Pro Systems July/August 2016 by Pro-Systems Africa News

July / August 2016

R38.00

AV System Integration | Installations | Live Events | Studio PRO Audio

Cover Digital Feature Signage Infocomm 2016 Show Report Distributor Relationships Microphone comparisons Touch screen Technology

In This Issue EDITOR Hello everyone, and welcome to the latest edition of ProSystems Africa News. Our mid-winter edition has a little something for everyone, with some interesting and varied happenings on the local news front, the world-famous National Arts Festival forming an event highlight, and a focus on the digital signage sector. Our news focus is in depth in this issue, with key SACIA and SARA industry news, as well as important education and new product initiatives. With industry stalwart Terry Acres having recently stepped down at Prosound, we also focus on the farewell given him by one of Prosound’s anchor brands, Electro-Voice, a relationship that extends back an extraordinary 40 years. After an extensive report back on the new products launched at the recent InfoComm show held in Las Vegas, a story opened by some local South African opinions on where the show is going and its relevance for SA, we return to the distributor theme. Many in the industry have strongly-held opinions about the nature of manufacturer/ distributor relationships and how they should or should not be conducted. We wanted to give some key players in the pro-AV sector, from both sides of this fence, a chance to make their views on the subject public – it makes for fascinating reading. Our cover feature section in this issue focuses on the digital signage sector. From being a fairly straightforward set of ‘digital poster’ type interventions in predominantly the retail industry, the possibilities and applications for digital signage have mushroomed along with the technology advances that the sector has seen in recent years. We analyse not only global trends in the sector, but present a number of fascinating local and international case studies indicating the breadth of applications for contemporary digital signage AV. Our live section is dominated by theatre productions, centred on an in-depth look at the relationship between ETC and the National Arts Festival. Then, as a special treat for the techies out there, an extended technical spotlight section has a story on touch screen technology and an extensive comparison of the properties of different microphones from a range of studio and sound installation experts. Don’t forget that we’re here for you – as your resource for key industry information, trends and product news. If you want to talk about any of that, have suggestions, or comments on anything you read here and in our regularly updated website, newsletter, and social media feeds, don’t hesitate to let me know. I’m on james@sun-circle.co.za. Enjoy the read! James Sey

CONTENTS NEWS

Integration & INSTALLATION

Beacons of hope after

The distribution game..................................20

disaster at Jesus Dome..................................3

INTERVIEW

Jam-packed SACIA breakfast examines tender specifications

The word behind the scenes......................26

and sector skills plan......................................3

Integration & INSTALLATION

Peripheral Vision holds open house event with Barco............................................4

Outlook on digital signage.........................28

Yamaha equipment and a trip to

System Solutions for

CAPA June 2016 international

GE African Innovation Centre....................30

conference for SARA.....................................6

Sunglass Hut teams up

Electrosonic launch Martin

with Moving Tactics.....................................34

Professional Sceptron range.........................7

The Colossus of

Electro-Voice honours Prosound

outdoor video displays................................38

founder, Terry Acres.......................................8

The Telkom reconnect experience............40

ASE celebrates first graduates from new campus....................10

Live Events Lighting up a classic musical .....................44

INFOCOMM SHOW REPORT

ETC at NAF – A special relationship...........46

InfoComm 2016 – view from the South.....12

Annual Ghoema Music Awards

Crestron unveils new audio solutions for

a collaborative success..............................50

meeting spaces and venues.....................13

Rigging and such: Truss Loading................52

Alcons pro-ribbon experience...................13

District Six –

Barco showcases latest solutions...............14

Kanala brings hi-tech AV to history............54

DPA microphones with expanded range.........................................14

TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT

VIA Campus wins product award.............15

Touch Me!.....................................................58

Arthur Holm introduces

Wired for Sound?

the Experience Table...................................16

Microphones under the microscope.........60

AMX adds new processor capability and launches encoder...............................16

Social

LAB GRUPPEN launches

Peripheral Vision & Barco

smallest LUCIA amplifiers.............................17

open house event.......................................63

Christie transforms

SACIA InfoComm 2016

fan experience ............................................17

survivor’s breakfast......................................63

AV Stumpfl focuses on future

Electrosonic’s Martin Sceptron launch......64

innovation and productivity tools..............18 tvONE Introduces New 4K Multiviewer......18

Contributors Elaine Strauss | A journalist and photographer, with experience in writing articles featuring a broad range of subjects, Elaine also has a honours degree in Visual Studies, and is making her mark in the audio and AV industries. With a keen interest in lighting design and film studies, she is a peoples-person with a fascination for all things new and shiny. With experience in journalism, videography and marketing, she brings to her writing a passion for and understanding of various fields. Abrie du Plooy (CTS, CERT AV PROF) | Abrie is the NEC, Galaxy and ZeeVee product manager at Electrosonic SA. He writes for us in his personal capacity.

Editorial Disclaimer The views, opinions, positions or strategies expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, positions or strategies of Pro-Systems Africa News or any employee thereof. Sun Circle Publishers makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, correctness, suitability, or validity of any information and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. Sun Circle Publishers reserves the right to delete, edit, or alter in any manner it sees fit comments that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be obscene, offensive, defamatory, threatening, in violation of trademark, copyright or other laws, or is otherwise unacceptable. All contents of this publication are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, in any form whatsoever, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publisher.

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news

Beacons of hope after disaster at Jesus Dome Thankfully no one was injured in a massive fire, which burnt down Durban Christian Centre in Mayville, KwaZulu Natal on the evening of 8th June. Three days later, the sky was lit up by the piercing beams of 12 spotlights, all pointed towards a star, as the congregation met together for a service held in their parking lot. One of the largest churches in Durban, the 5 500 seat auditorium, known as the Jesus Dome, was a house of prayer for all nations and a place where miracles happened. Having regularly lit events in this venue, lighting designer Michael Broderick along

with his friend in the industry, Brandon Bunyan of Black Coffee, came up with the idea to use the 12 Clay Paky Mythos moving head hybrid fixtures in an act of compassion for the church’s loss. “When we told DWR’s Duncan Riley about

our idea, he insisted that the globes in the Mythos be 100% new and that the lights be freshly serviced,” said Brandon. “He then sent for his Durban branch crusade captain, Nick Barnes, to put the action into place. Nick also set up the fixtures.” It was a beautiful moment when the lighting fixtures were switched on. “We got stiff necks from looking up with our mouths open,” said Brandon. For the pastors of the church, it was a light that shone brightly in the smog filled sky. It was a beacon of hope. “We stand united in our faith to rise triumphantly from the ashes and to see the Jesus Dome rebuilt,” a message from the church read on their website. Until such time a tent will be used for Sunday services.

Jam-packed SACIA breakfast examines tender specifications and sector skills plan The InfoComm survivor’s breakfast, held by SACIA recently, had a jam-packed itinerary, including a panel discussion about this year’s InfoComm, a MICTSETA sector skills presentation and a tender specifications presentation by SITA. SACIA’s executive director, Kevan Jones, opened the day with the announcement of the newly elected SACIA Pro AV council, with Electrosonic’s managing director Bruce Genricks as the new chairman. The council also includes Tumi Dumasi, Wynand Langenhoven, Elaine Shellard and Paul Fraser. Genricks, who has been involved with SACIA since their start, said that he was privileged to have been elected as chairman for the Pro AV council. “What I’d like to do over the next two years is to continue to deliver value to the members,” he said. “Taking for example the health and safety aspect of it, is a common problem that we all have – we all need to adhere to the same standards and if we can figure out a way to make it easier for everyone, that’s something I’d like to do,” he said. After allowing the new Pro AV council members to briefly address the attendees and explain their individual goals for the next

Bruce Genricks, Tumi Dumasi, Wynand Langenhoven, Elaine Shellard and Kevan Jones

two years, Jones also introduced the newly elected SACIA board, namely the new chairman, Natalie Delport, as well as Bruce Genricks, Bruce Schwartz, Abrie Du Plooy, Stephen Motau, Cosmas Tshabalala, Wynand Langenhoven, Elaine Shellard and Jones himself. Delport, who has been involved in the industry for 20 years, expressed that her focus for the next two years will include, among others, industry training. “Looking around the room, I can really see that transformation and gender equality in the industry is already happening,” she said. “I am really honoured to have been elected.” After Genricks, Langenhoven and Syed Wahab led the panel discussion regarding InfoComm 2016, Jones handed over to members from MICTSETA to discuss the sector skills plan, mainly discussing the

importance of creating an updated list of Pro AV skill sets and scarcities in the industry. The main issue debated was the fact that Pro AV skill sets do not have a formal section or sub-section on the MICTSETA database. To rectify this, it was suggested that companies and industry specialists send their respective lists to MICTSETA through SACIA, to simplify the process. According to MICTSETA, this submission needs to reach them by 15 July 2016. Before the breakfast concluded, Izak de Villiers, from the State Information Technology Agency (SITA), discussed the tender specifications and requirements for the SITA-wide AV tender which is forthcoming. Companies can find more information about the tender, as well as apply for product specification, on the website, www.sita.co.za.

news

Peripheral Vision holds open house event with Barco

The Barco OpSpace workflow system

After the official announcement of Peripheral Vision as the South African distributor of Barco in January this year, Peripheral Vision held their first open house event, in partnership with Barco, at their offices in Kyalami on 14-15 June. The event allowed attendees to learn about how the new Barco Corporate AV and ClickShare experience can help businesses, the latest technology trends in Barco events and entertainment products and the Barco video wall. After welcoming guests, Peripheral Vision CEO Wynand Langenhoven handed over to Barco’s regional sales manager for MEA I and G André Herbst for a brief history and summary of the company, before finally welcoming Barco’s business development expert for MEA, Koen Ameye, for the presentation. “About six months ago we decided to

Koen Ameye

take Peripheral Vision on board as a distribution channel for the market in South Africa. We are a Belgian company and our intention is to move forward in South Africa with Peripheral Vision,” Herbst said. “Our ambition is to be a leader in the visualisation systems for professional use and our vision is to offer the best in class products to enable our customers to run their businesses in a more efficient way.” The day kicked off with an in-depth control systems presentation and demo of Barco’s laser video wall technology. Consisting of three different lasers and doubling the lifespan of the wall (to roughly

11 years), this works very well using network technology, according to Ameye. “It is a full-scale solution,” he said. Barco’s new operator management system “OpSpace”, which was recently launched in South Africa, was also discussed in-depth by Ameye. “This is the first personal workspace that creates a single space for viewing, monitoring and interacting with multiple clients that reside on multiple networks with different security clearances or liability concerns,” Ameye said. “In this way, the operator is at the centre of the information and has all data within easy reach. It works over multiple domains, integrating only at the presentation layer.” Eline Pattyn, channel account manager MEA at Barco NV, also gave a short presentation about ClickShare before the end of the day, emphasising the advantages of this technology for the boardrooms of businesses and their corporate guests..

christieEMEA.com

news

Yamaha equipment and a trip to CAPA June 2016 international conference for SARA

Barry Masoga, Freddie Nyathela and Dr Salim Akoojee

The month of June held several opportunities for the South African Roadies Association (SARA), who not only recently received an invaluable donation from Yamaha in the form of a Yamaha TF1 digital mixing console and a stage custom drum kit, but was also invited by CAPA, the organisation previously known as the Commonwealth Association of Polytechnics in Africa, to attend the CAPA June 2016 international conference. The TF series consoles they received take live sound reinforcement to a new level of refinement with TouchFlow operation, recallable D-PRE™ preamplifiers, advanced processing, and much more, and can also be used with a variety of utility software. TouchFlow operation, introduced in the TF series consoles, allows the user to respond to the music and artists on stage with unprecedented speed and freedom. Yamaha digital consoles are designed with

input from leading engineers worldwide to ensure that the most efficient, intuitive operation is achieved. “The received equipment will greatly enhance SARA’s training programmes and equipment; sustain training, skills development and on-the-job training in the technical and production skills sector for years to come, and also have an indelible impact on the lives, ambitions, dreams and careers of young South Africans” said SARA’s president Freddie Nyathela. The CAPA June 2016 International Conference on “strategic involvement of technical and vocational education and training institutions towards the attainment of post-2015 sustainable development goals in Africa” was held between 5th and 11th June at the Pride Inn Paradise Beach Resort, convention Centre & Spa, Shanzu, in Mombasa, Kenya. Attendance afforded SARA the opportunity to participate in the CAPA engagement of vigorous policy advocacy and project initiatives as contributions towards producing the requisite technical manpower for a successful implementation of the post-2015 development agenda in the CAPA member countries. In addition SARA was able to introduce SARA and its initiatives to the 300 technical university and polytechnics in Africa

delegates that attended from all over Africa, which were very well received. The visit to the conference greatly increased SARA’s African visibility and network in education and training in Africa. This networking will see greater African participation at SARA’s annual Live Event Technical Production Conference (LETPC) 2017. This Department of Arts and Culturesupported conference is the only one of its kind in Africa, and is dedicated to event, technical and production skills, training and education. CAPA was established in 1978, following a resolution of the 7th Commonwealth conference of education ministers that was held in Accra, Ghana in March 1977. The association’s mandate is to provide a dynamic forum for the gathering, testing and sharing of innovative ideas in technical and vocational education and training; promotion of partnerships and capacity building; as well as policy analysis and advocacy in favour of skills development for wealth creation and economic development. The headquarters of the organisation is in Nairobi, Kenya under a protocol with the Government of Kenya. “SARA extends its gratitude and respect to the CAPA executive board and its secretary general Dr Olubunmi Owoso,” concluded Nyathela.

news

Electrosonic launch Martin Professional Sceptron range LED is becoming ubiquitous, especially in the live entertainment industry. But the proliferation of these clever fixtures requires even more sophisticated control systems behind the scenes. The trend over the last few years is to use LED The Electrosonic team at the launch based fixtures more creatively, for example, thousands of pixels with literally a using them as floor surfaces. LED linear strips few mouse clicks after cabling up, are not new to the market but they are was also demonstrated. uniquely designed to be used in far more Ducray settled on the 10mm version of the creative ways than just simple screens. But Sceptron range, called the Sceptron 10, using them as eye candy in sets and live requiring a minimum of 100. The Sceptrons events means more control is needed. LED arrived and were being set up for events in strips can be controlled via the DMX 512 Cape Town within two days. Within the first protocol but soon thousands of DMX three weeks they had already been around channels are needed, which requires the country and on three different shows. a costly data network infrastructure and “The product has many advantages”, says a good deal of time and patience Ducray. “The brightness, range of to configure. accessories, compact size, IP 65 Rating, and As a breakthrough product in this rapidly the ability of the P3 Processor to map video growing market segment, Bruce Schwartz onto the strips in any configuration all make from Electrosonic believes in the Martin a difference. As does the calibrated LED’s, Professional Sceptron suite, after having seen and the ability to run data and power down and played with it at last year’s Frankfurt the same cable for up to 50m from each ProLight + Sound show. Given the relative Powerport 1500.” expense of the product in the South African The success of the first SA deployment of market, Schwartz felt that a test case to the product led Electrosonic to host a launch convert to the product locally might break of the Martin VDO Sceptron 10 in the ice. Trusted Electrosonic client and Johannesburg, where they also took the collaborator, rental and event business AV opportunity to showcase the MAC Axiom Unlimited, in the person of the experienced Hybrid and the RUSH MH 7 Hybrid. The Guillaume Ducray, was approached. Ducray launch was a low key event that offered had himself been researching the market to guests the chance to explore what these find a technology to fulfil this niche of products can do, as well as to network with providing quality LED effect solutions with the industry individuals. required ease of use and a multitude Bruce Schwartz introduced special guest of accessories. Wouter Verlinden, Product Manager – LED Electrosonic procured a small demo kit Video from Martin Professional, who offered from Martin Professional, and the sales team some in-depth product information about of Mike Walker and Peter Dahlin from Martin the Sceptron, while guests got a sneak peek Professional Europe travelled to pitch the kit’s of what the Sceptron can do. range of diffusers, brightness, its IP Rating, the According to Verlinden, the Sceptron’s rugged connectors and finally the build integrated power and data cabling allows quality of the Martin Sceptron system. The P3 for long daisy-chains with many fixtures per Control system, with its ability to control cable-run, while the power supply can be

located backstage for a clean setup, avoiding messy cabling and several driver boxes. Another feature of the Sceptron is, it's being driven by the Martin P3 System Controller, which allows for easy configuration, mapping and setup, and it is also backwards compatible with DMX for smaller setups. The MAC Axiom Hybrid has a highprecision optical system which offers exceptional contrast, both in mid-air and projection as well as a surprisingly flat field, usually not seen with this short-arc lamp technology, while the RUSH MH 7 Hybrid is an all-in-one beam, spot and wash moving head with class-leading optics and zoom system that allows designers maximum flexibility from the high-energy dance floor to performing arts spaces, all within an affordable price bracket. After the presentation, guests could explore the VDO Sceptron 10, MAC Axiom Hybrid and RUSH MH 7 Hybrid demonstrations at leisure. As a result of this successful launch event Robbi Nassi, technical sales and support at Electrosonic’s Entertainment Lighting division, landed a full deal with technical rental business Stage Effects. The company purchased 100 VDO Sceptron 1000s, with 100 high contrast tubular diffusers as an option and a P3 50 Controller with all the necessary cabling and accessories. Comments Nassi, “This is a hugely significant sale as a result of our Launch, adding a completely new dimension to Stage Effects’ productions, and an extra edge for their customer base. “

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Electro-Voice honours Prosound founder, Terry Acres Prosound founder, Terry Acres, was honoured with the ElectroVoice Lifetime Achievement Award for 40 years of exemplary service to the Electro-Voice brand in Southern Africa. Kamil Swobodzinski, VP of EMEA Sales for Electro-Voice, presented the award at a dinner for all of the Prosound staff that are still helping keep Electro-Voice (EV) on stages, in venues, in houses of worship and in musician’s rigs all over South Africa. Prosound is the longest running Electro-Voice distributor in the world. Therefore, the names Prosound and Electro-Voice have been synonymous throughout Southern Africa for decades. Both companies are known for pioneering work, innovation and high quality sound in the professional audio business. Prosound, in particular, has been a leading proponent of practically implementing EV’s patented technologies since 1974. Some of the first loudspeakers used by Prosound were the ground-breaking ’line array’ EV LR4B columns and the hornloaded 3-way Eliminator 1A. A ground shift in professional audio was the patenting and introduction of the EV Constant Directivity horn flares. Prosound was so intimately involved in applying these life savers that EV gave the company the licence to manufacture them in South Africa. Prosound designed and installed the first large scale bi-amped EV sound system in the world at the brand new Ellis Park in 1982. Similarly, Prosound undertook the design/ build of the sound systems for the Durban Playhouse theatre complex in 1985, providing EV with its first large performing arts installation over four venues. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s EV was used to cover all of the major events occurring in Southern Africa, from Paul Simon’s Graceland tour, to the Pope’s visit, through to Nelson Mandela’s inauguration. EV’s introduction of loudspeaker technology such as Manifold, Ring Mode de-coupling and X-array were all supplied to

Terry Acres

Prosound as a de facto beta site for the associated products. The dominance of EV in worldwide stadia, in particular with the last three soccer world cups, is indicative of the company’s leading edge products and reliability. Prosound designed, supplied and installed the sound systems for 10 of the 11 stadiums for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, all with EV products. The lifetime achievement award from EV to Terry Acres, founder of Prosound, was another first for both companies! Acres commented that the partnership between EV and Prosound has been marked by a passion for good sound and the science to achieve the same reliability and

consistency in products as well as in the business relationship; and importantly, an emphasis on ethical and trustworthy interaction at all times. Kamil Swobodzinski from Bosch/EV thanked Acres for his input to EV and support of the product for so many years. He commended Prosound for its seamless transition into the future, while Acres continues to pursue excellence in sound through training, design and activities in live music. “Thank you Terry, for being such a huge and integral part of the Prosound and Electro-Voice story for 40 years, and we look forward to many more prosperous years together”

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news FEATURE

ASE celebrates first graduates from new campus By Elaine Strauss

The Academy of Sound Engineering not only expanded to their new flagship campus this year, but also celebrated their first batch of B.Sc. Sound Engineering Technology graduates…

The Academy of Sound Engineering (ASE) recently held their annual graduation ceremony, not only their first after moving to their new flagship campus in Auckland Park, but also celebrating their first students to graduate with the Bachelor of Science degree in Sound Engineering Technology. The three-year qualification, which was introduced in 2013, focuses on the engineering science of sound and music. The ceremony was held at the Great Hall of the University of Witwatersrand, where graduates took their final walks as students before moving into the industry. Among them were John Awe , the top student in the class for the B.Sc. in Sound Engineering Technology and Jeffrey Thomson, the top student in the class for Diploma in Audio Technology. “My journey through the Academy of Sound Engineering is a dream come true but much more than that, I have been exposed to a whole lot more possibilities than I ever knew existed in sound engineering and I am ready to take on the challenge,” Awe said. “Being mentored day to day for three years by some of the greatest minds in the sound engineering industry is a once in a lifetime opportunity and their successful attitudes cannot but rub off on you.” He also emphasised the positive effect the ASE and his classes have had while completing his studies: “You cannot be lazy in the Academy of Sound Engineering even if you want to, because those world class studios and gears have a perpetual magnetic effect on you. You just want to be there always.” Thomson’s story highlights the void that the ASE fills in the industry, explaining the importance of having background knowledge of the industry. “I first got into the industry through playing in bands and then going straight into an internship in live sound. I could do the work, but I always lacked in the background

knowledge and theory. Going through the academy has not only helped me learn new and improve on old skills practically, but has also given me a solid foundation in the basic and advanced principles of sound engineering, helping me to be a more confident engineer,” he said. “I’ve always believed that if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. It’s easy when you enjoy it. If you want to go far and do well, especially in the audio industry, you have to be in demand. And to be in demand, you have to prove yourself.”

The sponsors All the top students received prizes from industry sponsors, most specific to their field of study. The sponsors for the evening included Audiosure, AVL Distribution, Stage Audio Works, Surgesound, TID and Wild & Marr. Besides the prizes, the technical requirements for the event were sponsored by Sound GP and AVL Productions.

Ruan Joubert, technical production manager at Surgesound, spoke about the company’s sponsorship and donated prize to the top Diploma for Live Sound student, Thomson, saying that it is good to give back to the foundation of the industry. “Our prize is a Smaart Acoustical Analysis software package – an industry standard – which is a valuable tool for any audio engineer. This is a great skill to have in the South African market and we see the value of specialised sound system technicians, which is why we wanted to offer the student this software as a step up in the industry.” Wild & Marr’s sales and systems engineer, Darren Durbach, explained the value of building relationships in the industry with their prizes, which included a 75th anniversary, limited edition Shure 5575LE microphone and Soundcraft Ui digital mixer. They sponsored the prizes for both the top Diploma student, Thomson, as well as the top B.Sc student, Awe. “Wild & Marr has a long-standing

news FEATURE

which consisted of two Yamaha PSP3 2 way powered monitor speakers, a Sennheiser HD6 DJ headphone, as well as a Radial USB Pro stereo DI for USB source. “Congratulations to the ASE class of 2016.” TID’s sales and marketing director, Tiaan Hoogstad emphasised the importance of getting involved with the industry at student level. “These students are the industry leaders of the future. By sponsoring this prize, we pledge our support for the up and coming talent. Beyerdynamic is an industry leader when it comes to production and we are glad to be able to offer the top students beyerdynamic gear to kick start their careers,” he said. TID’s prize, which included a beyerdynamic M160, a Legendary Studio headphone – beyerdynamic DT770 and a dynamic double ribbon microphone, was for the top Diploma for Music Production student, Brandon Bosch.

The New Campus

friendship with the Hattingh family dating from the 1970’s and the late George Hattingh Snr was a close friend to Wild & Marr Managing Director Joe Copans. George was always an amazing, giving man, who was willing to give his time at no cost. It is this long legacy and friendship that have motivated us to sponsor these prizes for the next generation of industry specialists” Durbach said. The prize, ProTools 12, for the top Diploma for Pro Tools student, Thomson, was sponsored by AVL Distribution, and sales manager Werner Maartens said that their sponsorship comes down to future development. “We know that these are our future clients, but at the end of the day, it’s really about giving back to the students because they have worked so hard.” Audiosure sponsored the prizes for the top Diploma for Broadcasting Technology student, Rudelle Oosthuysen, and the top Diploma for Audio Post Production student,

Leendert van der Bijl. Both prizes included an Allen & Heath 4 Mic/Line 2 Stereo 2 DI Inputs Rotary USB mixer and two Samson Resolv SE8 active studio monitors. “Audiosure has always enjoyed a great relationship with the Academy of Sound Engineering and are great supporters of the work that they do and the exceptional quality of the training they deliver,” said Alison Taman, general manager of Audiosure. ”We are very proud to have, once again, been invited to participate in their annual graduation ceremony and to have the opportunity to recognise and reward the achievements of some of their top achievers. It is wonderful to witness the pride and enthusiasm of this group of new young entrants to our exciting industry.” According to Stage Audio Works’ marketing manager, Shaun Xavier, Stage Audio Works supports the future industry professionals. Stage Audio Works sponsored a prize for the top Higher Certificate in Audio Technology student, Conrad van Rensburg,

While these graduates move on to make their mark in the industry, future students at the ASE can look forward to learning from the best, with the latest technology at their new campus. According to ASE’s national sales and marketing manager and lecturer George Hattingh Jnr., the more than 750 students currently attending the Johannesburg campus are loving their own space. “Even though or facilities in the SABC are fantastic and the connection to the industry invaluable, the fact that they have their own space to chill and have lectures in a few times a week is great for them,” he said. “The new equipment is also great! The AVID S6 and all of the new gear in ER4 (Engine Room 4), the Harman gear in ER3 with the Studer Vista 1 and the JBL M2’s all being put to very good use.” According to him, students can also look forward to an integrated Dante system that gives them unparalleled access to all the state of the art equipment across the campus network. ”We’ve only just started scratching the surface of what it is capable of.” The ASE is still completing ER2, ER1, ER3 and ER4 are just about there, while the Blue Room (film and TV studio and the Foley studio) will be completed later this year, said Hattingh. “We would like to extend the present campus in the years to come. We have already opened a new campus in Cape Town and will be opening our third campus in Pretoria in 2017.”

INFOCOMM Show REPORT

InfoComm 2016 – view from the South By James Sey

Syed Abdul Wahab, Wynand Langenhoven and Bruce Genricks

InfoComm 2016 has come and gone, and the consensus is that the show was generally a quiet one – even, by Las Vegas standards, understated! Visitor numbers were down by 0,5% at just under 39 000 this year, with visitors coming from over 100 countries.

Many vendors and manufacturers seemed to feel that the real global AV industry action is at Amsterdam’s ISE, with most of the hi-tech product launches at InfoComm following the lead of the European flagship show. The technology at the show was dominated, in the visual categories, by solid state projection – with many laser phosphor products on display. Collaboration and control products, especially those enabling AV over IP, were also prominent, as was the move by many manufacturers traditionally in other areas, into audio technologies. While the presence of South African players at the InfoComm show is definitely less than that at the large European shows at ISE and ProlIght + Sound, the local industry did keep up to speed. Bruce Genricks of Electrosonic SA noted, “There was a lot of technology diversification by manufacturers at this year’s show. For example, Crestron has moved into speaker and amplifier technology, as have Kramer and Extron. On the other hand, companies traditionally in the audio space are now moving into control and video – such as Martin Professional and QSC.” Wynand Langenhoven of Peripheral Vision agreed, pointing out that the diversification process can become a difficult sell: “When companies try to create their own technology ecosystems, with many different options for their sales channels, it can get complicated for customers. But AV over IP is now the confirmed technology route that most vendors are heading. The industry is definitely going the route of

fewer proprietary systems, and the rise of more open technology standards to facilitate the AV over IP process. One example of this is the rise in popularity, and we could see this at the show, of Danteenabled products.” Syed Abdul Wahab of Mindstec Distribution, also an attendee at the show, elaborated: “The accompanying trend for AV over IP is that of BYOD, or Bring Your Own Device. While this is great for collaboration and interoperability, it also means that AV represents a greater risk to the IT network. So security and the collaboration between AV distributors and integrators and the IT department is becoming more prominent.” While Rupert Denoon of Crestron SA did not attend the show, he points out that the InfoComm focus is not necessarily core to the SA market: “InfoComm is not that focused on emerging markets like ours. So we undertake a lot of training – for example, on our new audio products – to help our dealer network more directly than we would only at a show launch. I agree that the market globally is tending towards interoperability and more open architectures, but the market also wants quick solutions and installations. So the Crestron focus at InfoComm was on point solutions and control, systems in collaborative and huddle spaces in the corporate environment – but that can be programmed out of the box.” In what follows we take a look at some of the more interesting and cutting edge products launched or showcased at InfoComm 2016, from a range of major AV manufacturers.

Show REPORT INFOCOMM

Crestron unveils new audio solutions for meeting spaces and venues New precision-engineered DSPs, amplifiers, and software tools simplify audio programming, integration, and expansion in commercial and institutional applications Crestron introduced powerful and flexible new audio solutions at InfoComm 2016. The solutions simplify audio in conference rooms, lecture halls, sports and entertainment venues, courtrooms, and other spaces. Headlining the new audio technology is a complete line of Digital Signal Processors (DSPs) featuring a new DSP programming tool, as well as a selection of amplifiers that support audio over IP using Dante™ audio networking. All the company’s new audio solutions integrate natively with DigitalMedia™, touch screens, Crestron Fusion® Cloud, and unified collaboration technology as part of a comprehensive Crestron solution approach. The new DSP Tool provides a powerful and intuitive workspace that streamlines audio design and programming. The channel-strip architecture simplifies configuration, allowing programmers to save, modify, and manage a library of custom strips. Built-in tools include a spectrum analyser, virtual mixer, EQ editor, and Crestron speaker profile library to ensure quick acoustic setup. New controls and functions can be added on-the-fly so programmers no longer need to re-wire and recompile to make changes. I/O expansion amongst Crestron DSPs, amplifiers, and third-party vendors is easy using integrated Dante controls. On top of all these benefits, the DSP Tool enables programmers to drag and drop audio controls and even VUs

Alcons pro-ribbon experience InfoComm 2016 marks the official five-year US anniversary for leading audio innovator Alcons Audio, who mounted a strong presence at the show. The company hosted several on-site demonstrations, as well as an off-site product launch and a special pre-InfoComm presentation.

directly into VT Pro-e® software for flawless touch screen UIs in one room or hundreds of rooms – in minutes. “Crestron is known for best-in-class products for the enterprise AV market,” said Lee Ellison, CEO of Audinate®. "Dante has become the standard for high quality audio-over-IP networked systems, and this alliance with Crestron will enhance the Dante ecosystem with better, more widely available networked solutions." The new Crestron audio offering includes five DSP models, a companion line of network-controlled and monitored amplifiers, as well as a convenient line of modular utility amplifiers that allow integrators to mix and match capabilities in less than 1U of rack space. Rounding out the new products are the latest updates to the Saros® line of speakers including a new soundbar for commercial applications.

Immediately prior to InfoComm, Alcons sponsored Display Summit, a thought leadership event with all of the sessions and presentations during the Summit heard through Alcons’ LR7 micro line-array. During the InfoComm show, a selection of Alcons systems was displayed on the show floor at the Alcons booth. Among them was the RR12 pro-ribbon point-source array system as recently installed in the prestigious Faulkner Performing Arts Center at the University of Arkansas, and the QR24 line-source array column; the perfect solution for crystal-clear, undistorted sound reproduction in acousticallychallenging rooms, without the need for electronic steering. However, the best opportunity to hear what the unique Alcons pro-ribbon buzz was all about, was to visit the Alcons pro-ribbon experience: for the first time ever, Alcons was present at the show with an on-site demo room. There, a range of different pro-ribbon based (surround) sound systems could be experienced, from point-source, point-source array to line-source array solutions. Following its European introduction at Prolight +Sound, InfoComm also saw the official debut of the Alcons LR18 pro-ribbon line-array in the USA. This 3-way, compact-midsize format line-source sound system, combines the highest sound quality possible with very high SPL capabilities and throw. It was recently tested in Germany with excellent results, demonstrating the benchmarksetting qualities of this line-array. Distributed by Matrix Sound: www.matrixsound.co.za

INFOCOMM Show REPORT

Barco showcases latest solutions Barco continued to expand its portfolio of solutions at this year’s InfoComm, with several of its latest latest 4K and laser projection, image processing, enterprise collaboration, digital signage, and mission-critical video wall solutions on display "Barco continually strives to create the most innovative, networked solutions for the Pro AV industry,” comments Wim Buyens, senior vice president entertainment for Barco. “With a focus on delivering high visual impact for the lowest total cost of ownership, we offer the industry’s best price/performance ratio to fuel knowledge sharing and creativity across the landscape.”

Laser/4K projection and flexible show control Barco is well-known in the projector segment, and its large venue projectors combine brightness and flexibility into a modular design. The new laser phosphor HDF-W30LP delivers large-screen images for a lower TCO, while the 4K HDX-4K20 features both flexible brightness and resolution. The ever-expanding Event Master family of presentation switchers features the E2 and S3-4K, offering total show control in a box and full customisation.

an expanded portfolio at the show, with the new CSE-200 and CS-100 models designed for small- to mid-size meeting rooms, on show.

Control systems Barco’s recently launched OpSpace enables operators to easily view, monitor and interact with multiple clients, efficiently managing all data in a single pixel space with just one mouse and keyboard. Operators are at the centre of the information, with all data within easy reach.

The Barco HDX-4K20

Theme parks and museums

Barco’s new E90 series of laser phosphor projectors was also flighted at the show. These are targeted at boardrooms, classrooms, houses of worship and visitor attractions.

The show saw Barco team up with its newly acquired company, Medialon, a worldwide leader in show control systems for theme parks and museums. Medialon is widely recognised as a designer and developer of networked show control solutions, facility-wide control systems and audio/video servers, also offering networked solutions for the corporate and education markets. Distributed by Peripheral Vision: www.peripheralvision.co.za

Expanded ClickShare portfolio The company’s signature ClickShare wireless presentation system saw

DPA microphones with expanded range DPA microphones showcased its newly expanded line of d:vote™ Instrument Microphones with the addition of three new instrument mount options, the CM4099 Clamp Mount, the SM4099 Stand Mount and the AC4099 Clip for the accordion, at the show. Also on display was a range of DPA’s proven mic’ing solutions for the AV and Installation markets, including models from its d:dicate™, d:vote™, d:screet™, d:fine™ and d:facto™ product lines. The new d:vote™ Instrument Microphone mounts complement the company’s ‘one microphone fits all’ approach, allowing one d:vote™ mic to be utilised across a multitude of different instruments by simply switching out the mount. DPA’s new CM4099 Clamp Mount is a clip that is designed as an all encompassing solution as it is used most commonly on music stands in a big band or orchestral application. The SM4099 Stand Mount makes it possible for musicians to mount the d:vote™ mic on a traditional microphone stand and provides stability. The AC4099 Clip for accordion allows for two microphones to be mounted directly on the instrument – one at the left/right hand side and one at the base/treble area, providing a

full and balanced mix. The complete line of available mounts and accessories are designed to be adaptable and easy to use, and feature a gentle casing to prevent damage to the instrument. The DPA CM4099 Clamp Mount. Distributed by Prosound: www.prosound.co.za

VIA Campus wins product award

brings you our launch special of the popular ClickShare presentation device. We have received our first stock order and as long as these remain in stock, we will give a third button free of charge with every ClickShare CSM system purchased.

Kramer’s VIA Campus, an innovative Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) wireless presentation and collaboration solution for any meeting environment, classroom or training room, won the SCN Installation Products award for ‘Most Innovative Collaboration Product’ at InfoComm 2016. From any laptop or mobile device, meeting participants, students, and teachers can view the main display, edit documents together in real time, share files of any size, and use the main display as a digital whiteboard. VIA Campus enables mirroring from any PC, MacBook, Chromebook, and Android (5.0 or newer) device and supports Apple AirPlay (for iOS devices). The solution can show up to six user screens on one main display or up to 12 screens on two displays. VIA Campus also features e-polling and e-exams to help teachers easily and instantly measure how much students or trainees are actually learning. The solution is part of the complete family of VIA wireless presentation and collaboration solutions for any meeting environment, from huddle spaces and small to mid-sized meeting rooms to elaborate boardrooms. For customers with multiple VIA devices, Kramer offers VIA Site Management, a software application that lets IT administrators easily view and manage all VIA devices within the same network.

The Kramer VIA Campus Kramer video content overlay solution Kramer also showcased the pro AV industry’s first complete Video Content Overlay (VCO) solution at InfoComm this year. With intuitive, modular software and scalable hardware, Kramer VCO can deliver targeted promotional content, visitor information, emergency alerts, and more over HDMI video to multiple displays in multiple locations. Applications include bars, restaurants, cafes, hotels, conference rooms, retail, and digital signage. The solution can overlay text, static and animated images, and video at up to full-HD resolution. Kramer VCO automates the entire video content overlay process from design to display, making it easier than ever to get your message across to achieve business goals. The solution offers fast ROI by using existing display infrastructure and offering remote, centralised management from either a single PC or corporate database. Kramer VCO integrates with any retail management system and scales to an unlimited number of screens in any location. The solution’s hardware includes Kramer VCO specialised distribution amplifiers, HDMI equipment, Ethernet switchers, a control server, and Kramer’s award-winning cables. Distributed by Electrosonic SA: www.electrosonic.co.za

Plug into simplicity – tap into amazing With ClickShare you can simply share what’s on your laptop or mobile device on a presentation screen.

With a single click, you transform a meeting into a complete sharing experience bringing ideas, people and content together. No cables, no set-up, no waiting to join in.

Whatever device you are using, Click Share can get your content on the screen. The iconic ClickShare Button is used for laptops while a dedicated free app is available for tablets and smartphones. Windows, Mac OS, Linus, Android, iOS – it doesn’t matter which platform you are using: ClickShare knows it all!

For more information, please contact us Peripheral Vision Telephone +27 (0)11 840 0860 Email sales@peripheralvision.co.za

INFOCOMM Show REPORT

Arthur Holm introduces the Experience Table During InfoComm 2016, Arthur Holm showed some of its technology solutions for corporate and institutions: the DynamicTalkH and DynamicX2Share, the first retractable monitor on the market that integrates a Full HD distribution system. A complete conference table equipped with DynamicShare was shown at Infocomm, demonstrating its ease of integration and use. DynamicShare is a system that allows users in a meeting room to share different video sources among each other without the need of technical knowledge and assistance. It is a software free and wireless free share system that provides a high level of security. The meeting or conference table can stand alone, without the need to integrate external devices. It is an ideal solution to optimise the cabling and the installation inside a conference or meeting table, allowing the signal to be distributed and shared through an HDMI loop that also embeds the control protocols of the monitors. It is available in three versions: DynamicShare standard for the signal distribution, selection and control, and DynamicLoop for the signal distribution only. There is also a stand-alone device for third party monitors and video display solutions.

Dynamic3 is the only monitor on the market that opens, rotates 180 degrees and closes.This monitor achieved the German Design Award 2016 with special mention. Dynamic2 is a vertically retractable monitor, and the company also showed custom solutions integrating a lift for “gooseneck type” microphones and voting. Distributed by Peripheral Vision: www.peripheralvision.co.za

AMX adds new processor capability and launches encoder AMX by HARMAN launched the SVSI NMX-WP-N1512 windowing processor at InfoComm this year. The N1512 solves a variety of needs for the user while rounding out the N1000 Series with a windowing processor that adds both flexibility and efficiency. The N1512 is a 1RU rack-mount appliance connects to an SVSI video over IP network and accepts up to four video streams as input. Each input can be cropped, scaled, and positioned according to stored presets (such as quad, window-in-window, 3+1, etc.) or in any user-defined configuration. Ideal for operations centres, sports bars, conference rooms, or other locations that can benefit from taking up to four streams and combining them into a single video, the N1512 functions as a 4x1 windowing processor and can be stacked to give 7x1, 10x1, 13x1, 16x1, or higher capability. Network connectivity provides access to all available video streams for window selection and for output of the combined stream. The input and output video is compressed using the N1000 MPC codec, which uses a minimal amount of compression to provide excellent HD video quality at low latencies. And, multiple video layouts can be stored in the unit, and these layouts can have videos aligned at their edges or overlapped to provide truly flexible video arrangements. Pre-sets can easily be switched using a control system

and the windowing processor will animate the videos between the different layouts.

New video over IP encoder AMX by HARMAN also introduced the latest addition to its SVSI Encoder family at the show – the SVSI NMX-ENC-N1115-WP Encoder Wall Plate. The N1115-WP integrates the encoding capabilities of the SVSI NMX-ENC-N1133 Encoder into a 2-gang wall plate format to offer a wide range of installation possibilities. This encoder can easily be mounted in a wall, lectern, or floor box in huddle or flexible collaboration spaces, using a standard 2-gang US back box, and connected to power and Ethernet, using only a single category cable. Using the same minimal proprietary codec as the SVSI N1000 product line, the NMX-ENC-N1115-WP features imperceptibly low latency – 10 ms at 60 fps (encode plus decode) – and excellent video quality. Distributing the video over standard off-the-shelf layer-3 network switches and standard category cable (Cat-5e or better), total system deployment costs can be kept low. Distributed by Peripheral Vision: www.peripheralvision.co.za

Show REPORT INFOCOMM

LAB GRUPPEN launches smallest LUCIA amplifiers Following on the successful launch of LUCIA 70 V output models during last year’s InfoComm show, LAB GRUPPEN continued its unveiling of new product innovation at this year’s show. The company debuted three new LUCIA 60 W power models: LUCIA 60/2M, LUCIA 60/2 and LUCIA 60/1-70. Available with either 4-in, 4-out matrix-mixer (LUCIA 60/2M), 2-in, 2-out configuration (LUCIA 60/2) or 2-in, 1-out for the 70 V model (LUCIA 60/1-70); all with configurable DSP features like the equivalent larger models. “The LUCIA series has an exceptionally small footprint and multiple mounting options and its input flexibility provides installers with a reliable and cost effective solution,” notes Klas Dalbjorn of LAB GRUPPEN. “To further increase cost efficiencies we have introduced new 60 W power models which now produce a 30% cost reduction in lifetime running costs whilst delivering all the same features as the alternative models.” Central to LUCIA’s cost efficiency is its Energy Star certification. After 20 minutes of no signal input, the amplifiers automatically enter standby mode and power up within one second when signal returns. Additionally LUCIA incorporates intelligent fan control where it provides silent operation in idle and lower output levels. The amp’s ultra-compact form factor – a half-rack 1U chassis— allows it to be tucked away inconspicuously wherever needed. It can

be mounted behind video screens using the included wall bracket, tucked away in rack shelves or drawers, or attached to the optional pole mount. With the release of the LUCIA 60 W models, LAB GRUPPEN is providing a new version of its free application browser software which will support all nine LUCIA models. Also, a new improved rack mount kit is available for the entire LUCIA range as well as LAB Level; a new elegant looking table-top level control.

Christie transforms fan experience Christie® welcomed visitors to the Christie Centre at InfoComm 2016 with an ‘authoritative fan experience’ using the latest products, design and auto-calibration software solutions for sports events, live performances, theme parks, stadiums, arenas, and more including 3D projection mapping on both large and intimate scales. The outside wall of Christie Centre features the North American debut of the Apex Series of LED tiles in a stunning video wall. Part of the Christie Velvet family, Apex Series – with pixel pitches starting at 1.2 millimetres – is designed for 24/7 critical viewing applications including command and control rooms, and high security surveillance monitoring. Apex Series’ high impact visuals are also suitable for large-scale experiences, arena and stadium concourses, and corporate environments. Framing either side of the Christie Centre ‘entrance kiosk’ are visual displays using Christie® MicroTiles® and Christie Velvet Merit Series indoor LED tiles. With pixel pitches ranging from 1.5 millimetres to 4.0 millimetres and producing the industry’s best fill factor and image quality, Merit Series is perfect for sportsbooks, arenas and stadiums, casinos and resorts, corporate lobbies, higher education, houses of

worship, indoor signage and artistic displays. Wrapping the upper interior of the Christie Centre were video screens featuring projected content from a selection of Christie 1DLP® and 3DLP® projectors. Also present was the new Christie Mystique — a full suite of services, software and hardware providing integrated solutions that remove the technological complexities and constraints associated with the design, installation, and operation of large-scale visual experiences. Christie Pandoras Box 5.9 and Christie Spyder X20 managed all content in the Christie Centre and the new Pandoras Box V6 was previewed. Among its many new features, Pandoras Box V6 enables the user to split the workload among multiple operators by working on a common sequence or concentrate on different topics at the same time. The Pandoras Box real-time media server delivers faster and more intuitive features than ever while the Spyder X20, the industry’s leading hardware-based video processor, combines the flexibility of a universal routing switcher with integrated source monitoring. Distributed by: www.christiedigital.com

INFOCOMM Show REPORT

AV Stumpfl focuses on future innovation and productivity tools AV Stumpfl made use of the InfoComm platform to make several new global product announcements.

Uncompressed 8K media serving The multi-award winning super media server, Wings Engine Raw 8K was shown in the Americas for the very first time. It produces an unrivalled four streams of full 4K uncompressed content at 60hz plus media overlays, text generation and show control on top. At the show, Wings Engine Raw 8K was integrated with four large-format projectors from Digital Projection International and a giant Fullwhite Curve screen showing uncompressed video content. Wings Engine Raw has already been deployed at several corporate events, exhibitions and motor shows throughout the Americas. The entire range of Wings high-performance media servers from Wings Engine Raw through to stage and custom designed servers were shown at InfoComm. Wings Engine Stage was recently deployed by AV Matters to perform projection mapping of the Saturn 1B rocket for Spirit of Exploration held during the Holidays in Space festive season at the Kennedy Space Centre Visitor Complex.

Wings Engine Raw 8K Tomorrow’s buildings – smarter by design Visitors to AV Stumpfl at the show were also able to manipulate and play with the “Avio Wall” which uses the new AV Stumpfl Avio Master controllers and newly introduced IObox Pro hardware device for control of lighting, sound and displays, integration of social media feeds, gesture control, drag and drop editing and LUA scripting.

Making presentations count To be found in the most presentation theatres as well as in the inventories of most rental and staging companies, AV Stumpfl screens are engineered using the most reliable, long-life and robust materials. The company brought their Fullwhite® and Fullwhite Curve screens for fixed installations to InfoComm, as well as its Monoblox®, Varioclip® and Vario products which are the industry standard for portable projection screens.

tvONE Introduces New 4K Multiviewer

tvONE, a designer and manufacturer of video and multimedia processing equipment, introduced two new product offerings at the show, the 1T-MV-8474 4K Multiviewer, and the 1T-CL-322-US Control Panel. The 1T-MV-8474 4K Multiviewer, the latest product in tvONE's range of 4K enabled products, can display up to four video windows simultaneously via sixteen different fixed layouts, which can be recalled to present content in a variety of combinations. This could vary from a straight forward Quad split, Picture-In-Picture, Triple, Side-By-Side, Full screen or something more complex with multiple layers. The 1T-MV-8474 is a flexible Multiviewer and a presentation switcher, making it a good fit for many different user applications. It has seven inputs –four x HDMI, two x DisplayPort, one x VGA/YPbPr, supporting resolutions up to 3840x2160@30 on HDMI and 3840x2160@60 via DisplayPort. It is complemented by seven independent stereo analog inputs which can be assigned and embedded into any of the video streams. It also offers a single scaled HDMI output capable of supporting resolutions up to 3840x2160@30.

tvONE 4K Multiviewer The 1T-CL-322-US Control Panel is an easy to use, cost effective Ethernet based solution for system automation and remote control. It is designed to be highly flexible but simple to install for both experienced system integrators and the smart home user. The control panel consists of 16 LED backlit buttons, each programmable for either a single function or for recalling a sequence of commands in a macro. Each macro can be executed with a single button push, recalling up to 16 of the 128 stored commands, allowing the user to create and easily recall complex scenes or pre-sets. Programming and configuration of the 1T-CL-322-US is done through a simple but flexible WebUI, allowing the administrator to manage the control panels functions remotely across a network. A panel emulator allows the programmer to verify functionality and remote system control in real time. This can also be useful for remote system management. Distributed by Proxio AV: www.proxioav.com

Integration & Installation REPORT

The distribution game

By James Sey

The South African pro-AV industry depends, to a large extent on relationships between manufacturers (usually international or overseas-based businesses) and their distribution agents who supply manufacturerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s products to the downstream market locally, and often regionally. The success, or otherwise, of these relationships is simple in one sense. The distributor and the manufacturer make money by selling products successfully into the given market. But in other ways these are complex relationships, dependent on aspects like physical distribution logistics, the ability of local distribution businesses to support and service products, and on personal interactions. James Sey asked a range of local distributors and international manufacturers about what makes the relationship tick.

REPORT Integration & Installation

Duncan Riley, DWR Distribution For me, there is always a balance between the nature of the product itself and the manufacturer relationship. What I mean is that there has to be a strong business case for a distributor taking on a particular product set – whether it’s price point, technical excellence, innovation, etc. – that’s going to give you a competitive advantage in the local market. But this also has to be balanced against the need for a relationship with a manufacturer business that is really on a one-to-one basis. As a distributor you need to be able to trust in a reciprocal relationship for success – through good and bad times in the wider market. The relationship with the manufacturer in fact often conditions the sales success the distributor has. A good example is the way in which manufacturers deal with the volatility of the local currency. A forward-looking viewpoint, based on the assumption of a long-term business relationship of trust between manufacturer and distributor, means that some sort of currency hedge or agreement can be built in to the terms of your dealings together. It’s also very important that the distributor doesn’t see itself as an intermediary, but as an important part of building relationships along the value chain. So distributors should play a key role in bringing together manufacturers and their most important end-user clients. The teamwork built up by those relationships leads to a healthy business environment. In that environment, you can pick up the phone and know that the CEO of your manufacturer, no matter how big the company might be, is going to take your call and discuss issues frankly with you.

Jeremy Roberts, ETC In ETC’s understanding, a distributor does not sell directly to end users, but provides support and back-up to the dealers who are working in the market. No one dealer can be an expert in all aspects of lighting, so it is key to partner with dealers that have a deep understanding and contact with the various market sectors – theatre, TV, architectural, touring or Houses of Worship. ETC is a privately owned company who generally acts as the distributor, working with dealers who form the ETC family. ETC has been built on certain key premises: service, support and back-up. We have 24/7 support. Around the world there is always an ETC office open and this is not limited to how long you have had the equipment. We also aim to support equipment for ten years after we stop making it, and this gives buyers a real sense of longevity. It also means that we have to build to a quality that can be supported. Most of our staff in sales and technical support have worked in the entertainment industry, so understand what opening night, time to broadcast or project deadlines really mean to the person on the other end of the phone. When we are not the active distributor we expect our local distributor, to follow the same key principles. We are in the process of moving South Africa to a full distributor model, which will deliver a new and enhanced experience for the talented designers and technicians that use ETC equipment. This is a very exciting time as ETC will be available through more dealers, with more focus on different market sectors and with “in country” back-up and support from

our distributor. We are of course constantly developing new and exciting equipment, if you give Prosound or Electrosonic a call when you need to see something in your venue; they will be delighted to come and help.

Integration & Installation REPORT Richard Smith, Sound Harmonics There are many things that we look for in a good manufacturer/ distributor relationship, but some of the key things are that the manufacturer should be a market leader, unique or innovative in some way. We strive to provide our clients with cutting edge solutions and something that will differentiate them from the rest of the market. As technicians ourselves, sometimes our own desire to use the product helps inform our decision – on a technical level and also on a psychological one. We look for exceptional quality, even if we are looking at products that serve a lower price point, they must still be held to the highest standard. Customer service has become essential and so to have reliable, well made products helps improve not only our client’s ROI, but our own, because we spend less time repairing or replacing products. A key factor is in the personal relationships and I have found over the years that we seem to end up working with manufacturers who have similar values to us and find the same things important. That old saying about birds of a feather seems to hold true. Good communication is key, as is mutual respect. These are things that you would assume, but I am finding more and more that these are rare qualities. If the rules and goals are set out in the beginning of the relationship, then it is easy to work together to achieve success. From our side, we show that we care about their brand as much as they do and that we are serious about building the brand’s reputation in our territory, in partnership with them. Allowing different departments with the two entities to work together also fosters a better working relationship and empowers

people. I think it is important that the technical people talk to each other, accounts people know each other etc. It is not only good for business, but also for each person’s sense of well-being. We like to know that the manufacturer knows something about our market, because each country is unique and although it is easy to lump all emerging markets together, or the BRICS countries together when talking about financial and socio-political issues, the truth is that while China’s economy affects us, it is a completely different country, that needs a different approach. In the old days, everything was painted with the same brush and so they would say your size and GDP is similar to “X” country and so you should have similar sales, and it is far more subtle than that. So to have a manufacturer that takes the time to learn more deeply about you and your market is a wonderful help. Obviously the bottom line is important, but we like to approach all our relationships, whether it be a distribution/manufacturer relationship, or a customer relationship, with the view that it will be long term and mutually beneficial.”

Bruce Schwartz, Entertainment Lighting, Electrosonic Our philosophy is to create sole distribution partnerships with manufacturers. We place a great emphasis on acquiring demo stock, active marketing, and training for our staff. All of this costs a lot of money and when we have a sole distribution we can maximise the effort we then put into that brand. Electrosonic has been built on a pillar of ethics and being ethical. We always seek to find partners that subscribe to the same ethos. There are many manufacturers that will chase a deal for short term gain, but in our opinion this never works. We are always focussed on long term growth and sustainability and working closely together with our partners to build a brand over a period of time. Electrosonic has partnerships that have lasted, in some cases, over 20 years and we have often introduced a brand for the first time to the South African market and built it up to be a major player. Martin Professional and Kramer Electronics are prime examples of this. As in any marriage, constant work and engagement with each other is vital. Sharing knowledge as to product pipelines and international trends is vital for us. Conversely, us sharing trends and customer requests and needs with our suppliers helps them focus R&D and other resources into creating the right products and solutions to our unique market. The lighting industry often follows trends from European and American shows and we often end up following them a short time after. We find that the constant trips that our suppliers

make to South Africa greatly assist us in reinforcing the brand. Customers feel special when you rock up with the CEO or the sales director of the brand at their front door. It’s also a great opportunity for them to get hands on insight from our suppliers in a one-on-one casual manner. Success comes from a three way partnership, namely the supplier , the distributor and ultimately the customer. We sit here at the bottom of Africa , very far away from the epicentre of the entertainment world in Europe and the USA. Often we feel isolated and rely on the internet to keep us up to date with trends. By being a hands-on supplier and a hands-on distributor our clients’ wants and needs can be very quickly accessed and solutions provided.

REPORT Integration & Installation

Terry Acres, Prosound Prosound has immense experience with manufacturers, both locally and internationally, since it many cases in the sub-Saharan market, we have formed founding relationships with them. We use the umbrella term ‘presentation technology’ (pt) for our approach, as it covers pro-audio , lighting, AV and staging for use in diverse presentation spaces such as theatres, churches, convention rooms, corporate rooms, outdoor stages and the local community/ school hall. Pt is used to refer to both install and rental markets. Prosound has found that the best manufacturer/distributor relationships are found in a synergy between companies when their business goals are similar. In presentation technology there are broad categories being; • Engineering companies who strive for product and system excellence. • Commercial companies that are primarily interested in maximising revenue. • Ego companies with more money than sense who love the profile of being in the entertainment or similar business. Prosound has always fallen into the engineering category. Indicated in its staff, the products it deals with, its clients and its projects. The company has always looked for relationships with manufacturers who are primarily focused on the science of the technologies they are involved in. For example, in sound, the

manufacture of loudspeakers should always improve what we actually hear and in lighting how we enhance what we want to see. This may sound obvious but in fact demands substantial R & D without a quick return. The reality is that the majority of manufacturers are packagers of other people’s ideas with a few twists and turns and lots of marketing to bamboozle the end user. Continued on page 24

Integration & Installation REPORT Terry Acres – continued from page 23

The other harsh truth is that the majority of pt practitioners do not have the skill set to differentiate what they hear or see articulately. Manufacturers know this and drive their marketing accordingly. Prosound has introduced many well-engineered products into South Africa, all of which were from leading edge manufacturers, even though over time some have closed and others have been taken over by commercial giants. Some of them are: Electro Voice, Altec Lansing , Raindirk, White Instruments , BGW, Community , Renkus , Tapco, Midas , Ward-Beck , Rank Strand Sound , Technical Projects , DDA , Tascam 80-8 , Sony Pro Audio , Amcron , KT , Canare , DDA and more. The products Prosound currently represents sit comfortably in the parameters set for an authentic relationship, hopefully providing best value to both parties.

These parameters might be described as: • Reliable products • Technical excellence • Innovation (as opposed to add-ons and tweaks) • R &D budget above marketing • Business integrity and trust • Marketing with technical sense. • 24/7 technical support • Reliable products (yes that’s a repeat!) ETC, for example, is a company Prosound reveres .There simply is no company close to what they are doing with LED and control – especially in theatre. Meyer Sound and Dynaudio make equipment for ‘golden ears’. Electro-Voice makes speakers for professional musicians and venue solutions. DPA mics again sort out the ‘golden ear’ operators with Audio Technica being a mighty and diverse mic manufacturer of the highest physical standards. Media Matrix provides the most comprehensive control of complex audio systems, and last but not least, AEQ and Orban are innovators and workhorses for broadcast.

Bruce Genricks, Electrosonic SA We first identify a product that will fit within our existing offering. It must not be in competition but rather be complementary to what we already offer. Once the product has been identified, we then look at our local market to ascertain what is already being offered, at what price, quality and service. We then look for a supplier/manufacturer whose product we can distribute. We either look for a manufacturer with a well-established brand and a good reputation or we would look for a start-up with good potential. Once we have identified a manufacturer we will then engage with them to establish their business model and vision. We need to understand their pricing structures, marketing and sales strategies. We look for the following qualities in a manufacturer: • They are looking for a true distributor. • They supply a quality product. • They are looking for a long-term relationship, rather than short-term profits. • They stand behind their product and offer a good warranty. • That they want a sole distribution model. • They are looking for a business partner rather than a sales outlet. • They acknowledge that we want to add value to everything that we do and are not just box movers. • They are prepared to engage with us on technical, marketing and sales issues and strategies. • They share our passion for product and technical training. We then would do some initial training and get a few product samples to test locally. We would do various tests to check quality,

functionality and reliability. Once both parties have agreed and signed the distribution agreements, we would start marketing, promoting, training and selling the product. We like to have a very open relationship with the manufacturers that we represent. We like to share information on strategies for both sales and marketing. We always welcome visits from them to our region whether to promote, exhibit, train or just to socialise with our team. Both the manufacturer and the distributor have their strengths and weaknesses and it is in the partnership between the two, where the strength lies. The relationship should be one of trust, where both parties have the same goal, and the goal is to build the product and the brand for long term success.

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InteRVIEW

The word behind the scenes By James Sey

Carla Hamilton

In the first in an occasional series, we take a look behind the scenes at some of the ‘unsung heroes’ in technical or support functions in the AV industry that enable productions and events to tick along, fulfilling a vital function, but who are rarely acknowledged or feted. In this interview we speak to Carla Hamilton of EasiQ, one of South Africa’s most prominent autocue companies. Teleprompters or Autocues are a key cog in the wheel of many TV broadcasts, corporate videos, and a host of live events. Essentially, a teleprompter refers to two things: a digital script displayed on a screen and a dedicated operator who prompts the person speaking . In most cases, in a broadcast or video environment, the teleprompter or autocue screen is in front of, or below the lens of the camera, so that the speaker gives the impression of speaking seamlessly and spontaneously into the camera lens. In the live event environment there is a variety of teleprompters / autocues, with screens designed for use at a lectern on stage, or mounted conveniently in the venue for ease of access by the speakers and presenters on stage. EasiQ is one of the SA AV industry’s few dedicated teleprompt/ autocue businesses. Its founder and current owner-manager is industry veteran Carla Hamilton, who has built and maintained the business from humble beginnings, and kept focused on live event and broadcast autocuing. “I was introduced to the industry fresh from school around 19992000,”says Hamilton. “I was given the opportunity to work as a freelance Autocue operator for a family friend. At first I had no idea what autocue actually was, so was completely green to the industry to start off with. Formal training is in short supply to this day, it’s simply being exposed to the technology and willing to learn and adapt to

best accommodate the clients’ needs on site. The technology is based around a specialised software package, whereby the script can be edited to accommodate speaker preferences related to font size, colours, edit points and ultimately the scrolling of the text for the speaker. Speakers present at different paces, and often ad lib, so we as autocue operators have to follow very carefully. For events, the autocue text can go on anything from large projection screens to varying sized plasma screens and more formally, the presidential autocue screens at the podium. We work closely with the AV guys to adapt to the specific screens required for the job.” When EasiQ first started out in 2003, Hamilton and her team worked with large cumbersome CRT autocue monitors, the solid wooden podiums for the presidential systems, but through the years the industry has adapted to changing technology and trends and now supplies the lighter-weight LED and plasma screens with varying inputs, including VGA, BNC &HDMI. The industry is interesting in that it has an across-the-board applicability in the live event and broadcast sectors. Hamilton is pragmatic and agnostic about where she takes her company’s services: “We have a about a 50/50 split, where we provide our services to the events sector for business conferences, gala dinners etc, as well as for the broadcast industry, including corporate video recordings and frequent televised productions. Our customer base varies from AV companies, to broadcast facilities, production companies and even corporate sectors. I am incredibly proud and thankful to my fantastic team of dedicated operators who have grown with the company over the years to offer the services our customers have come to expect.” The competitive landscape is still fairly niched, but Hamilton networks with a couple of other specialised companies around the country, which has proven essential in maintaining client relationships to ensure repeat business. “I have thought about diversifying the business,” she concludes, “but then remind myself of the unique part we play in the industry, and how much I just love what I do!”

Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

Outlook on digital signage

D i g ital si g nag e t r ends 2 016 I nc r easin g de m and f o r . . . ( Source : Invidis Consulting )

85%

Large format Display 70" and bigger

80%

Videowall displays with narrow bezel and dedicated functions

64%

Sun-light readable large format displays

D I S P L AY S The digital signage market has come a long way from the alphanumeric loop and static billboard image represented iconically by the cinema clichĂŠ of Times Square in New York City. Digital displays of various HD resolutions and sizes now show full-motion video, livestreaming networked information and content constantly updated via wireless internet connections â&#x20AC;&#x201C; all options in a global market expected to hit $24 billion in value by 2020. What are the emerging trends in the market? In this special section James Sey looks at some local SA case studies and installations capturing some of these major trends.

Digital signage has emerged as one of the most effective and eye-catching communications mediums on the market. The immediacy of communication, vibrant images and colours available in most digital displays today make the digital signage route an attractive one for marketing professionals and corporate investment in any number of industry sectors. But the rise in popularity and the rapid proliferation of mature digital technologies in the sector make investment decisions more difficult. How do companies keep ahead of technology curves? How will digital signage technology change in

the next five, ten or 20 years? Digital signage is a big business for companies in a variety of sectors, and is only expected to get bigger. According to research firm Markets and Markets, the total digital signage market is expected to reach $23.76 billion by 2020 from $14.63 billion last year, and is expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 8.18 percent between 2015 and 2020. Among the factors driving this impressive growth is buy-in from different industries for the efficacy of solutions, which in turn helps to

83%

70%

content with social media integration

Interactive content with touch functionality

CONTENT

86%

71%

Interfaces for connecting external systems to the CMS

Interactive content with integration of mobile devices

67%

Functions to adapt the workflows to the CMS

S O F T WA R E M e d i a P l ay e r 64% 53% 42% 57%

Media pl ayer appliances without fan

SOlutions with small form factor

drive investment in the development and deployment of new technologies. Also, the increasing buy-in of public sectors and governments in digital signage, combined with the ways in which it reduces printing and environmental costs for paper-based signage, is boosting the whole sector. But much more can be done â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for example, many companies donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t grasp the full implications of the interactive capabilities of new technologies, and resort to using digital signage as electronic posters. In the largest market segment for digital signage, the retail market, for example, multichannel marketing is key. The integration of digital marketing channels is very important, and digital signage solutions can be very effectively integrated with points of information and sale, and with a range of mobile devices. From the display point of view, 4K technology has barely matured in the market, but manufacturers are already talking about 8K

Media player with android

Solutions for large format displays with integrated media player

capability. Perhaps this is in an attempt to bed in 4K as a standard even quicker. Another display protocol, High Dynamic Range, may soon enable even more brilliance and contrast in high resolution images. While LCD will soon all but disappear, LED videowalls are rapidly becoming the new standard format, with pixel pitches now becoming small enough for them to be used indoors, with more flexible installation options. More sophisticated technologies such as Organic LED have yet to fully mature and are also still too expensive for the current market. While installation trends differ in different global regions, most experts point to the availability of most cutting edge technologies in Africa â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but a dearth of the necessary technical skill sets to install and maintain them. South Africa is perhaps an exception to this tendency.

Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

System Solutions for GE African Innovation Centre

By James Sey

DIGITAL SIGNAGE Integration & Installation

US multinational GE officially opened its R500-million Africa Innovation Centre in Johannesburg in June this year – the group’s tenth such centre globally and its first in Africa. The impressive building features an exhibition/experience centre on its first floor dominated by digital signage and display, much of it installed by local company System Solutions.

The 2 700 m2 GE Africa Innovation Centre is an accredited green building, located alongside the Killarney Country Club golf course, near Rosebank, in northern Johannesburg. The concept behind each Innovation Centre worldwide is to act as a showcase of GE’s capabilities and intellectual capital. In the African centre, there is a strong focus on skills development, and on highlighting the global giant’s move into the era of a fully digital industrial economy. These factors are to the forefront in the planning and execution for the building design. GE globally is moving from an industrial manufacturer into a digital industrial company, and wants the space, with its collaborative working areas, to help foster that mindset among GE and its partners. The design of the Centre is remarkable. Firstly it is a fully green building, being GE Green and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified. Local architects Paragon Interface took the lead on the building itself. The interior is full of furniture and interior design by African designers and artists curated for the modern tech hub feel by Monna Mokoena of CulArt Productions.

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Responsible for the design and the integration of GE’s strategic planning with the realisation of the building was strategist Kathy Berman of the nearby Gordon Institute of Business Science, who was seconded to GE to head up the process for a year. The reception floor of the building establishes a strong African flavour, with a colourful ‘African fractal’ theme dominating the reception area. The exhibition experience of the entire first floor takes visitors through a tactile and visual learning experience, positioning GE as a global leader in digital solutions in many industry sectors, such as healthcare, mining, agriculture, and many others. The second floor of the spacious and airily elegant building is devoted to GE’s healthcare initiatives in Africa, and doubles as the new headquarters for GE Healthcare. The floor features its own healthcare experience centre, with various healthcare technologies across hospital care areas, from the emergency room and theatre to cardiology, oncology and infant care. It’s effectively a miniature hospital complete with MRI machines, X-ray suite and the Giraffe post-natal ICU equipment manufactured by GE. As well being a useful sales tool, the facility is intended as a training suite of the kind

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Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

that indicates GE’s much-touted commitment to their investment in Africa. A further floor in the building comprises a learning and development space for GE executives to liaise with clients and for potential incubation and R&D work to go on. Besides showcasing the group’s various offerings, the building houses a learning and development centre, which will expose participants to the various GE curriculums on offer, from its leadership courses to its various “universities” that focus on energy, transport and healthcare. Space has also been allocated for collaborative projects and solution prototyping, with State-owned freight logistics group Transnet having already signed up to partner with GE on various rail localisation projects. In addition, the centre will look to support the development of small businesses capable of supplying the local market and potentially GE’s global supply chains

Intuitive digital signage design The exhibition component of the Innovation Centre, which clients and partners first encounter on entering the building, is a key component

in explaining the experience and the company’s approach to visitors. The role played by the digital signage system is thus vital. GE called on Gearhouse group company System Solutions to install the sophisticated hardware, including a massive 84in NEC full touch screen display, the first such installation in South Africa. Along with this centrepiece installation, System Solutions seamlessly installed a total of sixteen Samsung screens on the exhibition floor, a further twelve tablet screen displays and a number of PCs. All of the displays work in different parts of the exhibition space, carrying unique content over software programmes created by design company Imagination. System Solutions is a well-known South African AV systems Integrator, offering services ranging from consultation and planning through to the design, supply, installation and project management of a system to suit anything from a smart home installation to a permanent stadium installation. “Our expertise in interactive and presentation systems design stood us in good stead on the display technology installation for GE,” says System Solutions’ project manager Prashna Parsoot. “It was also important that we understood the client’s needs thoroughly, and that the installation met the design brief of the building as well as

DIGITAL SIGNAGE Integration & Installation

performing its educational and business information display functions. Apart from the careful installation of the large NEC full touch screen, we had to very carefully install the 4X55” screens in a 2X2 videowall configuration for full touch screen capability. The screen we used for the interactive showcase was 2430 x 1371.60cm, imported from the USA and specifically designed to cover the 4x55” screens in a 2X2 configuration. The touch screen was laid out and all the pieces were then slotted together and wired into the correct position for testing. Once this was achieved the software was downloaded, installed and tested to ensure working order before actual installation. The screen was then installed in front of a piece of glass that was specifically cut to the correct dimensions for the touch screen. Once this was all installed and tested, and under the watchful eye of our senior technician Charles Naidoo, the LED Screens were installed.” Other aspects of the experience centre installed by System Solutions include a series of wall-mounted tablet screens, with downloadable content, and a visually arresting series of LED strips, of different colours, which leads the visitor to screens with relevant content about one or other of GE’s industry sectors. There is also a full virtual reality screen experience, complete with an Oculus VR

headset, running GE-related simulations. In an arresting Industrial Internet display, the table-mounted touchscreen directs visitors to one or other aspect of GE’s industrial operations. When one is touched, a software connection lights up the appropriate model on the display stand – a seagoing oil rig for the oil and gas sector, a jet turbine for aerospace, a wind turbine for the agri sector, and so on. It is a beautifully simple example fo how display technology works to reinforce the client’s business and strategy. “We’re very proud of the installation,” says Parsoot. “The team, comprising myself, Charles and his technical team, Karen Blyth the operations manager and Jennifer Jeffrey the sales executive, have all worked togerther to install the job fully to the client’s specifications. The variety of the installations required, and the levels of interactivity, meant we needed to apply our technical creativity throughout, and I think this shows. The ultimate goal of the centre is excellence and collaboration for GE, its customers and stakeholders across Africa. At System Solutions we’re happy to have been part of making that happen.”

Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

Sunglass Hut teams up with Moving Tactics

Sunglass Hut has collaborated with Moving Tactics, a leading South African digital signage solutions company, to develop new, innovative and creative digital installations within their stores and at special events to engage with their customers. The focus has been on creating the opportunity for their customers to experience the Sunglass Hut brand first hand through digital signage.

DIGITAL SIGNAGE Integration & Installation

Recently, fashion fans from across the country gathered in Hyde Park, Johannesburg to experience the latest trends in home-grown couture at SA Fashion Week. Between shows, guests got to experience fashion in a new, hands-on way in the VIP lounge, where Sunglass Hut and Moving Tactics Digital Impact partnered to create a unique, interactive digital experience. Fashionistas were able to try on the latest in sunglass trends, find their favourite sunglass look and then learn more about the product itself using the custom-made 40” touch screen. As they placed their chosen sunglasses on the recognition pad alongside the screen, a small radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag sleekly fitted onto the sunglasses would prompt and play product specific information on the screen. Using the innovatively designed product recognition hardware, guests were able to learn more about their favourite pair of sunglasses and by clicking through detailed product specifications, demo videos and other relevant content. Moving Tactics Digital Impact is part of the R&D arm of the Moving Tactics stable and specialises in short-term, rental and campaignbased digital activation solutions. In addition to providing concept development and implementation using touch and projection technology, they also design and manufacture screen housings and bespoke items based on brief. Andy Higginbotham, creative director at Moving Tactics Digital Impact, says, “In addition to the product recognition table hardware and software that we custom-designed and built, we also supplied Sunglass Hut with a customised replica selfie cam. The 42” touch display with built-in digital SLR camera allowed guests to take a high

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resolution image of themselves wearing the latest sunglass looks, which they could then share via social media. It was a fun concept and it proved to be very popular”. As a leading retailer, Sunglass Hut is committed to digital technology as a key component in creating novel opportunities to engage with their customers, as well as competitive advantage for its business. As Earl Kopeledi, marketing manager at Sunglass Hut, explains, “Our aim is to always create fun and memorable experiences in our stores and at events. For our execution at SA Fashion Week, we wanted to highlight some of the interesting stories attached to the brands we stock, and we were very happy with the experiential outcome for our customers”.

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Turnkey digital signage In addition to delivering cutting-edge solutions for Sunglass Hut’s short-term events, Moving Tactics has also provided in-store signage for over 30 of their retail stores. The nationwide roll-out across South Africa featured the latest in technologically-savvy, minimalist style to match their global design ethos. The new solution incorporates digital signage screens and housings that have been custom designed and installed as an integral part of the in-store visual merchandising focus. Chris Day, managing director of Moving Tactics, explains, “Digital signage needs to be purposebuilt into the aesthetic of the store and Sunglass Hut and Luxottica have been great to work with as they have progressive ambitions for their retail spaces and enjoy technological innovations. From a housing design and manufacture perspective, the change from shop-fitted materials to powder-coated mild steel has allowed us to produce a slim-line aesthetic unit, which is far more robust and easy

to move around inside the store, or from site to site, as required”. Two different units have been produced – the smaller 55” screens being installed in Sunglass Hut outlets within Edgars are fitted with 6mm toughened glass to protect the LED screens where they are more prone to damage. The large 75” screens have been installed in the stand-alone Sunglass Hut stores nationally, with some of the units incorporating a built-in, recessed mirror on the back of the housings to enhance the practicality of the unit on the shop floor. All of the housings feature a minimalist design aesthetic with no visible mounting points to the floor substrate. The mirror is also mounted in such a manner that no fixings can be seen. These functional design features complement the sleek design lines that form part of the store’s aesthetic. In addition to providing both the housing and hardware for digital signage solutions, Moving Tactics can also offer remote content management and animated content production to all of their clients. Using the latest in digital signage software, each and every screen on

DIGITAL SIGNAGE Integration & Installation

a client’s network can be monitored by one of the team’s off-site content managers. This enables the team to know if the screen is functioning correctly, as well as knowing exactly what content is playing on each screen. Content changes can also be made in real-time to tie in with whatever messaging a retailer wants to communicate to their market audience. On the content strategy and production front, Moving Tactics has a team of digital animators and motion graphics designers. Content is designed in accordance with the customer dwell time in specific retail environments and with consideration given to the specific brand message that the retailer is wishing to communicate at any given time. Digitally animated video files generally vary between 10 and 20 seconds and are designed to communicate a variety of brand messages and call to action initiatives. The digital design team works closely with the various product brand managers and their agencies to ensure that the desired communication is correctly constructed and delivered. This involves a process of storyboard production and detailed correspondence between client and animator to ensure that the final product attracts the customer’s attention and induces the desired response.

The future of digital signage in SA According to Day, the Southern African digital signage market is growing due to the adoption of digital marketing, which is becoming the norm. “Large brands are competing to get their message to the consumer at the right time and digital signage is the most compelling way to pro-actively communicate,” he says. “Retailers, quick service restaurants, banks, etc. are all building digital signage into their marketing strategy and this trend will increase in the future.” Day also emphasised the importance of its Digital Impact division when it comes to the future of digital signage. “Moving Tactics has always been at the forefront of digital signage, but it has become a necessity to develop our own Digital Impact division that specialises in high impact, interactive technology for digital campaigns that include short-term events. As a part of our Research and Development group, Moving Tactics Digital Impact is at the forefront of interactive digital technology, as well as product design, which sustainably flows into our Digital Signage division.”

Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

The Colossus of outdoor video displays The official launch of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest outdoor centre-hung video display recently took place at the Bristol Motor Speedway track in Tennessee, USA. The massive feat of screen engineering is a triumph for UK-based DigiLED, the AV and screen specialists represented in South Africa by AV Systems

DIGITAL SIGNAGE Integration & Installation

This gargantuan structure has four sides, each with a huge digiLED Toura 6mm LED screen measuring 19.2 metres wide by 9 metres high. That’s nearly the height of a three storey house. In total, the full system hosts almost 20 million pixels. The digiLED Toura screen system was designed to meet the specification requirements of its clients, GoVision, Panasonic and BMS. The 6mm pitch means that the pixels are grouped tighter than any other large-scale, permanent outdoor display. The result: a glimmering visual experience capable of offering 281 trillion different colours, and is 23 times brighter and 25 percent sharper than the typical home HD TV. The unique display hangs from a halo-shaped truss and features an additional circular LED display beneath the screens measuring over 6 metres in height. The screens and the LED ring total more than 10,500 square feet of high-resolution, active viewing area. The giant screen structure is suspended 60 metres above the centre of the track in Tennessee, which is a 165 000 capacity venue. The screen is flown from four specially constructed towers located outside the venue, via steel cabling with a gauge similar to that used on the construction of

the landmark Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Graham Burgess, digiLED CEO says “I’ve been doing this for a long time and been involved in some innovative and exciting projects. What we managed to achieve at Bristol took the use of LED screens to a different level. The Toura screens are ergonomic, lightweight and technician-friendly which also enables crew to construct large screen areas in a relatively short period of time. We used the traditional rock ‘n’ roll method of screen build , with rows of screen panels being lifted onto hanging bars and attached in place before the next row is hoisted beneath. So the construction of each panel face involved 120 panel pairs being lifted and attached. As we progressed the build it became clear that there would be a significant amount of pendulum movement due to environmental conditions – primarily the sun warming and expanding the main support cabling, and the wind at that height, even a gentle breeze, saw the screens moving about the length of a school bus! In the end we put our faith in the suspension cable anchors to guarantee safety, since they were drilled into bedrock in the car park outside the stadium. The thrill of seeing something on the scale of Colossus TV come together was truly awe inspiring. I’d encourage anyone to see this monster live, it is just amazing. Our friends at BMS, GoVision and Panasonic, together with all the other partners involved are all so proud of what we have achieved and we are thrilled to have been a part of such a dynamic and gigantic installation!” One aspect of the installation remains to be done – and that is to verify whether the screen is in fact the largest centre-hung outdoor suspension screen in the world. “We have called in Guinness World Records to verify our estimations on this,” confirms Burgess. “They’ll do so in August, but whether it boils down to resolution, size or weight, or a combination of them all, I’m sure we’ll top the charts!”

Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

The Telkom reconnect experience

The impressive Telkom CEC entrance

Telkom’s new headquarters in Centurion features a state of the art Customer Experience Centre (CEC), designed to facilitate and improve the telecommunications giant’s interactions with its business customers and consumers. Under the banner Project Reconnect, at the heart of the CEC is a sophisticated AV environment which serves a multitude of business purposes.

Over a year in the making, the CEC installation project was led by equipment suppliers and installers Questek, under the guidance of senior sales executive Darren Cox, who worked closely with Telkom’s AV specialist Raymond Martin, to bring the project to fruition. “After the business case was accepted,” says Martin, “we were excited to display Telkom’s business networking and information technology capabilities by using the best professional AV tools available in the global market.” The main idea in the design of the CEC was to lead customers from one technology display to another as a means of demonstrating Telkom’s involvement in the entire telecommunications data chain for business. Each element of the business data chain can therefore be emphasised in the CEC as needed and relevant, right down to hosting consumer and special events in-house.

Meet the OSV Perhaps the most remarkable technology element of the Centre greets the guest on first entering – the gigantic 7m X 2m Barco Overview Seamless Videowall (OSV), which is the first and only screen installation of its kind in the world. This incredible piece of screen technology has zero bezel, and operates at a 6300 X 1920 resolution. The huge screen has a total of 49 channels of touch interface, through which content can be zoomed out and in, manipulated and repositioned as needed. It forms a major element of the CEC’s content for customers, and so has to run optimally. The d3 processor system ensures this, but the OSV requires custom content since normal HD content pixelates due to its crystalline resolution. The OSV couples its high performance with low power consumption and optimised energy use.

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“The OSV is used a centrepiece for the content and as a spectacular way in to the Centre,” says Martin. “It has various functions, from playing the main introduction scenario to the Telkom Business operations, to presentations, interactive product summaries to displaying new product information.” From the OSV, customers are directed through icons and graphic projected onto the floor, which lead them to the appropriate 55” Avitel infrared touch screen for the content they have chosen. The floor graphics and icons are projected using six ceiling mounted Barco laser phosphor projectors, rigged to project vertically downward. The projectors are 6 000 lumens with some 60 000 hours of light source life, and are also controlled by the d3 system. The floor projections are a clever digital signage touch to entertain customers and lead them into the Centre, but also display corporate branding from Telkom and its business partners on an extensive floor surface – a unique and fun way to interact with such content. The d3 can also programme the projection content to map, warp or blend with any object or display in the space. The directional icons projected on the floor lead customers to the row of touch screens on the opposite wall, where a localised ceiling mount speaker system for isolated sound playback per screen emits a cone of directed sound inaudible to the person standing adjacent. This Dolby 5.2 quality soundtrack to the onscreen content is played through the Soundtube Secret Sound speakers with high-end Denon amplification. The 4 x 55” open frame LED touch monitors, with a mini PC control

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Integration & Installation DIGITAL SIGNAGE

Telkom's Raymond Martin at the OSV

unit, each play a role in the corporate introduction scenario. They can also display all whitepapers on all Telkom products, as well as being able to transfer documentation to clients via e-mail or the mobile download service. Overall, the content in the corporate experience section of the CEC is controlled by an Extron system, and is designed to fall into one of five different scenarios: a set of welcome messages; an introduction using the projectors and various screens; a presentation mode; an interactive scenario involving the touch screens; and finally a free roam mode which incorporates point solution demonstrations.

The consumer experience Walking anti-clockwise through the Centre brings one to the consumer-oriented suite of Telkom solutions, once more displayed on cutting edge AV equipment in a unique customised showroom environment. On the back wall of this space in the CEC, three 55” Mondopads perform several functions. They play a role in the customer introduction scenario, provide a play area where differences between Telkom connectivity products can be tested, offer streaming TV and video, a full video conferencing function, an Internet of Things capability and mobile device integration. Martin himself is responsible for the custom coding on these screen displays, which can switch between many kinds of fibre network-to-home solutions, can check network coverage in a given area and boasts LTE advanced network capabilities – all demonstrating Telkom’s range of consumer connectivity solutions. Beside these wall-mounted screens stands a touch screen table mount, with two 55” Avitel screens inset. This smart table set-up is

connected to Telkom LTE advanced network, providing the options for customers to test, navigate and browse the internet at high speeds. The touch screens also display whitepapers on all Telkom consumer products, can transfer documentation to clients via e-mail or mobile download service, and displays promotions by Telkom. Alongside the Smart Table is another unique feature of the CEC, an interactive screen display set into the floor! This consists of six thin bezel LED screens beneath 40mm of reinforced glass which has been tested for its lack of distortion. The presence of someone’s feet on the floor is detected by an Airscan system – a military-grade scanner – , and used to react with light, and with various interactive brand messages and displays. Next along in this section of the CEC is a wall mounted display on another 55” Avitel screen, which pulls information from all over the Telkom network to build customised network views. IP cameras are installed remotely over the physical area of the Telkom headquarters, in order to feed information to this customized ‘command centre’ from various mission critical sources around the Telkom campus. The user of the touch screen has control over the various cameras around

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the Telkom campus. This screen view plays a role in the introduction scenario in the CEC, and can display live streams from the NEXUS datacenter (Telkom’s name for its campus core building), as well as other mission critical distributed sources. It can also be set up to receive video feed from corporate drones conducting demonstration surveillance flights over the campus. Alongside this mission control screen is a transparent LCD display from LG, a 42” screen with its own control box providing backlight – this is designed as a point of sale digital signage screen, with a range of point of sale material on display, for example, comparing prices on demonstrated models of phones, etc. The final feature of the CEC is the impressively fitted out boardroom. This 22-seater boardroom table features at its head an 84” 4K touch screen, run by a mini-PC, and with WEBEX videoconferencing and telepresence capability, the latter enabled by an SX80 telepresence unit from Cisco Systems. Other systems in the magisterial boardroom include fully fitted sound systems from Extron, mini-gooseneck microphones from beyerdynamik, through which all video communications and audio-conferencing can be routed, as well as a fully fitted ClickShare presentation solution from Barco. The whole boardroom system is controlled via an Extron system with an iPad interface. “We’re proud of how theCEC has turned out after all our hard work,” concludes Martin. “We couldn’t have done it and ensure that it continues running optimally without our supporting cast of engineers and technicians, including all our equipment suppliers. Prominent among them are Darren and Stuart Black from Questek, who acted as project manager on the installation. We are looking forward to seeing tTelkom use the Centre to grow their business, with AV at its heart.”

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Lighting up a classic musical

By Elaine Strauss

Technical production for the classic musical, Sophiatown, was placed in the experienced hands of lighting designer Denis Hutchinson…

Sophiatown recently played at the State theatre and at the Market Theatre as part of the latter theatre’s 40th anniversary celebration. In South African history Sophiatown, apart from its often gang-related violence and poverty, is also fondly remembered as the renowned mixed-race suburb outside Johannesburg in the days of apartheid. It was also characterised by its lively politics, literature and music – mostly jazz and blues. Also sometimes called the Chicago of South Africa, it was where people lived together, undivided by colour, before the authorities tore it apart. Sophiatown, the musical production, pays tribute to this microcosmic SA society. Lighting designer Denis Hutchinson took the technical lead for this lively and memorable musical, which was revived with a new, young cast under the experienced eye of director Malcolm Purkey to delight today’s audiences with its timeless music. According to Hutchinson, when it comes to lighting design, the technical aspect is always secondary: “Equipment is there to serve a design concept, not the other way around. That said, one is seldom in a position where one can have exactly the gear one wants, so there is always some sort of trade-off. Fortunately, both the Market and State Theatres have a reasonable amount of equipment so the biggest technical hurdle was trying to design something that could work both on the octagonal lighting grid at the Market and on the more conventional grid at the State. Aside from the totally different geometry of the two venues, there is also a height difference of more than two metres between them. Let’s just say there was lots of trigonometry!” Besides the physical design differences between the two theatres, Hutchinson also worked on a variety of equipment at the two theatres, saying that the only consistency between the venues is that both are on grandMA2. “The normal rig at the Market is a mixture of Source Fours and Toshiba fresnels with a limited number of Martin Vipers and MAC 600s. The State by contrast has Philips Selecon Pacific spots and ADB fresnels with Robe MMX spots and Robin 300 LEDWashes. Fortunately both venues are on grandMA2 which is one of the easiest desks on which to change fixtures,” he said.

As for the sound of Sophiatown, the production was performed entirely a cappella. “Sound by God!” Hutchinson said. For the show, Hutchinson was loaned six Robert Juliat Dalis 300W LED Cyclights by DWR Distribution. Owner and Director at DWR Distribution, Duncan Riley, wanted the opinion of a respected lighting designer, regarding the performance of the Dalis. “When I saw the Dalis for the first time, I knew this was the best cyc light I had ever seen and I wanted it to be used by a top South African lighting designer in an actual production, to get a real opinion. Denis Hutchinson’s opinion counts, and for me that was very important,” he said. “It was a bit of a risk as he tells it like it is, good or bad. Because Denis is a respected lighting designer and theatre consultant, it was amazing to get such fantastic response from him.” Hutchinson himself was impressed with the Dalis. “I had not played with the Dalis cyc units before Sophiatown. Since the show doesn’t actually have a cyc, I ended up (ab)using three of the units as footlights and using the other three to create a wash under the raised stage to make it ‘float’ at certain moments in the show,” Hutchinson said. “The units are punchy and the eight colour

mix allows one to create a very interesting range of shades all from a very compact and stylish unit. I had fun!” A footlight fan at the best of times, Hutchinson added that although the Dalis is beautifully compact as a ground row, it sits about 150mm off the deck which is a little big for a footlight. “In the case of Sophiatown, it didn’t matter because the stage was raised so I was able to go below stage level anyway and it worked really well.” The novelty of creating a new version of a local classic musical, like Sophiatown, and re-imagining it for a contemporary audience, can be challenging, but Hutchinson felt positive about his experience with the production. “I have a very good working relationship with Sarah Roberts who designed the costumes for the original production and this time was designing both sets and costumes, and we both had fun. I’m a firm believer that if those of us working on a show don’t enjoy the work, there’s little chance that an audience will,” he said. “This was one of those wonderful productions where people actually did their homework in advance and there were few, if any, real problems. It’s always good working with Malcolm Purkey and Sarah Roberts and I would also like to thank DWR for the Dalis units.”

LIVE EVENTs REPORT

ETC at NAF – A special relationship ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls), the US-headquartered manufacturer of lighting and rigging technology, has a unique relationship with South Africa’s world-renowned National Arts Festival (NAF), supplying control and other equipment to various venues every year, on a pro-bono basis, to ensure the festival is professionally run. James Sey spoke to various players at the NAF to get insight to how ETC works with various local companies and technicians to ensure the shows go on.

Photos by Luke Younge

Jeremy Roberts from ETC in the UK has been visiting the NAF for many years. We asked him about the background to the relationship. “Twenty five years ago I first toured into the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, lighting a production of Romeo and Juliet. The best thing about festivals is the meeting of minds and technical obsessives from all over the world. When I took on sub-Saharan Africa for ETC I wanted to know about festivals. At dinner with Declan Randall I learnt about NAF and Nicci Spalding, the festival’s extraordinary technical director. I got an introduction to Nicci, who had also worked at the Pleasance theatre complex in Edinburgh, which ETC has supported for many years with the Eos family of consoles. Through this, Nicci was aware of the support level ETC offers. Ian Blair from Prosound and I went to the festival four years ago and were blown away by the standard of work, and of course we wanted to be involved, who wouldn’t? As things have developed, ETC supplies many venues at the NAF – fourteen venues in total this year in fact – with equipment. The NAF is a fantastic meeting of technicians from across the continent, so it is an honour for ETC to support these talented people with consoles and fixtures that will enhance their art and give them a look at the latest equipment

available for making theatre." Roberts explains that the productions are supported by Prosound and Electrosonic staff, who are on site to provide support, and ETC also provides local support for the larger venues. He points out that Benjamin du Plessis from the Fugard Theatre, who is an expert Eos programmer, was on site this year to support other programmers on the Eos Ti, Gio and Ion consoles installed across the Festival venues. “A big highlight for ETC,” says Roberts, “is that the NAF Is the first festival in the world to have the new and fantastic ColorSource control consoles in operation. After NAF these consoles will go to the Edinburgh Festival to support productions in, among others, the Assembly Room and the Pleasance.” One of the team offering technical support at the NAF on behalf of Prosound was Jannie de Jager of Prosound’s specialised distribution business ApexPro: “Our main objective was to help get the ETC fixtures installed correctly and also to make sure the operators were comfortable with their assigned ETC consoles. The simple and easy to use software on the ColorSource consoles provide for seamless load-ins and flawless programming. But although this was a fairly easy

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process, we still had continuous training at the different venues to deal with the various questions that arose. There were so many venues where ETC gear had been allocated, it caused us to run around all over town. One venue, Vicky’s, was once again a full LED venue, with three ETC LED Lustr and seven ETC ColorSource Pars, controlled with a ColorSource 20 console. The rest of the venues where ETC gear was allocated were mixtures of tungsten and LED fixtures. ETC ColorSource fixtures make a perfect addition to any tungsten rig as it has the

smoothest dimming curves and perfect colour renderings to match tungsten gels.” For De Jager, a real highlight of the show is to see the small NAF management team running such a large festival for such a long period of time. “And it’s always such a great highlight to see all the technicians from the industry. Because this festival is so large, it brings all the industry professionals together in a single town,” he adds.

Photo by Luke Younge

LIVE EVENTs REPORT

Production highlights Electrosonic SA has also been offering assistance and support to the Festival’s technical office for a number of years. Robbi Nassi and Jesse Dullabh from the company made the pilgrimage this year to offer support in the form of training, technical support, lighting fixtures, control interfaces as well as smoke and effects. The pair joined Dave Opperman from PE-based AV business Magnetic Storm, and Ronnie van Jaarsveld from LineOut to offer technical set-up and support for the important installation of the Festival’s headline art show, that of Standard Bank Young Artist winner Mohau Modisakeng, in the 1820 Settler’s Monument Gallery in the Round. His installation Lefa La Ntate required a multi-screen, surround sound exhibition that took the audience on a ten minute journey through the circular venue. The show was controlled by Green Hippo’s Boreal Media Server, sponsored by Electrosonic, using the Timeline component outputting 4.1. Surround Sound. Nassi and Dullabh were instrumental in setting up the time coding and basic programming of content both prior to the event and at the festival. The Green Hippo Boreal allowed for four independent projectors to be controlled through HDMI outputs on the media server. 4K video was imported into the Boreal and projected onto the four surfaces which made exhibiting the artist’s video content easy. Keystoning and geometry from the Boreal lined up the projection to the projection surfaces. The surround sound/multi layered track source was processed in the Boreal and outputted using an external sound card. A time-line, which is a component present on Green-Hippo, allowed for in-and-out points to be inserted as well as loops, control of levels and dynamic effects on live video. Says Opperman, who handled the sound component of Modisakeng’s installation, “The audio is coded into a 4.1 audio stream. Each of the 4.1 elements became a destination in the room. For example, Left Front = North, Right Front = South and so on. The speaker solution comprised four pairs of Active JBL control 1’s. The Gallery in the Round is just that, circular, and built out of concrete, so it is a very resonant space. Each of the pairs of speakers was paralleled to become a mono audio source for each video. The audio soundscape creates an ambient environment that moves around the room and becomes a more focused sound synchronised to each of

the four video clips. It was a very spatial and atmospheric audio experience that augments the artwork through the exhibit.” Electrosonic also supplied Mac Quantum Profile and Mac Viper Profile lighting fixtures used in one of the undoubted highlights of the Festival, the extraordinary Janni Younge production of Stravinsky’s The Firebird, with lighting designed by SA theatre legend Mannie Manim, and effects controlled through an ETC Ti console, staged at the Settlers Monument’s Guy Butler Theatre. Pieter-Jan Kapp, aka Kappie, the respected project manager on many theatrical and multimedia productions in SA, assisted with some of the mechanical aspects of The Firebird’s amazing puppetry. “We are currently preparing for our tour to the USA with The Firebird,” says Kapp. “The show was commissioned by IMG Artists as one of their US touring productions. It is a puppet and dance version of Stravinsky’s famous score, choreographed by Jay Pather and overseen by Janni Younge, and co-produced by her company, Janni Younge Productions. Janni’s puppet building team worked for the past year to design and build the most amazing puppets. The puppets are operated by 14 dancers and puppeteers in a 50 minute dance piece based on Stravinsky’s 1910 orchestration. The dragon firebird is the final puppet in a line of amazing puppet creatures, and has a wing span of 10 metres and from head to tail is 12 metres long. The dragon weighs about 400kg and is operated by ten puppeteers. The wing and body were designed by a structural engineer and architect and was built in Cape Town by Janni and her team. We make use of a main aluminium truss frame of Prolyte H40V truss six metres long by one metre wide and four Lodestar hoist motors. We worked with a steel swivel rig on which we clamp the fly gear and seven ropes to hand operate the dragon.” The amount of venues using high-end professional control, sound and lighting equipment, as well as the amount of technical support and back-up on offer from the pro-AV sector to productions at NAF, indicates how much of a true collaborative effort such festivals have to be – an environment where everyone helps and learns from each other to make the range of theatrical and art events world class.

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Annual Ghoema Music Awards a collaborative success

By Elaine Strauss

The annual Ghoema Musica Awards was, again, a huge success with several industry professionals working together to ensure superb technical production for a perfect show

Photos by Antony Cousens

The annual Ghoema Music Awards, the only independent awards for Afrikaans music, recently took place at the Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein. The Awards featured performances by various artists, including Elvis Blue, Steve Hofmeyr, Karlien van Jaarsveld, Blackbyrd, HemelBesem, Brendan Peyper and Andriëtte, while the category presenters included industry celebrities like Robbie Kruse, Johrné van Huysteen, Theodore Jantjies and Jody Abrahams. This year’s winners included Leah for Newcomer of the Year, Elvis Blue’s Die Hemel (directed by Ryan Kruger) for Best Music Video,

Francois van Coke and Karen Zoid’s Toe vind ek jou for both Most Popular Song of the Year as well as Best Song of the Year, Juanita du Plessis as Best Seller of the Year, Elvis Blue as Male Artist of the Year and Andriëtte as Best Female Artist of the Year. Production for the Ghoema Awards was headed by production company Idea Candy, who drafted in equipment rental companies, sound technicians and engineers, as well as the show’s lighting and design specialists. The lighting gear for the Ghoema Awards was supplied by EPH Productions and MJ Event Gear. EPH Productions supplied the main

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LED screen P5 (120 panels), side LED pillars P7 (27 panels), back LED pillars, P12 (150 panels), as well as several Robe products. The 180 Robe fixtures used for the Ghoema Awards included BMFL Blades, Pointes, Robin 800 LEDWash, Robin 600 LEDWash, Robin 1000 LEDBeam, Robin 100 LEDBeam, Robin MMX Spots and Robe LEDForce 18 RGBW PARs. Control was on the MA platform with two grandMA2 light consoles, one MA2 NPU and one MA VPU for pixel mapping. The sound design on the show was headed by Murray Lubbe, from The Hit Factory. He operated FOH on a Soundcraft Vi6. Lubbe’s portfolio includes working on the Afrikaans stage production Reik na die Sterre. Gabriel Le Roux, managing director at Audiosaurus, was the monitor engineer operating on a Soundcraft Vi3000, while Charl van der Westhuizen, director at Audiosaurus, was the recording engineer and sound engineer. Konstant de Vos was in charge of stage patching, backline changeovers and radio mics.“We ran 28channels of UHF-R and 8 stereo IEM(PSM1000) and 2 stereo IEM(PSM900). There were also 12 ME-Monitoring systems being used for the band on stage,” said De Vos. “There was a 64 channel main recording and a back-up recording being done, with MADI splits from monitor world to FOH, Main and back up recording, ME units and to the monitor console itself.” Production company Idea Candy also approached one of the industry’s most prolific and creative lighting designers, Joshua Cutts of Visual Frontier, to light and programme the 2016 awards. Cutts, in turn, looked to lighting designer Chris Bolton of Keystone Productions, who

has a history of specialising in theatrical lighting, to assist him in the design aspects of the show. “I brought Chris on board to assist as he and I work well together from a design point of view. The challenge we had was to come up with an easy mechanism to change stage from the awards look into the entertainment stage,” Cutts said. “We utilised LED screens and the theatre fly system to help us achieve this, while we also ensured that the lighting design had all the different elements in it to allow us to quickly adjust the look and feel of the stage.” Though this year marked their first-time involvement with the Ghoema Awards, Cutts and Bolton tackled the production head-on, taking into consideration that awards shows can be tricky due to the dual nature of these events. “Award shows are very complex because of the two elements of awards on one hand and entertainment on the other,” Cutts explained. “Awards need to feel classy and clean without being boring, while the entertainment sections all need to feel like they are on a different stage each time.” He felt positive about the overall outcome of the design for the awards show, saying: “I believe Chris did a great job in achieving this with the lighting programming. We as designers need to make sure that we have enough equipment laid in the correct design and form, to achieve multiple design situations with in one small environment, which is always fun and exciting.”

LIVE EVENTs Expert OPINION

Rigging and such: Truss Loading

A series by Rinus “Rhino” Bakker

In practice, truss loading is something more than what loading tables might say, and most of the time is not a simple question. Far simpler would be summing up the UDL and PL on a truss span, as the below drawing might make perfectly clear.

What do we see in the drawing? The horizontal truss is assembled from several modules (1) into a span (2) between the supports points (2A). Supports can be a variety of things: a truss tower, a sleeve-block, a hoist, etc. This span is loaded (almost ideally) in UDL (3) by a number of identical fixtures¹. However, that UDL load is combined with two PL (point loads) at more or less random positions. These positions can be chosen by means of inserting a 3-way-T corner (4) inside the truss, or using truss clamps attached to the lower chords (6). Obviously the ‘T’ should be designed and manufactured according to CWA 15902-2, specifying that corner modules inside a span shall have the same load capacity properties as the

straight modules. The trusses (5) hanging down vertically can also be used to mount fixtures to. This vertical load of these fixtures should be equal on each side of that truss, as shown on the left vertical truss and not as in the one on the right where the 4 to 1 factor will cause additional bending stresses in the T-corner. A similarly unequal effect can come from asymmetry in boom arms or outriggers, as in point (8) in the diagram. As far as loading of those vertical trusses themselves is concerned, this can be many thousands of kilograms, which is always much more than any horizontal truss of the same type is able to hold safely. As a totem or tower the load weight for vertical trusses is considerable, but is still limited because of stability and buckling effects.

Expert OPINION LIVE EVENTs

Conclusion Although a reliable truss manufacturer will give you all the loading data, and the good ones even the technical specifications, there’s still a lot of work, and calculating, to be done before you can rig your show in a safe way. Never underestimate the way that loads can easily accumulate and cause unsafe situations. When in doubt, never hesitate to ask for help from a structural engineer. That’s what they are there for!

A final question As a rigger I shall not be interfering with workmanship in disciplines like sound, light or screens and visuals, so I leave the question to you: Why I did mark two different colours for the fixture hooks/clamps/brackets? Think about it! ¹ To be 100% ideal – thus meeting the manufacturer’s loading table UDL data – the fixtures shall be evenly spaced and placed on both lower chords.

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District Six –

By James Sey

Kanala brings hi-tech AV to history The new David Kramer musical at Cape Town’s storied Fugard Theatre recently celebrated its 100th performance. The occasion is special for everyone involved – as the theatre’s statement declares, “on the 11th of February 1966 District Six was declared a white group area, and over 60 000 people were relocated. A way of life was destroyed. Fifty years have passed and today hardly anything remains of what was once a thriving, densely populated, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural community. The Fugard Theatre, located in District Six, will pay homage to what was once District Six – the place and its people”, with Kramer’s new production. The show had its premiere on 11 February 2016, precisely 50 years after the declaration of 1966, and has, like Kramer’s previous musical theatre forays, proved wildly successful.

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One noteworthy aspect of the current production is its use of cutting edge video mapping technology in its lighting and production design. We spoke to the technical manager at the Fugard, Ben du Plessis, about how the lighting and visuals were put together.

James Sey (JS): Please explain the video mapping components of the production. Why was video mapping necessary? What did it add to the designs? How did the mapping work? Lastly, how did the choice of media server help the design and implementation of the mapping? Ben du Plessis (BDP): The creative decision was to use real archived photos from District Six to help tell the story. Local audience members might even recognise people in these photos which adds an extra dimension to their experience of enjoying the show. The narrator has a photo album from her grandmother who shares the stories and memories of District Six with the audience. The video component acts as a photo album for the audience to see real photos from the time as the story progresses, or it becomes a background for a scene acting out part of these memories. The set design was thus created as a canvas for these surfaces to be used. There is a custom built revolve track system as part of the set with a DMX AC Motor controller by Wahlberg. This controller is used to have the revolve track as a fixture and make the plotting of the video tracking easier in terms of programming in cues and setting various speeds. The metal canvas shape is a half cylinder with a diagonal shape at the top. The creative choice was to map this shape so that the images will track the structure as it rotates, to reveal or cover the live band on the inside,

but also project a new image or video as background for the scene as the inside of the cylinder shape becomes visible behind the band. This gives the illusion of constant images being on both sides. As the Fugard Theatre does not have a fly tower, two ShowTex DMX High-speed rollers are used to ‘fly’ in a gauze and blinder which are also tracked by the video mapping. The V4 Boreal Hippotizer media server is used to do all the mapping, blending and processing of the high resolution images and video content, sending it to four different 14K Christie projectors which cover the five various video surfaces on the set. Front projection was used for all surfaces and having these bright projectors helped a lot in terms of the lighting design. Actors could be lit right up to the video surfaces without washing out the video content by light bouncing off the set. Additionally the set design cleverly makes use of a fine angled diamond mesh which catches the projections very well from the top and allows bouncing light from the floor to travel through.

JS: Please talk a bit more about the lighting design? What choice of fixtures were made and why? How did the lighting design dovetail with the video mapping? BDP: The lighting design made use of our in-house fixtures and consisted of 2x Buxie Robert Juliat follow spots, 12x Mac 401s, 4x Mac 700 Profiles, 8x Mac Quantum Profiles, 8x Mac Auras, 28x Source four Generics, 6x Source Four LED Series 2 Lustr fixtures. Then we also had a few LED strips and some festoon lights inside the stairs of the set to add to the musical numbers in the production. The rigging plan is mostly based on our generic in-house rig which generally covers all

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areas quite well with washes and profile options. This was the first time we used follow spots in a production, which made the plotting process even easier. In the past, due to lack of space for a spot box, we always plot in moving heads as follow spots, which was never an issue and worked quite well. In most of the musical numbers the video mapping added to the lighting design for some basic effects in the background.

JS: I believe the ETC Ti console was used on the production. How did this perform, and what advantages does it have for controlling theatre lighting of this kind? BDP: The ETC EOS Ti is the flagship console from ETC which is The Fugard Theatreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in-house lighting console for the main theatre space. The performance is great, and with a bunch of pre-loaded Rosco and Lee colours it is easy to match generics and LED fixtures, or just

mix your own colours as needed. The EOS software also has the Hippo media server loaded as a fixture. This made plotting AV and lighting together easy once the mapping was completed. The easiest way to explain is: the console sees the preloaded images and video as gobos, and each video surface layer as a separate fixture. I could then pan/tilt images around on a surface, wheel between gobos, crossfade between layers with the dimmer wheel, track set movements, etc., all in a normal lighting cue. The communication between the EOS console and the Hippo server is seamless and very easy to set up via ArtNET. Each video layer takes up 91 DMX Channels, so to find all the correct parameters during plotting can take ages! With the help of the amazing EOS Magicsheets I could easily create a custom user interface for the Hippo server with a few buttons (macros) to very quickly select exactly what I needed most and this made plotting a breeze!

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TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT OPINION

Touch Me! By Abrie du Plooy

These days the words ‘screen’ and ‘touch’ go together like bacon and eggs. It’s nothing new to touch a display screen and expect a relevant response. Consumer grade mobile phones, tablets and most notebooks are all touch-enabled. Interacting with a display has become part of our daily lives.

Many moons ago the idea of touching a display to initiate a command was only known from Hollywood sci-fi. Touch screen technologies have been experimented with from as early as the late 1960s. However it was only around the turn of the century that we saw touch enabled point of sale systems and interactive information kiosks become more customary in retail spaces. High-end meeting and conference venues utilised state of the art touch overlays over LCD and plasma screens, and back then homes-of-the-future had touch panels with processors controlling their environments. Interactive projection also grew in prevalence, but has never attracted the same levels of attention as touch LCD screens. In the case of interactive projection, ultra-short throw projectors are paired with infra-red or radar devices which cast a separate grid over a projected image. A stylus pen or finger is then used to interact with the grid on a solid surface such as a white board with a low reflective surface.

LCD touch technology has seen many iterations over the years. Each variation of touch screen architecture focused on the key features – accurate touch and near instant response time – but with an objective of improving a previous result. The biggest challenge in any touch technology is for interaction to be acknowledged by the system and then another challenge is to determine the precise location of the touch on the screen. The aesthetics of modern day touch overlays such as capacitive and resistive technologies used in smart phones, tablets and kiosks mask very well any visible hint of external technologies. Capacitive Touch screens consist of a conductive coating over a transparent insulator, such as glass. The human body, being an electrical conductor itself, then disturbs the screen’s electrostatic field when touching it. Many variations of capacitive technologies are available, but essentially these function in a similar way. A grid array of sensors is

OPINION TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT

continuously scanned to determine the location of the touch. Resistive Touch screens consist of two layers, each with a fine grid of conductive material placed over each other with a micro cavity in between. The top layer is typically softer, and, when pressed down, makes contact with the bottom layer. A short-circuit registers a resistance in the voltage which will indicate a touch. The X and Y coordinates of the grid determines the location. Not all touch screens are as smooth looking. Alternative technologies have equipment integrated into the bezel of the screen, with protective glass covering the display surface. Because of the integration in the bezel, the latter sits proud from the display surface and could be perceived as a bulky finish. Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) and Dispersive Signal Touch (DST) are vastly different technologies but both utilise wave interference by finger touch. SAW systems emit ultrasonic waves over a display from two sides and then measure the same waves from the remaining two sides. An object interfering with these waves will absorb a percentage of the energy and the relevant touch controller then measures the change in amplitude in order to determine the touch location. DST in turn, measures the bending waves created by a finger touching a display surface from all around the surface area. This is similar to the ripple effect of a water surface when disturbed. Neither of these technologies is very popular because of substantial interference of surface particles such as dust or humidity. Infra-red (IR) touch systems have IR emitters and sensors around the

bezel of the display to form a grid in front of the touch surface. When touched, one or more light paths are broken and based on XY coordinates, a touch, and its location, is registered. Optical Touch systems have LED lights integrated into the bezel, which creates an invisible light layer over the display area. Two cameras from the top corners are monitoring disturbance in the light plane and thus determine touch and location. These technologies do not perform well in very bright environments. Shadow Sense Touch (SST) is the newest kid on the block. LED lights are integrated into the sides and bottom of a display bezel, with optical sensors in the top corners and top bezel. These sensors measure a shadow created by the interference of a light path. Because of SST architecture being positioned in the bezel, the product, like other optical touch technologies, is also available as a video wall over-frame kit. Individual bezel pieces are mounted around the perimeter displays in a video wall up to 6m in width. These bezels then function collectively to create a touch capable video wall. SST not only determines a touch and its location, but also identifies the shape of the touch-object used. Software then allows the user to configure a set of parameters in order to accept certain shapes, and ignore others. This feature revolutionized the world of annotations because fingers and pens can be recognised, whilst suit cuffs and hand palms can be dismissed. This in turn reduces headaches, frustration and violence in the workplace!

TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT MICROPHONES

Wired for Sound?

Microphones under the microscope

By James Sey

We approached a range of different professionals in the industry – two specialist musicians and recording engineers and two pro-AV veterans involved in distribution and installation of AV equipment – to give us the lowdown on which microphones they pick for different recording and performance purposes – and why.

Trevor Peters: Matrix Sound Trevor Peters is a well-known figure in the local industry, and is the managing member of AV distributors Matrix Sound, also well-known for installing live sound.

James Sey (JS): For live concerts, does the mic choice change dependent on type of venue, PA, etc? Trevor Peters (TP) If I’m mic’ing up an acoustic act or full orchestra, I prefer to use condenser mics on stands as it sounds more natural and you get less bow and breathing noise. In this instance I use AKG C391’s. If there is a rhythm section involved – more of a contemporary mix of classical instruments – then I close mic the instruments using ATM350’s. AKG C391

JS: Any thoughts on wireless mics and network connectivity? TP: The use of wireless mics in shows is so prevalent and the amount of mics used is so vast that using software to scan, program and monitor the mic systems has become a necessity. Most new professional systems are networkable allowing the direct or remote monitoring of reception, interference in the room and battery life. These developments in technology are now more of a necessity than a nice to have.

Adam Howard: Head, Howard Audio Studios

JS: Do you have a particular mic preference for studio recordings? Why, or why not? Does your product preference change depending on what you’re recording in studio, apart from vocals? Adam Howard (AH): Each source/ application is different of course. We have a large selection of mics to choose from. One voice might be suited to my vintage Neumann U87’s, whilst another sounds best on an AKG C414 ULSB. We play around a lot with voice. But on drums and piano my choice is always the same – my Earthworks mics. I have the PM40’s on our Yamaha GC2, and the DK25 studio drum set for kit. I also have an Earthworks QTC40 omni condenser which is great on quieter sources like guitars, woodwinds, strings, etc. Neumann U87

JS: What mics do you look to for specialised recording situations – unusual venues, sonic sources, etc? AH: In studio those choices would be – do we use cardioid, omni, etc?. If we are stereo mic’ing a source what set-up are we looking for – XY? Mid-side? How much room do we need ? And there are many others factors to consider. Apart from the actual mic – the placement within the room in relation to the artist is very important.

JS: Any thoughts on wireless mics and network connectivity? Adam Howard heads Howard Audio, a business spanning studio recording, sound design, composition and much more. Howard himself is in demand as a musician, composer, arranger and sound designer, and works on everything from big band arrangements to composing for William Kentridge.

AH: Again – this is for live application really. Talking as a session musician – give me an SM57 on a stand any day (I’m a trumpet player) rather than a clip on wireless mic. I’m old-school – give me a wedge monitor and a mic on a stand! That way you can play “off-mic” if you want, which is important for a brass player. Also, we use mutes often, which is impossible with most clip on mics.

MICROPHONES TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT

Simon Ratcliffe: Sound and Motion Studios Head Audio Engineer at renowned Cape Town-headquartered Sound and Motion studios, Ratcliffe is also an accomplished bassist, and specialises in film music. His studio houses the SA Film Orchestra, and has a Dolby approved film music recording facility and Foley studio.

JS: Do you have a particular mic preference for studio recordings? Why, or why not? Does your product preference change depending on what you’re recording in studio, apart from vocals? Simon Ratcliffe (SR): In terms of music for film scores, thankfully there have been a lot of people recording lots of orchestral music for a long time, so it’s going to be the usual suspects I suppose (DPA, Schoeps, etc). If anything, the main thing about film score recording vs cd/ music recording is the placement of your array and spot mics, and at what point you bring various arrays into the mix. Also the fact that film scores have very different demands especially when it comes to the aggression of action cues. I’ve found that with film music you start from the top down. So for a score, you start off a mix using your Decca tree (I’d like Schoeps Mk2’s but usually use, and am happy with, DPA4006’s due to their availability). The Decca tree lends itself well to LCR. In the rears (for surround) I use cardioids. These could be Sennheiser 451’s or Rode NT5’s even. DPA 4011c’s would be really nice though (and the 4011’s for outriggers on bigger ensembles as well.). Below the Decca Tree I always have a ribbon pair. I’d REALLY like a pair of Royer SF122 as a Blumlein pair a bit below the Decca Tree position but an SF24 also works. That position gives you all this amazing warmth and I sometimes feel especially with brass, you could get away with that as your primary mic placement, it just sounds fantastic. Regardless of what Ribbon, I always make sure I have a ribbon pair under the Decca tree. In a pinch I've even used a pair of Shiny Box ribbons and it sounded great! (These are essentially OEM ribbon mics from China that are shipped to America and stripped and rebuilt with better electronics.) I've used these for years and they sound totally cool. Weirdly I prefer stereo spaced ribbons in ORTF spacing configuration, just a personal choice thing. I love ribbons for most of the string applications. Sometimes you may need a really close mic to get the grit of the resin scraping the string, especially for cello and bass. For brass instruments, medium spots like the ACKc12 or equivalent sound great. I always put a dynamic close to the trumpet for definition. Audio Technica makes some great mics that work well. The AE2500 can sound very good on low brass since it has that dual element of condenser and dynamic. The AKG C414 for woodwinds like clarinet work very nicely, and a stereo pair of spots as a 2nd layer, such as the KMR84 Neumann's really helps definition for the woodwind section. (The AKG CK91 is also a lovely spot with an uncharacteristically not-shrill sound for AKG.) These are also great mics for solo violin in an ensemble, as a feature mic. For studio bands, I'm just going to have a word about Tul mics. I LOVE THEM! I own pretty much a full complement of Tully's mics including the G12 guitar mic, the FET47 Clone, the C12 copy... I cannot remember the last time I did a session without using at least one of them, and have never recorded an electric guitar without a G12 since I got one. Tully's a bloody genius. His FET47 has an interesting

feature in that it can be used as a traditional Neumann FET47, or it can be switched to Tully's own EQ which he designed. He said to me at the time, "this hi EQ, it's the kind of thing you're going to put on anyway." And it's amazing. I cannot believe I use the same mic on kick, tuba, double bass, vocal and guitar cab! The Tul F47

Specialised Foley recording is a harsh mistress. The signals are so tiny sometimes (and can have so much dynamic range) that only super quiet preamps and mics can do the job. Luckily we have the legendary Michael Broomberg as our lead Foley artist so he’s bringing hi-end Hollywood home to our stable. A really quiet rifle/shotgun mic is essential and not surprisingly the Neumann KMR81 is the industry standard. The Sennheiser 451 is great for ADR but has relatively high self-noise. The Rode rifle mics are also really great, and we use them for live recordings, broadcasts etc, all the time. They don’t quite make the grade for high end Foley work but are superb for location work for the price.

Richard Smith: Sound Harmonics Richard Smith has worked as a musician and musical director, a FOH engineer, and currently runs well-known local AV company Sound Harmonics.

JS: Do you have a particular mic preference for studio recordings? Why, or why not? Richard Smith (RS): I don’t get into the studio to track as much as I like anymore, but from my point of view, there are a few instances where I would choose specific mics over others, but also some mic categories are specific to studio work. Some of these choices are affected by the quality of the recording room. An obvious general example of category is vocal mics; In general most people would choose a large diaphragm condenser mic for studio work and use a live vocal mic for live concerts. I used to be the same, using an AT4050, U87 or C414, but lately I have moved to Earthworks QTC40 Condenser for this. The mic has an exceptionally small diaphragm, which makes its transient response extremely fast and aids in its huge frequency response. It is an Omni-directional mic and so I use it carefully in a bad room.

TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT MICROPHONES (Omni) on violins and violas or an ATM350 for louder shows where bleed is an issue. On a purely classical concert I may use condensers like Earthworks or Schoeps and positioning would vary depending on many factors. In my experience, things that are always close mic’d like drums, guitar cabs, brass, backing vocals are least affected by venue and PA, and I would have my preferences there that will be fairly consistent, unless the genre requires a change in approach.

JS: What mics do you look to for specialised recording situations – unusual venues, sonic sources, etc?

Earthworks QTC 40

Another example is in a good studio, I would use Omni’s on drum overheads or strings, but I would choose Cardioid in a bad room or live.

JS: Does your product preference change depending on what you’re recording in studio, apart from vocals? RS: Yes it does, as I find the studio is a creative space and so often equipment choices are affected by “artistic” considerations, rather than purely technical ones. On drums, mic choice is determined by many things, genre being a huge one. How I mic up a jazz kit and a rock kit is different – largely in both quantity of mics, but also with regard to type and then down to product. So if doing a rock recording, I would choose close mic’ing as the general type, then on toms, I may choose dynamic as a type of mic to get a rounder, fatter sound, and then go for a specific make and model, for example, an Audix D Series or Sennheiser MD421. If I were going for a more accurate contemporary sound, I would choose condenser and probably Earthworks DP30.

JS: For live concerts does the mic choice change dependent on type of venue, PA, etc? RS: In live work, there are two main scenarios to consider these days with the advent of easily accessible multichannel recording, and that is whether or not you are recording the event. In my experience, PA and room play a role in mic choice with a few applications. For example, in a tiny room like a club, where the drummer is a metre behind the lead vocal, I wouldn’t willingly use a condenser mic on vocals but go for something with good feedback rejection and tight pattern. With the same artist in a stadium, I may make a different choice and again in a theatre, doing a DVD recording, I may make another choice. Another scenario is orchestral work: If working on a musical or “pops” situation where there is a loud rhythm section, I will choose close mic’ing where I can. So strings would get Countryman B3’s

RS: Piano is one area where I have turned to a specific product for 99% of my work because it is a unique product that addresses many issues that arise with piano, including aesthetics. For me the Earthworks PM40 is my secret weapon in this department. On rare occasions, like when I had five artists plucking the stings and banging on every surface, will I add additional mics to the piano. I am continually challenged in the area of “specialised” mic’ing, because I am fortunate enough to work on musicals and with innovative international artists, who often come with very strange requests. Many of these challenges come in the form of “ambient” mic’ing where I need to cover a wide area and give a good result in extremely challenging conditions. I am always looking for specialised mics to help in this regard.

JS: Any thoughts on wireless mics and network connectivity? RS: I always joke with clients that wireless microphones are more of a “black art”, than a science! This is of course said with my tongue firmly in my cheek, but what I am alluding to is that in the past, we may not have possessed all the tools required to manage wireless setups as well as we would’ve liked. These days it is not unusual for us to have in excess of 40 wireless channels of mics, six to 20 channels of in-ears and four to 16 channels of wireless comms on a show, and this is excluding other departments like lighting, AV etc. Many local and international shows are even bigger! I think a few things are making it easier, especially as the wireless count goes up on big shows. Network connectivity is a big part of that, and is moving rapidly into all areas of production. Now we have wireless techs on shows and they need to be able to monitor the wireless environment, which requires network connectivity in its simplest form to a piece of software and hardware for scanning the RF. The ability to scan RF environments and visually see the interaction between units and external RF sources has helped tremendously to produce more reliable results. Audio network connectivity via digital protocols is making the sonic experience better and it is not uncommon to see units with AES/EBU or Dante digital outputs. This brings me to the new world of digital wireless, which had its pitfalls but is now maturing and I think is allowing more accessibility to reliable, manageable wireless microphones for a bigger proportion of the market.

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