Audio Pro Issue20, June 2009

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Issue 20 • June 2009

LIVE • COMMERCIAL • RECORDING • BROADCAST

www.audioprointernational.com

D N U R O G R UNDE

d n u So A look at Italy’s hottest independent live rental company, Sound Division CHARLIE WATKINS • OB VANS • USED GEAR • MONITORING • ABTT

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ISSUE 20 June 2009

CONTENTS > IN THIS ISSSUE

NEWS FESTIVALS UNDER THREAT • 4 Swine flu causes concern for UK events

GRAMMY DAYS • 4 Audio Network’s Tim Garland takes gold

COUNTERFEITING • 5 Shure gets tough on phonies

NEW VENUE CONSOLE • 6 Digidesign releases the SC48

FEATURES CROWN AMP REVIEW • 14 Brit Row’s Mikey Gibbard puts I-Tech HD to the test

OB VANS • 21 A look inside these broadcast road monsters

USED GEAR • 30 The big players in the used gear market

LIVE SOUND COVER FEATURE SOUND DIVISION • 24 Adamson’s new contractor series

PERSONAL MONITORING • 27 IEMs and interfaces used around the world

CHARLIE WATKINS • 34 PA legend discusses the Byrds and Copicat

EVENTS AES REVIEW• 8 The big move to London

INFOCOMM• 11 What Orlando has to offer

ABTT• 12 London’s summer sizzler

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

> Regulars: Applications 36 In Session 38 People 40 Distribution 41 Products 42 Mixdown 48

EDITORIAL

W

ith the UK festival season just around the corner, any press that the organisers can get to sell tickets in an otherwise declining market seems good enough for some. Michael Eavis is the latest one to jump on the bandwagon and hold special meetings to discuss the possibility of cancelling Glastonbury due to the swine flu epidemic. We received a raft of angry comments when we put this story on audioprointernational.com, as most people felt that Eavis was merely using it as a way of getting extra publicity. While there is little doubt that the festivals will go on as scheduled, one commenter brought up the fact of the horrible conditions at Glastonbury, stating that it is “legendary for it's filth”. She went on to mention the inadequate toilet and washing facilities that create huge queues and severely unhygienic conditions. It seems that every month we hear about another festival cancelled due to insufficient ticket sales. One would think that the great amount of competition in the festival market would force festival organisers to go out of their way to make their events the best possible in order to keep punters coming back. Sound Division (page 24) is one such company that strives to create the best experience possible for festivalgoers. By combining premium sound systems with a not-for-profit ethic, its events become experiences that put the music at the forefront and profits at the back. Eavis and the other UK festival organisers who happily sacrifice quality for profits could greatly benefit from this philosophy.

Andrew Low - Editor andrew.low@intentmedia.co.uk A bookmark us in your phone

mobile.audioprointernational.com Contacts for Audio Pro International Editorial: +44 (0)1992 535646 Ads: +44 (0)1992 535647 Fax: +44 (0) 1992 535648 Editor: Andrew Low

Ad Production:Rosie McKeown

andrew.low@intentmedia.co.uk

rosie.mckeown@intentmedia.co.uk

Deputy Editor: Rob Hughes

Subscriptions Manager: Hannah Short

rob.hughes@intentmedia.co.uk

hannah.short@intentmedia.co.uk

Associate Editor: Samantha Loveday

Designer: Claire Brocklesby

samantha.loveday@intentmedia.co.uk

claire.brocklesby@intentmedia.co.uk

Advertising Manager:Darrell Carter

Managing Editor: Andy Barrett

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Editorial Production: Helen French

Publisher: Dave Roberts

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dave.roberts@intentmedia.co.uk

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> NEWS

Swine flu threatens UK festivals Outbreak puts Glastonbury and other UK shows under amber alert, but organiser insists show will go on UK FESTIVALS HAVE been placed on amber alert due to the swine influenza outbreak, Music Week reported in early May. The Guardian newspaper in the UK also revealed that Glastonbury’s founder and top honcho, Michael Eavis, has expressed fears that festival could even be cancelled as a result of the outbreak.

According to the Health Protection Agency website (as Audio Pro went to press) the UK has 203 confirmed swine flu cases with 144 currently under laboratory investigation. Eavis recently held a special meeting with the show organisers to discuss the possibility of cancelling the festival and expressed

fears that the Government will recommend the same. With over 137,000 tickets already sold for the event, Glastonbury is the UK’s biggest festival, making it a major focus of concern if the epidemic continues. An official Glastonbury spokesperson stated: “We are monitoring all developments. At this

stage the festival is going ahead and we are continuing to work flat out to make it a success.” Held from June 24th to 29th on Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, the roster of performers at this year’s festival are rumoured to include Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Blur and Crosby, Stills and Nash. > glastonburyfestivals.co.uk

Audio Network wins Grammy Tim Garland scoops award for orchestral arrangement on Corea and Burton jazz instrumental AUDIO NETWORK, a UK production company that creates licence free music, is celebrating one of its producers, Tim Garland, being awarded a Grammy for orchestral arrangement. Garland took home the Grammy for his work on Chick Corea and Gary Burton’s album The New Crystal Silence, which won the Best Instrumental Jazz Album of 2008 at the ceremony held in Los Angeles. Widely known for his large ensemble writing, including orchestral pieces, works for chamber ensembles, choirs and numerous commissions from a variety of jazz collectives, Garland is

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no stranger to success as he won the 2006 Musician of the Year in the UK Parliamentary Jazz Society Vote and played with Bill Bruford’s Earthworks for over four years. Audio Network has a catalogue of over 20,000 high quality tracks spanning various genres, which are created by established international composers, using some of the best orchestras in the country. The company was founded by Andrew Sunnucks and Robert Hurst, who worked together while they were both directors of the international music publisher Boosey & Hawkes. > audionetworkplc.com

www.audioprointernational.com

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Adamson’s new Point series speakers

The wonderful world of outside broadcast

Charlie Watkins: The Godfather of modern PA

NEWS <

Mackie celebrates two decades Renowned manufacturer calls on ‘Mackoids’ to help commemorate the milestone around the world

with international agencies and other brands to fight the spread of counterfeit products and stop this kind of criminal activity in its tracks.” In addition to anticounterfeiting actions in China, Shure has also been continuing forceful efforts in other parts of Asia, Europe, South America, the Middle East, Africa, and the United States to halt intellectual property violations.

MIXER AND PA manufacturer Mackie is celebrating 20 years in the industry. The firm, which recently launched a new pro audio loudspeaker line at Prolight+Sound, has been in business since 1989 when it introduced the groundbreaking CR-1604 mixer, many of which are still in service today. The company has decided to commemorate this milestone by launching a competition to find the most fascinating Mackie memoir and is asking ‘Mackoids’ to submit stories, photos, videos, or anything else that demonstrates their fondness for the gear. “We want to hear about your beer-drenched VLZ Pro that still works; the time you dropped your SRM450 off a building by accident and it powered up for your gig the same night; your original CR-1604 you still use religiously; your worldrecord for the largest collection of Mackie vintage swag; your running man tattoo that you had to get to show your devotion to Mackie,” said Mackie’s Shaunna Thompson. “Whatever your story, funny or heartfelt, long or short, old school or new school, we want to hear it. Send in a photo too. If you really want to wow us, create a video on Youtube.”

> shure.com

> mackie.com

Shure targets counterfeiters Large quantities of bogus earphones are seized in China in latest raids SHURE HAS STRUCK another blow against the manufacturers and suppliers of counterfeit Shure products in China. Following an investigation initiated by Shure, officials of the Baoshan Office of the Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce (AIC) conducted raids on wholesale stores and warehouses of the Han Si Appliance Company and Run Zheng Digital on Baoshan Road. Both locations are in the Zhabei District of Shanghai. “Counterfeiters are constantly working to duplicate the Shure logo and other product markings, as well as the general appearance of the products,” said Anita Man, managing director of Shure Asia. “Due to the popularity and reputation of the Shure brand, they know that consumers are interested in an item that bears the Shure name.” In the two raids, large quantities of counterfeit Shure E2c and E4c earphones were seized. These raids have been officially reported and published on the public www.audioprointernational.com

website of the Shanghai AIC. The penalties imposed by the Shanghai administration are still to be decided. “The Shure brand carries with it a promise of quality and performance,” said Sandy LaMantia, president and CEO of Shure. “Counterfeit Shure products do not live up to that promise and that damages the value of our brand. We are fiercely committed to working

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> NEWS

Digidesign unveils at Fabric Avid adds the now-essential small-format console to its Venue line in the shape of the SC48 DIGIDESIGN HAS UNVEILED a new member of Venue’s digital live sound console series, the SC48, at an official UK launch party at the iconic Fabric nightclub in London. Following a live performance mixed on the new console, guests were given the chance to get to grips with it in a hand-on demo session. Following suit with recent offerings by competitors, the Venue SC48 is designed for small to midsized clubs, houses of worship, corporate AV and touring. A major selling point of the board is its compatibility with Digidesign

We realise our customers have different requirements Tex Schenkkan Avid

and third party developer plugins. Similarly, it offers connection to Pro Tools for live sound recording through a USB port. “The sonic quality of the SC48 far surpasses any other digital desk I've mixed on and has really helped us improve our finished product,” said Eric Kibbe, audio manager and mixer of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. “Our services often change on the fly and the size, flexibility and layout of SC48 enables me to work more quickly to address things in the mixes that were never before possible.”

The company has also announced that the new D-Show 2.8.1 software will be available in June and will offer new workflow features and other enhancements to increase workflow and mixing efficiency for all Venue systems. “We realise that our customers have different requirements. With the Venue SC48, we’ve been able to advance the Venue platform to meet specific needs in smaller applications, at an aggressive price point,” said Tex Schenkkan, Avid’s VP and general manager, audio. > digidesign.com

Levine hits the ground running at MPG New chairman helps forge links with the APRS as two associations announce combined membership deal IN HIS FIRST month as the Music Producers Guild (MPG) chairman, Grammywinning producer Steve Levine has begun to help bring the guild closer to fellow music producers’ organisation, the APRS. Two weeks after his election as MPG’s chairman, Levine, who has worked with acts as notable as Culture Club and The Beach Boys, appeared alongside Tina Turner’s producer, Rupert Hine, at an educational evening hosted by the APRS at British Grove Studios. This was followed last month by a joint announcement from the MPG and APRS, in which 6

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the two organisations announced a new combined membership deal, which enables members of either organisation to join the other for half price. Under the terms of the deal, any full MPG member is now eligible to join the APRS as an individual member at a 50 per cent reduced rate of £60 and any APRS individual member, subject to MPG qualification, is eligible to join the guild as a full member, also at a 50 per cent reduced rate of £60. This initiative is set to bring the MPG and APRS closer than ever, with the resulting increase in membership crossover likely

to boost the reach and influence of both organisations, ultimately of great benefit to the members of each. “The MPG welcomes this initiative to make it easier for all recording professionals to benefit from both organisations,” explained Levine. “There are many areas of mutual interest and, by sharing this category of membership, both current and aspiring recording professionals can benefit their careers from the many privileges our organisations provide them, at an affordable rate.” > mpg.org.uk > aprs.co.uk

LEVINE: Many areas of mutual interest www.audioprointernational.com

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Power and Clarity Funktion One's new RM18 triple concentric stage monitor is a radical departure from the standard 15" and compression driver configuration, delivering a significant perfromance advantage over conventional monitors.

www.funktion-one.com

The innovative design comprises an ultra-fast Neodymium 18" driver with 5" coil and a special mid range driver with a built in super tweeter passively crossed over at 9kHz. The 700Hz crossover point and the natural materials used in the mid device give a previously unheard clarity and definition to the vocal range. The bass response of the 18" driver also makes it well suited to use as a drum monitor.

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> AES EVENT REVIEW May 7th-10th Munich

London calling The 126th AES Europe Convention has suffered a decline in visitors and exhibitors over the years. The society is planning a move to London next year in hopes that it will rejuvenate the show. API reports on what is possibly the last AES show held in continental Europe…

T

he unanimous verdict was that this year’s European AES Convention, held from May 7th to the 10th in Munich, Germany, was even smaller than last year’s Amsterdam show. To its credit, the AES has owned up to this fact and rather than releasing embellished figures, it has counted its losses and announced plans to enhance the show by holding the 2010 European convention at London’s ExCel Centre. The main reason for the decline of the show, as stated by the organisers, is the current economic downturn. “Initially, we had anticipated a drop in visitors, as recent international events had faced this problem. But we were pleased to see that, even in these difficult times, so many audio experts used the convention for information exchange and personal networking,” remarked Martin Wöhr, the chairman of the convention. Executive director Roger Furness furthered this by stating: “We learned important lessons in these difficult days here in Europe. We need to use convention centres that allow us to put all the technical sessions close to each other and close to the exhibits, so that there is a better flow of traffic between all parts of the convention. We need to be in a city with a strong

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FACT FILE Venue: Munich MOC Date: May 7th-10th Visitors: 3,700 Verdict: While the long-

awaited announcement that London will host the next Euopean AES Convention finally appeared, there remain doubts, following years of declining enthusiasm, that the show will survive much beyond its visit to ExCel.

local industry and attractive to visitors. And we need to promote the event more and earlier. The AES will react immediately and start the planning for next year with a strengthened concept.” A slim 3,700 visitors attended the show, and most of them were German based. Despite this, the sessions were successful, as 800 people attended talks given by 250 audio experts from 20 countries. Exhibitors did do some good business at the show, however. Local company and first-time exhibitor Optocore reported positive results. The company held a series of daily workshops at its booth, with topics including fibre vs copper, Optocore networking – broadcast, installation, and live applications and a concise version of the company’s renowned Optocore Certification Training. Optocore MD Marc Brunke stated: “Optocore acted against the economic trend by increasing our stand size at short notice. We wanted to give a clear signal and booked two booths facing each other. For us, this AES Show was a real success.” Many of the exhibitors used the show to display new products, including Manley, which exhibited the Langevin Mini Massive. Little

brother to the Massive Passive eq, the Mini Massive is a new equaliser based on the same passive eq sections as the former’s low band and high band and shares most of the same components and circuit layout. The Mini Massive is 1U high and nearly half the price of the Massive Passive, with added features and refinements designed for high-end mastering. Leading cable and connector developer Neutrik displayed its range of products featuring the awardwinning IntraGram – a hologram developed in co-operation with UNICA and Sulzer Mixpac to assure customers that they are buying a true Neutrik product – not a counterfeit. Euphonix released the MC Transport, a compact media controller that provides hands-on control and navigation for its Artist series of DAW mixers, while Schoeps introduced the MK 22 mic capsule at the show, which is the company’s latest addition to the Colette series of modular condenser mics, with a new Open Cardioid direction pattern. Next year’s AES Europe Convention will be held from May 20th to May 23rd, in the enlarged ExCel Convention Centre in London, UK. > aes.org www.audioprointernational.com

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100’S OF NEW PRODUCTS OVER 300 EXHIBITORS PLASA BAR - OPEN TILL 8PM NEW DEALER LOUNGE NEW INTERNATIONAL PAVILIONS INNOVATION GALLERY INTENSIVE TRAINING SESSIONS SPECIAL INTEREST SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS PLASA09 AWARDS FOR INNOVATION WEST END 15 MINUTES HEATHROW AIRPORT 20 MINUTES UNDERGROUND AND OVERGROUND RAIL ACCESS 250 HOTELS, 983 RESTAURANTS, PUBS AND BARS WITHIN EASY ACCESS

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INFOCOMM EVENT PREVIEW <

June 14th-19th Orange County, Florida

Fighting off the gators This year’s InfoComm expects over 30,000 AV pros from 80 countries, in addition to more than 250 audio exhibitors displaying their latest kit. API takes a look at what the hot Florida show has to offer… nfoComm has moved from the hot deserts of Las Vegas to the humid subtropics of Orlando, Florida for what is confidently being described as ‘the largest, most comprehensive pro-AV event in the world’. No lack of confidence there, then. The 2009 show will take place from June 14th to the 19th at the Orange County Convention Center and the organiser is expecting more than 30,000 visitors from 80 plus countries this year. Included in these figures are some 16,000 professional dealers, systems integrators, live events producers and manufacturers with over 8,000 technology managers anticipated. “Attending InfoComm’s tradeshow provides a tremendous return on a visitor’s investment, in terms of both time and money,” said Randal Lemke, the executive director of InfoComm International. “It is the only place professionals can see a comprehensive array of conferencing, professional audio, digital signage, display, lighting, control systems and signal distribution technology solutions. Visitors can also take advantage of all of the education and specialist training on offer from leading experts and manufacturers while they are at the show.”

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www.audioprointernational.com

“The question is not whether you can afford to attend, but rather, can you afford to miss it?” Randall Lemke

Special exhibits planned for the show include audio demo rooms, the HD Conferencing & Telepresence Showcase, the System Programming & GUI Design Gallery, the Manufacturers’ Forum, InfoComm Opening Reception and NSCA’s curiously monikered ExpoJam. “The question should not be whether you can afford to attend InfoComm, but rather, can you afford to miss it?” said Lemke. Over 250 leading professional audio equipment manufacturers will showcase their latest products in this year’s Audio Pavilion. Among those occupying this area of the show floor will be Powersoft, which is showing its Green Inspired amp technology on Booth 6384. Neutrik has its new OpticalCon Quad, a four-channel version of its fibre optic connector system at Booth 6561. The new connectors were designed for multi-channel point-topoint cabling applications. They are IP65 rated for dust tight and water jet protection and available in three variations: four-channel, fourchannel X-treme and Triple-Split 12channel assemblies. “With the introduction of our upgraded OpticalCon Quad, we have

fine-tuned our technology to offer the installation market the ultimate in fibre connectivity,” said Pete Milbery, MD of Neutrik USA. Sennheiser will host the North American launch of the K-Array speaker system on Booth 5733. It will also show the Sennheiser WiCOS interference-free wireless conference system, the Evolution G3 wireless microphone system and numerous new Klein+Hummel products for the first time in the region. Bosch will present two courses covering its new public address and conferencing product lines at Booth 6100. The courses will highlight the lines’ features and display successful uses of the products in Asia and Europe. Both courses are approved for CTS certification credits. Other exhibitors, including Atlas Sound, Audio Technica, Bosch, Community Professional Loudspeakers, DAS Audio, d&b audiotechnik, EAW, FBT, Harman Pro, Mackie, Martin Audio, Meyer Sound, Peavey, QSC, Renkus Heinz, Revolabs, Shure, Tannoy, Yamaha Wohler, BTX and Technomad will be on the show floor displaying the latest innovations the industry has to offer. > infocommshow.org

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> EVENT PREVIEW ABTT THEATRE SHOW

June 10-11 Royal Horticultural Halls, London

There’s lots of business… … in show business, as theatre gives the ‘V’ to the big R. Rob Hughes expects a wicked trade show…

H

ow is Keith Richards still alive? I cannot be alone in my confusion. Like the plucky classroom hamster that was found pacing its exercise wheel after a summer holiday of malnutrition, the man who snorted his own father has not only maintained an incomprehensible grip on existence, but is even getting ready to pack out a few more US stadiums, which, sure as his nostrils are ruined, he will do. I can’t help wondering if he would leap onto the tour bus quite so readily if it weren’t for piratebay.com and the near vertical downturn in HMV’s CD sales. Hardly surprising therefore, that his band mate, Ronnie Wood, is frantically trying to hasten divorce proceedings to avoid sharing the many millions he is set to earn in the coming months. But what have a bunch of enthusiastic, if slightly infirm hedonists got to do with the ABTT show? Well, like the Stones, the theatre industry is rocking harder than ever – thriving in a way that defies earthly logic. It’s an announcement from the camp of the bleeding obvious, I know, but the fiscal chips are down and, well, ticket prices to see Wicked are as well. It’s brilliant that the respective booms in touring and theatre can co-exist. Ten years ago, if you wanted to see even a hardworking band such as Oasis, you had a choice of about, oooh… five dates (if they happened to be touring that year). If you wanted to see the Stones live, well, you could stick on your VHS copy of Live

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“Audio can add great value to modern productions, enhancing the experience through special sound effects and immersive sound reinforcement. The companies exhibiting at this year’s show exemplify this.” Roger Fox show director

at the Max. These days it seems as though you can see any act that isn’t in rehab, within a matter of weeks and, on average, it will sting you a lot less than a trip to the theatre. The simple fact is this: even as rock ticket touts turn to drug dealing because AC/DC are saturating the market by playing as many dates as their necks can handle, productions such as Mamma Mia are fast approaching gross earnings of $2.5 billion and have been seen by tens of millions of people. Of course, the heady heights of Broadway and the West End can’t be deemed representative of the industry as a whole but, for the record, a number of major installations have recently been reported at the opposite end of the spectrum, in schools and colleges. It’s inevitable, so here are the stats: exhibitor space at the Association of British Theatre Technicians’ annual event sold out completely some time ago, with pre-registrations up 25 per cent on last year. Compelling evidence that theatre’s anti-recession weapons are well honed and an encouraging indication that the live events industry can enjoy success across the board. The best news though, is that audio is getting a juicier slice of the show business pie than ever. First-time exhibitors this year include Yamaha, L-Acoustics, Midas; the list goes on.

With Ofcom due to publish its latest statement on the Digital Dividend during the summer, wireless technology – of colossal importance to the theatre industry – will be a major focus at the show. Since Ofcom began to throw its weight around last year, mic manufacturers such as Trantec have been diligently beavering away to develop new apparatus that can cope with new and reduced spectrum bands that the industry will have to make do with. Emphasis will also be on the new breed of compact audio equipment, including smaller footprint boards, such as the Soundcraft Si2, which takes up significantly less valuable seat space than their predecessors. Loudspeaker manufacturers will demonstrate systems compatible with historically important venues and their décor. Among several debuts from Alcons will be the LR7 bass unit. ABTT show director Roger Fox commented: “We’re very pleased to see how the audio contingent of the show has grown over the years. It highlights the value that audio can add to modern productions, enhancing the experience through special sound effects and immersive sound reinforcement. The companies exhibiting at this year’s show exemplify this.” > abtt.org.uk www.audioprointernational.com

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> PRODUCT REVIEW CROWN I-TECH 12000 HD

A Crown jewel Britannia Row system tech Mikey Gibbard puts the new Crown I-Tech 12000 HD Series amp to the test… he first thing I noticed when I pulled the Crown I-Tech 12000 HD series out of the box was how light it is (I could pick it up with one hand at 12.7kgs). Although the market is filled with switching power supply, lightweight amplifiers, none of them are like the Crown. The claimed output of the I-Tech 12000 is 4,500 Watts per channel into two channels at four Ohms. To put that to the test I put it on the bench with my Audio precision device, the dummy load sat next to it and oscilloscope off to the side. I cranked it up to full attenuation and, like the manual says, it put the power out with no problem. I left it there for a few minutes to see how it would react under those conditions and, sure enough, the fans kicked in. I did the same for the two-ohm and the Crown's output was faultless. It even reached a snip over the claimed output and all this was done without a square wave on my oscilloscope. Another great feature on this amp is the LevelMax Limiter Suite. They are really fast and transparent, so much so that every time I tried to clip the amp with the limiters set to automatic they performed perfectly. There are so many great features on this amp that I can't describe them all, but the ones that stuck out for me

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“I hammered it with some dance music and I couldn't believe how efficient the amp was, absolutely smacking it with headroom to play with.” Mikey Gibbard

were the amp’s monitoring functions that include load/thermal/AC line voltage/operating time and Watts output, all of which are cleary visible via the front panel LCD. The Crown also benefits from FIR crossover filters, which are a massive breakthrough in crossover technology. One main advantage of this is that it has less phase artifacts and allows brick wall 48db/oct and 24db/oct filters. The LevelMax suite consists of a peak voltage limiter, RMS voltage and thermal transducer limiter. One that stands out is the transducer thermal limiter, which limits the longterm output power of the amplifier to the maximum a loudspeaker can handle without overheating and going into thermal compression. You can set the thermal level at which the thermal limiter engages, the thermal response time and thermal voltage. There is also a USB port on the front panel that allows for quick online downloads. Other cool features include the global power supply with power factor correction, which allows the amp to work anywhere in the world. The amplifier has AES EBU and Cobra Net as well as standard Analog inputs and its AES input signal switches to also to the AES output during power shortages. It has a digital buffer

converter, so it will adapt to any AES sample rate between 32 and 96KHz. Crown’s latest 24-bit/96kHz digital signal processing is built into the ITech HD. System Architect software is integrated to allow users to easily monitor and utilise all amp functions. It does everything an omnidrive does and much more. Seriously, I’ve never come across an amp that is as clever as this. If you’re not going to go down the Dolby Lake route and want an amp that can do everything, this is the one. Once downloaded it was a breeze to network the amplifier via the Ethernet port. So I had a play around and made enough presets to use the amplifier on a variety of different speakers we had in the warehouse. The amp passed every test I put it through. First I put it on a wedge with no eq and the bottom end was tight and punchy, the hi-end crystal clear. I also used it on a two-way full range box at four Ohms and the result was the same – fantastic sound with tonnes of headroom. The big test was when I plugged in a load of double 18 subs and hammered it with dance music. I couldn't believe how efficient the amp was, absolutely smacking it with so much headroom to play with. I love this amp and it comes in cheaper than most amps of its type. > itechhd.com www.audioprointernational.com

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> LIVE SOUND ADAMSON POINT SERIES

Getting to the Canadian loudspeaker manufacturer Adamson Systems Engineering has entered a new frontier by offering a complete line of contractor boxes, The Point series. Loaded with Adamson-engineered and manufactured components, these point and shoot boxes will give Adamson a competitive edge in the installation market. Andrew Low looks at the finer features of the Point Series… hen the boys at Adamson sit back and talk about what they feel sets them apart from their many competitors, the resounding answer is advanced transducer technology. Jesse Adamson, director of sales and marketing, states: “We start from the ground up and build a product that has rock-solid components before we do anything else. The concept of ‘fixing it in the mix’ is not one that we accept. We are focused on making a product that works right from the start. DSP is for fine tuning.” Such is the case with the Point Series, as the transducers are the same as those used in its touring-class speakers. Released at this year’s Frankfurt Pro Light + Sound, the Point Series includes five new models: the Point 8, Point 12 and Point 15 two-way enclosures, with accompanying single and double 15-inch subwoofers; the Point115 Sub and Point 215 Sub. The Point Control a new 4 x 8 DSP is also new for the line. Jesse Adamson explains that Point Series was developed as a result of market demand. “Based on the strength of our brand these days, our dealers and distributors were screaming for a focused product to use for permanent installations. All of the cabinets feature our transducers. Our unique cone geometries and motor designs provide a very high-powered system with increased mid-range output and linearized response. When we looked to the market, it was apparent that when most of our competitors develop these contractor boxes, they try to shave as much money off as possible. This makes the product cheap, by sacrificing performance. We understand that we have to stay competitive, but we never

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Our competitors have to compensate for OEM components. We don’t have to do that. Ben Cabot Adamson

sacrifice the performance in order to put out something cheap into the market. That is not how we have built the success of the company over the years and why change now?” All of Adamson’s transducers and cones, rigging, cabinets, waveguides, etc, are developed and manufactured in-house, allowing it complete control over the science and design of every element in its speakers. Adamson considers this a major advantage over its competitors. “Many of our competitors are buying their stuff from the same suppliers. We aim to build something that out-performs said OEM suppliers and the results are heard when we compare the products side by side,” explains Jesse Adamson Ben Cabot of Adamson’s Tour Support and Product Development team furthers: “Because we are starting with the transducer, we can modify it to fit specific requirements for each box. Therefore, the ND15 transducer in our mid/high box is not the same 15-inch that goes into the sub, because we dial it in to fit perfectly with the sub. Our competitors do not have this luxury, which means that have to compensate for those constraints in order to try and make it work. We don’t.” Further to the Point Series custom internal components, Adamson can also offer custom matches that conform to any colour in the Pantone library. This feature is not limited to the speaker box, but even the grill, foam and rigging gear can be painted to fit the colours of a venues interior. “We have obviously made our way into some installations in the past, but we generally do bigger installations. I mean, you are not going to see an Adamson array in a café

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ADAMSON POINT SERIES LIVE SOUND <

Point series tech specs

>

Point somewhere,” Adamson laughs, “but the Point Series is aimed at expanding into another part of the market and we have gone out of our way to offer a line that connects all the dots for this type of work.” This Point source is only small part of what lies ahead for Adamson. Aside from a new Point double eight-inch mid high box and double 12-inch sub set for release in the near future, the company feels that it has advanced transducer technology to the point that its next generation of products are going be very sophisticated. > adamsonproaudio.com

The Point Series features Adamson's Advanced Cone Architecture in all 12-inch and 15-inch cabinets. These low-mid transducers have Kevlar cone geometries, developed in house by Adamson to reduce modal behaviour, thereby providing an optimised and linearised pass-band. The Point 8, Point 12 and Point 15 are all available in both, active and passive versions. Designed as two-way point and shoot boxes with rotatable waveguides, the Point 15 and Point 12 can be set at either a 40 x 20, 60 x 40 or 90 x 60 rotatable waveguides, while the smaller Point 8 is available with a 90 x 60 rotatable waveguide. The height of the Point 8 matches the width of the Point 15 (for downfill applications), and the width of the Point 115 Sub, a flyable, single 15-inch speaker, for integration with arrays. The Point 115 sub is a flyable, single 15-inch available in passive and active versions. The Point 215 Sub is an active cabinet with dual 15-inch drivers loaded in a manifold configuration. The compact package features a built-in threaded pole mount socket and strategically placed standard screws, which can be replaced with eyehooks when needed. All two-way enclosures in the Point Series include Side Lock Revolver (SLR) rigging sockets for both vertical and horizontal arraying methods, as does the Point 115 Sub. The 1,114 colours of the Pantone Colour system are available to contractors who need to colour-match loudspeakers to internal decor, as well as their rigging accessories. .

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Picture © Damon Allen Davison. Model: Scarlette O'Harlette

> INTERVIEW HARVEY BIRRELL

Signal to tape From Jesus and Mary Chain to Therapy? and the experimental Latitudes series, London’s Southern Studios has consistently delivered some of the most interesting and innovative records of the past few decades. Head engineer Harvey Birrell attributes the success of the studio to simple production techniques and allowing the bands to sound like themselves. Andrew Low goes down south to get the dirt on Southern Studios… ew London recording studios boast a client list that spans decades and encompasses international and UK acts with such depth as Southern Studios. Started by the late John Loder, Southern Studios is most known for as the place where Jesus and Mary Chain recorded Psychocandy. With adjacent record label Southern Records and an IT company founded by Loder, the company is a multifaceted independent enterprise. Despite its legacy and reputation, Birrell lets the bands recording at the studio dictate the sound of their music. He explains: “Personally, I like to keep things really simple and let them do their thing. Often I will try and use weird production techniques and they will say, ‘No, no, we like it just like it is, straight and in your face’. So I usually just chuck the band in the room, mic it up and then mix it. I generally use standard distance miking and utilise the overdrive of various mic preamps. Often I will run the whole drum kit through a preamp and run it back to another channel to add some crunch because it brings things foreward in the mix and adds presence.” Birrell joined the studio as an assistant to John Loder in the mid 80s and eventually took over as head engineer so that Loder could take on a managerial position over the companies. When Birrell began running the studio he brought it up to speed by adding a Pro Tools rig, a few extra nice mic preamps, a Chiswick Reach stereo valve compressor and some other nice bits of kit. Despite the studio upgrade and addition of Pro Tools, Birrell has still never mixed a record inside a computer. “I use a mixture of plugins and outboard and the studio’s 24-channel Raindirk Series III Vintage Desk,” Birrell states. “I prefer the sound of the

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Manufactured pop has taken rock and made it a package, but there are bands out there still doing their thing – making people jump and making things leap out of the speakers. Harvey Birrell Southern Studios

eq outside of the computer, although there are certain plugins that have aspects that I like. I track to a tape machine into Pro Tools and then use whatever works best for the sound I want to get, i.e. plugin or outboard. “The Chiswick Reach compressor is great on everything, especially vocals. I use it on guitars and very heavily on vocals, but hardly hear what it is doing, and it does a really good job. I also use the mic preamps on our Drawmer 1960 pre a lot to get a bit of overdrive.” The studio also has a collection of pedals that can be heard making swirling sounds on recordings from Dalek and No Age. “Dalek came in and did a song for our experimental Latitudes series,” Birrell says. “And they had the song on the laptop already and they started looping everything through all my pedals and I recorded it.” The legacy of Southern Studios has helped shape the sound of modern bands across many genres. The strong relationships of the label and the studio, coupled with its principles, have continued to keep it in the forefront of the modern alternative music scene. Birrell furthers: “There are a certain amount of bands where you can say that the manufactured pop thing has taken the rock thing and made it a package, but there are a lot of bands out there that are still doing their thing: making people jump, making things leap out of the speakers and challenging people with their dynamics. I think that Southern, the label and the studio, has promoted that expression over the years. That was something that John was involved in and I am involved in and the label is involved in. > southern.com/studio/

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BEHIND THE BOARD WITH…

TREVOR GILLIGAN The Ting Tings FOH engineer has just returned home to the UK after a US club tour with the electro-pop duo Which band/project are you currently working on?

Just finished with The Ting Tings UK production tour and US club tour. Where are you at the moment?

Favourite venue/festival/studio?

No particular favourite but I do like mixing at Brixton Academy. Best toy you take on tour (can be audio… can be other)?

The Benny Hill Collection

Home. What audio console are you utilising? And how many channels?

It was a Yamaha M7CL/LS9 and I was using 32 channels. What decision process was behind the choice of this audio console?

Sense, surface layout, sound for cost and for festivals, I can carry the LS9 to FOH and it takes five minutes to set up with no rack or PSU.

What’s been your worst professional experience to date?

US club tour with locked processors set up by people who didn’t know how to set up processors. What’s been your career highlight?

Kasabian at Earls Court with a massive Martin line array from Capital Sound. What really pisses you off when working?

Smokers. Do you utilise any outboard effects/eq? If so, what are they used on and why?

None – the FX, eq and processors on these desks are fab. Favourite console?

Analog: Midas XL4. Digital: Digico D1/D5 or Yamaha M7CL/LS9. Favourite PA system (or monitors)?

Martin line array and Outline Butterfly.

What makes you happy when working?

No smoking. With hindsight, what job would you have chosen for yourself?

I choose all my jobs. Finally, if you weren't working now, you'd be?

At home watching the soaps... oh, and Benny Hill.

“The best toy I could take on tour would be the Benny Hill Collection.” Trevor Gilligan The Ting Tings FOH

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Outside edge

While the industry at large feels the proverbial pinch, outside broadcasters are building brand new trucks. Rob Hughes finds out why and looks at some of the gear they’re packing into them… he term AV is an oddly confusing one for the audio professional that invokes both enthusiasm and apprehension. ‘There’s a sound system involved,’ you reason with excitement, before becoming disenchanted by thoughts of whatever bizarre and new-fangled gear represents the ‘V’ and the precious rack space it takes up. It’s equally as perturbing for audio journos, who instantly recognise it as a grey area that allows the cunning PR agent to sneak inappropriate press releases into our publications. ‘It’s a sensory extravaganza,’ they exclaim, as 3,000 words worth of projectors, LED towers and lasers land in our inboxes. So, why should OB vans be any different? They, too, seem to have their priorities stacked a little more heavily on the visual side and, with space at a higher premium than in Mayfair, you can bet your left appendage that some kind of frame sychroniser thing is going to beat the compressor/limiter to the last vacant rack unit. However, not only do OB vans generally sport the kind of mixing console that a southern state minister could only dream of, but the audio contingent is being given more consideration than ever. In fact, broadcasters are building more trucks than ever and that can only mean one thing for the appropriate audio manufacturers. All of this brings us to the question: What’s with this apparent halcyon period that outside broadcasting is experiencing? It would appear, when you boil it down, that it stems from the likes of Manchester United fans everywhere selling their kidneys on the black market in order to pay for Sky HD, so they can check out Christiano Ronaldo’s fancy footwork (and fancy hairdo) in super high definition detail. Let us not, then, worry about where the money might be coming from; let’s just check out all the great gear it can be spent on…

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SATELLITE INFORMATION SERVICES Since its launch 21 years ago, SIS has been recognised by the betting and racing industry as the main global provider of pictures and data. It recently acquired the BBC Outside Broadcasts division from BBC Resources and covers many of the world’s big news and sports events, including Formula One motor racing and the Rugby Union World Cup. The company recently commissioned two new dual antenna HD trucks, equipping each with 20-channel Soundcraft BB100 production/on-air mixing consoles. Dave George, project manager for SIS Live, says: “It offers an excellent feature set, such as the mix minus facility, and we use the sub groups to handle the small mixes, feeding them into the comms system to supply production. The BB100s are meeting all of our expectations.” SIS simultaneously purchased three further BB100s, configured 8/4/2 for rack-mounting in their smaller, single-dish trucks. “The tiny footprint of these eightchannel mixers is ideal for the size of trucks we operate,” adds George. “We needed a high-spec desk and these are excellent.” He also adds weight to the theory that audio manufacturers can benefit from the boom in HD. “These trucks are built for the growing requirement for HD work,” he concludes.

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These trucks have been built for the growing requirement for HD work. Dave George Satellite Information Services

> sis.tv

THE AUDIO TRUCK Owned by multi-platinum producer/engineer Danny Greenspoon, Toronto-based mobile studio The Audio Truck handles a diverse range of applications, including live broadcasts, large-scale events and also functions as a mixing and editing suite

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I can’t believe that with one finger I can lift a snake that can do 256 channels. Danny Greenspoon The Audio Truck

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when stationary. The truck was recently upgraded with new Yamaha DM2000 consoles, configured around an Optocore fibre optic transport network. An Optocore DD32E network device receives all AES outputs from the remote stage rack’s Yamaha AD8HRs, via a 150-metre reel of Optocore tactical grade fibre cable with expanded beam connectors in the truck’s patch bay. The system is a five-node, dual redundant ring where the other four network devices are an Optocore DD4ME MADI interface for the ProTools rig, a further DD32E that feeds a Tascam X48 backup recorder and two sets of YG/YS interface cards installed in the DM2000s. This controls the preamps on the stage from the desk via Optocore’s emulation software. “I can’t believe that with one finger I can lift a 500-foot snake that can do 256 channels, whereas before my 48channel snake was at least a two-person lift and only went 300 feet – and didn’t sound as good,” Greenspoon comments. “I was shocked when I plugged in the system for the first time and really listened. It was unsettlingly clean and instantly perceivable as quieter, but still remained transparent.”

64-port Telex talkback system, the firm recently installed a Soundfield DSF-2 and DSF-3 digital 5.1 microphone system into its second outside broadcast unit, OB2, which has recently been refurbished to handle 5.1 audio with the cooperation of satellite broadcaster Sky. The refurbished truck and the newly installed Soundfield systems will be used for 5.1 surround audio on Sky Sports’ premier league darts coverage. “Darts fixtures are large events,” explains Sky’s operations manager, Keith Lane. “There were 7,500 people at the event in Liverpool we covered recently, with play-on music incorporated and, of course, all the dartboard noise and crowd atmosphere to factor in as well. It results in a fairly complex mix. Soundfield’s DSF-2 and DSF-3 combination has, over the past few years, become our standard way of originating 5.1 audio for HD transmission from football matches and other sports fixtures. A point-source system such as Soundfield is the simplest way to obtain a natural-sounding basis for the coverage of the venues. Then we simply add a selection of spot mics for the very close sonic detail as required.” > bowtietv.com

> theaudiotruck.com

BOW TIE TELEVISION Celebrating two decades in outside broadcast this year, Bow Tie has carried out technical operations in over 25 countries for hundreds of clients under both controlled and extreme conditions, offering not just OB services but end-to-end solutions – the company is often called upon to source everything from the venue to the final edit and beyond. Adding to an already impressive array of audio gear that includes a Calrec Sigma 100 console, RTS 2w interface and

BBC RADIO RESOURCES The BBC’s Radio Resources outside broadcasting team and facilities have made it possible to deliver pristine audio for the corporation’s national programmes, from locations as problematic as North Sea oil rigs. In recent weeks, a new all-purpose compact OB vehicle has been delivered to Radio Resources by integrators Total Audio Projects (TAP). Built in a small Mercedes van, efficient use of space was made possible by the installation of Roland’s RSS M-V mixing system, including the diminutive M-400 digital console and digital snake multicores. TAP has provided quality sound insulation for the new OBV, which will make it a popular choice for music festivals this summer. With 48 channels available on the M-400 console, the truck carries a 40-channel S-4000 Digital Snake, as well as an S-0816 stage box. The latter can be used for sound feeds to and from another area on stage or a second OBV. Additionally, an S-1608 FOH unit is on-board to provide extra I/O to the desk in the truck environment. TAP has also installed custom fibre converters, which allow Roland’s ethernet audio communication (REAC) Cat5e protocol to carry audio and video to the OBV on a single fibre cable. Other distinguishing features include 24-channel network switches, which allow the unit to supply a production with a network – supplying a split of REAC from the stage to a number of other destinations, (such as a multitrack recorder or another digital snake on a different vehicle). Radio Resources also uses Allen & Heath’s iDR DSP, which forms the core of an audio switching system, used at most large sporting events, including the Olympics, the European Championships and Wimbledon. www.audioprointernational.com

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OUTSIDE BROADCAST SECTOR SPOTLIGHT <

The system (iDR-8, plus iDR-in and iDR-out units) manages audio between studio and remote commentators. “We need to deal with up to 14 incoming sources at any one time, so we use the iDR-8 with expansion units to give a 16-by-16 clean-feed matrix,” explains BBC Radio’s outside broadcast manager, Jonathan Wilson. “Generally, commentary circuits are fed into the local control room on digital bearers, which could be Vandas or ISDN. These are subject to a noticeable transmission delay, which means that the return path of the four-wire, back to the commentator’s headphones, must be a clean feed or ‘mix-minus' signal, so that the commentator doesn't get put off by hearing him/herself delayed.” > bbcradioresources.com

DOME PRODUCTIONS One of North America's leading mobile production and transmission providers, Toronto-based Dome, is another OB firm celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2009. To commemorate this milestone, it launched a sixth high definition mobile, named Thunder. Consisting of a 53-foot trailer with a 41-foot expando, Thunder is a powerful truck that can handle big shows with no need for a B unit. One difference between Thunder and the rest of the Dome fleet is courtesy of Evertz, a Canadian company, supplying the router that supports the AV routing and integrated multiviewer. The Evertz EQX/VIPX allows information on the router to be instantly available on the monitors at all stations. Thunder’s console is a Calrec Sigma with Bluefin, but the

www.audioprointernational.com

audio room contains new high-density jack fields from ADC that increase the audio capabilities, while using less space. The truck’s MADI interface gives 64 channels of audio over a single cable and allows the mobile to connect to other mobiles’ audio with one fibre connection. Dbx compressors and digital processors can also be found in the audio room. Thunder’s inaugural event was the NY Yankees versus Toronto Blue Jays game for Rogers Sportsnet. Future events planned include the NHL playoffs and CFL games in Montreal and Hamilton. > domeproductions.com

TPC Based in Zurich, TPC is part of Swiss national broadcaster SRG SSR Idée Suisse and has played a leading role in the country’s film and TV industries for over 50 years. TPC recently standardised Neutrik’s OpticalCon Quad for fibre optics across its entire outdoor fleet. The system is on all point-to-point routing applications and all signal types, including audio. This standardisation has brought nationwide compatibility between the I/O panels of OB-trucks, SNG-trucks, stadiums and broadcast signal distribution boxes. Depending on the size of the installation, the setup can choose between 12 or four-channel cables, both of which are based on the OpticalCon Quad connection system. The same cable can be used for events of any size and each channel can be individually patched to the required equipment for the job.

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We need to deal with 14 incoming sources at any one time, so we use the iDR-8. Jonathon Wilson BBC Radio Resources

> tpcag.ch

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> LIVE SOUND SOUND DIVISION

Sounds like this Realising the value of music after losing one of their best-loved musicians, the organisers of Italy’s Nel Nome Del Rock festival set about forming their own events company. Rob Hughes finds out how its underground principles are carrying it to the fore… ext month, in the Italian city of Palestrina, east of Rome, former members of 90s experimental rock group Morphine will return to the Nel Nome Del Rock (In the Name of Rock) festival in memory of their bassist, Mark Sandman, who died on the same stage while performing with them exactly a decade ago. It was a shattering event that marred what should have been Nel Nome Del Rock’s tenth birthday celebration. Remarkably, however, it didn’t bring the festival to an end – the band’s saxophonist, Dana Coleman pleaded: “Don't stop everything, Mark wouldn't have wanted that. He lived for the music. He died with the music”. With that, the show went on. “This was a terrible experience, but it brought us something really special,” recalls Flavio Manieri, one of the festival’s organisers. “It taught us the value of music. When Dana reacted the way he did, we started to realise that there are some very important things in life and music is one of those things.” Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Nel Nome Del Rock is flourishing. Its organisers, however, gauge success on a very different scale than the average events company. Manieri and his colleagues, Leonardo Cicerchia, Enrico Lucarelli and Stefano Aleandri, have been so overwhelmed by the help they have received from musicians in running the festival, they have resolved to do it purely for the love of music and donate any small profits made to charity. The festival has survived simply because bands such as Chumbawumba and The Levellers have played for next to nothing. In October 2007, Nel Nome Del Rock’s sound engineer, Paulo Di Cori, suggested to Manieri that they should take this philosophy and apply it to a rental firm that would put music before money and ‘do it for the sound’. Along with Cicerchia, Lucarelli, Aleandri and Giulio Fiacchi – each of whom had at least 15 years experience in the industry – they formed Sound Divison, with the objective to provide the finest audio they could, to anyone who recognised its value. “Our dream a year ago was to have the best equipment and team for anyone who would like to have an awesome gig in Rome or the rest of Italy,” recalls Manieri. “Like the festival, Sound Division is independent – it’s all about music. We’re not into the profit logic, we want to have good business, but we’re looking for something else, especially the quality of the audio. We think in this field, the music needs a new boost, some new input, and we would like to be the ones to help this happen. We believe that we can do this through the quality of the audio.” The firm started out with an Adamson system, which the team believed gave the best response of the big line arrays. However, working in venues of all shapes and sizes, it soon encountered difficulties in consistently delivering the level of audio quality it strived for. Manieri and his friends saw the problems caused by Italian companies who turned down large gigs and made a pledge early on to handle all manner of events, provided the organisers shared their passion for sound. “We were not really enthusiastic about line array and were looking for a different kind of aural experience,” Manieri recalls. “We believe in the possibility of music through the right means and line array can make your job very difficult in rooms with marble and glass and so on. It is brilliant in the right venue, but point source is much more adaptable and allows you to easliy cover many

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SOUND DIVISION LIVE SOUND <

more spaces. Line array is often used in venues that are not suitable, just because it is easier. Some people believe if it is easier it is better. Especially here in Italy, the situation is quite depressing at the moment.â€? Through their obsession with sound quality and quest to find a more suitable PA solution, the Sound Division team discovered Funktion-One, well known for its emphasis on sonic accuracy and a recognition of the emotional effect of music. Manieri and his friends were eventually introduced to the company’s Tony and Ann Andrews, who realised that they shared similar ideas on the importance of superior audio. Before long Sound Division was auditioning a Resolution 5 system, which, Manieri can’t stress enough, was an instant hit. “We found out about Funktion-One because of our interest and when we met Tony and Ann we thought they were fantastic,â€? he explains. “We started to listen to their systems and were so impressed that we wanted to buy it right away. We think that music should bring people together to experience the beauty of sound and share the emotion and we hope to be able to make this happen through the quality of the sound system. This is what Funktion-One believes too and we share their philosophy.â€? SD’s new Res 5 system is now poised to take on Nel Nome Del Rock in July and the firm has no concerns regarding its ability to do so, having already proven the system at Italian electronic music festival Dissonance, last month. Alongside SLS Event Technology, it deployed the system together with a hefty rack of MC2 E series amps, to amplify the sounds of DJs such as François Kevorkian and Laurent Garnier. The event attracted thousands of fans to the Palazzo dei Congressi in Rome. This type of event is significant for Sound Division because it represents an important

“

We think music should bring people together to experience the beauty of sound and share the emotion. Flavio Manieri Sound Division

stepping-stone between the underground and commercial arenas. “At the moment there is a strange situation in over here in the sense that a lot of international artists don’t have an easy time in Italy, so we don’t have a lot of high-profile live music events, especially in this area of Italy,� Manieri explains. “However, we do have a really good underground scene where there is little money but people really do it for the love of music. We started in the underground and now that we are out of it, we are trying to be just a little more commercial and business minded, but we’re sticking to our philosophy of putting the music first and looking for something that will help our job of introducing a new level of sound to Italy.� The company needs more than just a potent sound system to do this, and so are fortunate to benefit from the experience of some seasoned professionals. Manieri holds his staff in the highest regard and speaks of a baffling number of crew who make up the wider Sound Division team. Before he returns to his plans for the imminent Nel Nome Del Rock, Manieri emphatically states the company’ mission statement, the underground principles it was founded on: “We’re starting to get some requests for some tours now, but we don’t care about money. We’re trying to make a living too and we care about our investment but we like to do what we do and we want to do it the right way. We know that not everybody is doing it the right way – sometimes because they’re not competent and sometimes because they are looking for something else. We first look to the quality and we think our clients will like that.� > sounddivision.it

2009 Year Anniversary

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PERSONAL MONITORING SECTOR SPOTLIGHT <

Ear to the ground

The ghoulish sounds of the Thriller tour monitored by Audio Technica’s M3 IEMs

Personal monitoring systems allow performers to take control over their own mix during live events and studio sessions. Many users also confirm that these systems allow to here themselves better, and in turn give a better performance. Andrew Low gives a glimpse of who is putting what in their ears… hile some old school rockers prefer keeping their wedges for posterity and a place to put their foot during guitar solos, the new school of professional musicians have grown up with their own personal monitoring system wedged in their external auditory meatus (ear canal). Along with wireless microphones, in-ear monitoring (IEM) systems have paved the way for new and innovative stage set ups that bring the audience closer to its fans, while personal monitoring systems offer a user-controllable interface. These systems are essentially personalised monitoring systems that allow each musician, actor or speaker to take hold of their own mix during live and studio performances.

W

SHURE PSM 700 PERSONAL MONITOR SYSTEMS Shure has several IEM systems used by high profile acts. Primal Scream’s drummer Darrin Mooney uses Shure E3 IEMS for the band’s intense live shows. With so many different sound sources going on at once, he relies on the E3s to monitor guitars, vocals and his kit, all mixed along with a click track. The company’s premier IEM system is the PSM700 series, which offers advanced controls designed to provide userfriendly features for quick access to the clear frequencies and to minimise distortion and antennas.

“

It doesn’t matter what the acoustics are or if the wind is blowing, you can hear yourself it. Smokey Robinson on the PSM700

PSM700 is a two-channel UHF monitoring system that is compatible with other Shure UHF and VHF wireless systems. It takes up only half rack space and features a built-in audio limiter and internal power supply. It also provides users with Stereo or MixMode control for custom monitor mixes, 32 user-selectable frequencies per system and up to 16 compatible frequencies for 16 different mixes. Additional features include +4 dBu/–10 dBV input level select switch on P7T and electronically balanced, combined 1⁄4-inch/XLR connectors. PSM700 can be used with either SCL5 or SCL3 Sound Isolating Earphones. SCL5 earphones contain high-definition tweeter and woofer drivers together with an inline crossover for accurate high, mid and low frequency reproduction. Motown legend Smokey Robinson fought using IEMs for years. It wasn’t until he met Luther Vandross backstage after a gig at the Hollywood Bowl that he even considered using them. “Vandross said: ‘Smoke, let me tell you, the ear monitors, they are really what’s happening. It’s like singing to yourself in the studio. When you saw me, when I came on, I was barely singing, because I could hear myself. I don’t have to strain; I don’t have to do anything.” Robinson was soon fitted with the PSM700 system and loves the results. He continues: “It was a godsend. It doesn’t matter where you’re playing. It doesn’t matter what the acoustics are. It doesn’t matter if you’re outside or inside. It doesn’t matter if the wind is blowing. Whatever is happening, you can hear yourself. I tell everybody. I tell all the singers I know who haven’t tried them. I told Gladys Knight: ‘Gladys, get the ear monitor. Get it baby, because it’s what’s happening.’ I told Aretha: ‘Get the ear monitor because it’s what’s happening.’ It saves your voice. When we do concerts I sing for two-and-a-half hours. I don’t have to strain because I can hear me.” > shure.com

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> SECTOR SPOTLIGHT PERSONAL MONITORING

RSS BY ROLAND M-48 PERSONAL MIXER Roland Solutions Solutions (RSS) recently announced a new product to complement its line of live professional audio gear. Introduced at this year’s Prolight+Sound show, the RSS M48 Live Personal Mixer and S-4000D splitter and power distributor provide audio mixing for musicians during live or studio performances. One M-48 has the capacity for up to 40 audio input sources mixed in 16 assignable stereo groups with level, pan, solo, and three-band eq on each group in addition to built-in reverb. An ambient mic and physical outputs are in place for connection to headphone, wedges and powered monitors and external recording devices. The M-48 also features Roland Ethernet Audio Communication format, REAC, via a Cat-5 cable. The S-4000D splitter and power distributor provides a digital audio stream and can power up to eight M-48 mixers. Several S-4000Ds can be used together in addition to providing users with the ability to save and recall setting from an M-48 or an M-400 mixer. The new Roland system is compatible with other digital or analog desks by using RSS digital snakes with PC software. Bodo Feldmann, MD for RSG Euro Germany, states: “We’ve provided a way for each musician to monitor exactly what they want to – their order, their grouping, their levels, eqs, reverb – whatever. That may mean very simply a knob or two for the novice.” > rolandsystemsgroup.net SENNHEISER EW 300 IEM G3 SERIES Sennheiser’s IEMs can be found on stages around the world in the ears of bands like King Of Leon and The Kaiser Chiefs. Sennheiser’s G2 300 series IEMs were also the only system used by performers during this year’s Brit Awards. Kaiser Chiefs’ monitor engineer, Llias Andrianatos explains: “We’ve been using Sennheiser mics and IEMs since 2005. The band’s reaction towards the Sennheiser products has always been good. If they ever had to do shows when the Sennheiser equipment wasn’t available it was always missed.” Sennheiser recently released the G3 version of its IEMs, the third in the Evolution Wireless series. New features of the series include adaptive-diversity reception, switchable hi boost and a multi-level switchable limiter as standard. Users will find a built-in five-band graphic equalizer in the transmitter for customization. Its rack transmitter can also be monitored and remotely controlled on a PC via its Ethernet 28

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connection using Sennheiser’s own Wireless Systems Manager software. G3 IEMs provide 42 MHz bandwidth with 1680 tunable UHF frequencies for interference-free reception and enhanced frequency bank system with up to 16 compatible frequencies, an enhanced AF frequency range and an increased range for audio sensitivity. > sennheiser.com AUDIO TECHNICA M3 IN-EAR MONITOR SYSTEM Audio-Technica’s M3 IEM system offers 1321 UHF channels and LCD displays on its transmitter and receiver. It features up to 16 simultaneous channels, including three receiver modes, personal mix, stereo and mono. The system’s M3R stereo body-pack receiver features an aux input, M3T stereo transmitter and in-ear dynamic EP3 headphones. The M3R’s aux input has made it possible for musicians to input click tracks and allow for an extra ambient mic input to give the user a complete sense of overall stage sound. The stereo monitor system is equipped with Personal Mix Control, which allows volume and mix control of two independent signals on stage, via controls on the M3R stereo body-pack. Aaron Buck is a seasoned engineer who has worked with big acts like Avril Lavigne, Dizzee Rascal and The Damned. Now head of sound for the touring version of the Michael Jackson musical, Thriller, Buck has given the M3 series IEMs to the guitarist for monitoring during the show. “It’s a very user-friendly package,” Buck explains. “With a show like this we have to apply to use and hire radio frequencies at every venue we visit. So we have to change the frequency set-up of all our equipment day-to-day. The M3 is a dream to program and work with, and the menus are set out in a sensible way that is quick and easy to use. “And they are exceptionally durable and solid. The beltpacks get sat on, dropped, and covered in sweat but still deliver the same great result night after night. I really couldn’t ask for more from them.” > audio-technica.com

The Kaiser Chiefs get in the mix with the help of Sennhieser IEMs

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LD SYSTEMS MEI-100 UK Goth metal rockers, Paradise Lost, have created what they define as ‘gloom rock’. The bands new material is a more organic and raw take on their earlier material and as such they have chosen LD System’s IEM monitoring systems for its transparent sound reproduction during live shows. LD’s MEI100 in-ear monitoring system features 160 possible frequencies, which allow ten systems to be operated in parallel without intermodulation, while its corrected frequency response provides optimised adaptation to auditory requirements. A limiter in the system’s input provides hearing protection, which prevents distortion at levels up to an overload of +12dB. It also offers both mono and stereo options to aptly suit numerous live and theatre applications. All operating states of both the transmitter and receiver are shown on MEI100’s multifunctional display. The sender also has a headphone output, allowing monitoring at the sender side. High-quality earphones for the receiver and an optimised power management component with long battery life also come as standard. > ld-systems.com TRANTEC S4000 UHF IEM SYSTEM The S4000 IEM is a UHF stereo in-ear-monitoring system comprised of a transmitter and two beltpack receivers. Its transmitter is DC powered, via mains adaptor, and features a menu-driven LCD control panel, which can display the levels of both audio channels together, or an average of both along with the operating frequency or user name. LEDs are also included to display stereo/mono status and limiter operation. The receiver features an LCD showing frequency information, volume control, frequency selection, 3.5mm stereo jack socket and LEDs showing power and RF reception. > trantec.co.uk AKG IVM 4 AKG’s IVM 4 is dubbed as a wireless in-ear monitor system with unique signal processing capabilities for live applications and professional installations. A new feature of the model is integration with Harman’s communication protocol, HiQnet,

with optional 4000Q. The system features the SST 4 stereo transmitter with dbx compressor, eq, binaural room and natural room simulations. With preprogrammed frequency preset banks, 14 intermodulation-free channels and up to 1,200 manually selected frequencies, it can be used within a 30MHz wide UHF band. IVM 4’s SPR 4 bodypack receiver is housed in a die-cast magnesium case and features Auto Setup and Environment Scan functions for finding free frequencies. > akg.com JTS SIEM-111 Japanese pro audio manufacturer JTS has its own brand of IEMs, the SIEM-111. Featuring the company’s UHF PLL technology, SIEM-111 offers 961 selectable UHF channels with the ability to use 16 sets of SIEM-111T transmitters simultaneously and four groups with 16 compatible preset channels to choose from. The system also features circuitry developed to assure optimum signal-to-noise ratio. Users have a choice of IE-1 and IE-6 earphones, both of which feature JTSdesigned Dyna-Driver ear buds, which reduce undesired stage noise and ambient sound levels. Three variations of the silicon sleeves are included with the earphones to comfortably fit the user’s ears.

”

The beltpacks get sat on, dropped, and covered in sweat but still deliver the same great result night after night. Aron Buck on the AT M3s

AVOIM PRO16 PERSONAL MONITORING SYSTEM ATK Audited monitor engineer Tom Peas chose Aviom’s Pro16 system for the personal monitoring and communications setup at the lead-off event of President Obama’s inauguration, the Neighborhood Ball, held in Washington DC this fall. Audited has used the Aviom system many times for numerous large and important events, including the Democratic National Convention. Aviom’s A-16II Personal Mixer lowers stage volume and gives performers the ability to customise their own mixes, giving them control over volume, grouping, pan, stereo spread, and master volume and tone. Users can also save and recall up to sixteen custom mixes as presets in their Personal Mixer. > avoim.com

M-48 Breakthrough

Personal Mixing and Monitoring The M-48 offers performers flexible control over exactly what they want to listen to, providing the highest level of sound quality for headphones or IEMS (In-ear monitors), wedge and powered monitors. A unique Ambient Microphone puts you in control of the mix while individual 16-channel and global EQ, limiter, local aux input and reverb make it ideal for tour, stage, broadcast and studio. Fully compatible with REAC Digital Snakes or M-400 V-Mixing solutions. www.rolandsg.co.uk or call 01792 702701

M-400 V-Mixer

Record with Sonar

S-0816 / Cat5E / S-1608

S-4000 Digital Snake

REAC : Capture, Distribute, Mix and Record pristine 24-bit Multi-channel Audio over Cat5e and Fibre

www.audioprointernational.com

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Latin Grammy award winner Armando Avila Wallofso

> SECTOR SPOTLIGHT USED GEAR

Sounds like old times The used audio equipment market has seen a recent upswing as a result of studios and rental companies liquidating their inventories by flogging unwanted gear. Companies offering refurbished used kit with warranties and after sales service have professionalised the market. Andrew Low investigates the companies upping the ante over eBay... s a new recording studio owner myself, the search for high quality, used equipment has become a bit of an obsession. While names like Funky Junk and Larkings List are well known in the UK, other sources are a bit more obscured by eBay and other online, classified sites. Considering that any old SSL or Neve console can cost more than a small house, buying from anonymous online sellers is an extremely frightening process, no matter how cheap the kit is. There are, however, many companies that specialise in the field of used recording studio gear, refurbished equipment and the offering of services on everything from the vast panoply of outboard gear to consoles and microphones.

A

LARKINGS LIST TL Audio founder Tony Larkings has been operating as a reseller of used and modified recording gear for decades. Larkings List is a resource of used, professional recording equipment and the supplier of used recording consoles, audio effects and processors. The company also stocks used microphones, mastering equipment and hard disk recording systems, including DAWs such as Pro Tools. Based in Hertfordshire, UK, Larkings List has many of its recording consoles on display in its showroom and claims to have the largest stock of analog and digital recording desks and mixers in the UK. The company also exports gear overseas and has seen a big demand from the European market for its used consoles and equipment due to the

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growing strength of the euro. In addition to resale, the company also supplies and installs complete recording systems, acoustic treatment, repairs and part exchange, as well as offering good finance deals. > larkingslist.com DUNCAN PRO AUDIO UK console manufacturing giant SSL has taken a turn towards the consumer market in recent years, although the company still has the legacy of building some of the biggest and most widely used recording consoles around the globe. Duncan Pro Audio stepped in to corner the market on used SSL consoles and is the exclusively recognised European dealer of previously owned SSL consoles. The company works directly with SSL UK to provide refurbished consoles of varying ages, from ten years to 12 months old. While SSL continues to manufacture large format recording consoles, Duncan offers the same quality products at prices varying from £15,000 for a 4048E with E computer and Total Recall, to the £120,000, 80channel 9000 K series and even the recently made, state-of-the-art Duality desks. Duncan Pro Audio knows how big and daunting the decision to buy a high-priced recording console is and, as such, it offers years of industry experience and customer service, directed towards choosing the proper gear for every customer. Most of its consoles carry a warranty, with

“

This sector has been professionalised to a great degree through companies such as us. Gary Nelsson Gear Source Europe

www.audioprointernational.com

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USED GEAR SECTOR SPOTLIGHT <

on-site commissioning by an SSL trained technician and a complete technical service if required. The company also provides studio consultation in conjunction with experienced engineer Drew Griffiths, in addition to supplying software and hardware to suit the needs of a new or existing studio. The decline of the pound has also created a recent upswing in sales for Duncan. Most consoles are sold to the US and Europe, but sales to Australia have been known. > peterduncan.com FUNKY JUNK The company Funky Junk was inspired after its founder, Mark Thompson, purchased an Ashley equaliser for his home studio that turned out to be an empty box with knobs on it. Through his research, he found that there was a great need for a reliable studio supplier to do the legwork to find used gear for high-end studios. Over two decades later, Funky Junk claims to be Europe’s leading supplier of used studio equipment. Located in East London, Funky Junk overhauls, maintains and sells used gear with three-month warranties included for each purchase. It also staffs trained engineers and technicians who provide technical support and back-up. The company carries large stocks of fully serviced, used outboard and mics and also houses up to 20 consoles of varying sizes from the likes of Neve and SSL. It modifies large format consoles to make eight to 20 channel desks for home and project studios. > proaudioeurope.com

STUDIO SYSTEMS As one of the many proponents of the analog-only mandate for audio recording, Studio Systems of Cornwall, UK has specialised in trading Soundtracs analog mixing consoles for over two decades. It deals specifically with Soundtracs because it believes this brand has been consistently manufactured to an excellent, wide-ranging standard that has withstood the test of time. It furthers the idea by quoting Soundtracs’ MD, Todd Wells: “We over engineered – just to be sure”. Studio Systems assures its customers that every desk is fully serviced and provided with full technical support for years beyond the sale date. The company has 25 years of experience with Soundtracs and offers services beyond that of an eBay sale. It has sold its consoles to satisfied producers and engineers all over the world. > studiosystems.co.uk RECYCLED AUDIO Recycled Audio began life as a technical company based in Oxfordshire, UK. With over 20 years of studio service and repairs with SSL desks in numerous studios around the world, the company has expanded its focus to include the sale and service of secondhand consoles with SSL trained technicians. The company prides itself upon maintaining a strict honesty policy when it comes to the condition and history of any desk it sells. It can also offer modified and customised consoles to fit the requirements of its customers’ needs. Its consoles are fully refurbished, tested and include a 90-day part and labour

What better way to get your hands on a classic Neumann mic?

Wireless In-Ear Monitor system, a more compact option. Tired of lugging heavy monitor equipment to each gig? Then switch from traditional floor monitors to Audio-Technica’s ultra-compact wireless-in-ear monitor systems. These rugged systems are built to stand up to the inevitable bumps of life on the road, delivering clear, natural sound for touring and installed-sound systems. Not only are they easy to transport, but they’re also quick to set up. Travel light on tour with Audio-Technica and focus on what really matters: your music.

m3 system www.audio-technica.com

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> SECTOR SPOTLIGHT USED GEAR

warranty, manuals, a channel extender and a spare channel, when available. > recycledaudio.co.uk GEAR SOURCE EUROPE Gear Source Europe is a leading company involved in sales of used gear for the live entertainment industry. It deals mostly in the high-end market, providing lighting equipment and mobile staging, as well as the expected live mixing consoles to rental companies in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Owner Gary Nelsson has seen a growth in the used market over the past six months as more companies have begun to consolidate their inventory and sell off superfluous gear. He states: “In the past, the companies that had gear they wanted to sell did not have the time to take pictures and make the effort to sell it. Now that business has slowed, they have had the opportunity to liquidate their stock to raise more capital. “This sector of the industry has been professionalised to a great degree and companies can source equipment more easily though a company such as us. “Most of our new business has come from word of mouth. Considering the large price tags that come with some of the equipment we sell, our clients want to know they are buying from a credible and responsible source.” There is little you could think of that Gear Source doesn’t handle, being one of the most respected online sources of good quality used amplifiers, consoles, microphones, recording devices, speakers, cabling and even line array systems. On top of that, the company multiplies each of those categories exponentially by dealing with brands as diverse as Crown Macrotech, EV, EAW, Yamaha, Powersoft, Mackie, Peavey, QSC, JBL, AB, Crest, Digam and more. > gearsourceeurope.com

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Butch Vig, NIrvana’s and Smashing Pumpkins’ producer, simply loves to drool over tweakables

Just some of what you can get. The API desk at Windmark studios (left) and an SSL XL9080

VINTAGE KING Vintage King offers everything from used multitracks and consoles to outboard, monitors, mics and DAWs. Customers can find used desks from API, Neve, SSL and Trident for sale on its site, in addition to a myriad of gear from high-end manufacturers such as Neumann, Pultec and Eventide. Hundreds of used pieces are bought through Vintage King and shipped around the globe from what it claims to be the ‘largest selection of new and used pro audio in the world’. Nearly all the items sold by Vintage King are serviced and come with a warranty and most have a ten-day trial period from the date of shipment. Its in-house technicians also rebuild, refurbish and customise the equipment. Vintage King credits its continued success in this sector to the fact that it guarantees its products. Its diverse client range extends from bedroom users to big names such as Bruce Springsteen, Roger Waters, Metallica, Jack White and The Who’s Pete Townsend. > vintageking.com ODYSSEY PRO SOUND Odyssey Pro Sound of Salem, Massachusetts is a buyer and seller of used and vintage pro audio and recording equipment, including consoles, signal processors, microphones, recorders, amplifiers and monitors. Visitors to its website can find an impressive mix of both digital and analog from modern to vintage and classic gear. The site functions as an eBay-style hub for buyers and sellers and buyers can benefit from a strict money-back guarantee if the kit isn’t up to scratch. > odysseyprosound.com

www.audioprointernational.com

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> INTERVIEW CHARLIE WATKINS

He’s electric

1,000 Watts hardly leaps from the page of a power amp spec sheet these days, but in 1967 it got WEM founder Charlie Watkins arrested. Here, the ‘Godfather of modern PA’ recounts his a quest for ‘a sound system like Hitler had…’ Photos courtesy of Charlie Watkins, www.watkinsguitars.co.uk

Fleetwood Mac on stage at the Windsor Festival in 1967, ably backed up by the world’s first 1,000-Watt PA

ou probably think I’m a bit of an opportunist. Well I don’t mind if you do, because I am. Anyone who wants to be in business has to be. In the old days I thought: ‘Well, here is the Marino Marini Quartet, walking around with all the bouquets and the honours because of that lovely echo sound, but no one can do it live’. Hence the Copicat. When I went to a gig, you could never hear the singers, so I hunted for months, probably years, to find a way of getting a sound system like Hitler had in Germany at the Nuremberg rallies. I figured that if he could do it, so could I, but in those days the only way was to find either two Hiwatts or two Marshalls and lash them together. This was a disaster of course – one valve amplifier driving another valve amplifier and you’re looking for trouble, endless trouble too. When the Byrds came over for their first tour, around 1965, I was offered the job of providing the PA for them. So I gathered together all the guitar amplifiers I had: some 50 and 60-Watt transistor and valve guitar amps. But singing through a guitar amplifier is as bad as playing a guitar through a PA column, you can’t hear what they’re singing. You need flat response for vocals. I blew ten amps at the Byrds gig. It was commercial suicide, an absolute disaster. After the final show, Roger McGuinn said to me: “Charlie, don’t ask me to endorse your products because I’ve never heard such a rotten PA in my life. But I’ll do all I can because you’ve been so helpful and tried so hard”. And we had tried very hard. Every time they had a gig I was there to try out my latest disaster.

Y

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This was the same type of PA they were using for festivals, which in those days were mainly promoted by Harold Pemberton of the Marquee Club. He used to run a jazz festival at Windsor every year, with Chris Barber, the trombonist, and various jazz groups. He used to get an audience of about a hundred or so, but it wasn’t really a festival. Well, not what I had in mind anyway. I thought, I’m going to do a festival. I’d always wanted to do one, but I couldn’t find a way of putting it into action. Not that I’m very technical, I had boffins, but they didn’t come up with the goodies. I had three of them, in fact, in the factory, but they couldn’t figure it out. I had better luck with my French agent, who used to sell my Copicats in France and my Belgian agent – some very clever people, very sharp. So I talked it over and borrowed a couple of their ideas. At the time of my soiree to Belgium, they’d just brought out the RCA transformerless circuit. My amps were 70 Watts into eight Ohms, so I told one of my boffins he had to get me 90 Watts into four Ohms. And he did have to. When you connect two amplifiers together without the transformers, it leaves you with a disaster. One will blow the other – if you’ve got a train of ten, you’ll blow the whole bloody lot. That wasn’t common knowledge then because nobody had done it. One of my boffins, Norman Sergeant, was already working on a guitar amplifier using the RCA circuit so I asked him what would happen if I connected two up together. He said: “Yeah, that’ll be all right,” so as soon as he’d finished it, that’s

“

I thought, I’m going to do a festival. I’d always wanted to do one, but I couldn’t find a away of putting it into action. Charlie Watkins

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CHARLIE WATKINS INTERVIEW <

what I did. They worked together perfectly. We had created the SL100, the first true slave amp. I live in Norwood in South London, as I did then, and in West Norwood was a firm that made speakers called Tannoy. So, I went down to the workshop and asked if I could hire a couple of the big four-by-12 columns that Tannoy used for its PA. Tannoy was the public address king and used to do the speeches in Westminster Hall, but this was different, this was rock groups. They were up against some very powerful backing gear and some very particular singers. Auther Brown was all the rage at the time. His band was called The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. I made him one of my first PA sets, it was 300 Watts and he thought I was bloody magic – just what I needed in my old age. Tannoy didn’t really drive its speakers, it only had an amplifier of 80 Watts, but the speakers looked good so I hired a pair of them. That’s when I heard the difference between guitar speakers mounted in a column and flat response speakers mounted in a column. Enormous difference. Then I knew the way to go. I put the cart before the horse, I freely admit, but one of my sound engineers was a guy called John Thompson and he used to work for Marquee part time. I got John to speak to Harold Pemberton and say that if he was going to do the festival that year, to let me do the PA for him. It wouldn’t cost him anything, but I’d give him 1,000 Watts, which was unheard of in those days. They use that for bloody monitors these days, but back then it was revolutionary. I acquired some 12-inch Goodman Axiom 301s, which were high power hi fi speakers with huge, great magnets. They gave sound pressure levels of about 19dB, which was great in those days. Goodman also did a 12-inch bass woofer called an Audiom 60, so I got a load of them, too. Goodman was quick off the mark. It asked: “Why are you buying all these speakers, what are you doing with them?” I explained and the company even lent a hand. I got myself 20 columns from this factory in Kennington and fitted twin Axioms and twin Audioms in each. It was a bit ‘woofy’, so I made a further thin column with three tweeter horns in. Similar to the Motorola six by two-inch tweeters, Celestion made a horn about that size, the X3, and they were the only ones that would fit. It was a very narrow column and just tucked in beside two of the big fourby-12s. I lashed them together and they all stood up. Back home, I set up a pair with one slave and got about five Ohms. I thought it sounded good, so I put another pair in and straight away you could feel and hear the difference, so I carried on to 500 Watts, up to 600 Watts and then when I got to 700 Watts it got a bit dicey. There was a knock on the door and it was the police. He said: “I’m afraid you’ll have to put a stop to whatever you’re doing in there because the neighbours are ringing the police station asking what’s gone wrong.” So, I had to call it a day, but it didn’t matter, I knew I was on the right track. Off to Windsor we went and I set it all up. One of my SL100 amps would drive two WEM PA columns and at Balloon Meadow I used ten to drive 20 speakers. Nobody had ever heard that sort of sound before. Arthur Brown came on near the end with his number one single, Fire. He was a soprano, I think, and he always screamed at the end of that track, so I said to John Thompson: “When he does that scream, wind all the power up and turn the reverb on full.” I’ve never heard such a lovely sound in all my life – he even stopped halfway through his scream in amazement. It was so loud that I got arrested for public nuisance. The mayor came round with all the gold round his neck to stop it. He had the chief inspector of police with him and there’s me with my raggedy old shirt on. Nevertheless, they were impressed. So impressed, in fact, that a few weeks later, Arthur Brown wrote me a poem. It was called Charlie and his WEM PA. Funny the things you remember, isn’t it?

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Act accordionly Although today it is a very genteel MI business, Watkins Electric Music has had a massive impact on rock n roll

“

There was a knock on the door – it was the police.

>

Seeing off the likes of Cliff Richard and Elvis Presley in the UK charts in November 1958 was Marino Marini and His Quartet with Come Prima, a song that inspired Charlie Watkins to design the Copicat – the world’s first single unit echo machine. A veteran of WW2, Watkins’ weapon of choice was the accordion, although, during his service, he became fascinated in the structure and mechanics of the guitar. On returning home he set up a shop in Balham, London, with brother Reg, where they sold both instruments, while designing and manufacturing their own products, including the Westminster and V-fronted Dominator guitar amplifiers. The Copicat swiftly became the most famous tape-echo unit ever and it’s sound was intrinsic to pop music of the late 50s and early 60s. Today, WEM is still operational and managed, as always, by Watkins. Gone are the PAs, amps and guitars, but he still builds and imports fine accordions.

Ruthless ,MÄJPLUJ` Killer :V\UK Unleashed :VVU WHEN A SINGLE ENCLOSURE DELIVERS COMPARABLE SPL COVERAGE, CLARITY AND CONTROL AS A 4 BOX LINE ARRAY, IT’S TIME TO STOP AND THINK. ONE VQ LIVE 60 IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A SUSTAINED SPL OF 138KB (144KB PEAK) WITH A TIGHTLY CONTROLLED 60° DISPERSION PATTERN ACROSS THE FULL FREQUENCY RANGE. UNLEASHED AT FRANKFURT PROLIGHT+SOUND, STAND D18, HALL 8. A)

B)

DIRECT SPL @4kHz OF VQ LIVE 60 (A) AND 4 X BOX LINE ARRAY (B). PLACED 5M ABOVE FLOOR LEVEL IN LINE WITH THE FRONT OF THE STAGE AREA IN 30M X 40M ROOM. TA N N O Y . C O M

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Brit Row purchases third XL8 Double system heads out with Depeche Mode as first Midas set-up remains with Oasis until October

BRITANNIA ROW PRODUCTIONS

has purchased a third Midas XL8 live performance system. The purchase comes as one of the company’s systems continues its world tour with Oasis. The remaining two have now been spec’d for Depeche Mode’s Tour of the Universe which began in Israel at the beginning of May. “Oasis went into rehearsals for their world tour last summer and will have had a Midas XL8 out on tour on monitors for nearly 15 months by the

time they finish in October 2009,” said Britannia Row’s Mike Lowe. “That console, specified by their monitor engineer, Nahuel Gutierrez, is now on the road for the South American leg of the tour. “Another Midas XL8 went into in SIR studios in New York with engineer Sarne Thorogood (pictured) for the Depeche Mode monitor rehearsals. Anthony King , the band’s FOH engineer, also specified a Midas XL8 and as the Depeche Mode world

”

As the Depeche Mode tour will continue into 2010, we needed a third XL8 to cover. Mike Lowe Britannia Row

tour will continue into 2010, we purchased our third XL8. After a warm up show in Los Angeles, more band rehearsals in London and production rehearsals in Luxembourg, both consoles ship to Tel Aviv for the first concert of the world tour on May 10th.” > britanniarow.com

Neutrik helps out Fresh Paint Ministries NEUTRIK USA HAS donated a number of its best-selling connector products to the Washington-based charity Fresh Paint Ministries. Fresh Paint is a five-year old organisation, dedicated to partnering local churches to help children and youths understand their value, worth and purpose. Run solely by volunteers, the charity uses carnivals, puppet shows and concerts to lift the spirits of those in need. Neutrik’s products are used throughout Fresh Paint’s sound systems, of which it has two – a mobile hydraulic sound stage for outdoor events and a main stage rig for indoor events. The outdoor stage is a 24 by 20-foot electro-hydraulic stage that levels and rises, then flips out. This one-of-a-kind custom stage 36

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was built with donated materials. The indoor roll-away stage is 60 by 40-foot. The children attending the events are the stage-hands for the concerts. The organisation turns to pro bands in the area to provide free music lessons and to perform. “Neutrik connectors are involved in every event we host,” said Bruce Rechsteiner, director at Fresh Paint. “We have no budget, so the Neutrik connectors are invaluable to us. Fresh Paint was started with one guitar in a parking lot, but thanks to compnaies such as Neutrik and our staff of volunteers, we are now a public charity that looks out for the better interest of people in distress. Music provides hope and we are happy that we are able to offer it to these kids.” > neutrik.com

>> ALCONS HAS… ...Provided loudspeakers for the world’s fifth largest basilica. Belgium’s Basiliek van Koekelberg is now using the frim’s QR36 modular systems to provide intelligible audio for its regular services. Its cross-shaped baseform with a 2,500 capacity nave and big side aisles, each with a capacity of 250 visitors, a depth of 197ft and seven second reverb, made the assignment to provide accurate sound a true challenge for contractor PaPA and Alcons’ engineer Philip de Haan. > alconsaudio.com www.audioprointernational.com

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APPLICATIONS <

160 Shure channels for world’s largest karaoke Pink and 13,000 fans crowd Trafalgar Square for T-Mobile Flash Mob HAND HELD AUDIO recently provided 160 channels of Shure UHF-R wireless microphones for the latest T-Mobile Flash Mob event in London’s Trafalgar Square. T-Mobile has been running a series of adds to promote its Flash Mob events in London, one of them being the dance happening in Liverpool Street station. It seems that the adverts have created such a buzz that the company stepped up a

determined that 162 channels would be needed, two extras for Pink, occupying 518Mhz to 865Mhz. Providing coverage in such an RF crowded part of the city was a difficult task for the teams. Tarkan Akdam, technical manager at Hand Held Audio, commented: “We decided to use the Shure UHF-R kit as it offered the best in current radio mic technology.

“I knew with SDUK I had the full backing of Shure, which meant we could achieve what we set out to do.” Tarkan Akdam Hand Held Audio notch and put on a 13,000-person karaoke event in Trafalgar Square, establishing a new world record. Pop diva Pink led the singalong, which included Hey Jude and Is This The Way to Amarillo? 160 members of the crowd were given Shure’s Beta 58 and SM58 models, each transmitting on independent RF channels. Hand Held Audio called upon Shure Distribution UK to help in the planning stages and provide onsite support for the event. It was

“Events of this nature require a lot of resources and having fewer things to worry about is always a great help. I knew with Tuomo Tolonen from SDUK I had the full backing of Shure, which in turn meant I was lot more positive that we could achieve what we set out to do. Using the knowledge of the application engineers put me in a better position to cross any technical hurdles that might (and did) crop up.” > shure.co.uk

VQ infiltrates the stadium world FRESNO, CALIFORNIA’S Selland Arena is the first stadium to be fitted with Tannoy’s VQ series. Launched as an alternative to line array, Tannoy feels that VQ provides acoustic designers with a discrete and controllable point source solution. PMK consultants were employed to design a new audio system for the 8,500-capacity arena in order to provide proper coverage for the vast variety of events held at Selland. PMK specified the VQ Series and San Francisco-based ProMedia UltraSound installed eight VQ Net 60 enclosures with accompanying VQ MB mid-bass units, which were flown 45 feet above floor level in the centre of the arena around a rectangular gantry. Four additional VQ Net 60s were installed on the corners, with four more speakers positioned around the centre points www.audioprointernational.com

of each side, each with a VQ Net down-fill mounted below. A central sub array, comprised of 16 VNet 18 DR subs in four columns of four, was flown centrally. VNet subs feature efficient, 18-inch drive units coupled with a Class D VNet amplifier module with switched mode power supply.

System commissioning tech Dave Schultz said: “The Tannoy system sounded more like an excellent FOH system in a medium-sized hall, rather than a large empty arena. They were able to deliver seamless coverage with impressive intelligibility throughout the entire arena.”

SCRATCHING

THE PAD Recent industry deals THE 80,000-CAPACITY Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina – home of university team The Gamecocks – has upped the power and clarity of its audio system with 17 Lab.gruppen C series amplifiers driving a new EAW KF900 series cluster. The new system was designed and installed by ACS Sound & Lighting of Columbia. According to general manager Troy Gwin, Lab.gruppen’s C series was specified based on performance, power density and remote monitoring capability. > labgruppen.com THE UK AIR Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) now uses a Cedar Cambridge forensic system to assist with the analysis of communications recorded by cockpit voice recorders (CVRs). Peter Wivell, senior inspector at the AAIB, which is responsible for the investigation of civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents within the UK, commented: "Cleaning noisy recordings is not a constant task for us, so a complicated system would not be viable. The simple controls of Cedar mean that we get instant audible feedback on the effects of the tools, allowing us to find quick solutions. > cedar-audio.com BROADCASTER CHANNEL ONE chose Sennheiser’s SKM 5200 handheld transmitters with KK 105 S Neumann capsules, SK 5212 body pack transmitters and HSP 4 headset mics for the recent Eurovision Song Contest held at The Olympic Arena in Moscow last month “The incredible amount of lighting technology in the arena means there’s also an increase in RF disturbance. Making the right product choices is essential,” said Sennheiser’s Klaus Willemsen. > sennhesier.com

> tannoy.com

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> IN SESSION

Studios:

People and equipment behind studios in the UK and around the world ...

Whether local or global, Images & Sound can sort the audio

Rooms: Main Studio, live room, edit suite Consoles: Raindirk Symphony, Soundtracs DPCII, SSL Scenaria Mics: Neumann, Røde, AKG, Sennheiser, Audio Technica, Shure, Beyer Outboard: DBX, Drawmer, Lexicon, EMT, Quantec, Eventide, Audio Design Monitoring: Dynaudio, Tannoy, Yamaha, KRK

Rooms: Four mix suites, three vocal booths, one foley suite, three tracklay suites Consoles: Fairlight Constellation XCS, Digidesign D-Control HD6 Mics: Sennheiser 416s, Neumann U87s Outboard: TC Electronics, Portico 5012, Neve 9098 Monitoring: KRK, Genelec DSP surrounds

Yellow Fish, Sussex, UK

Images & Sound, Auckland

HIDDEN AMID PICTURESQUE countryside on a converted farm near Lewes in East Sussex is Yellow Fish recording studios. Having remained private for the last ten years, it has recently become available to the outside world. Yellow Fish prides itself upon offering quality recording services that don’t cost a fortune. The Yellow Fish team, headed up by Ross McCracken, specialises in everything from 48-track analog and digital recording via its custom-built Raindirk Symphony

BASED IN AUCKLAND, Images & Sound is one of New Zealand’s largest and most established post production facilities. With a full range of video and sound services, it caters for film and television projects of any size. Its extensive sound department comprises four mixing studios, two of which are equipped for 5.1 surround sound mixing. It also has two track-laying studios, a Foley recording studio and a large cinetape department with a full range of HD and SD decks for mastering. Images & Sound’s audio team has worked on many local films and TV dramas, as well as recording many hours of ADR on shows such as Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess, plus major feature films such as Star Wars, episodes II and III, Training Day, Runaway Jury, Star Trek Enterprise and Frost/Nixon. Steve Finnigan is the facility’s managing partner and senior sound engineer. With over 20 years of

A Beautiful Bechstein grand piano (one of three pianos to choose from) can be found in the main room, with ample space remaining for even the largest of bands. Throw in the collection of vintage and modern guitars and drums available and users can make just about any sound they can think up in this most comprehensive of studios. Album artwork and design is also done on site through WMO Creative. The studio carries machines for most formats of audio and video to

With a collection of vintage drums and guitars, users can make just about any sound they can think up in this most comprehensive of studios. console, to tape baking, restoration and video services in a flexible and relaxed environment with some highly experienced engineers. With a total of 8,000 square feet to work with, the studio comprises a 1,100 square-foot live room, attractive artist recreation facilities and an equipment list to satisfy even the hardest-to-please ‘gear slut’. Clients can choose between a pair of two-inch tape machines (Otari MX80 and MTR90), full digital facilities or a hybrid of both systems. The custom Raindirk console has a 5.1 surround option and automation built in.

service the archive, transfer and restoration sides of the business, along with the new tape baking oven. The company’s newest addition is the Yellow Fish Mobile, based in an American Airstream Trailer, featuring a Soundtracs DPCII console, valve mic amps, DBX compressors, Drawmer gates, full Soundtracs effects package and 100 metres of motorised cabling, to access even the most remote locations. McCracken hopes the new mobile will bring quality live recording and DVD production within easy reach by slashing production costs with a one-box solution.

Telephone: +44 1273 782035 Web: www.yellowfishmusicgroup.com

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experience in radio and television, he heads up a team of talented engineers with vast knowledge of all aspects of audio post production. Finnigan is also the company's main commercial advertising engineer, ADR recording specialist and planner for long form projects. He has been on the credit list for many awards nationally and internationally, including a Golden Reel award for his ADR on the Hercules and Xena productions. The studio has recently upgraded its facilities to incorporate a 24fader, three-bay Fairlight Constellation XCS console with integrated HD video record and playback. The decision to invest in the new console was taken after extensive research and testing to make sure that it would integrate well with the studio’s seven Pro Tools systems. Images & Sound has installed its new console in the A Suite mixing studio, which is primarily used for TV and radio commercials and ADR recording.

Steve Finnegan, the studio’s senior engineer, has been nominated for many awards and won a Golden Reel award for his ADR work. Telephone: +64 9 309 8026 Web: www.imagesandsound.co.nz

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IN ASSOCIATION WITH

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// To have your studio featured in this section, please send all details to: andrew.low@intentmedia.co.uk or call +44 1992 535646

TL Audio’s Sarah Yule offers her insights into sound recording, mixed with some hot tips for you to try out...

Frequency fight

Rooms: Studios A, B, C, D, E Consoles: Neve VR-60, SSL 4048, API 2488 Mics: Sennheiser, Neumann, Shure, Audio-Technica, AKG, Crown, Sony, EV

Outboard: Pultec, API, Prodigy Engineering, Valley People, Anthony DeMaria Monitoring: Westlake, Urei, Dynaudio, Tannoy, JBL, Yamaha, Klipsch

Omega Studios, Washington LOCATED IN ROCKVILLE, Maryland, Omega is the largest recording studio complex in the Washington DC metropolitan area. The five-studio complex houses Neve, SSL and API studios, along with a Pro Tools mastering suite featuring a 32-channel Pro Control. A brand new addition, Studio E, features a dual operator, 48channel Icon D-Control, configured for both music mixing and film/video post-production. Omega has made some notable contributions to the history of popular music through the likes of Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, Prince, Radiohead, Elton John and a plethora of other influential artists who have graced the studio throughout its 35 years of service. Despite the high-profile nature of some of its clients, Omega is still amenable to those on a slightly tighter budget and has packages to suit all but the most amateur of projects. The jewel in Omega’s crown is undoubtedly Studio A, which is an outstanding 32-track (56-track interlock) recording facility, designed primarily for live instrumental and vocal production. The studio is 50 by 40 feet, with 20-foot ceilings and can

accomodate ensembles of all sizes and styles, from jazz trios or heavy metal bands to 100-piece orchestras. It is equipped with a 60-input Neve VR console, custom built with four stereo mix busses, enabling mixes in all of the stereo and surround formats. It also features a Steinway model B grand piano, as well as ten by 16-foot and ten by eight-foot isolation rooms. While Omega certainly has no shortage of sought-after vintage amps and processors, in its continuing effort to augment the studios with the best and newest technology, it recently invested in Prodigy Engineering’s eight-channel remote controllable preamp system, Anima. Dave Durr, the general manager, comments: “I have been excited about this piece. Great-sounding analog circuitry in a digitally controlled environment – what’s not to love? Open top-end, firm lows and a silky mid-range make this a powerful unit in our outboard mic pre collection.” Omega is also the home of the School of Applied Recording Arts & Sciences, an accredited school that has trained engineers and technicians for the music industry since 1977.

“I’m excited about the Anima. Great sounding analog, digitally controlled – what’s not to love?” Dave Durr – General manager, Omega Studios Telephone: +1 301 230 9100 Web: www.omegastudios.com

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LAST MONTH I began to discuss the key issue of balance in mixes, but such an expansive topic deserves a thorough analysis, so I’d like to continue the theme this month. We’ve already addressed the matter of signal levels, but another problem area in achieving balance can be eq. If you find that your mixes are well balanced in level, but appear a bit ‘foggy’ or ‘muddy’, it is more than likely due to a fight breaking out between two or more instruments all trying to be in the same frequency range. A method known as ‘spectral mixing’ that I have referred to in previous articles is particularly useful here. This process involves cutting a space for each individual track using eq, focusing just on the key frequencies of the instrument that you want to be heard and cutting unnecessary bass, HF content and problem mid-range frequencies out. Eq alone, however, cannot always help with balancing your bass sounds. Sometimes some spectral mixing between the bass drum and bass guitar is all that’s needed, but this is not always the solution. You may find that you struggle to avoid mixing seriously bass heavy or even bass light. This is often a result of the mix environment, which, by causing undesirable reflections, can result in a section of the waveform sounding overly prominent at your control position, resulting in an inaccurate representation of the mix. To check this, try listening to the material in other playback systems, such as your hifi, car stereo or at a friend’s studio. It will then be easier to identify any problems that exist within your mixing space. It might be that the frequency content of your bass is too low and narrow, causing it to lack energy or excitement in the mix. Try adding some fundamental

frequencies above, either by dialling back in some of the higher frequencies you rolled off or by putting the bass through an exciter. Maybe try adding a mirror bass line in the next octave up, but slightly lower in the mix, or transposing the whole line into a different, more legible key. Always be wary of adding too much sub bass content. Some monitoring facilities don’t extend to sub frequencies, so you may get a nasty surprise when the track is played back on a high-end system. If you can get your bass and your drums gelling, piecing everything else on top becomes much easier. Treat the beat and

Along with signal levels, another problem area in achieving a good balance can be eq. bass as the foundations of your audio building. If they are not correct anything on top will be pretty impossible to balance. One other way to help create a good balanced mix is to get into the habit of stem mixing. This is basically creating sub groups and it has several benefits for the studio engineer. Once you have a nice mix of your drums, it is much easier to control their overall level from one group fader than individual ones. The same goes for any other instrument group. It also makes it easer if you are planning to sum your mix with analog outboard or a console. Not only does it bring the channel count and required interface spec down, it also makes it easier to maintain equilibrium between the instrument groups. This way, you can keep a close eye on the changes you are making, helping to facilitate that perfect balance.

Sarah Yule is an experienced audio engineer and Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) graduate. She currently works for TL Audio, where she is sales director and was responsible for the conceptual design of the Fat Track Tube Production Suit.

To contact TL Audio Telephone: +44(0)1462 492090 Email: info@tlaudio.co.uk www.tlaudio.co.uk

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> PEOPLE

IN BRIEF

Case connects to Optocore Former Digidesign man takes on international sales role for fibre optic network specialist

STUDER’S EXECUTIVE VP of sales, Bruno Hochstrasser, will retire at the end of 2009, leaving Adrian Curtis, VP of sales for Soundcraft, to take on the roles for both companies. Hochstrasser will remain within the sales team for the remainder of this year. Andy Trott, president of the mixer group at Harman, stated: “Bruno epitomises Studer’s resilience and drive for innovation. We have asked him to remain with us in a consultative role for a further two years after 2009. > studer.ch LAB.GRUPPEN HAS hired Joakim Hammar as its new application engineer. He will cover all European territories, providing technical advice, support and training to all PLM and Lake users. His experience includes roles at Scandinavia’s largest event and live music industry supplier, United Audio Starlight. > lab.gruppen.com RADIAN AUDIO Engineering has expanded its sales team with the addition of Keith Klawitter. He will assume responsibilities for western regional sales, working out of Radian’s HQ in California. Klawitter has more than 20 years’ experience, being the founder and president of speaker maker KRK Systems. > radianaudio.com LOGIC SYSTEM HAS appointed Jeff Dawson as its MD. The promotion allows technical director Chris Scott to focus on product development and growing exports. Sue Ellis remains as operations director. Chris Scott stated: “Jeff has considerable management experience that will prepare us for growth in the future and to make the changes that need to be made.” > logic-system.co.uk 40 audioPRO June 2009

OPTOCORE HAS announced the appointment of Michael Case to the position of international sales manager. Case was instrumental in the launch of Digidesign’s Venue console in Europe during his days as the company’s European sales manager. He has also been the UK sales manager for Yamaha Commercial Audio. “I have known Marc Brunke for a number of years and have always been impressed with his philosophy of open network and product design,” said Case. “It’s no surprise to me that Optocore is the global leader in providing systems for the transport of audio, video, and control data via optical fibre network. “Many companies investing in digital product recognise the need to maximise their investment by the use of digital networking, which Optocore represents by offering a unique redundant synchronous fibre optic network system. Optocore can be seen as an essential part of the digital pro audio world and I am very much looking forward to working with the Optocore team.”

DeLoria jumps into Void

DELORIA: Second to none

CASE: Optocore is essential

“We are very pleased to have Mike join our team,” added Marc Brunke, the founder and managing director of Optocore. “Mike’s background and experience are a perfect fit for Optocore and will provide great value that will assist us in achieving our long-term growth objectives.” > optocore.com

“It’s no surprise to me that Optocore is the global

leader in providing for the transport of audio.” Mike Case - International sales manager, Optocore

VOID ACOUSTICS HAS appointed Ken DeLoria as VP sales and marketing of the newly-launched Void Acoustics USA. Founder and former CEO of Apogee Sound, Deloria will head up Void Acoustics USA, based in Portland, Oregon. The new subsidiary will serve the US, Central and South America, Canada and Mexico, while acting as a liaison point for numerous other territories. Alex Skan, MD of Void Acoustics, commented: “Ken agreeing to join our company marks a significant turning point in Void’s evolution. With his career encompassing sales, marketing, design, touring and product definition, Ken’s ability to navigate the changing marketplace and provide real solutions is second to none.” > voidaudio.com

Gauthier Dalle joins Innovason Sales and marketing role taken by former L-Acoustics European manager GAUTHEIR DALLE has taken on the role of sales and marketing director at Innovason, replacing Xavier Pion. Pion announced his resignation from Innovason at this year’s Prolight+Sound show and is, he explained, leaving the company for a position elsewhere in the industry. For the past seven years, Dalle has served as EMEA sales manager for L-Acoustics. In his new role he will be responsible for Innovason’s international distribution network, in addition to overseeing all marketing communications.

“I’m delighted to be joining Innovason at such an exciting time,” stated Dalle. “Following the buy-out from Lawo and now that Eclipse is in full production, we are in a stronger position than ever before.” General manager, Gerard Malvot commented: “Gauthier is a highly respected professional who knows his market and, thanks to his previous roles within the industry, also knows many of our distributors already. He will be able to hit the ground running and continue to build on what we have already achieved.” > innovason.com

DALLE: Hit the ground running

CORRECTION: Tim Walter was incorrectly listed as CEO of Roland UK in API Issue 19. His new job title is COO and John Booth is the CEO of the company. www.audioprointernational.com

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DISTRIBUTION <

Midas and KT finds Rightway to Taiwan

The Jünger Malaysia

RIGHTWAY AUDIO SYSTEMS has been awarded the additional region of Taiwan for the distribution of Midas and Klark Teknik products. As its distributor for China, Hong Kong and Macau since May of 2008, Rightway has sold ten Midas XL8 Live performance systems and five Pro 6 Live audio systems and is a leading distributor of Klark Teknik, in particular the Square One range. “We’re very honoured to be expanding the brands across greater China,” said sales manager Alan Wong, who will initially be handling the business from Rightway’s Hong Kong office. He will be first appointing dealers across the new region. “In just a year Rightway has proved to be an excellent distributor for Midas and Klark Teknik, as its sales performance demonstrates,” said Midas and Klark Teknik’s sales and marketing director, David Cooper. “We’re confident in the company’s ability to develop our brands across Taiwan.” > midasconsoles.com > klarkteknik.com

JÜNGER AUDIO has appointed the Salzbrenner Stagetec Media Group as its exclusive distributor for Malaysia. The company will now handle Jünger’s entire product range, including the Level Magic automated audio loudness control system for production and broadcast. Salzbrenner Stagetec Media Group is a consortium of several corporations that specialise in the design, integration and distribution of pro audio, video and intercom technology, as well as outdoor TV productions. With offices all over the globe, Salzbrenner will handle Jünger from Kuala Lumpur. Kim Poh Tan, head of Jünger Audio Asia, said: “David Chan has a thorough understanding of the needs of this market. We have worked together before and I look forward to renewing our business relationship.” > junger-audio.com

Prism appoints Rag Time for Lebanon One-stop shop expands regional audio presence

PRISM SOUND HAS announced the appointment of Rag Time as its new distributor for the Lebanon. Based in Beirut, Rag Time has been distributing pro audio gear to studios and musicians in the Lebanon and Syria since 1990. The company’s product range covers four key areas: music technology, musical instruments, pro audio and computers and accessories. Rag Time has already sold two Prism Sound flagship ADA-8XR multichannel converters. “Prism Sound’s range of recording and post production products ideally suits our customer profile and complements other

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equipment that we already stock,” commented Rag Time’s owner, Omar El Sayed. “We are delighted to be representing a brand that carries so much respect for its quality and fidelity. Having these products as part of our range means we can now offer our customers a complete studio solution.” Rag Time is stocking Prism’s ADA-8XR multichannel converters, Orpheus Firewire computer interface and products from its popular Maselec range of equalizers, mic preamps and compressors. The entire Prism range is now available to the region immediately. > prismsound.com

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QSC K-series loudspeakers

Unity Audio The Rock studio monitor

Shure SM27 microphone

Solid State Logic X-Desk

THEY SAY: QSC has departed from convention and at the same time exploded a myth that smaller woofers must equate to lower performance.

THEY SAY: Unity’s 15 years of experience was used to design and manufacture its own unique range of speakers from the ground up.

THEY SAY: SM27 gives performers and engineers a wider choice of tools for their audio recording requirements.

THEY SAY X-Desk fulfils all of the essentials of the audio mixing process, with SSL attention to detail and depth.

SPECIFICATIONS: Constructed around switch mode power supply and Class D output. Designed for small format PA to stage monitor, horizontal wedge or side fill and installation. K12: 12” two-way system with 75degree horizontal and vertical coverage. LF to 48Hz (-10dB high acoustic output, 131dB peak). K10: As K12 with 10” powered speaker. 90degree (conical) coverage and 129dB peak output (low frequencies extend to ~56Hz). K8: as above with 105-degree dispersion. LF coverage to ~61Hz (10dB) and 127dB output. The KSub with two 12” speakers in optimised bandpass enclosure with 1,000W module.

SPECIFICATIONS: Front baffle and cabinet made from Corian and bonded to a plywood baffle. Closed cabinet design made from 12mm, nine-ply Baltic birch. Tweeter frequency response of 50kHz. Specially designed folded ribbon tweeter with neodymium system. 180mm woofer with a 0.2mm aluminium foil is chemically bonded to a rigid pulp fibre cone to eliminate harmonic anomalies and permit +/15mm of woofer travel. 100W discrete, bi-polar amp, low feedback with custom wound transformers and dedicated LF & HF sections with overload/clip protection.

SPECIFICATIONS: Large-diaphragm, side-address cardioid condenser microphone designed to reproduce the nuances of vocals and instruments. One-inch ultra-thin Mylar diaphragm for transient response, LF reproduction and low self-noise, only 9.5dB. It features a three-position switchable low-frequency filter to reduce background noise counteract proximity effect. The Max SPL is (1,000Hz at one per cent THD) 2,500 Ohm load (attenuator on): 137 (152) dB; 1,000 Ohm load (Attenuator off): 132 (147) dB. Additional features include three separate mesh layers to reduce wind and breath noise and a 15dB pad.

SPECIFICATIONS: Based on Duality, AWS 900+ SE, Matrix and C200 HD consoles in smaller, desktop format. 16channel SSL SuperAnalogue summing mixer with compact analog audio hub. 100mm faders, monitoring with dim and cut buttons, stereo and mono aux sends, channel and master bus inserts and bar graph level metering. 19” rack ears, 7U metal chassis, eight dual input mono line channels, eight insert send/returns, stereo cue, two mono aux sends, stereo mix bus with summing and Inserts, two stereo returns with level, pan and bus assignment, stereo external input on XLRs, internal PSU, D-sub channel I/O connection and RF screened I/O.

> shure.co.uk

> solid-state-logic.com

> qscaudio.com

> unity-audio.co.uk

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Thermionic Culture Little Bustard mixer

Mackie HD Series

HME Spectrum Friendly Technology

Digidesign Venue SC48 console

THEY SAY: HME’s unique advantage for interference-free operation in the crowded 2.4GHz frequency band.

THEY SAY: SC48 advances the Venue platform to meet the needs of smaller to mid-sized applications, at an aggressive price point.

THEY SAY: Builds on the successful Fat Bustard by increasing the number of input channels.

THEY SAY: : An entirely new category: high-definition live sound

SPECIFICATIONS: The 19-inch, 2U for summing or as standalone mixer. 16 inputs arranged as six stereo pairs with fixed gain at unity level with on/off switches, four mono inputs with mute switches and pan pots that can be defeated by another switch, adding an extra 6dB gain. Master output section with independent left/right 31 position output indented pots with gain range from –17db to +2db. Valve stages use a pair of ECC83/12AX7 on gain stage and pair of PC86’s for output stage. Master section with simple output level indicator. Outputs can be plugged into aux inputs, increasing number of channels to 28.

SPECIFICATIONS: Comprises HD1521 two-way and HD1531 three-way speakers with Class-D amp technology, up to 1,800W peak power, patented acoustic correction processing. The HD1521 two-way features 15” neodymium woofers matched with a 1.75” heat-treated titanium compression driver. The HD1531 threeway also features a 6” midrange driver and Mackie’s WaveFront mid/high horn system for wide and consistent coverage. A user-adjustable three-band eq with a sweepable mid is also available for smaller setups with no outboard gear. The HD series speaker all-wood cabinets feature 12 integral fly-points for horizontal or vertical rigging, both models pole-mountable.

SPECIFICATIONS: ‘Spectrum friendly technology’ for interference-free operation in the 2.4GHz frequency band, low, high or full band. The global availability and licencefree requirements of the 2.4GHz Industry Scientific and Medical (ISM) wireless spectrum has increased its use by broadcast and theatrical production crews. In turn, existing hardwired technologies are being designed to operate in the 2.4GHz band. Spectrum friendly technology ensures no interference to spectrum for other wireless activities, such as DMX lighting. New technology also enables HME DX series users to double number of wireless headset users.

> thermionicculture.com

SPECIFICATIONS: 48-input digital live mixer. The board features 48 analog mic/line XLR inputs, 16 analog line outputs (expandable to 32), 16 aux sends, eight groups, plus eight mono matrixes (linkable as up to four stereo matrixes), 26 touch-sensitive, motorized faders, 16-input, eight output master, single flex channel, and mains and extra I/O, including talkback, analog and digital two-track, centre flex channel and clickbutton channel control. SC48 offers compatibility with Digidesign and third-party plugins in addition to connecting with Pro Tools for live sound recording capability through a USB port.

> mackie.com

> hme.com

> digidesign.com

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17-18 November 2009 RDS, Dublin, Ireland The entertainment and installation technology showcase for Ireland evenTech Ireland is a focused networking forum for the region’s key decision-makers to keep up-to-date with the hottest technologies and latest industry trends and developments. evenTech will provide manufacturers and suppliers with a unique regional platform to make face-to-face contact with a quality audience involved in Ireland’s major entertainment and installation projects and initiatives.

Enquire NOW about exhibiting at evenTech Ireland 2009!

To find out more about evenTech Ireland and the exciting opportunities Ireland presents contact:

Email: info@eventech-ireland.com Telephone: +44 (0) 1776 703572 To register to attend for FREE as a visitor please visit www.eventech-ireland.com

Media Partner:

17-18 February 2010 SECC, Glasgow, UK The entertainment and installation technology showcase for the North of the UK evenTech Scotland is a focused networking forum for the region’s key decision-makers to keep up-to-date with the hottest technologies and latest industry trends and developments. evenTech will provide manufacturers and suppliers with a unique regional platform to make face-toface contact with a quality audience involved in the North’s major entertainment and installation projects and initiatives.

Enquire NOW about exhibiting at evenTech Scotland 2010!

To find out more about evenTech Scotland and the exciting opportunities the North of the UK presents contact:

Email: info@eventech-scotland.com Telephone: +44 (0) 1776 703572 To register to attend for FREE as a visitor please visit www.eventech-scotland.com

Media Partner:

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MARKETPLACE < SUPPLIER SPOTLIGHT

HME

HME HAS BEEN a leading provider of innovative pro-audio products for more than three decades, providing clear, reliable intercommunications to television broadcast companies, theatres, stadium/concert events and other venues. As a technology pioneer, HME developed the first wireless intercom system for the pro audio market in 1979 and continues to introduce exciting, cutting edge products. DX100/200 digital wireless intercoms: Crystal-clear, interference-free communication in two models – the DX200/200C and the DX100/100C portable. Both systems are easy to operate and perfect for the performing arts, professional sporting events, churches, military operations, secured events and other venues. DX121 wireless intercom: The versatile DX121 can be plugged into the headset jack of any popular intercom station or four-wire device. Uses existing

AMPLIFICATION

party line house wiring as a backbone to add wireless capabilities in any area of the facility. DX300ES wireless intercom: The multi-channel DX300ES provides wireless hands-free, two-way digital operation and the ability to access two channels of radio or intercom communication. All HME DX series wireless intercom systems now feature Spectrum Friendly technology, HME’s unique advantage for interference-free operation in the increasingly crowded 2.4GHz frequency band. This new technology enables production crews to avoid emerging frequency conflicts by designating the 2.4GHz operating frequency range – low, high or full band. PRO850 wireless intercom: For audio professionals, the PRO850 system offers everything needed for flawless communication. The PRO850’s state-ofthe-art features, flexibility and expandability make it the ideal system for broadcast and performing arts. HME Pro Audio products are distributed through a world class organisation of representatives, international distributors, dealers and affiliates, providing products and services to over 80 countries. Contact HME today for more information. > hme.com

MARKETPLACE ADVERTISERS INDEX Adam Hall

01702 613922

Evi

www.electrovoice.co.uk

Flightcase

+44 (0) 182 760 009

Full Fat Audio

info@fullfataudio.com

Gasoline

www.gasoline.co.uk

Graphic Nature

01992 558800

HME

+1858 535 6060

Hypex

+31 50 52 64 993

Neutrik

+44 (0) 1983 811 441

www.flightcasewarehouse.co.uk www.fullfataudio.com

www.graphicnature.co.uk

sales@hypex.nl www.neutrik.com

AUDIO MARKETPLACE CLASSIFIED RATES: Minimum 12 Months One Annual Charge Quarter Page £1,495 DISTRIBUTION

To advertise call

Darrell Carter on 01992 535647

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MARKETPLACE FLIGHTCASES

LOUDSPEAKER

MANUFACTURER

MANUFACTURER

On the largest stages

Complete Sound System Solutions by Electro-Voice Kenny Chesney on tour with EV System Design by Phillip Scobee, Morris Leasing

KC ad_audio pro marketplace.indd 1

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MARKETPLACE < MANUFACTURER

MANUFACTURER

“One great sounding amplifier�

All-in-One Headset or Beltpac Options

actual size: 141x110x35mm

Introducing the NEW

Highlights Flat, fully load-independent response Very low output impedance Low, frequency-independent THD Very low noise Industry best EMC Conservative thermal design

now g shippin

Performance meets power! The famed UcDTM sound quality is now available at over 2kW. If you must know more precisely: the UcD2kTM module delivers up to 120Vrms and up to 35Arms to the load, depending on the capabilities of the power supply. Conservative thermal design insures all parts remain well within their ratings even with the most unfavourable programme. Contact Hypex or have a look at www.hypex.nl for more information.

Kattegat 8 | 9723 JP Groningen The Netherlands | +31 50 52 64 993 sales@hypex.nl

PR

WS200 Wireless Speaker Station

+1-858-535-6060 www.HMEDX.com STUDIO

2 studios powered by Pro tools Large live room with three iso booths Logic Pro Digital Performer All styles welcome Residential accommodation available In-house orchestral composition Scores/Film / TV music composition Access to several Philharmonic orchestras for live purposes Mastering / re-mastering 3 Preproduction / rehearsal rooms Fully Licensed Bar with games facilities Recent clients include: BBC | Warner Bros | EMI | Euro Sport | PGA Graphic Nature Ltd 18 Mimram Road Hertford Hertfordshire SG14 1NN

Tel: +44 (0) 1992 558800 Fax: +44 (0) 1992 584823 Skype ID: graphicnature www.graphicnature.co.uk Info@graphicnature.co.uk

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The Audio Pro paparazzi is infiltrating all audio events, snapping away for our monthly Mixdown, which features friendly faces of people in the business and shots from industry events. If you have any pictures from an event that you would like us to include, please send them to andrew.low@intentmedia.co.uk.

The last word in Audio Pro PIC OF THE MONTH

May 9th saw Intent Media’s managing director, Stuart Dinsey, take to the stage with his recently reformed punk ensemble, Eastside Jimmy, at the Club 85 venue in Hitchin. Eastside Jimmy was supporting cult punk heroes of the 1980s, Chron Gen, at the charity event. The gig was absolutely packed and the proceeds all went to aid research into cystic fibrosis.

IN-HOUSE MUSIC:

WAY BACK STACKS

“

This month we take a quick look at a couple of classic Meyer stacks. The main pic shows a Grateful Dead concert in October 1968 at the Greek Theater at UC Berkeley. Meyer MSL-3s and 650-R2s make up the house PA with an array of UPA-1s for front fills in the centre. UM-1s are stage floor monitors with some MSL-3 sidefills for Mickey Hart (drummer). The top right corner sees Pink Floyd’s Glyph Sound System (pre-Meyer Sound Laboratories) that was installed in a venue called Pepperland in San Rafael, CA.

instant reaction to this was how Mr Eavis never misses a PR opportunity. This story is complete nonsense at this juncture and pretty irresponsible too. I hope he gets deluged with requests for refunds.” Tony Platt on Glastonbury's swine flu meetings.

audioPRO

Chris Bruce admires the local scenery during a location recording in Indonesia for a new television programme for the UK’s Channel 4 with a Røde NTG-3 precision shotgun microphone.

AUDIO ARCHITYPES

QUOTE OF THE MONTH: “My

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WHO, ME?

June 2009

The Neumann U 87 microphone is one the most used and best known Neumann studio microphones. It was first released in 1967 as the solid-state version of the valve U67. It is a large dual-diaphragm condenser microphone with three directional patterns: omni, cardioid and figure-8, all selectable with a switch below the head grille. A 10dB attenuation switch and a low frequency roll off pad are on the back of the U87, making it a multi-faceted studio mic, although it is frequently used as a vocal microphone. Neumann microphones has a history dating back to the 1920s when George Neumann’s early microphone design was used by the first German radio station, which broadcast its ‘first yawp’ from Vox House on Potsdamer Platz in 1923. Many Neumann mics have been designed since, but the U87 remains the pinnacle of studio mic design.

www.audioprointernational.com

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EMPTY ROOM OF THE MONTH

5 CAVENDISH ROAD Audo magazines are typically strewn with grand pictures of empty rooms with new sound systems. In celebrating this photographic phenomenon we present Empty Room of The Month at No.5 Cavendish Road in London. If only these walls could speak, the tales they would tell. (Are those Martin speakers?)

GOING GHANA!

Line a-gaze

This tired lass takes a rest against Void Acoustic’s plush and comfortable speakers and ponders the current global financial climate. As you can see, the credit crunch has caused her to cut down on essential things like trouser legs and sleeves.

HOW ITS DONE

LOVELESS Ghana hockey fans get ready for the big match at the Hockey Park Complex in Accra Ghana after Pro Sound’s audio refurb.

AUDIO FISH OF THE MONTH: Last month’s picture of Paul Crognale’s (Shure UK) big catch caused API and MI Pro’s ad manager, Darrell Carter, to put his best fish forward. Carter caught this 20lb. mirror carp pulled out of an ‘undisclosed’ Hertfordshire lake (he just doesn’t want anyone to come and catch a 21 pounder).

www.audioprointernational.com

My Bloody Valentine’s second studio album, Loveless, is a criticallyacclaimed record that raised the bar to another level during the early 90s shoegaze, indie scene. The album quickly attracted audiences outside the genre and went on to win many accolades, including a spot on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. According to Mike McGonigal’s book My Bloody Valentine's Loveless (33 1/3), Loveless was recorded in 19 different studios due to lead singer Kevin Shields domination of the recording process and frustration with the sound he was getting at the various recording establishments. At one point during the vocal takes curtains were placed on the window between the studio control room and the vocal booth and the engineer wasn’t allowed to listen to audio of the vocal take. Albeit eccentric and unyielding, Shields’ creative determination resulted in a textured wall of noise that faintly echos brilliant pop songs. Sheilds used many unconventional techniques during the sessions, such as guitars strummed with a tremolo bar, sampled drum loops and hardly audible vocals.

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ODDS ON

7 STRONG Odds On Studios, a $7 million recording studio facility, recently announced the launch of its new record label, Odds On Records. The recording studio houses the largest mixing console in North America, a 96-input SSL Duality. Odds On features three-time Grammy award-winner James ‘Bonzai’ Caruso, best known for his work with Steven and Damon Marley, Madonna, Gwen Stefani and Mary J Blige and Sean O’Dwyer, who has engineered everyone from Pink Floyd and Randy Newman to Blink 182 and Scott Grimes. The studio has hosted artists including Alicia Keys, Akon, TI, the Band, Ultra-voilet Sound and Blue King Brown.

44TH Hartley Peavey ponders his statement that ‘business is like a rodeo’ in front of Peavey HQ. Peavey Electronics is oddly making much of celebrating its 44th year in business this year.

AFREEX’S ON THE SSL G SERIES CONSOLE I couldn’t have mixed the seven tracks I worked on for N-Dubz' Uncle B album without two pieces of kit. Firstly, the SSL G Series console, in this day and age of total producing ‘in the box’, using soft synths and samples, the ability to inject some analog warmth into any mix is essential. The SSL G series alongside the G series stereo buss compressor enable me to bring back some of that 80s analog warmth in what are essentially 100 per cent digital tracks, while still retaining clarity at high frequencies. The second piece of kit is the GML 8200 parametric eq, at the final stages of mix, just before you put the mix through the stereo compressor on the SSL, this piece of kit enables me to add those final touches to the whole mix, whether it be more bass, mid or treble (in the N-Dubz album’s case it was both bass and treble) this is the piece of kit you want, subtle and transparent, yet powerful and with great control.

To discuss advertising contact Darrell Carter on 01992 535647 darrell.carter@intentmedia.co.uk For editorial enquiries email Andrew Low andrew.low@intentmedia.co.uk or call 01992 535646 Audio Pro International is published 11 times a year by Intent Media ~ Saxon House, 6A St. Andrew Street, Hertford SG14 1JA, England

Intent Media is a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation and the Periodical Publishers Association

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© Intent Media 2009. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior permission of the copyright owners. Printed by Manson Group, AL3 6PZ

ISSN: 1755-4918

SUBSCRIPTIONS UK: Free Europe: £60 Rest of world: £90 If you or one of your colleagues would like to request a subscription to Audio Pro International, please email audio.subscriptions@c-cms.com or call 01580 883848

If you would like to receive your own copy of Audio Pro International, please email our subscriptions department on: audio.subscriptions@c-cms.com or call 01580 883848 June 2009

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