MONDO-DR 34-4

PALACE NIGHTCLUBS AMPS & PROCESSORS

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MONDO-DR 34.4

MAY / JUNE 2024

ON THE COVER Palace, Miami Beach

Photo courtesy of Palace, Miami Beach.

EDITOR

Todd Staszko t.staszko@mondiale.co.uk

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Daisy Thorogood d.thorogood@mondiale.co.uk

SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER

Laura Iles l.iles@mondiale.co.uk

ACCOUNT MANAGER

Cameron Crawford c.crawford@mondiale.co.uk

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Katie Williams k.williams@mondiale.co.uk

MARKETING & EVENTS MANAGER Alice Clarke a.clarke@mondiale.co.uk

DESIGN & PRODUCTION

Mel Capper, Jez Reid, Dan Seaton

DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER

James Robertson j.robertson@mondiale.co.uk

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Peter Iantorno p.iantorno@mondiale.co.uk

CEO Justin Gawne j.gawne@mondiale.co.uk

FINANCE DIRECTOR Amanda Giles a.giles@mondiale.co.uk

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GROUP CHAIRMAN Damian Walsh

MONDIALE PUBLISHING

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FROM THE EDITOR...

It’s been a busy few weeks for the team as we prepare for this year’s MONDODR Awards. We’ve had a record number of entries, and we can’t wait to reveal the winners at the ceremony on 12 June in Las Vegas. This is another mammoth edition with articles on venues from around the world, including Egypt, India and Brazil. Gracing the cover is Palace in Miami Beach, a widely-celebrated establishment within the LGBTQ+ community and beyond, and we’re thrilled to discuss its audio overhaul and highlight the project in this issue, which falls during Pride Month. Elsewhere, I find out how I.M.P. Concerts paid homage to the famous 9:30 Club – the breeding ground for many a Washington D.C. punk band in the 1980s – with the newly built Atlantis, while Daisy does a deep dive into the expansion of the Wake the Tiger immersive attraction in Bristol.

As fate would have it, we take a closer look at three venues in our home city of Manchester as Chaos Karts, Sexy Fish and Printworks all feature intricate installation work – look out for the Manchester Bee icon on those pages. We speak to Celestion Managing Director Nigel Wood as he looks back on 100 years of technological progress at the company, and how it is well placed for another 100 years of success. The Venue Report sees Nightclubs come under the spotlight, and there is a bumper Product Guide on Amps and Audio Processors.

Enjoy the issue and we look forward to seeing you in Vegas…

TODD STASZKO EDITOR

mondo@mondiale.co.uk www.mondodr.com www.mondodrawards.com

Printed by Buxton Press, Palace Road, Buxton, UK

IN THIS ISSUE...

Expert is an award-winning architectural lighting control system from Pharos. The Expert Touch mobile app delivers Expert touchscreen interfaces to any device on your WiFi network.

• Easily control Expert from any mobile device

• Access colour, intensity and scene recall from your phone or tablet

Expert makes light of it.

• Available to download from the major app stores

IN BRIEF

Christopher Bauder favours MDG for autobiographical installation VEKTOR

Photo: Ralph Larmann

German light artist, Christopher Bauder, has chosen MDG ATMe haze generators and Me2 fog machines as the foundation of VEKTOR Memories in Light & Sound, his third installation at Berlin’s Kraftwerk, an old power plant-turnedart gallery in Berlin.

The new artwork consists of 50 lasers mounted on ten evenly spaced, heavy-lift winches specifically developed by Kinetic Lights which synchronise movement of all the lasers.

As with any laser show, good haze is paramount to reveal the work of the artist to its full extent, and Bauder uses MDG hazer generators and fog machines whenever possible to create the ‘right’ atmosphere for his pieces.

“The visibility of the light is important as I use light in an architectural sense, like a material that I can shape and form in space into a tangible form that almost feels touchable,” stated Bauder.

“When looking for the perfect haze there are two aspects to take into consideration – translucence and visibility, and it’s a really fine balance between the two, and MDG haze delivers that balance.”

The space is 100m by 60m and 25m tall, and is naturally dark on two levels, and two MDG ATMe hazer generators, and two Me2 fog machines run at intervals, to fill the atmosphere. The two ATMes are located at each end of the hall, and the two Me2 fog machines are in opposite corners.

“At the start of the day we run the Me2 fog machines for about 10-15 minutes to quickly fill the space and introduce enough texture. Then we have the ATMes running on 100% for the rest of the day, with two of MDG theFAN to aid circulation, which keep the stability of the amount of haze for the rest of the day and maintain the visibility. Even running at 100% we only use about 20% of the fluid and gas compared to the systems we’ve used in the past.”

Each MDG ATMe, with theFAN, is housed with gas and fluid in purpose-built MDG Vertical Flight Cases for convenience, storage and transportability. The supplier was cast C. Adolph & RST Distribution, MDG’s exclusive distributor for Germany. www.mdgfog.com

IN BRIEF

Innosonix powers audio experience at latest Flyover venues.

Flyover Attractions, known for transporting guests to the planet’s most epic places through exhilarating flying journeys, is taking its commitment to excellence to new heights with the installation of multi-channel amplifiers from Innosonix in their latest locations in Las Vegas and Chicago, as well as retro-fitting them in their original venue in Vancouver, Canada.

This new project aims to elevate the sensory experience by allowing visitors to dip, dive and glide over awe-inspiring landscapes from the comfort of their seats, enhanced by crystal-clear audio and dynamic soundscapes.

Flyover’s application sees multiple amplifier channels used to individually drive a large number of JBL Control 23 speakers which are located behind the seats in each of the ride’s vehicles to provide a near-field accompaniment to the big screen visuals. Each one of these vehicles has between five and ten seats, with each seat receiving audio from a pair of speakers, and with an amplifier channel dedicated to each speaker. Given that these numbers stack up fairly quickly, to complete the total specification, Flyover Attraction’s Global Director, Construction and Entertainment Technology, Eric Sambell opted for the 24-channel MA24/LP² and 24-channel MA24/D² MAXX series models from Innosonix.

The LP² 1U offering is capable of delivering 50 watts per channel at 4 ohms, the D² 2U offering is capable of delivering 280 watts per channel at 4 ohms. Both space-saving models have comprehensive onboard DSP.

“There are plenty of sub-100W amplifiers out there, but very few with more than four or eight channels,” said Sambell. “For us it was as much about the simplicity of only needing one device for each ride vehicle, thereby avoiding additional signal and power distribution, and also being easily rack mountable.”

The built-in Dante interface and the per channel level and DSP, combined with the high-power density and compact form factor made the MAXX series amplifiers ideally suited for Flyover’s application. www.innosonix.de

Photo: In Colour Studios

IN BRIEF

Large addition of Robe Spiiders for the Taipei Performing Arts Centre.

The Taipei Performing Arts Centre (TPAC) contains three world class performance spaces – The Grand Theatre, the Globe Playhouse, and the Blue Box, and has recently invested in 40 Robe Spiider LED wash beam luminaires to help its production team light an array different of events staged across the venue.

Production values are high on the agenda at TPAC which has around 150 full time employees, a third of whom work across assorted technical disciplines, including TPAC Senior Technical Officer Yi-Ming Liu (AKA “Birdie”), who explained that Robe’s Spiider was “the most powerful and efficient solution with the best range of authentic colour temperature whites and optimal energy savings for all types of production design.”

Sustainability was a major consideration when choosing these moving lights, as well as multi-functionality, and this was the basis for them seeking out the best option LED washes. After careful deliberation, Birdie and the team decided that Robe’s refined LED engine offered the longevity they wanted as well as being the smallest, lightest and neatest units to service their needs.

The Spiiders, delivered via Robe’s Asia Pacific subsidiary in Singapore, arranged by local Taiwan dealer DLHG run by Jackson Yu, will be used in all three performance spaces. Some of the crew travelled to Robe’s factory in Czech Republic to see the production process, further in depth demonstrations, and to receive hands-on maintenance training. “We were all impressed with the quality control and the whole set up at the factory,” stated Birdie. “So many of Robe’s ranges have been properly designed and finessed with theatrical performance in mind.”

TPAC does not have in-house LDs but works with freelancers who are commissioned to light their own productions on a per-project basis, and are primarily from Taiwan. International and touring productions will often bring their own designers or lighting directors.

“We needed a brand of moving lights known and respected internationally,” said Birdie, “and Robe ticked that box.” www.robe.cz

Pictured (left to right): Members of TPAC’s technical department team, YiMing Liu, Achun Kao (both Senior Technical Officers), Pang-Yan Lis (Assistant Manager, Head of Lighting), Kim Lin (Senior Technical Officer) and Ting-Nan Chen (Senior Technical Associate). Photos by Louise Stickland.

MAY

MAY 21-23

INTEGRATE / CABSAT DUBAI, UAE www.integrate.me

MAY 21-24

KOBA SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA www.kobashow.com

MAY 23-26

PROLIGHT + SOUND GUANGZHOU, CHINA www.prolight-sound-guangzhou.hk.messefrankfurt.com

JUN 5-6 JUN 12 JUN 12 - 14

ABTT THEATRE SHOW LONDON, UK www.abtt.org.uk

MONDO-DR AWARDS LAS VEGAS, USA mondodrawards.com

INFOCOMM LAS VEGAS, USA www.infocommshow.org

MAY 30-June 1

PALM EXPO AV-ICN MUMBAI, INDIA www.palmexpo.in

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT EXPO TOKYO, JAPAN www.event-week.jp/en-gb/about/live.html

PLASA LONDON, UK www.plasashow.com

INFOCOMM ASIA BANGKOK THAILAND www.infocomm-sea.com

INFOCOMM INDIA MUMBAI, INDIA www.infocomm-india.com

IBC AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS www.show.ibc.org

INTEGRATE SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA www.Integrate-expo.com

EXPOLATAM.TECH CANCUN, MEXICO www.expolatam.tech

NIGHTCLUBS

Upgrades and enhancements in nightclubs across the globe.

LIV

COMPANY: Ayrton

LOCATION: Las Vegas, USA

With its expansion to the famed Strip, Fontainebleau Las Vegas has launched LIV Las Vegas, the city’s newest nightlife destination, which Lighting Designer Stephen Lieberman has illuminated with an array of Ayrton fixtures controlled by a grandMA3 light console.

Fontainebleau Las Vegas brings a new era of luxury hospitality to the Strip and promises a night like no other at its LIV Las Vegas nightclub. The LIV brand from Groot Hospitality was born at the iconic Fontainebleau Miami in 2008. Now, its 50,000 sq ft counterpart in Las Vegas delivers high-energy, A-list entertainment to that city’s clubgoers making its 2,000 guests feel in the middle of the action. Lieberman, who is President of LA-area SJ Lighting, which specialises in production systems for nightlife and hospitality, already had designed the lighting for LIV Miami when his firm was hired to design and develop the theatrical system for LIV Las Vegas. His team worked in collaboration with BWA Architects, Rockwell Group interior designers and Sound Investment AV audio designers. “One of the challenges was having all the designers come together from different cities and make everything look coordinated – that’s as daunting a task as the actual design work,” explained Lieberman. “The theatrical lighting needed to include hybrid fixtures, wash lights to balance the look, strobes, LED strip lights, lasers and LED video panels with a high level of automation.

“The space is very fluid with a very clean layout and great sight lines: You’re able to do a lap around the first floor and second-level mezzanine and not get stuck in a dead end,” he continued. “Whether you are at a table or a bar, you’re an active participant in the show, and we did our best to make the experience as immersive as possible.”

The interior has soft, curved radial lines with an hourglass-shaped ceiling feature composed of two connected ellipses that move up and down.

Another ellipse encloses six-part LED video panels, which also move up and down. “There’s a lot of motion over the dance floor for a very animated environment,” Lieberman noted. Tables surround the dance floor and the mezzanine with bars left and right. The central DJ booth has enough counter space in front to serve as

a performance stage, while coveted VIP tables are inside the booth. Having had “good success with Ayrton Diablos in the past” Lieberman decided to use them at LIV Las Vegas. “We love their clean optics and nice aesthetic, and they have the right feature set,” he reported. A total of 44 Diablos do the heavy lifting throughout the space, providing clean, even coverage from positions in the automated ellipses and under the mezzanine where they create layers of light.

The Diablos are supported by 48 Ayrton MagicDot SX luminaires. “We wanted to stay with the same manufacturer for the moving lights for ease of coordination,” said Lieberman. “The MagicDots are compact, bright washes with zoom capabilities, and their 360° pan and tilt is an added feature for the rig.”

Six Ayrton Levantes are mounted near the stage for special looks and key lighting for the DJs and performers. “The Levantes were new to us, but when you build spaces like this having the right equipment for specials is critical,” he said. “Levantes have enough firepower, even when they’re throttled back, to cut through video and other lighting. They do exactly what we need them to do.”

ACT Entertainment is the exclusive distributor of Ayrton and MA Lighting products in North America, and Lieberman noted that his company’s close relationship with them was a big factor in his use of Ayrton fixtures for the project. “It’s important to us to not only choose quality equipment but also to have people who stand behind it supporting the gear, and having ACT behind the Ayrton line meant a lot to us,” he said. A grandMA3 light console controls lighting from a position in the DJ booth, and is interconnected with the video and automation control systems.

“I’ve been using grandMA since the original version back in 2001, and we’re running grandMA3 in clubs now,” Lieberman reported. “The light’s smaller footprint is key where space is at a premium. We programmed the system and trained the staff, and we like to think we have a good philosophy of how to lay out the console intuitively in terms of what’s important to the operator. Within 48 hours the in-house operators felt very comfortable with the system.”

www.ayrton.com

Voltaire

COMPANY: Elation Lighting

LOCATION: Las Vegas, USA

When the spectacular Sphere opened last autumn to resounding acclaim at the Venetian Resort Las Vegas, another eye-opening yet distinctly intimate entertainment venue made its debut at the same resort, Voltaire. Presented as an entirely new kind of entertainment space, Voltaire features architectural and theatrical lighting by renowned design studio Lightswitch, with Elation luminaires playing an essential role in crafting its unique atmosphere.

“I think it’s interesting to compare and contrast those two modalities, two totally different experiences and two ways of thinking about entertainment,” Lightswitch Principal John Featherstone said of Sphere and Voltaire. “Both venues offer experiences pushed to the extremes, one a massive edifice of technology that immerses you in a grand experience, and the other a beautiful, small, intimate space that offers a remarkably personal experience.” There is a need for both, he emphasised, so that people can curate the kind of experience they want.

Lightswitch was brought to the project by award-winning environmental and scenic designer Derek McLane, a frequent Lightswitch collaborator.

Lightswitch curated a one-of-a-kind aesthetic for Voltaire, drawing upon the company’s expertise in architectural lighting design, theatrical system design, and entertainment creation. Norm Schwab, Principal at Lightswitch’s San Francisco office, collaborated with Featherstone on the cross-disciplinary project.

Voltaire is fashionably chic. Guests are enveloped in an opulent, artdeco-inspired ambiance, complete with plush furnishings and reflective surfaces, creating an irresistibly cozy environment. A runway with satellite stage and wrap-around audience add to the immersive design that, according to Featherstone, is about “being in something rather than watching something.”

Emphasising flexibility and variety, entertainment impresario and Voltaire creator Michael Gruber envisioned a repertory-style venue

accommodating diverse artists and performances. Conceived as an immersive environmental experience, Voltaire hosts a dynamic range of performances, offering a pre-party, show, and after-party all within the same space.

Lightswitch acted as a one-stop-shop for lighting creative, providing architectural lighting design for the core space, as well as a theatrical lighting system for headline acts and Voltaire’s Belle de Nuit house show, a captivating cabaret-type performance of dance, couture and acrobatics. Lightswitch designed a rig that features the versatile Elation Fuze Max Profile LED moving head as the cornerstone fixture, transitioning seamlessly between theatrical productions and concertstyle performances. Housing a full-spectrum RGBMA LED engine and 21,000-lumens of power, the Fuze Max Profile rivals 1000W/1200W class discharge fixtures. It houses a motorised zoom and comprehensive FX package including a full blackout framing system.

“It ticks the boxes for a fixture that works very well with the theatrical modality and a show like Belle de Nuit,” said Featherstone. “It also has the capabilities to be a workhorse fixture for the more rock-concert-like artists.” Additionally, Elation Chorus Line batten fixtures were embedded within Derek McLane’s striking proscenium design, selected for their high output and automated capabilities. 4Wall served as lighting vendor and integrator on the project.

In contrast to traditional concert shows, the intimate venue allows artists to invite guests into a dynamic and immersive piece of art. Pop sensation Kylie Minogue was the first headliner to grace the stage at Voltaire with Christina Aguilera also performing regularly. Lightswitch collaborated with the Kylie and Christina teams, led by Rob Sinclair and Bryan Klunder respectively, to ensure they had everything they needed to execute their visions. www.elationlighting.com

Tipsy Unicorn

COMPANY: HARMAN Professional Solutions

LOCATION: Singapore

Ambitious beach club Tipsy Unicorn is the only venue of its kind on the island of Sentosa to host live bands, and boasts impeccable sound quality thanks to a new JBL sound system, designed and installed by Electronics & Engineering Pte (E&E).

Utilising products from the HARMAN Professional Solutions portfolio for sound and lighting solutions across the venue, E&E selected JBL VTX A12 line array loudspeakers and B28 subwoofers for the venue’s outdoor stage, complemented by a selection of AWC and AE series loudspeakers for indoor areas, while Martin Professional products are used for both architectural and entertainment lighting needs throughout the 19,000 sq ft venue.

“Tipsy Unicorn is located next to a hotel and there were concerns that there would be sound pollution and disturbances,” said Gary Goh, CEO at E&E. “We took this into account in the design of the sound system, and the line arrays were specifically used to make sure that the sound was directed towards the beach and the audience.

“We had complete confidence in the products from HARMAN Professional, which consisted of JBL pro speakers, Crown amplifiers, and BSS DSP.”

The audio system was completed by Allen & Heath SQ Mixers and Shure ULXD wireless microphone systems to facilitate the venue with the capacity to hold events of different scales both indoor and outdoor.

E&E were also tasked with supplying a venue-wide video solution, with Unilumen LED video walls specifically built for the project, including nonstandard shaped panels adorning the DJ booth on the stage.

“This is the first beach club of this scale in Singapore, and it was a great experience working with the owners at Tipsy Collective to help them achieve their vision,” concluded Goh. www.pro.harman.com

Amnesia

COMPANY: KV2 Audio

LOCATION: Ibiza, Spain

Amnesia is perhaps Ibiza’s most iconic club and has a global reputation to match. First opened in 1976, Amnesia has been voted Best Global Club no fewer than four times and is never far from the top five of DJ Magazine’s Top 100 Clubs list.

This year its ratings have taken yet another boost with the inauguration of a brand new, state-of-the-art KV2 Audio sound system. Billed as ‘the most advanced sound system in the world,’ the new system is housed in the bigger of the 4000-capacity club’s two spaces, the Terrace.

The KV2 system replaces a bespoke sound system that had served the venue well for the last decade but was starting to show its age. The club’s owners decided that the time had come to upgrade. Already familiar with the quality of the KV2 audio experience thanks to the system already installed in another of their venues, Cova Santa, the decision was as good as made.

The brief was simple – the owners wanted the best club sound on the island. Designed by the team from KV2 Audio’s German office in Berlin with the cooperation of Johannes Kraemer, the system is based around eight of KV2’s ultra-slim, high-power, 3-way active SL412s coupled with twelve VHD2.18J subs from the company’s flagship VHD range.

The VHD2.18J is a direct radiating bass-reflex speaker containing two high-performance 18” transducers designed to withstand extremely high-power levels. KV2’s unique SLA technology delivers unprecedented levels of dynamic range, ultra-low distortion, extreme clarity and, crucially, unparalleled definition over distance.

Kraemer said: “My intention was to give Amnesia’s technicians a versatile tool that allows them to run shows in three directions depending on where the DJ is situated, either at the front, back or side of the room.

I programmed a solution where they can do that simply by recalling a scene from the desk. Also, each VIP zone can be controlled individually.”

“Another intention was to design a system that can deliver a variety of different sound experiences, ranging from hyper-loud, to clean

analytical, right through to bass-heavy Detroit style. Also, a perfectly time-aligned sound design suitable for bands is possible when the top speakers are switched to delay line mode. In other words, the system is flexible enough to cater for anything Amnesia wants to do.”

Amnesia’s regular and resident DJs have noticed the difference: DJ CAAL agreed: “It’s the perfect sound system for our Terrace. I love to be able to listen to music in its purest state, from low to high frequencies, without any processes altering the sound. That is exactly what KV2 delivers.”

The DJ booth has also been given the KV2 treatment with two full-range, 3-way ESR212s combined with a pair of VHD2.18J subs. An ESR system also resides in the VIP area. This time the larger ESR215s - the ultimate full-range 3-way system with a wide 110-degree horizontal dispersion –replace the need for separate subwoofers to deliver a high-quality audio experience in more intimate surroundings.

“There are far too many disappointing or average audio experiences these days, so it has been really refreshing to work with the Amnesia team who genuinely care, truly understand and completely appreciate the KV2 difference in delivering something new and exceptional for Ibiza,” said George Krampera Junior, CEO at KV2 Audio.

“Our revolutionary technologies allow Club and Dance music to be presented in a way previously not experienced,” he continued. “The lowest distortion levels on the planet and the highest dynamics allow every nuance of a DJ’s mix to be delivered, absorbed, understood and enjoyed. The concept of audiences staying longer in areas of high SPLs without ear fatigue or ‘ringing ears’ offers an amazing clubbing experience and, most importantly, it makes everybody smile. We’re very proud that we’ve been able to achieve that in Amnesia, one of the highest profile clubs in the world, and that they are happy with the results.”

www.kv2audio.com

Theatro Marrakech

COMPANY: L-Acoustics

LOCATION: Marrakech, Morocco

When Theatro Marrakech opened its doors in 2003, it was the first nightclub in Morocco, and today, the 2,000-capacity venue still stages one of the most unique nightlife experiences in the world. Its consistent ranking as the best nightclub in Morocco, the best in Africa and one of the globe’s Top 50 has cemented the venue on the bucket list of travellers and artists alike. Before becoming a nightlife hotspot, Theatro was Africa’s first music hall, inaugurated over 60 years ago, and from this past, the club has kept both its unique décor – a mix of dramatic theatrical and dynamic Moroccan themes – and an immoderate taste for show.

The venue recently upgraded to a premium L-Acoustics K2 sound system. Inspired by a visit to Omnia Las Vegas and its L-Acoustics professional sound system, Theatro management worked with renowned Paris-based nightclub consultant Timothée Renard of the Fox Agency and L-Acoustics Certified Provider Integrator Potar Hurlant for the upgrade. “Our main objective was to integrate a rider-ready sound system to attract internationally acclaimed artists and provide a unique experience for all of our clubbers, from the main floor to the intimate VIP areas,” commented Renard. Renard and the POTAR team, with the support of L-Acoustics Application Engineer Pascal Charousset, created a unique sound design for each section of the space: the central dance floor, a mezzanine, an ultra-VIP lounge facing the dance floor, and a mini-VIP zone just behind the DJ booth. The main dancefloor and an upper balcony are covered by an L/R

system of six K2 per side with four KS28 in cardioid configuration flown behind each hang, while three flown A15 Wide per side provide in-fill to the main dance floor while two A15 Focus per side are used for side-fill to a podium for performers and dancers.

The DJ booth is flanked with one KS21 per side, topped by two A15 Focus for monitoring. A tiered mini-VIP area behind the DJ booth has an LCR system of three A15 Wide for the upper tier while the lower tier is served by five X8 coaxials. A single KS28 and LR hangs of three A15 Wide cover the dance floor from this area. Fourteen LA12X and three LA4X amplified controllers drive the entire system over Milan-AVB networking.

An ultra-VIP lounge below the balcony has a system of two hangs of one A15 Wide and one A15 Focus in front, with two additional hangs of one A15 Wide in the back corners and a ground-stacked KS28 topped by two KS21 subwoofers. “We wanted to offer an unparalleled experience in the VIP area, creating a profound impact in the low frequency range. Our most esteemed guests deserve nothing less than to feel the music as much as they hear it,” commented Julien Antinoff, Communications Manager at Theatro Marrakech.

“The audio upgrade has received positive feedback from our patrons and artists. Experiencing the new L-Acoustics concert sound system is like stepping into a new dimension of clubbing. The VIP Area, specifically, is a testament to this transformative journey,” concluded Renard.

www.l-acoustics.com

Taste Club

COMPANY: Allen & Heath

LOCATION: Bangkok, Thailand

Taste Club, a popular destination for nightlife enthusiasts in Bangkok, Thailand, upgraded their sound system with the installation of state-of-the-art technology from industry leaders Allen & Heath and Adamson.

Driven by a commitment to setting new standards in entertainment, Taste Club sought an outstanding sound system that would distinguish them from competitors and provide an immersive experience for their patrons. After extensive research and evaluation of various options, they were impressed by professional audio distribution company Sonos Libra’s proposal.

The idea was to have a very high SPL, great intelligibility and uniform coverage while also attaining an easy way to control the sound system. For the speakers, Adamson IS-Series and Point Series products were chosen to provide high-quality sound throughout the venue. To enhance the flexibility and ease-of-use of the system, Allen & Heath’s AHM-16 matrix processor and an SQ-5 compact digital mixer were integrated into Taste Club’s setup. There are four analogue signal runs coming from the DJ Booth into the AHM-16, which offers a 16 by 16 processing matrix and eight by eight local analogue I/O. Allen & Heath’s AHM processors lend themselves to busy spaces with multiple areas such as Taste Club, as the system can be set to automatically adjust how loud each zone is. The AHM-16 processor also boasts Allen & Heath’s 96kHz FPGA Core with sub-millisecond latency, and a variety of simplified control options that don’t require specialised training to use.

The SQ-5 mixer provides 48 input channels with 96kHz processing and was set up to send its outputs to the AHM-16. This means the club’s management can use presets for simple and uncomplicated control, or instead opt for comprehensive in-depth control when required, so they can effortlessly tailor the audio experience to suit different events. This signal flow additionally provides redundancy in case of any hardware failure, ensuring uninterrupted enjoyment for guests.

The meticulous tuning and commissioning of the system were overseen by the expert engineering team at Sonos Libra with a final check from CEO Alfonso Martín, who commented, “This is one of the best sounding clubs in the city, no question.” www.allen-heath.com

Super Gaga & Win Party

COMPANY: APG

LOCATION: Guangdong Province, China

System integrator TR Audio System Solutions has installed APG’s workhorse APG4000 Matrix Array system at two of China’s hottest new nightspots, cementing the French manufacturer’s continued presence within the country’s small to mid-size club market.

Super Gaga, in Maoming, and Win Party, in Yunfu (both cities in TR Audio’s home province of Guangdong), are the latest additions to China’s fastmoving nightlife scene, where new clubs spring up seemingly by the day.

According to Huang Zhao, General Manager of Guangzhou-based TR Audio, APG’s distributor in China, the majority of APG products are well suited to nightclub installations, given their powerful SPL output and enviable evenness of coverage. For mid-sized clubs like Super Gaga and Win Party (both of which occupy an area of around 500 sq m), Zhao typically relies on the APG4000 – an evergreen choice for TR Audio, having been installed previously in similar nightlife venues in Guigang (Open Pie), Baise (PingGuo Boss) and Nanning (another Open Pie club).

“In this segment, most of our projects are based on the APG4000 matrix system, coupled with the TB218S subwoofer,” confirmed Zhao. “At Super Gaga, for example, four 4000HI [speakers] are installed either side of the main DJ station, providing a coverage angle of vertical 30° (vertical) by 120° (horizontal).”

Comprising two individual speakers (4000HI and 4000LO), the APG4000’s modular design offers sound designers, integrators, and installers a huge choice of configurations – from a barebones setup comprising a single 4000HI cabinet to larger, medium- to long-throw configurations for both indoor and outdoor events. The APG4000 additionally benefits from APG’s collinear Matrix Array technology, which provides extremely precise control of horizontal and vertical sound coverage, offering further flexibility, whether on the road or in a permanent installation.

The modular nature of the Matrix Array series is particularly beneficial when venues are undergoing renovation or still under construction, when the space available for speakers and audio equipment might change from one day to the next, added Zhao.

The new nightclubs are the product of significant monetary investment – more than €2 million between them – and it is important for TR Audio that the owners are able to hear for themselves what the Matrix Array system can do. “We understand what our customers need and recommend products that are right for them, and the next step is for them to experience the capabilities of the system first hand,” Zhao explained. In the case of Super Gaga and Win Party, the APG4000 immediately impressed, its clarity, bass impact and even sound field – delicate but not dry, according to one of the clients – effortlessly meeting the demands of the club environment.

“Chinese clubbers, like their counterparts in Europe, deserve the highquality, ultra-clear, floor-shaking audio only APG’s Matrix Array technology can provide,” Zhao concluded. “No other loudspeaker system delivers as much bang for its buck, and we are thrilled to be able to share this experience with the customers of Super Gaga and Win Party.” www.apg.audio

Papillon

COMPANY: d&b audiotechnik

LOCATION: Berlin, Germany

Since 2023, Papillon has been elevating the Berlin scene with its exclusive dinner and dance experience. Situated close to the Zoologischer Garten, the restaurant offers discerning diners not only exquisite cuisine but also a premium sound experience. Thanks to d&b’s world-class sound system, the restaurant transforms seamlessly into a vibrant party venue after the kitchen closes. The sound system was designed by TSE AG and installed by Elektroakustik Neuenhagen.

Spread over 640 sq m, Papillon features a restaurant area as well as a 15m-long bar and lounge. Both the bar and restaurant have DJ booths equipped with professional equipment for resident DJs and visiting turntable artists. The sound system sets a new standard for professionalism, with surprising dimensions and features for a restaurant environment. Thirty ultra-compact d&b 44S two-way loudspeakers are strategically placed throughout the interior to provide optimum coverage. Concealed in the decorative corridor and lobby, the 44S loudspeakers provide targeted sound reinforcement.

Complementing the 44S are four 10S high-performance loudspeakers. For deep bass, a combination of compact B8 and B6 subwoofers are purposefully positioned on the floor near the DJ booths, with some mounted on the ceiling. The d&b systems are powered by six D40 four-channel amplifiers and three 5D installation amplifiers in half-rack format.

Control is streamlined via an Apple iPad mounted on a wall bracket in the catering area.

As well as the outstanding sound, the 44S loudspeaker system impressed both operators and the architect with its compact design. The 44S would have been perfectly adequate for use in the restaurant alone, but for an optimum evening experience more power was required, which explains the addition of the larger 10S and the powerful subwoofers. As far as party levels are concerned, there are no problems with the neighbourhood after 10pm at Bahnhof Zoo – there are simply no nearby residents to complain about their sleep being disturbed.

Friederike Brandts, co-owner of Papillon with her husband Felix, reflected on their decision to set up shop in this vibrant location. “When we discovered this location, it was just two empty S-Bahn arches and an equally empty square extension,” she explained. “We were drawn to the area around Bahnhof Zoo, as opposed to the typical A locations on Kurfürstendamm, which often come with exorbitant rents.”

The restaurant acquired the loudspeaker systems through d&b’s Subscription Series – a model that allows d&b audiotechnik to lease the sound system to Papillon for four

years, with TSE AG providing the service. In return for a fixed monthly fee, Papillon enjoys access to the high-quality sound system, including system commissioning, remote monitoring and comprehensive service, allowing the owners to concentrate solely on providing a unique dining and dancing experience for their guests.

“Later in the evening, guests naturally tend to dance throughout the restaurant; there’s no designated dancefloor at Papillon. We do, however, refrain from moving tables when the DJ set starts at 11pm,” explained Brandts. “The weekdays are usually geared towards dining, but on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays it’s all about the party!

“The sound has always been important to my husband and me - it should be less than in a typical club, but also much more than in a traditional restaurant,” she concluded. “With d&b systems, we’ve found a solution that perfectly matches our vision. Today, Papillon has a sound that exceeds our initial expectations. The even distribution of sound throughout the venue means that people no longer gather around the DJ booths late into the night. From an operational point of view, this translates into sustained revenue in the restaurant area after 11pm, as guests stay close to their seats.” www.dbaudio.com

Toy Room Malta

COMPANY: Funktion-One

LOCATION: St. Julian’s, Malta

Launched by owner/operators MedAsia in 2023, Toy Room Malta opened with bold ambitions to elevate the country as a global clubbing destination for jet-setting partygoers and clued-up local revellers. Embedded deep in its DNA is a requirement for world-class audio.

“The sound is an essential element of the Toy Room experience,” said MedAsia’s Owner Darren Casha. “I wanted to achieve the highest audio quality level possible and knew that Funktion-One could rise to the challenge.”

Toy Room is located at the Paceville address as the legendary Axis Discotheque, which closed down back in 2013. The space went on to become a retail operation before undergoing another significant rebirth as a glittering attraction in Malta’s nocturnal landscape. Since it reopened last year, Tinie Tempah and Switch OTR are among the global stars to have taken to its stage. Weekends typically feature resident DJs playing the latest house, techno and club sounds. Futuretech, Funktion-One’s distributor for Malta, designed and installed the sound system, as well as the dynamic lighting and LED displays in three different spaces: a main dancefloor area, the VIP and the VVIP. Each is equipped with Funktion-One sound systems that are custom designed for the space. The main room system has been designed using Funktion-One’s Evolution X, F124 bass, PSM318 DJ monitors and F101.2 in fills. In the VIP area Evolution X, BR218 and F101.2 feature, while in the VVIP has an F101.2 and BR218 system. Music is networked from the main dancefloor into these additional rooms.

“The main dance floor has great proportions for implementing a crossstereo, four-point system, utilising an Evolution X in each corner, and their high output with 90 degrees of horizontal dispersion makes them ideal for this sized space,” said Mike Igglesden, Funktion-One Technical Design Engineer. “For bass, four F124 are installed into the front of the

DJ booth, providing deep low frequency extension directly into the heart of the dancefloor. The main VIP area has a stereo pair of Evolution X to match the feel of the dancefloor.”

Stefan Farrugia, Futuretech’s Owner, said: “We are delighted to have played a part in Toy Room, the biggest project we’ve ever worked on in Malta with sound, light and LEDs. Funktion-One’s Evolution X far exceeded our expectations in the space, sounding much better and bigger than its size first suggests.”

Futuretech has established a reputation for high quality sound installations, having worked on several other MedAsia projects, including Bora Bora and MedAsia Playa, while also devising systems for venues such as Cafe del Mar Malta, Havana Club, Hive and many more.

Since it opened, Toy Room’s weekly Fridays and Saturdays have seen Frank, the brand mascot, hosting events and playing everything from hip hop to reggaeton. The programmers have also nodded to the venue’s previous incarnation as Axis by welcoming back some of the original DJs including Rob Dowling, Paul Camilleri and J Joy. It is this astute booking which is ensuring Toy Room Malta matches up to its sister spaces in London, Dubai, Istanbul, Rome, Mykonos and Delhi, and their reputation for great parties.

Casha says that the combination of Funktion-One sound and the latest industry knowledge from Futuretech is offering clubbers in Malta an exciting new landscape.

“The sound is crystal clear with plenty of power when needed,” he concluded. “It’s exactly what I wanted, and working with Futuretech gives me peace of mind too. They’re very knowledgeable and always there to support us when needed. I’m looking forward to what comes next for Toy Room.”

www.funktion-one.com

Potato Head

COMPANY: 1 SOUND LOCATION: Bali, Indonesia

The original Potato Head eatery in Jakarta was created with the mission of “Good times, Do Good,” innovating through design, sustainability, and cuisine. Since it has been ever-evolving, Desa Potato Head opened in Bali, Indonesia as an outpost five-star hotel comprised of restaurants, a beach club with renowned DJs every day and night, and curated entertainment. It is now one of the most iconic and notable venues on the island. Potato Head decided to upgrade their beach club audio system and came to Sontastic for the design and installation. Ian Johansson, CEO of Sontastic, was excited about this opportunity knowing that 1 SOUND, which was recently made available to him, was the perfect audio solution for this outdoor, versatile venue. 1 SOUND loudspeakers were used for the entire distributed system, which included the upper-level dining indoor/outdoor space, main dancefloor and bar, the lawn with daybeds, and the beachfront pool. The goal of the audio was to have a high-quality sounding, durable, and power-efficient sound system that can handle daily DJs, 10am until 2am, while not creating noise pollution for the neighboring hotels or beach. This installation consisted of around 60 loudspeakers all built with stainless steel 316 A4 hardware and accessories. For the seated dining areas on the upper level and under the overhang, Cannon C5 coaxials were deployed for music. These Cannons have an extended low-frequency response, so bass is heard and depicted, resulting in the design not requiring subwoofers in those dining areas. For the main bar and dancefloor area with VIP tables, two Contour CT212 and SUB2112 systems were deployed, utilising the Contour Rigging

System. This five-way system is capable of 145 max SPL, delivering club impact with a lack of distortion at high volumes, which lessens ear fatigue over time. The smaller, but still just as loud Contour, the CT28, is distributed in the rest of space, mounted and aimed from the ceiling in a horizontal deployment as well as off columns in a vertical deployment using the CT28 Horizontal Bracket and the CT28 Wall Bracket. These are supported by additional SUB2112s. Transitioning from the openconcept building out to the lawn full of daybeds are clusters of two CT28s and a SUB310 providing a long throw for the lawn. Seating by the beach and pool are supported with cardioid Tower LCC44s, SUB310s, and Cannon C6s. Sontastic was able to mount these loudspeakers to the palm trees creating mounts without disrupting the trees. The swim-up pool bar deployed Cannon C4 marine loudspeakers. The main challenge of this project was the humid and rainy weather conditions in Bali. Johnanson worked with 1 SOUND to make sure that every loudspeaker could be made with stainless steel hardware and accessories. Since 1 SOUND is a newer loudspeaker brand that is still building its catalogue, the company was able to push along the process of offering every loudspeaker it makes in a marine version, consisting of stainless steel 316 A4 hardware, specifically for installations like this. Aside from robust and durable qualities of the loudspeaker installation, Sontastic managed to produce an audio design that is now more distributed with an impactful sound and unprecedented lack of distortion at high SPL, while not polluting the beach or neighboring hotels. www.1-sound.com

SAOKO

COMPANY: Equipson

LOCATION: Huelva, Spain

Spanish AV company Project Sound recently completed a prestigious sound and lighting installation at SAOKO, a new nightclub in Huelva, Southern Spain, deploying solutions from Equipson to make the project a resounding success.

“I was on vacation in California when this job came through,” said Project Sound Director, Manuel Cardenas. “My client sent me the plans and entrusted me with the club’s entire sound and lighting installation. He didn’t give us any technical summary of what was wanted. He trusted us 100% with all aspects of the job and allowed himself to be always advised. In turn, we trusted Equipson because we have used the company’s products on previous installations and have always had a very positive experience in terms of the quality, reliability, and breadth of their product range. After we had made our recommendations, there were no changes during the installation process.” Located in the Aqualon shopping centre complex, SAOKO officially opened at the end of 2022 and has already hosted nights with DJs such as Baste, David Rojas, Mike Morato and Juan Mendoza. According to its own marketing, it offers ‘the best music, the most select atmosphere and a great audio-visual show with a great technical display of lights and sound’.

To deliver this great atmosphere Project Sound installed a wide range product including a powerful WORKPRO ARION Series sound system consisting of six SL 210 A line array powered speakers and six SL 218 SA powered bass woofers. Also installed are four WORKPRO ENTAR 12 passive speakers, six ENTAR 15 passive bass woofers, eight WORKPRO IC8K-PRO ceiling speakers, three WORKPRO ZENITH2500 power amplifiers and one WORKPRO PA240USB/R amplifier that incorporates a five-input mixer for audio control and independent volume control.

The lighting installation includes 20 MARK BEAM201 moving head LED beams; four MARK MOVILED304 moving head LED beams; two MARK MF1500VT fog machines and four MARK FLM200RGBW flash effects. These are all controlled by a LIGHTSHARK LS1 DMX-based hardware lighting console that offers assignable faders, encoders, rotary controls and a separate DMX engine. By combining the versatility of software solutions with the ergonomic interface and ease of use of a hardware console, LIGHTSHARK Lighting Controller range is already winning awards and revolutionising the lighting industry.

“The lighting technician at SAOKO was given training on the LS-1 by our staff and he easily adapted to the system,” Manuel Cardenas commented. “We didn’t need to offer training for the audio equipment because we set it up so that it was ready to use.”

“We know how to adapt to the needs of the client,” Cardenas added. “We are continuously innovating and improving our equipment and action protocols so that every project we undertake has a guarantee of success.” www.equipson.es

De Avenue

COMPANY: ADJ

LOCATION: Breda, the Netherlands

Housed in a former church, which dates back to 1685, De Avenue has been a well-known party destination in the Dutch city of Breda for more than a quarter of a century.

Famous for its dinner cabaret shows, since the venue changed ownership in 2017 it has expanded into a multi-purpose venue which also hosts dance parties, private events, business meetings and weddings across its two separate event spaces.

To cater for this diversity of use, a complete overhaul of the venue’s lighting system has recently been completed, incorporating a variety of different LED-powered fixtures from ADJ’s catalog of both static and automated luminaires.

Having been rescued from imminent closure in 2017 by Rens de Grauw, who had worked as an AV technician at the venue in its previous guise, de Grauw immediately sought to upgrade the venue’s outdated lighting system to make it more efficient and flexible. The first step in this yearslong process was the replacement of the stage lighting in both the larger main room and smaller, more intimate, upstairs space, with de Grauw opting for ADJ’s Encore FR Series of LED-powered Fresnel fixtures, installing four Encore FR150Z units downstairs alongside a pair of the more compact Encore FR50Z variant. Four additional FR50Z fixtures have also been installed in the upstairs theater, while a single Encore Profile Mini WW serves as a center spotlight in the main theater.

Another priority for de Grauw in carrying out the upgrade was to create a versatile system that can be easily adapted to the wide variety of events for which De Avenue now caters, including club nights organised by outside promoters, private parties, weddings, and corporate presentations. The primary automated fixture de Grauw selected was ADJ’s Focus Hybrid, a versatile moving head luminaire capable of

functioning interchangeably as a spot, wash, or beam. In total, 32 Focus Hybrids are installed, with 16 in the roof of the downstairs venue, eight in the upstairs space, and the final eight stored in a flight case to be deployed as required.

In the main room, de Grauw has also incorporated ADJ’s Focus Flex LED wash-zoom into the rig design, with ten units installed; four along the rear of the stage to provide back light and six – hanging in pairs on three trusses above the audience – available to provide additional stage washes, aerial effects or color washing for the dancefloor, as required. De Avenue’s lighting rig also utilises a variety of other ADJ fixtures, in smaller quantities, to cover specific tasks. A pair of Jolt 300 multifunctional fixtures are positioned in the upstairs room, while two of the larger Jolt Panel FX variants are installed downstairs. Four Par Z120 RGBW fixtures, which feature efficient color mixing LEDs housed in a traditional Par 64 enclosure, are utilised as back light on the upstairs stage, while nine more fixtures are rigged to the three overhead trusses in the main room to provide dancefloor color washing.

A pair of 32 HEX Panel IP LED-powered, UV-infused, color mixing wash fixtures are hidden above the stage to provide colorful downlight, while a number of ADJ atmospheric effect fixtures were also installed across the venue, including two Entour Snow units, a pair of VF Snow Flurry HO units and a pair of Fog Fury Jett LED-illuminated vertical fog machines. “I have been using ADJ products since 2011, so I know that they are reliable,” concluded de Grauw. “Also, ADJ fixtures have also become very popular in the Netherlands, and you see them used for many highprofile events, which means that I think no visiting LD to De Avenue will have a problem using them.” www.adj.com

“TO SURVIVE IN ANY INDUSTRY, YOU HAVE TO INNOVATE – YOU CANNOT STAND STILL. AS THE MARKET MOVES FORWARD OR IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS, YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHERE THE MARKET IS GOING, AND ADAPT ACCORDINGLY.”

NIGEL WOOD Managing Director, Celestion

With a history spanning exactly 100 years, Celestion has long been at the forefront of loudspeaker technology, and its name has been synonymous with technological innovation and supreme sound quality with many of today’s most iconic guitar cabinet and PA system manufacturers featuring Celestion speakers at their core.

Managing Director Nigel Wood has been at the helm since 2004 and during his tenure has overseen some changes in the direction of the company, but its essence remains the same as it was back in 1924.

“What I find really interesting about Celestion is that we started making loudspeakers 100 years ago, and all this time later, we’re still doing that – still making loudspeakers,” said Wood. “A lot of companies are 100 years old, but during that period, they’ve evolved into different industries or to do different things. But Celestion has stayed true to its core identity.”

Early Beginnings

Celestion began when former gramophone maker Cyril French and his three brothers founded the Electrical Manufacturing and Plating Company on the outskirts of London.

French was approached by Eric Mackintosh for help improving his invention, one of the earliest cone loudspeakers, and the pair applied for a patent in 1924 for their revolutionary bamboo-reinforced, moving-armature ‘free-vibrating edge’ speaker, which gave birth to a product named The Celestion.

The following year they earned a second patent for an improved design with a clamped edge, ultimately enabling the company to develop a whole range of better-performing radiogram loudspeakers of differing sizes.

Throughout the 1920s as radio came to the fore as a major source of news and entertainment, Celestion saw considerable global expansion, and the Celestion loudspeaker, an ornate cabinet that doubled as furniture, was marketed as ‘The Loud Speaker of Distinction’ met the increasing demand. Then, in 1928, the newly incorporated Celestion Ltd. debuted with its motto: ‘The Very Soul of Music’.

Electronic Music Explosion

The explosion of amplified music performed on electric guitars in the 1950s onwards saw the company pivot in that direction, and throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s that was the primary focus, while more recently professional pro audio and sound reinforcement have become equally important.

“Celestion was there at the birth of rock and roll,” said Wood. “If you look at the classic albums of the Sixties, maybe 90% of them used Celestion speakers somewhere in the mix, and so the electric guitar and our journey from then onwards, working with Vox and Marshall amplifiers, is a really important part of our history, but it is not the whole story.

“It certainly shaped our path, but over recent years professional pro audio and sound reinforcement have become just as important to us as guitar amplification, and as a result our business is totally transformed.”

Part of that transformation came under Wood’s leadership, as he noticed something among Celestion’s product offerings that needed attention.

“Twenty years ago our product line was, at that point, quite old, and I recall attending a Prolight + Sound expo and saw that there were a large number of companies building fully assembled loudspeaker cabinets, but very few building its own transducers,” said Wood. “Back then,

Above: A coffee-table style hardback book documenting 100 years of Celestion has been meticulously put together highlighting the company’s progress sine 1924.

Below: Promotional photos featuring the SR System in the late 1980s aboard the QE2 passenger ship.

“MAKING PROTOTYPES IS VERY TIME CONSUMING AND TAKES A LOT OF MONEY AND RESOURCES. SO WITH THAT WE REALISED THAT INSTEAD OF MAKING PHYSICAL PRODUCTS OR PHYSICAL SAMPLES, IF WE CAN MODEL OUR PRODUCTS IN THE DIGITAL WORLD, WE CAN BE MORE EFFICIENT.”

Celestion was making finished products and drivers at the same time, and I noticed that in a way we were competing with our customers by offering a completed loudspeaker. At that point I thought it would be best for us to focus on transducer development, and that was the start of the modern transformation of the company.”

With the direction of the company steered down a different path, large investments are continuing to be made in R&D to help keep Celestion at the cutting edge of transducer technology.

“Making prototypes is very time consuming and takes a lot of money and resources,” said Wood. “So with that we realised that instead of making physical products or physical samples, if we can model our products in the digital world, we can be more efficient.

“We started developing our own software tools 15 or more years ago, and every year we have improved them, and it has made the process much more efficient.

“Investments in both the computer software to facilitate the design of the products and the manufacturing processes themselves, go hand in hand,” continued Wood. “It is a more efficient way to invest in computer technology to model the product, that way, when we come to build the final prototypes, it will be close to what the customer expects.

“A lot of effort goes into the 3D modelling, but at the end of the day we are a manufacturing company and we have to make modern products on modern production lines – and because of that we invest in both, because they are both as important as each other.”

Below: A busy Celestion stand at the 2024 NAMM Show in California.

Throughout the 2000s, the company collaborated with a growing roster of leading sound reinforcement companies, developing innovative, often bespoke, pro audio transducers for a broad range of applications.

Today, more than two thirds of the company’s business is in this market segment: manufacturing low frequency, high frequency and full range PA products.

Wood admits that because of the improvements in its modelling software, speaker design has become easier than in the past, but states that a balance is restored by having customers that demand more.

“We prefer demanding customers because they are looking for optimum performance, and we always do best with customers who want great performance,” he said. “And with that, we are always responsive to feedback, because it is the customers in the marketplace who inform us on whether or not the directions we are taking are successful.

“Whether that feedback is delivered formally or informally, we take it seriously and it’s important to us, and we encourage it. We are not perfect, and are always looking for opportunities to improve our products.”

One way Celestion seeks to improves its product offerings year after year is by using acoustic finite element analysis (FEA) as part of its design process, which simulates and studies the behaviour of acoustic systems. By using FEA, developers can predict how sound waves move through the driver and horn designs, and interact with the external environment. From the results, decisions are made on how to optimise sound quality, minimise distortion and enhance acoustical performance to give the best experience for the customer.

Engineer at Heart

Wood hails from an engineering background, and prior to joining

Above: 3D Acoustic Finite Element Analysis (FEA) on an acoustic horn, showcasing the intricate interaction of sound waves with the structure.

Left: The Celestion factory in Ipswich, UK, has a new robotically assisted production line, which will roll out products from the new TSQ range, including the new TSQ2145 subwoofer (bottom).

Celestion in 2004 held roles in a variety of different industries, including oil and gas, defence, and pulp and paper processing. “I have a degree in mechanical engineering, so at my heart I’m an engineer,” said Wood.

“One day I saw an advert for this role at Celestion in the national press, I applied, and 20 years later I’m still here.

“Ultimately, as an engineer, I would say that the proudest thing I look at during my tenure is the new technology we’ve brought to the marketplace. Collectively we have put a lot of time and research, and effort and money into technology, so my proudest feeling is knowing that we’ve come a long way in terms of that technology.”

Large

Investments

One thing Wood is keen to highlight is the new investment of its robotically assisted production line at the company’s UK headquarters on the outskirts of Ipswich.

“The new production line will produce the products we’ve developed, but before we built it we had to design a product range, so we developed the new high-powered Ten2 (Ten Squared, or TSQ) range of low-frequency speakers, which range from 12-in to 24-in,” said Wood.

“We showcased the 24-in speaker on our stand at ISE earlier this year, and those will be built on that production line.

“We’re a component supplier, so customers are not just buying a product, they’re buying the quality behind the product, and the knowhow.

“The best way to demonstrate that is to invite them to our UK facility and show them our products on our new production line, and take the opportunity to ask them if they see any room for improvements, because we’re always open to suggestions.”

The production line, which will be primarily for transducers for

Celestion’s pro PA customers, highlights the advancements the company has made over the last 20 years in this marketplace.

“Twenty years ago, the Celestion empire had become dominated by guitar speakers such as Greenbacks and Vintage 30s, and we had comparatively few PA products as we were at the beginning of our journey back into that market segment,” said Wood. “But back then we saw that the guitar speaker market is quite niche and very mature and is not likely to grow too much more. So, to grow the business, we reentered the category of PA transducers with considerable resolve. To be successful in that category we had to offer an added value. We decided that the value would be technology.

“To survive in any industry, you have to innovate - you cannot stand still.

As the market moves forward or in different directions, you need to understand where the market is going and adapt accordingly.

“Every year we invest more and more in software tools, and from the software tools we can make more innovative products,” he continued.

“We know that by having these innovations in place, they all won’t be successful – because they never are – but even just two or three will make a big difference. That’s one of the key foundations today, and it will continue to be one of the key foundations of our success over the next 100 years.”

Company Culture

While Wood has been at the company for 20 years, he is far from the longest serving employee, as Dee Potter has 30 years on him. “Dee left school at the age of 15 on a Friday and started at Celestion working for her mum the following week, and she’s stayed ever since, and this year she will have been with the company for 50 years,” said Wood. “There is a sense that Celestion is a big family, and what we find is that when we take on employees, they either leave fairly quickly or stay with us for a long time. They either fit the culture and want to work here, or they

“FROM A BUSINESS POINT OF VIEW, I WOULD SAY THAT OUR CULTURE AT CELESTION IS BOTH CUSTOMER- AND PRODUCT-ORIENTED. IT’S ENGINEERING LED, BECAUSE ULTIMATELY THE LOUDSPEAKERS WE DESIGN AND THE CUSTOMERS WE DESIGN FOR ARE VERY TECHNICAL.”

don’t quite fit and they leave.

“From a business point of view, I would say that our culture at Celestion is both customer- and product-oriented. It’s engineering led, because ultimately the loudspeakers we design and the customers we design for are very technical.

“But to an extent it is also sales and marketing led, because building a strong relationship with our customers is similarly vital.”

100 Year Celebrations

When it comes to celebrating 100 years of operation, Celestion have a lot planned this year, with events taking place around the world to involve as many people with relationships with the company as possible.

“The celebrations began at the 2024 NAMM show in Anaheim in late January,” said Wood. “We hosted a VIP celebration party for our key customers in addition to our usual Friday night hoedown. We also went all-out on our booth design, driving a London Bus onto the floor and incorporating that into the space. There will also be more celebrations during the year, including a large party for our staff here in our home town of Ipswich.”

With ten decades in the rear view mirror and a proud history of innovation, Wood is confident the company is in a strong position to continue growing for the next 100 years. “We have stable ownership in the form of Gold Peak Technology Group that has always supported the business - both strategically and through continued investment,” he said. “A lot of companies get sold every five years, and that doesn’t give those companies stability. You can see when a company is about to be sold because they downsize and lay off employees, get short-term profit up, a new buyer comes in, and then it takes them three years to recover. Having a stable owner is very, very important as it frees us up to think about innovation and growth in the long term.”

Left: Members of the Celestion team pictured on an iconic double decker bus at this year’s NAMM Show.

High Performance Loudspeaker Systems

ALL WEATHERS OUR RELIABILI

CHAOS KARTS

MANCHESTER / UK EMEA

Photos: Chaos Karts.

Panasonic projectors and 7thSense

media servers bring content to life at new live-action attraction.

Chaos Karts is the UK’s first live-action video game experience that combines real-life racing with augmented reality. This unique attraction throws players into a virtual world, living inside a real-life video game to race-battle their friends, family, rivals, and colleagues. Engineered by The Ents Inc, Chaos Karts combines the worlds of go-karting and augmented reality.

The highly innovative experience has players aged 11 and upwards burning rubber around a potentially infinite number of tracks in a digitally projected world, whilst their vehicle interacts with the virtual track and any challenges rival players might “launch” their way.

With no physical obstacles on the track and anti-collision technology, helmets and driving suits are not required.

Using unmatched, state-of-the-art technology, the karts are kitted out with features to produce real-life sensations and reactions that immerse competitors fully into the high-energy thrill ride.

The attraction features the latest in media serving technology from 7thSense and state-of-the-art projectors from Panasonic Connect. A total of 23 Panasonic PTMZ20 Series LCD Solid Shine laser projectors are used throughout the attraction, which throws players into a virtual video game to race-battle with competitors. Powering the interactive media via the projection system, 7thSense media servers bring the content to life with precision-mapped and positioned pixels throughout the space.

Each race varies in design, complete with pumping music and ground-breaking in-game usable in-kart power-ups with weapons that will allow players to ‘battle’ right up to the finishing line as the experience transports players worlds away from the everyday as they compete against each other to win points and races.

Tom Lionetti-Maguire, Founder and CEO of The Ents Inc Chaos Karts Attraction, founder of Little Lion Entertainment, and creator of The Crystal Maze and Tomb Raider: The LIVE Experience said: “I’ve been obsessed with creating a real-life version of a videogame for some time now, and Chaos Karts is a thrilling result of that. We are so excited to showcase this all-new attraction firstly in Manchester, and now globally. The gamification of experiences is a phenomenon that is here to stay, and this is the purest distillation of it. This is not just another game; it’s an entire journey filled with joy, humour and a nostalgic touch that will resonate with players of all generations!”

Ed Patchett, Commercial Director at 7thSense said: “This was a brilliant experience to have been involved in – a true example of a client’s vision that can make interactivity work for them in a brand new way. We’re passionate about digital experiences that people of all ages can enjoy, and we’re proud that 7thSense tech was selected to do the job – especially so close to home!”

In March 2024, Chaos Karts Dubai opened its doors, with further global Chaos Karts venues in the pipeline for the future.

Above: Chaos Karts is the UK’s first liveaction video game experience.

SEXY FISH

EMEA

MANCHESTER / UK

Marquee AV elevate the glamour of the newest Sexy Fish dining experience with an L-Acoustics sound system and a mix of CHAUVET and Ayrton luminaires.

Manchester’s vibrant Spinningfields district recently welcomed a new dining destination with the opening of Sexy Fish, a name already synonymous with culinary glamour in London and Miami.

The restaurant comprises a main dining room, a latenight bar, and a semi-private dining space known as ‘The Tropical Reef Room’, which can accommodate 30 guests.

Sexy Fish Manchester features sculptures by Damien Hirst, fish-shaped lamps designed by Frank Gehry, and a pink onyx bar where guests can enjoy a comprehensive selection of champagne.

Its liveliness is further mirrored by its line-up of events, including dinner parties where the restaurant becomes a world-class entertainment venue, hosting an impressive range of international performers and DJs. Owned by British entrepreneur Richard Caring of Caprice Holdings, Sexy Fish has long been a fixture in the global high-end dining scene, and now, spearheaded by Danny Kissane, Group Technical Manager at The Birley Clubs, the collaboration between Sexy Fish and L-Acoustics was a natural progression facilitated by L-Acoustics Certified Provider Integrator Marquee AV.

The Shepperton-based AV company already had a solid foundation of successful collaboration with Caprice Holdings, including L-Acoustics installations at luxury Greek-inspired restaurant Bacchanalia.

Considering the L-shaped venue at Sexy Fish, with its 7m high ceilings, stone floor, and a series of bespoke glass columns created by Venetian glassmakers on the island of Murano, it was essential to design a sound system capable of providing comprehensive and targeted coverage in the highly reflective space.

The Marquee AV team used L-Acoustics 3D audio mapping software Soundvision to navigate the complexities of the venue’s acoustics and find strategic positions from which the speakers would provide comprehensive coverage, particularly in the bar area where placement options were limited.

“Our goal was to keep acoustic energy lower down in the venue to minimise reflections, and L-Acoustics was the ideal choice for delivering a premium sound experience in the unique and reflective space that

The main dining room (to the left) and the late night bar at Sexy Fish Manchester, featuring a combination of L-Acoustics A Series and X Series to provide pristine sound for diners.

is Sexy Fish,” commented Stacey Tough, Project Director at Marquee AV.

A mix of L-Acoustics A Series and X Series loudspeakers were selected. The space features fifteen L-Acoustics A10i Wide loudspeakers with Panflex for adjustable horizontal dispersion, as well as ten compact X8 coaxial speakers for clear and powerful sound dotted throughout. Low-end extension is provided by seven L-Acoustics SB10i subwoofers, two SB15m subwoofers, and two KS21i subwoofers. One LA12X, three LA4X, and two LA2Xi amplified controllers power the entire system.

“The L-Acoustics sound system played a pivotal role in enhancing the variety of dinner events and parties hosted, contributing to the enveloping audio experience that complements the visual and culinary delights of Sexy Fish. We chose L-Acoustics because of their reputation for exceptional soundscapes in high-end hospitality spaces and their products’ unmatched versatility. The result is a seamless integration of the L-Acoustics sound system, delivering impeccable sound quality. While the venue is still in its early stages, initial feedback from the launch party and subsequent events has been overwhelmingly positive, signalling the success of the L-Acoustics installation,” said Tough.

Additional work by Tough and the Marquee AV team included the selection of a variety of CHAUVET Professional and Ayrton fixtures, and an Avolites Quartz lighting console to provide added ambience and atmosphere.

“The Avolites Quarts also receives commands from the house lighting system which is a KNX backbone, so basic operation could be done via house lighting,” said Tough. “We utilised Ayrton Diablo S 300W units where illumination of artwork required specific framing, and where framing isn’t required we set up CHAUVET Rogue R2X Spot units.

“Additionally, all the LED to the columns were provided with custom removable panels housing the decoders and power supplies, and the columns are all slightly different so each had its own individual requirement, which was a challenge.”

www.marqueeav.com

Pictured:

Photo by Johnny Stephens.

PRINTWORKS

EMEA

MANCHESTER / UK

Large leisure complex in central Manchester now boasts Europe’s largest digital ceiling after £21m refurbishment, which also includes a new audio system to enhance its immersive capabilities.

Home to more than 20 bars, restaurants and leisure activity outlets –including one of the largest IMAX screens in Europe – Printworks has been a standard bearer for entertainment in Manchester for many years.

After a lengthy refurbishment which took place while its properties remained open, the venue’s main public areas have been completely transformed into a fully immersive and interactive environment. Responding to evolving leisure trends with the creation of a technology-led experience, venue owner DTZ Investors have overseen its transformation, with the centrepiece a new 1,000 sq m LED ceiling –the largest in Europe – covering Printworks’ internal streets.

Created by local venue transformation specialists ADI, the venue’s LED solutions also include digital signage and large format screens both internally and externally, with the total area of LED coverage adding up to 1,550 sq m.

These include a giant 90 sq m interactive gaming screen, as well as other new features such as wayfinders and high-level external LED ribbon, which engage visitors and enhance their experience, while supporting tenant trade.

Meanwhile, the venue’s new audio system was specified, supplied and installed by PAS Sound Engineering who utilised Renkus-Heinz IC Live beam steering loudspeakers along with passively steered UBX loudspeakers powered by Powersoft amplification with audio processing and system control by Symetrix.

“This transformation is without precedent and is a game changer for the UK leisure sector,” commented Ben Haller of DTZ Investors. “We have created something unique at Printworks which will continue to entertain domestic and international visitors for years to come, and this has only been possible due to the dedication and commitment from a large professional team, overcoming many challenges through the last five years from inception to delivery.”

Having been approached initially to provide guidance on complex LED solutions, ADI went on to provide a full solution for the venue’s digital LED needs, as Drew Burrow, Head of Bespoke & Creative at ADI, explained:

“ADI was approached by the venue’s managing agents, Cushman & Wakefield, and architects CDA Architects, as they had ideas of installing a large digital canvas within Printworks, and for it be integrated seamlessly into the fabric of the building and make it more of an architectural element,” said Burrow.

“While ADI had never previously worked on anything like this, we knew that it could be done as there are examples to be found

“WE WENT THROUGH OVER 18 MONTHS OF R&D, PROTOTYPING AND TESTING, WITH TESTING DONE LOCALLY AT WARRINGTONFIRE, UNTIL WE WERE ABLE TO PRODUCE A PRODUCT THAT WAS ABLE TO SATISFY THE FIRE REGULATIONS OF A STANDARD BUILDING MATERIAL.”

internationally, and we also knew that the products that we offer are capable of delivering on a project such as this, so it posed an amazing opportunity for us.”

Comprising over 10,720,900 pixels and measuring around 115m in length, the digital ceiling allows the ambience inside Printworks to continually transform to suit a variety of audiences, and align with live events and brand activations taking place.

ADI were pleased to be involved from the project’s early beginnings as it allowed them the time to develop a special product for the venue – a fire resistant LED module.

“We believe that our MTF module, which is used in the ceiling LED, is the world’s first Class 0 rated LED product, but at the time when we became involved in the project we were not aware that fire resistance was going to be a requirement,” said Burrow.

“We went through over 18 months of R&D, prototyping and testing, with testing done locally at Warringtonfire, until we were able to produce a product that was able to satisfy the fire regulations of a standard building material,” confirmed Burrow.

The MTF product is based on ADI’s MT series module, which is a standard size. Due to the architectural constraints of Printworks, the company developed and manufactured a module at half its size, which allowed them to work with the building’s irregularities.

In addition to providing LED solutions for the building, ADI were also involved in the creation of over 100 pieces of content, working in collaboration with local animators Flipbook Studios.

“The clients wanted a large mix of styles of content for different audiences, because it’s a very diverse demographic that enter Printworks at the different times of day,” said Burrow. “We worked with Flipbook Studios for over two years to create the content, and it’s been a fun joint effort.

“Effectively it has been a two-pronged project for ADI – the physical design and install of the screens, and the content as well.”

Two Green Hippo Tierra+ MK2 media servers were specified by ADI

Printworks represents a a twopronged project for ADI – the physical design and install of the screens, and the content.

to drive video, lighting and audio play-out, while content scheduling and triggers are managed through a userfriendly Signage Live interface.

“The Green Hippo Tierra+ is a product we had used before, and we have worked closely with Green Hippo previously because we have a large live events arm of the business,” said Burrow. “They are tried and tested in a live environment, and we knew they would be capable of working in this type of permanent installation with the digital canvas delivering 8K content – it was an obvious choice to work with them again.”

AUDIO SOLUTION

When it came to equipping the venue with an audio system that could satisfy its different requirements, Bernie Boardman of PAS Sound Engineering turned to CUK to help with the system design, as Mark Bromfield, Director of System Solution Sales, CUK Group, explained:

“Having been approached with a brief for a venue-wide solution, we worked with PAS on the schematics and used computer modelling to prove that the coverage would be suitable for the spaces,” stated Bromfield. “The brief was for a background music system that could also be used during special events held in the central area where the large video wall is situated.”

To meet the brief, Bromfield selected a variety of RenkusHeinz loudspeakers and subwoofers for the different zones.

In the central area, four Renkus-Heinz ICL-F-RD high power steerable loudspeaker arrays are deployed. Three are hidden from view behind special acoustically transparent material, of which two are placed directly below the LED wall, with another above a small kiosk, next to a RenkusHeinz SX118 subwoofer.

The two walkway entrances that feed into the central area are different lengths, and as a result needed different speaker configurations.

“In the shorter entrance we placed two Renkus-Heinz UBX8 passive column speakers, and in the longer alley there four,” explained Bromfield. “These are powered independently with each speaker connected to its own channel of a Powersoft Quattrocanali amplifier, so different sources can be sent to different speakers.”

In addition, Bromfield recommended the installation four Clockaudio C850E shotgun mics in the two walkways so that the ambient levels of the area can be monitored, and volume levels can be adjusted automatically by the Symetrix DSP to suit the level of footfall.

“At first I wasn’t sure this was necessary, but having stood outside the cinema’s exit after a busy screening you do notice a big difference in the ambient noise levels,” stated Bromfield.

One Symetrix Prism 12×12 with Dante is utilised for DSP and audio system control throughout the venue, distributing signals to the Renkus-Heinz IC-Live speakers and Powersoft amplifiers. A Symetrix T-10 touchscreen panel hosts a custom GUI offering venue staff control over the system.

Above: The three areas of Printworks are covered by a variety of Renkus-Heinz loudspeakers and subwoofers, powered by Powersoft amplification.

“At the touch of a button they can change the pre-sets to different modes and control the audio feeds, for example when an event is held and a new source is plugged into the system via the floor boxes,” continued Bromfield. “One of the Green Hippo servers is used to control the audio that syncs with the content on the screens, and they can be triggered to block out the background music feed, if that is required.”

CUK also supplied four MIPRO ACT-580H 5.8GHz radio

Beloow: Renkus-Heinz column speakers deployed in the walkways at Printworks, and (bottom right) the audio rack cabinet.

mics, a MIPRO ACT-5814A quad channel digital wireless receiver and a pair of MIPRO AT-58 remote antennas for the venue. “We’re really pleased with how they’ve worked out here because they are license free and the range is really excellent,” said Bromfield.

Installation

The installation and commissioning process wasn’t without its challenges, as due to the nature of the project all work involving the set up and testing of the speakers and screens had to be done in stages.

“The venue remaining open during the process did slow things down, and it’s difficult to set up ambient mics and also test audio levels during construction work,” said Bromfield. “We couldn’t do audio tests in the dead of night when the venue was empty because the venue didn’t want to disturb the neighbouring hotel – so that was challenging for the team at PAS to find a window to properly test the system.”

The same installation challenges faced ADI during their work, but any issues they faced were overcome with communication and coordination among the different contractors.

“The screens were installed over a long period of time because there was other work going on at the same time,” said Burrow. “Normally we would be brought in as one of the last elements of a project, but here we had been on site across a few months, and in segments. So that provided some challenges, but that’s the nature of such a project in a busy environment with multiple contractors.

“At the end of the day, we’re delighted to have been involved in this project with massive LED technology integrated into the architecture of a building,” continued Burrow. “It’s an exciting time to see projects moving in this direction, and at this scale.”

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

VIDEO

Indoor Ceiling: ADI MTF modules

Outdoor large format screens: ADI MT 6mm

Outdoor Ribbon – ADI MT 10mm

2 x Green Hippo Tierra+ Mk2

AUDIO

4 x Renkus-Heinz ICL-F-RD

2 x Renkus-Heinz SX118 subwoofers

6 x Renkus-Heinz UBX8

1 x Powersoft Quattrocanali 2404 DSP+D

2 x Powersoft Quattrocanali 1204 DSP+D

1 x Symetrix Prism 12x12-D

1 x Symetrix T-10-Glass

www.adi.tv www.cuk-group.com www.pas-sound.co.uk

MLT ONE MLT TWO

THE MLT SERIES. ENGINEERED IN GERMANY.

The famous MLT ONE and MLT TWO Pre Rig Trusses get a new member to complete the MLT Series: The MLT THREE.

The MLT THREE has an open head frame as well as an open bottom, allowing you to mount units more easily into the truss. The telescopic legs of the dolly can be extended in several different heights in order to mount complete video modules into the hanging frame. A rail system allows you to mount lighting even at the transition points between 2 trusses and to create seamless transitions between trusses for video modules. The MLT TWO and the MLT THREE are compatible.

WAKE THE TIGER

BRISTOL / UK EMEA

Immersive walk-through attraction undergoes an extensive expansion, installing state-of-the-art audiovisual technology within its new, retrofuturistic environments.

Adorned with wonderfully bizarre flora, fauna and funga, Wake the Tiger, an experience dubbed the world’s first ‘Amazement Park’, is a mystical, self-guided labyrinth of exploration.

Walking through the attraction, designed to be a surreal, psychedelic world, visitors are immersed within an alternate universe that reveals more secrets as their adventure progresses.

With an initial opening in 2022 that pulled in over 300,000 visitors in just 18 months, the team decided to launch ‘phase two’, completed in January 2024, with just as much wildly creative spirit as its predecessor.

Wake the Tiger’s (WTT) latest expansion, titled the ‘OUTERverse’, consists of 15 new fantastical environments where limitless interaction is not only allowed, it is encouraged.

The technology within its 15 new spaces had to match up to the creative and eccentric plans for design; with a venue desire for lights that followed visitors, interactive audio that responded to movement, and projectors that brought huge, stone visages to life, the OUTERverse demanded state-of-the-art audiovisual products.

“Wake the Tiger is a sensory feast,” commented Louie Norwood, the project’s Technical Manager, complimenting the final design of the venue: “In our new expansion, WTT visitors have found themselves in a dream-like adventure into the mind. It features a very different style of adventure to the mysterious dark caverns of our original phase; this new area makes use of much more projection and non-contact interactions – we focused on integrating tech that insinuated that the inhabitants of the OUTERverse were aware of visitors and were interacting with them in strange new ways.”

Beginning to craft the audiovisual design for WTT, the team were immediately alerted to the delicate task of ensuring that the ethereal aesthetics of the venue were not diminished by noticeable equipment.

Greg Chapter, Audio Specialist on the project, noted that this installation required a careful “engagement with the art.”

“Thanks to the success of the installations in phase one, however, we had more of an understanding of how to tackle this unique project. For example, our successful use of Genelec products in the initial chapter of WTT prompted us to work with the company again.”

Throughout the 15 spaces, Chapter specified a total of four Genelec 4430a speakers and three Monacor EDL-80DT, enhanced by three LEA Professional CONNECT 168D amplifiers. Designed with motion in mind, the audio that plays within WTT is largely arpeggiated sequences triggered by movement, pushing visitors to explore and connect with the art. Howard Jones, PR Director at Genelec, shared the company’s joy

in being an integral part of the venue. “It’s wonderful to see our 4430A Smart IP loudspeakers playing a key role in imaginative attractions like Wake the Tiger. The quality of immersive AV experiences is getting better all the time, and for that true sense of immersion, exceptional audio quality is essential – because the visitor has to really ‘believe’ in what they’re hearing,” he said.

“In that respect, the clarity, intelligibility, and uniform coverage of Smart IP models like the 4430A makes them ideal for this kind of application, and their single cable networked connectivity makes them simple to hook up and configure. We’re very proud to bring this technology to Wake the Tiger.”

For passive speakers, 12 Equipson WORK PRO NEO 8 and 12 Equipson WORK PRO NEO 5 were installed throughout the mystical, maze-like venue. Juan José Villa, Equipson’s CEO was delighted the installers chose to work with this range. “The NEO range of speakers from Equipson’s WORK PRO brand is in many ways ideal for this type of project,” he commented.

“The bracket, specifically designed for this series, allows the products to be easily installed, whilst also directing sound in both axes to cover all the wanted areas,” he continued, revealing why the NEO series worked flawlessly in a space as complex and large as Wake the Tiger.

The unconventional shape of the 1000-sqm colourful maze challenged the team to figure out a speaker layout wherein each visitor was granted the same, intelligible audio experience. Chapter tackled the non-traditional layout through experimentation with the chosen products: “I completed the composition of a lot of the tracks in the rooms they would eventually play in.”

He revealed this allowed for tandem alterations of both equipment position and audio properties over the whole installation process, ensuring that the final venue would provide immersive sound, no

matter where visitors stood.

The OUTERverse’s comprehensive audio system runs on Ableton, creating a multi-channel connected and synchronised soundscape across the many speakers placed around the experience. This is enabled by Dante, allowing the team to have a central control system for every room in the attraction.

Norwood particularly enjoyed Dante’s audio management capabilities, commenting: “After phase one, we were recommended Dante as a central controller – we can easily change any track or volume from the control room, it’s such a powerful, convenient tool! We can have surround sound and send effects to any unit we want – the speakers specified pair perfectly with this.”

A particularly exciting audio experience at WTT can be found within the Crystal Chamber environment, which Norwood stated was built to “capture the healing power of crystals, demonstrating the spiritual connection that a lot of people may feel with the ores.”

The sound accompanying this section is powered by one LEA Professional CONNECT 88D amplifier, and an 8-channel 100 W amplifier, which enables channels to be addressed individually. Four channels create the effect of surround panning, with Xbox triggers feeding into Resolume, producing OSC messages that activate content as guests move through the room.

This connection of art and its audience exhibits the vibrantly unconventional approach that WTT has towards entertainment; Norwood confirmed: “We wanted technology with this sort of imaginative interactivity to really drive home the futuristic aspect of the OUTERverse.”

Technicians Ed Metcalf and Megan Broadmeadow from D-Unit Studios crafted lighting for the Crystal Chamber, featuring software made by in-house Programmer, Alex Waite. The ceiling features LED mesh,

Previous page: The Aetheria room.

Left: The Crystal Chamber.

incorporating over 16,400 controllable LEDs and 40,000 LEDs with generative control, concealed behind a handcrafted ceiling made from recycled panels that come together to create a room replicating a crystal.

The conscious sustainability of WTT is perhaps what solidifies this cosmic attraction as ‘the future of entertainment’. Pairing eco-friendly LEDs with repurposed panelling was an intentional move, as part of a larger venue mission to be highly thoughtful in its build.

Norwood said: “We pride ourselves on resourcefulness and innovation, which is seen in our world design by making use of recycled materials and found objects, but we also made sure it was echoed in the technology we chose to implement.” It was important to the venue that this immersive world full of play and interaction was treated with a thought-through audiovisual installation.

Care was further taken in specifying visual and video products. Stateof-the-art, trustworthy equipment was brought in to ensure that the otherworldly scenery did not falter. For example, in its space titled ‘The Sanctuary’, WTT created inventive effects, using an ADJ H2O IR and custom gobo to imitate the movement of water.

ADJ’s reliability drew WTT’s team towards using its products. Norwood noted how for this venue, robustness was especially key, as the touchheavy interaction that the space prompts had the potential to lead to breakages. “We focused our system design and component selection on ensuring it could keep working through thousands of people pulling and exploring each part, without losing its bespoke quirkiness,” he said. Brian Dowdle, Marketing Director at ADJ Lighting, agreed with the choice to include the unit in WTT: “The H2O IR is an extremely popular fixture for a wide range of applications, but particularly immersive

experiences like Wake the Tiger. Using a textured glass lens which rotates within the unit, it can generate a unique effect that simulates water when set to blue and creates psychedelic effects when used with other colour options. The fixture’s LED light source is very efficient, which makes it cost-effective to run continuously throughout an attraction’s opening hours.”

Norwood specified Optoma’s product throughout the space, further creating surreal, stunning visuals. “I’m so impressed with the Optoma units,” he stated. “They’ve provided high brightness and resolution. Importantly, we were able to have many discussions with their team –they were very helpful in assisting us with the perfect fit for our needs. We utilised a variety of their long, short, and ultra-short throw models to meet the specific needs of each area.”

One of WTT’s visual marvels, created using Optoma products, can be found in ‘The Void’. Visitors are invited to transcend consciousness and walk across an interactive projection corridor, wherein their moving shape is displayed on the room’s walls, slowly breaking into tiny rainbow particles as they journey further.

Orchestrated by Touch Designer and four Kinect Azure depth cameras, each of which is connected to a separate ZH350ST from Optoma, this space has certainly achieved the venue’s goal of promoting free, fearless playfulness. Lucy Jarjoura, Wake the Tiger’s Sales and Marketing Director, stated: “The love for interacting with this space is universal, no matter who they are, everyone throws their arms up and dances about!”

Dubbed “our showstopper” by Jarjoura, the ‘Aetheria room’ features a gigantic,15-foot-high stone head, which thanks to two Optoma ZH462s, displays a projected face that can be manipulated with sliders on an

©Babylon

Dubai

-

Harlequin

Hi-Shine Black

Harlequin

intuitive touch screen. Norwood enthused: “Building a Touch Designer interactive control panel that makes visitors responsible for the projection mapping has made way for weird and wonderful art!”

Accessibility was unnegotiable for the WTT team, with their mission statement highlighting entertainment for all. Various levels of mobility are accounted for throughout the venue; the great stone visage’s mapped visual effects, designed by Video Technician Nathaniel Archer, were created to look brilliant whether viewed from floor level or an upstairs balcony.

Sensory-sensitive days and adults-only sessions are further accommodations that allow WTT to be enjoyed by all visitors. Summer Dean, WTT’s Creative Producer, stated: “We want to get everyone playing!”

“This phase’s installation was a lot more stable than its primary,” commented Chapter. “In the first phase of Wake the Tiger we did have some problems, but this meant we were able to go into this second stage with a clearer plan of what would work best, and what issues we may face. I’m so pleased with the OUTERverse.”

Jarjoura concluded: “We’ve had amazing feedback from visitors so far. Our mission to encourage interaction was certainly successful – we’ve seen our visitors lose their sense of normalcy, it’s great to be able to provide this escapist moment crafted by the ultimate combination of play and technology.”

Wake the Tiger intertwines innovative, high-tech equipment with recycled furniture and custom pieces, marrying cutting-edge audiovisual capabilities with eccentric visuals. The venue transcends the conventional limitations of art, inspiring visitors to interact with the space’s creations and providing an immensely immersive experience that is perfected by carefully considered equipment installations. Thriving in the experimental space, the lighting, video, and audio products housed in WTT have proved they can be an excellent fit for any venue, even the spectacularly non-traditional.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

AUDIO:

4 x Genelec 4430A

3 x Monacor EDL-80DT

12 x Equipson WORK PRO NEO 8

12 x Equipson WORK PRO NEO 5

3 x LEA Professional CONNECT 168D

VISUAL:

1 x ADJ H2O IR

4x Optoma ZH350ST

2 x Optoma ZH462 www.wakethetiger.com

Previous page: The Inter Dimensional Boarding Gate.

Below: Detail of the new OUTERverse area of Wake the Tiger.

Versatile XPRSion

ACTIV E SPE AK ER SERIES

Expanded Range

CORE FEATURES

• Powerful Class D amplification

• High-quality robust build

• Ultimate versatility: DJ sets, live music, speech, studio monitoring

THE ATLANTIS

AMERICAS

WASHINGTON D.C. / USA

Collaboration and creativity come to the fore as an historic underground club inspires the establishment of a new, small performance venue, completed with utmost care and attention.

The Atlantis in Washington D.C. opened in May last year and was purpose-built to evoke memories of the city’s original 9:30 Club, with many of its characteristics faithfully re-created, such as its corner stage.

First opened in 1980, the 9:30 club had a capacity of 200 and helped revolutionise the D.C. music scene, establishing a new chapter in the city’s storied musical history. As the decade progressed, many an emerging band could be caught at the venue, including some that went on to superstardom such as Nirvana, REM, Smashing Pumpkins and Jane’s Addiction.

Meanwhile the city’s burgeoning punk and hardcore scene found a regular home there, with the likes of Bad Brains, Minor Threat, Black Flag, Government Issue, Rites of Spring and Fugazi playing the venue. One regular gig-goer was a young Dave Grohl, and there was something of a full-circle moment for the D.C. native when Foo Fighters performed at The Atlantis on its opening night.

The early iteration of the 9:30 Club out-grew its space in the 1990s, and in 1996 it moved to its current location on the corner of 9th and V St., NW, with a massively increased capacity of 1,200.

Venue operator I.M.P. recently noticed a gap in its roster of venues for a smaller room, and so got to work on creating the 450-capacity Atlantis, right next door to the current 9:30 Club.

“The purpose for the project was for I.M.P. to build a smaller venue so that we can nurture new and emerging bands and artists, to give them a platform and help them grow their audience in Washington D.C.,” said Audrey Fix Schaefer, Communications Director at I.M.P.

“The venues on our roster also include the Lincoln Theatre, which at 1,200 cap is the same as the 9:30 Club, The Anthem, which is 6,000, and the larger outdoor Merriweather Post Pavilion Amphitheatre, in Columbia, Maryland.

“The crucial thing about having a 450-capacity room is that you start to develop history with an artist so that you can grow together.”

The Atlantis was built completely from scratch and shares neighbouring walls with both the 9:30 Club and an apartment complex, so the vision for the venue was for the sound to be superb inside the room – and for it not to spill out and disturb the residents next door, or the punters in the 9:30 Club.

With that aspect needing to be implemented before any AV equipment was specified for the space, architectural acoustic consultation company Walters-Storyk Design Group (WSDG)

were brought in to the project, and Guillaume Desnoë, Creative Director, I.M.P., was confident that the brief for a perfectly acoustically sealed venue could be achieved. “We had worked with WSDG many times previously across our venues in some capacity, so it made sense to work with them again on The Atlantis,” said Desnoë. “They knew our expectations, and they are great to work with.”

The concept for the venue revolved around creating an acoustic shell, effectively shielding the outside from any noise pollution, as Joshua Morris, Chief Operating Officer, WSDG, explained:

“The project effectively saw us create a floating room within a room, and that is not your typical construction work,” he said. “There was a lot of engineering that went into preparing this space for a sound reinforcement system, and a lot of questions that needed to be answered, such as finding out noise level requirements and the proximity to adjoining buildings, and also budget and time constraints to be considered.

“For this project, the layout of The Atlantis features the concrete structure of the building, then there is an air gap and decoupling elements, and then an internal box of concrete, resiliently connected to the external structure,” continued Morris. “Within that, the nightclub was built with all its equipment.”

Pietro Gennenzi, Acoustic Engineer, WSDG, added: “This was a very challenging project because among the many variables we had to consider were the dynamic live load of the room, as that changes from it being empty, to holding 450 people during an event,” he said. “Inside the room, you cannot tell that it is isolated, because it is fitted out as you would expect for that kind of small performance space. And yet the volume can be cranked and it will not disturb the neighbours.

“It was important we got it right, because if the space didn’t allow for what the technology needed to do, then the venue would need to be closed and extensively modified.”

Fix Schaefer confirmed that aspect of the project was a huge success.

“Having been at the venue when we’ve had a show going on in both the 9:30 Club and The Atlantis, you really have no idea that anything is

happening in the other one, if you’re in either of them. It has been done to such a high standard that there is no impact,” she said.

When it came to equipping the venue with sound and lighting systems, I.M.P. again reached out to familiar contacts in the form of Eighth Day Sound and Pulse Lighting.

Once Eighth Day Sound were contacted, there was a clear candidate for who to manage the project, as Owen Orzack had a personal history with the original 9:30 Club.

“My connection to this venue and I.M.P. goes back to the mid ‘80s when I worked as a sound technician at the 9:30 Club in between touring jobs,” said Orzack. “The Atlantis is not an exact replica of that room, but there are many cosmetic things that are reminiscent of how it was, including the corner stage and floor tiling.”

The placement of the stage did pose a slight challenge, but it was nothing that couldn’t be overcome with the correct know-how.

“A lot of the design for this system was done by Shawn “Gus” Vitale,” explained Orzack. “He was the sound guy at the 9:30 back in the ‘80s, and then at the new location, and had been part of the I.M.P. organisation for decades. Unfortunately, and sadly, Gus passed away before the project was completed.”

The concept that Vitale had initially drawn up was a d&b audiotechnik system, which was in line with the d&b equipment used at the other I.M.P. venues in the city.

“We held discussions about the size of the room in The Atlantis, and the main thing that both Gus and I agreed on was that it didn’t need a line array as it would have been complete overkill,” said Orzack. “At the time d&b had recently introduced its A series of loudspeakers, which are mountable horizontally like a traditional point source system, or vertically if you wanted to use it like a line array. At The Atlantis we deployed them horizontally, and the results are fantastic.”

The left and right hangs are made up of three ALi90 boxes, while two SLSubs are placed under the stage. Completing the system are two Y10P used as under-balcony fills to the left and right and two Yi7P, one for the upper balcony fill and another as front fill to the left of stage.

Powering the system are two 40D amplifiers for the A series loudspeakers and fills, and one D80 amplifier for the subwoofers.

“THE ROOM IS MORE HORIZONTAL THAN IT IS DEEP, BUT IT DOESN’T REALLY REFLECT WHICH WAY THE STAGE POINTS, SO WE HAVE TO THROW THE AUDIO TO STAGE RIGHT QUITE AGGRESSIVELY.”

Below: The view from the stage at The Atlantis.

I.M.P. Head of Audio Drew Kot stepped in for Gus towards the project’s completion and is delighted with the equipment that was specified and then supplied by Eighth Day Sound.

“The room is more horizontal than it is deep, but it doesn’t really reflect which way the stage points, so we have to throw the audio to stage right quite aggressively,” said Kot. “With the A Series being able to hang horizontally, that allowed us to play with the splay angle, and throw audio further to stage right than stage left. Also provided, after some consultation, was a DiGiCo SD9, and that’s working out really well.”

Orzack noted that all the I.M.P. operated venues had DiGiCo consoles, so that was an easy decision to make. “We went with the SD9 because of the physical space available in the room, it’s a reliable desk and anyone who has experience using DiGiCo will be comfortable using it,” he said.

Lighting The Atlantis

One aspect of the original 9:30 Club that is not faithfully recreated is the positioning of some structural pillars in the floor space which obscured views of the stage, but Scott Turyn, Vice President, Operations at I.M.P. confirmed that the poles are not forgotten in the new Atlantis.

“Obviously if you’re building a brand-new venue you wouldn’t put poles in the floor, but we wanted to pay homage to the fact that the old club had these poles in the way, so we installed guide lights with markers in the floor,” said Turyn. “When the haze in the venue hits the beams, it replicates where the poles used to be – and we like to call them our ‘ghost poles’.”

Previous page: Hot Chip perform at The Atlantis, photo by Troy Gerhardt.

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The stage lighting for the space was delivered by Pule Lighting, with Andrew Smith, Director of Installations and Operation acting as Project Manager, and the design was drawn up by Preston Hoffman at Pulse Lighting Studios.

“The ownership team of Pulse Lighting cut their teeth in D.C. and built the beginnings of the company there, and that inherently built up some relationships,” said Smith.

“The first project we worked on with I.M.P. was The Anthem, and that was awe-inspiring to have our first opportunity to connect with them on their largest indoor venue.”

When it came to The Atlantis, the choice of fixtures was narrowed down, with only three units selected for their versatility – the Ayrton Mistral S, CHAUVET Professional Strike Array 2 and Robe LEDBeam 150.

“A long time ago we would stand by working to one manufacturer for each installation we were involved in, but for a unique build like this, having the best of the best within budget was the priority,” said Smith. “After assessing the space, we brought in fixtures that we recommended – and comparable substitutes – for the in-house lighting technicians to demo. It’s a lengthy process, but it makes sure that the client gets exactly what they need.

“We are a boutique company, so we thrive in this realm, and the finished design was really close to our initial concepts, and it absolutely shines in the space.”

I.M.P. Head of Lighting, Jason Beauregard is delighted with the final lighting rig. “We knew that we were up against it in terms of space, because it is not a big stage,” he said. “But pound for pound this rig hits very hard for the size of room it is in. Everything we have is versatile, because of the space restraints we needed fixtures that have multiple features.”

Beauregard continued: “The Robe LedBeam 150 has an excellent zoom and is the main wash fixture, with 16 of those, while we have ten Ayrton Mistral S, which also have a very impressive zoom range and are really elegant looking and do a lot of heavy lifting.

“We have nine CHAUVET Strike Array 2, which are a warm LED which lights up the audience, and that fixture is second to none in its price range.”

When it came to selecting a control desk, continuity with the other I.M.P. venues was also considered.

“We went with an MA Lighting grandMA3 Light, which is a

Above: The floor tiling pattern from the original 9:30 Club is faithfully recreated at The Atlantis, while downlights replicate the pillars from the old space.

offers specified and fixed rental staging options & comes with a redundant power supply

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Audio:

6 x d&b audiotechnik ALi90

2 x d&b audiotechnik Y10ps

2 x d&b audiotechnik Yi7ps

2 x d&b audiotechnik SLSub

2 x d&b audiotechnik 40D

1 x d&b audiotechnik D80

1 x DiGiCo SD9

Lighting and Effects:

10 x Ayrton Mistral S

9 x CHAUVET Professional Strike Array 2

16 x Robe LEDBeam 150

1 x MA Lighting grandMA3

1 x Antari F1 Hazer

Microphones:

1 x Shure Beta 91A

1 x Shure Beta 52A

3 x Shure Beta 57A

3 x Shure SM57-LC

2 x Shure SM81- LC

4 x Shure SM58

1 x Shure SM58S

3 x Sennheiser e609 silver

3 x Sennheiser e604

2 x Audio Technica AT-2050

www.theatlantis.com www.pulselighting.com www.8thdaysound.com www.wsdg.com

really impressive board for that room – but we knew we would be welcoming in touring LDs who would be familiar with that equipment,” said Beauregard. “Also, we are moving towards having MA Lighting consoles across all of our venues, and training our in-house LDs on the MA3 software.

“I really wanted to pair our venue with the best new technologies and put our team of house lighting engineers on the new and current software, and it’s fun to talk to touring technicians who come through this venue who are familiar with this software and control surfaces – it’s been very successful for us.”

When it came to the installation and commissioning phase, Smith revealed that the compact nature of the venue proved to be the only real challenge. “A corner stage in a room is never easy, and it’s a compact room with rigging limitation in the ceiling, so while the finished venue might look extremely clean and simple, it wasn’t,” said Smith. “There are spatial and rigging limitations, and with small venues such as this you’re inherently stepping on the toes of other vendors and contractors, so coordinating that was the biggest challenge.”

With the venue ready to open its doors, I.M.P. owner Seth Hurwitz wanted to acknowledge the history of the 9:30 Club in The Atlantis by having 44 well-established bands come through the space, to celebrate the 44th anniversary of the company.

“It was an audacious idea to have 44 huge acts play here, and Foo Fighters were the first,” said Fix Schaefer. “That band has a special place in our hearts because Dave Grohl is from the city and grew up going to shows at the original 9:30 Club, and he wanted to be a part of the opening of The Atlantis – so that was an easy decision for us to make.”

The rooftop bar (above) and the exterior of The Atlantis (below). Pictures by Jordan A. Grobe.

PALACE BAR AND RESTAURANT

MIAMI / USA AMERICAS

Iconic LGBTQ+ venue gets an overhaul as Infinite Audio Systems utilises Powersoft technology to deliver true sonic excellence through its multiple zones.

Since opening in 1988, Palace Bar and Restaurant has built its reputation on exuberant drag brunches, live entertainment and a welcoming atmosphere for anyone wanting to party.

Located at the heart of Ocean Drive to the south of the Miami Beach neighbourhood, Palace recently completed a massive overhaul of its sound system to add power and clarity to its audio offering and enhance the experience of its guests – with an estimated 1,500 passing through the doors every weekend.

Across the venue’s multiple zones, a range of 14 Powersoft X4, Duecanali and Quattrocanali amplifiers were specified by Miami-based Infinite Audio Systems, a full service design and build, audio and lighting contracting company, in addition to Infinite’s own loudspeaker solutions.

With music serving as its lifeblood, the owner of Palace, Tom Donall, was keen to improve on the previous audio equipment with a sound system that would be capable of conveying the energy of the shows held at the venue.

“Being one of the most well-known gay restaurant bars in the world and putting on a famous drag show, the clarity of the sound and the bass needs to be impactful, and evenly distributed,” explained Donall, who has over 20 years experience of running entertainment venues, and understands the importance of sound in venues.

“When the girls perform, they lip-sync, and we need the best sound to give the punch and clarity, and to bring this energy that we’re known for at Palace,” continued Donall. “This

is why having high-quality audio was crucial for us - it sets the stage for the festive energy customers find here, making sure each visit is a special experience.”

The venue features four different audio zones – its café area, main indoor dance floor, the roof top and the downstairs outside patio area on Ocean Drive.

Donall called upon Infinite Audio Systems to discuss the audio overhaul and collaborated closely with its CEO, Lord Toussaint, highlighting the need to cover all areas of the venue so that each customer – and performer - can hear clear, high-quality sound, wherever they are.

“We needed a system which is tailored to the requirements of each of the venue’s areas,” said Donall, highlighting that it was of utmost importance to ensure the outside areas could withstand the natural elements, especially the salt from the ocean water, and that the audio system would be able to run the live show seven days a week, twice a day, while maintaining pristine sound quality.

Venue Requirements

Donall and Toussaint designed the sound system together and went through the requirements of each area individually.

“Tom wanted warmth, clarity, and fuller tonality, and sometimes those don’t go hand in hand. But we were able to give him the lot,” stated Toussaint. “It’s a complex scenario because there is a live show performed on the terrasse at the front of the building that bleeds out onto the sidewalk and the streets,” he adds. “It’s a very high-energy show that uses a lot of live microphones and house

Previous page: The outdoor terrasse at the front of the building.

Above and left: The downstairs area at Palace.

music tracks, and it needs to work on the people, but then it also needs to be distributed across various areas throughout the venue.”

The main sonic challenge was to equally cover and synchronise all areas during the live shows – knowing that the areas are vastly different. To overcome this, Toussaint deployed speaker systems individually for each area, as if they were standalone systems, and then united them as one, using a Biamp Tesira Server I-O for DSP.

The venue’s new audio setup consists of 50 Infinite System speakers in the lower level, powered by 10 Powersoft amplifiers, and 12 speakers on the roof top, also driven by Powersoft.

“The whole system is amazing,” says Donall. “The punch, the power and the clarity are what I wanted. It runs perfectly every day, and we don’t have to worry about it.”

“We also have top level DJs performing here, and for us it’s easy to adjust everything to facilitate that,” continued Donall. “We have an on/ off switch for the areas we don’t use all the time, and can also control the microphone volume levels.”

Interior Dance Floor

At the main stage and interior dance floor, Donall and Toussaint specified two INFINITE CDX 15V loudspeakers, a 3-way speaker system with Dual 15-in transducers and a coaxial mid-high range, both neodymium magnetic on a medium format horn, and INFINITE VLF215 HPX ND WP subwoofers, which are also dual 15-in extended response 4.5- voice coil transducers, powered by two Powersoft X4 four-channel amplifiers.

“I think without Powersoft X4s we couldn’t get what we wanted out of

our 15Vs,” said Toussaint. “There’s no room for 18-in speakers with very low frequency here, so we did it with our extended response 15-in systems, and they were up to the task because of how they’re driven.”

“Our lowest speaker load is a 4-ohm load, but these amplifiers do everything well as it’s all optimised, and we think it’s as important as our loudspeakers to build systems using Powersoft amplification.”

Toussaint has been first introduced to Powersoft in the early 2000s, but was initially sceptical about their small form factor and the power they promised to deliver.

“For me that was always terrifying,” he said. “I was used to amplifiers that weighed 145 lbs and were 20-in deep, so I had a hard time believing that in that that form factor that Powersoft would provide great output power in a one-space chassis… but I’m a believer now.

“I’ve now grown accustomed to the form factor of Powersoft amplifiers, and I’m using less rack space, producing less heat, and powering all these amplifiers at 240V in our installations, and we think that makes them even better,” continued Toussaint.

“Nothing that we’ve ever brought to our installations has ever been as robust and as reliable as Powersoft’s amplifiers,” he added. “This is why, for us, it’s a win across the board. Sound quality, reliability, effectiveness, and rack space efficiency – it all works together.”

All other areas of the venue are covered by the INFINITE ND216 HP WP loudspeakers, with INFINITE VLF115 HPX ND offering low frequency support, with Toussaint utilising Powersoft’s Armonia+ for all speaker specific processing.

“I found Armonia+ very intuitive and easy to operate and we’re very pleased with the quality,” he continued. “Using it you can identify the

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amplifiers on the network, select them and operate them. It’s a tool we’re going to be using more and more of for signal processing.

“Powersoft, for us, represents a mission critical amplifier platform,” concluded Toussaint. “If you are operating around the clock, I can not think of another line that can serve those needs like Powersoft can, and I wouldn’t consider anything else at this point, because all of our work is mission critical.”

Donell is also delighted with the end result, saying that Infinite speakers paired with Powersoft exceeded his expectations. “It’s fantastic,” said the venue owner. “Seeing people leave with smiles on their face, already planning their next visit, is what it’s all about for me. And the sound really ties the experience all together.”

Toussaint and Donall are currently planning to upgrade Palace’s lighting and video systems in the very near future.

Left and below: Across the venue’s multiple zones, a range of 14 Powersoft X4, Duecanali and Quattrocanali amplifiers were specified.

NO WORDS NEEDED

GRAND EGYPTIAN MUSEUM

New exhibition space undergoes full audio system installation, commemorating the history of a legendary civilisation with the help of modern, state-of-the-art audio technology.

Located a stone’s throw from one of humanity’s most impressive monuments, the Pyramids of Giza, lies another celebration of the ancient world, the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM). Preserving the country’s glorious past, the GEM contains an array of tablets, statues, and sarcophagi, all depicting the millennia-old stories of kings and queens that remain iconic to this day. Currently in its ‘soft launch’ phase, the museum has partially opened for the first time, allowing guests to observe a great deal of its vast halls and vibrant hieroglyphics before its full reveal, expected to be mid-2024.

With prominent features such as the 3,200-year-old, 11m statue of Ramesses II, a figure so colossal that the museum had to be built around it, the GEM team knew that their AV system design had to be powerful enough to complement excellence. Audio Technology Egypt (ATE) was brought into the project based on its extensive experience providing and integrating technology in various mega projects since 1993. The team was excellently equipped to specify and install sound solutions for what Magdy Fattouh, Senior Site Engineer at ATE called: “the project of the century”.

“I’ve been working on this project for over six years, so it’s not just an installation, it’s part of me,” began Fattouh. “Early on, the ATE team, led by Engineer Jacko Makram and supervised by both Mina Nabil, Installation Division Head and Beshoy Rizk, Installation Manager, was briefed that the GEM wanted a PA system that could be used for clear announcements and atmospheric music. We knew this would have its challenges, as the space is huge in width and height – it’s the world’s largest museum dedicated to a single civilisation – so we designed our solutions with close consideration to the building’s unique architecture.”

The ATE design team needed to work out the system’s capabilities; they knew that because the venue was so large, it would need to be carried on the common LAN infrastructure, as Fattouh explained: “The museum’s audio solution is based on the Q-SYS platform, which provides audio, control processing, and a special variety of I/O options with any combination of Q-SYS I/O cards , including bridge networks like Dante, CobraNet, or AVB, granting us that all-important flexability. The system also includes live paging and has the ability for courtesy announcements, emergency messaging from the fire alarm systems, and background music through a multi-track playback.”

Beginning the installation, ATE focused on the ticketing building, conference building, the Pyramids Restaurant, and smaller museum spaces, all with a ceiling height of 4m and under. Here, JBL ceiling speakers were installed. “JBL was extremely cooperative and great with

CAIRO, EGYPT

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communication, which was important for such a major project,” Fattouh said.

A good manufacturer relationship here was especially key, as JBL speakers form a large portion of the equipment within the GEM; for example, 386 Control 14C/T and 288 Control 16C/T were integrated, a series which proved ideal for delivering intelligible sound. Furthermore, 136 JBL Control 88M, 26 JBL AW295, and 16 JBL CBT 1000 were installed in outdoor areas – the Temple Garden, the Pyramid Tails, the Piazza, and the Khufu Steps. The weather-resistant driver made this the correct choice for an integration where the product is exposed to the elements. Fattouh commented: “We knew the GEM’s outdoor areas would get very crowded, specifically the Piazza, which finishes with the huge space, the Great Obelisk. ATE has had great success using the AW295 for stadium projects, so we knew these could handle masses of visitors in such situations.”

The install team faced a challenge with some of the GEM’s ceilings that were over 7m. Fortunately, JBL was able to advise ATE on a solution and provided 47 Control 47HC, which were ideal for the space. Fattouh enthused: “These speakers are very special to us as they really helped us tackle a complex issue.”

The most elaborate aspect of the installation came when facing the enormous, open spaces that had ceilings over 11m high, most significantly, the area that hosts the Ramesses II statue. For these areas, a solution from Fohhn was required, with Samuel Hartmann, Fohhn Customer Relations, on-site for the commissioning process “When I arrived, I was extremely impressed and intimidated,” Hartmann said. “I’ve never seen such a huge venue before. We knew the acoustics would be tough with the size of the space and the material (stone) of the structure, but the Beam Steering Technology in Fohhn’s products meant we could direct the sound exactly where it was needed.”

Fohhn’s Linea Focus series, referred to by Hartmann as “the masters of challenging acoustics,” was specified for the large, open areas at the GEM.

From this range, nine DLI-430, four DLI-330, and 112 DLI-230 were provided. All with Beam Steering Technology, these products enable

Previous page: The GEM’s glorious, ancient statue of Ramesses II.

Left and below: The glowing interior and exterior of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

“WHEN I ARRIVED I WAS EXTREMELY IMPRESSED AND INTIMIDATED. I’D NEVER SEEN SUCH A HUGE VENUE BEFORE!”

precise control of sound dispersion, empowering Ramesses II to be viewed alongside an ethereal soundtrack that increases audience immersion. With this series, a sound beam can be tilted or directed upwards by up to 40°, and a beam opening angle can be selected between 0° and 90°, perfect for the GEM’s ambitious architecture. Hartmann revealed: “The GEM chose our products knowing that beam steering would be a necessity.”

Sound is delivered to all speakers via an Optocore X6R AES network, in a collaboration resulting in fibre rings that allow each speaker to be controlled over the network infrastructure. Amplification is made possible by a selection of products from the QSC CXD series; fittingly for the GEM, this series provides efficient and extraordinarily highfidelity power to drive multiple channels.

Hartmann noted that initially, they ran into an issue during the commission, as the building was unfinished. “We were designing a solution whilst they were making architectural changes, which meant we had to consider that our speakers may be obstructed by furniture or a structure,” he said. “However, our Beam Steering Technology overpowers any blockades, and we were able to easily digitally adjust sound dispersion as the museum was being completed.”

Andreas Uhl, Marketing Leader at Fohhn, said: “In addition to our

steering products, our simulation products were used in the creation of the GEM. Fohhn Designer made planning extremely easy; users simply draw or import an image of a room, and then our speakers can be positioned and compared in reference. The venue loved this software because it meant we could find out which design best corresponded to their needs, creating the perfect solution.”

A uniquely powerful museum, with halls graced by the likes of King Tutankhamun, the GEM certainly entrusted the teams at Audio Technology Egypt, JBL, and Fohhn with an intimidating project. The results, however, prove a success, with audio of spectacular quality able to resound through each area. The section holding Ramesses II opened with the soft launch, to mass adoration. Fattouh stated: “Shining through the magnificent windows, the sun hits the statue perfectly – when paired with the impactful sound from our strategically positioned speakers, this makes for a highly emotional experience.”

It seems that the GEM will only grow in formidability as the complete opening approaches, with Fattouh concluding: “There are so many guests visiting, and they’re all coming with such a passion. It’s great to see! The Grand Egyptian Museum has been the project of a lifetime, and this wonderful outcome wouldn’t have been possible without the huge team involved.”

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26 x JBL AW295

4 x JBL CBT 100LA-1

11 x JBL CBT 50LA-LS

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386 x JBL Control 14C/T

8 x JBL Control 14C-VA

288 x JBL Control 16C/T

47 x JBL Control 47HC

36 x JBL Control 25-1

136 x JBL Control 88M

2 x JBL CSM-32

2 x JBL CSR-2SV-WHT-EU

9 x Fohhn DLI-430 AES

4 x Fohhn DLI-330 AES

112 x Fohhn DLI-230 AES

4 x Fohhn WLF-1

10 x Fohhn LEN-220

10 x Fohhn WLX-221

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Left: The museum’s grand, stone walls, featuring sleek Fohhn speakers.

Major AV upgrade enhances the vibe at this iconic nightclub.

SAO PAULO / BRAZIL

AMERICAS

Since opening in 2003, D.EDGE in Sao Paulo has had innovation embedded into its walls, and it continues to stay at the cutting edge of nightclub design in Brazil. Acknowledged as the first club in the world to extensively use LED lighting and have its lighting system connected to the sound system, D.EDGE took the idea of the green LED spectrum analyser displays from the 1980s and ‘90s and expanded them to cover all the walls of the dance floor and bar, a feature which has since become an iconic element across electronic dance floors worldwide.

Now, after a renovation during the COVID-19 pandemic, the main dance floor has significantly expanded its sensory reach, both visually and aurally.

Muti Randolph, the designer and visual artist who first conceived the club’s futuristic concept, developed software that allows for the generation of green bars and also for the creation of 2D and 3D objects of any shape in real-time, modification of particle generators, and alteration of photographic images or videos.

“New LED panels have replaced the original project materials from 2003 – which were custom developed LED bars,” confirmed Randolph. “This effect has been widely replicated around the world, almost to the point that it became a cliche of EDM visuals, but back then it was the original, and it became very much integrated with D.EDGE’s visual identity.

“My intention for the new experience was to keep the spectrum analyser display feature initially, so the public would think nothing had changed, and then for them to be surprised during the night with 2D and 3D audio reactive generative elements –but always related to the architecture and design elements of the venue.”

To achieve this, Randolph designed the room so that the slim, rectangular hanging lights in the ceiling synchronise with the same shaped lights in the wall, seating and floor.

“The same custom developed software (built with openFrameworks) generates the LED panels video content and the architectural light lines (LED strips) content, so they are integrated,” continued Randolph. “Both video and light can be audio reactive, and you can control what elements are audio reactive, what are BPM generated/controlled, and how much.

“In the original 2003 project, these elements were RGB neon

Above: D.EDGE in Sao Paulo, established in 2003, has significantly expanded its sensory reach, both visually and aurally. All photos courtesy of D.EDGE.

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tubes controlled by a DMX table – there was no such thing as an LED strips or LED tubes back then.”

While the original project was all customised, only the software and architectural elements (light boxes and glass walls) were custom made for the venue’s recent refurbishment.

Back in 2010, D.EDGE was expanded to open up more possibilities, and a new sound system was introduced across the new and existing spaces in the venue.

While Randolph was working on the visual upgrades during the first two years of the pandemic, the club also saw an opportunity to replace the audio system in the club’s main room, with resident DJ and club mastermind Renato Ratier entrusting this to Brazilian specialists KW Audio.

“The new sound system in the Dance Floor 01 area is unique and exclusive,” explained Nelson Stanisci of KW Audio. “The system is divided into four and is managed digitally, to achieve greater clarity.”

The four divisions are sublow; low; mid; and high, with the sublow featuring hybrid 18-in speakers which work between 33Hz and 80Hz, positioned at floor level.

The low element features 12-in speakers using a bass reflex system and work between 80Hz and 250Hz, while the mid uses 8-in seals speakers between 250Hz and 2kHz. Finally, the high features 3-in titanium drivers mounted on a solid wood horn with constant directivity, and work between 2kHz and 19.5kHz. With the sublow on the floor, the three-way modules with the 12-in, 8-in and 3-in drivers are mounted side-by-side above the DJ.

“The KW sound system features speakers manufactured by B&C Speakers in Italy, specifically to order for D.EDGE,” said Stanisci. “The amplifiers were made in Brazil, also to order, by Elite Audio Acoustics, and all products for the project were sold by 4Vias.”

Ratier also requested a retro aesthetic for the speaker boxes, so asked Stanisci if he could put together a special design using wood.

“Ratier’s idea was to create a look that harked back to old recording studios from the ‘80s,” confirmed Stanisci. “The wood used to manufacture the system is a 13-layer marine multi-laminate, which uses phenolic glue applied with heat and pressure. The structural design of the box and the type of wood affect the sound, because the way the wood is fixed will determine how much vibration will occur on the structure. The lower the vibration in the box, the greater the speaker fidelity.

“Ratier liked the system so much he decided to install a new system for the dance floor at D.EDGE in Rio de Janeiro,” concluded Stanisci. “The biggest feedback came from the DJs and the public, who were surprised to learn that it was a Brazilian system.”

Below: The view from the DJ booth of Dance Floor 01 at D.EDGE in Sao Paulo.

www.d-edge.com.br www.kwaudio.com.br www.mutirandolph.com

YASHOBHOOMI: INDIA

INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION AND EXPO

CENTRE

DELHI / INDIA APAC

Right: The Grand Ball Room.

In the heart of Delhi, where modernity meets tradition, stands the India International Convention and Expo Centre (IICC), affectionately known as Yashobhoomi.

This architectural masterpiece, which spans 1,000,000 sq m, has recently undergone a transformative upgrade, thanks to the collaborative efforts of Alphatec Audio Video Pvt. Ltd, Pyramid Technologies, along with Larsen and Toubro, AV consultant, PMC and Architect.

Shedding light on the technologies deployed across the facility in its various areas is Mayank Gaurav, Co-founder & Director, Install Sales, Alphatec, who worked closely with various agencies involved during design and project execution.

“Alphatec made waves across the venue with its cuttingedge audio solutions, providing a range of top-tier products including Tannoy and Turbosound speakers, Lab Gruppen amplifiers, Midas digital mixers, Klark Teknik DSP, and Audio Technica wireless and wired microphones,” confirmed Gaurav.

“These offerings played a pivotal role in the success of the venture, with Alphatec’s team offering unwavering support throughout the project’s lifecycle along with Pyramid Technologies, seamlessly managing, troubleshooting and overcoming challenges.”

The inauguration of the IICC by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September 2023 enhanced the project’s significance to a national level, and it stands among the largest and most advanced MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) facilities across the world, showcasing the prowess of technology and its role in governance and national events.

The design of Yashobhoomi boasts a 6000-seater auditorium with 11 configurable stage locations and modular motorised seating arrangements, alongside a grand ballroom which can accommodate up to 3500 people.

Additionally, expansive exhibition centres, spacious pre-

Transformative AV brings the new India International Convention and Expo Centre to life thanks for a massive collaborative effort.

Left and below: An extensive exhibition Hall within Yashobhoomi.

1: The pre-function space features a blend of multiple Tannoy QFlex 48 and QFlex 32 speakers for targeted sound dispersion with high intelligibility.

2 & 3: The inside of the Conference Hall,

4: Mayank Gaurav, Co-founder & Director, Install Sales, Alphatec.

5 & 6: The impressive 6000-seater Auditorium.

function areas, and various meeting spaces cater to diverse needs.

The buildings design and its blend of innovative new age AV systems catering to specific spaces, with the auditorium boasting a combination of Tannoy VQ, VX, and VSX series loudspeakers, along with Lab Gruppen D series amplifiers and Midas HD96 digital mixers to ensure exceptional audio quality.

Turbosound NuQ-Active portable speakers and Audio Technica 3000 Series Digital wireless microphones were also integrated, delivering uniform sound pressure levels and a high STI value, exceeding 110dB SPL.

The grand ballroom, divisible into three spaces, features Tannoy QFLEX digital steerable technology to address the space’s acoustic challenges, while Tannoy VQ and VSX series speakers can be used for combined application.

The system is powered by Lab Gruppen D series mmplifiers, Midas HD96 and M32 digital mixers, while Audio Technica 3000 Series digital wireless microphones, and ES series gooseneck microphones provide versatility and reliable performance.

Smaller convention halls and meeting rooms boast Tannoy QFlex digital steerable speakers for precise audio delivery and Tannoy VSX subwoofers powered by Lab Gruppen D series amplifiers.

For the venue’s exhibition halls, 12-in Tannoy Dual Concentric CMS 1201DC ceiling speakers positioned strategically for optimal coverage, also powered by Lab Gruppen D series amplifiers and Midas M32 Live digital mixers.

The pre-function space, with its towering 25-meter height and glass surroundings, features a blend of multiple Tannoy QFlex 48 and QFlex 32 speakers for targeted sound dispersion with high intelligibility.

“The collaborative effort behind the India International Convention and Expo Centre by Alphatec Audio Video Pvt. Ltd, Pyramid Technologies, Larsen and Toubro, AV consultants, PMC, and Architects stands as a testament to the endless possibilities in the world of audio-visual technology,” concluded Gaurav.

“The meticulous planning, innovative solutions, and unwavering commitment to excellence have not only transformed Yashobhoomi into a global landmark, but have set new benchmarks for technology integration in monumental projects.

“This achievement reaffirms Alphatec’s dedication to pushing boundaries in technology, leaving an indelible mark on the landscape of conventions and exhibitions,” he continued. “Alphatec’s holistic approach have truly created a symphony of innovation resonating far beyond Delhi, making a lasting impact on the world stage.”

New York City College of Technology • Brooklyn, New York

Top Five Reasons to Attend NATEAC

1. Cutting-Edge Insights: NATEAC brings together industry leaders, experts, and innovators to share the latest trends, technologies, and best practices in theatre engineering and architecture.

2. Networking Opportunities: Connect with fellow professionals, architects, engineers, theatre consultants, and suppliers from around the world. NATEAC provides a platform for meaningful interactions, allowing you to forge new partnerships, exchange ideas, and collaborate on future projects.

3. Professional Development: NATEAC offers a range of educational sessions, workshops, and panel discussions centered around the theme of access that will provide you with opportunities to enhance your skills and expand your knowledge base.

4. Inspiration and Creativity: Immerse yourself in the world of theatre design and architecture. NATEAC showcases inspiring projects, case studies, charrettes, and performance space tours that demonstrate the artistry and innovation inherent in theatrical spaces.

5. Stay Ahead of the Curve: In an industry that’s constantly evolving, staying ahead of the curve is essential for success. By attending NATEAC, you position yourself at the forefront of industry developments, gaining insights into emerging trends, regulatory changes, and technological advancements that impact theatre design and construction.

Prolight + Sound

FRANKFURT, GERMANY / 19 – 22 March, 2024 EMEA

Over four days, 2024’s Prolight + Sound excellently illustrated what makes the entertainment technology industry so great – its ability to connect people. Encouraging conversations that both nurtured previous relationships and sparked new ones, this year’s PL+S truly brought visitors together. Daisy Thorogood reports from the floor...

Over 25,000 guests from five continents and more than 100 countries came together for the show; and with over 500 exhibitors and brands presenting their top innovations, there was something for everyone. Alongside four outdoor stages hosting a plethora of performances, live product displays, and DJ sets, Prolight + Sound showcased stimulating panel discussions, keynotes, and presentations, all highlighting cuttingedge trends and products within the realm of audiovisual technology.

Motivated by a desire to provide accessible, extensive education for the latest generation of industry newcomers, three PL+S platforms offered bilingual seminars on relevant topics under the umbrella of “Prolight + Sound College”, for example, Camera College (in cooperation with the BVFK - Federal Association of the Concert and Event Industry), the ProAudio College (in cooperation with the VDT - Association of German Sound Engineers) and the VPLT College (Association for Media and Event Technology). Furthermore, ChamSys provided hands-on training sessions with their collections of MagicQ and GeNetix products. This focus on empowering younger visitors paid off in attendance, with 25% of PL+S’ audience being aged below 25. This statistic is indicative of the emerging confidence and presence of the future generation of AV professionals, fostered by inclusive trade shows like PL+S. The halls within Messe Frankfurt were bustling, and particularly busy was the Women in Lighting project’s booth, presented in cooperation with Ayrton and Light Collective. Setting out to recognise and combat the unconscious gender bias of the industry, this stand celebrated of the impact of women in luminary design. Also hosted here was a discussion of Light Collective’s Women in Lighting book, attended by Celine Royer and Natalie Heckl, two figures who will feature in the work. Additionally in attendance was KV2 Audio, who stated the tradeshow’s importance to the brand. “We have participated in the Live Sound Arena demo area at Prolight + Sound every year for nearly 20 years,”

commented George Krampera, jr., KV2 CEO. This year was no different, with the company demonstrating their long-throw system, VHD2.

ADJ similarly utilised the exhibition to showcase a variety of the company’s current products, displaying the ElectraPix Series of robust wash battery-powered fixtures and the new WMS2 high-resolution LED video panel.

The Adam Hall Group once again presented its extensive, iconic event technology at this year’s PL+S. The manufacturer was not only represented with two stands (Adam Hall Networking Space and Cameo) in the Frankfurt exhibition halls, but it also opened its Experience Centre at the nearby company headquarters in Neu-Anspach, displaying an exclusive Adam Hall Group Surround Experience. Jens Kleinhuis said: “We composed a production especially for the room, creating an exclusive Surround Experience using our Cameo products and sound products.” Cameo’s own booth showcased several new models from the OTOS, OPUS and AZOR moving head series. A particular highlight was the presentation of the ORON H2 IP65 moving head, which features a phosphor laser engine.

Attendees got a chance to see the latest in stage machinery from ETC, including its Prodigy P2 hoist system that was in action at the company’s stand. New automated fixtures including the recently launched Ministar and best-in-class Halcyon fixtures were also exhibited.

Avolites’ Diamond 7 (D7) lighting console was shown publicly for the

1 The L-Acoustics stand.

2 A performance from ‘Queenie’ at Robe’s booth, celebrating 30 years of the company.

3 A very well attended Women In Lighting meeting.

4 Andrew McKinlay of Avolites.

5 Jan Jareš and Ron Pilon of KV2 Audio.

6 Gaby van der Blom of HK Audio.

7 Tim Maier of Harmonic Design.

8 Tyler Lloyd and Dan Coombs of Chamsys.

9 Simon Bennett of Nicolaudie Group.

10 Stephen Baird-Smith of zactrack and Mirko Filip of MA Lighting.

11 Stuart Green and David Ferraz of CAST Group

12 Elisa Posteraro of Cameo and Alexander Pietschmann of Adam Hall Group.

13 The Absen stand.

14 Verena Kroupa of AV Stumpfl.

15 Christian Hertel of Madrix.

first time with two variants on the stand – the D7-215 and the D7-330. The reactions were “overwhelmingly positive,” stated Avolites MD Paul Wong. “The customers were genuinely amazed by the D7 range, they loved the portability, flexibility and touch and feel of the interface!” Wong also revealed that “several D7s will be in action over the summer in several high-profile festivals,” promising an exciting year ahead for the company.

HK Audio’s latest addition to the Concert Sound product range, the Contour X 210 LT point source long throw loudspeaker, was hosted at the show, with experts on hand to explain more about the exciting unit. It complements the CONTOUR X series with a flexible and particularly powerful sound reinforcement tool for rough, daily use on live stages and for long-lasting fixed installations. Furthermore, this product was featured in an outdoor demo, executed four times a day, proving just how capable the speaker is.

This year’s show was especially important to Robe as the company celebrated its 30-year anniversary at Messe Frankfurt, hosted on its impressive stand. Naturally, Robe launched new products, the centrepiece of which was the iBOLT – a bright searchlight fixture. Furthermore, Robe presented the final show in its Power of Imagination live performance trilogy, alongside a high-energy light show designed to show off the creativity and potential of their new products in their native environment.

ROE Visual’s display of their cutting-edge, environmentally versatile LED screens was a comprehensive one, with an expert team always present, creating a vibrant platform for discourse. CHAUVET Professional’s booth design featured the intense output of its STRIKE Array 2C and STRIKE Array 4C IP65-rated RGBAWW blinder-strobe-audience lights. CHAUVET demonstrated how these fixtures open the door to bending reality in numerous ways, with full colour pods (four in the larger unit, two in the smaller) that can be independently focused.

Ayrton’s presence at the trade show was particularly exciting, with its exhibition including a wildly creative, huge lightshow, doubling as a debut of Kyalami and Nando 502 Wash fixtures. The captivating showcase also displayed Rivale Profile, Cobra, Cobra², Wildsun K9 Wash, and Argo 6 FX units, resulting in a mesmerising spectacle that reiterated the power, precision, and innovativeness of Ayrton products.

Not only did Elation highlight new solutions in its popular PROTEUS, FUZE and KL series, visitors to PL+S were some of the first to preview

1 Members of the PK Sound team on its stand.

2 Shelley Drury and Mark Gibbons of Le Mark Group.

3 The Lawo stand.

4 Tiffany Metzinger and Daniel Imiola of Global Truss.

5 Larry Beck and Koy Neminathan of Elation Lighting.

five new series of products designed to kindle the creative spirit –SIX+ PAR, SIX+ BAR, SŌL I BLINDER, PULSE BAR, PULSE PANEL FX, and LIMELIGHT PAR.

Attendees to these excellent exhibitions and stands could round out the day in style, with PL+S’ ‘Community Nights’, providing visitors access to Frankfurt’s most lively locations, meaning that networking and scintillating conversation did not have to finish with the show.

As the curtains closed on Prolight + Sound 2024, attendees departed the show with a sense of accomplishment. Wolfgang Marzin, President & CEO of Messe Frankfurt, concluded: “I am very pleased that we were able to emphasise what makes Prolight + Sound so special with this year’s edition. It not only combines technical innovations, knowledge transfer, and entertainment, but it also brings together many top decision-makers with new arrivals under one roof - and thus forms a bridge between the status quo and the future of the events industry.”

The experts in Beam Steering

The largest product range. Made in Germany.

INFOCOMM

PREVIEW

Adam Hall Group TICA Series

Booth C10057

Versatile audio solutions for both large and small-scale installations. Engineered for both durability and premium sound quality.

Tailor your audio setup by mixing and matching components. Seamlessly integrate networked and analogue audio systems. Small form factor and flexible mounting possibilities. www.ld-systems.com/tica

PIXERA

PIXERA two GEN2 RS

Booth W2556

offers specified and fixed rental staging options and comes with a redundant power supply. plays back uncompressed 4K at 60fps.

• 10GB/s data read default rate.

• 12G-SDI I/O card and 2.0 HDMI input.

• 8TB media storage. https://pixera.one/en

Audio-Technica Microphone solutions

Booth C5619

• ATND1061 Beamforming Microphone for conference rooms, boardrooms, lecture theatres and more.

• ES964 compact boundary microphone – the latest in Audio-Technica’s Engineered Sound series of installation microphones.

ES964 is simple to install and designed for clear, highly intelligible speech with one omnidirectional capsule and two bidirectional capsules.

BP3600 Immersive Audio Microphone features eight compact capsule assemblies with excellent high-frequency characteristics. www.audio-technica.com

Smart IP PoE loudspeakers

Booth C5034

• Scalable, flexible and very cost-effective to install. www.genelec.com/smart-ip Genelec

Growing family of wall, ceiling and pendant loudspeaker models. Single CAT cable provides PoE, AoIP and loudspeaker management.

Compatible with Dante and AES67.

Exceptional sound quality with clarity, intelligibility and uniform coverage.

Booth C9701

• Meyer Sound’s flagship large-format linear line array loudspeaker, PANTHER, is engineered to meet rapidly evolving demands for touring and installed systems.

• PANTHER is available in three coverage patterns, providing an incredibly predictable response with pinpoint dispersion control.

• Despite stadium levels of performance, PANTHER weighs just 150 lb (68 kg) and its high-efficiency amplification package offers substantial savings on current draw compared to previous generation systems.

https://meyersound.com/perfectpair Meyer Sound PANTHER

The 2100 LFC low-frequency control element is a powerful loudspeaker that extends the advanced technology of PANTHER down to the lowest limits of audibility. It produces a linear acoustic output suitable for the most powerful applications by pairing a single, all-new 21-inch driver with four voice coils to a potent Class D amplifier.

The 2100-LFC’s 30 – 125 Hz extended response pairs perfectly with PANTHER loudspeakers. Its deep, rich bass offers clarity, punch, and total accuracy.

Sennheiser Business Communications

Booth C5335

• TeamConnect Bars – multi award-winning TeamConnect (TC) Bars are designed to be the most flexible all-in-one devices for meeting rooms and collaboration spaces.

TeamConnect Ceiling Medium – With a coverage range of up to 40 sq m, this microphone is the right choice for midsize lecture or collaboration spaces.

TruVoicelift – Sennheiser’s interpretation of the voice lift function as applied to the ceiling microphone solutions, with the objective to bridge the sound level loss over the distance between the speaker and the listener.

Scavenger Hunt – Join the company’s InfoComm 2024 hunt to be eligible to win a midsized TeamConnect Bar M. www.sennheiser.com/en-us/events/infocomm

Void Acoustics

Incubus Air Array Gold KROME

Booth C9507

Demo Room: N120

Experience our exclusive demonstrations hosted by our Co-Founder, Rog Mogale. See our range of innovative and cutting edge solutions. Connect with our team and discover tailored audio solutions that address your unique needs. Find out how our technology can elevate your audio experiences.

Receive your FREE exhibit only pass using code VOI723. https://voidacoustics.com

Powersoft

Verso, the gateway to MyUniverso Cloud

Booth C9327

• New lower-power Unica 1K8 and 5K4 designed for smaller applications

• Entire Unica series (8 models) now with Dynamic Music Distribution (DMD) functionalisties.

• New Verso gateway connects all other existing Powersoft amps to MyUniverso cloud platform.

• Verso allows all MyPowersoft account users to access the Powersoft Cloud Platform.

• Robust logging and data storage capabilities, even during internet outages.

• Easy Swap and remote firmware update functionality to minimise onsite maintenance. Compatible with third-party cloud platforms. www.powersoft.com/en

Theory Professional High-Performance Landscape Speakers

Booth C9901

Audio Demo Room: N118

• ic6-Bollard: 6.5-in full-range landscape speaker. iws12-Bollard: 12-in landscape subwoofer.

High-output professional-grade drivers – including compression tweeter. 360-degree flawless, uniform coverage. Elegant, paintable enclosures. www.theoryprofessional.com

Acoustics have the power to transform spaces, emotions, and us. From music halls to lecture halls to small performance venues and corporate headquarters, Constellation by Meyer Sound has transformed hundreds of venues worldwide with natural acoustics that sound amazing in any space. In any seat. For any kind of sound. meyersound.com/constellation

OAK AMPLIFIERS

Founded in 2021 in the small town of Kungsbacka, south of Gothenburg, Sweden, Oak Amplifiers was born out of a passion for sustainability and efficiency. Here, CEO Sandra Otterdahl talks us through the short history of the company, its aspirations for innovation, prior experience in power electronics, and the plans to bring products to market in the not-too-distant future…

“Despite having a background in an entirely different industry – real estate – I have always worked closely on energy efficiency certifications for buildings and work related to that, and it was something I was passionate about because I think it’s important to work with something that has sustainable practices at the core.

“My husband, Mats Otterdahl, has a background in the audio amplifier industry here in Sweden, and we would often hold discussions about the type of amplifiers he wanted to see developed.

“I found it interesting to look at the development of technologies from my perspective, and so we talked about setting up a new company to develop amplifiers that made a difference in terms of power consumption and efficiency.

“Our goal is to set new standards, because the current standards are only there to be reached past. I also had prior experience as a business developer and developing sustainable products, so with that, coupled with Mats’ experience and knowledge about electronics, we thought it would be a perfect match.

“One of the sparks that ignited in my mind to go on this journey was hearing how bands such as Coldplay would not tour as often if the industry didn’t do more to counter its emissions and carbon footprint, and hearing that really gave me the desire to

develop amplifiers that will make a difference, both from an install perspective and a touring perspective.

“It started in early 2020, and the early lockdowns during the pandemic gave us the opportunity to really hone our focus, and by early 2021 we had registered the company having mapped out what kind of company we wanted to be, and what sort of amplifiers we would like to develop.

“It has been a long journey up until this point. We are currently a team of seven, and we are constantly looking into new technologies through R&D, which is in some ways causing us delays in announcing when we will go to market, because we want the product to be as good and as efficient as it possible can be.

“We have been focussing so much on innovation, and we have goals of when we want to go to market, but as our development progresses we realise that we might be developing a new invention that requires a patent. And so discussions with lawyers takes up more of our time. But we are so diligent with what we are developing that we don’t want to leave any stone unturned. We are not really focusing on the conventional technology, we are always looking at what could be next.

“It is not easy to start a new company and go to the international market in the current climate. And when we do go to market, we

won’t be going with the same kind of products that are already out there, we want to show what can be done with innovation. We realise that it will take time, but we have to produce a reliable product and prove that what we have been working on will be a success.

“Oak Amplifiers has the goal of producing amplifiers with GaN transistors and with as many channels as possible in a 1U rack amplifier. The challenge has been to cool a 1-unit 16kW amplifier with 16 channels –even though we use transistors with high efficiency. That is one of the many facets of the product development that we have been working on.

“As of today, our first product is the Robur series, which is installation focussed. We publicly launched for the first time at InfoComm in 2023 with that concept on our stand. At InfoComm this year we will show a new product that we have been working on, that we have a patent for.

“Last year was a chance for us to show that we exist, because no-one had really heard of us before, and we used the show to get input into what we were doing and see what the market wanted. It felt like a huge success to us, and when we go back this year we will have more to show, and it will be another big landmark for the company.

“We are planning for the manufacturing to be set up here in Sweden, and that will be in conjunction with a specific partner, and the current aim is to bring product to market within the first two quarters of 2025.

“There is a lot to do, but right now it is exciting to know what we are working on. There has been a lot of talk, and we are at the point now where we feel that we need to get our products out there to prove that a start-up brand can be a success in this industry, which I often think can be quite conservative – because people tend to stick to what they know.

“What we have found, is that there are the people who say to us ‘you can’t do that’ and then there are those who are open to the new ideas. I’ve had conversations with distributors, loudspeaker manufacturers, end users, sound engineers, and there has been so much variety in the feedback.

“We are now laser focused on what we want to achieve, so watch this space. I think it’s important for us that we are are getting out there and talking about what we do, but we really need to show the product. We need to get the products out to the market, and it’s exciting that we are not that far away from realising that.”

www.oakamplifiers.com

Clockwise from left:

Oak Amplifiers CEO Sandra Otterdahl. The Oak Amplifiers booth at InfoComm 2023 with the Robur series on display. The Robur series of amplifiers.

RIEDEL

Thanks to decades of experience in the theatre technology world, Riedel understands the unique workflows, challenges, and customer requirements that define the dynamic industry of performance. Motivated by this, the company has created a set of theatre solutions that are flexible enough to adapt to the special needs of each production: Riedel Stage Systems.

1. A brand-new Riedel Stage System in action.

2. Shakespeare’s Globe, now equipped with Riedel’s Bolero intercom system.

3. A full-view of a ‘typical’ Stage System.

4. A performance at Shakespeare’s Globe.

5. The Globe using its Bolero system to enable clear communication throughout the theatre.

6.

7. Riedel’s

Unveiled at 2024’s ISE, Riedel’s Stage Systems combine the brand’s flagship products, creating a blend of trustworthy units, tailored perfectly to theatre requirements. The solutions, adaptable to their core, can be customised to include intercom, video, audio monitoring, and camera control, among many other performance demands. Riedel’s harmonisation of their existing products to craft new, innovative systems promises to grant stage teams a cohesive, manageable workflow. Obtaining a Stage System begins with an analysis from Riedel’s experts, a team who observe a theatre’s needs and identify which products will craft the wanted results. Accommodating of all venue desires, the company’s entire portfolio can be mixed and matched in the creation of a Stage System.

An Artist intercom as the intercom backbone will arguably be one of the most typical components within a Stage System, thanks to its extensive feature set that provides teams with unprecedented workflow flexibility, key in the dynamic industry of theatre. Bolero wireless intercom can be integrated within this intercom ecosystem to deliver high-quality wireless communications for stagehands, wardrobe, or any crew that needs freedom of movement.

To stay on top of things, Riedel’s MediorNet MultiViewer can be included as a video and multiviewing foundation, with an integrated stopwatch & timer that further proves it an ideal addition to a solution. Whether TDM or IP, MediorNet acts as a cornerstone for zero-latency signal routing and distribution.

The multifunctional SmartPanel user interfaces can be relied upon as the beating heart of a Stage System, uniting intercom, audio monitoring, and control capabilities within a single panel. Thirdparty systems (e.g. PTZ camera solutions or cue light systems) can also be integrated through SmartPanels.

However, in the end, the user decides what they need and where they need it.

Riedel’s concern for theatre teams is not a recent development; prior to the announcement of Stage Systems, the company’s products were already tightly woven into the fabric of the performance industry.

For example, the Bolero intercom system played an indispensable role in cross-venue communication and collaboration for the two celebrated venues within London’s Shakespeare’s Globe - the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse and the Globe.

Integrated in late 2023, the Bolero intercom enabled seamless roaming and unparalleled audio quality within the two theatre environments, addressing each space’s main challenges of communication with ease.

“The range and clarity of Riedel’s Bolero system has significantly enhanced our communication capabilities, transforming the way we manage our performances,” said Charli Hurford, Senior Technician at Shakespeare’s Globe.

“The technology’s seamless roaming and plugand-play functionality have eliminated the need for troubleshooting, resulting in more efficient

(left to right): Francisco Javier Huertas Rodriguez of Teatro Real Opera House, Maribel Roman of Riedel Communications, and Fernando Valiente of Teatro Real.

Bolero streamlining work flow at Spain’s Teatro Real Opera House.

technical rehearsals and smoother show running. This system has proven to be an essential tool for our stage management teams, enabling us to provide unparalleled support and deliver outstanding performances,” Hurford continued. By adopting the Bolero system, Shakespeare’s Globe has streamlined its workflows, resulting in increased efficiency and resource optimisation. With the dramatic improvement in the range and clarity of communication across both venues, the performing arts venue simultaneously reduced the required number of antennas from nine to three.

The limited need for troubleshooting has eliminated downtime and waiting periods, ensuring technical rehearsals proceed seamlessly.

Incorporating the Bolero system also yielded financial savings, eliminating the need for a standby technician during technical rehearsals and thereby reallocating resources more efficiently overall.

Nacho Lee, UK Sales Manager for Theatre and Industry at Riedel, concluded: “We are thrilled to have partnered with Shakespeare’s Globe in providing our Bolero intercom system, enhancing their performances and contributing to their success. Our technology’s ability to seamlessly bridge communication gaps in live environments aligns perfectly with theatre’s commitment to excellence.”

Further displaying Riedel’s strong relationship with performance venues was their collaboration with Spain’s Teatro Real opera house, which in February 2024, followed in the footsteps of Shakespeare’s Globe, implementing the Bolero intercom. The Bolero systems ensure coverage across the stage, passageways, and two key halls — Gayarre and Salón de Baile — that are used for various events, enabling clear, reliable communication for all technical staff, wherever they work.

“Bolero’s unparalleled audio quality, swift configuration, and comprehensive coverage across our diverse event spaces have greatly streamlined our workflow,” said Fernando Valiente, Audiovisual Manager at the Teatro Real. Such testimonials from esteemed performance venues serve as compelling evidence of Riedel’s transformative impact on the theatre landscape. By embracing Riedel’s technology, these spaces have not only optimised their workflows but have also elevated the quality and reliability of their productions, ultimately enhancing the overall audience experience. Riedel’s Stage Systems are the next step up in this, encouraging customers to speak with experts and discover a custom combination solution for their venue, using all the iconic Riedel products that theatres have long trusted.

As Riedel continues to push the boundaries of innovation and excellence in live performance technology, it reaffirms its position as a cornerstone of the industry. With its new, userfriendly, and uniquely tailored Stage Systems, the company invites theatre teams to embark on a journey of creative success.

www.riedel.net

HK AUDIO

CONTOUR X 210 LT

HK Audio presented the CX 210 LT at Prolight + Sound, the new top model in its CONTOUR X series from the CONCERT SOUND portfolio.

HK Audio’s CONCERT SOUND stands for uncompromising road suitability, high sound quality and performance, and with the comprehensive and practice-orientated CONTOUR X point source series and the flexible COSMO line array, the CONCERT SOUND product family covers a wide range of application scenarios for professional event productions and demanding fixed installations.

Thanks to optimally coordinated DSP presets, matched FIR filters with linearised phase response, and IIR filters for latency-critical applications, all components of the CONTOUR X and COSMO series can be combined with each other in almost any way, and complement each other.

The newly developed CONTOUR X 210 LT passive point source loudspeaker fulfils the highest demands in terms of workmanship, sound quality, and sound pressure. It complements the CONTOUR X series with a flexible and particularly powerful sound reinforcement tool for rough, daily use on live stages and for long-lasting fixed installations.

CX 210 LT carries the sound in detail at the highest volume levels over long distances and shines not only as a powerful front PA system, but also as a side, front, and outfill in large CONCERT SOUND systems. It enables horizontal arrays to be set up very easily, which means that large events can be covered cost-effectively, and without much effort.

The large 60° by 25° horn can be rotated for cluster operation. With the powerful 1.4-inch driver with 3-inch voice coil and the MCT (Multicell Transformer) developed by HK Audio, it offers very precise dispersion and even and defined coverage of the area to be covered. 210 stands for the two 10-inch mid/high drivers, which form a homogeneous and powerful foundation.

Made from high-strength birch multiplex with a hardwearing PU coating, the enclosure can withstand the rigours of everyday life on the road well beyond the depreciation period.

The Integrated Cluster and Flyware (ICF) mechanism is a new development by HK Audio, and greatly simplifies the handling of the CX 210 LT. Thanks to the ICF built into the housing, no additional cluster and flyware is required, and cluster setups are created in no time at all.

For Lab.Gruppen and Powersoft amplifiers, pre-configured FIR filters with linearised phase response are available for all HK Audio CONCERT SOUND models and IIR filters for latency-critical applications. Another practical detail are the NL 4 sockets with pin selector switch. Two separate speaker groups can be connected with just one NL 4 cable. www.hkaudio.com

PHAROS ARCHITECTURAL CONTROLS

DMX RECORD

Pharos Architectural Controls has recently launched DMX Record, a free standalone utility that lets you capture complex lighting programming from any source. Once recorded, recordings can be imported straight into Pharos Designer 2 software for playback on the famously reliable and installation-friendly Pharos Designer LPC family of controllers. With DMX Record, you can capture lighting programming from any control system and add it straight into a timeline in Pharos Designer 2 just like any other preset. Recordings sit seamlessly alongside other programming in your project, and multiple recordings can be dynamically combined using group programming and timeline priority. What’s more, use selective playback in Designer 2 to reveal only some of the capture by dropping the recording onto a specific group of fixtures. This allows you to combine captures by placing multiple recording presets on different fixture groups.

Once a recording has been made, it’s not set in stone. Latest-takesprecedence timeline priority in Designer 2 provides ultimate flexibility for adjusting recordings even after they have been made. Whether it’s colour, beam, gobo, position, or other parameters, simply program the changes using Scenes in Designer 2 and apply these to a timeline to override only the selected parts of a recording, without having to revisit the console.

DMX Record enables playback of captured lighting programming for long-term permanent installations, with huge potential to manipulate and programme on top of it. With DMX Record, you can enable

an upgrade to a legacy system by recording the existing looks and sequences without having to reverse-engineer old programming or take mock-up and concept programming to a live Designer project. Moving lights are best programmed with fully featured consoles, which are not typically suited to installation environments. Using DMX Record, console operators can download DMX Record and capture recordings of their programming, with no familiarity of Designer 2 necessary. Recorded data can be reviewed and trimmed in DMX Record, ready to be shared with the programmer of the Designer 2 project. Once the shared files from DMX Record have been imported into Designer 2, you can simply drop the recording preset into a timeline onto a group of fixtures patched in the same way as the recording, then trigger the LPC to play back the timeline exactly as programmed on the console. Furthermore, Pharos programmers using DMX recordings as a foundation can benefit from Designer 2’s powerful and flexible programming tools, triggers and overrides to create a complete dynamic lighting solution.

DMX Record is the latest innovation from Pharos Architectural Controls, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary year in 2024. It was launched in April alongside Designer 2.12.0, which brings a wealth of new features, including Music Timelines that allow you to use bars and beats to create stunning light shows set to music faster than ever before.

www.pharoscontrols.com

Above and beyond atmosphere

Deliver premium quality sound, reliability and aesthetic beauty – raising the experience to new heights.

Genelec Smart IP PoE loudspeakers offer optimised internal amplifiers and the simplicity of single cable installation, with audio, power and control all provided by one standard CAT cable.

Now available in ceiling-mounted form factors, the pendant 4436A and in-ceiling 4435A.

NICOLAUDIE

WOLFMIX W1

The Wolfmix W1 is a powerful and compact standalone DMX controller, designed for creating high-impact lightshows on the fly without a computer. With a toolbox of different FX modules, music synchronisation, and up to four DMX universes, Wolfmix has users covered whether it’s for a live performance, wedding, concert, disco, or club.

A powerful processor and a robust hardware construction ensure smooth, long-lasting performance no matter how vibrant a party is. Designed with the performer in mind, Wolfmix comes with 37 virtually indestructible LED-coloured silicone buttons and four push encoders to fine-tune parameters. Its handy 4.3in capacitive touch TFT screen gives direct access to all the features including a colour picker, a pan/tilt grid, and an on-screen keyboard for naming presets.

Choose from a database of over 20,000 ready-made fixtures or build a custom solution right inside the controller if not included in the existing library.

The heart of Wolfmix, the FX modules, are divided into three groups. These are very intuitive to use and can be tweaked and scaled to fit specific needs.

COLOR FX allows for mixing up to 16 colours in effects such as rainbow or sparkle. Set up a custom colour scheme on the fly to create the right

mood for any party.

The MOVE FX module makes it easy to create moving patterns on scanners and moving heads with pan, tilt, circle, and some more advanced effects. Fan the light beams with an encoder, add phase effects, and change the centre point with a single button tap.

BEAM FX lets you create chases, waves, heartbeat dimming and more. These effects control the brightness of the lights but also work with Zoom, Iris, Pan and Tilt channels. One can also create custom patterns using the Step Sequencer.

Once a great-looking scene is created, it can be saved as a PRESET on the fly, and then quickly recalled at the touch of a button. It can even be tweaked further from here, with modified versions able to be saved in one of 100 preset slots.

Static options are also available. Moving heads can be positioned in a specific location and colour. The LIVE EDIT function allows for the setting and saving of positions and colours, along with alternative functions such as Prism, Focus, Iris, and Zoom. For example, users can save a disco ball position or a specific strobe speed.

Wolfmix is designed to sync with the music, and there are multiple ways to achieve this. Synchronisation can be made through various methods such as using the TAP BPM button, an internal or external microphone, or a direct input signal via Ableton Link and OS2L.

Additionally, Wolfmix provides a range of quick effects on the right column, including a paparazzi-style white flash effect, adjustable strobe and speed effects, and the ability to trigger Blinder, Blackout, and Smoke. These effects can be used as a flash button, toggle, or run for a pre-defined duration.

The latest W1 MK2 version allows for a USB MIDI controller to be connected for controlling group dimmers, triggering presets, and synchronising effects via MIDI clock. Shows and fixtures can also be backed up to a USB memory stick.

www.nicolaudie.com

PROFESSIONAL

CONTOUR X CX 210 LT

THE UNCOMPROMISING LONG THROW SYSTEM

The

compact point source for really big

sound..

• Impressive sound level, enormous throw by HK Audio MCT

• Perfectly matched Lab.Gruppen and Powersoft filter sets for arrays of 1 to 4 speakers

• Passive 24 db/oct. crossover - fewer power amp channels, more flexibility

• Linear phase FIR and IRR filters for latencycritical applications

• ICF - integrated single-point flying mechanics for single speakers and arrays

• Robust design for the daily use on the road „Made in Germany“

The perfect addition to the CONCERT SOUND CONTOUR X and COSMO series

PRODUCT GUIDE: AMPLIFIERS & PROCESSORS

CloudPower Class-D Installation Amplifiers with DSP

CloudPower is a range of installation amplifiers with integral DSP, designed and manufactured in Belgium by APEX. The CloudPower series comprises a quartet of four channel models, providing between 350W and 3000W per channel, plus the sixteen channel CP716D, which offers 16 x 700W for multi-zone and immersive applications. All CloudPower variants can drive any combination of low impedance and 70/100v speakers, offering a solution for projects scaling from restaurants to arenas. Dante audio networking is available, while compatibility with the UDP protocol permits integration with industry-standard control systems such as AMX® and Crestron®.

CloudPower incorporates a WiFi hotspot and can be controlled remotely using the IntelliCloud WebUI. As a browser-based application, IntelliCloud can be accessed from any device (iOS, Windows, Android) without the need to download any software. Multiple users can view and adjust the system simultaneously from different devices. All settings are stored in the cloud, giving access to real-time information. IntelliCloud provides an at-a-glance overview of connected CloudPower devices, helping users to keep track of several amplifiers at once. Global device presets can be saved and uploaded, speeding up the process of configuring multiple amplifiers as well as enabling easy backups. IntelliCloud has garnered praise for its linear, logical interface, offering straightforward access to a 10-input matrix for each amp channel as well as gain, delay, PEQ, X-over and limiter parameters. Having comprehensive remote control over the amplifiers is a time-saver for integrators, permitting fast troubleshooting and everyday adjustments without the need for site visits. Internal pink noise and sine wave generators are also provided to assist with system setup. These generators are available on any channel and can be accessed from IntelliCloud, so integrators can configure systems from their device without making multiple return trips to the amp room. In addition to their remote control capability, CloudPower amplifiers have a high visibility OLED display and rotary encoder, granting the option of hands-on setup and day-to-day operation. A comprehensive DSP toolkit is at the heart of each amplifier, with user processing facilities including gain, mute, and phase inversion, delay of up to 250ms, RMS and Peak limiter, X-over HPF (high-pass filter) and LPF (low-pass filter) with 19 filter variations, plus 12-band parametric filtering with a choice of 16 filter types. Speaker processing tools also include FIR filter implementation. Group processing adds further resources, with six output groups assignable between multiple amplifiers in a network and an additional 12-band parametric EQ per group. Among CloudPower’s most innovative features is its integrated audio source and streaming capability, facilitating easy playback of background music from a device running Spotify or AirPlay, cutting the need for additional hardware.

CloudPower amplifiers are founded on APEX’s proprietary GlidePath architecture, with DSP and amplifier circuits fully integrated for outstanding performance. GlidePath employs DC coupling throughout the signal path, dramatically reducing the time offsets and distortion associated with AC coupling. Thanks to GlidePath, CloudPower amplifiers deliver crisper, punchier bass and brighter, more natural high frequencies, with superior intelligibility. GlidePath’s ultra-precise reproduction of high transients manages speaker cone excursion, consistently delivering higher output under a short initial impulse and significantly diminishing trail output after the signal stops in head-to-head tests against leading Class-D amplifiers. This control over cone excursion results in less distortion, higher perceived volume and reduced mechanical wear on speakers. The list of successful CloudPower installations spans sports stadiums, houses of worship, nightclubs, bars, and education campuses. Support from APEX’s Belgium HQ is bolstered by a growing network of international distribution partners. CloudPower accommodates mains voltages of 100-240VAC, allowing it to serve worldwide. Active Power Factor Correction ensures efficient use of the mains power system. The idle power draw of a CP354 or CP704 amplifier is just 17W, saving money and energy compared to regular installation amplifier designs. www.apex-audio.be

Adamson FletcherMachine

The FletcherMachine offers simple and super-efficient sound spatialisation tools. It provides the highest degree of versatility and can be used in various loudspeaker environments, including simple to complex setups in small or large-scale venues, installations, amusement parks, and museums. Developed with both sound quality and artistic emotion in mind, with a no-compromise focus on audio quality, pristine sound is delivered. This makes the FletcherMachine an ideal choice in any immersive application, even for the most demanding environments. Offering a high degree of sound source unmasking, the music becomes easier to mix and needs less EQ and dynamics processing. An excellent choice for all circumstances; frontal stages, front fills, surround loudspeakers, a 3D dome with elevation speakers, delay lines under balconies; there are near-limitless possibilities.

www.adamson.ai

Biamp Voltera D series

The Voltera D series of networked amplified loudspeaker controllers (ALCs) are available in 1200-watt or 2400-watt configurations across four or eight channels, fitting within a 1 rack-unit enclosure. The ALCs also features redundant network audio—support of failover between the main power and backup generators without a reboot—making it ideal for large systems. Voltera D is also the only line of ALCs in the market to provide support of both AVB and Dante and accurate raised cosine EQ below 160Hz, which results in more precise elimination of room modes and optimisation of the low-frequency performance of a system. It is also the only 8 x 150-watt ALC on the market. Configurable by either Tesira or the new Biamp VenueTune software, installers and designers enjoy a simplified design process and deployment of Voltera D ALCs, including the ability to select what amplifiers to drive the speakers with and the ability to predict the current draw and heat dissipation. They also get powerful system tuning and comprehensive system performance monitoring. The Voltera D series is ideal for a wide variety of applications from houses of worship to transportation and government buildings, to entertainment and sports venues. www.biamp.com

Blaze Audio PowerZone Connect 8-Channel Amplifiers

The PowerZone Connect 8-channel Power Amp line includes the PowerZone Connect 508, 1008, 4008, and 6008. Powered by Pascal UMAC Class-D technology, they deliver excellent reliability and efficiency in system configuration. Available in 1RU (PowerZone Connect 508 / 1008) and 2RU (PowerZone Connect 4008 / 6008) form factors, these amplifiers can power both conventional low-impedance (508 & 1008: 4 ohms to 16 ohms / 4008 & 6008: 2 ohms to 16 ohms) loudspeakers and constant voltage (70V/100V) transformer-coupled loudspeakers. They feature automatic power-sharing technology for proportional distribution in both Lo-Z and Hi-Z modes—making them ideal for various installations.

The PowerZone Connect 8-channel amplifiers range from 500W to 6000W, with the PowerZone Connect 4008 and 6008 exceeding 3000W. All models offer 8 balanced Euroblock inputs and 8 unbalanced RCA Phono inputs. They also include S/PDIF digital audio I/O with routing that can be configured via the PowerZone Control web app, a configurable GPIO (General Purpose I/O), along with eight configurable loudspeaker outputs that utilise Euroblock connectors. www.blaze-audio.com

The Cloud 46-120MK2 & 46-240 are versatile four-zone, rack-mounting (2U) audio mixer amplifiers. Designed and built to Cloud’s respected standards, the 46 Series of mixer amplifiers are durable, robust and feature-rich. They are useful in any application where a powerful and versatile multi-zone mixer amplifier is required, such as pubs, restaurants, bars, clubs, and other entertainment locations, and also leisure and fitness centres, shops, offices, hotels, etc. The 46 Series Ethernet and RS-232 Interfaces allow third-party devices to control key functions, including music source selection per zone, music level selection per zone, muting per Zone, and setting Min and Max levels. Features include: 4 x 120W or 4 x 240W Class-D output per zone (4 Ohm / 8 Ohm / 70V / 100V). Power sharing on 4x120W model in 70/100V modes. Ethernet & RS232 ports. Six stereo line-inputs (4 balanced). Auto standby mode function. Two microphone inputs with priority option. Utility output with mic and music gain controls. Remote music level and source selection. Two zone-assignable facility inputs. Two zone assignable aux outputs. Remote music mute (NO or NC operation) for fire alarm interfacing. Digital paging interface for Cloud PM Series paging microphones and spot announcers. www.cloud.co.uk

PRODUCT GUIDE: AMPLIFIERS & PROCESSORS

NST Audio VMX88 Matrix Processor

The VMX88 is able to perform the duties of a matrix mixer, a speaker management system and a zone mixer in a single 1U device.

Eight analogue inputs with a full suite of processing including compression, dynamic EQ, and multiband parametric EQ feed a mix matrix which can also mix eight channels from a Dante/AES67 network. The matrix outputs feed eight fully featured analogue outputs with each channel having crossover capabilities, up to 16 bands of PEQ and a high performance two-stage limiter.

The VMX88 can also output onto a Dante/AES67 network for all eight channels and the output point can be chosen to be either directly after input processing (input expansion – making these analogue inputs available on the network), post matrix (before the output processing) or right at the outputs.

This flexibility with audio networking allows multiple VMX88s to function together in a larger network, with audio from any device available to any other.

For easy configuration, all set-up is via a simple Ethernet connection. D-Net, NST Audio’s control application, is available for Mac, Windows, and iPad and devices require no configuration to go online. The software gives access to all of the unit’s features and up to 100 presets may also be stored in each device. Off-line configuration is possible, and libraries of presets may also be created (with parameter locking) to help with multiple speaker configurations.

For end users, the VMX88 is also compatible with all of NST Audio’s Venue Remote offerings – two fixed PoE devices – the VR1 and VR2, and the recently released V-Remote for iPhone.

The VR1 and VR2 give end user access to any gain control (or matrix send), preset recalls, source selection and muting and routing changes. The VR2 additionally allows for OEM IP control of devices (projectors, PDUs etc.) and offers independent scheduled preset recalls and features a touch screen. They are both configured in D-Net and once set-up, operate completely independently and can be combined freely on a network.

V-Remote allows for roaming control of a VMX88 (or any other NST Audio devices) and offers a secure end user experience, with the controls available being defined in a configuration file designed by the installer, and stored within the audio system itself (in an allocated VMX88). This means end users and staff can download the app, connect to the network and the app then configures itself with no user programming needed. It also has multiple user access levels with PINs if required so access rights can be added.

The VMX88 is also available as an “L” version without Dante for analogue only installations. Both versions use the same audiophile quality ESS analoguedigital-analogue converter chipsets, resulting in dynamic range in excess of 119dB and a very low latency of 0.427mS (analogue in-out).

To further expand the capabilities of the unit, NST Audio also offer the VMO16 –this is effectively the output processing of a VMX88, but sixteen channel’s worth in 1U with input from a Dante/AES67 network. www.nstaudio.com

The CODA Audio LINUS6.4-iD is an installation amplifier - the first produced by CODA’s recently created amplifier engineering R&D team, and is part of the company’s roadmap towards an entirely new LINUS DSP amplifier platform. This move will see CODA taking amplifier manufacture to another level, using its own proprietary Class D amplifier technology to provide outstanding sonic and power performance.

LINUS6.4-iD drives the vast majority of CODA’s family of loudspeakers, with the exception of line arrays and sensor-controlled subwoofers, and can be controlled by LINUS Control.

The four-channel DSP networkable installation amplifier delivers 4 x 1500 W of clean power in a convenient and lightweight 19”/1Upackage.

Advanced Class D discrete power stages with DC-coupled DACs, together with a high-efficiency SMPS with PFC, provide unrivalled power density and minimal thermal dissipation. The innovative PCB layout design integrates DSP, four amplifiers, and SMPS on a single PCB for enhanced sound quality, pinpoint control, and rugged protection. www.codaaudio.com

d&b audiotechnik 5D amplifier

DAS Audio INTEGRAL – M26X

Eastern Acoustic Works

UXA4416

The d&b audiotechnik 5D amplifier is a perfect solution for audio installations of various sizes, incorporating advanced features to enhance performance and versatility. It has a high-density form factor with a 1 RU 9.5-inch footprint. It is the perfect size to drive smaller loudspeaker systems and can be mounted under tables or ceilings as well as in a rack, allowing d&b to serve a wider range of installations, whatever the size or requirements of the venue.

The 5D also offers built-in audio networking. This allows for flexible system configuration changes and easy deployment of distributed system designs - providing the scalability, flexibility and reliability needed for today’s installations. The amplifier offers efficiency-enhancing features such as power factor correction, Class D amplification, and power sharing, as well as a very low processing latency of just 1.1 ms. Its powerful signal processing extends the functionality of the on-board features. These include a range of loudspeakerspecific filters and a user-definable 8-band EQ. www.dbaudio.com

The INTEGRAL-M26X, a 1U rack-mount digital signal processor, features two analogue input channels and six analogue output channels equipped with balanced XLR connectors. Its compact, cost-effective design makes it a versatile choice for live and installed PA systems.

Remote control and monitoring are possible via ALMA software using IP technology, or it can be managed using external controllers through OSC messages. Direct unit control is facilitated through a 1.54-inch OLED display with control buttons for basic parameters. These include input and output levels, preset recalls, mute, source selection, and link manager functions.

The device houses a complete signal processing matrix, offering gain, delay, routing, equalization, and limiter adjustment options. Its internal memory can store over 100 global presets and 200+ output channel presets, including specific presets for all DAS Audio speakers. External control is further simplified through a General-Purpose Input/ Output (GPIO) connector, providing an external 3V3 volt, GND signal, and eight configurable pins via ALMA software. www.dasaudio.com

UXA4416 represents the latest generation of EAW four-channel DSP amplifiers, offering high-power class D amplification, innovative processing, and analogue/digital audio management. Pairing seamlessly with the brand’s KF and SB Series products, these new amps ensure stability and continuity for KF passive line source systems deployed at stadiums, arenas, houses of worship, outdoor festivals and more.

This next generation of amplifiers provides clean, robust power to all EAW passive loudspeaker systems. Now operating at 96Khz, the amps improve system interoperability and offer reduced latency compared to previous UX and UXA products, which can be vital for live performance applications. In addition, 4 x 4000W Class D amplification and 40-bit floating point DSP ensure powerful, high headroom audio capabilities for systems of any scale.

The UXA4416 amplifier presets unify the performance of all supported EAW professional speakers and arrayed systems with four processed channels of audio amplification, complete with a dedicated Greybox preset library.

A front panel addressable 4.3-inch display offers an easy touch screen or tactile encoder access to the EAW library and editing. EAW factory presets utilise EAW’s Beamwidth Matched Crossover, Focusing, and DynO technologies. www.eaw.com

Ecler HADA Series

HADA Series of networkable amplifiers can be used across multiple types of setups and a wide range of applications with intuitive control capabilities. This new series incorporates Class D, Standby Mode, power factor correction, and is ready to perform in and high or low-impedance lines per couple of channels, with five models available; HADA-4B150, HADA-4B250, HADA-4B400, HADA-4B500, HADA-4B750. All feature four outputs and DSP functionalities configured via Ecler HADA DSP Manager, including 10 band parametric EQ, multiband compressor, delay, limiter, a 4 by 4 mixer matrix to route the signals, and saving or loading pre-sets. In addition to the software option, input levels can be controlled via the front panel potentiometers, via remote controls using the rear panel GPI, or via a TCP/IP from third-party control systems.

www.ecler.com

Dynacord MXE5 Matrix Mix Engine

A performance audio matrix designed for system integrators and production companies who demand the highest-quality audio in their fixed installation projects, operating at 48kHz or 96kHz. The MXE5-64 offers a variety of mixing functions beyond being a powerful crosspoint matrix; it works as both a system manager and an OCA controller with complete monitoring and supervision abilities. In addition, it serves as an FIR-Drive speaker controller. The MXE5 incorporates the entire network infrastructure, with Dante audio transport, AES70-compliant control, and no requirement for retrofitted external cards.

Onboard are professional input and output processing features and comprehensive speaker processing with FIR-Drive. The MXE5 matrix mix engine can also be easily integrated with media control systems from Crestron and Q-SYS using dedicated plug-ins available as free downloads. MXE5’s DSP configuration is accomplished in SONICUE Sound System Software, which offers complete control and easy, intuitive operation. www.dynacord.com

Fohhn Self-developed system amplifiers

Fohhn has developed its own amplifiers in all performance classes for the 64 passive speaker models in its portfolio, because a sound reinforcement system offers optimum performance and maximum reliability when speakers and power electronics are perfectly matched. All products are manufactured sustainably and responsibly by Fohhn in Germany, and the power of the system amplifiers ranges from 4 x 100W to 2 x 4000W. The available speaker presets, which can be selected separately for each amplifier channel, guarantee a balanced sound in all volume ranges and protect the speaker. These presets are easily assigned via Fohhn Audio Soft, which also offers many helpful DSP functions for optimisation and system setup. On the input side, various connection modules provide flexibility: either analog, AES/EBU or Dante. All this results in an overall solution with maximum usability and reliability, and is backed by Fohhn’s five year warranty. www.fohhn.com

Innosonix’s eight power amplifier models, the MAXX² series, are aimed at the high-end corporate and residential installation sectors of the installed AV market.

Alongside the current 32-channel MA32/D and MA32/LP models, the eight power amplifiers are designed to offer installers maximum flexibility, functionality, and control for any specific project. Available in three chassis sizes, the MAXX² models offer a wide range of channel count, rack space and power output options to suit all applications.

All models feature comprehensive on-board DSP including limiting FIR and IIR filters, multiple delays, and speaker presets, in addition to AES3, MADI, AES67 and Dante inputs as standard, while the higher power MA24/HP² and MA32/HP² amplifiers also offer dual redundant power supplies for critical applications.

Rack space for audio in high-end residential projects is often at a premium, so being able to offer up to 32 discrete output channels at up to 280 watts per channel in a single chassis is an obvious advantage for installers, as well as enabling neater cabling.

www.innosonix.de

L-Acoustics

L-ISA Processor II

Extending spatial processing to a wider range of productions and venues is L-Acoustics’ most recent generation of its 3D audio processing engine, L-ISA Processor II. The processor offers users more power, performance and flexibility, and is available in four different output configurations through a one-time, tiered license fee.

Like its predecessor, L-ISA Processor II is a hardware solution that provides advanced object-based mixing for the most demanding immersive audio productions. While both units offer control of spatial audio processing and virtual acoustics for up to 96 audio objects based on speaker positioning information and mixing parameters—including pan, width, distance, elevation, and aux send—the L-ISA Processor II doubles the original unit’s potential output count of 64 up to 128 outputs for greater power and versatility on larger, more complex events.

Seeing that most productions are unlikely to utilise 100-plus outputs, L-Acoustics is offering L-ISA Processor II in a choice of four output counts — 16, 32, 64 or 128 — from the same device, with various capacities accessible via different lifetime licenses at tiered pricing levels. www.l-acoustics.com

MC² Audio I-Series

The MC² I-Series are multi-channel scalable power amplifiers with Lo-Z / Hi-Z direct-drive capability, satisfying the most demanding cinema / installation amplifier requirements. A versatile feature set gives the system designer scalable power at different impedances, with dip switch selection of Lo Z / Hi Z modes and bridging of channel pairs for high power delivery. I-Series features the sonically superior Sigma design platform and in-house modular class D topology, with supersonic switching techniques that offer exceptional levels of sonic performance. Combined with GPO status / load monitoring / GPI connectivity, optional Dante / AES67 card, and a truly universal PFC SMPSU, I-Series amplifiers become an obvious choice for many applications. First-class sound quality is maintained over a wide range of load and temperature conditions. Sophisticated ‘side-chain’ limiters prevent distortion and speaker damage but are out-of-circuit until the onset of clipping. The control circuitry provides full protection against short circuits, DC and excessive temperature, together with inrush current limiting. Green energy efficiency requirements are intrinsic to the design, and further satisfied with rear selectable auto standby (2W). All MC² Audio products are covered by a 5-year warranty. www.mc2-audio.co.uk

The Connect Series Half-Rack power amplifiers are perfectly suited for small to medium-scale installations and are equipped with onboard DSP, WebUI, Cloud Connectivity, third-party API control, and more.

Each of the new half-rack models (CS34, CS64, CS124, CS34D, CS64D, and CS124D) are built with routable analogue inputs and four amplifier channels with Low-Z, 70- or 100V selectable by channel, with the D units also including Dante and AES67 connectivity. All models also offer three different ways of network connection: using the built-in Wi-Fi access point, connecting to an existing Wi-Fi network, or using a Local Area Network (LAN) Ethernet connection. www.leaprofessional.com

Optimal Audio Zone

Zone is a series of simple yet powerful zonal audio controllers. With onboard DSP, highly flexible signal routing, and HDMI connectivity, Zone provides everything required in a single compact unit to deliver high-quality, multi-zoned commercial sound systems. As such, it is the beating heart of the Optimal Audio ecosystem and offers deep digital audio processing capabilities beyond any zoning product in its price category.

Zone is easy to install, intuitive to operate, and comprises four or eight zone powered and non-powered versions, which can be desktop or rack-mounted and feature convenient front panel controls for source selection, zone selection and audio level control, with full configuration via WebApp - Optimal Audio’s cross platform control app. www.optimal-audio.co.uk

Peavey CS 6000 Power Amplifier

The CS 6000 power amplifier is designed to provide years of reliable, flawless operation, even under rigorous use. This amplifier offers reliability while remaining surprisingly compact. Advanced technology and extensive protection circuitry allow operation with greater efficiency in difficult loads and power conditions. The DDT (Distortion Detection Technique) circuitry ensures trouble-free operation into loads as low as 2 ohms. DDT protects drivers and maintains sonic integrity, even in extreme overload conditions. The CS’s high-efficiency design uses multi-rail class-H technology to produce high-output power whilst reducing losses. Massive heat sinks and a high-volume cooling fan maintain a lower overall operating temperature, resulting in longer output transistor life. www.peavey.com

Unica’s high-power density, top-shelf sound quality and class-leading efficiency make it a versatile solution that effectively addresses the most demanding installation requirements. Featuring four 4-channel models and four 8-channel models, Unica provides a comprehensive and consistent lineup, all packed into a compact 1RU form factor.

The all-new power supply section facilitates efficient conversion, resulting in less power dispersion through wasted heat, while a clever approach to heat management has resulted in a drastic reduction in fan noise. Networking is achieved through three ethernet ports, allowing both AoIP and control redundancy and splitting control vs AoIP traffic. Thanks to a firmware-level protocol, audio over IP is managed through both Dante and AES67.

The cloud-native connectivity allows remote monitoring of the amplifier status from any device, anywhere in the world, via Powersoft’s cloud platform MyUniverso. Powersoft’s new lower-power Unica 1K8 and Unica 5K4 models cater to smaller-scale applications, such as bars, thereby broadening Unica Series to address a more diverse range of installation requirements.

The entire Unica Series now also take advantage of Dynamic Music Distribution (DMD) functionalities, providing users with enhanced background music capabilities, a feature previously supported exclusively by the Mezzo Series. This aligns with Powersoft’s “One Fits All” philosophy, emphasising a versatile platform capable of meeting diverse installation design needs. www.powersoft.com

XTA Electronics DPA Series

Combining new technology power amplification with the highest definition XTA DSP, the DPA Series takes audio performance and convenience to a whole new level. Powerful processing features such as FIR filtering, dynamic EQ, and Dante Networking (optional), work alongside unique enhancements including four amplifier out + four aux out DSP channels (also supplied to the network), meaning a single DPA amplifier can control a stereo 4-way system with no external processing, and supply audio to a non-DSP amplifier, either via analogue or a single Cat5 cable. DPA Series can be controlled via AudioCore Amped edition bundled with >2000 speaker pre-sets, globcon XTA MC2 edition both with advanced grouping control and  XTA’s bespoke iPad app DeltaDirect. Every aspect of a network of amplifiers can be controlled and monitored wirelessly. Direct Ethernet, USB, and RS485 control options, plus configurable GPIO offer unparalleled remote control flexibility.

www.xta.co.uk

Powersoft Unica

1. Clear-Com

Gen-IC Virtual Intercom

Gen-IC Virtual Intercom is a revolutionary advancement from Clear-Com tailored specifically for the Pro/AV Live markets. This venture into virtual technology provides a transformative approach to intercom communications without the need for dedicated hardware or beltpacks. Gen-IC Virtual Intercom offers seamless connectivity through virtual clients accessible on desktop and mobile devices, leveraging the power of the internet to provide on-demand access to intercom resources hosted on Clear-Com data centers across six regions. Its pay-as-yougo model and scalable deployment options make it an ideal solution for remote productions of any scale. With the integration of the Agent-IC mobile app and Station-IC virtual desktop client, Gen-IC Virtual Intercom ensures intuitive and user-friendly interactions, streamlining connectivity and reducing maintenance, costs, and space requirements. Its seamless integration with Clear-Com’s on-premises intercom hardware via LQ Interfaces creates a hybrid communication system perfectly suited for control centers, venues, and remote operations. Gen-IC Virtual Intercom represents Clear-Com’s dedication to delivering cutting-edge solutions that transform intercom communication into a flexible, efficient, and globally accessible service for the Pro/AV Live markets. www.clearcom.com

2. elektraLite

elektraBar Vibe

Nearly a decade after launching its popular elektraBar linear strip fixture, elektraLite have unveiled its new elektraBar Vibe. Measuring 1m in length, the company’s newest professional lighting bar sports 128 columns of seven RGBW LEDs for a total of 896 “pixels”, each providing 0.3W for a combined 268.8W of emitter output. Multiple elektraBar Vibes can be linked together via side-panel locking plates to create a near seamless line of stage visuals. Fully DMX compatible, the product is controllable in 13-channel, 256-channel, or 258-channel modes, and can be seamlessly pixel-mapped in two columns of seven devices using Art-Net via the Ethernet ports on the back.

https://myelektralite.com

3. GUIL ELC-785

The new ELC-785 is designed to lift loads of up to 300kg to a maximum height of 522cm and is one of six new models introduced for 2024.

The ELC-785 tower features a powerful double-handled winch to make raising and lowering the loads easier, as well as an original adjustment system between sections designed by GUIL, and a new reinforced base with four large swivelling wheels with brakes to facilitate transport and storage.

The model is aimed at events sector professionals seeking safety, strength and quality, and two-handled winches have also been added as standard to the new ELC-775, and to all GUIL’s front-loading ULK towers, to make their operation quicker and more convenient.

www.guil.es

4. Lynx Pro Audio CPS series

Lynx Pro Audio has expanded its CPS series, a range of high-power coaxial-powered point source systems designed especially for medium-sized events and fixed installations, with the CPS-210 and the CPS-14, which include active and passive versions, and have the peculiarity that they allow a choice between two coverages: 90º by 60º or 60º by 40º, and feature integrated 64-bit/96 KHz DSP with FIR linear phase filtering. The CPS210 enclosure is an extremely powerful and compact 3000W tri-amplified 3-way system featuring two 10-in neodymium speakers and an exclusive 1.4-in coaxial compression driver, while the CPS-14 enclosure is also a 3000W tri-amplified 3-way system with a single 14-in neodymium speaker and a unique 1.4-in dual-diaphragm coaxial driver.

www.lynxproaudio.com

DRIVING HUMAN AUDIO EXPERIENCE