PSNE Nov P1 FCJR DR_PSNE_July_P_Front 31/10/2011 09:54 Page 1
November 2011 £4 €7 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
The business of professional audio WORLD
UNITED KINGDOM
resale Networking convergence: Ofcom anger grows next stop homogenisation? Dave Robinson
While it heralds new challenges, the overlap of transport and control protocols may free up developers to better focus on product features, writes David Davies Confusion reigns supreme – or, rather, it did until about 18 months ago. But now, thanks to ongoing standardisation efforts such as those spearheaded by the AVnu Alliance and the Open Control Architecture (OCA) Alliance, the fog that has habitually shrouded the proaudio/media networking debate seems to be dissipating at last. Given the existing technologies and approaches that underpin many of these developments – for example, OCA employs AES-24, originally standardised as far back as 1995 – it seems reasonable to ask whether the industry might not have reached this point a good deal earlier. But that would be to ignore simple, occasionally brutal commercial reality. As Aidan Williams, CTO of Dante developer Audinate, observes: “It is just a fact of life that [manufacturing] companies in the industry use networking technology strategically (standards-based or otherwise) to encour-
Aidan WIlliams, CTO of Audinate
age customers to purchase equipment from them rather than their competitors.” Echoing the sentiment, industry consultant and keen observer of the networking debate, Roland
Hemming, says that it is simply “the nature of capitalism that people try to develop different solutions to the same problem. [After all] we don’t complain that Apple and Android phones have been separately developed...” [Steve Jobs did though, it now transpires – Ed.] But, ultimately, the market gets what the market wants – and, increasingly, that is an ease of networking and interoperability that allows products from multiple vendors to work together seamlessly and without the need for extensive specialist assistance. Hence the ongoing rash of activity around standards. As Lee Minich, president of Lab X Technologies and marketing work group chairperson for the Audio/Video Bridging (AVB) technologies-supporting AVnu Alliance, sees it: “Standardisation is the key to growing the market, and returning manufacturers to competing on their core competencies.” story continued on page 37
UNITED KINGDOM More than 61,000 people turned up to Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium to watch the free live streaming of Wales v France in the Rugby World Cup 2011 Semi-Final from New Zealand last month. Huw ‘Buzz’ Evans and Rob Ashton from Welsh sound rental company ABacoustics were given just four days’ notice by local production company Orchard Media & Events Group to rig their EAW KF740 PA for the event. Sound curfews and the presence of TV crews carrying out pre-match day presentations seriously curtailed the set-up time. But, thanks to a little planning, ABacoustics managed to “hang the system, play one track, carry out a few ‘one-twos’ and we were sound-checking”, as Evans puts it. An estimated crowd of 25,000 soon doubled in size. “I had my doubts about whether the KF740 system would carry,” adds Evans, “but it just sounded fantastic. It had both the throw and the coverage and we didn’t need to use the house system at all.” Not so good for Wales though: the team lost by a single point. Q
www.eaw.com
In a forthright statement to the industry and Ofcom, UK manufacturer Audio Ltd’s Kishore Patel has expressed his anger at Ofcom’s decision to proceed with the resale of equipment, surrendered as a result of the PMSE funding scheme, through third-party agent Equiniti. Patel’s complaint follows statements from Sennheiser and Shure issued after Equiniti finally confirmed the move during PLASA 2011 (see PSNE October cover story). He writes: “The excuse given by Equiniti in dumping this equipment back into the market is to ‘support users/hirers in meeting any shortfall between now and 1 October 2012’. This is absolute rubbish! Equiniti and Ofcom are taking the PMSE community for fools. “There is no shortfall of equipment for next year for [events such as] the Diamond Jubilee or the Olympics as hire companies have scheduled orders with the manufacturers to more than adequately cover [their needs]. This is simply a profit-making exercise by Equiniti, which has been facilitated by Ofcom, with dire consequences for a number of small British manufacturers including Audio Ltd. “The manufacturers and PMSE companies involved with the hire of equipment have been pressing Ofcom for a ‘disposal option’ to be the only option, [but] Ofcom have not given the PMSE industry, or their representative body BEIRG, sight of the contract between Ofcom and Equiniti, and we now understand why. It is only now at this late stage that Ofcom, via Equiniti, has finally confirmed to the PMSE industry that the surrendered equipment would be sold on. “As a small British manufacturer which has suffered greatly due to the decisions made by Ofcom over the past six years, we find it incredible that Ofcom through Equiniti, who has been more than adequately funded under its contract to administer the surrender scheme, is able to sell off equipment which has been compensated for by the British tax payer. Equiniti stands to profit [from this], after it has already been paid for its services. This is wrong!” Spokesman Alan March adds that BEIRG will continue to contest Ofcom’s move through parliamentary activity. Q www.beirg.co.uk
To celebrate 25 years in action for our digital consoles, we’re giving you the chance to win an LS9 or one of 24 runners-up prizes in our exclusive photo competition. For full details on how to enter, visit facebook.com/YamahaCommercialAudioEurope
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Project2_Layout 1 28/10/2011 14:50 Page 1
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PSNE Nov P3 ContentsJRDR_PSNE_Nov_P3_Contents 31/10/2011 12:07 Page 3
news & contents
November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
EXCLUSIVE
Orbital pumps cash into kit
3
In this issue... News 4 6
MPG’s Mastering Group protects recording metadata Show review: AES New York
Europe theatre production boom encourages major inventory upgrade Dave Robinson Orbital Sound has revealed exclusively to PSNE that it has invested over £2 million (€2.3 million) in new hardware while adding four production engineering and project management staff to its ranks. The expansion follows a substantial undisclosed spend on Shure UHF-R and UR1M wireless equipment earlier this year (see PSNE June 2011) and was partly driven by Orbital’s theatre production work extending into five European countries. Purchases include DiGiCo consoles, Meyer Sound loudspeakers, DPA microphones and wireless equipment from Sennheiser, Shure and HME/Clear-Com. “We always position ourselves to satisfy the specifications of the even the largest productions, and to be able to deploy the necessary infrastructure whenever required,” says Orbital MD Chris Headlam. “Our rental inventory is therefore driven by the world-class international productions that we handle, and by the highly experienced sound designers with whom we’re working. For example, we’re currently responsible for 30-plus UK tours, in addition to handling two shows in the Netherlands – Miss Saigon in Utrecht, and Wicked in Scheveningen – plus We Will Rock You in Antwerp, and productions of Sister Act, in Milan and Hamburg. To support that effectively, we have to re-invest in our rental stock, staff and infrastructure.” The Orbital shopping list included four more DiGiCo SD7T consoles, a number of SD8 consoles, an additional 300(!) d&b audiotech-
Technology nik T-Series loudspeakers, d&b E4, E5 and E6 speakers and a “very large inventory” of Meyer Sound self powered M’elodie, UPA and UP-Junior loud speakers. The company also added around 700 channels of Sennheiser SK5212 and Shure UHF-R/UR1M radio microphones and a large quantity of high-end DPA Chris Headlam: investing in stock and staff orchestral microphones. “We can probably claim to have one of the most comprehensive microphone portfolios in the country,” continues Headlam. “On the all-important communications side, we have invested in substantial quantities of digital wireless equipment from Clear-Com and HME, as well as further video kit to help pave the way towards HD. We have also upped the investment programme of our popular own-brand RacPac equipment racking, and GUFF signal distribution systems, as these have a very positive impact on the speed and efficiency of show set-ups and get-in times.” Q www.orbitalsound.co.uk
8
Product review AMS Neve 2264ALB
9
New products
Studio 11 Jet Studio reopens after a complete refurb 12 Behind the scenes at the historic Hansa Studio 14 Film-making: Sennheiser is fit for Kings 15 STUDIO BOOKINGS listing
Broadcast 19 European Parliament shows hybrid radio 20 Goldcrest opens new Foley department 22 The art of audio description
Live 25 Two new investors for AED Rent 27 First all-white d&b system available in the UK 28 Cardiff hosts Michael Jackson tribute concert
EXCLUSIVE
30 ABacoustics adds to its EAW inventory
New format for European AES event
33 APG Unilines on PAN.OPTIKUM European tour
Mel Lambert
also considers such an exhibition format will be more cost-effective for many. Factoring in construction, travel and shipping costs, “a conventional booth might be too expensive,” he continues. “This way, companies can use a portion of their R&D budget to fund a more focused presence at European Conventions.” Chair of the Budapest Convention Planning Committee is Janos Gyori, head of the AES Hungarian Section. “We need to determine the best way that the AES can utilise the gold we have in our hands,” the new AES president offers, referring to the high calibre of scientific rigour within the society. “Collaboration is the way forward; we need to ensure that our conventions serve the interests of attendees and exhibitors alike.” Abildgaard Pedersen confirms that the technical programme of papers, workshops and related events will remain unchanged for the Budapest convention. As reported in the May issue, Colin Broad of CB Electronics decided to take a pass on the London Convention earlier this year, but favoured a gathering in Eastern Europe. “For a number of years I have been a strong advocate of exhibiting in the Eastern Bloc,” he confirms. “CB Electronics will almost certainly be at Budapest.” Q
36 Revamped Sportpaleis welcomes Milk Inc
www.aes.org
58 Interview: Maurice Patist, PMC
The next AES Convention will be held on 26-29 April at the Budapest Congress & World Trade Centre, Hungary. According to the society’s new president Jan Abildgaard Pedersen, the four-day gathering will be accompanied by a three-day commercial exhibition that will adopt a dramatically different format from previous events. “There will be no traditional exhibition,” Abildgaard Pedersen confirms in an exclusive interview with PSNE. “Instead, we will organise a series of table-top demonstrations of new technologies from the R&D departments of small to medium-sized companies, in addition to demo rooms for larger companies needing more space.” He predicts that at least 100 companies will book exhibit space at the upcoming convention. The new strategy, Abildgaard Pedersen stresses, results from a realisation that the European audio community is unique in its requirements. “In Europe we have a large community of scientists that come to AES Conventions to examine new technologies,” he says. “Such attendees can offer qualified, highly-targeted feedback to companies developing new products and processes for our community.” Likening this feedback to a peer-review process, Abildgaard Pederson
34 Meyer Sound in Mannheim automobile extravaganza 35 Yamaha PM5D sales still strong after seven years 38 LIVE EVENTS listing
Installation 41 Ateïs UK supplies PA/VA to Silverstone 42 PSNE ‘does’ Ibiza 46 Gateshead’s Sage installs Midas PRO9
Business 47 Plug-ins: Hardware or software? 50 PAs: How big is big enough? 54 Abbey Road celebrates its 80th birthday
Back pages 56 Hither & Dither
PSNE Nov P4 EditorialJRdr_PSNE master cover/3/4 31/10/2011 11:51 Page 4
Picture by John Tuffen
4 news & welcome
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011 UNITED KINGDOM
Keeping track The MPG’s Mastering Group is on a mission to improve and protect recording metadata. Phil Ward talks formats with the group’s Barry Grint
Editor’s comment Dave Robinson
QUITE THE MONTH for the AES, then. I wasn’t present at the New York Convention this year, but by all accounts it was a lively affair. As per last year, Avid seems to have stolen the show again with the anticipated Pro Tools 10 launch and demo, and the subsequent appearance of Alicia Keys. Our man Paul Watson was a little smitten, I reckon: you can read his AES report on p6. Paul makes a good point which I will echo here: as much as I love San Francisco, it’s high time the US Convention headed back to Los Angeles in an act of practical and positive acknowledgement of the movie, post and studio industries there. And if this mood of optimism is sustained – global economics withstanding – then surely AES should make plans for L.A. sooner rather than later? After all, in Europe, finally there seems to be a chink of light. Budapest? Small exhibiton? Well, it’s a start. A scaled back show it may be but it brings enormous potential for new business, new markets and new customers. And that’s what so many critics of the AES in Europe want. However, in the course of his research for the p3 story, Mel Lambert talked to Ian Staddon, VP of sales at DiGiCo, who told him: “My frustration over the past 10 years is that the AES Europe has just ‘expected’ that all audio manufacturers should attend their show. To me there has been almost an old-school snobbery and antiquated approach that is killing the organisation and [convention], while shows like ISE and IBC continues to invest and grow.” The Budapest move suggests the AES is listening to the industry, at last. Let’s see just how much, though. Q
While the UK Music Producers Guild’s new Mastering Group has been created to focus on delivery standards, specifying quality control (QC) and identifying responsibilities, it should be remembered that the original panel discussion held during the AES Convention in London in May – the one that led to the formation of the group – faced the question of ‘QC in the mastering chain’. In other words, the group is as concerned with issues that arise during production as it is with consumer delivery – if not more so, given the limits to control that ‘delivery’ places by definition. While co-founder Ray Staff works on the quality control specifications, Alchemy Mastering’s Barry Grint is looking into the issues surrounding International Standard Recording Codes (ISRCs). “Back in the old days of CD the ISRC was associated with a track by information contained in the CD subcode data stream,” he points out. “Most people believe that it’s possible to ‘encode’ a WAV file with the ISRC but, strictly speaking, you cannot. There is no easy method of verifying that a particular mix is the one associated with a given ISRC.” Accordingly Grint is seeking a way of embedding the ISRC within the BWF file format, which offers this possibility in a way that WAV files do not. Current BWF specifications do provide fields for metadata, but nothing designated for ISRCs. “It’s too nebulous,” he says, “because it’s trying to address what broadcasters and post-production facilities need internally. I’m aiming to get a dedicated ISRC field within BWF, and to configure it as a hypertext link so you can click on it and be directed to an online database showing the full label-copy information associated with that track.” Such access will have additional benefits for MPG members, whose ‘Credit Where Credit’s Due’ campaign has been attempting to ensure that performers, engineers and producers are correctly credited. “If we can ensure that the link hooks you into an appropriate database, it would make perfect sense: you could validate the track on one level, but also validate the metadata associated with it – without that file becoming hugely weighted down by the metadata,” Grint explains. There is also a need to identify different mixes of the same track, especially in this era of the
Barry Grint: seeking better track identification with use of ISRCs within the BWF format
repackaged catalogue and the compilation album. “There would be several mixes from the multitrack as work progressed,” Grint continues, “but they would all be the same length. A WAV can only contain so much information in the file title,
database and make sure that it matches up with the label copy. It becomes an organic part of the mastering process.” As well as various mixes contemporary with the recording and production of the original, the picture is further complicated by the successive ISRCs assigned to new generations of the material. Already the industry has entered a second phase of re-mastering for CD, on top of generations of cassettes and vinyl re-issues, each of which can be sourced from any number of iterations from the original multitrack to foreign imports, two-track safety copies, broadcast versions from around the world and who knows what else. The Institut für Rundfunktechnik (IRT) in Germany is in the process of laying down the specifications for MBF 2.0, a separate broadcast standard. “I’m talking with them to have the BWF format able to include more sub data and hopefully the hyperlink,” says Grint. “They have confirmed that it’s possible in theory, but what needs to happen is the specific assignment of a field in the sub-code for ISRC – plus a clear definition that it will be a hyperlink. At the same
“Most people believe that it’s possible to ‘encode’ a WAV file with the ISRC but, strictly speaking, you cannot. There is no easy method of verifying that a particular mix is the one associated with a given ISRC” and in production you could easily grab the wrong file off a server. And it’s unlikely that the compilers will know that it’s not the version intended for the release.” Naturally, a compilation sources tracks from multiple record companies, each with its own file identification methods. Any given company that licences a track will see it listed on the internal file server several times, corresponding to various production mixes, making errors a distinct possibility. “If, on the other hand, all files are supplied with the ISRC at the mastering stage, the mastering engineer can click on the hyperlink, check it against the
time we need confirmation from the IFPI that it would be possible for the hyperlink to reach their online database.” The MPG Mastering Group is also in negotiations with DAW manufacturers, notably SADiE and Sequoia, to ensure that workstations adopt features to allow mastering engineers to carry out ISRC checks within the workflow. “We’re already putting the information in to generate CD masters,” Grint points out, “so it would be ideal to bounce out the tracks, place the data in the correct field and create a BWF. That would be half the job done, at least…” Q www.mpg.org.uk
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Project2_Layout 1 28/10/2011 14:52 Page 1
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PSNE Nov P6 AESJRdr_D 31/10/2011 09:57 Page 6
6 show review
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
WORLD
NYC inspires a rekindled AES Paul Watson reports from an upbeat show that saw some significant product launches AES Conventions in Europe may have had a troubled history of late, but the New York show is a whole different ball game. Although a cunningly reconfigured floor plan reduced physical capacity significantly compared to previous years, the number of visitors at the Javits Center was still encouraging. A total of 310 exhibitors and 16,000 visitors were at the show, and for the first two days, especially, the aisles were jostling. There were some significant new product launches. Avid once again stole the limelight with the Pro Tools 10 launch. Globally renowned mix engineer and producer, Ken ‘Duro’ Ifill, described it as “a game-changer”, and he has a point: the potential for more than 750 channels, 64-bit processing, and disk caching (the ability to load sessions into RAM) are all giant leaps forward for the world’s leading recording platform. “You can potentially take a thumb drive, stick it in your computer, and run 100-track sessions off it, because it’s completely pulling it off RAM,” says Avid’s Bobby Lombardi. “It’s got great implications including big enterprise or studios that are sharing network storage.” Outline presented the GTO-DF, the newest of its GTO Series loudspeakers. It’s a biamped system offering four 8” mid-woofers and two 3” compression drivers. It can be added easily to a flying GTO array, and has a vertical dispersion range of 0º-25º. It can handle 800W AES and 3,200W peak for the mid-woofer section, covering the 200Hz to 1kHz range; and the highfrequency range section handles 250W AES and 1,000W peak, covering a 1kHz to 17.5kHz range. “The GTO-DF rounds out the performance coverage of the GTO line array speaker systems,” says Tom Bensen, senior VP and MD of Outline North America. “In the past, several rows of the audience could be slightly
f
Some 310 exhibitors and 16,000 visitors attended the show
off axis to the main FOH arrays, leading to a reduction in coverage, but the GTODF is designed to reside on the bottom of a GTO array to provide those rows of seating with the true GTO sound.” Other notable launches included Izotope’s Ozone 5, the latest version of its popular mastering tool, which was designed to suit ‘bedroom producers’ as well as high-end mastering engineers. New features include being able to zoom in on frequency ranges using the scroll wheel, and an improved dynamics mode. There are also various algorithm improvements, and a new hybrid reverb has also been created, which provides a better sonic control. Audio-Technica showed its AT2022 X/Y stereo condenser microphone which is designed for recording. It features two unidirectional capsules in an X/Y configuration to allow for both narrow (90º) and wide (120º) stereo operation; and a switch enables the user to choose a flat response or low-frequency roll-off via its 80Hz high-pass filter. On the loudspeaker front, Community showed its new surfacemount DS5, DS8 and DS8SUB, which are expansions on its Distributed
Design Series of ceiling-mount loudspeakers. The 5” DS5 is a two-way compact system, and for larger installations, the 8” DS8 provides a higher SPL and sensitivity, plus a greater bass extension. The DS8SUB is designed to complement both full-range models. Community also launched its new dSPEC226 loudspeaker processor which includes ONEQ Acoustic Power corrective algorithms, providing 1,024 bands of low latency FIR equalisation. It has a four-input and six-output fixedchain DSP architecture that includes 2 x 6 native analogue I/Os. Expansion cards are also available to provide two additional analogue inputs, two AES3 dual-channel digital inputs, or eight CobraNet inputs and outputs. DiGiCo revealed its new SD10-24, the compact model of the SD10, which boasts many of the full-sized SD10’s features. Standard input channel processing includes channel delay, single and multichannel presets, four bands of parametric EQ with band curve selection, compressor and gate, dual insert points, and access to all bussing. Output channel processing includes output delay, eight bands of parametric EQ, compressor and gate; dual insert points,
and groups with bus-to-bus routing. Harman and Yamaha both rolled up into the main hall – literally: they chose to exhibit their kit in trucks. The Harman truck featured a Studer OnAir 1500 and Vista 5 M2-22, both of which made their US debuts. There was also a Soundcraft Vi1, and a Studer Vista 9, the latter of which was the centrepiece of the broadcast studio (equipped with the whole family of JBL LSR studio monitors configured in a 5.1 format). A range of AKG mics was also on display; and Lexicon demonstrated its native plugins. The Yamaha truck was making its second AES performance. Inside was a string of its pro-audio kit including PM5D, M7CL, and LS9 consoles, plus TXn amplifiers and NXAmps. On the whole, AES was buzzing; and the fact that the city’s recording scene is massively on the up, thanks in part to Ann Mincieli’s Jungle City Studios which made the NY Times in May, added to the vibe. Duro is a five-times GRAMMY winner and one of the resident engineers at the facility, as well as being one of the most in-demand mix engineers on the planet. He attended the show every day to talk to manufacturers and
check out new kit, as well as appearing as a panellist on the ‘Sonic Imprints’ seminar at the AES Conference, which included Mincieli herself (who is also Alicia Keys’ engineer), and fellow GRAMMYwinning engineer/producers Phil Ramone, Steve Lillywhite and Al Schmitt. Impressive indeed. So, as far as AES goes in New York, the future looks bright, but does San Francisco boast a big enough market to do the show equal justice? Isn’t it about time the AES headed back to Los Angeles? Both cities are heavyweights in the music industry, but L.A. will pull in the post-production and film communities while San Fran does not. One final memory I will treasure from this trip is Jungle City’s live room after Avid’s team had demonstrated Pro Tools 10 to the resident engineers. Alicia Keys strolled in and performed a 20minute set on the studio’s Steinway grand piano to no more than 75 people. We were 11 floors up, overlooking the Manhattan skyline; and before finishing, aptly, on her huge hit Empire State of Mind, she pursed her lips to the Neumann microphone to address the crowd: “The city looks really beautiful from up here, doesn’t it?” Astonishing, more like. Q www.aes.org
The Yamaha truck included M5D, M7CL, and LS9 consoles, and TXn amplifiers
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PSNE Nov P8 Product ReviewJRdr _PSNE_Sept_P_Prodreview 31/10/2011 09:58 Page 8
8 review
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
AMS Neve 2264ALB Outboard manufacturers are enjoying a productive time because of the popularity of the API 500-Series rack. AMS Neve is one such company to greet the boom, so a peckish Russ Hepworth-Sawyer took a trip to Burnley to pick up a Lunchbox containing one unique sandwich Price and Availability ÂŁ945 (â‚Ź1,080) for one 2264ALB (Lunchbox needed) Available from all official AMS Neve dealers Phone: +44 (0)1282 457011 www.ams-neve.com
AMS Neve is, along with very few others, at the top of the tree of console design. The manufacturer’s equipment has recorded and mixed countless classic tracks, and these days not many of us have the cash, need, or the space necessary to buy even a small Neve VR! So how do we go about getting a slice of that classic action for our studios? Well, AMS Neve has been quietly developing the answer – the 500-Series compatible units. The 500-Series, or API Lunchbox format, has become very popular, reducing bulky 19� rack units down to a compact size, permitting engineers to carry up to six units in a rugged Lunchbox equivalent to approximately 4U, wherever the work takes you. Many manufacturers have caught on to this and re-released new versions of their classics to a seemingly new audience. Thus AMS Neve duly provided me with a Lunchbox complete with a tasty ‘club sandwich’ of six units racked together. AMS Neve’s 500-Series units can be used in two modes: individual or in ‘insert mode’, as if a channel strip. The latter allows the Lunchbox fan the opportunity to internally wire the classic 1073 mic preamplifier to the 1073 equaliser and lastly the as yet unreleased 2264ALB Mono Limiter/Compressor module. This was unreleased at the time of review, but was officially launched at AES New York last month.
The 2264A was originally released in 1974 and is commonly fitted within the larger D.L.1. format, the standard for slotting into some AMS Neve chassis and their standalone rack chassis. AMS Neve prides itself on sustaining its historic manufacturing heritage, such as its hand-wound transformers and architecture while adding new features that appeal to modern audiences. The challenge for AMS Neve has been to squeeze the classic circuitry into the small 500Series form factor. The 2264ALB is faithful to its Class A/B heritage employing three large transformers and the same discrete components on the analogue signal path, taking more space than more modern integrated circuits. The next challenge was to provide the same functionality on the smaller front panel. Originally, the 2264A contained toggle switches to engage the compressor and limiter in addition to the bypass and analogue PPM meter. On the 2264ALB, AMS Neve has cleverly incorporated ‘press’ switches into the threshold controls on the limiter or compressor or the gain make up knobs. These switches act as the Limiter in/out, Compressor in/out and Stereo Link (for linking two 2264ALBs together) buttons respectively. The rotary controls are near enough identical to the 2264A original using a dual concentric
formation, but with one significant difference. The original 2264A used notched controls. This new unit employs potentiometers designed for AMS Neve with specific resistance curves so that experienced users of the 2264A will feel immediately at home with their personal settings. Also saving space is the new LED level gain reduction meter still approximating original PPM ballistics but with a new 2dB indicator included to show even the most gentle tickling of your audio, previously unregistered by the original 2264A’s meter. At the very bottom of the unit comes a chunkier bypass switch, which bypasses the 2264ALB by hard wiring the output to the input with negligible loss of signal quality. To the right is a useful signal presence LED and a smaller switch labelled ‘SA’, standing for slow attack. More on this later. Like the original, the AMS Neve 2264ALB is as tight and as punchy as you’d expect, providing life-saving limiting for tracking where necessary while delivering a flavour in compression often imitated, but never quite reached. This impressive unit handled effortlessly, a continuous flow of recorded performances across a pop/rock mix right through from the drum spot mics through to the lead vocal. I’m glad I reviewed this 500-Series issue, as there is a subtle, yet impressive difference. The 2264A in its original form with only recovery times and no attack controls, was, at times, less forgiving arguably for mixing. The inclusion of this new slow attack switch has provided me with a paradigm shift in my impressions as the 2264ALB is now possibly one of the most versatile compressor/limiters available for a 500-Series rack. With the slow attack switch enabled, early
transients of your signals can be given a lease of life within the mix providing a truly musical experience: the sound of a classic Neve 2264A with a more forgiving application of compression. The 2264ALB is a fantastic addition to the 500-Series market completing the channel strip sandwich offered by AMS Neve when combined with the 1073 mic preamplfier and the 1073 equaliser. On its own, the 2264ALB is a classic with a modern twist and frankly one of the most musical compressor/limiters I’ve ever used in or out of a Lunchbox. I wonder whether AMS Neve will place the SA control on a future 19� rack mounted version for those of us not leaving the studio for lunch? Q
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS f Noise -70.5dBu (20Hz-20kHz) for linear and limit modes f Frequency response – flat within 1dB from 20Hz to 20kHz f Digital LED meter giving approximate PPM ballistics f Must fit a compliant Lunchbox rack slot with integral PSU PROS AND CONS
Pros f Sonic replica of the original 2264 using
faithful components and manufacturing process
f New Slow Attack feature appears to do more than it says on the tin
f With the 1073 mic pre or EQ, can be connected as a Neve channel strip
Cons f 500-Series sizing might not be for everyone
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PSNE Nov P9 ProductsDRJR _D 31/10/2011 09:58 Page 9
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November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
New products
Nigel Lord compiles this month’s list of hot new products
ALLEN & HEATH
Xone:K2 What is it? A MIDI controller and audio interface with a four-channel internal soundcard and configurable MIDI surface. Details With its tri-colour LED illumination, USB bus power and A&H’s proprietary X:Link system for connection with other Xone equipment, the Xone:K2 is designed to work with all MIDI-enabled DAW applications and interface with popular DJ software packages such as Ableton, Traktor Pro and Serato Scratch Live. It offers 52 physical controls including 12 analogue and six endless rotary encoders with push switch, four linear faders and 30 back-lit performances switches providing up to 171 MIDI control commands across three layers. Xone:K2 incorporates an internal four-channel high-quality soundcard that can operate at 44.1 and 48kHz. And another thing... There is also a dedicated 3.5mm headphone jack and a master out via RCA phono connectors. www.allen-heath.com
DIGIGRAM
Phoenix S/B What is it? A new version of the Phoenix soft-knee stereo valve compressor. Details The Phoenix S/B (“standby”) employs the same classic design as the previous Phoenix S/C (“side chain”) model incorporating the same point-to-point, hand wiring, Mullard and Siemens valves and custom Sowter transformers. New features include a standby switch said to extend valve and capacitor life (limiting HT current through the valves to 50% of its normal value) and zero level meter adjusters added to the front panel to make calibration easier and to avoid having to take the unit out of the rack. And another thing… The S/B (and S/C) version has the same higher gain structure as the standard model, making it more useful for individual tracking or mixing functions.
Cancun
www.thermionicculture.com
What is it? A range of high-end USB soundcards suitable for reporting and pro-audio applications. Details The first two models in the range are the Cancun 442-Mic and Cancum 222-Mic – respectively, 4-in/4-out and 2-in/2-out simultaneous analogue plus AES I/O devices. Both offer 2 x 500 MIPS dual-core processing power within a “stylish, ultra-robust casing”. The design includes a high-quality mic preamp which offers professional analogue +24dBu (max) level, and the necessary connectivity for professional usage such as a Neutrik XLR plug. And another thing… Users can work on their audio software applications while simultaneously monitoring soundcard values. www.digigram.com
KMR AUDIO
Looptrotter Monster What is it? A stereo hybrid solid-state/tube compressor. Details The Monster offers stereo FET compression with an optional tube saturation circuit. The compression section features input and output controls, plus attack and release dials. Compression ratios are determined by the input level while a toggle switch allows the unit to be used as a soft-knee limiter. The tube saturation section comprises a single rotary control (click detent) to determine the amount of harmonic distortion present in the signal. A toggle switch is provided to boost second harmonics and this process can be hard bypassed – as can the entire unit. And another thing… The Monster also incorporates a Mix knob that can be used for parallel compression – mixing the processed/unprocessed signals to preserve transients and character. www.kmraudio.com
SCHOEPS
Polarflex plug-in What is it? A plug-in to create individualised polar patterns and novel sound characteristics during/after recording. Details The Polarflex reference set-up consists of the Polarflex microphone A2P CCM and the Polarflex plug-in which makes it possible to intelligently mix two capsules – omni and figure-8 – in three frequency bands such that the level and the frequency response of the diffuse sound and the directivity of the mic is altered. The plug-in automatically maintains overall level at all frequencies so that every setting produces a potentially useful result. This means that the larger the proportion of the omni capsule in the mix, the smaller the proportion of the figure-8/cardioid. And another thing… By using the plug-in to alter the mix ratio, the correlation of the recorded diffuse soundfield is also changed, providing a powerful means of varying the characteristics of a stereo microphone. www.schoeps.de
THERMIONIC CULTURE
Project2_Layout 1 28/10/2011 15:12 Page 1
You’ll know the feeling. You’re hearing an amazing sound in the studio and in your head, but somehow it’s not quite sitting right. You fiddle around adding a bit of this and a bit of that, and you think you’re there – but next morning you hit playback and it sounds like a dog’s dinner. And that’s when you realize that these golden-eared wonderboys know a thing or two. One of the things they know is just how much spice to add, and where. Like a master chef, they don’t seek to assault the senses, but to stimulate them. By now, you may be wondering what this has to do with Neve’s amazing new 2264ALB limiter/compressor – a recreation in LunchBox™ format of the original Neve 2264A, using identical architecture and components. Yes, you’ll say, I understand the cooking analogy, but there are lots more compressors on the market these days and lots of them do more. True enough – but do they do it better, or even as well? Otherwise, why do you imagine that top engineers pay through the nose to get secondhand Neve units when they could pick up something new for half the price? Well here’s one theory. Neve, wrote Mix magazine’s Fletcher back in November 1996, ‘built modules that really couldn’t be used to make things sound bad. There are generations of engineers who look like incredible geniuses because Neve wouldn’t allow us the tools to screw up our audio.’ Now far be it from us to quibble with Fletcher but we would beg to differ. We don’t think the likes of Roy Thomas Baker, Allen Sides and Al Schmitt seem like incredible geniuses because they chose Neve outboard. We think they chose Neve outboard because they actually are incredible geniuses. And as well as knowing
how much metaphorical spice to add to their creations, they also go to great lengths to source only the best ingredients. And the best ingredients are certainly what you get with the Neve 2264ALB. Hand-wound transformers, custom-made for Neve (and no other manufacturer has access to that supply); mu-metal casing to avoid stray electromagnetic fields from external PSUs and other modules; and all hand-assembled, to the 2264A’s original specifications, at Neve’s headquarters in Burnley, UK. But tastes change, and even a classic such as the Neve 2264A can stand a little judicious uprating. You wanted a visual indication of status, so we’ve added a Signal Presence LED. And though the original 2264A’s three millisecond attack time was perfect for tracking, you kept telling us that you wanted to use it for mixing too. So we’ve fitted a Slow Attack switch, which changes the attack time to 12 milliseconds, allowing a 2264ALB (or a pair) to be used as mix bus compressors, where a slower attack time is desirable. You also get the option to use Neve’s Audio Processing Insert to insert the 2264ALB between the input and output stages of a Neve 1073LB preamp (or even to combine it with the 1073LBEQ too, for a classic Neve channel strip in LunchBox™ format). Enough chat – it’s time to order. Would you like something tasty to go in your LunchBox™? Or just some scraps to take home in a doggy bag?
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fstudio news BELGIUM
Jet ready to fly once more One year after Jet Studio was sold, the legendary recording facility has reopened, reports Marc Maes In September 2010, Rudy Coclet of Rising Sun Studio and Pascal Flamme of Studio Caraïbes teamed up to buy Jet Studio from owner Staf Verbeeck. A year later and the facility is up and running following a substantial refit. The studio was first used back in 1942 and attracted artists such as Édith Piaf, Charles Trénet and Toots Thielemans; it has previously been owned by Decca Records, singer Adamo, Erwin Vervaecke as well as Verbeeck, who put the studio up for sale in 2009. Coclet and Flamme refurbished the studio building inside and out, investing in a new roof, windows, electrical system and heating. “On the technical side we have the vintage recording
room (the oldest in the country) and we’ve expanded the existing landscape with two new recording booths, creating four in total. “We’ve equipped the control room with a Euphonix CS3000 72-fader console plus a Sony MXP 3000 sidecar with 24 preamps,” explains Cathérine Grenier, press officer of Jet Studio. “We’ve also added Audio Ease’s latest Altiverb and Speakerphone plug-ins in the echo room.” Under the banner ‘We’ll capture your sound’, the new Jet Studio aims to offer high-quality recording, mixing and mastering services and a team of specialised producers. The studio also includes residential facilities. Q
SOUNDBITES f Endless Analog’s CLASP system
has been used in the recording of Aerosmith’s new album, due for release in May 2012. The Closed Loop Analog Signal Processor, which integrates analogue tape into the digital audio workstation environment, was chosen for its ability to create a “classic vibe, old-school” sound. Jack Douglas, Aerosmith’s producer said: “CLASP is revolutionary. The album’s gonna sound amazing. It has that rich, fat sound of analogue and we have the convenience of being able to edit in Pro Tools.” www.endlessanalog.com
f Ronnie Vannucci, drummer
The control room features a Euphonix CS3000 72-fader console
www.jetstudio.com
of The Killers, has chosen a high-definition SR40V from Earthworks as his go-to microphone for the production of his side project album, Big Talk. “The SR40V always delivered, and was our ‘easy’ mic in terms of use,” said Vannucci. “It didn’t require any EQ, and it seems like whatever we did it exceeded our expectations.” www.earthworksaudio.com
UNITED KINGDOM LipSync celebrated its significant involvement with the London Film Festival with a party for staff, clients and friends at Ruby Blue in Leicester Square, London, in mid October. The Soho post house and creative agency has worked on eight films – including the acclaimed We Need to Talk About Kevin and Coriolanus – that were all screened during the festival. Enjoying the moment (L-R): Norman Merry, LipSync financial director; Dan Bentham, senior producer for LipSync (Post); and Robin Guise, director at LipSync (Creative). Q The vintage recording room is the oldest in Belgium
www.lipsyncpost.co.uk
f Ease of use, versatility and reliability were among the priorities that informed the installation of an Audient ASP8024 mixing desk at London City University’s Centre for Music Studies studio. The desk is helping the facility to fulfil a wide variety of applications, including teaching, individual student projects and commercial hire. “We need to train students in an environment as close to a professional one as possible, and ASP8024 provides a world-class focus without being ridiculously expensive,” said the centre’s Will Goring. www.audient.com
PSNE Nov P11-14 studio v5JR_dr_PSNE_Mar_P_Studio 31/10/2011 10:00 Page 12
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Pictures by Louis Austin
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
GERMANY
Blue, blue, Hansa blue David Bowie mixed Sound and Vision at Hansa Tonstudios in the ’70s. But what of the Big Hall by the Wall in 2011? Dave Robinson takes the tour It’s not difficult to imagine chameleon popstar David Bowie pondering the exotic and alien duality of East/West Berlin in the days of Communist Russia. Pondering… and then in 1977, travelling to the city’s leading recording studio, what was known as ‘Hansa Studio by the Wall’, to mix Low and record Heroes, with Tony Visconti producing. Bowie’s sojourn put Hansa on the international map, and before long, a litany of acts – Iggy Pop, Depeche Mode, Marillion, Siouxsie and the Banshees, U2 and many others – came seeking the sound of Hansa Studio Two.
f
Control room with Hansa Blue SSL desk and Adam Audio S3A speakers
Alex Wende outside the Meistersaal building on Köthenerstrasse
The Meistersaal, where U2 recorded and filmed One
Polarflex A2P CCM
Polarflex Plug-In – Free Download
SCHOEPS GmbH Spitalstr. 20 D-76227 Karlsruhe
www.schoeps.de/polarflex mailbox@schoeps.de Tel. +49 721 943 200
It was 1976 when Meisel-MusikVerlage (Meisel Music Publishing) bought the Meistersaal (‘main hall’) ballroom/function hall on Köthener Strasse, just 100m from the Berlin Wall in an isolated part of the city. The hall became the live room attached to a recording studio, Studio Two, and over the next few years, the likes of Construction Time Again, Misplaced Childhood and Tinderbox were all created there. In 1989, the Russian Bear relented and the Wall came down. But despite the incredible changes across the Western World, and despite U2’s Achtung Baby (1991) garnering so much publicity, the age-old conundrum of Studio Land materialised – there was still not enough recording work available to justify the existence of such a large facility. And so the Meistersaal was converted back to its former purpose, and Studio Two broken up. Hansa Tonstudio, still owned by Meisel, now exists on the third floor of the building. It’s one main live room plus control room; a second set of rooms is where Michael Roberts, right-hand man to Max Martin (Britney, Backstreet Boys) has his permanent base. After a hiatus in the ’90s, Hansa has recently found favour with international
acts again, including Snow Patrol (A Hundred Million Suns) Supergrass (Diamond Hoo Ha) and recently, R.E.M.’s last studio album, Collapse into Now. “Berlin is growing and growing into the capital of Europe,” says Alex Wende, studio manager and producer/mixer. “Fashion, music, everything – that’s why people are interested again in coming to Hansa. Bands come to see what’s going on in Berlin, and then they say, let’s go to Hansa because the spirit is still there, the history: Bowie, U2, Depeche Mode.” With top-flight accommodation available in apartments across the road from Hansa, it’s almost like a residential studio in the city. “The cool thing is, before the Potsdamerplatz was built, the studio was surrounded by nothing. It was a wasteland for several hundred metres. But today, you go downstairs, it doesn’t matter what hour of the morning, you have all the cocktails and people you need. We have restaurants that close from 5-6am for cleaning, then they open for breakfast. It’s inspiring. I love it. “At the moment we charge €750 a day including the engineer, that’s all we can do, but that’s not enough to run it
PSNE Nov P11-14 studio v5JR_dr_PSNE_Mar_P_Studio 31/10/2011 12:25 Page 13
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as a studio – the rest of the business keeps it going. For 10 years it’s been €750 – before we charged much more but nobody paid,” he laughs. “The technical view of young bands and engineers has changed completely – 10, 15 years ago no one was interested in a studio with an SSL and five or six Urei limiters, they wanted the new Pro Tools thing. But for the past five years, they’ve wanted vintage gear and analogue tape. It’s more and more that people want this combination of old and new.” Studio One has a certain 1960s styling to it, though it was built in 1980. Meisel had a studio in another location, Wende reports, but the company stripped that out and brought all the panelling and coverings to this location.
which colours tracks such as Master and Servant. Monitors of choice in Studio One are Adam Audio S3As. There is a pair in the main room, two pairs in the live room. “I was looking for a new pair, and I tested many things,” says Wende. “50% of my work is doing arrangements and composing and pre-production before it comes to the mix, so I look for a speaker that can work with for 20 hours at a stretch. That’s why I went with the Adams.” Wende recounts the songs he uses for testing: Mark Knopfler’s Cleaning My Gun; a song from Incognito (“it’s punchy and has a fat bass drum where I can feel how it should be”); and another from Nickelback. Then there are a
“The technical view of young bands and engineers has changed completely... But for the past five years, they’ve wanted vintage gear and analogue tape” The live space is large enough for in excess of 45 musicians, says Wende. “We record strings in here because it sounds dry but unbelievably cool, warm and malleable – you can do anything you want to the sound, you don’t have awkward reflections or whatever.” This room receives plenty of daylight too, which bands love. “[R.E.M.’s] Michael Stipe came in and said, ‘Man, I can see!’ It’s important that you don’t lose the connection to the rest of the world.” The unusual drum room, with its marble walls, is “great for ’80s drum sounds, trashy and open”. The machine room, containing servers and other essential engines, are shielded inside a room-sized Faraday cage. In former times, particularly during days of partition, the cage blocked radar signals from nearby Templehof airport. And then there’s the infamous fire escape staircase. Concrete, boomy and austere, this is where Depeche Mode discovered the big natural reverb
couple from Celine Dion (“not to my taste but the vocal recordings are unbelievably good – and with these you can really hear what the vocal is doing on the speakers”). A Supergrass track from Diamond Hoo Ha is also on the demo list. Any Steely Dan? “No, that’s too clean!” Wende’s relationship with Adam goes back two or three years, from when he was first approached by domestic sales guy Dr Thomas Frohn. “I think these – the S3As – are the best they made.” He’s not so keen on the supposedly improved S3X monitors; but he admits, every set of ears is different and often it’s down to the room itself. Before Adam Audio boxes, Hansa deployed the usual suspects: Yamaha NS10s, Questeds, Auratones and Genelecs. But he looked at upgrading because “so many people were talking about Adam, ‘You should try them!’ they said. So many people trust in British speakers or American speakers but not German!”
Bands love the natural light of the live room, which can accommodate in excess of 45 musicians
It seems the ‘Made in Germany’ stamp works for mics and auotmobiles, but not for monitors then. “Maybe because people like the British sound or the American sound,” he suggests. Nevertheless, Udo Jurgens recently recorded his 54th(!) album with Adam speakers. Finally, of course, there’s the prized SSL 4000E desk, resplendent in
‘Hansa Blue’ styling. The console has been completely recapped over the past couple of years, in fact, says Wende, a lot of money has been invested in maintaining it. “I think it was the best sounding SSL they ever made, with the E EQ and the E compressor. The new stuff is OK but I love this.” And ‘Hansa Blue’? “The guys wanted it in this blue in the ’80s, so they went
to England to show them the colour. It went into the SSL catalogue! Only two or three Hansa Blue SSL 4000s were ever made.” To end the Hansa tour, Wende takes PSNE to the Meistersaal on the first floor. And yes, you can still sense the spirit of former glories in the decorated ceiling and lacquered wall panels. Q www.hansatonstudio.de
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UNITED KINGDOM Metropolis Mastering has purchased a pair of The Rock nearfield monitors from Unity Audio. The monitors have been located in the room of long-serving Metropolis engineer Miles Showell, for whom they resolve a nigh-on three-decade search for suitable nearfields. Historically, Showell has struggled to find nearfields with which
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he is comfortable, but ‘The Rocks’ have marked a paradigm shift in his outlook. “These are offering something different, we instantly understood them, and equally important, so do our clients,” said Showell, whose credits include Doves and Jessie J. The monitors, he added, “have outstanding bass, excellent stereo imaging, [and] are pleasant to listen to and sound good”. Q
www.metropolis-group.co.uk www.unityaudio.co.uk
www.celestion.com
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WORLD
Spirited films fit for Kings Spirit Level Film used Sennheiser equipment to cut the first three documentaries from its The Price Of Kings series, which highlights the personal sacrifices made by some of history’s most controversial leaders, writes Paul Watson Independent production company Spirit Level Film set itself the mind-boggling task of partcircumnavigating the globe in search of 12 figureheads from some of the world’s most dangerous and war-torn territories, to collate unique material for a series of 12 documentary films, three of which are already completed and will be released this month. A selection of Sennheiser headphones and microphones were deployed to assist in the recording and editing of the films. The idea for The Price of Kings series stems from a previous Spirit Level documentary The Ministry of Truth, a film based on 50 interviews with British MPs and ministers, which turned out to be, according to Spirit Level’s founder, Richard Symons, “a bit too abrasive”. “We were trying to get a law passed that would make it a criminal offence for Members of Parliament to lie; we actually got the bill into Parliament, but it fell at its second reading,” Symons explains. “It was at this time that we realised that these guys initially go into the job to serve the public, and it doesn’t always work out like that, so The Price of Kings is a logical progression of that. We wanted to see what it was like to be at the very top with absolute responsibility for a nation – almost like standing at the bottom of a mountain and shouting: ‘What’s it like up there?’; and it turns out it’s pretty windy!” The first film from The Price of Kings series concentrates on the life of former President of Palestine Yasser Arafat, and features an extensive interview with his
f
Former Yasser Arafat adviser and PLO member Bassam Abu Sharif was an interviewee
widow Suha, which is the first that she has ever given. The interview proved to be highly emotional, and there was more than six hours of footage, some of which was recorded over the phone. Spirit Level’s Joanna Natasegara says using Sennheiser’s IE8 enabled her to achieve a crystal-clear signal. “Communications start even before the shoot when we’re negotiating with people, so I needed to be able to hear all the nuances in Suha’s voice when she was talking to me over the phone,” she reveals. “Taking calls on an iPhone isn’t easy on location, and the IE8s
made a big difference; if you can hear those sorts of things clearly, you can sort of second-guess her fears and her worries before you get face-to-face. I can’t live without these headphones now; they literally never leave my side.”
Maintaining standards Spirit Level initially used 27 flight cases of kit and needed to streamline to under half of that. A lot of the gear was by a number of different manufacturers, so Symonds decided to standardise things as much as possible to achieve one point of reference.
“It’s hard to underestimate the value of standardisation, because when you speak to someone and they say it sounds terrible, and they are listening to a different bit of kit, it means you can’t actually communicate what you want to do next,” Symons says. “We made all the mistakes to get to the point where we realised what we had to do; it was a painful process, but it was worth it.” Schedules were so tough on the 10-strong crew that a day’s work would typically begin at 5am and last more than 16 hours. In addition, with locations as diverse as the rainforest and the desert, the microphones needed to be not only of the highest quality, but robust and reliable. Sennheiser provided a pair of MKH 50s, one MKH 60 shotgun mic, two G3 radio mics, and a camera-mounted mic for a Canon 5D Mk2 DSLR. “The range of operating conditions really was immense; the mics needed to be bulletproof – and thankfully, they were,” explains Symons. “If the kit fails, it screws everything up, and it has huge cost implications, of course; but there was zero equipment failure throughout the recording, just a smashed interrotron (similar to a teleprompter) and monitor, and that was down to human error! The sound we’ve achieved really is amazing.” The other two films already completed in The Price of Kings series concentrate on the lives of Shimon Peres, president of Israel, and Óscar Arias, former president of Costa Rica. The Arafat film will be
“We wanted to see what it was like to be at the very top with absolute responsibility for a nation – almost like standing at the bottom of a mountain and shouting: ‘What’s it like up there?’; and it turns out it’s pretty windy!” Sennheiser provided Spirit Level HD650 headphones, which were used across the edit suites and mix rooms, and four sets of HD25-C-II headphones (two with boom mic) for location recording.
aired for the first time at the Copenhagen Film Festival in November. Q www.priceofkings.co.uk www.sennheiser.co.uk www.spiritlevel.com
PSNE Nov P15-16 Studio Bookings2JR _dr_PSNE_April_P_StBkg 31/10/2011 10:02 Page 15
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Studio bookings
If you want your web address to be included in the magazine AND in the digital edition of Pro Sound News Europe for just £50 a year, please email Lianne on Lianne.Davey@intentmedia.co.uk for an order form
The Studio Bookings listing is a free service. All information is provided by the companies listed and PSNE cannot be held responsible for any factual errors. To be included in the listings, please contact Lianne Davey, studio bookings editor, on +44 20 7226 7246, or email Lianne.Davey@intentmedia.co.uk
Fonoprint
ARTIST
Antonello Venditti Paolo Conte
PROJECT
CLIENT
PRODUCER
ENGINEER
BELGIUM Globe Yannick Bovy Sofia Anessiadis
Album Album
Universal Bromo
Studio La Chapelle Klavan HK & The Saltimbanks (FR)
Album rec Album rec
Roel Bettonviel Louis-Henry Chambat
Video/Sound CD
Max Musik Alinea
Hamilton Hamilton
+32 477 603 105 Pensaert Pensaert
Irhoj-Bogelund Irhoj-Aagaad
+45 563 81986 Irhoj Irhoj
FRANCE Studio Pickup Granville Shak Shakembo
EP EP
www.studio-pickup.com Buzz Production Archipel
Legoupil Legoupil
+33 2 50 65 45 92 Legoupil Legoupil
GERMANY Ballsaal Ilja Schierbaum Stefan Gwildis
www.ballsaal-studios.com Album-Mix Artist Mix 105 Music
Bauer Kenny Wheeler Bigband Django Bates
Album Mix Album
Clemens Potzsch Slavikon
Album
John Taylor
Album
www.bauerstudios.de CAM Bates T/A Delightful Precipice Neuklang CAM
Peter Brandt Remote Recording GmbH www.remoterecording.net Various at Brandenburg Gate Coke Sound Up MTV/2 Bild Peter Brandt Remote Taxi GmbH Hansi Hinterseer TV Berlin Live The Subways Digital Pro EK Gospel Annamari Farkas
Imputlevel Studio Alcuni Film Jorge Ben Jor Punk Y Nada Federico Malaman & Quagliato
Just 24/7 Kobalt TV Streetgig
www.remotetaxi.com Michael Konig Mathieu Feschfilm
Album Album
CLIENT
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Album CD-DVD
Heinz Music Platinum
Colombini Allevato
ENGINEER +39 51 585 254
New Show
Alcuni
New Album Per Alcuni
Molon Alcuni
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EKG Private
Albrecht Langer/Neumann
Basso Farnell Potzsch/ Bauer-Oppelland Basso
+49 30844 14960 BlackPete/Martin BlackPete/Martin +49 7141 22680 Wohlleben Wohlleben/Adnitt
Maxsound Vibe Studios Adelu Russotto Frame
Single Soundtrack
Radiotour Audioimage
+39 081 509 0607 Carola Carola Davide Mastropaolo Carola
Oasi Fabrizio Bigotti Giovanni Zappalorto
Album Album
Brilliant Flipper
Artist Topel
+39 06 3723312 Modugno Modugno
Officine Meccaniche Subsonica We Are Waves
Mix LS Recording Session Artist
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+39 2 891 59458 Frigo Trentacoste
Pink House HOTrio special guest Flavio Boltro
CD
RARA
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+39 335 5973004 Sardella
Spazi Sonori Modesti Choir Naked Bellies
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Marchiori Artist
+39 586 504116 Barbieri Barbieri
Studio 52 Marisa Portolano Gio Siciliano
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+39 8 1579 2272 Rescigno Rescigno
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Visentin Visentin
+39 141 928174 Visentin Visentin
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Various Vella/Boa
+356 21 574 833 Vella Vella
Von Ripka/Bos Wohlleben
Tanas
+49 212 254 1225 Brandt
Schuetrumpf
+49 212 254 1225 Raff Raff Hoogenboezem
MALTA Temple Carl Carlton P Boa & Voodooclub
SPAIN Sonic Vista Andy Taylor Café del Mar
+34 627 151117 Sarmiento Sarmiento
Arvai Koppany
+36 1 383 2481 Matok Matok
Roasting House Royal Hunt Cloudscape
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Coty, Henkel, Tantum Verde TV adaptions
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+36 1 217 1120 Beke
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Voiceovers
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Erdelyi
+36 1454 0200 Dunai
Soundtrade Skintrade Veum
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Bo Hall The Hawks
+354 892 9000 Tempo Tempo
SWITZERLAND
Concert DVD Tracks
Advice Music Studio Universo Parallelo Sonia Mariotti
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Advice Advice Music
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Artesuono Bobo Stenson Trio Paolo Fresu – Omar Sosa
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ICELAND
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SWEDEN
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PROJECT
+32 485106979
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+46 40 937678 Twedberg/RH Twedberg/Theander +46 8 730 04 00 R Lahti Agate
Forces Motrices Pierre Omer Phillipe No Roots
Theatre Soundtrack Theatre des Marionnettes Omer EP In Flames Dave ID
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PSNE Nov P15-16 Studio Bookings2JR _dr_PSNE_April_P_StBkg 31/10/2011 10:02 Page 16
16 studio bookings ARTIST
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www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011 PRODUCER
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UK Abbot Street Studios Daniel E A-Zam Air Katie Melua Bon Iver Air Mastering Nina Kraviz Angelic Tulisa Artillery Studios Pixie Lott Julia Biel Assault & Battery 1 Delilah Assault & Battery 2 David Boone Axis In Oceans Bridge MIA Bunker Sunday Girl Byre Rhythm and Reel
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PSNE Nov P19 BroadcastJR_Dr_D 31/10/2011 10:03 Page 19
broadcast 19
November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
fbroadcast news EUROPE
European Parliament shows hybrid radio Kevin Hilton The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) gave live, practical demonstrations of its hybrid multimedia radio concept at the European Parliament in Brussels at the beginning of October. The technology was launched at IBC 2010 and is intended as a cheap, easy way for broadcasters to add additional text material and pictures alongside radio programmes. Two one-hour shows, one in French, one in English, were broadcast from the European Parliament’s Vox Box multimedia studio. The English language programme was hosted by Lotta Bromé presenter of Swedish Radio’s P4 Extra show. Pictures of Bromé and the guests, plus captions and additional informa-
An English language programme hosted by Lotta Bromé (centre) was one of the first practical demos of the new hybrid radio technology
tion, were inserted into DAB+, DRM, RadioDNS and internet radio streams. The main programmes and multimedia slides could be picked up by a variety of
devices, including radios with integrated screens, smartphones and tablets. The hybrid radio demos took place on the first day of the EBU’s Digital
Radio Conference, which served as a platform for the Union’s position that the future of radio listening will involve a combination of broadcast transmissions and the internet. Presentations and a workshop on the technology were given during the two-day conference by Mathias Coinchon, senior engineer with EBU Technical, and Matthew Trustram, project manager for new media at EBU Radio. Coinchon comments that a practical demonstration involving a talk show was chosen as the best way to “help our members understand hybrid radio with visuals”. The programmes at the European Parliament were co-produced by the EBU and Belgian broadcaster RTBF, which is already using the technology for transmissions. Trustram adds that there is the potential for hybrid radio because so many devices that can receive radio – traditional digital radios, smartphones, tablets – now have screens. “The intention is to add information like pictures and captions into a normal workflow with minimal cost,” he says. “What is on the screen has to be useful but not essential. If it is essential then the medium stops being radio.” Q www.ebulabs.org
AUSTRIA
SSL Duality for new facility that is ‘more than a room’ David Davies The Room 36’s new premises in St Marx Square, Vienna, feature SSL technology in two studio facilities – a Duality SE console in Studio 1 and a Nucleus DAW controller/Super Analogue audio hub in Studio 2. The studios are part of Media Quarter Marx, a major media production complex hosting multiple film/
television production companies, post facilities and support offices, all connected via fibre optic network. Developed with a ‘more than a room’ concept in mind, The Room 36 facility has been designed to offer highquality recording and post-production capabilities to music clients and fellow professional media tenants. The Duality room is supported by a
fully loaded X-Rack with two AlphaLinks and a Delta Link unit to address DAW capture. A MADI-X8 is used to share audio between the two control rooms and several live recording spaces. Room 36 owners Michael Dvoracek and Thomas Rohringer both sang the praises of Duality. While the former noted that it provides “a competitive edge over other studios”, Rohringer
SOUNDBITES f Module-R bespoke furniture
from Custom Consoles has recently been installed in two high-definition control galleries at the Mediahouse division of IMG Worldwide. The products, selected by Gearhouse Broadcast’s Systems Integration division, are equipped to deliver around-the-clock coverage of major-league football to UK broadcasters. The installation features four-operator and five-operator master control desks plus an 18-screen Media Wall; a three-operator desk including lighting control and 12screen Media Wall; plus a singleoperator sound control desk with twin desktop rack bays. www.customconsoles.co.uk
f STB Worldwide Television
recently employed the services of Lawo, in conjunction with integrator TVC Lithuania, to equip its new OB vehicle with a Lawo mc²56 digital audio console offering 240 channels of DSP. Anton Federov, deputy sound engineer of the company behind Ukraine’s X Factor and Ukraine’s Got Talent, said: “The Lawo technology permits very flexible routing down all fibre connections.” www.lawo.de
f Radio Nacional de España has
noted that clients from “local TV stations, international advertising agencies and film production companies who have used Duality are extremely excited with the sound, while the engineers find Duality familiar and very powerful”. Q
received delivery of a router system with six NTP 625 frames to serve as backup to its existing 12-frame NTP 625 digital audio routing system. NTP technology sales manager Mikael Vest explained: “Support to the system comes in the form of a wide range of modules including a sampling-rate converter, analogue I/O and AES/EBU I/O.”
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PSNE Nov P20 BroadcastDRJR_D 31/10/2011 10:29 Page 20
20 broadcast
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
UNITED KINGDOM
Veale Associates completes multi-studio education project David Davies Studio design company Veale Associates has completed and handed over two new radio recording studios and a creative sound facility to the Art, Design & Media School at Middlesex University. The installation – which was executed in conjunction with Preco – is part of a large fit-out at the univer sity’s newly developed Art Design and Media building. Preco director of engineering & technology James Thomas remarked that “a key objective was to match both the technical resources and ambience of a modern radio presentation and recording studio�. Accordingly, each of the two radio recording rooms is approximately 12sqm in area and visually coupled to the other by a fully soundproofed window. The studios have matching acoustics, interior design and technical
Each studio contains a Logitek console and Mosaic control surface
furniture, and complement the style used for programme presentation and one-to-one interviews. In each studio, an L-shaped desk features a Logitek digital audio mixing console consisting of a 10-fader
Mosaic control surface, monitor control module and meter bridge. These are connected to a Logitek AE-32 time-division-multiplexing audio processor. Preco also equipped the training rooms with OMT iMedia
Touch on-air automation plus iMedia Production and Log Tools software, including PC, soundcards and touchscreens. The iMedia Touch is linked to a Tascam DV-RA1000HD audio recorder with a 60GB internal hard disk drive and CD/DVD burner. Each of the two studios also has three Audio-Technica AT4033aSM cardioid condenser microphones mounted on adjustable Yellowtec Mika arms. An equipment pod under each desk houses Sonifex Redbox audio processors, plus the Logitek Mosaic main and auxiliary power supplies. The desks themselves were constructed to Preco custom design. The monitor loudspeakers are ceiling-suspended Tannoy Reveal 601as. “This has been a huge project overall, and the implementation of this part of it has been an example for all to follow,� said the university’s capital projects manager, Ian Bartholomew.
UNITED KINGDOM
Carr retraces footsteps to Goldcrest Kevin Hilton London facilities house Goldcrest Post Production has officially opened its new Foley department, which has already worked on a forthcoming animated feature film and a new drama for UK commercial broadcaster ITV. Chief executive Keith Williams says the department has been added so the facility can offer a full range of audio post services. The Foley room is on the second floor of Goldcrest’s Dean Street building in Soho and will work alongside the company’s ADR suite, which is next door, and its mixing theatres.
S O N T R O N I C S
The new studio was established by Foley editor Paul Carr and Adrian Rhodes, who heads Goldcrest’s sound editing operations. Carr worked at Goldcrest for 26 years as a dubbing, ADR and Foley mixer before retiring in 2009. He has a long list of credits in both film and TV, including Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits and Brazil, Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, Danny Boyle’s Sunshine and the BBC adaptation of Gormenghast. But he was tempted back to work as a consultant on the new Foley room and manage the first projects.
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“We have been hugely impressed with the expertise of Veale Associates and Preco, who have delivered a first-class installation incorporating many features that the students will encounter when they move on to real world working. I know that the students will be knocked out when they get their hands on the new facilities and start using them over the next few weeks.� Veale Associates’ head consultant, Eddie Veale, said: “All acoustic projects are different, and this one presented the challenge of designing a set of studios to a tight budget, and within that constraint provide facilities which would give the students the same working environment that they would experience in realworld studios later in their careers – even down to the same faders. I am proud that we achieved that, and the university is very pleased with the results.� Q www.preco.co.uk www.vealea.com
Among these was the forthcoming fantasy drama series Eternal Law, made by Kudos Productions for ITV. Some noises for this were produced using an old leather bag, bought by Carr in Egypt, which is used for producing leather creaks, squeaks and moves. Working with Carr are Foley artist Susie Harding, who started at Goldcrest as a receptionist and runner, and editor Julien ‘Jules’ Pirrie. Carr trained Harding in the art of Foley walking and is now also passing on some of his experience to the 23-year old Pirrie. Starting out 50 years ago in the days when Foley in the UK was known as footsteps, Carr comments: “I’m too old for secrets. If you don’t pass them on, where’s the pleasure?� Q www.goldcrestpost.com
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Project2_Layout 1 28/10/2011 15:21 Page 1
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PSNE Nov P22 BroadcastJR_dr_D 31/10/2011 10:30 Page 22
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EUROPE
Say what you see Visually impaired or blind people can enjoy television programmes and movies, almost as if they were normally sighted, through the application of audio description. Dave Robinson listens to James O’Hara, a man who believes access is everything The journalist walks across the car park. He knocks on the door of the office. A woman lets him in and escorts him to the first floor. He sits on a sofa. After a minute, a man approaches, smiling and offering a handshake. “Hello, I’m James O’Hara.” One definition of audio description, according to O’Hara, could be “a commentary woven around the dialogue, soundtrack and sound effects of a TV programme or cinematic film in order to make it accessible to blind and partiallysighted people”. The describer details what’s going on, what people look like, or where they are in a scene, for instance. “It’s like a talking book – with this other voice ushering you through to the end,” suggests O’Hara. The managing editor of itfc’s AD department has been immersed in the industry since 1994. “Audio description is not something that should be ignored. A blind person has as much right to see the new Harry Potter film on the day it’s released as anyone else in the country.” “I believe passionately in what I’m doing,” he adds. Back in the early ’90s, the AUDETEL consortium (comprising broadcasters, manufacturers and organisations with an interest in the visually impaired) ran an experiment on British television, whereby four hours of audio description were transmitted alongside a selection of soaps – Coronation Street for one – and
f
James O’Hara in one of the itfc audio description recording suites
other mainstream dramas. (The AD was piped in via a slice of the Teletext bandwidth; participants in the experiment had a set-top box style device giving them access.) O’Hara, formerly a broadcaster and announcer with the BBC, was asked to participate, “because I have a deep voice” and worked for ITV Technology Centre. As a result of the experiment, the 1996 Broadcasting Act made AD compulsory on Digital Terrestrial Television, with a requirement for 2% of programming to be AD-ready, and for this to increase to a maximum of 10%. O’Hara was invited to join itfc with a view to setting up an AD department to service this need, and has since been a part of the successful itfc operation, which now employs 10 describers in west London plus a pool of freelancers. Itfc was taken
over by the Deluxe Entertainment Services Group in August 2010. “Now the broadcasters have agreed to do 20% description,” he notes, “which means that a blind person can come home from work and have a choice of programmes to enjoy.” The emphasis in AD is word ‘description’. “We don’t tell the audience what to think about the programme, we don’t interpret what we see, we simply try to describe it.” (O’Hara emphasises this several times during the meeting.) So a describer is more likely to say “He raises his eyebrows and opens his mouth” than “The figure looks startled”. “We try to leave it to the viewer to decide exactly what that emotion should be,” says O’Hara. The softly spoken Scot is fond of peppering his conversation with anecdotes, and recalls a conversation he had with a
viewer of the AD version of the movie WTC: when asked what he thought about the film, the viewer said “it was too long, like a typical Oliver Stone film”. “But he didn’t mention the audio description at all – he’d just appreciated the movie like a normal-sighted person. Which means we’re doing our job correctly.” Content receiving the AD treatment from itfc tends to be mainstream material: Minder, CSI, Neighbours, “even some old Terry and June episodes”. “We’ve been asked, why not get a computer to do the voicing? The blind people I talked to screamed in horror when I suggest that,” he says. “You have to pace the description. A Merchant Ivory film has to be paced differently to a Bond film. We try, with horror movies and comedies, to have the blind viewer laughing or screaming at the same time as the sighted viewer. It doesn’t always work, but we try.” The AD process is fairly straightforward. The describer watches the content, and produces a timecoded script of what needs to be said and where, using Softel’s Swift Adept preparation and recording software. After rehearsing each line, and checking that it fits in the space allocated, the describer performs a punch inpunch out record. Then at the end of a session, individual files are compiled into one contiguous track, with the fade data on a second track, transferred to a master alongside the stereo audio tracks (digibeta format is the norm) and returned to the broadcaster.
Though the office is fairly open plan, itfc has a couple of sound booths for more intensive work. O’Hara takes PSNE downstairs to view one. Again, it’s a simple set-up: Audio-Technica 8410a mic runs into a Junger Audio V01 digital voice and monitor processor, and then to the computer. On the screen, the script reads: “Ginger cat jumps off a slate roof”. It’s Coronation Street! But these are the opening titles – surely they don’t have to do be refreshed every episode? “We take titles for granted but some people like to watch them and hear the music. So why not blind people too?” Good point. So, what makes a good audio describer? “They must have the ability to write and not interpret. The backgrounds of our people are very different: one is an actor, one a film editor, one came straight from college…” Must they have a certain type of voice? “One of our first employees was an American. I was told, ‘She’ll never do Coronation Street’, I said she could, and she did! It doesn’t matter about the accent, as long as you can understand the language. Someone else said to me, it would be great if Anthony Hopkins did audio description. But I say no: viewers would be too busy listening to the tone of his voice than to what he actually said. The only complaints we have is that they speak too quickly, or if it sounds like they are reading a shopping list. I’m training five new voices at the moment: not to be BBC newsreaders; rather, how to get their message across.” O’Hara finishes with another of his many stories: “I was watching a DVD of Spider-Man 2 with my two god sons, and we had the audio description channel active. One of them turned around and asked in disbelief, ‘James, is that you?’ I said, yes – I thought, fantastic, these lads will think their godfather works on Spider-Man! “Then five minutes later, the other boy turns around and says, ‘James, can we turn you off now please?’” Q www.itfc.com
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Project2_Layout 1 28/10/2011 15:22 Page 1
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Project2_Layout 1 28/10/2011 15:30 Page 1
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flive news SOUNDBITES
BELGIUM/EUROPE
Financial injection for AED ING Corporate Investments and Phifin take stakes in the company, writes Marc Maes AED Rent, the European dry hire and distribution house, has attracted two new partners to help pursue the company’s ambitious growth plans. ING Corporate Investments has acquired 27% of the business while Phifin now holds 12.5%. They join AED’s founder/CEO Glenn Roggeman who holds 20.6%, AED management’s 7.1% , and PE Group, an independent group specialised in private equity investments and corporate finance advisory services, which owns 32.8% of the voting shares. With some 130 employees in five countries, AED group posted a turnover of €28 million in 2010, with an operating cash flow of €14.3 million.
“AED Rent is a remarkable success story enabled by a clear vision, growth strategy and business model increasingly establishing itself as a market decisive trendsetter in the rapidly changing European audiovisual in dustry,” commented Tom Bousmans, director at ING Corporate Investments, who was, together with Jacques Martin Philippson, appointed director of AED Rent. “During the past 25 years AED Rent has experienced continuous growth and we are determined to continue this in the years ahead. We are therefore very pleased to welcome ING and Phifin as partners in order to assist us in achieving our growth ambitions with their
UNITED KINGDOM EM Acoustics set up camp in Tower Bridge’s Music Bank in mid-October in order to undertake a little profile-building. The loudspeaker developer and manufacturer – which celebrates 10 years in business next July – received a healthy contingent of sound designers, theatre consultants and installers over the four-day residency. A new cabinet, the MSE159, was also shown for the first time at the London rehearsal and hire facility. “The 159 is the end result of an 18-month project to create the finest two-way medium-format loudspeaker we could,” said EM’s Mike Wheeler (centre, with Ed Kinsella, left, and Dave Kelland). Wheeler added that 2010-2011 (April to April) was a record year for the young company, “and this year, so far, is beating that. EM Acoustics has been around long enough so people can have confidence in us. It really is reaching critical mass.” Q
www.emacoustics.co.uk
f Fineline Media Finance has joined forces with Yamaha to offer a 0% interest scheme over 24 months (subject to status) on its commercial audio product range. The deal will cover products including the PM5D, M7CL and LS9 mixing consoles and adds to a long list of vendor finance schemes that Fineline has recently put in place with leading audio and broadcasters manufacturers such as Sennheiser, Snell, Sony, Panasonic and JVC. The scheme is live immediately and will run until the end of 2011. www.fineline.co.uk www.yamahacommercialaudio.com
Founder/CEO Glenn Roggeman: determined to continue with growth
investment, expertise and international network,” Roggeman said. AED Rent currently has subsidiaries in the Netherlands, the UK,
France and Germany – the growth plan includes expansion in other European territories. Q www.aedrent.com
ITALY
Powersoft up AVnu avenue David Davies
technical contributor to the AES, and now as a promoter member of AVnu Alliance. On this basis we think we can also successfully contribute to the efforts to ensure interoperable AVB products.” Lee Minich, AVnu Alliance Marketing Workgroup chair and Lab X Technologies president, added: “We welcome Powersoft to the growing number of AVnu Alliance members who are committed to interoperability and AVB standards. Powersoft’s collaboration in AVnu Alliance will better serve their customers and grow the entire market.” Q
Italian amplification specialist Powersoft has taken membership of the industry forum dedicated to advancing pro AV networking by adoption of the IEEE 802.1 Audio Video (AVB) standards. According to Powersoft, the move complements the company’s plan to expand its presence in the install market and produce future interoperable, AVB-compliant products. “Powersoft firmly believes in standard protocols as a way to help our clients,” said Claudio Lastrucci, Powersoft’s R&D manager and one of the company’s founders. “We have been working in this direction for a while, as
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f Norwegian PA company Sceneservice selected Allen & Heath iLive digital mixing systems to manage FOH and monitor duties at this years Blues in Hell Festival. Sceneservice, which has provided the festival with sound, light and staging for the past four years, selected an iDR10 MixRack with iLive-144 Control Surface for FOH, and an iDR-32 MixRack and xDR-16 expander rack with iLiveT80 Surface for monitors. There was also an analogue split to provide a broadcast feed. www.allen-heath.com www.sceneservice.no
f A Midas PRO6, supplied by
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Britannia Row Productions in Europe and Delicate Productions in the US, has gone out for the first time on monitors on Foo Fighters’ world tour in support of their seventh studio album, Wasting Light. The tour kicked off in Tulsa, Oklahoma in May, taking in over 60 dates across North America, Europe and Australasia.
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026_PSNE11P.Audio_Layout 1 28/10/2011 15:40 Page 1
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November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
SOUNDBITES
UNITED KINGDOM
PR’s first UK d&b White system Dave Robinson London-based AV and technical production services company Presentation Rentals (PR) has become the first UK company to offer an all-White d&b audiotechnik sound system in its rental stock. d&b launched the range at Prolight + Sound in April of this year. The initial PR White Series speakers comprise 10 d&b T10s and two B4s and is said to offer a practical solution for high-profile small to medium-sized events; they join PR’s extensive d&b audio rental stock. “We’re huge fans of the brand,” says Ian Coull, PR’s MD. PR says the decision was made after recent work in many venues in and around London including art gallery and exhibition spaces, which are clean, white and airy, lending themselves to the aesthetics of a white audio system. The same is true of
The d&B White system is stylistically suited to yacht parties…
marquees and other tensile structures, which are also usually ‘white-based’. “White is cool and contemporary,” continues Coull. “We are working increasingly on prestige events like fashion shows, corporate networking sessions, brand experientals, cocktail receptions, etc, that are staged in these spaces, where black speakers and stands would just grate against the environment and look completely inappropriate.” With the quality sound and streamlined design lines of the d&b speakers already established, the next logical step – to PR at least – was to offer them in white to production companies and clients. Recently the White speakers were in action for a lavish party aboard a super-yacht moored in Monaco, where they were utilised in the reception area and on the nearby helipad, used to stage a major artist performance. PR also supplied a d&b system for the main party area, with DiGiCo desks used throughout. Further enquiries have come from production companies specialising in yacht parties, plus corporate hospitality and presentations during premium locational events like the Cannes Film Festival and Monaco Grand Prix, reports Coull. In addition to the White d&b investment, PR has taken delivery of 16 channels of channel 38-compliant Sennheiser 2000 Series mics (with another eight channels to be delivered soon) and six 2050 in-ear monitor systems, again reflecting an active summer and autumn for the company. Q www.presentationrentals.co.uk
UNITED KINGDOM
Game on for PF Events Dave Robinson OnLive, the pioneer of cloud gaming, launched its breakthrough on-demand video game service at the 2011 Eurogamer Expo at Earls Court, London, where PF Events was the official sole AV supplier. The launch itself occurred in the Developer Sessions conference room, for which PF Events was contracted to supply all the audio, video, lighting, staging and technical management. The four-day event featured presentations from some of the leading games developers and manufacturers in the industry and included a combination of speech, HD presentations and onstage gameplay. For audio requirements, PF installed 12 KV2 EX10 speakers and two Noise Control Audio VSB218 subwoofers in a 7.1 surround sound configuration. In other news, PF Events has just launched a new website featuring an “innovative and extensive” hire prices section in which some new HD video stock items are featured. Q www.pfevents.com
f Peterborough-based Pearce
Hire has become the first SSE Sales customer to purchase an L-Acoustics KARA WST line source system. The spec features 12 KARA cabinets along with eight SB18 subwoofers and four LA8 amplified controllers. Pearce Hire has also added another new Yamaha M7CL-48 digital mixing console to its inventory. “We are very excited to get KARA out on the road and we feel it will open new doors for us in the world of audio rental,” said Pearce Hire’s MD, Shaun Pearce. www.l-acoustics.com www.pearcehire.co.uk www.sseaudiogroup.com
f French rental company Texen used DPA’s new Reference Standard series of microphones at this year’s Festival d’Aix-en-Province. The opening concert Parade(s), which featured the London Symphony Orchestra, was equipped with a selection of the Reference Standard collection that included 18 2011As and 2011Cs across the orchestral instruments. Thomas Goeuriot, who was working with the series for the first time, said: “The Reference Standard series is for me unbeatable, with its elegant design and an improved result over the DPA microphones I already knew.” www.dpamicrophones.com www.texen.fr
f Yamaha Commercial Audio
has become a sponsor of the Association of Sound Designers (ASD), the new body that launched at PLASA 2011. The ASD is focusing on issues such as training and new technology and aims to provide sound designers with a professional representative body. Karl Christmas, senior manager at Yamaha, said: “Providing support for end users is very important to Yamaha… we fully endorse the launch of the ASD.” www.associationofsounddesigners.com www.yamahacommercialaudio.com
f A selection of dB
Technologies products were recently used to power a Girls Night In event held at the White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds. The performances, which included Joe McElderry and Rizzle Kicks, were powered by six dB Technologies DVA T4 and three DVA S10 per side. This was the system’s first major event for Indivisual, which has just added the equipment to its rental inventory. Jonathan Bentham of Indivisual commented: “After seeing and hearing the product we were instantly sold!” www.dbtechnologies.com www.indivisual.co.uk
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EUROPE
Jacko lives on in Cardiff star tribute International artists descended on Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium this month to perform at Michael Forever: a concert celebrating the life and music of Michael Jackson, writes Paul Watson It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost two-and-a-half years since the so-called King of Pop’s untimely death; and the scheduling of this concert could also be seen as unfortunate, to say the least: bang in the middle of the trial of Michael Jackson’s controversial doctor. However, that didn’t seem to matter on the night, as more than 50,000 fans turned up to watch some of the biggest names in music from both sides of the Atlantic perform some great, and some awful, renditions of Jackson’s best-loved material in the Welsh national stadium on 9 October. The set itself was immense, and was crafted in the shape of Jacko’s trademark hat and white glove – the hat comprising the PA and the lighting fixtures, and the glove the stage area. Red-TX was responsible for capturing the audio for broadcast in stereo and 5.1, which was then fed to the respective 2D and 3D TV units and streamed live to a string of 2D and 3D cinemas in the UK, Ireland and Spain. Although vastly experienced in broadcasting large-scale events to mass audiences, Red-TX co-director Tim Summerhayes says there is always a new problem to solve, and that positioning the audience mics on Michael Forever proved quite a challenge. “The mic rigging is definitely the hardest part of what we’re doing here; we actually spent most of Wednesday afternoon rigging the mics,” Summerhayes explains, as we stroll towards FOH position before rehearsals begin. “If you go too far back, you’ll get too much delay to use for the program,
A massive 140 channels were coming from stage via three 48-way stage boxes to the spanking new Red-TX truck: Red II, freshly equipped with a Studer Vista 8 console and a state-of-the-art 5.1 PMC monitoring system. Rehearsals were extensive, and chaotic, to be honest, though through no fault of the Pinewood-based team, I
f
Leona Lewis sported a Sennheiser
The set was crafted in the shape of Jackson’s trademark hat and white glove
tally included one of the world’s best drummers, Michael White. “What we’re doing different on the main hangs is we have the i-5 full range cabinet 18-deep; normally you would run i-5bs next to that on a one-to-one basis, but we have doubled up on the i-5bs to try to give it some more warmth in here to round it out,” Boothroyd reveals. “You’ve then got a side hang
“We had a shambolic dress run on the Saturday which threw up all sorts of logistical problems at the staging end, but we had no real time to address them, so a lot was made up on the fly come show time”
SKM 5200 mic during her performance
but if the audience is reacting between the acts, then of course you need to bring in the stuff coming from the rear of the venue. We tend to judge this during rehearsals.” A colossal 300m of cable ran down from the roof, and a selection of DPA 4017s and Sennheiser 416s and 816s were placed around the arena: at the front of the stage, the rear of the arena, and hung frighteningly high at the sides of the venue, to achieve the best possible coverage. “We needed to capture the audience at the sides so we dropped the mics from the top of the arena 38m down,” says Summerhayes, as I begin to develop vertigo. “And we needed to use mics with a tight pattern to get down among the people.”
should add. Red-TX is a very well-oiled ship, and the guys were ahead of the game at all times, which is more than can be said for several other departments, some of which were running hours late. I shared Summerhayes’ frustration on several occasions as we watched what seemed like 100 ‘stage managers’ run around like tiny headless chickens via his main stage monitor feed. The PA system comprised six hangs of 18 Clair i-5 and i-5b boxes, and was provided by Concert Sound/Clair Bros. Paul ‘Pab’ Boothroyd (Paul McCartney’s FOH engineer) looked after FOH position, acting as liaison between the sound production engineer and the sound production manager for the Michael Jackson band, which, inciden-
left and right that covers the immediate sides where the fronts fall off, configured just the same, and then a rear hang each side to take it just beyond the 270-cell.” A further four delay towers of i-5 were positioned close to FOH, and more than a dozen Clair BT-218 subs were positioned underneath the front of stage, along with some frontfills. The main console at FOH was a Midas XL8, which was running 80 channels; an Avid VENUE Profile console handled 24 channels for US rock band Alien Ant Farm’s set. A second Profile was deployed for the production desk, handling VT playback, ‘Voice of God’ announcements and the presenters, with some of the feeds coming from Red-TX and some
from the side of the stage. At monitor position, a Yamaha PM7D was the main console, but a Midas Venice, an Avid Profile D-Show, and a Yamaha PM5D were also available. Some 75 channels of RF was utilised in total, with a range of radio mics on offer, the majority of which were Shure BETA 58As, though a selection of Sennheiser mics were also used, most notably the particularly ‘blinged’ SKM 5200 with an MD 5235 capsule that Leona Lewis used during her excellent versions of I’ll be There and Stranger in Moscow. Other highlights included Christina Aguilera’s spinetingling rendition of Jackson’s favourite song, Nat King Cole’s Smile, and the breathtaking Yolanda Adams, who stole the show with an immaculate version of Earth Song. The live broadcast required 52 snapshots and the 140 tracks were ‘crow barred’ down to 128, then recorded onto a Pyramix system, Summerhayes’ preferred platform. “We had a shambolic dress run on the Saturday which threw up all sorts of logistical problems at the staging end, but we had no real time to address them, so a lot was made up on the fly come show time,” reflects Summerhayes, post-event. “But in the end it actually went very well, especially considering how under-rehearsed the show itself seemed to be.” Q www.avid.com www.concert-sound.co.uk www.clairsystems.com www.red-tx.com www.shure.com www.studer.ch
Tinie Tempah with SKM 2000 handheld customised by CrystalRoc
YOUR CHALLENGE
YOUR CHOICE 2000 SERIES
SENNHEISER 2000 SERIES EM 2050
SKM 2000 Sennheiser UK Ltd, 3 Century Point, High Wycombe Buckinghamshire HP12 3SL 01494 551551 www.sennheiser.co.uk
One off live shows, festivals and concert touring - whatever the wireless application Sennheiser 2000 Series allows you to master complex events with flexibility, reliability and confidence. With up to 75 MHz* of frequency switching bandwidth and a full range of hardware components to choose from, 2000 Series gives you all the options when adapting to fast moving production environments. 2000 Series range GBw - 606 to 678 MHz Channel 38 compliant * Frequency range dependent
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30 live SOUNDBITE f PreSonus is now shipping Universal Control 1.5.2, a free update to its drive and control software. The latest release adds compatibility with Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) for the FireStudio Mobile, FireStudio Project, FireStudio Tube, FireStudio Lightpipe and all three StudioLive series mixers. Among other features, users of the StudioLive 16.4.2 digital mixers are now able to take advantage of six 31-band graphic EQs that are dedicated to the aux buses, variable (2 to 500ms) output delays on each subgroup, and the Aux Flip mode. www.presonus.com
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011 UNITED KINGDOM
All roads lead to Rhondda for EAW David Davies Long-term EAW customer AB Acoustics has added units of the manufacturer’s KF730 and KF740 line array systems to its inventory. The Rhondda, Wales-based audio equipment supplier purchased 12 KF730 line array elements and six SB730 subs in March this year. With the busy outdoor season on the horizon, AB Acoustics also decided to invest in the larger footprint KF740 system, ultimately purchasing 18 enclosures and a dedicated UX8800 4-in/8-out digital system processor. The KF740s are being used in conjunction with the
company’s existing stock of two 18” SB1000 subs. While the KF730s made their debut at the Urdd Eisteddfod (Youth Festival) in Swansea, the KF740s were initially rolled out at Pontypridd’s Big Weekend. Subsequent commitments for the KF740s have included the Cardiff Big Weekend and the rugby match featured on this month’s cover, of course. AB Acoustics’ Huw ‘Buzz’ Evans commented: “We are delighted with our EAW investments, which are really proving their worth, and so are our customers.” Q EAW’s KF740s were used at the BBC Proms event in Caerphilly
www.eaw.com
UNITED KINGDOM
Prick up your ears for PRO2 Long-running Midas digital enthusiast Ian Bond – whose clients have included Porcupine Tree and King Crimson – has become one of the first people to purchase both Midas PRO2 and PRO2C live audio systems. Bond has purchased one each of the new Midas digital models – which were launched at PLASA 2011 in September – for his rental company, IPB Audio. The first job for the PRO2 is a tour by Porcupine Tree’s Steve Wilson, who is performing in support of second solo album Grace for Drowning. Speaking ahead of the tour, Bond remarked: “We’re playing venues up to about 1,000 capacity, so it’ll be great to have the smaller footprint, and I’m also doing monitors from FOH. Steve’s got an immense band, with six musicians and a lot going on onstage, and I’m confident I can give them the stadium-style PA and service they expect in the smaller venues we’ll be playing.” Q www.midasconsoles.com
UNITED KINGDOM
Academy seeks industry acumen Dave Robinson Backstage Academy, based in Wakefield, Yorkshire, is developing a network of professionals from the live events industry who are keen to get involved in delivering training. There are various opportunities available, from tutoring modules on the FdA in Live Events Production (a 15-month degree starting this November), or running short courses, to taking students out into a working environment. The Academy is also inviting professionals to ‘drop in’ and spend an hour or so passing on hard knowledge and experience. BA’s marketing manager Rachel Esson says: “There are also opportunities for manufacturers and rental companies to get involved in Backstage Academy. Industry engagement is essential for the Academy to provide the most relevant and up-to-date course content for students.” Q enquiries@backstage-academy.co.uk
Project1_Layout 1 23/08/2011 11:08 Page 1
THE CELLULAR REVOLUTION
While other manufacturers were scrolling through presets and using trial-and-error to set up their line arrays, we went into research mode. We developed an accurate 3D acoustic model of array behaviour to solve the real problem – how to achieve consistent coverage throughout a venue. Martin Audio’s MLA™ Multi-cellular Loudspeaker Array is the award-winning result. With independent control of up to 144 cells in a 24-box array, MLA combines breakthrough cellular array design with automated, intelligent optimisation software to provide consistent SPL and frequency response across the audience – gig-after-gig, night-after-night.
For more information on the revolutionary MLA, visit www.martin-audio.com
All information is Copyright © 2011 Martin Audio Ltd. Martin Audio is a registered trademark of Martin Audio Limited in the UK, US and other countries.
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APPOINTMENTS
EUROPE
Optimum results for APG APG Uniline loudspeakers are accompanying the latest European tour by PAN.OPTIKUM – a cutting-edge troupe of street/action theatre artists who make liberal use of pyrotechnics, purpose-built theatrical machines, large-scale projection and effects. The show’s unusual configuration – the PAN.OPTIKUM team performs in large, open spaces with the audience situated in the middle – led Joscha Muschal from Freiburg-based rental company Coco Sound to specify a fourpoint sound system with a Layher
speaker tower in each corner and a further four solo speakers down two sides, dedicated to the spoken word. Each of the four towers contains three APG UL210 mid/hi cabinets stacked in a cradle at a height of 2.5m, along with one TB218S sub on the ground. The PA is powered by Lab.gruppen amps, while processing is by APG’s DMS26 DSP. PAN.OPTIKUM’s MD and creative director, Matthias Rettner, commented: “It’s a clear improvement over our previous solution. APG equipment is of the highest quality.” www.apg.tm.fr
Picture by Ville d’Angers – The Bonnet
David Davies
f A.C. Entertainment
Technologies MD David Leggett has been appointed executive chairman. Former UK sales director Phill Capstick has moved over into Leggett’s role as MD and Jonathan Walters has expanded his responsibility to UK sales director. www.ac-et.com
f SSE Sales has been appointed
Lab.gruppen and Lake subdistributors. This follows SSE Hire’s recent move to use Lab.gruppen PLM 10000Q as its standard monitor amplifier and Lake LM26 for digital returns with festival systems. lake.labgruppen.com
APG kit was utilised by this cutting-edge performance group
www.sseaudiogroup.com
UNITED KINGDOM
MoS saved from closure David Davies Members of the London Borough of Southwark’s Planning Committee voted overwhelmingly to reject a planning application which, says the Ministry of Sound, could have resulted in the club’s closure if it had been approved. Property developer Oakmayne had been pursuing plans for a 41-storey block of flats on nearby land. Ministry of Sound argued that the development would have exposed them to noise complaints from residents. When the proposal was ultimately put to the Planning Committee, it received no votes of support. Five committee members rejected the application, with one abstention. MoS says that the decision will safeguard the future of its 200 staff as well as the interests of its 300,000 annual visitors and local businesses including pubs, taxi firms and takeaway shops. Extending the club’s gratitude to the 26,000-plus people who signed a petition in support of its campaign, MoS CEO Lohan Presencer remarked: “We are incredibly pleased that committee members have applied proper scrutiny to all aspects of the application and its relation to planning policy. Members have arrived at the correct decision and now is the time for all concerned to come together to find a positive vision for the regeneration of the Elephant and Castle. Ministry of Sound wants to play a key part in this. “Ministry will today write to the developer Christopher Allen to invite him to talks about the future of Eileen House. The needs of the people of Southwark, the potential for an alternative vision for that site – these will be top of the agenda. Embryonic alternative plans, which have been drawn up with world-leading architects Marks Barfield, will now be explored further. “We always maintained that this was the wrong development in the wrong place, not just because of the catastrophic implications it would have had for our business, but because it was wrong in every way for the people of Southwark.” Q www.ministryofsound.com
Any Stage. Any Musician. One Monitor.
The revolutionary NEXO 45ºN12 brings all the benefits of line array technology to stage monitoring. Incorporating a number of groundbreaking technologies, the 45ºN12 provides musicians, contractors and rental companies with a single, scalable solution to all their monitoring requirements. Alongside the obvious benefit of a ‘one box’ inventory, the 45ºN12 also delivers extraordinary directivity and consistency of coverage up to 2.5 metres back, plus very high level before feedback. And if you need more SPL and wider coverage, just lock cabinets together to create ‘monitor arrays’.
Find out more at www.nexo.fr
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Various synchronised car-originated noises were played live on 80 vehicles
GERMANY
Speakers by the truck-load at automobile ‘symphony’ Dave Robinson The German city of Mannheim, birthplace of the automobile, celebrated the 125th anniversary of Carl Benz’s gas-powered buggy this summer with autosymphonic, a multimedia spectacular featuring an original composition for orchestra, chorus, and various synchronised caroriginated noises as played live on 80 carefully auditioned vehicles. To immerse an audience of 17,000 in this extraordinary sonic mix, POOLgroup of Emsdetten, Germany deployed Around 17,000 people attended the event in Mannheim a massive surround system comprising 296 Meyer Sound self-powered loudDiebel’s solution was a configuration based speakers, all networked and controlled using on 12 main tower locations, each with 12-14 Meyer Sound’s D-Mitri digital audio platform. flown MILO line array loudspeakers supported autosymphonic was conceived and written by on the bottom end by 4-9 700-HP subwoofers. Cypriot composer Marios Joannou Elia, with stunRounding out the main system were dual ning video and lighting elements created by Horst hangs of 10-each M’elodie line array loud Hamann, also known for his visual effects in films speakers with four 700-HP subs per side, while including The Matrix and Solaris. a dispersed complement of CQ-2, UPA-1P, and The SWR Symphony Orchestra of Baden-Baden JM-1P loudspeakers – 58 all told – covered the and Freiburg, and the SWR Stuttgart Vocal Ensemble outer audience areas and VIP sections. A Galileo were conducted by Johannes Harneit, with the live loudspeaker management system with eight car sounds played by 113 volunteer students. Galileo 616 processors provided system drive The event was presented in Mannheim’s expanand optimisation. sive outdoor Friedrichsplatz, where the staging “The MILO system was key to surrounding layout posed an extraordinary challenge to sound such a huge audience area, and to providing the designer Stephan Diebel of Stockstadt/Rheinfull frequency spectrum of the symphony orchesbased projekt|werk. The audience was seated in a tra to the audience,” says Diebel. semi-circle around a central fountain, with the Of Meyer’s digital audio platform, which music stage erected on one side and the “car provided signal matrixing and networked distriensembles” placed both inside and surrounding bution, he added: “D-Mitri allowed a clearly structhe audience area. tured management of the huge number of “I wanted to completely surround the audience surround channels, particularly considering the with the car sounds and the orchestra, as well as short rehearsal time.” the electronic sound effects,” says Diebel. “Also, I Speaking on behalf of the spectacle’s producers, wanted the car sounds localised to where they were mannheim:congress GmbH, Christina Guth being played. That required an extremely sophisremarked: “We were very satisfied with the sound ticated surround system.” of autosymphonic. Personally, I was fascinated The system needed power and clarity, since the by the car sounds playing together with the symfestivities included the pop-R&B sounds of phony orchestra, as it was something that had German band Söhne Mannheims in addition to never been heard before anywhere.” Q www.meyersound.com the orchestral programme.
f
Picture by m:con/Horst Hamann/E Witt
Nearly 300 Meyer Sound cabinets deployed by POOLgroup for Mannheim car extravaganza
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SOUNDBITE
EUROPE
Seven upwards for PM5D Paul Watson It’s been seven years since Yamaha introduced its PM5D console, and despite serious competition across the board, its reputation alone seems to have kept it in good stead. The manufacturer saw a surprising increase in the console’s demand in the run up to this year’s UK festival season. “I think it simply boils down to the console’s reliability and return on investment,” suggests Karl Christmas, senior manager at Yamaha Commercial Audio (YCA). “The PM5D is a dependable workhorse, it’s rider-friendly, and it holds its value well.” Christmas certainly has a point: reliability and familiarity seem to be high on the agenda when it comes to using the PM5D. SSE Audio Group, for example, recently invested in five more PM5Ds, taking its inventory tally to 10; and deployed them on a number of UK festivals at monitor position including Download, Oxegen, and both V Festivals. In addition, Kent-based production company Subfrantic recently purchased two more PM5Ds which were used for three-day festival Music On The Hill, because, according to Subfrantic’s general manager, Steve Davies: “The PM5D is the most accepted desk on most riders.”
popularity is also about ease-of-use and quality of sound. “The other factor which must play a part is that so many first-tier engineers know how to get a great mix – or multiple mixes – on a PM5D,” Cook says. “Sound engineers’ jobs depend on their ability to get a great sound every time, and they know that they guarantee to get the job done well with a PM5D. That then influences the rental company’s decision to keep investing in Yamaha.” Q www.yamahacommercialaudio.com
f Insync Productions recently acquired a new Sennheiser radio microphone system through the audio division of A.C. Entertainment Technologies. Insync managing director Scott Tompkins explained that the change came as a result of next year’s impending digital switchover and the need to become fully channel 38 compliant. The setup, including 15 EM 2050 twin rackmount Diversity receivers with PC control, presented Tompkins with a clear choice providing “extremely clear vocals for bands and live performers”. www.ac-et.com www.insync.com
The SSE Audio team recently invested in an additional five PM5Ds
www.sennheiser.co.uk
“I think it simply boils down to the console’s reliability and return on investment. The PM5D is a dependable workhorse, it’s rider-friendly, and it holds its value well” The console was also deployed as part of a €22 million audio overhaul at Hungary’s new multi-venue, the Kodaly Centre; and is one of five Yamaha digital consoles being used in the five-star Cratos Premium Hotel in Cyprus, which hosts major one-off music concerts within its grounds. Closer to home, the PM5D is consistently used for monitoring on ITV’s X Factor, courtesy of London’s Delta Sound, which boasts a significant Yamaha inventory. In the days after the PLASA show, YCA revealed that Liverpool’s Adlib had purchased another two desks for its summer season. Hire manager Phil Stoker echoes Christmas when he says: “The PM5D very much holds its value, which is something we weren’t really expecting in digital consoles.” Nick Cook, European marketing director at Yamaha Commercial Audio, agrees that the PM5D has proven its reliability over time, and therefore it has proven to be a safe investment as a rental asset, but points out that its
f
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BELGIUM
Double cream for Milk Inc The crowds at Milk Inc’s recent Sportpaleis concerts in Antwerp were treated to upgraded acoustics as well as an improved venue design, notes Marc Maes Phase one of the Sportpaleis’s upgrade operation, the makeover of the balconies resulting in better visibility and an expansion of capacity to some 1,300 seats, and an acoustic insulation upgrade, cutting reverb time from 9.1 to 5 seconds in the 100Hz range, was completed in time for Milk Inc’s 15th anniversary concerts. With new balcony delay speakers and a triple set of Intelli-X² processors, the eurodance hitmakers also provided a double first for live concerts in the Antwerp venue. The gradient of the Sportpaleis balconies was lifted from 39° to 27° and the balcony’s vertical panels were removed to improve visibility for the public and reduce reflection from the main sound systems; to maintain the improved visibility, the Sportpaleis also decided to replace the existing Bose speakers. “I was asked by Sportpaleis director Jan Van Esbroeck to go on the look out for a new speaker system, serving as under-balcony delay,” says engineer & sound designer Patrick Demoustier. “But the enclosures we were looking for, offering a 70° vertical and 90° horizontal dispersion, were not available on the market. The solution was to design and build the enclosures ourselves.” Demoustier decided not to pick a traditional design with a central horn and two speakers at either side, instead opting for a cabinet with aligned speaker and drivers, and a horn placed in front. “This gives the cabinet an unconventional appearance, camouflaged behind a nice front grill, very compact, with little distance between the speakers, which is crucial for the dispersion,” he explains. “Each cabinet contains two 8” low B&C speakers and one 1.4” B&C High Driver coupled to an 18 Sound horn powered by a 2,000W Powersoft Class D amplifier with full DSP functionality.”
f
The cabinets were designed by Demoustier using Inventor software and manufactured by EML’s technical network, resulting in a substantial cut in delivery time – the Sportpaleis took delivery of 30 cabinets for the underbalconies. “We also compiled a spreadsheet calculator to adjust the delay-times to varying parameters,” he continues. “Each individual cabinet can be steered by central control software – you cannot expect FOH engineers entering the venue in the morning to do all the calculating, so the Sportpaleis appointed an in-house engineer, Christophe Cammaert. I’m convinced that this extra service will encourage more productions to use the speakers; delays are essential to cover the new balconies and I don’t think productions on tour will want to fly them round the venue.” The cabinets were thoroughly tested ‘in the field’ on occasions such as the Simple Minds tour rehearsals, and finished in identical RAL-colours to match the Sportpaleis. The first band to stage a concert at the Sportpaleis after the upgrade were dance extravaganza Milk Inc. Fifteen years after La Vache became a huge hit in France and the UK, the dynamic outfit played three sell-out nights in Antwerp – an impressive combination of three Intelli-X²s and L-Acoustics K1 arrays supplied by Philippo Audio provided the beats and bass. “The idea to bring Milk Inc with a live band came six years ago,” remembers Peter Claes, the band’s FOH engineer and sound designer. “Initially, we used analogue consoles, but we switched to digital three years ago. Throughout the process we were constantly looking for a processor offering both a friendly user interface for EQ’ing, and an uncomplicated matrix distribution.” Claes says with today’s amplification going beyond the ‘traditional’ L/R,
a sound system requires a powerful matrix to steer upper hangs, outfills, the backstage flown mono subs, the mid and back delays. “The triple IntelliX² configuration allowed us to control the individual elements in the system – in addition, the X² provided an analogue back-up so that, in case of a system error, I could switch from digital to analogue in a split-second; the LA8 amplifiers on the stage also feature an automatic digital/analogue fallback switchover,” he explains. The whole speaker configuration, consisting of 28 K1 plus eight K1-SB
Peter Philips with the Intelli-X² processors (top of rack)
Teenyweeny nearfills. Live.
The E4 loudspeaker is just a little bit smaller than a pint of beer. A coaxial built miniature, with a conically symmetric 0° directivity. Made for even reinforcement in the near field, it can be mounted in any orientation, and is almost invisible. While it sounds distinctively bigger than it is, it remains neutral, clear, transparent and intelligible even at high sound pressure levels. As with all the little systems in the d&b E-Series. Regi Penxen and Linda Mertens, AKA Milk Inc, at the Sportpaleis
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directly from the Digidesign console and, as a final backup, the Intelli-X²’s internal clocking. As long as we don’t switch to the Intelli-X² internal clock, all sample rate converters are bypassed, and there’s no loss in resolution.” The Milk Inc production was also the first to use the new under-balcony delays, resulting in a more direct and coherent sound throughout the whole venue – Claes and Philips also provided output sources and MADI for the Live is Life Mobile2 recording studio, equipped with a Soundtracs DiGiCo DS00 console, which took on the production of the masters (mix engineer Werner Pensaert at the controls). “The system has become very accurate,” comments Gert Coremans, director of Live Is Life. “We’ve reached a fail rate of less than 2% in the duplication process. When the band starts the encores, we start duplicating the CDs and USBs. This year, some 2,200 CDs and 600 USB sticks were sold to the fans.” Q www.apex-audio.be www.milkinc.be www.sportpaleis.be
Networking convergence Gaining industry traction with remarkable speed given historical resistance to this kind of unification, AVB will ultimately deliver media transport and interoperability through full ratification of the IEEE 802.1 standards. Publication of IEE 802.1AS, 1722 and 1733 in March – joining the already approved 802-1Qat and 802.1Qav – prompted AVB Task Group chair Michael Johas Teener to declare that the “core AVB standards are now complete”. As regards specific implementation, Ethan Wetzell – product manager, Electro-Voice signal processing at OMNEO Media Networking Architecture developer and OCA Alliance/ AVnu Alliance member Bosch – observes that recent efforts have focused on finessing a transport solution for smaller networks, entitled P1722 or AVBTP. A large network solution, he suggests, is “probably about a year away”. The buzz around AVB is not to deny the continued development of other
www.dbaudio.com
main PA, 16 K1-SB plus 16 SB-28 for sub array, 54 KUDO for outfill/delay plus 18 KARA for frontfill, is controlled via a tablet PC using dedicated IntelliX² software. “During soundcheck and the show I take the tablet with IntelliWare and integrated Live Capture round the Sportpaleis to adjust the cluster levels, delay times and equalising,” adds Peter Philips, system engineer with Milk Inc.” My job is to have an identical sound throughout the venue, and this works so much easier than having to do the processing at the LA8 amplifiers.” Milk Inc is using a Digidesign Profile console as FOH desk and a DiGiCo SD 10 on monitors – last year, Claes was offered a prototype Intelli-X² 48, without software, to work with during similar Milk Inc concerts in Antwerp. “Since then, we’ve done a lot of A/B testing and the X² just excels – actually it should be a standard feature as system EQ in the peripherals rack,” he enthuses. “A big advantage is that the Intelli-X² in our setup is using three clock sources: the main system’s Big Ben word clock – in case of failure, there’s the AES clock
approaches towards transportation. For example, RAVENNA technology is based around OSI Layer 3, as compared to Layer 2-grounded AVB, and as such, Andreas Hildebrand from RAVENNA developer ALC NetworX dismisses the suggestion that it might constitute a European equivalent to the AVB project: “From a technology perspective, RAVENNA is in no way a [competitor] to AVB.” But while highlighting the technologies’ contrasting orientations – AVB towards live and installed applications, RAVENNA leaning towards broadcast – Hildebrand does not rule out the possibility of future convergence: “Further down the road there may be adopting or merging moves on a technological basis, but guessing as of when and to what extent would certainly require a crystal ball.” Proprietary control protocols have historically provided “an important distinction” between rival companies’ products – as Stephan Lietz, administrator of the control standardisation group the OCA Alliance, would be the first to admit. And while AVB or X192’s facility for easy exchange of media might be a boon, there is still the broader question of how you “control, configure, monitor, reconfigure, operate, adjust, modify, edit and generally manage these devices” in an era of networking as standard, says Lietz. Accordingly, industry focus is increasingly shifting towards the control issue, with the OCA Alliance – whose nine founding members include Bosch, Yamaha Commercial Audio, TC Group and Duran Audio – pursuing the recognition of AES-24-based OCA as an open public communications standard for control and monitoring of devices in professional media networks (OCA does not provide signal transportation). In many ways regarded as a complement to the AVB protocol suite, the OCA specification is due for completion in early 2012 – at which point it will be handed over for public standardisation. The issue of how you define individual functions has historically stalled talk of a unified control mechanism. Integral to the appeal of the OCA solution, says Lietz, is that it confines its attention to interaction with parameters and functions. So, for example, “OCA can set the Q parameter of an equaliser – but exactly what the equaliser does with that Q value is up to the equaliser, and is not standardised by OCA”. Although the successful implementation of full, standards-based media networking as a default option would represent a dream fulfilled for many end-users, there are fears in some quarters that it will also result in competition-denting homogenisation of audio products. But as far as Minich is concerned, “standards-based connectivity is returning manufacturers to core competencies: better sound, additional features, better customer services, etc. Technology providers will differentiate each other by providing unique optimisations and capabilities while adhering to the standards.” Control uniformity, says Lietz, “is in no way the same as standardising features or functionality. Elements of a
story continued from front cover
Ethan Wetzell, EV/Bosch
product that are unique and exciting will remain that way, but the industry will now have a whole host of new options for how they interact with those features.” For the customer, continues Lietz, the advantages will include the ability to assess and specify individual products “on the merits of their performance, features and unique properties...” This impression of passing over one set of hurdles to a more level playing field is further reinforced by Wetzell’s observation that “the goal of open public standards is not to make everything the same. Rather, the intention is to allow each device in a system to do what it does well, and to allow these unique features and benefits to be more easily integrated into systems.” Harman Professional Systems Development and Integration Group market manager Adam Holladay implies that adoption of a single approach to transport could help to speed up R&D. In such a scenario, “we can focus on developing the solutions the market needs quicker, with more interoperability and at a reduced cost”. So is a brave new world really in prospect? As Gez Kahan’s piece in PSNE October made clear, there are still plenty who harbour doubts about the feasibility of a fully standardised approach to control. Roland Hemming, too, has reservations about the poststandardisation life of networking protocols in general and, more specifically, “the question of ongoing development. The thing that killed MIDI is that it was invented, everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief and it stayed as it was. We need structures in place to ensure and fund ongoing improvements to any unified systems that we create.” The necessary skill-set to maintain – and, crucially, troubleshoot – networks also deserves to be another preoccupation: “If you have a network with 17 different manufacturers’ products sitting on it, and it fails, who comes into fix it?” For all the understandable excitement about full media networking, Hemming has surely hit on a vital point – without a parallel focus on how it complements real-world applications, there is a risk that we only see one half of the equation. So beyond protocols, then, it may be people and their experiencing of working with networks on a day to day basis that constitutes proaudio’s next great debate. Q www.avnu.org www.oca-alliance.com
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Live events
If you want your web address to be included in the magazine AND in the digital edition of Pro Sound News Europe for just £50 a year, please email Lianne on lianne.davey@intentmedia.co.uk for an order form
The Live Events listing is a free service. All information is provided by the companies listed and PSNE cannot be help responsible for any factual errors. To be included in the listings, please email Linda Frost at livesound@frostshome.co.uk
BAND
COUNTRY MIXERS
ENGINEER
AMP
SPEAKERS
BAND
ADLIB AUDIO Josh Groban Joe Bonamassa John Barrowman The Specials Katy B Bush Toby Keith
UK UK UK UK UK UK Europe
W Jaquiss J Dodkin M Woodcock -
Camco/Lab.gruppen Camco/Lab.gruppen Coda 10 L-Acoustics LA8 Camco/Lab.gruppen
+44 15 1486 2216 JBL VerTec JBL VerTec Coda LA12/LA8 L-Acoustics K1 JBL VerTec
DELTA SOUND INC (UK) LTD X-Factor UK Deloitte UK
-,-,Soundcraft Vi6, Vi6 Midas H3000, Vi6 Digidesign Profile, PM5D Digidesign Profile, Profile Digidesign Profile, Profile
BRITANNIA ROW Sir Cliff Richard UK Joe Bonamassa Europe/UK MOBO’s Scotland Beady Eye Europe Will Young UK Noel Gallagher UK Florence & The Machine UK Kasabian Europe MTV European Music Belfast Jamiroquai Europe Bryan Adams Europe/UK Young Voices UK
Midas PRO6, Midas XL8 M Warren Midas XL4, Heritage 3000 W Cracknell Midas XL8, Yamaha PM5 C Burrell - , Midas PRO6 P Hayward DiGiCo SD8, DiGiCo SD8 D Lombardi Midas PRO6, Midas PRO6 A King Midas PRO6, Yamaha PM5 I Laughton Midas XL8, Midas PRO6 P Ramsay XL8/Profile/PM5, PM5/Profile Midas XL8, XL8/DiGiCo SD8 R Pope -,J Perpick Yamaha PM1D, Midas H3000 B Bartlett
L-Acoustics LA48 Yamaha T5N/LA8 L-Acoustics LA48 d&b D12 Outline T9 d&b D12 Sennheiser IEM 2000 d&b D12 L-Acoustics LA8 Yamaha T5 L-Acoustics/LA48 EVP3000/Outline T9
+44 20 8877 3949 V-DOSC TFM450 / V-DOSC L-Acoustics K1 d&b M2 Outline Butterfly d&b M2 d&b M2 L-Acoustics K1/V-DOSC L-Acoustics K1 V-DOSC X-Line/Outline Butterfly
CAPITAL SOUND HIRE UFC 138 UK Big Reunion UK Ocean Colour Scene UK/Ireland UKF Bass Culture UK Jessie J UK James UK Lee Evans UK Alan Carr UK
Digidesign Profile, H3000, Yamaha PM5D DiGiCo D5, Soundcraft Vi6 Yamaha M7, Yamaha M7 Midas XL4, Midas Pro6 Digidesign Profile, DiGiCo D5 Yamaha LS9, LS9 Yamaha LS9, LS9
D Bonneau D Pringle H Schopman I Colville S Thomas B Bartlett P Tame D Roden
Meyer Sound Martin Audio Martin Audio Martin Audio Martin Audio Meyer Sound Martin Audio/Crown Martin Audio/Crown
+44 20 8944 6777 Meyer Sound MICA Martin Audio Longbow Martin Audio W8LC Martin Audio W8LC Martin Audio W8LC Meyer Sound MICA Martin Audio Longbow Martin Audio Longbow
CONCEPT AUDIO LTD Star* UK Tour Rock Around The Clock Rick Parfitt Jnr Band Macmillan Danceathon
Yamaha LS9/32, LS9/32 Yamaha M7CL, Soundcraft CB8, Yamaha LS9/16, -
D Schurer D Schurer M Gumbrell L Sullivan
Lab.gruppen Lab.gruppen Martin Audio QSC
+44 12 4382 7915 EAW/Tannoy Meyer Sound Martin Audio Tannoy
UK Istanbul UK UK
COUNTRY MIXERS
ENGINEER
AMP
SPEAKERS
- , Yamaha Yamaha, -
F Jackson S Taylor
Crown d&b
+44 20 8339 3800 EM/L-Acoustics d&b
ELECTROTECH SOLUTIONS SL Revolver Tour Spain Michael Nyman Spain La Pute Opepe Spain Herman Dune Spain Dorian Spain
DiGiCo D1, DiGiCo D1 DiGiCo D1, Yamaha M7CL, Yamaha M7Cl, M7CL Yamaha M7CL, -
M Sena -
Amcron Amcron
+34 96 122 0357 Meyer Sound MICA Meyer Sound MICA Martin Audio W8C Meyer Sound CQ Martin Audio W8C
EXCESS BV Maitre Frederic DJ Russel Historic Zierikzee
Soundcraft, Soundcraft Soundcraft, Soundcraft Yamaha, Soundcraft
D Vink H Pieters R Barnouw
Crown Crown Crown
+31 10 2012 111 JBL MRX JBL SRX JBL VRX
A Gregory
QSC
+44 20 7609 9818 EAW/Clair/Radian
D Chester R Bemrose A Gregory D Videl
QSC QSC QSC QSC
Radian Radian/Clair EAW/Clair Clair
Holland Holland Holland
JOHN HENRY’S LTD BBC TV – Later With Jools UK ITV – This Morning Channel 4 – T4 ITV - Jonathan Ross BBC Radio 1 Live Shows
UK UK UK UK
Yamaha, Profile/ PM5D/Vi6 - , M7CL/LS9 - , Yamaha M7CL - , PM5D/Profile - , Profile
KOMORA X-Factor Everybody is Dancing Bachelor Stadium NSK Olimpiyski
Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine
Vi4, Vi4, GB8, Vi4, -
A Yerko A Gryshkovsky V Belayeva M Ostapchuk
I-Tech/CTS I-Tech/CTS I-Tech/CTS I-Tech
+38 04 4390 0032 VerTec/VRX/SRX VerTec/VRX/SRX VRX/SRX/EON VerTec
UK UK UK
Yamaha LS9, Soundcraft, DiGiCo SD8, -
N Sagar C Rawling C Rawling
QSC QSC QSC
+44 16 1969 8311 Martin Audio Martin Audio Martin Audio Line Array
UK
Midas, -
C Rawling
QSC
Martin Audio Line Array
UK
DiGiCo SD8, -
T Whittingham QSC
Martin Audio Line Array
MAC SOUND Jungle Book York Ensemble Season Cheltenham Literature Festival White Christmas The Musical Peter Pan The Musical
PSNE Nov P38-39 Live EventsJR _D 31/10/2011 11:11 Page 39
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November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
BAND
COUNTRY MIXERS
MPM Dany Boon Scorpions
France France
-,Yamaha PM5DRH, PM5DRH
Lab.gruppen -
2000 Choristes
France
Vi6/PM5DRH, SD7/PM5DRH
D Heymes
PRODUCTION HOUSE Robin Mark Belfast City Council MTV Music Awards Belfast Music Week Childline
Canada Ireland Ireland Ireland Ireland
Profile, Profile M7CL, M7CL -,PRO9, Profile Profile, Profile
Willis Hesketh Hesky -
Lab.gruppen Meyer Sound Lab.gruppen Lab.gruppen Meyer Sound
Yamaha PM3500-48, M7CL-48 Mackie CFX12 MkII, Yamaha PM3500-48, M7CL-48 Mackie CFX12 MkII, Mackie CFX12 MkII, -
P v Baasbank
LA8
S Groeneveld P v Baasbank
LA LA8
P v Pelt S Groeneveld
LA LA
RIDER AUDIO AND MEDIA Xnoizz Flevo Festival Holland
Katy B is touring the UK with Adlib Audio and Digidesign kit
BAND
COUNTRY MIXERS
ENGINEER
AMP
SPEAKERS
MAR AUDIO Petter Pernilla Andersson Lisa Ekdahl Comet/TV Show
Scandinavia Sweden Europe Sweden
iLive T-80, DiGiCo SD8-24, AH i-Live R72, DiGiCo D1, -
M Chandra L Nyberg L Nyberg F Martinsson
-
-
-
-
MILAN ACOUSTICA Arnold Classic
Spain
I Sanchez
-
‘Hair’ Madrid
Spain
Midas Venice 240, Venice 160 Midas PRO6, -
J Lopez
d&b
+46 70 7271 007
5 Series
+34 91 3801 010 MeyerSound CQ/ Melody d&b Series Q
Fashion Show Spijkenisse Festival
Holland Holland
Auto Trek Arrival Santa Claus
Holland Holland
ENGINEER
AMP
SPEAKERS +33 387 343 232 Adamson Y-10/Spektrix Lab.gruppen Adamson E15 Lab.gruppen Adamson E15 +44 28 9079 8999 V-DOSC MILO V-DOSC dV-DOSC MILO +31 78 6742 919 L-Acoustics KUDO SB218 L-Acoustics 112P L-Acoustics KUDO/ SB218 L-Acoustics 112P L-Acoustics 112P
SELV GELUIDSTECHNIEK MixTuur Belgium Tricycle Belgium AppeltuinJazz Belgium Mine Belgium
Midas, Soundcraft Midas, Soundcraft Midas, Soundcraft Midas, Soundcraft
Vleugels+Deboes Coda Audio Vleugels+Deboes Coda Audio Vleugels+Deboes Thomas Audio System Vleugels+Deboes Coda Audio
+32 16 4433 33 Coda Audio Coda Audio Thomas Audio System Coda Audio
SKAN PA HIRE LTD James Blunt Celtic Thunder Crosby & Nash Radio 1 Teen Awards James Morrison Elbow Sunseker AGM
Heritage, PM5D PM5D/DSPD, Vi6 SD7, Heritage PM5D, PM5D Profile, Profile Profile, Profile M7CL, -
M Hornby S MacInnes K Madigan S Watson D Evans N Pepper
D12 LA8 D12 D12 D12
+44 16 3552 1010 d&b J dV-DOSC d&b J d&b J d&b C/Q/E
SUBFRANTIC PRODUCTION SERVICES Siren World LS9-16, -
S Davies
MC2
+44 19 5957 6724 Turbosound Aspect
ULTRASONICS AUDIO SERVICES LTD Alan Price Set UK Yamaha Digital, The Manfreds UK Yamaha Digital, The Blues Band UK Yamaha Digital, -
A Brown P Allen P Allen
d&b d&b d&b
+44 14 7220 0015 d&b d&b d&b
YORKSHIRE AUDIO Jane McDonald
M Hudson
d&b D12
+44 11 3277 0952 d&b C4/E8
Europe USA Europe UK UK Europe Madeira
UK
M7CL, M7CL
DP548 Dynamic Audio Management
Even rock and roll has rules...
Outsmart the noise police. The DP548 from XTA. From stadiums to festival events, you want to be in control, getting the best drive and the clearest audio - without worrying about infringing sound regulations. The new DP548 features Dynamic EQ on every input, giving you automatic control that only compresses target frequency bands when they become a problem. And because the audio is left completely unaffected until the threshold is reached, you’ll have a happy FOH, happy noise police and happy neighbours. But that's not all - add output compressors, matrix mixing and the full suite of DP448 DSP into the mix and everyone's happy. To see DP548’s Dynamic EQ in action and find out more visit www.xta.co.uk
www.xta.co.uk
026_PSNE11P.Audio_Layout 1 28/10/2011 15:47 Page 1
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PSNE NOV P41 InstallJR_dr _D 31/10/2011 11:12 Page 41
installation 41
November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
finstallation news APPOINTMENTS
UNITED KINGDOM
Ateïs in fast lane at Silverstone First UK landmark installation for the IDA8 PA/VA system is at the home of British motorsport, writes David Davies Ateïs UK recently supplied an IDA8 networked public address/voice alarm system for installation in the new pits and paddock complex at the iconic Silverstone motor racing circuit. The PA/VA system was specified by building services contractor NG Bailey and installed by fire and security specialist ADT. In its first ‘landmark’ deployment, the IDA8 is being
The IDA8’s first landmark deployment is at the British motor racing circuit
used for general day-to-day paging and announcement work, as well as providing comprehensive safety and evacuation capability should the need ever arise. The installation is based on fibre-optic cable and includes three IDA8M master controllers, one IDA8MS slave control unit, four IDA8 network cards, one PSS monitored emergency microphone with LCD touchscreen, two 17” touchscreen controllers, and 15 dual-channel power amplifiers. “The IDA8 was specified by NG Bailey and installed by ADT because of its new, advanced networking voice alarm capability. We look forward to this being the first of many IDA8 projects within the UK,” said Ateïs UK managing director Neil Voce. Q www.ateis.co.uk
f CUK Audio has been
appointed as the exclusive UK and Ireland distributor for German pro-audio brand T&M Systems and the UK’s Formula Sound. T&M Systems, located in Ibbenbüren, designs and manufactures a wide range of amplifiers, loudspeakers and rackmount mixers. For Formula Sound, CUK will be involved in new product releases, a new marketing and PR package and an expansion of Formula Sound’s international business. www.cuk-audio.com www.formula-sound.com www.t-m-systems.com
f Renkus-Heinz has named
Håkan Sjöö as its European sales manager. Sjöö served as the regional manager for RenkusHeinz in India for the past two years, before relocating back to his native Sweden. He plans to tour the European distributor network. www.renkus-heinz.com
SWITZERLAND
Lawo hitting the high notes in Zurich David Davies Zurich Opera House’s newly-specified Lawo mc²66 mixing console has already been put through its paces during rehearsals for a new season programme that features productions of some of opera’s cornerstone works, including Verdi’s La Traviata.
On the first day of rehearsals, the balance between the different speaker groups was adjusted using an iPad, followed by a more precise set-up undertaken by a guest sound engineer, who used a laptop and a controller running the Mackie HUI protocol.
All three devices were connected to the mc²66 in the control room via a WLAN. Christian Venghaus, who heads up the Zurich Opera House sound department, commented: “I part icularly like the clear routing displays on the mc²66. Both on-screen and
f Studiospares has been
appointed as a UK distributor of Ohm. The partnership brings together two family-run businesses that have been trading for over 50 years between them. Ohm offers a large selection of premium quality speakers ideal for portable use, club installation as well as stadiums.
from the orange buttons we can immediately see what is routed. The number of possibilities available in the deeper layers of the console is also quite remarkable: for example, it is no problem to program fader starts or similar functions.” Q
www.ohm.co.uk
www.lawo.de
www.studiospares.com
PSNE NOV P42,44, InstallJR dr _D 31/10/2011 12:58 Page 42
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www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
SPAIN
Beats in the Balearic PSNE spent two days in the clubs of Ibiza this summer. Nick Beck introduces the island to those who should know better For a number of years now I have had a fondness for the ‘White Island’, known to the Spanish inhabitants as Eivissa. This idyllic Balearic Island annually plays host
to some of the biggest name DJs, club franchises and dance labels the world has to offer. The result is a mecca for hedonists who want to indulge in loud electronic music, visit cutting-edge
f
Space, Sunday night As one of the most famous nightclubs on the planet, the audio quality at Space Ibiza is always under intense scrutiny. The huge venue, in the Playa den Bossa area of Ibiza Town, is a temple to Funktion One (F1) – an association that stretches back over a decade means Tony Andrews’ designs almost fill the place. The local installer is Pro Audio London: David Cole (no stranger to many in the industry) working alongside Ibiza-based Hugo Quintanilla. PAL – seven years working with Space – has just fitted out the ‘Premier Etage’, an open-air roof terrace where PSNE tended to gravitate on our visit! The F1 system comprises four R1.5s
and a couple of F118 subs, governed and powered by an F60 four-channel amp plus MC2 E45 and an X02 controller respectively. White covers for the system were made locally. But it’s in the Main Room where the bad boys live. An F1 R9 + F221 system has done sterling service since 2007, receiving much acclaim from clubbers and DJs alike. Recently the club had a brand new, bespoke Funktion One hybrid sound system installed, completed with an XTA DP548 controller to give it a completely transparent front end. “This upgrade was all about the audio quality,� says Cole. “Everything about it is solely focused on the very best quality, from input
superclubs, bask in the Mediterranean sun and raise a Pavlovian cheer as the planes fly over the sunset terrace at Space. The dynamics of Ibiza have changed dramatically over the years, with the right through to output. Space caters for many thousands of clubbers each year and we want them to go away knowing that there’s a very good reason for it being arguably the most famous club in the world – because it is the best club in the world!� It’s a system to marvel at: per side, that’s four DS15 cabs flown in a line; four R3sh flown underneath in a 2 x 2 format; one R1.5sh at the rear for VIP fill. (R3sh is a skeletal version of the Resolution 3 box, only introduced in the past few months.) There are more R3sh units employed as rear fill and rear delay. And, of course, there’s the huge slab of 2 x 3 F221 powered bass cabs under the DJ booth. The DP548 – suggested to Cole by F1’s John Newsham – replaces the DP226s and D2 equaliser. The 548 adds a frequency conscious com-
Precision control at your fingertips
New F1 system, including six huge 221 subs, in the Main Room
pressor to the front end, without another stage of audio conversion. With a monitor system controlled by an XTA DP448 and powered by two MC2 E45s and one MC2 amplifiers, Cole says praise for the new system is
even higher than for the old. “We have continual compliments on how it sounds,� he says. “In fact, every comment we’ve heard has been positive.�
Dave Robinson
Keeping control of high performance systems is often a complicated undertaking. No matter how large or complex the sound system however, the new LM 44 from Lake will drive it with absolute precision, and minimum effort. LM 44 is a powerful, compact, full-featured digital audio system processor with peerless credentials.
*Please note the racing steering wheel depicted is for artistic purposes only!
WWW.LAKEPROCESSING.COM
biggest changes in the past 15 or so. Images of DJs are still plastered on the billboards, but they sit side-by-side with bands and solo artists as clubs tap into the ever-growing live music scene. No longer can you skip out of Space at 6am on Monday morning after We Love Sundays (the signature night at the venue) and head straight to DC-10
for Circo Loco. Local and national authorities have clamped down on the island’s 24-hour party schedule, while nightclubs are under huge pressure to ensure laws are not broken‌ but still the revellers return in their millions for the four-month season from June to September. I first visited the island in 2005 in my early 20s and stayed on Bora Bora beach in the infamous Jet Apartments. Electronic music was continuous throughout the day and night and staying at Jet meant there was no relief from the beats. However, government rulings now prevent bars, clubs and even f
The LM 44 provides four analog input and four analog outputs, in addition to 8-in/8-out AES3 and 4-in/8-out DanteTM transport, while . && $! & & %& " & & ! ! -% ! , % - ! . '$ & ! % % " $ & + #' "" &! ) $ ! "" & ! % ' % * &$ * ' %+%& ! %! %) & $ ! $ ( &% % $& !$ ! &!$ %+%& % &! %& & ' ! &$ % %% ! ' !$ % % ! ' & ! ) & & ) ( $% ! ! ! &$! $ %! &) $ % &% ) $ "$ % ! &' ! &$! / * &+ " $ !$ ' ! ! -& '%& & !'$ )!$ !$ & & !' & ! !$ * '% ( ( ! & $( )% ) & %! ! & %+%& $% '% &! + ! ' & ! ) & & & %& ( $% ! ! ! &$! $ %! &) $
% &% ) $ "$ % ! &' ! &$! / * &+ $ % " $ !$ ' ! *Please note the racing steering wheel depicted is for artistic purposes only!
Project6_Layout 1 04/10/2011 15:25 Page 1
More Info Scan with your smartphone for full details of our digital mixing consoles
PSNE NOV P42,44, InstallJR dr_D 31/10/2011 11:13 Page 44
44 installation
Doing some “serious research” at Space
f small cafes playing music outside
between the hours of 6am and 4.30pm. Terraces and open spaces have to keep the noise right down after midnight. On the PSNE trip, Hugo Quintanilla of Pro Audio London ushered us into the Space Main Room before it opened to the public, and gave us a demonstration of what Funktion One and great design can offer. With only five bodies in the entire room to absorb the sound, the output of the subwoofers can only
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
be described as terrifying. Rib cages rattled, vital organs bounced around the body and eardrums shuddered along to the bass. It’s the sort of torture I could get used to! Later that evening, with a room full and Tensnake providing outstanding electro, the real performance of the Funktion One system, along with the Ibizan ambiance, delivered bliss to many a sun-kissed tourist. Once upon time, you would walk out onto the main road separating Space with Bora Bora beach, flag down a cab and head straight to DC-10. Circo Loco, a famous club night which used to occupy a residency at the End in London, would get going and keep the bones rattling throughout the day. The music would become more aggressive, with less melody and more bleeps, the atmosphere more eccentric and electric with an element of ‘craziness’ thrown into the mix. Nothing has changed apart from the opening times. Nicknamed the ‘people’s club’ according to Eric Robertson of IbizaPA, a prolonged closure in 2009 (for reasons you can find elsewhere) made DC-10 stronger, and the new Void system is fitting to the club’s
appearance (they’re both crimson red, you see). Circo Loco on a Monday offers wild fancy dress, animal balloons, large sunglasses and turns the old finca (farmhouse) into a haven for people who want to dance and only dance (the fact that there are no chairs anywhere in the club proves that!). As PSNE discovered, the Void Acoustics subs built into the walls shake the room, as well as its contents. In a venue not designed to be a club and providing tricky sound issues, the installation has without question made more than the best of its surroundings. Acoustic foam liberally spread over the ceiling enhances the unbelievable electronic experience and with Clive Henry providing the music the landing planes are just a sight for your sore ears. More laws will follow no doubt; clubs will have to fall in line and the government will continue to reap a rather large income during the summer. But whatever befalls the White Island, dance music enthusiasts will always call Ibiza home, whether it is for four days, four months or forever. Q www.funktion-one.com www.voidaudio.com
Void Acoustics Air Motion (x2) in the DC-10 main room
DC-10, Monday evening “A few years ago, a lot of the clubs didn’t care about the quality of the sound; then peoples’ expectations got much higher because of what they hear in their own homes. So all the clubs have been upping their game.” So says Andy Kayll, in-house sound engineer at DC-10, a club on the outskirts of Ibiza Town. You are frequently reminded of this converted farm building’s proximity to the island’s airport as an aircraft of some kind passes overhead every five minutes. (The venue is not the site of a crashed McDonnell Douglas plane, as one apocryphal story suggests.) DC-10 certainly upped its game when, under Kayll’s guidance, the owner installed a Void Acoustics system in the main room in May 2010. An anonymous Spanish-made system was stripped out and eight distinctive Air Motion mid-hi’s, along with six Stasys subwoofers, were installed. Two Air 10s, “bring it all together”. The Air Motion system matches the general décor of the DC-10 main room, though no one is quite sure which came first, the Void colour scheme or the room’s revamp (it used to be yellow). Extensive foam treatment to the roof earlier in the year has seriously improved the general acoustic to boot. Kayll started at the club 12 years ago, when the Circo Loco night began. “Back then this was all open air…” he begins as a large passenger jet drowns him out. “Three walls at the end of an open building, and six Turbo boxes.” The club itself dates back to around 1990. It has a reputation of being ‘the people’s club’, as it would open on a Monday for the locals, when other venues were closed. Kayll opines that it’s a shame the way the laws concerning clubbing have evolved on the island: the Labour government are “always using sound levels and partying as a stick to hit people with”. For the last decade or so, all the open/outdoor spaces have been forced to stop playing music after midnight. The Void system was purchased from Eric Robertson who runs IbizaPA, a creative event business as well as being the Void distributor for Spain. Kayll heard a demo of half an IbizaPA Void rig and was sold on it, he says. He recalls how the whole deal was a stupidly fast turnaround affair: order to install in seven days. “We were still plugging it in on the morning it was to go live,” says
Eric Robertson (left) and Andy Kayll
Robertson. He came to Ibiza half a dozen years ago with his singer/entertainer wife. The couple needed a PA rig, and someone hooked them up with Void. “I bought a rig; and liked it so much, I asked if I could represent them in some way and they said yes. In recent times things have gone quite ballistic for Void here.” In addition to DC-10, a recent installation includes the prestigious Amante beach club. “The owner tried different things and things didn’t work out…” says Robertson before the sound of helicopter rotors stymie him. “…because it was a bit DIY. “Now he’s got little Indigo 6 speakers, hidden behind the bamboo, and sprayed to the colour of his choice, so people like Kylie can chill out down there...” Other wins include Bora Bora and Sankey’s. “It’s tough opening a new club…” Another helicopter. “This island is very competitive, if you are coming from outside and you don’t know it, you have to be patient, you have to work at it, and if you do, you will make it.” System hire is another part of IbizaPA’s business. “You’d be amazed at how many DJs and VIPs want to hire a system for their villa – they want a reasonably large monitor system to test out material, or somewhere they can bring their friends back.” Final question: what about the state of PA/club sound on the island? “I would love someone to grant a new licence and build the perfect room on here,” says Robertson. Kayll nods in agreement, as a private jet has us all laughing at the ridiculousness of doing an interview here. “All of the venues over here date back to the ’70s, none of them have been built specifically as clubs. They were built to be pretty, with speaker placement as an afterthought. “If we could just get them to knock some of them down,” smiles Robertson, “and rebuild them with some round corners…”
Dave Robinson
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46 installation SOUNDBITES f Tommex has installed a Dynacord-based specification at a new amphitheatre located at Jozef Pilsudski Park in Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski, Poland. Devised to provide high-quality reinforcement for a variety of theatrical and musical productions, the Dynacord sound system is based around a Cobra-4 line array and features eight Cobra PWH planar waveguide bass horns, six Cobra-4 tops and four VariLine 262 cabinets, with power from H5000 amplifiers. Dynacord CXM 15 monitors, powered by H2500s, are also part of the versatile set-up. www.dynacord.com
f APG has equipped a restored longboat, also Paris’s latest jazz club, with a new sound system. L’Improviste had its system specified and installed by contractor Octalino. They decided on a system based around APG DX12 compact multipurpose monitor speakers and the ultra-compact, wide-dispersion MX1 loudspeaker from APG’s Micro Axial range. A spokesperson for L’Improviste commented: “We turned to Octalino because it specialises in providing AV systems for the events market as well as handling AV installations of all sizes.” www.apg.tm.fr
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011 UNITED KINGDOM
The Sage installs Midas PRO9 Jim Evans The Sage Gateshead in north-east England has installed a Midas PRO9 live performance system at front of house in its main auditorium. “We first came across the Midas PRO series almost three years ago, when we used a PRO6 on a large surround sound opera, Skellig,” says the theatre’s head of technical operations, Chris Durant. “It was obvious that this was a product that would more than meet our needs when we needed to upgrade, and would reinforce our
www.qscaudio.com
Chris Durant (third from left), and the Midas PRO9
www.midasconsoles.com
UNITED KINGDOM
BSS Audio launches UK certified training
Attendees will gain in-depth knowledge of the Soundweb platform
f The first Russian installation of QSC’s advanced integrated Q-Sys network system has been carried out at the Nordic Ski Center in the city of KhantyMansiysk. The centre received an overhaul to allow it to meet the requirements set to host this year’s 46th World Biathlon Championships. The technological upgrade was carried out by Avintel and High Tech Security, which installed two Core 1000 64 x 64 hubs and 12 I/O Frame modules.
Midas’ Rob Hughes (sixth from left) with The Sage Gateshead audio team, including
reputation as one of the best-sounding music venues in the world.” The PRO9 was integrated into the venue’s comprehensive Cat6 network, allowing it to be installed with minimal disruption. “We’ve only had to physically shuffle round some of the patchbay panels to accommodate the DL371 audio processing engine,” confirms Durant. “The rest is just on short Cat5e cables. Other consoles we considered would have required additional BNC or fibre cables, adding thousands of pounds and time onto the install cost.” Q
David Davies The first UK/ROI course pertaining to the new official Certified Training Programme for the BSS Soundweb network audio platform will take place on 14-15 November. Announced in conjunction with UK/ROI distributor Sound Technology, the course will be held at BSS Audio’s UK offices in Potters Bar. The two-day Level 1 Certified course has been designed to balance practical applications of the Soundweb platform with in-depth technical knowledge of its capabilities. Attendees will leave understanding the core features of the
system and be capable of system specification, basic design, programming and troubleshooting. By choosing to also attend the Level 1 Day 2 course, attendees will gain more advanced programming knowledge and have the option of taking the Level 1, CTS accredited exam to become a BSS qualified Soundweb programmer. Students who pass the Level 1 Certification Exam will receive proof of their proficiency in the form of an official BSS Audio Soundweb London Level 1 Certificate and will be listed, together with their company (if applicable), on the BSS Audio website. Students will also receive InfoComm CTS RU credits upon passing the exam. The Certified training course is free for UK/ROI customers, clients and consultants, but registration is required as places are limited. For more information and to book a place, visit www.soundtech.co.uk/ bss/certified-training or call Sound Technology Ltd on 01462 480000. Q www.bss.co.uk www.soundtech.co.uk
An Optocore redundant optical fibre ring system spanned the arena for its inauguration
ITALY
Optocore scores in Turin David Davies Italian audio sales and rental service company Agorà carried out an advanced sound and lighting design for the inauguration of the new €145 million Juventus Stadium in Turin in September. For audio network transport and signal distribution a state-ofthe-art Optocore redundant optical fibre ring system was employed to span the new 41,000-capacity arena. The ‘one giant ring’ deployment devised by ‘General Cluster’ Daniele Tramontani included two Optocore X6R-FX network converters in the control room, with 64 analogue inputs distributed via four Meyer Sound Galileo
processors. A further 11 X6R-FX8AE/8LO and two X6R-TP-16LI (Line Input) converters are used over Optocore’s proprietary 24 ID Sane Ethernet network to distribute those audio channels to L-Acoustics amplifiers. All network cards featured Phoenix connectors. Four OptoCon 4/2 expanded beam bulkheads, each equipped with two lenses, have been added to ease interfacing with, for example, an OB truck. As previously reported in PSNE, Juventus Stadium also features an extensive deployment of RCF Acustica H1315WP three-way full-range loudspeakers. Q www.optocore.com www.rcf.it
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technology feature 47
November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com WORLD
Feeling the effects The debate about the pros and cons of hardware- and software-based audio effects rages on. Mike Hillier listens to both sides of the argument The debate over which is better, hardware or software, when it comes to audio effects, may never reach a conclusion. Proponents of both sides have strong arguments in their favour, but while many project studios are built almost entirely in the box, only a steadfast few analogue purists remain entirely reliant on hardware effects. Software effects are an entrenched part of the professional studio environment. Just as digital recording and editing brought with it some major advantages over analogue tape, so software effects introduce a number of advantages over their hardware equivalent. Jake Jackson, film and TV engineer at AIR Studios, has access to an enviable amount of outboard hardware, yet tells PSNE: “I pretty much always use software effects. If I am mixing on a console, then I will use the desk EQ for individual recorded mics. But for most synth sounds I will use software EQs and dynamics.” Jackson is convinced that software can sound great, but is cautious when comparing it to hardware. “I don’t think you can say they are the same as their hardware equivalents, it never sounds quite as good as an 1176 or a Fairchild, but being able to have three or even 40 of something outweighs just having one hardware version.” Engineer James Aparicio (Mogwai, Spiritualized, Tinchy Stryder), is less cautious: “I’ve never wasted my time A/B-ing software effects against the real things. I remember putting up a Waves SSL channel for the first time and thinking, yeah, that sounds great to me. Who cares if it’s not exactly the same anyway? They sound great in themselves and are cheaper and more flexible than the equivalent hardware.” Metropolis Mastering is a recent convert to the world of software effects (at least for real-time EQ and dynamics processing – the mastering studios has been using software audio restoration tools, such as CEDAR for SADiE, for some time). It has recently purchased the Oxford Limiter and Oxford EQ from Sonnox for each of the mastering suites. The studio experimented with a number of different plug-in effects before settling on Sonnox. Technical development manager at Metropolis Mastering Crispin Murray, points out that “in general we all tend to use hardware as a first port-of-call for most things, however sometimes there is a need for another means of limiting other than the analogue systems we have, be that to have something that doesn’t effect the sound as much, or sometimes because we just need more level to be able to match other tracks within the project. It is the same with EQ, there are times that we require something different.”
f
Waves Chris Lord-Alge compressors are getting a lot of use on my mixes recently and I’ve started getting a lot of use out of the new Waves Eddie Kramer Master Tape as well as the UAD-2 Studer emulation.” Vinci is keen to point out that the company works with many top engineers when developing plug-ins: “Our betatesting team is constructed of many top engineers in the industry and they help us to better understand the needs of the user. They are known to be fastidious about the smallest details. Watching these guys work really gives you a great insight into workflow features. “Sometimes we think something is very important in a plug-in, but after working with big names in the industry, you understand that what you thought is important is actually a side-feature that nobody uses. Sometimes it’s vice-versa. When talking to an engineer they might suggest a feature in a plug-in that has been there from Day One but they had never paid attention to the fact that it is there. When you point it out to them you suddenly make this plug-in so much more valuable to them.”
Absorbing the feedback
Are we approaching an era when all the outboard hardware remains switched off and all the effects are software plug-ins?
Jackson is also a fan of the Sonnox effects, and praises the SoundToys bundle. “Everything about it is so useable – great sounds, cool presets and a great price. I love AltiVerb too, it uses a lot of computing power, but it’s worth it.” AltiVerb is a convolution reverb effect that enables you to capture the impulse response of any physical space or even hardware effect, and use that to add the reverb characteristics of that space to a signal in software. Because they rely on sampling and digital processing convolution reverbs work best in software – the Sony DRE-S777 is a rare example of a hardware convolution reverb processor. But this is also true of algorithmic reverb processors and many delay effects, which both Jackson and Aparicio claim are easier to use in software. “Reverbs are essentially software anyway, delays similarly,” says Jackson. “For a lot of TV mixing I do it in the box, so end up using just software. I tend to set up a template which has three or four reverbs and five or six delays and a bunch of other weird bits and bobs on aux sends and then mix from there. This saves a lot of time and I can add EQs, compressors and distortion inserts as I go, then a master buss compressor and EQ and finally sometimes a limiter if I need to do some gentle mastering. The biggest advantage of software delays is the instant tempo sync,
Avid’s director of segment marketing, Dusty DiMercurio, has similar views to Vinci when it comes to working with engineers. “Feedback from [engineers] is really what inspired us to create [the AIR FX] plug-ins in the first place. Most of the these effects were pulled directly from within our AIR virtual instruments; our customers spoke so highly about these algorithms and requested that we make them available as separate effects that they could use outside of our AIR virtual instruments for general mixing tasks.” Chris Randall of independent plug-in developer Audio Damage, works with a much smaller team than Vinci at Waves or DiMercurio at Avid, but his company’s
“Sometimes we think something is very important in a plug-in, but after working with big names in the industry, you understand that what you thought is important is actually a side-feature that nobody uses. Sometimes it’s vice-versa” particularly when working with projects that have a variable tempo map. This feature is so important that Aparicio, while clearly cautious as to the quality of the emulations of tape delays, claims he’d “rather go for a plug-in tape delay over the real thing now too”. Jackson points out another advantage is that when working in surround and processing stems “if each stem needs a reverb, delay and FX, then it becomes impossible to use hardware – as you would need four or five surround reverbs, an incredible expense”, even at the biggest of studios.
Is it as good as it says? However, Murray is clearly not entirely convinced with software emulations. “I dream of the resolution of modelling increasing by an order or two”, before adding, perhaps with a knowing smile, “or is it just that some people are modelling rather decrepit, less than perfect devices?” Waves senior product manager, Amir Vinci, agrees with Murray’s assertion that software needs a higher
resolution before it can compete on a like-for-like nature with hardware, pointing out that the bit-rate and sample resolution determine how much detail can be captured and processed in software. “The fact that people are still working in 44.1kHz [is a limiting factor]. It would be much easier for us if everybody would work in higher sample rates; this is especially true for equalisers.” Vinci also accepts that the physical weight and tactile nature of hardware still holds a lot of currency to engineers. Jackson has similar reservations: “[Software] can result in nice sounds, but it’s not as nice as moving knobs and getting that feel.” Waves has been working with several high-profile engineers recently, developing plug-ins in partnership with the likes of Chris Lord-Alge, Jack Joseph Puig and Eddie Kramer. Aparicio claims these effects to be among his favourites: “I’m a big fan of the Waves Studio Classics, especially the SSL E Channel and G EQ, I can usually find the sounds I’m looking for by using one or a combination of both of these plug-ins. The
plug-ins remain firm favourites with many engineers, despite not releasing any standard EQ or compression effects. “There’s a lot of competition in the market for standard effects like EQ and compression. We decided long ago that our strength was in coming up with new ideas and more experimental products. Even Eos (Audio Damage’s algorithmic reverb plug-in developed with Sean Costello of ValhallaDSP) isn’t really a one-size-fits-all reverb. While every plugin doesn’t appeal to every user, chances are that, no matter what the context we have something that is useful.” Working as a small team gives Audio Damage some advantages over its larger rivals. “Our decision-making loop is quite small. There’s only two of us, and if we don’t agree that something will be useful, we don’t make it. Since we rely on a deep product line and rely on a long-tail business model, if one product is a failure we didn’t risk the company on it. We can make something that just we want to make without any real risk. These factors all inform the fact that we’re willing to experiment more f
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Software in surround sound
Studer’s A800 multichannel tape recorder plug in for the UAD2
f than bigger companies.� This exper-
imental approach is evident in many of the company’s offerings from the ‘Game Of Life’-based sequencer which controls the Automaton modulation effect to their latest plug-in Filterstation – a serial/parallel/stereo dual filter plug-in similar to the Sherman Filterbank, but with 12 different filter algorithms, LFOs, envelopes and even a saturation control.
Keeping up with the Californians To Randall keeping up with Apple’s update cycle is one of the biggest technical challenges. “We just get comfortable with some system and they change it. Since we’ve been in business they’ve switched from OS 9 to OS X, developed
“We all tend to use hardware as a first portof-call for most things, however sometimes there is a need for another means of limiting other than the analogue systems we have� a new plug-in format, changed that format drastically twice, switched to Intel and dropped PPC support (making it, in essence, impossible to develop both Intel and PPC from the same machine) and changed the entire way we code the UI by dropping Carbon support. To put this in perspective the first plug-in we made, FilterPod, will still build and run unchanged on my PC from code that hasn’t been touched in seven years.�
Vinci at Waves agrees that this is “the biggest challenge when developing software�. Hardware on the other hand has no such problem and many effects processors built decades ago are still in use today. Q www.audiodamage.com www.avid.com www.iosono-sound.com www.sonnoxplugins.com
Surround sound is one area in which software effects have taken off in a big way. Multichannel software audio processors are now the standard in nearly every post-production facility from EQs and compressors to reverbs and even surround panners and unique up-mixing plug-ins, which take a stereo source and create a surround stream from that signal. Iosono Spatial Audio Workstation 2 is one such tool, providing an UPMIX! engine for converting stereo tracks into surround and a surround panner which groups channels or events in Nuendo into specific icons on the panner, which can be moved around individually, or as a group. Neil Wilkes, owner of Opus Productions, uses the Spatial Audio Workstation 2 plug-in for both surround mixing and up-mixing. “Compared to other up-mixing tools, the Iosono plug-in seems to put more air around things in the mix. It’s hard to explain, but when you run it up and A/B it with standard up-mixing tools I almost always pre-
fer the results, it doesn’t use ambisonics or any phasing techniques to get the surround, so the down-mix is always 100% phase coherent with the original.� “The surround panner is almost like mixing in Photoshop. You get an icon in the panner, which can be either track-based or event-based – allowing you to put three different guitar parts all on the same channel onto the panner as three different icons, meaning you don’t need any heavy automation. Plus if you have drums you can pan each track individually, and then group all the icons together to pan the whole kit�.
www.waves.com
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23/2/11
10:34
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PSNE Nov P50-53 Feat 2JR_dr_PSNE_April_P_Ribbons 31/10/2011 11:16 Page 50
50 business feature
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Electro-Voice’s biggest box, the X-Line sub, was used at the Pope’s recent celebration of Mass at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin
“The challenge is to combine highest possible performance with most efficient handling under the given laws of physics” Manowar used three DAS Aero 50s per side for sidefills during their concerts this year
WORLD
Giving it large How big a box would you build if you could build a bigger box? That’s what we asked a selection of PA manufacturers. Gez Kahan dons his ear-defenders and listens to the response Aficionados of the late Douglas Adams will recall that the largest ever PA system belonged to the plutonium rock band Disaster Area. This band, according to the Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, is “best heard from within large concrete bunkers some 37 miles from the stage”, while many worlds have banned the act altogether because the PA contravenes local strategic arms limitation treaties. That fantasy was apparently inspired by the monster PA systems used by Adams’ mates in Pink Floyd back in the 1970s. Things in the real world are a
f
For EAW, the smaller KF740 is replacing the KF760 in the touring world
little different, with efficiencies in techniques and technologies now delivering more punch per cubic metre. But if you’re going to shift a huge volume of air, you’re still going to need some pretty bulky boxes. The question is, how big they could – or should – be? Physics comes into it, of course. “With a line array, where there should only be one column of boxes,” says Tony Andrews, MD of Funktion One, “physics dictates that horizontal directivity control will only be present down to a frequency whose half wavelength is the same as the width of the box or column. It therefore behoves one to have a line array as wide as is practical otherwise frequencies of around 500Hz and below diffract around to the sides to the rear of the box. “Bass frequencies are obviously the longest wavelengths and the associated enclosures could in fact be in excess of 10m across the horn mouth or baffle to completely control the directivity. For reasons of practicality this is completely out of the question and in practice one builds the largest box deemed to be manageable and relies upon coupling to achieve improved directivity.” Putting some figures on that, Andrews says: “The largest box we would
consider manufacturing would be one where its largest dimension would be around 6ft (1.83m) – and it’s only natural that the largest box produced by Funktion One is the F221 bass enclosure with dimensions of 582mm (H) x 1,686mm (W) x 992mm (D).” “The challenge,” says Markus Schmittinger, product marketing manager for Electro-Voice, “is to combine highest possible performance with most efficient handling under the given laws of physics.” EV’s biggest box is the X-Line sub, a rectangular dual 18” design rated at 1,200W, and 1,245mm (just over 4ft) wide. There are also matching X-Line cabinets for mid and high frequencies. “In combination with the Xsub this is the state-of-the-art ElectroVoice System for very large venues, such as the Pope’s recent celebration of Mass with 61,000 followers at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin.” But physics is not the only consideration, he adds. “Audience needs, logistics, cost to build and cost to market are all factors that restrict the sheer size of a box.”
The meaning of big? The answer, according to EAW co-founder Kenton Forsythe, really is 42. “The biggest box we build is a custom f
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Take That’s Wembley concerts featured a W8L Longbow system from Martin Audio
provides 168dB at 1m,” he says, adding: “We are not at liberty to disclose further details as yet.” But, he notes: “Bigger seldom means better. Less is always more, particularly in the audio world. We are constantly trying to get more – output, pattern control, performance – out of less – space, weight, truck size, complexity and cost. Constantly advancing technology allows us to do so. Such designs better integrate into spaces, frequently at lower total cost and improved overall performance. “A key aspect of the technology is wide bandwidth common horns, particularly with co-ax type drivers. Integration of LF elements in a manner that minimises space yet maximises pattern control further improves the performance, with side benefits in cost and ease of use.”
Taking that into consideration, he rates the QX544 as EAW’s ‘biggest’ box. Even though it’s a relatively miniscule 711mm x 711mm x 610mm, and weighs just 120lbs (54.5kg) it outputs in excess of 140dB with pattern control to 160Hz. “It does have a big brother,” Forsythe admits, “with 150dB output available.” It’s almost twice as heavy, though, with dimensions around one-third larger in all directions. Weight, in fact, is a major factor to take into account, and EAW is seeing that reflected in the market. “In the touring world, our 105lb (47.5kg) KF740 is replacing the 225lb KF760 with similar output and much improved ease of use, although the KF760 remains the ultimate ‘beast’.” “The question ‘how big?’ should be viewed in terms of physical size,
WWW.MOREPIXELS.ORG
f design, 1,067mm (42”) wide, that
weight and SPL output,” suggests Paul Bauman, senior manager of tour sound for JBL Professional. “For the first two issues, logistics and physics are the determining factors. Assuming that the HF section is creating a flat wavefront, the vertical height of the enclosure defines the maximum allowable interenclosure splay angle while still coupling properly as a line source array. For typical throw distances, a tightly-packed front-loaded 18” enclosure can be used for 0-3º splay angles while front-loaded 15”, 12” and 8” enclosures will couple properly from 0-5, 0-9, 0-11º respectively. Therefore, getting bigger in the vertical dimension is not a good thing unless you’re doing only flat open-air shows. But then trim height becomes an issue – how many enclosures can you physically suspend within a given ground-supported structure?” That, he says, becomes a financial equation: how much is production willing to pay extra to get the required trim height? “Weight is obviously a key consideration,” Bauman adds, “and many touring productions are coming up against roof load limits already, so heavier is not an option. For these reasons, the frontloaded double 15” format has become an accepted industry standard in terms of large-format line array box size since it represents an optimum compromise in terms of allowable splay angles combined with modularity for truck pack combined with reasonable weight. Getting bigger performance is then possible through creative sound design. “Historically, it has always been a contest between loudspeaker transducers versus power amplifiers in terms of power handling versus power output. There’s not much point in building a big box if power amplifier channels have to be bridged to power the enclosure and the amp channel count becomes too high (and expensive) as a result. “At some point the question ‘how loud is loud enough?’ has to be posed – and as a manufacturer we encourage our sound reinforcement systems to be operated responsibly. JBL Professional’s approach in Tour Sound has been to focus on power density in order to achieve ‘big box’ performance. This means building smaller, lighter enclosures with high component counts.” Even given those caveats, the VerTec VT4889 (the biggest box JBL currently makes), is still on the largish side, at 1,213mm (just under 4ft) wide and weighing 159lb (72kg). And it’s used, unsurprisingly on largish gigs – Rock in Rio (the world’s largest outdoor festival) and for Metallica’s show at the Dehli Formula 1 race.
Enough is enough? Jason Baird, Martin Audio’s R&D director, takes a pragmatic approach. “I’d make a box that was big enough to deliver the required SPL to the audience size required. Given the largest example is a festival I’d design a box big enough to handle that but no bigger. Otherwise it becomes unnecessarily cumbersome to handle and expensive to transport.” In practical terms that used to mean (and still does for Glastonbury) the W8L Longbow, at 1,314mm (about 52”) wide and weighing 123kg (271lb). But, says Baird: “Advances in technology
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November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
have allowed us to achieve this output from a MLA-sized ((825mm, 87.5kg) product, as used for the iTunes Festival at the Roundhouse.” That trend might well mean we’ve already seen the biggest boxes that manufacturers will design. Adamson’s response to the question ‘how big a box would you produce if you could?’, for instance, was ‘we’ve already done that’. And well they might: the Adamson T21 sub – a pair of 21” Kevlar drivers rated at 3,000W is 57.5” (1,464mm) wide and weighs in at a mighty 309lb (140kg). However, for flown boxes it will be impossible to deal with something that big. “We all know that a rectangular line source box does not provide the coherency that we are looking for,” the Adamson spokesperson continues. “A modern array should be trapezoidal, this is obvious. A two-way system would not cut it in any way, especially if it contains 15” low-frequency drivers. A 12” system, for large-format productions, does not provide the LF weight and horsepower engineers are after. The system should have 15” LF or larger. But any system much heavier than 200lb, is clearly not versatile. All the rigging should be set on the ground with as little labour as possible. Then if you could consolidate all the power, distribution, network and cabling you would really be on to something. This system sounds familiar.” And, sure enough, that describes the Adamson E15, which is currently out with beta testers. Most manufacturers’ new products are coming in smaller than that. “Our TTL-55A line array cabinet is 1,020mm wide and weighs 67kg,” says Kenneth Bremer, who handles strategic marketing for RCF. “Its companion, the TTS 56-A active sub, is a 2 x 21” configuration with a 2 x 3,400W internal amplifier, and is a little wider – 1,100mm – and heavier at 90kg.” And of course, they (like everyone’s products) combine to produce a
RCF’s TTL-55A line array cabinet and TTS 56-A active sub combine to produce a staggering output
“The front-loaded double 15” format has become an accepted industry standard in terms of large-format line array box size”
DAS speakers at FIB2011
staggering output. For Italian singersongwriter Vasco Rossi – one of Italy’s biggest rock stars for four decades, who had previously tended to use American PA systems – the production team decided to go Italian for his latest tour, which took in every major domestic stadium
(including four sell-out dates at the 80,000 capacity San Siro in Milan). The combined potential output from his RCF touring system – using multiple TTL55As and TTS-56A supplemented by smaller hangs and fills, plus a massive monitoring system – amounted to a megawatt – 200kW for stage monitors and 800kW for FOH. Big systems with plenty of headroom obviously help deliver better audio, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the individual boxes need to be massive. In fact there are plenty of reasons why they shouldn’t.
Keeping the customer satisfied “Really,” says Robert Giner of DAS Audio, “it is hard to imagine that a box much bigger than we presently have would be feasible for our present clients. We design and manufacture
products that are going to provide our clients with ‘tools’ to get the job done. Contrary to the question, smaller size and less weight are always on the list of important attributes that our clients value. “The Aero 50, for example, is a large system in terms of size and weight, and there are frequently issues due to structural considerations in many venues. At 85kg (187lb) each, two arrays of 14 boxes are putting over 2,400kg (5,200lb) in the air, which is no joke. That is just considering the tops; subs may also be flown adding additional weight to the venue structure, or requiring an additional rigging tower. “From a practical point of view, our present system is sufficiently powerful for large-scale PA, but is still within reason as far as the physical handling of the units is concerned.”
But the other consideration is what the band, as distinct from the venue, would prefer. Manowar used three DAS Aero 50s per side for sidefills during their concerts this year. “These guys,” says Giner, “like it LOUD.” “The most important thing to take in to account when building a box,” says Ben Sinclair, who looks after sales for Lynx Pro Audio, “is ‘What does the end user need?’. Right now, especially with line array, our customers aren’t asking for anything bigger than what we offer.” That product is the LX-V12, a threeway self-powered line array module with a pair of 12” LF woofers, four 6.5” MF transducers and two 1.4” HF compression drivers, powered by a 4,000W amp, and rated 143dB peak. 1,175mm wide, it weighs 89kg. “Every manufacturer,” says Sinclair, “has a different customer segment and they have to build boxes to meet the needs of that customer segment. For us, also, the smaller and mid-size arrays we manufacturer (LX-F6 and LX-V8) are the ones that sell more than our large-format LX-V12.” And that may be the final reason that big boxes could become the exception rather than the rule, even for massive tours. All other things being equal, a big box might appear to be a cheaper solution to deliver a given output than multiple smaller boxes. But as technology allows R&D departments to screw equivalent response from ever lighter and more compact configurations, the customer base for the smaller units will grow at the expense of the larger ones – and it’s cheaper to manufacture a product in volume than in short runs. And in the end, ‘how big a box do you want to make?’ is all a question of volume. Q www.dasaudio.com www.eaw.com www.electrovoice.com www.funktion-one.com www.jblpro.com www.lynxproaudio.com www.martin-audio.com www.rcf.it
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54 abbey road
www.prosoundnewseurope.com G November 2011
WORLD
The long and winding road Abbey birthday! The world’s most famous recording studio celebrates its 80th birthday this month. Jim Evans spoke with management past and present On 12 November 1931, Number 3 Abbey Road, which had been purchased by EMI in 1929, opened as a recording studio. Sir Edward Elgar performed the opening ceremony and later the same day conducted the LSO in the new studio’s first recording session. The story of Abbey Road Studios and the leading roles it has played in music recording, the development of associated technologies and its association with The Beatles have been well chronicled over the years. In this respect, Brian Southall’s Abbey Road – The Story of the World’s Most Famous Recording Studio gives a balanced, informative view and is warmly recommended. Ken Townsend joined EMI as an apprentice in 1950, moving to Abbey Road in 1953. He became general manager in 1974 and in 1994 was awarded the MBE for services to the music industry. “When I first came to Abbey Road, we’d just moved on to tape,” recalls Townsend. “We were doing mono and using the BTR1 (British Tape Recorder) and BTR2 tape machines. Recording was a process of purely and simply
f
Sir Edward Elgar conducted the LSO in Abbey Road’s first recording session in 1931
reproducing what was being performed in the studio. This applied to both pop and classical work. With pop, you did two or three takes of a number, often getting four titles down in one threehour session. At the end of the day you had your master. “At this time too, if you wanted to add something to a recording, such as a sound effect or another voice, the
method used gave a severe degradation in noise every time you did it, so you were quite limited on the number of times you could do such an operation.” It was in the late ’50s that pop groups really began to emerge. Townsend adds: “Probably our best known group at the time was The Shadows – then known as Cliff and The Drifters.
The early ’60s would witness the pop music boom. “Then, EMI’s A&R department had a small number of producers, each responsible for a particular label, and working on their specific artists. And the only acts who came into your studio were those from your own record company, produced by the company’s own A&R men.” There were changes too in the approach to recording. “Sessions were no longer based on three-hour schedules. A group, The Beatles for example, would come in at 2.30 in the afternoon and work right through until they decided to stop.” Abbey Road hit a peak in the mid’60s. As well as The Beatles, hits flowed from Gerry & The Pacemakers, Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Hollies, Freddie & The Dreamers, Pink Floyd, Cliff Richard and many more. Townsend adds: “The situation that we had there in the mid-‘60s is never likely to apply to any one studio again.” The 1970s saw further developments and changes in the way records were made. “As well as the studios being made available to everyone – not just
their own record label’s roster – there were also great changes on the technical front. EMI had previously developed and manufactured its own equipment, but with the emergence of independent studios, there arrived a whole new industry that was offering equipment to studios. And recording was becoming a more sophisticated process, moving from 16-track to 24-track. Perhaps these innovations took a bit of the magic away from the way we used to work. In the ‘old days’ it was so different – all working on the faders, all standing there armed with pencils and scraps of paper. The technology took away some of the excitement – but we were moving into a new era of technology.”
On film Townsend is keen to point out that there was and still is much more to Abbey Road than pop and rock recording – film scoring for example. “From the early ’80s we became very much
Jonathan Smith, EMI Studios
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November 2011 www.prosoundnewseurope.com
involved with film work, starting with the setting up, in 1980, of the joint venture, Anvil Abbey Road Screen Sound. That was particularly successful in the early days when many US projects were brought to the UK. We worked with Disney, Spielberg and major companies throughout the world, and on mega box office hits such as Amadeus, Robocop and The Last Emperor. “The ’80s and ’90s witnessed the move from analogue to digital – particularly for classical recording. We were – and still are – the foremost studio in the world for classical recording. There are very few leading classical artists who have not worked in Abbey Road. This fact is often lost in chucking out a few pop names who are well known to the general public. “We were the first studio in the UK to work with digital – using the ‘Dalek’.” The Dalek was a digital tape machine developed by EMI Central Research Laboratory at Hayes and was based on one of their open-reel instrumentation decks. “At the same time, we also developed our own experimental mixing consoles before investing in equipment from other manufacturers. We started off with JVC before moving on to Sony as they became market leaders internationally.” Mobile recording is another area that has been a key element of Abbey Road’s success over the years. Townsend says: “An important area of Abbey Road’s operations that was often overlooked is the mobile recording service. Even before the studios were built, there were mobile units working around the world.” On his retirement, Townsend told the EMI house magazine, Off The Record: “In this business, you’ve got to be constantly analysing the marketplace. In the future, there may be areas of operation that are no longer viable for us. At the same time there may be areas that we will move into. Each and every day you have to assess what’s going on in the world and decide which way to
The famous crossing has been moved
move. Running a complex like Abbey Road with its 22 operational facilities certainly isn’t a static situation.” That’s a philosophy that has been carried through to the 21st century, with the studio very much in business and looking at additional revenue streams to run alongside the established offerings. Jonathan Smith, senior vice president EMI Studios and a long-serving EMI staffer, oversees the whole operation. He’s in buoyant mood: “We’re having a cracking year and are firing on all cylinders across all parts of the business. Our primary revenue sources are post-
“In the ‘old days’ it was so different – all working on the faders, all standing there armed with pencils and scraps of paper. The technology took away some of the excitement – but we were moving into a new era of technology” production and the studios themselves. We also have a small audio product business and other revenue streams, such as brand licensing, merchandise and events. “More than 50% of our recording revenue comes from film scoring. We are very good at what we do. It seems to be a buoyant time at present for filmmaking. We are certainly getting a lot of scores coming through the studios, keeping us incredibly busy. “However the studio environment is always changing and you have to invest and adapt to stay ahead of the game. One development in this area has been the increase in remote recording. Last week, for example, we did an orchestral session in Studio One with the composer joining us remotely from New Zealand and the film production team from New York. With the costs of travel, accommodation and improvements in technology I’m sure we will do an awful lot more of this.” A new mixing facility, Studio 52, complete with SSL Duality console and 5.1 capabilities, has also opened. “We thought a smaller room available at a lower price would attract more clients with smaller production budgets and that’s proving to be the case. It’s taking steady bookings. “We recently refurbished the Studio Two control room and installed a new Neve desk and clients have reacted well. We’ve also spent a lot of time and money on a general refurbishment of the building. The scaffolding is down now and the place is looking pretty for its birthday.” “Around 20% of our turnover is rockand pop-based. We’ve tried to attract more rock and pop acts back to the studios and the strategy is working. We
New look for Studio Two Earlier this year, Abbey Road’s Studio Two control room underwent extensive modifications to accept a new 60-channel AMS Neve 88RS mixing console with advanced surround and stem facilities. The new console introduces to Studio Two the 5.1 surround monitoring capabilities also found in Studio One. In addition to the new console, there have been extensive structural changes to the front of the room to accommodate a set of new Bowers & Wilkins 800D loudspeakers. A newly designed outboard equip ment rack now contains a
The studio is known for its high-profile pop and rock clients including Paul Weller
comprehensive selection of original EMI TG modules in addition to classic Teletronix, UREI and Fairchild units. Also installed is an Endless Analog CLASP system to enhance the integration of the studio’s classic analogue tape machines with the latest ProTools technologies. Jonathan Smith, comments: “Abbey Road has always invested in the best cutting-edge technology, to optimise the sound of our wonderful rooms. We are therefore delighted to have installed the finest, state-of-theart analogue console in the world’s most famous and iconic studio.”
recently had Lady GaGa in December, Florence and The Machine made their last album here in April and Kylie was in last week to name but a few. “Once the artists and musicians come through the doors, and do some record-
ing, they have such a good experience, getting them back is not a problem.” Mastering and post-production are healthy sectors too. “Our online mastering service has been hugely successful since its launch in 2009. In its second
year revenue doubled and now in its third year business is up a further 30%. Interestingly, more than 75% of the work comes from overseas. There are a lot of music makers out there who want to master their work at Abbey Road – add that touch of magic to their recordings. “On the back of this we have launched our online mixing service which has started quietly and is a harder service to get away. It’s more expensive than mastering also its much more personal. I’m convinced there’s a market out there, it’s just a question of getting it established.” The wranglings of Terra Firma and Guy Hands last year means the future ownership of Abbey Road Studios and its parent EMI continues to be a subject of discussion – if only on the financial pages of the UK press where it seems they need little excuse to run a picture of the Beatles, Kylie or whoever. “The whole company is up for sale [EMI is owned by Citibank and we are in the middle of a sale process],” says Smith. “Where that will lead us I don’t know. We’re doing extremely well at present. There will always be only one Abbey Road.” Q www.abbeyroad.com
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PSNE Nov P56 Hither JRDR_PSNE_June_P_Hither 31/10/2011 11:19 Page 56
56 hither & dither EXPOS & EVENTS 2011 Integrated Systems Russia 6-8 November Moscow, Russia www.isrussia.org
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
Hither & Ibiza
The world through the bleary, 3am-weary, rather beery eyes of PSNE
Please send all contributions for possible publication to david.robinson@intentmedia.co.uk
2012 2012 International CES 10-13 January Las Vegas, US www.cesweb.org
BETT 11-14 January London, UK www.bettshow.com
CUE2012 16-18 January Rotterdam, Netherlands www.cue2012.nl
NAMM Show 19-22 January Anaheim, US www.namm.org
MIDEM 28 Jan-1 Feb Cannes, France
The Oxjam event, at the end of October, saw mini-festivals popping up
Martin Audio now has over 800 speakers installed at this theme park in
around the country to raise money for Oxfam. The Camberwell Oxjam
Belgium. Karel de Piere’s FACE supplied a recent order of OmniLine ceiling
featured the glorious Don Tempi, who sings and plays TV adverts from the
and surface mounted speakers to the new section, Mayaland. The park itself is
early ‘80s (in an Italian accent). It wasn’t long before the crowd were joining
called Plopsaland De Panne – which sounds more like a broken lavatory than a
in with “They’re tasty, tasty, very very tasty”. Fabulous stuff
fun day out
We told you it was noisy at DC-10… Planes land at Ibiza airport barely
Way to go, Hugo! Señor Quintanilla, Pro Audio London’s man in Ibiza, demonstrates
metres away from the Void Acoustics-installed club. But the punters
the Funktion One F221s in Space’s main room and finds himself surrounded by
keep on dancing
women. So that’s how you do it…
www.midem.org
Integrated Systems Europe 31 Jan-2 Feb Amsterdam, Netherlands www.iseurope.org
BVE 14-16 February London, UK www.broadcastvideoexpo.co.uk
CABSAT MENA 28 Feb-1Mar Dubai, UAE www.cabsat.com
The ARC Show 29 Feb-1 March London, UK www.thearcshow.com
45th AES Conference 1-4 March Helsinki, Finland www.aes.org
Digital Signage Expo 6-9 March Los Angeles, US www.digitalsignageexpo.net
CeBIT 6-10 March Hannover, Germany www.cebit.de
2012 Media Summit 7-8 March New York, US www.media-summit.com
Pro Sound News Europe www.prosoundnewseurope.com vol 26 no 11 November 2011 Editor: Dave Robinson, david.robinson@intentmedia.co.uk Managing Editor: Joanne Ruddock, jo.ruddock@intentmedia.co.uk Head of Design and Production: Adam Butler Editorial Production Manager: Dawn Boultwood European Correspondents: Mike Clark (Italy), Marc Maes (Belgium/Holland), Phil Ward (UK), Mel Lambert (USA) UK Contributors: David Davies, Simon Duff, Jim Evans, Lin Frost, Kevin Hilton, Gez Kahan, Nigel Lord, Rob Speight, Francis Rumsey, Paul Watson, Russ Hepworth-Sawyer, Phil Harding, Ken Blair, Marnix Bosman, Charlotte Wilson, Franck Ermould Digital Content Manager: Tim Frost, tim.frost@intentmedia.co.uk Sales Manager: General Nick, nick.beck@intentmedia.co.uk Accounts Manager: Stephen O’Sullivan, stephen.osullivan@intentmedia.co.uk Classified Sales Executive: Call the team! Senior Production Executive: Alistair Taylor Studio Bookings Editor: Lianne Davey Publisher: Steve Connolly, steve.connolly@intentmedia.co.uk,Managing Director: Stuart Dinsey Editorial and Advertising offices: Pro Sound News Europe, Intent Media London, 1st Floor, Suncourt House, 18-26 Essex Road London, N1 8LN. Editorial and sales: +44 20 7226 7246 Press releases to: psnenews@intentmedia.co.uk NO CIRCULATION AND SUBSCRIPTIONS ENQUIRIES TO THIS OFFICE. Circulation and Subscription enquiries: Intent Media, Sovereign Park, Lathkill Street, Market Harborough, LE16 9EF, UK. Subscriptions: Tel: +44 (0)1858 438786 Subscribe online at www.subscription.co.uk/cc/pm/mag1 Pro Sound News Europe is published 12 times a year by Intent Media London, 1st Floor, Suncourt House,
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products and services directory 57
Contact Stephen O’Sullivan Tel: +44 7354 6000 AUDIO SHOW CONTROL
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PSNE Nov P58 InterviewDRJR_PSNE master cover/3/4 31/10/2011 11:19 Page 58
58 interview
www.prosoundnewseurope.com November 2011
Maurice Patist
Building the best of British faces, and have the confidence to say: ‘I don’t care what products you’re going to bring, I would love to put it right beside mine, and then we’ll talk’. We’re a British product and we’ve been up at the highest level for the past 20 years. Getting there is one thing, but staying there is a whole other ball game. And in a time when everyone’s moaning, we’re growing, so we’re happy. Also, it’s our clients, not us, saying how good our products are.” And you’ve got some seriously high profile ones too, haven’t you? Prince being one… “Yes. Prince bought a set of BB5 XBDs, and ended up endorsing the product, which he’s never done before with any company. Tony Maserati recently used a system to mix six tracks for Lady GaGa’s album, so we’re in discussions with him; and Dave Schiffman (Weezer, Audioslave, Chili Peppers) and Rich Costi (Muse, Jane’s Addiction) have both been using PMC kit.”
Interview by Paul Watson
f
Maurice Patist is president of British monitor speaker manufacturer PMC. Originally a live engineer, he ended up working in the studio environment, where he was blown away by the PMC sound at the first listen. This spawned the start of his PMC career, which has blossomed over the past decade, and seen him hop across the Atlantic several times, boosting the profile of both the pro-audio and hi-fi sides of the business. In the company’s 20th anniversary year, the Professional Monitor Company has also partnered with Prism Sound and Maselec. PSNE talks to Patist at New York’s AES Convention… Your work with PMC has spanned more than 10 years… “Yes. I worked with the product initially in the Netherlands in 2000. I got roped into that after I heard the speakers when working in a studio and thought ‘What the hell is this?’ I loved the sound. The next day, the Dutch distributor was there and liked what I did, so asked if I would join him on a couple of projects; and we started to sell a lot of PMC monitors in Holland. “It came to the attention of [PMC co-founder] Peter Thomas and he was happy with the growth there, so I ended up working in the UK, immersing myself in what PMC is, going to the factory, building a speaker, and making trips to Metropolis [Studios, in Chiswick, London, a big client of PMC]. Then at the end of 2001,
I decided to leave Holland with my wife and move to Ireland. I assumed that would be that, but PMC thought this was pretty good news as the company needed a European sales manager. So that’s what I became, until 2004, when Peter asked me to come over to the US and give some advice. After a few visits there, I knew we had to either shut it down or do things differently, as it’s such a different market. I got the call a couple of weeks later saying: ‘Fancy Southern California for three months?’” And that became three years, right? “Yes. I stayed there until the end of 2007, but I was on the road as well, and it all became too much, so I moved back to Ireland to be close to the family. I still found myself spending most of my time in the US, so it became clear that we needed someone to run the whole US operation.” So, back to America again…! “Yep! In September 2010, just after we built our new house in Ireland we moved back…” Ouch, bad timing! How difficult is it to bring a UK brand to the US? “Well, PMC is admired in the US, because it’s all hand-built and designed by ourselves, so that helps, especially as the tendency over the past six to eight years has been to build in China. It’s all about subtleties in the UK, but in the US, you really need to push your message into peoples’
this fitted within the timeline of what we had in mind for our new products. For the first time, we launched multiple products simultaneously. The Twenty Series features four different domestic speakers: two standmounts and two floor standards, which are a step up from our current I Series. We have also shaped our transmission line [an internal ‘pipe’ that boosts bass frequencies, very much Pete Thomas’ trademark] into a more modern design for the speaker, and the look and feel that comes with that. It’s a new step for us and it’s about the looks as well as the sound.” Could an engineer use a set of your hi-fi speakers as studio monitors? “Yes. That’s actually how it all started for us, with the FB1, a ‘stretched limo’ version of our nearfield TB2 monitor, which has the same drive units. But the thing with the hi-fi market is that at the really high end, it’s all about personal
“It’s all about subtleties in the UK, but in the US, you really need to push your message into peoples’ faces, and have the confidence to say: ‘I don’t care what products you’re going to bring, I would love to put it right beside mine, and then we’ll talk’” PMC partnered with Prism Sound in January, and then Maselec joined forces in June. Can you explain how this working relationship came about? “Yes, PMC has worked a lot with Prism Sound; we ended up giving each other leads and working in the same studios, so eventually we decided the natural move was to put that together. I am still Maurice from PMC, but we are at that level where they see us together all the time. The New Jersey office of Prism Sound ended up being merged with the Irvine office in PMC USA, which means there is an east and west coast presence, which is pretty smart; and with Prism Sound also comes SADiE, so that works really nicely too. “Prism also had a great deal going with Maselec, so after a few discussions, I suggested we should have them in the group too, so we now have an incredibly high-end offering, and the beauty is, it’s all British products!” Let’s talk about the 20th Anniversary Gala, which was held at the British Music Experience at the the O2, and your new Twenty Series speakers… “It was fantastic. We invited the press and our worldwide distributors over to celebrate, and
taste instead of definitive quality, information and reality, which is what we deal with in the studio. You can’t argue about the responses and the distortion and all the things our speakers will deliver, but different models might be too confrontational for certain people.” Do you think today’s studio monitors tend to have more coloration now than they did in the days of, say, the Yamaha NS10? “I am amazed constantly by the coloration that comes out of so many monitors, to be honest. It’s something Peter [Thomas] has always avoided. We provide low distortion and the best bass response possible at any volume; a speaker is a tool for an engineer, and there are many designs out there that will change when you turn them up – but that’s like working in the dark. “Yes, a speaker will always be a compromise, but we try to find a compromise in the areas that do the least harm. When we look at our turnover and client base, we must be doing something right; and we want to give people as much information as possible, whether you like the message or not. People buy our products and are happy to endorse them. How much better does it get?” Q www.pmc-speakers.com
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