 20 simultaneous groups can be created and/or languages can be interpreted in the same space in North America and Japan, and up to 30 simultaneous languages can be interpreted in the same space in Europe. The units can be sanitised between use and operate on a low-interference DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Communications) band. Audio can be transmitted within a 100m radius indoors and a 200m radius outdoors. www.listentech.com

via keyboard, mouse or touchscreen. Personalisation can be set by an integrator or end user for language, text size, selectable 1–3 lines of text, colour, background and text location. The platform offers an alternative when live interpreters are not available or within a project’s scope of budget. www.williamsav.com

LD Systems is in the Zone DESIGNED FOR a wide range of audio applications from simple switching of microphones to complex multi-room installations, LD Systems is now shipping the Zone X 1208 and Zone X 1208 D hybrid architecture DSP matrix processors. The hybrid architecture promotes remote control options and the loading of DSP templates into the 19-inch processors without reconfiguration or rewiring. Templates are selected and operated via the universal Xilica Designer control software. In combination with the integrated event scheduler (planner), calendar-specific workflows can be created to automatically change presets. Integrating 12 balanced mic/line analogue inputs with preamps and eight analogue outputs, the models also include eight GPI and eight GPO logic ports. In addition to the Zone X 1208, which features analogue inputs and outputs and an Ethernet control interface, the Zone X 1208 D also offers 64x64 Dante

channels for the integration of audio-overIP. The inclusion of a remote bus ensures seamless integration of LD Systems’ wall panels and paging microphones. Dedicated remote control applications for iOS and Android are also available for customising the software’s user interface. The German brand has also announced additional EASE files for its installation loudspeaker series. Following the release of the DDQ series of active touring loudspeakers as GLL files for the 3D acoustic simulation software, LD Systems has invested in licensing additional loudspeaker series. The EASE files are now available for a wide range of installation loudspeakers for EASE, EASE Focus 3 and EASE Address applications. The complete list of licensed LD Systems products include selected models from the Contractor, CURV500, MAUI, SAT, Stinger and DDQ series. www.ld-systems.com

Zone X 1208 D www.bosch.com

86 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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PRODUCTS

Klotz AIS make new connections KLOTZ AIS has expanded its PRO DMX cable range with two further doubleshielded cable series in the form of the LX4 and LX5 with blue outer jacket and high-quality XLR 5p. connectors (3p. wired). Distinguished by blue PVC jackets, Klotz AIS has engineered the OT206YB and OT206PB cables for the LX4 and LX5 series, respectively. Combining flexibility with strength, both cable series have a conductor cross-section of 0.22mm² (AWG 24) and an exact characteristic impedance of 110Ω. Integrating an AL/ PET foil shield and an additional braided shield, the LX4 and LX5 cables are double

protected against inter ferences. The tightly stranded wire pairs additionally increase the inter ference immunity from electromagnetic sources for transmission in the digital field over long distances. Both the LX4 and LX5 series are equipped with transparent shrink sleeves on both sides and are available with Neutrik connectors in addition to the Klotz XLR 5p. connectors. The VU series of video cables has been expanded with the addition of adapter cables for transferring HD/ UHD/12G/4K/8K signals from Damar & Hagen BNC to BNCmicro or DIN1.0/2.3

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connectors. For easier identification of individual cables, the cables can be ordered with individually printed heat shrink sleeves. A regular version of the heatshrink with printing suitable for studios together with additional transparent heatshrink to prevent abrasion of the print in live operation are also available. www.klotz-ais.com

Kramer transfers data TWO NEW cables have been added to Kramer’s catalogue. The CLS-AOCU31/CC is a USB-C(M) to USB-C(M), USB 3.1 Gen-2 SuperSpeed+ cable providing throughput of up to 10Gbps when used with a USB 3.1 host and device. The CA-USB3/AAE is an active extender cable designed to extend USB 3.0 signals. Typically, USB cables have a maximum length of about 2m but the CA-USB3/ AAE enables cable lengths of up to 15m.

CLS-AOCU3/CC

WITH LONG-DISTANCE video and audio signal transmission with a performance of 18Gbit/s, Sommer Cable’s HI-HOIC is said to provide failsafe and easy HDMI installation via fibre-optic technology. The cable uses a high-performance fibre-optic construction in a high-flex jacket and is equipped with robust all-metal connectors from the manufacturer’s own brand HICON together with a high-quality chipset made in Germany. With a 4mm diameter, the cable can be laid almost anywhere in a convenient and space-saving way. The optical transmission

of the high-speed data is said to work reliably and is also suitable for use in RF-exposed environments. Convenient (uni-directional) pulling through empty pipes and cable ducts is reportedly guaranteed by the compact micro HDMI D-type connector on the sink side (monitor, beamer, TV). The supplied clip-on pulling device (13.7mm x 10.14mm) gives extra protection to the connector and allows a safe

This bus−powered cable contains active electronics that reportedly enable it to extend without any signal loss or potential performance problems, with no need for an external power source. Both cables are suitable for use with USB cameras‚ printers‚ webcams, keyboards and mice and are for data transfer only.

Long-distance cabling

All aboard with Tasker IN RECENT years, the naval sector has moved towards cables with European low fire and smoke propagation (CPR) homologation. Even before the CPR regulations came into force in July 2017, Tasker offered a range of over 40 models of cables with CPR approval. Since then, the amount of these products has grown every year, and today the Italian cable manufacturer offers up to 70 items for all risk classes provided by the legislation, allowing Tasker to access many other, strictly regulated sectors, such as the medical sector or rail and air transport. Tasker offers a wide range of cables with CPR approval for the medium risk of fire (Cca) designed for

the audio/video sector such as speaker cables (TSK401 series), microphones (C128 series), DMX (TSK1038 series), multipair cables for direction desks (TSK902 series) and 75Ω coaxial cables for 12G-SDI broadcast installations (TSK1078 series). These can be integrated with different models of LAN cables (C722 and C729) and with specific products for fire detection and voice evacuation systems (TSK201 and TSK301 series). All of them are manufactured with innovative construction materials such as silicone and M1 LSZH, making them suitable for indoor and outdoor installations, without affecting the flexibility and softness.

CA-USB3/AAE

www.kramerav.com

and easy installation. Afterwards, the micro HDMI can be converted to the type-A HDMI standard by means of an interlocking precision adapter attachment with a dovetail guide. According to the manufacturer, the connection cable provides an error- and loss-free signal transmission with smooth, crystal clear pictures and outstanding sound. It is downwards compatible and supports all previous HDMI formats and standards. www.sommercable.com

Critical recording MICROPHONE MANUFACTURER Audix has launched its A127 omnidirectional metal film condenser microphone for critical recording applications. It is described as the culmination of years of research and development in condenser technology and is designed to capture acoustic instruments with “transparency, accuracy and purity”. Incorporating a reference-grade, ½-inch Type 1 metal film capsule, the A127 can be used to capture audio for professional studio recording, broadcast, film and sound design. With a frequency response of 10Hz – 20kHz, a wide dynamic range of 133dB and an ultra-low self-noise of 7dBA, the A127’s capsule design features a precision-tuned, three-micron metal diaphragm, while the circuit has been coupled to the capsule by a series of driven shields to protect the microphone from external interference and capacitive coupling.

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www.audixusa.com www.tasker.it

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PRODUCTS

DPA adds two Core headsets DPA MICROPHONES has unveiled the 4466 Core Omnidirectional and 4488 Core Directional Headset Microphones. Based on the design of the company’s 6066 Subminiature Headsets, the new solutions feature the brand’s popular 5mm round microphone capsule. These latest offerings are said to provide the security, durability and flexibility necessary for use in a large variety of settings. With a one-size-fits-all design and adjustable height and boom length, the 4466 and 4488 headsets accommodate small to large head types. A three-point gripping system (above, below and behind the ear) is said to ensure a greater level of security, while the flexible ear hooks provide continued comfort during extended use.

“Our customers have been asking us to deliver our latest small form-factor headsets with the highly regarded 5mm mic capsules,” says DPA product manager, René Mørch. “With the purposeful design of our boom and locking system, the headset can accommodate all head sizes with just one boom length. This is even true for the directional option, for which the correct placement is so important. With the addition of the 4466 and 4488, users now have access to a wide array of solutions to meet an even greater variety of needs while also maintaining the typical clear and transparent DPA sound, which produces high speech intelligibility.” In addition, the new headsets share the same interchangeable cable and boom options as the 6066 Subminiature Headsets.

Switching to lavalier THE LAVALIER Switch Kit from Point Source Audio comes with one lavalier mic that transforms into two wearing styles, and into three different colour options to help audio technicians meet the ever-changing conditions of miking performers. At the heart of the kit is the company’s IP 57 waterproof omnidirectional lavalier and users can choose between a low-sensitivity option for live stage applications or a highsensitivity option for studio broadcast. The waterproof mic has a low profile at 4mm in diameter but it provides all the highperformance characteristics found in largerformat microphones.

Creative solutions

GERMAN AUDIO manufacturer Sennheiser has redesigned its MKE 400 shotgun microphone to be more compact for oncamera use. Alongside this, the company has launched the XS Lav Clip-on microphone for mobile phone and computer use and unveiled a variety of Mobile Kits. The new MKE 400 improves on the popular classic model by adding a headphone monitoring output with volume control, a rugged internal shockmount, an

The new Mobile Kits include a Manfrotto PIXI Mini Tripod and Sennheiser Smartphone Clamp with various Sennheiser microphone models, providing all the necessary accessories for vloggers and smartphone content creators. To complement existing microphones, the Mobile Kit is available on its own as an accessory but also ships in four formats: MKE 200 Mobile Kit, MKE 400 Mobile Kit, XS Lav USB-C Mobile Kit and XSW-D Portable Lav Mobile Kit. An additional TRS to USB-C cable is available for phones lacking a 3.5mm headphone connection. Last but not least is the IE 100 Pro in-ear monitor, available in wired or wireless formats. As internal windscreen a successor to the IE 40 and an automatic on/ Pro, the IE 100 Pro is said off function. Sonically, to offer a natural, warm the unit is the same and precise monitoring as its predecessor, offering a highly sound that allows users to directional super-cardioid pickup fine-tune their performance. While MKE 400 patten capable of cancelling out the IE 100 Pro retains the same distracting noise from the side. transducer and frequency response The new XS Lav mic provides of its predecessor, it is now fitted with the videographers with a plug-and-play way of same connector type and clever stage-proof adding a high-quality vocal track to their internal cable duct as the IE 400 Pro and videos. The unit is an omnidirectional clipIE 500 Pro. on mic and available with either TRRS or www.sennheiser.com USB-C connectivity.

The 4466 Core family This includes the 90° cable management at the neck. The headset frame, boom and capsule have a non-reflective surface for unobtrusiveness and ease of use for camera crews. With a high-quality, professional look,

the 4466 and 4488 are available in the company’s standard black and beige options, with a brown version coming soon.

The kit comes with the company’s patented Embrace ear mounts, included in beige, brown and black colours. The ear mounts conceal on the ear, while the mounting system keeps the mic placement consistent to the mouth as with traditional headset-style mics. To further camouflage the mic, the mic element colour can be changed with a selection of custom-designed colour caps in beige, brown, black, white and grey that also serve as pop filters and added protection from water and other elements.

For traditional lavalier mounting, the kit contains eight clip-based mounting options. The Slider clips come as a single or a double mount, while magnetic, vampire and alligator clip options are also included in black and white colours. The kit can be purchased in a variety of different connector variants, including Lemo-style, five-pin mini-XLR for Lectrosonics, four-pin mini XLR for Shure wireless, as well as 3.5mm locking ring terminations for either Sony or Sennheiser wireless. In addition to this, every kit also comes with an X-connector with TRRS termination for mobile devices and computers.

www.dpamicrophones.com

www.point-sourceaudio.com

Tascam develops multimedia mics WITH THE launch of the TM-200SG and TM-250U, Tascam has added two new models to its growing range of microphones. Designed for vlogging, video shooting and field recording, the TM-200SG is a compact, directional shotgun with a frequency response from 30Hz – 20kHz. The phantompowered TM-200SG features supercardioid directivity that focuses on directional audio and minimises ambient sounds. A switchable low-cut filter is included for reduction of environmental noise and is packaged with a

windscreen, shoe-mount clip and protective soft case. The TM-250U is a USB model for podcasting, videoconferencing and other online applications. Providing a supercardioid polar pattern and a frequency response of 20Hz – 20kHz, the mic delivers directly to personal computers or mobile devices via USB. Featuring a mic gain knob, mute button and an TM-250U integrated headphone amplifier, a dedicated volume control allows the user to directly monitor the computer’s audio. A mic gain knob and a mute button are also available. The TM-250U ships with a microphone holder, a USB-C-to-A cable and a desktop stand.

TM-200SG

www.tascam.eu

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Model 5422 gains Auto Mix enhancements AN ENHANCED version of the Studio Technologies Model 5422A Dante Intercom Audio Engine has introduced an Auto Mix function for use in party-line and audio mixing applications. The Model 5422A also offers expanded network connectivity via three Gigabit Ethernet ports that better meet the needs of large multi-network installations. Additionally, the unit’s main and programmable logic firmware can now be updated using a standard USB flash drive. The Auto Mix is a level control function implemented in high-speed programmable (FPGA) logic, that ensures all party-line users contribute an equal audio level to an

intercom channel, enhancing intelligibility and reducing listener fatigue. In addition to being part of the Model 5422A’s party-line capability, Auto Mix can also be called on when using the unit’s audio mixing (summing) mode. The Model 5422A features an audio control mode that allows multichannel switching functions to be implemented. High-frequency audio tones provide control of Dante audio input channels that are routed to normally active and normally inactive audio output channels. The three independent Gigabit Ethernet ports allow two to be designated for Dante redundancy, while the third is used to access

the Model 5422A’s management port. This allows independent networks to support dual Dante audio paths and the unit’s monitoring and configuration web pages. Meanwhile, the US manufacturer has introduced two Dante Leader Clocks for supporting the timing needs of Dantecompliant devices. The Model 5401A Dante Leader Clock and the Model 5402 Dante Leader Clocks with GNSS Synchronization support the synchronisation needs of Dante devices connected to a local area network (LAN) by using the PTPv1 (IEEE 1588-2002) protocol. For Dante’s implementation of AES67 and ST 2110, both the Model 5401A

and Model 5402 provide support for the PTPv2 (1588-2008) protocol. Additional resources include the units’ ability to generate sine-wave audio tones. Any required configuration can be performed using the web page interface or by way of the graphics display and controls provided on the front panel. Ethernet connections are made using standard RJ45 jacks and redundant powering is supported by way of AC Mains and 12V DC inputs. The lightweight units mount in one-space of a standard 19-inch equipment rack. www.studio-tech.com

The Blade in a box THE LATEST addition to Wheatstone’s WheatNet-IP audio network allows users to place more devices on the network through the use of routable audio processing, mixing, codecs and software apps. Blade 4 is the manufacturer’s fourth-generation I/O unit and sports the ability to run specialised apps right from the I/O unit itself, without the need of a standalone computer. As each Blade 4 has its own operating system, select broadcast applications and scripting routines can be run direct from the network I/O interface, including IP meter, PC XY routing control, Screenbuilder, Navigator and LIO viewer.

The device is reportedly the first AoIP access unit to integrate audio codecs, audio tools, software apps and interoperability protocols including audio transport, discovery, connection management and control in a single I/O unit. Additional benefits include interoperability with other manufacturers and network environments through SMPTE ST 2110 audio support and

AES67 compliance, including support for NMOS device discovery, AES67 multichannel support and packet timing adaptability. These new functions are in addition to existing Blade features, such as two 8x2 stereo utility mixers for online audio mixing or segueing remotely between feeds; a routable stereo processor with parametric equaliser,

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compressor and limiter; and 12 universal logic ports plus 128 software LIO ports, programmable as inputs or outputs, routable through the network. The new devices are also compatible with existing Blade 3 network systems. www.wheatstone.com

ARX Systems extends Audibox Ultras SPECIFICALLY CREATED to handle the conversion of pro audio balanced outputs to unbalanced signals, ARX has launched a two-channel audio deBalancer and switchable +4dB or –10dB Level Optimiser. Incorporating female Amphenol XLR inputs and a transformerisolated de-balanced 6.5mm jack together with RCA and 3.5mm jack outputs, the Ultra deBalancer caters for different consumer products in today’s BYOD environment. The latest member of the ARX Audibox series interfaces to manage unbalanced +4dB line level signal paths or –10dB inputs of low operating level pro and consumer electronics. Low noise operation is promoted with transformer ground isolation for any application, which also prevents ground loops and other extraneous noise. The passive device with no power requirements is housed in an all-steel chassis and is finished in a matt textured blue powder coat. The Australian manufacturer has also added a 24-bit high-resolution USB two-channel play and record digital/analogue interface. The USB Ultra I/O offers a new generation codec (24-bit/192kHz) together with selectable sample rates of 44.1kHz, 48kHz, 88.2kHz, 96kHz and 192kHz. Designed to interface USB-equipped computers with transformer

balanced inputs and pro audio outputs, the plug-and-play device removes the need to use any existing sound card outputs while providing

galvanic isolation required to eliminate earth loops and ground hum. Requiring no special driver program installation on Windows 10 or

Mac OS X, a standard Type B USB connector is located on the front panel together with a ground lift switch and status LEDs indicating the sample rate selected or available. The rear panel incorporates L-R transformer balanced analogue Amphenol XLR input and output connectors for connecting any standard balanced analogue inputs and outputs. The Ultra I/O VSR Broadcast has been updated as a true 24-bit high-resolution USB two-channel play and record digital/analogue pro audio interface. The plug-and-play device removes the need to use any existing sound card outputs. Designed for interfacing USBequipped computers with balanced audio inputs and outputs, the full transformer balanced I/Os on the USB Ultra I/O VSR Broadcast provide the required isolation to eliminate earth loops and ground hum. Providing analogue-style recording headroom when converting to –18dB in the digital domain, the USB Ultra I/O VSR Broadcast FS Digital reverts to 0dB analogue out. In addition to the standard selectable sample rate of 44.1kHz, the USB Ultra I/O VSR Broadcast also offers 48kHz, 88.2kHz, 96kHz and 192kHz. www.arx.com.au

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Biamp masks up HERALDED AS the industry’s first direct and indirect field sound masking solution, Biamp has launched the Cambridge Qt X Series. Designed to protect speech privacy, reduce noise distractions and increase acoustic comfort in every type of facility, the next-generation Qt X Series does not need to conform to any

Designed for use with Biamp Tesira processors and Cambridge sound management systems, the NPX network paging stations are included within a growing portfolio of scalable and modular components. The PoE-powered stations feature 16 paging priority levels, default and customisable preambles

the IV6 is a scalable sound reinforcement system in 5° or 15° vertical angle versions with 55 different responseshaping filters within the Passive Acoustic Optimization (PAO) settings on the rear of each cabinet. Biamp’s VenuePolar EASE Focus plugin includes automated features that eliminate manual adjustment. The array can be fine-tuned by determining the recommended cabinet quantity, model, frame angle and splay angle for a venue

Cambridge Qt X Series architectural design or ceiling type. The all-in-one sound masking solution incorporates Biamp’s QtPRO direct field and DynasoundPRO indirect technologies for office environments that require both system types within a single facility. Directly supporting paging and BGM with no additional components, Qt X also interfaces with a building’s life-safety system for ensuring proper coordination during emergencies. Sources connected to any Qt X controller can be routed to any other networked Qt X controller for playback within zones under its control. The series is available in eight models and supports Dante and AVB media distribution.

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and push-button security access to authorised users only. Available as four-button and 10-button goosenecks in addition to four-button and 10-button coiled cord handhelds for wall or tabletop mounting, the NPX stations can also store messages for playback and broadcast. The Community IV6 Modular Vertical Array can now be optimised with the availability of the VenuePolar EASE Focus plugin. As a part of the I Series loudspeaker product line,

UNiKA adds to its credentials AFTER MORE than a year of research at its R&D centre in Taiwan, UNiKA has released the PRO-DI series which currently includes active DI, passive DI, passive multimedia DI, Type-C mobile phone and computer USB-DI, Bluetooth 5.0 DI and one-in/threeout isolator models together with a combination of accessories. The 2U DI body shell does not require disassembly, as the PRO-DI of preference can be plugged and unplugged at any time without tools. For added safety, all eight models are equipped with a large isolation transformer specially developed by UNiKA.

NPX Network Paging Stations layout before determining the PAO settings for each cabinet. The plugin also includes a mechanical loads and safety factor calculator. Lastly, Biamp has released its Devio SCR Series signal processors with Parlé Beamtracking microphones. The Devio SCR Series is said to ensure every student, either at school or at home, can clearly hear and understand classroom instruction, regardless of the teacher’s location in the room. Devio SCR includes Parlé tabletop or ceiling microphones, which tracks and mixes voices anywhere in the classroom, even as the teacher moves around the space. Devio SCR is also supported by SageVue which allows technology managers full access to the status of their Biamp devices and includes important functions such as scheduling, firmware and system updates, and also features a RESTful API for integration with enterprise dashboarding systems.

The PRO-248 dual-channel active instrument DI and the PRO-148 singlechannel active instrument DI are powered by phantom power. With a balanced output impedance of 50Ω and input impedance of 260KΩ at 0dB or 50KΩ at –20dB, the Taiwanese brand claims transparency in the harmonics and treble of the instrument. Anti-slip mats are standard and each model can be distinguished by its individual colour finish. www.unika.com.tw

VenuePolar

www.biamp.com

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The search for Talent leads to AEQ DESIGNED TO offer consistent microphone and headphone connectivity for the programme host or guests regardless of location, AEQ has created Talent. The unit transmits Opus encoded audio from a microphone to the studio console and returns the feedback to the headphones. In addition, an external stereo audio source can be connected physically and through a high-quality Bluetooth connection. These sources are added to the microphone signal for broadcasting and commenting on concerts, sports or other events, in addition to presenting individual audio files or playlists from a phone or PC. If a Bluetooth connection is established with a phone, this can be used to carry out a phone interview, either through a conventional call, or through applications such as Skype, WhatsApp, Zoom and others. Calls can be mixed to the programme that is sent to the station. The audio is transmitted to the station from a

standard internet connection, ADSL, fibre or a wireless data connection via a router with a SIM card. Without IP, an HD voice connection to the studio can be transmitted using the Bluetooth connectivity of a smartphone. Weighing 600g and measuring

Talent

New modules join new-look 500 series BUILDING ON the success of the Fusion stereo analogue processor and the SiX SuperAnalogue console, Solid State Logic has introduced two new 500 modules to the series as well as a brushed steel facelift for the classic G-Comp Bus Compressor, E-EQ and E-Dynamics modules. The two new modules are Ultraviolet Stereo Equaliser (UV-EQ) and SiX Channel (SiX CH). Ultraviolet takes the minimum phase-shift Violet stereo EQ section from Fusion and puts it into the 500 Series format. The 500 Series version, however, takes things one step further with the addition of two dedicated mid-bands, with precision Focus mode for better EQ control. SiX Channel is a single-width 500 Series channel strip using the SuperAnalogue processing features from the compact SiX console, including mic-pre, low- and high-frequency EQ, and the single knob compressor. The manufacturer describes this as a simple way to add additional mic/ line inputs to the line level inputs of any professional audio device, or as a flexible way to create a professional modular mixer from a summing 500 Series rack unit. www.solidstatelogic.com

200mm x 130mm, the desktop device is equipped with front panel controls, including mic and headphone level adjustments, an off-hook-call/hang-up button together with indicators for incoming and outgoing signal levels, equipment and communication status. A help button can be used to request attention or help from the station’s technician or operator. Two remote applications ensure that the operator does not need to control or operate any of the controls on the front panel. However, a smart phone Talent Pilot App can locally control the equipment and configure the Talent to establish the connection. Full remote configuration and operation of single-unit or a pool of Talent and other AEQ stationary and portable AudioCodecs can be

remotely controlled via the ControlPhoenix app. With a built-in a phantom power supply, Talent supports low- or high-impedance headphones together with dynamic and condenser microphones. Talent is equipped with a conventional power supply, although it can be powered directly from the USB output of a PC or from a voltage source between 5V and 12V, such as a power bank. The operator can monitor audio playback from the station, its own audio without delay or a mix of both for simultaneously outputting an independent mix through a line out connector and a stereo Bluetooth connection. In brief, AEQ has also launched Olympia 3, a standalone commentary unit (CU) or AoIP connected with eight channels via Dante protocol; and Phoenix Alio, a portable IP audio-codec specifically designed for sports reporting applications, but it has also been optimised to make it easy to use in the most varied scenarios, even musical events. www.aeq.eu

Dynacord’s MXE5 adds to its appeal FOLLOWING THE introduction of the MXE5 in 2020, the German brand has added new functionality for IPbased media and building control systems. As the first member of the MXE matrix mix engine series with 24x24 crosspoints, the MXE5 also

Q-Sys using plugins. Offering e-control and intuitive operation, the MXE5’s DSP configuration is per formed using Sonicue software. In addition, the MXE5 also features an HTTP or HTTPS ser ver application programming inter face (API) for integration with IP-based media and

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Ca co ser ves as a communications hub for IP-based peripherals with control and monitoring functions. The network infrastructure, including Dante audio transpor t and AES70-compliant control, is included. Ideally suited for fixed installations ranging from spor ts stadiums to modern churches, the MXE5 can also be integrated with media control systems from Crestron and

building control systems. The MXE5 also works as an OCA (AES70) controller for integrating other OCA-based devices, ser ving as an inter face from the audio system to all other controls within an installation. The plugins and Sonicue software can be downloaded from the Dynacord website. www.dynacord.com

SiX CH

Wohler adds output routing WOHLER’S iVAM2-2 has been released in a 1U format named iVAM1-3. The device is a 16-channel audio/video monitor that shares the same platform, feature set and available options as its larger 2U sibling. The iVAM1-3 can monitor and meter up to 16 channels of 3G-SDI audio and video, plus two channels of analogue audio. With 64 presets and triple touchscreens, operators can toggle between video, meters, loudness measurement and menus, while an HDMI output allows additional external

monitoring of the currently selected video source. Analogue XLR, headphone and selected 3G-SDI outputs are also included

as standard. A rear-panel option card slot offers the choice of upgrading with either an AoIP option card, which can accept

Dante or Ravenna processing options (both offer SMPTE 2110-30 and hitless SMPTE 2022-7), or an analogue option card that provides an additional eight channels of analogue I/O. Alongside the launch of the iVAM1-3 is a new output routing option for both the aforementioned models, allowing monitored channels to be routed in custom ways to various destination outputs. www.wohler.com

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PRODUCTS

EVE Audio unveils SC4070 IN CELEBRATION of its 10th anniversary, German manufacturer EVE Audio has released a new high-resolution monitor optimised to deliver precise midrange and an enhanced bass response. The SC4080 is quad-amplified studio monitor boasting a rotatable midrange and tweeter section suited for either horizontal or vertical deployment. The SC4070 comprises two 6.5-inch lowfrequency drivers and a 4-inch glass-fibre honeycomb diaphragm woofer. The latter has been designed to reproduce clear midrange

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Exterity heralds new era with 4K media player THE ADVENT of the AvediaStream m9605 media player marks Exterity’s first product launch following the Vitec acquisition. Heralded as the Scottish company’s most powerful digital signage media player to date, the unit combines 4K video and 4K 60fps graphics and animations capability into a digital signage solution. It features an Intel Core CPU, high-capacity on-device solid state storage and a quiet, fanless design. The release of the AvediaStream m9605 media player coincides with a number of new features being added to ArtioSign, Exterity’s Digital Signage + IPTV in One application. Ideal for applications where a main video is displayed alongside promotional video

advertisements, the m9405 can play two Full HD video streams simultaneously in an ArtioSign landscape signage layout. ArtioSign includes support for signage touch input on a Samsung SSSP6, whose users can select and play from a video list, exit video playback, adjust volume settings, seek forwards and backwards through video or pause/restart video. ArtioSign further supports multiple revenue centres in the Oracle Simphony Point of Sale (PoS) system enabling, such as the handling of dynamic menu boards in larger venues with numerous independent concession stands. www.exterity.com

Calrec expands remote commissioning

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CALREC’S ASSIST application has been designed to provide control and setup for Type R for Radio and Type R for TV, as well as the manufacturer’s VP2 headless console and RP1 remote production core. All can be commissioned using Assist, with remote training and demonstrating also possible using the same workflows. To set up Calrec Assist, users type in the IP address that is served from the centrally located core

in a web browser and then have access to all console controls via a clearly laid out graphical interface. Physical consoles like the Apollo and Artemis also use Assist as a remote tool, and Type R hardware can access Calrec’s Configure and Connect Stream Manager apps to provide comprehensive remote commissioning and training. www.calrec.com

frequencies with utmost detail, with the twin woofer design providing reduced distortion, even at high SPLs, to create what is described as an “incredibly tight and homogeneous bass” down to 32Hz. EVE’s proprietary RS3.1 Air Motion Transformer delivers the high frequencies. The monitor’s frequency response parameters can all be controlled by the front-panel SMARTknob, with DSP electronics supported by a high-quality A/D converter from Burr-Brown. Four Class-D amplifiers with a total shortterm output power of 1,000W are directly connected to the DSP section with no additional conversion, resulting in a max output level of 126dB SPL at 1m. The cabinet construction benefits from a bevelled, ultra-stiff front plate to reduce unwanted resonances and diffraction. www.eve-audio.com

Desktop assignment for Agent-IC WITH THE development of the Station-IC assist FreeSpeak Edge users with channel Virtual Desktop Client, Clear-Com has added a selection. The E-IPA card’s capabilities are now Mac- and Windows-based software application expanded with support for E1 ports allowing that connects to the Eclipse Digital intercom users to host up to 50 FreeSpeak II beltpacks matrix as well as the upcoming LQ Series of and up to 10 legacy transceivers from an Eclipse IP interface devices. Station-IC users connect frame. Eclipse Omega frames can now support natively to a central intercom system that hosts up to five E-IPA cards. With the deployment of essential services, including audio and control FreeSpeak Edge transceivers, a 5GHz radio systems, panels, beltpacks and two-way radios band can now be scanned to view and select or endpoints the channels from other with the most intercom availability. A manufacturers. coloured graph By adding more displays channel licensing options traffic and a and a flexible chart provides application RF scoring, window, Agent-IC’s usage and UI can now be available SSIDs. configured from In addition, a desktop the HelixNet 4.2 by local and firmware release remote users with has added very low latency. The configuration visual communication, two-way process has been designed to radio capability and a suite of new Station-IC be straightforward with minimal capabilities for intercom system network configuration for promoting administrators looking to tailor communication in minutes. intercom stations to specific user workflows. The application features an adaptable UI that LQ IP interfaces have the unique ability to can be dynamically adjusted to a desktop, connect to any type and brand of intercom or effectively consolidating it into a workstation. audio device over IP, and the new 4.2 update Normal and full-screen mode provides the user now adds the ability to Save & Restore LQ unit access to large buttons. Compact mode floats configuration. over other active applications providing direct Finally, LQ users can now save their access to favourite and reply keys without configuration settings in a file on the computer interrupting normal workflows. Station-IC is they use to manage their audio network. A preavailable as both Event and Subscription saved configuration can be reloaded onto the LQ licences. device at any time, so if the device is being used In addition, the US manufacturer’s Eclipse for multiple shows or system configurations, HX Digital Matrix Intercom’s software has been each respective configuration can be saved and updated. Version 12.1 extends the feature pre-loaded. With the 4.2 update, LQ can now set of both the IP-based and legacy wireless support eight Agent-IC clients as well as up to FreeSpeak intercom solutions by increasing the eight Station-IC clients, bringing the total number density of IP ports and supporting additional of virtual clients supported to 16. Layer 3 capabilities. Additionally, EHX 12.1 www.clearcom.com features a new 5GHz radio band scanner to

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PRODUCTS

Ashly adds ducking features to AquaControl NEW SOFTWARE capabilities have been added to Ashly Audio’s AquaControl, including an upgrade to the ducking feature on the mXa-1502 integrated mixer amp. The original ducker in AquaControl software offered 12 levels of priority, user-adjustable threshold, attack and release, duck depth and could be triggered automatically by the incoming priority signal or by electronic contact closure triggers

hold period has concluded. This eliminates slow ramp times and gates to mask the fact that the ducked program is slowly returning in the background as soon as the ducking trigger is removed. Independently adding or removing input channels from the ducking hierarchy has also been enabled. This is said to make it easier to interpret the relevant settings by eliminating unnecessary data.

Audac Touch update AUDAC REPORTS that one of the most significant features of its Touch 2 v2.5 update is the reworked WaveDynamics configurator so that it can now be operated centrally from the app. The WaveDynamics configurator consists of two elements: WaveTune, which provides installers and end users with an intuitive tool for adjusting audio processing, and WavePreset, which is described as a quick and easy tool for setting filter presets to optimise the sound of connected speakers. WavePreset enables users to import and export SOL and SPF files as presets, provides access to Audac SOL files directly and allows users to create their own presets or edit and configure Audac presets.

If an SMA, SMQ or PMQ amplifier is equipped with the ANI44XT Dante audio network interface, users can now control and configure it directly from the Audac Touch app. An offline mode has also been introduced that enables control and configuration of Audac devices without authenticating to Audac Touch Cloud. This means users control and configure installations without the need for an active internet connection, set up installations at companies with strict IT requirements and set up quick and easy offline demos for customers. Also for SMA, SMQ and PMQ products, users can read the device’s temperature directly on the app and add the temperature widget directly to the dashboard. www.audac.eu

found on the rear panel of the mXa-1502. These features remain but Ashly has assigned ducking parameters to the source rather than the ducked program, allowing different trigger sources to control the ducked program in more varied ways. A new Hold parameter is adjustable in 1s intervals, up to 60s. This holds the ducked program at the assigned ducking depth after the trigger source is removed and allows the adjustable ramped return to begin after that

The original ducker had the return ramp level jump from mute to –30dB in a single step and then began the adjustable return time in 1dB steps from –30dB up to 0dB. Ashly has improved this by allowing the ducking ramp to use a dynamic range of 100dB in 1dB increments. This reportedly provides for smoother, less abrupt transitions from muted levels. www.ashly.com

New features added to Wireless Manager VERSION 1.2.0 of Audio-Technica’s Wireless Manager includes a new multi-point receiver function, improved interface and functionality enhancements, increased compatibility and minor bug fixes. The software is compatible with Microsoft Windows 8.1 and 10, and macOS High Sierra (Version 10.13), macOS Mojave (Version 10.14) and macOS Catalina (Version 10.15). The multi-point receiver function allows a single transmitter to switch between multiple compatible A-T network-enabled receivers that are set apart from one another. The user of the transmitter can pass from one receiver zone to the next and benefit from audio muting and unmuting for wide coverage without the need for a distributed antenna system. A single transmitter can switch between 10 receivers on a single group. Up to eight multipoint groups can be configured within a single Wireless Manager session. Applications can include large auditoriums/halls, houses of worship, sporting events, education campuses

and other venues where installing long RF cable runs with antennas and necessary antenna management could become cumbersome and expensive. A-T Wireless Manager software is compatible with all wireless devices operating in the UHF spectrum. When used with Audio-Technica 5000 Series (3rd Gen) and 3000 Series (4th Gen) with network control and monitoring, the software can coordinate and control all connected systems. The software can also interface with and monitor the latest 3000 Series networked chargers. www.audio-technica.com

L-ISA Studio takes spatial audio into a new dimension BUILT FOR sound designers and mixing engineers, L-Acoustics has simplified spatial audio creation workflow with the creation of L-ISA Studio software suite and upgraded L-ISA engine. Designed for creative, immersive audio experiences, L-ISA Studio places L-ISA technology in the hands of sound creators, allowing them to formulate multidimensional audio. L-ISA Studio contains the same spatial audio and room engine algorithms as its hardware counterpart, the L-ISA Processor. Redesigned and improved with key features for room enhancement, the new software suite incorporates a fully augmented scale simulation mode and binaural output capabilities. Deployed in both software and hardware configurations, the upgraded engine provides an ability to hear content in any virtual space of any given size and shape. Streamlining the creative process in its early stages and minimising the need for last-minute changes, control strategies, sonic trajectories and sound system behaviour can all be defined and demonstrated in real time. Through L-ISA Studio’s binaural engine, users can now create and monitor

their spatialised audio content anywhere with headphones and optional head tracking. The software suite can also be used in any multichannel mixing or recording studio with up to 12 loudspeakers for multichannel monitoring. When paired with Contour XO professional IEMs, L-ISA Studio becomes a fully portable, L-Acoustics-powered 3D sound creation tool and listening experience. L-ISA Studio seamlessly interfaces with leading DAWs, show control software and game engines. It also offers compatibility with various 3D audio format outputs, including Dolby Atmos and multichannel configurations. www.l-acoustics.com

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PRODUCTS

Brompton updates Tessera

Harrison scores seven AT THE request of premier filmmakers seeking digital consoles that function and sound like their analogue predecessors, Harrison has translated its analogue heritage in automated digital control into fully digital console versions. The sonic signature and operational feel of analogue has been translated into the development of the fully featured Mixbus DAW and the flagship Mixbus32C workstation. Most recently, the Nashville-based audio console and software manufacturer has updated the feature sets of both with the latest version 7 software together with a catalogue of plugins. Mixbus32C improves on the Mixbus platform with an exact emulation of the original Harrison 32C console. Included with Mixbus and Mixbus32C are Harrison’s ACE Range and x42 series plugins offering

core dynamics, reverb, EQ, filters, delay, gain, digital peak limiting and MIDI filter functionality. Also included are workflow plugins – the ACE Inline Scope, Inline Spectrogram and MIDI Monitor – and the x42 stereo routing tools. Synth, organ and drum instrument plugins are also provided. Optional for Mixbus and Mixbus32C – and all DAWs through AAX, VST and AU compatibility – is Harrison’s AVA range of plugins. These include the AVA Vocalflow and BassFlow task-designed channel strips, mastering EQ, de-esser and the surroundcapable four-band Multiband Compressor that hosts sidechain key, the 18-band Spectral Compressor and the LegacyQ plugin version of the Harrison MPC film console EQ.

BROMPTON TECHNOLOGY has announced its new Tessera v3.2 software with ShutterSync. The update has been designed for creatives using LED on camera for both virtual production and XR applications, giving professional users more flexibility with “convenient features that put the emphasis on creative choice and control”. ShutterSync is a patent-pending processing feature that automatically adjusts the timing of the LED refresh to match the preferred camera setup. It can optionally be used in conjunction with Frame Remapping, which allows the user to interleave different areas of the video raster or solid colours in the output enabling multi-camera systems, and transforming the workflow for virtual production. ShutterSync

is compatible with all LED panels fitted with a Tessera R2 receiver card and works best with panels supporting high frame rates, plus it does not affect network pixel capacity. Tessera v3.2 also offers users greater control over the colour of an LED screen with the ability to import a 3D LUT. 3D LUTs are an efficient way of remapping colours and allow for advanced colour correction. They are commonly used in film production, for everything from onset camera tuning to colour grading in post. The Tessera software can import and use any valid Adobe .cube file, using 12-bit precision and tetrahedral interpolation. www.bromptontech.com

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PRODUCTS

Avantis V1.1

Avantis receives its first major firmware upgrade ALLEN & HEATH has launched a major firmware update for Avantis consoles. The V1.1 firmware includes Avantis Director software and new dPack processors, as well as enhancements and workflow improvements for engineers operating in all environments, from houses of worship to livestreaming. The highlight of the update is the Director software which provides the ability to perform offline editing and online control. Offline mode can be used for the creation and editing of show files and system configuration, as well as serving as a training tool for new users. Online mode delivers full remote control of the mixer, freeing the engineer from the mix position to make changes from any location in the venue.

Additionally, more processors from the dLive line have been added to the dPack add-on bundle, including OptTronik, Hypabass and the frequently requested Transient Controller. Further features include the introduction of LCR+ mode for enhanced LCR mixing, Solo-InPlace functionality and a variety of new routing and patching options. In addition to the new firmware, the British manufacturer has also announced the release of the DT Preamp Control app which enables its Dante I/O expanders to be used with any Dante audio network. The free Windows- and macOS-compatible application enables control of multiple DT168 and DT164-W expanders connected to Dante-equipped, third-party digital mixers and sound management systems. www.allen-heath.com

Connected Cam firmware battles data congestion

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THE LATEST firmware for JVC Professional’s GY-HC900 and GY-HC500 Connected Cam camcorders is now available and includes several upgrades to enhance the platform’s video-over-IP functionality, such as Network Adaptive Encoding, reduced latency and an SRT decoder for returning video over the internet in REMI (Remote Integration Model) applications. With the Network Adaptive Encoding/ Adaptive Bitrate Streaming (ABR) function, the encoder monitors network conditions and reduces bitrate in case of congestion or high packet loss. This function, combined with automatic repeat request (ARQ) and forward error correction (FEC), makes the SRT transport resilient to internet congestion, data loss and high jitter. The newly added PCR Fast Mode reportedly achieves sub-1s glass-to-glass latency when streaming to the JVC BR-DE900 decoder and SRT-capable video switchers. The integrated return video decoder is now also present in addition to already having the RTSP and Zixi protocols available. Cameras

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Ross goes deeper with Inception Version 15 WITH THE V15 release of Inception, the newsroom computer system (NRCS) and social media management tool includes a range of new features including those added to the Assignment Manager. Designed to help improve planning, including the introduction of duration-based, all-day and multi-day events, the visibility of timing information for content created in the Assignment Manager has been improved. Version 15 now adds the option to set user permissions by MOS

GY-HC900 can now receive the SRT return feeds over the internet and display them in the LCD/EVF for confidence, teleprompting or bidirectional remote guest communication. Also included in the upgrade is a Social Networking Service (SNS) vertical/square position cropping function specifically for the GY-HC500. The result of user requests, the tool makes it possible to set the camera to one of five cropping positions prior to filming – left, right and centre, as well as far left and right. www.pro.jvc.com

E Ser device. This upgrade allows some users to create and modify MOS objects for all configured devices, while others can now be restricted to a more limited access. The Canadian developer maintains that this allows for more granularity in workflows, such as an Enterprise environment where multiple teams may be using the same Inception instance. www.rossvideo.com

Freeing the reins from remote commentary

TVU NETWORKS has released TVU Remote Commentator, a cloud-based production solution that allows sports producers and event organisers to add synchronised, realtime audio commentary from any location via a public internet connection, meaning that talent

no longer needs to be on location or using expensive REMI setups. Sessions are created and managed in the cloud, which eliminates the need for expensive hardware or software. Using a browser-based interface on a laptop or smart device, TVU Remote Commentator

lets talent join the production from virtually anywhere, while the interface provides a low-latency, high-quality preview of the event, meaning that they can also add commentary that is in sync with the programme. Events can be created with predetermined start and end times and the event organiser can select any feed – SDI in, IP source, recorded clip, etc. – and use it as the return video feedback (VFB) source and channel output, so commentators receive a high-quality video feed to follow the action. Furthermore, multiple commentators in multiple remote locations can collaborate on a single production, with the manufacturer’s autosync technology ensuring the audio and video of all commentators is synced with the main video feed, regardless of network latency or distance from the event. Not only can they hear each other with full mix-minus capability, but a private back channel lets them see each other

as well, which helps observe critical bodylanguage queues and replicate in-person talent interaction. An audio operator can manage the commentator feeds using TVU’s web-based audio mixer, which offers level control, recording, mute/unmute and audio channel mapping for outputs. Localised commentary feeds can be routed to separate audio channels, or completely separate outputs can be created for each channel. In addition to the launch of TVU Remote Commentator, the manufacturer has released a free TV Anywhere SDK to enable iOS and Android developers to add reliable, highquality and low-latency video streams to their apps, making it simpler for reporters, viewers and fans to contribute live video for programming. www.tvunetworks.com

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PRODUCTS

Next-gen E Series appeals to low budgets FOLLOWING SHARP’S acquisition of NEC Display Solutions, the division has introduced the next generation of its NEC Multisync E Series large-format displays. The units are intended to provide a professional solution for low-budget digital signage applications such as smaller retail outlets or museums, hospitals and other public places. Ranging in sizes from 32–65 inches, the displays can also facilitate meetings and conferencing in small- and medium-sized businesses. The displays house an integrated MediaPlayer offering native UHD resolution and HDR. The playback scheduler enables users to programme auto-play content to ensure no gaps in content delivery. There’s

software features customisation capabilities suitable for digital display boards in a range of environments and has been validated for use with Matrox Maevex 6100 Series multichannel encoders, benefitting digital signage installers and integrators with a high-quality AV, end-to-end streaming platform over LAN, WAN and internet. The NEC MultiSync P Series has been designed to enhance and improve on the popular features of its predecessor. It offers 8K signal processing, a wide colour gamut and an integrated NEC SpectraView engine, which balances all image parameters. Brightness levels of 700cd/m² and a high haze filter means the image is clear even in bright light, without distracting reflections.

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E Series also no external cabling or devices needed, although a 10W USB interface is available should external computing power be required. For instant startup meeting spaces, inputs are automatically detected to aid in fast setup and use. Facilities managers can remotely control the displays via the network thanks to the integrated LAN and NEC’s NaViSet Administrator 2 software tool. Also supporting digital signage applications, a new modular version of SoC MediaPlayer has been introduced that comes pre-installed on the NEC Raspberry Pi Computer Module. The

Finally, the NEC MediaPlayer is a modular, plug-and-play digital signage solution described as easy to use and customise. It comes pre-installed on a 32GB NEC Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 to integrate or retrofit inside any NEC large-format display that offers the slot for Raspberry Pi CM4. The new NEC Message Series MPi4 lineup displays already combine professional display technology with a pre-installed Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 running the NEC MediaPlayer.

LVD-5521C

Barco adds to OverView range TWO OVERVIEW LCD videowalls have been created to complement the Barco UniSee platform. The OverView LVD-5521C and OverView KVD-5521C can be remotely monitored and controlled, and support 4K streaming content. They are 55-inch 500-nit LCD videowalls, of the 1.8mm (ENB) and 3.5mm (UNB) seam generation, respectively, and come with Barco’s Sense X algorithm, described as a “unique automatic and continuous colour and brightness calibration system that ensures a perfectly balanced image across the entire videowall”. Both videowalls use the Videowall Manager software for easy installation, configuration and control, and come with Barco’s Videowall Management Suite, a cloud-based remote monitoring, diagnostics and control solution which offers integrators and managed service providers the possibility of remotely managing the complete installed base from a central location. The products support the latest encrypted 4K streaming content, which is important for markets such as corporate lobbies and experience centres, but also control rooms. The product haze levels also allow deployment in applications where

reflections need to be carefully managed, such as broadcast. In other news, Nureva has announced that its HDL200 audio conferencing system is now certified for Barco ClickShare Conference, along with the HDL300 and Dual HDL300 systems. Users wirelessly connect to the AV equipment in the room using a Barco ClickShare Conferencing Button plugged into their laptop or running the ClickShare Desktop App. This automatically connects a device to the Nureva audio system to deliver clear, reliable audio coverage throughout the space. Similarly, AVer Information has reported that its VB130 video bar, CAM520 Pro 2 conferencing camera and Pro AV Auto Tracking and PTZ livestreaming cameras can now be paired with ClickShare Conference (CX-20, CX-30 and CX-50). Integrators can select the optimal collaboration solutions based on the size and type of meeting space – whether a huddle room, small collaboration space or large meeting room. www.averusa.com www.barco.com www.nureva.com

www.sharp-nec-displays.com

Absen reduces power AURORA IS a fanless LED display that offers a 40% reduction in power consumption compared to previous models. There are six models in the series, boasting a 10,000-nit brightness and a standard 1,280mm x 960mm panel size, with three other optional panel sizes. The displays weigh 25kg per m2 and are 50% thinner and lighter than their predecessors, thanks to a new engineering approach that has resulted in a reduction of nearly 25% of all steel materials. Additional benefits include front and rear installation and front and rear module assembly and access. The series has been designed to display high-quality images, even in direct sunlight. The displays provide a 3.8kHz refresh rate and 16-bit grayscale and are suited for operating temperatures between –40°C and +50°C. The A0421, A0621 and A0821 are the smaller pixel pitches in the series, ranging from 4.44–16mm pitch, while the larger pitches,

A1021, A1021D and A1621D, are designed for further viewing distances. Absenicon 3.0 is an all-in-one, standard conference LED display product, specially designed for high-end meeting rooms, lecture halls, auditoriums in corporate, government, education and the other indoor environments that require a fixed display solution for effective communication. With a 5mm frame and 28.5mm depth of the screen body, Absenicon 3.0 has a slim design and the screen-to-body ratio reaches 94% to provide “seamless large-format images”. The display comes with adjustable brightness levels from 0–350 nits, enabling users to choose the right brightness to adapt to dark or bright environments. Other benefits include a colour gamut of 110%, a contrast ratio of 5,000:1 and a 160° viewing angle. Aurora Series

www.absen-europe.com

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Ikegami adds to UNICAM system Double the brightness is no Mirage SET TO become the flagship of the UNICAM series, Ikegami has unveiled the UHK-X700 incorporating three newly developed 2⁄3-inch CMOS 4K sensors with global shutters to “eliminate rolling shutter distor tion and flash-banding ar tefacts”. At the core of the camera’s electronics is an ASIC chip which encapsulates a wide range of high-grade video processing functions into ultracompact component dimensions. When

combined with the Ikegami BSX-100 base station, the camera optionally suppor ts simultaneous output in 4K/HD video formats, including mixed sources. 4K video is available as a 12G-SDI feed directly from the camera head, allowing the UHK-X700 to be integrated into a wireless system.

Designed for online streaming applications, the camera measures 340mm x 243mm x 149mm and weighs 5kg. It comes with a B4 lens mount and has an optical sensitivity of F11 when operating at 4K/50p. The camera is designed for use between –20°C and +45°C and 30–90% non-condensing humidity.

The UHK-X700 is uniformly balanced and has a low centre of gravity for easy operation on a pedestal, tripod or shoulder. Peripheral options include the OCP-300 control panel and SE-U430 system expander. Ikegami also offers a choice of three types of viewfinder for this model: VFL201D 2-inch LCD, VFL701D 7-inch Full HD LCD or VFE741D 7.4-inch OLED. www.ikegami.de

LG bumps up ProBeam output to 6,000 lumens

TWO MODELS have joined LG’s ProBeam business projector series, introducing a number of useful enhancements for offices and schools. The BU60PST and BF60PST both provide improved brightness over their predecessors (BU50NST and BF50NST) and differ mainly in their output resolution. The BU60PST is capable of delivering a 4K UHD (3,840x2,160) image at a maximum of 300 inches diagonally, which the manufacturer claims is four times that offered by the majority of business models on the market. The BF60PST lowers this to WUXGA (1,920x1,200) resolution. With their laser light source each rated for 20,000 hours, both models boast

peak brightness of 6,000 ANSI lumens, a contrast ratio of 3,000,000:1 and HDR10 capability. To aid in conferencing and meetings, users can connect either of the new projectors directly to a company or conference facility network via wired or wireless connection, eliminating the need for a dedicated laptop. Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel files can be opened directly from a USB device via the built-in Office viewer, and screen sharing and screen mirroring functionality makes it possible to project content from devices running the Windows or Android operating systems.

DELIVERING TWICE the onscreen brightness of a traditional colourcomb, lamp-based projection system, Christie is promising that its new Mirage SST-6P will “redefine the 3D experience”. The 18,000-lumen, 6-Primary (6P) 3D dual-projector system uses two sets of RGB laser primaries with slightly offset wavelengths: one for each eye. Reusable passive 3D glasses filter the different wavelengths and direct light to the correct eye without shuttering. The result is a projection system that is reportedly 90% efficient at projecting light onto the screen, and white-screen compatible for blending the multi-projector arrays typically used in dome theatres and media-based attractions. The Mirage SST-6P system uses two fibre-coupled projection heads with remote light sources and chillers. The heads are described as quiet, compact and lightweight, and have a low heat output of less than 2,400 BTU each. With omnidirectional capabilities and solid-state illumination, the system can be deployed in tight, challenging environments and promises 30,000 hours of virtually maintenance-free operation to 80% brightness.

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The Mirage SST-6P includes Christie Twist, for built-in warping and blending and is compatible with Christie Mystique, an automated camera-based alignment software solution. Suppor t for the Christie Guardian automatic blendedimage correction tools is also present and can be used even when content is playing. www.christiedigital.com

Panasonic combines brightness and colour THE PT-MZ880 Series – comprising the PT-MZ880 (8,000 lumens), TP-MZ780 (7,000 lumens) and PT-MZ680 (6,000 lumens) – has been designed to combine brightness and colour and provide vivid images without needing to turn the lights off. Features include Detail Clarity Processor 4, Dynamic Contrast and Daylight View Basic to help users tailor the LCD projectors to any environment. Compared to the manufacturer’s PT-MZ770 Series, the PT-MZ880 models reduce energy consumption down by approximately 20%. The panel size measures 9.3mm diagonally with a 16:10 aspect ratio and the projectors can run for 20,000 hours in normal/quiet

mode or 24,000 hours in Eco mode before the light output declines to 50%. Other benefits include a 3,000,000:1 contrast ratio and an 85% centre-to-corner zone ratio. The lens shift is ±67% vertically and ±35% horizontally. The projectors have an AC 100–240V (50/60Hz) power supply and measure 561mm x 190mm x 437mm (WxHxD). Optional accessories include a fixed-focus lens, zoom lens, ceiling mount bracket, replacement filter, Digital Link switcher, digital interface box, the PressIT wireless presentation system and early warning software. pro-av.panasonic.net

www.lg.com

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B-Tech mounts a new solution MERSIVE TECHNOLOGIES’ Solstice Pod is an in-room collaboration platform which enables users on any connected device to share, control and mark up content on in-room displays for more efficient and productive meetings. Users wishing to mount the pod will now be able to use the BT7886 from B-Tech AV Mounts – an Mounts – official mounting par tner to Mersive – to Mersive – secure the device in any configuration that suits their application.

The BT7886 provides features that include an open design to help keep the mounted pod cool when in use, security screws and an integrated slot for a Kensington lock (lock not included) to help prevent unauthorised removal of the device.

Designed by B-Tech’s in-house product design team, the BT7886 Mersive Solstice Pod Mounting Cradle allows the pod to be mounted in a variety of different configurations according to the user’s needs – directly to a wall or needs – underside of a desk, to a compatible B-Tech accessor y collar for pole mounting or to the back of a screen when used in conjunction with an existing screen mount.

www.btechavmounts.com

AJA unveils T-TAP Pro AJA VIDEO Systems has unveiled T-TAP Pro, a compact, silent and por table Thunderbolt 3-connected device that Thunderbolt 3-connected has been designed to simplify 4K/ UltraHD and 2K/HD/SD monitoring and output over 12G-SDI and HDMI 2.0 on compatible Mac or PC computers. It provides high-quality video monitoring, including High Dynamic Range (HDR) suppor t for high frame rate (HFR) and large raster workflows from a Thunderbolt 3 host system. Thunderbolt 3 The device is suitable for high-end colour grading, audio mixing, editorial and visual ef fects, in addition to on-set monitoring and playback, and enables creative professionals to work ef ficiently from home or any location. It features multichannel embedded audio on SDI and HDMI, and a 3.5mm stereo analogue

audio connection that is said to provide a convenient method for monitoring audio, enabling editors or digital ar tists to plug in headphones directly to the device or connect to an external analogue audio mixer. AJA has also released Desktop Software v16, a free update that introduces new features to the manufacturer’s lineup of KONA, Io and T-TAP products, such as HDR signalling over SDI, expanded IP video functionality, suppor t for T-TAP Pro Thunderbolt 3 output device and Thunderbolt 3 increased compatibility with the latest hardware and operating systems. It includes compatibility updates for the

latest macOS, Windows and Linux operating systems, including suppor t for macOS 11.x Big Sur, Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, Redhat/CentOS 8 and continuing Redhat/CentOS 8 suppor t for Windows 10 updates. Windows 10 Desktop Software v16 expands suppor t for high-end computer hardware, including cer tified compatibility of AJA PCIe cards and Thunderbolt devices with the 2019 Mac Pro and AJA PCIe card suppor t

for Supermicro X11DAI, X11SPA+TF and X11DPG. For IP video workflows, v16 also increases compatibility with NMOS-compliant devices by updating to NMOS 1.3 and adds improved NMOS 1.3 troubleshooting capabilities with new LLDP suppor t for KONA IP, Io IP and Avid Ar tist | DNxIPTM. Bridge Live v1.11 delivers a host of new features, including HLS input

functionality for receiving HLS streams and bringing them into SDI baseband productions. HLS input suppor ts both AVC TS segments for H.264 and the newly emerging fragmented MP4 standard for H.265/H.264. New VBR implementation allows for lower-latency presets with algorithmic intelligence, and a new E-AC3 input suppor ts Dolby Digital workflows. Additionally, pipeline upgrades include co-existence of dif ferent time bases, more ef ficient tools for managing presets and REST API enhancements allowing calls for individually star ting and stopping pipelines.

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PRODUCTS

Instant replay from NewTek

Quicklink launches hybrid switcher

REPORTEDLY THE world’s first native IP and SDI replay system, the 3Play 3P2 video replay and telestration system from NewTek is said to deliver “unmatched” instant replays for sports productions. According to the manufacturer, 3Play 3P2 ensures that broadcasters and venue operators never miss an angle or unforgettable sporting moment with unparalleled connectivity and efficiency across the entire production workflow at a fraction of the cost of traditional replay systems. New 3Play 3P2 features include increased inputs, sharable playlists, pan-and-scan areas of interest, built-in NewTek NDI Telestrator capabilities, clip publishing and more, giving sports producers more capacity and opportunity to maximise the value and impact of live content as it plays out in 4K. The built-in playback zoom and tracking feature allows operators to select multiple points of interest and zoom in and out to

THE STS410 is an all-in-one hybrid switcher described by Quicklink as an easy-to-use, end-to-end, broadcast-grade solution which combines the power of the cloud and the cost-effectiveness of a single hardware unit. It combines three main elements to allow the user to achieve a full production workflow: a rack-mount server, software that integrates all the tools needed to build, edit and customise productions, and a cloud-based controller for scene and source selection. Combined with the Quicklink Manager, the STS410 is said to create a complete end-to-end workflow, including the ability to stream to multiple concurrent services such as Facebook, YouTube and Vimeo Live or RTMP, and simultaneously record the discreet individual channels

capture an all-important play. The keyframeable feature allows users to scrub clips, pinpointing desired timecodes of crucial plays. The solution offers eight external inputs and two outputs. Inputs can be any combination of NDI sources with four convenient SDI connectors built directly into the chassis. The outputs can be independent or work together in a preview/programme workflow, including live animated, 3D-warped visual transitions delivered to both SDI and NDI destinations. Operators also benefit from sharable playlists, allowing NewTek TriCaster live production systems to work collaboratively. 3P2 and TriCaster operators can sync 3Play playlists over the network via NDI to create a collaborative experience for increased speed and flexibility in sports production workflows.

and programme output for postproduction flexibility. The cloud-based Controller enables control of scene and source selection from any location using any desktop, mobile or tablet device.

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Elation expands KL Series

Game-changing technology ROE VISUAL has joined forces with AGS and Megapixel VR to create “game-changing” technology for virtual productions. The companies have created GhostFrame, a video and broadcast technology that displays more than just the video feed on the LED panel with different inputs invisible to the human eye but visible to the camera. This enables professional cameras to capture one or more sets of images while the naked eye only sees one. Thanks to Megapixel VR’s HELIOS processing platform, the LED panels have immense processing power, and therefore no upstream workarounds are needed. Users can have all of the GhostFrame features while sending regular frame rates in 4K and 8K formats. Creating multiple and hidden sources in one video

DESIGNED FOR applications requiring high output soft light with precise colour reproduction and adjustable colour temperature, the KL Fresnel 8 FC is suited for venues that are light critical and noise sensitive. It houses a 500W RGBMA LED engine calibrated at 6,500K and emits a diffused wash of light. It produces over 18,000 field lumens with a motorised zoom range of 10–50° so that users are able to easily adjust the beam size. For illumination that is

gel library. Capable of matching the white balance for camera, users can shift the colour temperature without the use of ±green gels and filters. Additionally, the LED refresh rate can adjust up to 25kHz so there is no flickering when used with high-speed cameras. The unit is DMX controllable with full RDM support and provides manual control for standalone operation of zoom, intensity, colour temperature, green shift and other settings.

feed also gives production teams the freedom to operate without restrictions. According to the creators, using GhostFrame will reduce installation and production time, allow for real-time postproduction with free positioning and camera movement, and work in a near-zero latency environment. Features include GhostFrame Chroma, enabling a (hidden) green screen; GhostFrame Track, adding hidden tracking markers; and GhostFrame MultiSource, adding up to four different hidden video feeds, which can be captured individually by the camera.

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more precise with less light spill, adjustable and removable eight-leaf barn doors allow for customised shaping of the beam. With high CRI (92), TM30 (88) and TLCI (95) values, meaning that colour recreation is extremely accurate both to the eye and to the camera, the Fresnel is described as a flexible complement to any professional lighting system. It can adjust for light that shifts away from pure white towards green or magenta through a green-magenta shift adjustment and a virtual

The display and dedicated Dimming and Control encoders are positioned at the bottom side of the fixture for unobstructed access. It can be mounted on a stand or suspended using any standard clamp or the included Junior pin adapter. It is fully self-contained without the need for an external power supply and offers locking power pass-through for linking multiple units. www.elationlighting.com

100 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

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Series 3 and Desire Fresnel

ETC debuts two fixtures THE SOURCE Four LED Series 3 is the third generation of ETC’s colour mixing LED fixture. Boasting an eight-colour mixing system that includes deep red LEDs, the series includes the Lustr X8 array for nuanced colours and the Daylight HDR array for tunable white light. The manufacturer has added wireless DMX/ RDM by integrating City Theatrical’s Multiverse protocol and NFC configuration using a mobile device and ETC’s Set Light app. Multiverse can broadcast as many as 10 universes of DMX from a single transmitter without excessive radio energy and frees up wireless bandwidth. The newly designed XDLT lens tubes provide “the ultimate brightness from every location”. They can be hung in a box boom, on a catwalk or from the farthest back of house position. The tubes

output up to 13,000 lumens, reduce light leak and produce near-zero chromatic aberration. The Desire Fresnel comes with an eight-colour array, wireless DMX/RDM, an intuitive user interface and NFC configuration through the Set Light app. Four backlit encoders change colours to correspond to the attributes they control on the screen. ETC has redesigned how the lamp and lens work together so users can get more light through the entire zoom range. According to the manufacturer, this provides more lumens regardless of angle, making it up to 25% more efficient over traditional Fresnel optical systems. Desire Fresnel has zoom control from either the front or the back of the fixture. www.etcconnect.com

GLP CLAIMS to have developed the first The control options of the basic CL1 are battery-powered and completely wireless also available in the Plus version. LED systems on the market. The Creative When the CL1 system is controlled via Light 1 (CL1) and Creative the smartphone app, the Light 1 Plus (CL1+) CL1s generate a mesh feature 24 RGB LEDs network among each along with main other – without colour control, any additional colour patterns, gateway – the a sound-to-light so-called GLP feature via iQ.Mesh network. an integrated Within this mic and three GLP iQ.Mesh dynamic pattern network, each macros. All CL1 receives pixels can be and amplifies the used together, signal, enabling individually via pixel the creation of mapping or via the a network over integrated double layer long distances. FX engine. The advantage of the The CL1 offers the same smartphone app is that it CL1 performance as the CL1+ but provides a user interface and is aimed more at the semireportedly enables particularly fast professional user with its manual, IR system setup, allowing multiple devices remote control, and Android and iOS app to be grouped for live control. This also control options. The CL1+ also features facilitates control of intensity, strobe and an integrated LumenRadio CRMX module pulse effects, background and foreground for use in professional event technology colours and a variety of dynamic patterns. and wherever the CL1 system is to be www.glp.de integrated into an existing DMX network.

Martin raises the bar MARTIN PROFESSIONAL has “raised the bar” for bright and compact lights with the debut of its MAC Ultra Performance and MAC Ultra Wash stage lights. All units in the MAC Ultra series now feature a new 1,150W, 6,000K proprietary LED light engine, which gives the MAC Ultra Wash the power to project 63,500 lumens and the MAC Ultra Performance 46,500 lumens of output. Designed for fixed and noise-sensitive applications, the MAC Ultra family boasts

an advanced framing system, higher-definition optics and low noise levels. With higher red content and better daylight balance, the units are said to produce rich, vivid colours and more

THE LEDBEAM 350 is Robe’s latest moving light, a bigger and brighter version of the manufacturer’s LEDBeam 150. Maintaining the 3.8–60° zoom of its predecessor, Robe has added a new lens coating that reportedly lengthens the intervals between cleaning and enhances the light output. The LEDBeam 350 also features CPulse, Robe’s Pulse Width Modulation control system that removes any on-screen camera flicker. Features such as fast movement, colour mixing, zoom and control can be maintained via a compatibility mode which allows for the combination of both 150 and 350 models on the same rig. The 12x 40W RGBW high-powered LED multi-chips are said to provide high-quality output and CMY colour mixing control. DataSwatch contains 66 pre-mixed colours and tones, including whites for fast reliable colour selection, and Robe’s L3 Low Light Linearity system delivers “imperceptible fades to absolute blackouts”. The unit’s

advanced cooling system and smooth zoom stepper motors make it ideal for noise-critical installations. An optional Epass Ethernet switch will automatically maintain network connectivity in case the fixture experiences power loss.

Robe is on the move

natural skin tones. The minimum LED engine life is rated to exceed 50,000 hours and deliver over 90% of its initial output after 20,000 hours of usage at maximum power. The MAC Ultra feature package includes a wide zoom range, precision focus control, uniform colour mixing, variable CTO,

additional colour and spectral correction filters, motorised frost for a softer field, high-resolution dimming and strobing. The new Martin Extended Framing System debuts for the first time in the MAC Ultra Performance, offering “more flexibility, easier programming, quicker response time and precision shutter angling that surges the fixture into a new class of creative potential”.

Mac Ultra Performance

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Weighing under 10kg, the compact size makes it suitable for confined spaces. The unit will work in combination with other Robe luminaires, including the ESPRITE, MegaPointe and Spiider. The LEDBeam 350

FW version offers a Fresnel-wash type of beam for smoother edges and optimal colour homogenisation. www.robe.cz

July–August 2021 PRO AVL ASIA 101

PAA Pg78-101 Products.indd 101

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Q& BUSINESS: ANALYSIS

Christine Schyvinck, CEO, president and chairman of Shure Inc, has been with the company for 31 years. We find out about breaking through the glass ceiling in the audio industry, giving opportunities to others and launching products in a pandemic

What perspective of the industry have you gained during your long career at Shure?

they’re unlikely to get interested in high school and forget about it by the time they’re in college or looking for a job.

Being with Shure as long as I have has given me a 360° view of the company and therefore the industr y as well. When I star ted, I was more involved with manufacturing – I’m a manufacturing and mechanical engineer by schooling. One of the first things I did was work on one of our manufacturing lines, troubleshooting and quality testing. I got involved with training early in my career too, because I knew a lot of different tools. Later, I joined the executive staff where I’ve been for a long time, so I always got to see what was happening from the strategic point of view. Around 2006 I headed up sales and marketing, the customer-facing par t of the business. So I feel like my perspective is unique because I understand the whole supply chain: what’s involved in making audio products all the way to what it takes to get them to market. When I star ted with Shure, we were predominantly a pro audio company, and now we consider ourselves to have three segments, almost equally split. We still have our professional audio heritage, but with integrated systems and some of our consumer businesses we’re a more diversified company than we were 31 years ago.

What was the attraction of this kind of field for you personally? There was something magical about the fact that Shure was an exciting engineering and manufacturing company, but there was also this common thread of interest and passion around music. We have a lot of events at Shure where people get to show of f their musical talents. You can’t believe how creative so many of our engineers are, and what talented musicians we have in this company. So it was that allure of combining what I wanted to do from an engineering perspective with the music element.

You already have the Shure Audio Institute (SAI) and you recently announced the Mark Brunner scholarship. How can Shure further evolve what it’s doing in education and awareness and raising the bar for the industry?

As well as the solutions evolving and changing, has there been a change within Shure? Some things have changed and some haven’t. I was lucky enough to star t working when Mr Shure was still around, and I worked shoulder-to-shoulder with his wife Rose Shure for about 20 years. The Shure core values are something that we talk about a lot here, and they translate ver y well across borders into all par ts of the world. We all speak that language, making sure we make high-quality products, making sure we respect each other, our customers, our suppliers and being good corporate citizens. Those things have always stood the test of time. What is different is we are much more on the cutting edge of technology. We’re in a much faster-paced industr y now. Ever y company in audio has had to make the transformation from analogue to digital hardware to software, and that has been a really transformational change, especially over the last decade.

What advice do you have for women who are thinking about a career in this industry? With women in any technical field, the numbers are still not with us and it can be intimidating. I always encourage people to find mentors and not to be afraid to ask questions. I know that early in my career, for whatever reason, I felt ver y hesitant to ask questions because I thought it was a sign of weakness. I would go off and study on my own instead of saving time and asking the

Christine Schyvinck question in the moment. If people can find a good mentor and be comfor table asking questions, that helps a lot. As company executives, we have a lot to do in this field too, and I’m really happy that over the last one or two years you see so many companies paying a lot more attention to diversity and inclusion. We’ve just launched a formal programme for this. It’s always been impor tant to us because it hearkens back to those core values, but you have to be more proactive. We like to make sure we’re suppor ting organisations that help young women or other underrepresented groups understand what technology audio fields are like. So helping organisations that give students an oppor tunity to explore: what does a STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] education mean, what does a career in audio look like and how can it be less intimidating? We have to make sure that we’re giving to the right organisations because we’re not going to change anything by all tr ying to compete for the same pool of limited people. We have to make that pool bigger. You have to star t with kids when they’re at a much younger age, especially girls. If they star t shying away from technology in middle school,

If there’s a silver lining to what we have been through during the pandemic, we’ve had more people coming through the SAI and signing up for webinars. We’ve had a lot more time to spend with our end users on education. All of these oppor tunities were definitely used much more than when people were busy doing other things. We’ll continue to put a lot of ef for t into that. Mark Brunner was heavily involved with me in working on the kind of organisations that of fer educational oppor tunities to youth that maybe have not have seen what education like that could do for them, not just STEM education but also the ar ts and music. How can we continually be looking outside our four walls to help people get more educational oppor tunities?

How did the pandemic change your timeline in terms of product launches: did you have things lined up that you’ve had to delay? No, in fact, the contrar y. What was amazing was that our engineers working from home were putting test fixtures in their basements, testing, shipping each other prototypes from house to house. During 2020, we were launching a new product about ever y 15–20 days. One of my biggest concerns was whether we’d be able to get new products out the door without people able to come in and work in our labs and collaborate together, but they were able to figure it out through a lot of creativity. And we really did not slow down the product pipeline at all. So yes, that was my biggest concern, which actually ended up not being a concern. www.shure.com

102 PRO AVL ASIA July–August 2021

PAA Pg102-103 Bus Analysis Shure.indd 102

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HD 12-A A CELEBRATION OF SOUND

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World-class D-LINE powered speakers from RCF cover many venue sizes and event types. D-LINE cabinets provide responsive low end and a brilliant dynamic range that reproduce a natural sound and deep bass at any volume. This Series is manufactured in Italy.

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U N LO C K T H E A R T I N A U D I O W I T H L- I S A S T U D I O Put the power of mixing and creating immersive sound anywhere - at your fingertips - with L-ISA Studio software suite. Made for speakers or headphones with binaural monitoring, L-ISA Studio can process 96 inputs and 12 outputs. Developed to improve the workflow and unleash the creative potential of concert-proven L-ISA technology, it seamlessly interfaces with leading digital audio workstations and show control software. Download and start creating. More information on www.l-isa-immersive.com

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L-Acoustics_L-ISA_Studio_Pro_AVL_Asia_245×335_IN.indd 1 Untitled-1 4

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