ETA APR 2019

For The Technical And Production Professionals in Asia

APRIL 2019

ProSound Vietnam Offers a Unique Proposition

LIVE: TDC Delivers Advanced Video Expertise at Sibos 2018 KNOWLEDGE HUB: Common Audio formats: Which One to Use? SPOTLIGHT: Mackie Celebrates 30 Years in the Making www.e-techasia.com

WE LISTENED, NOW IT'S YOUR TURN Compatible Rigging System with all VTX-A Series Products New JBL Transducers for Best Sound Quality and Output Multiple Horizontal Coverage Options (90°|110°|120°) Best-in-Class Rigging System for Fast and Safe Deployment Compact, Truck-Friendly Dimensions Full-Range of Innovative Accessories Complete Solution Including Software and Amplification Small-Format Application Subwoofer Improved Linearity and Wider Dynamic Range Full Series Compatible Rigging (8” and 12” arrays) Reduced System Amplifier Requirements Learn more now at JBLpro.com.

A12

A12W

A8

B18

NEW

NEW

For Product demos and enquiries write to us at HPro.APAC@harman.com or contact your authorized country partner

CONTENTS

3 April 2019

52

60 IN THIS ISSUE

VOL 20 ISSUE 4 APRIL 2019 04 FIRST WORDS 06 NEWS 22 VIDEO FILES 24 ENNOVATIONS SPOTLIGHT 34 Mackie Celebrates 30 Years in the Making ALEX COLUMN 36 Gain...Gain...Gain EVENT REVIEW 38 ProSound Vietnam: A Unique Proposition EXHIBITION PREVIEW 42 PALM EXPO:19th Edition Beckons Sound & Light

industry to Mumbai 44 IAAPA Expo Asia 2019: Special Events and

Program Schedule Announced KNOWLEDGE HUB 46 Common Audio formats: Which One to Use? ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

LIVE 48 CHINA: Robe Pointes at the BMW 7 Launch in Shanghai 50 SINGAPORE: Bosch Dicentis Wireless Conference Microphones

at the Special Senior Officials Meeting 51 SAUDI ARABIA: CT Delivers a Historical European Tour Event 52 CHINA: Clair Brothers Goes Mobile with Shantou University 54 AUSTRALIA: TDC Delivers Advanced Video Expertise – Again at

Sibos 2018 56 AUSTRALIA: Australia Decides Votes for grandMA3 at Eurovision 58 SOUTH KOREA: Shure Empowers Visionaries Competing in

WeWork Creator Awards 60 THAILAND: Immersive Audio for an Immersive Festival 62 AUSTRALIA: Australia Day with Big Picture 65 EVENTS CALENDAR 66 MARKET PLACE

4

FIRST WORDS

April 2019 Ram Bhavanashi Editor, India And Middle East ram@spinworkz.com

As I made my way back to Singapore from the hot weather of Ho Chih Minh city, I found myself impressed with ProSound Vietnam. That’s why it is on the front cover of this issue. It is nothing like what we in the industry are used to. The venue was run-down, and the booths demonstrating their products were in the open. But there are some reasons to be impressed with the effort of the organisers. Please read about it in our Event Review page. I also feel that the event can be used effectively by major audio brands. Read my humble suggestion. One thing for sure ProSound Vietnam was not your usual run-of-the-mill exhibition:) The opposite of what I had experienced will be waiting for me at Prolight + Sound Frankfurt. The air-conditioning will undoubtedly be favoured. I am excited to see and hear about new solutions that will razzle and dazzle our industry.

If you are heading there, I hope to bump into you.

Thomas Richard Prakasam Publisher / Editorial Director

thomas@spinworkz.com

Ram Julie Bhavanashi Tan

Editor, And Middle East Admin India & Circulation admin@spinworkz.com ram@spinworkz.com

Julie TanChew Natalie

Admin Writer & Admin & Circulation Circulation natalie@spinworkz.com admin@spinworkz.com

Daniel Daniel Ngiam Ngiam

MEDIA Rep for Natalie Chew MEDIA Rep for Spinworkz SpinworkzPte Pte Ltd. Ltd Tel: Tel: +65 +65 84410258 84410258 Writer first_dm@hotmail.com first_dm@hotmail.com natalie@spinworkz.com

OUR COLLABORATORS Atmaram Rawool Shankar Venugopal Daniel Ngiam ART / LAYOUT ETA

ART / LAYOUT MEDIA Rep for Spinworkz Pte Ltd shankar@creativecult.in Elissa Nadine Tel: +65 84410258 Web Content and Social Media Specialist first_dm@hotmail.com CREATIVE CULT

Rosalind Tan

Website Management Wizard

PV Anthony

Shankar Venugopal

Server and IT SecurityART Guru/ LAYOUT

shankar@creativecult.in

Halim, TrueDesignLab.com

HTML Design and Coding Maestro CREATIVE

To subscribe to Entertainment Technology Asia click here: https://www.e-techasia.com/subscribe/ PUBLISHED BY

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ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

CULT

Disclaimer : Entertainment Technology Asia is published 12 times a year. All rights reserved.

No part of this magazine is to be reproduced, whether mechanical or electronic without the prior written consent of the publisher. Views expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or the publisher. Unsolicited contributions are welcome but the editor reserves the discretion to use them. Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy and honesty in both editorial and advertising content at press time, the publisher will not be liable for any inaccuracies.

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It’s a good day to be an artist.

Relevé Spot, the new automated fixture from ETC designed for the theatre.

Light that moves you.

Visit us at the Broadcast Asia 2019 Booth No: 6Q3-01 & 04, Level 6 18 – 20 June 2019 Suntec, Singapore

24 hour technical support. visual environment technologies | etcconnect.com

NEWS

6 April 2019

AUSTRALIA

ULA Group Announces a New Exclusive Partnership with Astera spotlights. “The range covers most needs in the world of batteryoperated lighting, with the added benefit of crossing over into wired fixture markets. The superb colour mixing, multiple control options, dynamic mounting, quick releases… that, coupled with the sheer quality of the light output which is calculated to maintain continuity over time, is very impressive.”

Astera products have been designed to appeal to designers and practitioners working across all professional lighting sectors.

Entertainment and live events is already a major success for the brand as well as film and television, especially the pixel-controllable, flickeradjustable TitanTube.

Con foresees theatre shows as one of the potential growth areas where the products can be used for quick-deploy sidelights and boom fixtures or even footlights in conjunction with the clamp and holders. “Basically, they will be great for all those places where a little boost of light is required in very limited available space”.

Astera’s Sales and Marketing Director, Sebastian Bückle on the left with ULA Group MD Cuono (Con) Biviano

He also mentions the functionality and user-friendliness of the Astera control App which includes neat features like time scheduling which is great for maximising workflow. “A technician can rig lights in several rooms and spaces quickly, set up the scheduling and move on to the next task.”

ULA Group has announced a new exclusive distribution partnership with Astera, leading battery powered wireless LED manufacturer.

“We also see potential in fashion shows, for location photos shots, for makeup lights as well as for site practicals”.

Says Astera’s Sales and Marketing Director, Sebastian Bückle, “I see huge potential in the Australian and New Zealand markets, which are highly developed, innovative in approach and growing fast, so we sought a partner that is progressive in thinking and approach with a great reputation for quality and well connected with a diverse and interesting client base. ULA Group ticked all the boxes! They have a huge energy and are highly motivated to push Astera products to the top across multiple markets.”

With the event industry getting increasingly carbon conscious, LED illumination and battery powered units can greatly assist, and another important aspect here for customers is the cost-efficiency. Maintenance cost is low, no lamp replacements are needed and the Astera fixtures are also IP65 rated and robustly constructed to last.

“We are extremely excited to forge this exclusive partnership with Astera”, comments Cuono (Con) Biviano, MD of ULA Group. “Astera is more than just a well designed and engineered LED product; a minutiae of details have been thought-through, making this a truly groundbreaking range. The ingenuity of the Astera product range is perfectly suited to ULA’s portfolio and vast client base, from rental houses to film studios, through to the design and specification market.”

Con highlights the “small but carefully crafted” Astera collection which includes key products like the TitanTubes, AX5 TriplePARs and the tiny AX3 LightDrops – one of the world’s smallest compact wireless event

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

Astera, having pushed the envelope in terms of what is possible with wireless technology and battery power, is also a perfect match for the ULA Group which likes to be at the forefront of technology.

Con concludes, “The structure and professionalism that Astera has brought to the table, along with the passion and dedication to producing great products makes us really excited to be working with Sebastian and the team. We can’t wait to get the products and the brand out there”. www.ulagroup.com

TEAMWORK

GREAT FEATURE SET – PERFECT WHITE

350 W LED – 6,000 K – FRAMING

ALLROUNDER WITH MORE PUNCH 350 W LED – 7,500 K – IRIS

www.glp.de

8

NEWS

April 2019

MIDDLE EAST

Sennheiser Launches New Entry Level Digital Wireless Series Packed with Top of the Line Features

XSW-D microphones for vocals Musicians and videographers in the Middle East can now gain easy access to crystal clear wireless audio as Sennheiser today launched its XS Wireless Digital series in the region. Though positioned as an entry level system, XSW-D incorporates many features typically seen in top-grade microphone systems such as one-touch synchronization, low audio latency, and automatic frequency management. Furthermore, the system’s versatile and easy to use transmitters and receivers can be freely combined so users can opt for a wireless link that will protect their existing microphone investments, or select one of the fullyequipped wireless microphone sets.

“With the XSW Digital, we’ve delivered everything a budget-conscious artist or first time wireless user could hope for- excellent live sound that’s extremely easy to set up, delivered at an extremely attractive price point,” explained Mig Cardamone, Director of Sales and Marketing at Sennheiser Middle East. “Be it a musician who wants to move on stage freely, or a content creator looking to enjoy wireless freedom and flexibility- getting started with professional-grade wireless audio has never been simpler.”

Entry-level but well equipped XSW-D employs digital transmission in the 2.4 GHz range and uses the acclaimed aptX Live codec. The receivers have antenna diversity; the transmitters work redundantly, transmitting all data packages twice to ensure reliable transmission. In case of interference, the transmitter and receiver will seamlessly hop to a free frequency. The audio latency remains below 4 ms. Up to five systems can be used simultaneously and they have a range of up to 75 m (250 ft). The transmitter and receiver units can be conveniently recharged via USB using the included charging cable and work for up to five hours on a single charge.

Straightforward operation Operation has been made as easy as possible via a single button: Pressing the buttons on both the transmitter and the receiver will power up and automatically link the units, clicking either button on the receiver or transmitter will mute the audio signal and pressing and holding both buttons again will power the system down.

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

XSW-D reliably records audio directly into a video camera The transmitter is connected to a handheld mic, a lavalier mic or an instrument, while the receiver can be directly connected to a mixing desk, a guitar or bass amp or the mic input of a video camera respectively.

Performing and presenting Presenters, vocalists and instrumentalists can choose between a Vocal Set with an XS 1 dynamic cardioid microphone, a Lavalier Set with an ME 2-II clip-on microphone, and an Instrument Base Set for instruments with a 6.3 mm (1/4”) output. Also available is an XLR Base Set for use with existing dynamic microphones, and a Presentation Base Set for use with an existing clip-on microphone that has a 3.5 mm (1/8”) mini-jack connector. From Summer 2019, the series will be expanded with a Pedalboard Set for guitar and bass players. All transmitters and receivers are also available separately.

Videography and content creation XSW-D reliably records audio directly into a video camera via the mic input. The receiver attaches to the camera via the XSW-D cold-shoe mount and a 3.5 mm (1/8”) coiled cable, while the transmitter simply connects to a handheld or lavalier microphone depending on the use case and preference.

Videographers and content creators can choose between a Portable Lavalier Set complete with an ME 2-II clip-on microphone, a Portable Interview Set for use with an existing dynamic microphone, a Portable Base Set for use with an existing lavalier microphone, and the Portable ENG Set, which contains transmitters for a lavalier microphone (ME 2-II included) and an existing handheld dynamic microphone.

All systems, except for the XSW-D Pedalboard Set, are now available in the Middle East. www.sennheiser.com

NEW

TAKING LINE ARRAY

PERFORMANCE

TO A WHOLE

NEW LEVEL Sharing the same aesthetic and sonic signatures as the acclaimed GEO M10 and compact M6 line arrays, the new GEO M12 takes its place as the flagship of the range, achieving a peak SPL of 140dB. And with great power comes great versatility, with integral rigging, a dedicated sub, plug & play power options and touring / installation versions making GEO M12 a system that performs at a whole new level in a wide variety of applications.

Thinking. Inside the box.

NEWS

10 April 2019

GLOBAL

Green Hippo Appoints David March as Head of Sales and Marketing Green Hippo has today announced the appointment of David March as Head of Sales and Marketing. Effective February 25th, March’s appointment comes at a time when the leading developer and manufacturer of Media Servers, renowned for its flagship Hippotizer product line, looks to continue to build on its 2018 acquisition by tvONE-owning Spitfire Creative Technologies, by growing further and faster. March will report directly to Green Hippo’s Business Unit Director, Emma Marlow. He will take responsibility for Green Hippo’s Sales and Marketing strategy in EMEA and Asia.

as a rental assistant at Vari-Lite Europe ultimately becoming General Manager at Vari-Lite Production Services. Since then he has held a number of leadership positions in the lighting and live events sector, including roles at Philips Entertainment, PRG Distribution and AED Distribution UK Limited.

David comes to Green Hippo from VER where he most recently served as Head of VER Lighting Europe & Aurora Lighting. He began his career

www.green-hippo.com

David comments, “I am thrilled to be joining the most exciting and innovative brand in its sector. Hippotizer continues to go from strength to strength, and I look forward to helping the company grow further and faster.”

“We are delighted to welcome David to Green Hippo. He brings thorough knowledge of our sector and I am confident that he will be a great asset in helping deliver our commercial goals,” added Emma Marlow, Business Unit Director of Green Hippo.

AUSTRALIA

Audio Plus Invests in VuePix Infiled ER Series and natural progression for many of the events and clients we supply Australia wide.”

“It was very important for us to purchase from an Australian distributor with a market proven product”, explains Glenn. “There is a new ‘ME TOO’ importer with screens every day and no end to the cheap selfimported products floating around our market. We have been operating for 21 years and are unaware of a more experienced distributor of production rental screens than the team at ULA Group. We could not afford to gamble our reputation on cheap imports.”

Audio Plus, a long running and rapidly growing production company based in Central west NSW, have just invested in VuePix Infiled ER4 screens for their rental division.

Audio Plus has worked with VuePix screens for many years, and more recently with the new VuePix Infield technology in a permanent installation at a local airport featuring VuePix Infiled QE series.

Glenn Richardson, the owner of Audio Plus, comments, “We have been looking into adding additional LED screens into our rental inventory for some time now. The VuePix ER 4.6mm outdoor screen is a perfect fit ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

Audio Plus is now the proud owner of just under 1,000,000 pixels in ER series panels. These were supplied with the newly designed combination header / footer bars and for the first time in Australia featuring 1921 MiniLED chips, which achieve a substantially higher contrast to previous cabinets, especially in outdoor applications.

Novastar VX4s controllers will also be used to process and optimise video content on these screens. www.ulagroup.com

small. light. fast.

Introducing the solo, designed for the next generation of content creation

disguise.one/solo

12

NEWS

April 2019

INDIA

Adamson Inventory Continues to Grow in India

Eshdeep Bhasin with Sunny Singh

Warren D’Souza Sound.com has added 140 more Adamson loudspeakers to their existing inventory of S10 cabinets, E119 and S119 subwoofers.

The recent acquisition includes 30 Adamson E15 line arrays, 6 E12 enclosures, 64 E119 subwoofers, 24 M15 monitors as well as 12 of the new S7 line arrays and 4 S118 subwoofers, all powered by Lab Gruppen PLM20K44 amplifiers. The purchase was facilitated by Adamson’s Indian Distributor Sonotone’s sub-division AVCL.

In another development Delhi based production company Royal Entertainer has updated its inventory with the purchase of Adamson Systems S-Series, comprising a complete set of S10 line array cabinets and S119 subwoofers. The system was supplied by AVCL Pro, the exclusive distributor of Adamson products in India and was facilitated

by Eshdeep Bhasin from LBT Electronics, Delhi.

“This system is a major plus over some of the bulky boxes we have had in our inventory,” says Sunny Singh, owner of Royal Entertainer. “We are thrilled that Adamson provides us astounding power in a compact lightweight package and scales incredibly well. We believe in bringing the best to our clients and the S10 checks the box completely.”

Sound.com’s Founder and Managing Director Warren D’souza commented: “The Adamson rigs are fantastic. We have used them on shows thrice now and the sound is just incredible. We are proud to be the first E-Series and S7 adopters in India.”

As one of North India’s top suppliers of sound solutions for all types of events, Royal Entertainer offers audio equipment and production services for applications ranging from parties and launches to extensive installations and tours of all sizes.

“Sound.com is a market leader in the country,” says Karan Nagpal, director of Sonotone. “Warren is always interested in technology that can help them take sound to the next level. I value their continued support and look forward to working together for a long time.”

“Having seen the Adamson brand grow so steadily in the international market, we want to stay ahead of the curve” Sunny says. “We’re glad AVCL Pro presented us with this opportunity in India and our proud to have Adamson as a key partner, helping us fulfil our goal.”

Warren adds, “With the growing Adamson fan base, it only made sense to expand our inventory. Needless to say that an award winning audio company would buy an award winning sound system with the E15 winning the ProSoundWeb and Live Sound International 2019 Readers’ Choice Award. Also, the addition of the S7 cabinet makes configuration options very flexible.”

www.sonotone.in

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

NEWS

14 April 2019

JAPAN

Ayrton Appoints PRG K.K as New Exclusive Distributor for Japan

The team at PRG K.K. Ayrton has announced the appointment of PRG K.K. as its new, exclusive distributor for Japan with effect from 1 March 2019.

Ayrton’s full range of products, including its new powerful, compact, lightweight LED profiles and wash lights, will be promoted and supported on a day-to-day basis by PRG K.K.’s dedicated technical sales team, a team which has earned the reputation for the highest standard in customer service.

Established in 1984, PRG K.K., a subsidiary of Production Resource Group, L.L.C., is a leading production service provider for the entertainment industry with a remit that covers a wide variety of markets including concert tours, theatre, television stations, theme parks, commercial facilities and schools, and a customer base that encompasses agencies, event organizers, designers, promoters, television and theatre producers.

Since PRG K.K.’s distribution division opened in 2001, the team has engaged in sales promotion for several reputable moving lights brands, and now turns its attention towards Ayrton.

“We chose to become an Ayrton distributor because their renewed focus on an innovative, lightweight and quality product line is an excellent fit for the Japanese marketplace,” says PRG K.K.’s Yuji Tanaka.

“We believe the new Ayrton product range offers unique advantages in terms of their high output, full set of features, and remarkably compact, light-weight housings.

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

“Ayrton already has a well-established reputation for its effects lighting fixtures. We aim to develop that perception further in the Japanese market so the Ayrton brand becomes synonymous with high quality, high performance moving lights. New fixtures such as Ghibli, Khamsin, Bora, Mistral, and now Diablo and Levante, will be readily available and fully supported for our customers.”

“PRG is very excited to be a part of this next level in our relationship with Ayrton,” says John Swain, PRG’s CEO of Asia and Australia. “We recognized the innovative solutions that Ayrton lighting products offer clients across a broad range of professional environments. The ingenuity of Ayrton’s product solutions is ideally suited to PRG K.K.’s client base in Japan.”

Jerad Garza, international sales for Ayrton, comments: “We are delighted to welcome PRG K.K. as our new partner in Japan. Their energy and approach to the market combined with their customer focus and Ayrton’s philosophy of ‘Smaller, Lighter and Brighter’ is a great fit, and we cannot wait to see positive things happening.”

You can contact PRG K.K. through Yuji Tanaka.

Email: ytanaka@prg.com Phone: +81-3-6414-8620 www.ayrton.eu

sl-series.com

Higher performance performances, everywhere.

The headroom and sound characteristics possessed by the KSL System line array loudspeakers accurately convey any performance style, from a single voice or the ďŹ ne detail of acoustic and orchestral music, to the low end rich, high power requirements of dance and heavy metal. The ability to address such a breadth of application scales and styles, both indoors and out, facilitates high return on investment through wide ranging venue utilization and exibility of deployment.

More art. Less noise.

NEWS

16 April 2019

SINGAPORE

MediaPix Acquires Avolites Arena

Singapore Based Rental company MediaPix Pte Ltd has recently acquired two units of Avolites Arena as part of their lighting inventory expansion plan. Founded in year 2012, MediaPix Pte Ltd has since been one of the prominent rental companies in Singapore, providing technical solutions and Audio Visual & Lighting equipment rentals.

For lighting equipment, Mediapix has established itself as one of the premier solution provider by investing in a good fleet of Clay Paky, Robe & Martin fixtures. In order to support their ever growing lighting department, Mediapix decided to invest on two units of Avolites Arena, after going through a few demo sessions from the local distributor – Acoustic & Lighting System (A&L).

“Honestly, I wasn’t very confident with Avolites initially as I have encountered some issues with their older consoles. However, after I’ve seen the product demonstrations and also understanding the progress and software development of Avolites from A&L, I think it is fair to say that it should be the perfect solution for most of our shows. I am also looking forward to check out their soon to be released new concept of Show control, dubbed the “ Synergy”. It is also the reason why I’ve chosen the Arena for better processing and more control surfaces”, commented Frankie Yee, the Technical Director of MediaPix. Eugene Yeo, the General Manager of A&L shares, “I know it was a tough decision for Frankie and I thank him for trusting us. We have shown him

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

some demos prior to his purchase. Of course his concern should be on Avolites’ future development and I’m glad that we managed to secure this together with him. We have provided a few rounds of training to his team and we will be prepared to do more trainings in future, especially with the introduction of “Synergy” in near future”.

The Avolites Arena is the ideal desk for festivals, theatres and anywhere that a larger control surface is required. The console contains 40 precision playback faders in 3 payable groups and 20 programmable macro executor buttons. It also comprises 3 metal shafts optical attribute encoders and 4 optical playback encoder ports. A brand new optical output means the Arena is equipped for fibre connections, with no signal loss over long distances. Offering seamless Multi User compatibility, the Arena can be used as master, back-up or extra programming surface, considerably cutting programming time by allowing multiple Titan programmers to work simultaneously, before the main console takes charge. www.mediapix.sg www.acousticlighting.com

NEWS

18 April 2019

APAC

Allen & Heath Appoints Jamie Ward As Sales Director APAC Reporting to the company’s recently appointed Sales Director, Markus Sinsel, Jamie Ward will be travelling extensively to support and develop Allen & Heath’s APAC distribution partners, working closely with them to grow sales opportunities across multiple vertical markets, from touring sound to installed audio solutions. Having held key international sales positions with The Stanton Group, Harman and most recently, Community Professional, Ward also has extensive history with Allen & Heath, having previously been with the company from 2000-2007.

growing and growing and feel incredibly excited to be able to bring my experience back to the fold to help it reach new heights in the dynamic, fast-evolving APAC market.”

“I cut my teeth at Allen & Heath, so in many ways this feels like returning home,” says Ward. “Over recent years, I’ve watched the brand

www.allen-heath.com

Markus Sinsel, Sales Director at Allen & Heath, comments, “As our APAC business continues to grow, finding the right person for this role was critical. With his extensive international experience and solid history with Allen & Heath, Jamie proved to be the perfect fit. Jamie’s enthusiasm for the business of pro audio is infectious and I know that he is looking forward to working with all our partners to continue to build on the strong successes we have seen in the region to date.”

PHILIPPINES

Malasimbo Marks Ninth Year with New Site and Funktion-One Sound “I load the sound system at home, unload at the festival grounds, set it up and operate it for the entire event. After the event I bring it back home, unpack and clean. I’m very hands on and I love my speakers, so I take care of them personally.”

Grgic created a new amphitheatre in the new location, with sound from Funktion-One Resoution 4 3-way speakers and F218 double-18” bass enclosures.

Malasimbo Festival 2019, which was held on 1-2 March, welcomed around 5,000 visitors to Puerto Galera in the Philippines. Its organiser Miro Grgic takes a purist approach to sound, leading him to FunktionOne several years ago.

After eight years at Malasimbo Ampitheater, the festival relocated to the private nature reserve park of White Beach, only 4km from the original site. The new site includes a jungle and a virgin beach, more nature, new terrain stages, and more roaming space.

The latest edition of the two-day festival presented a mixed programme of music, arts and culture, and featured Funktion-One sound throughout Grgic is, in fact, more than just the organiser. “It’s a bit of passion project,” he said. “I organise and own the event, whilst booking all the acts, being technical director, systems and sound engineer, lighting director and other things I have to do to tie the event over, since sponsorship is extremely scarce.

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

“Funktion-One is great for live music,” highlights Grgic. “We have jazz, soul, funk, blues, electronic and world music, some nice indie pop lately as well. This year we had Robert Glasper, Anomalie, Laneous and Ruby Ibarra headlined.

“The DJ Stage is mostly funk, disco, house, drum and bass - a bit of everything depending on the day. This year, it was headlined by Danny Krivit.” Discussing his preference for Funktion-One, Grgic says: “It’s an efficient sound system, so I don’t need much power to drive it and I get a much higher output compared to any other speaker I’ve used. Also, I don’t use much signal processing, I keep a lot of things at zero - seldom do I touch EQs or compression.

“I spend more time getting the right positioning and coverage and I don’t really go over 100db. I like the average of 95-97db, this is what I call ear friendly. A lot of people fail to be considerate in this area, but I don’t like to beat up my audience’s ears.” www.funktion-one.com

NEWS

20 April 2019

NEW ZEALAND

CHAUVET Professional Adds Colour to Drama School Productions

Toi Whakaari:NZ Drama School puts on six productions a year covering a range of genres, from drama, to comedy, to musicals. In 2019, these shows will not only be more rewarding for the community to watch, they’ll also afford students at New Zealand’s largest theatrical arts school with a more enriching learning experience, thanks to the addition of 55 CHAUVET Professional Ovation fixtures, supplied by MDR Sound & Lighting.

“Colour mixing with LED fixtures is playing an increasingly important role in stage productions, so I think the school felt that adding these lights was essential to helping their students develop the skills needed to prepare for their future careers in theatre,” said MDR Sound & Lighting’s Brodie Noon. “The school received a Lotteries Grant to upgrade the kit in its main Te Whaea Theatre, which had consisted of generic tungsten units, enlivened by a number of Rogue R2 Washes that had been added in 2016.”

Based on its experience with the Rogue units, Toi Whakaari was interested in CHAUVET Professional stage lighting. After comparisons were made with competing brands, the school elected to add 20 Ovation E-910FC RGBA-Lime color-mixing ellipsoidals, 25 Ovation F-915FC RGBA-Lime Fresnels and 10 Ovation F-55FC and Ovation F-55FC 3-inch Fresnel-style units that are used for short throw applications.

“It’s been impressive to see the impact that the new kit is having on the school’s productions,” said Noon. “The light on the stage is much more even, and the colors are more realistic and vivid. Of course color changes, whether subtle or dramatic, can also be made much more easily and quickly, which enhances the quality of productions.”

This heightened visual quality doesn’t only benefit students who are working the lights, it also enhances the learning experience for those in costume and scenic design as well as the actors themselves. “When the production looks better, everyone involved feels good,” explains Noon.

“This serves as a great motivator to keep learning.”

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

The impact of the new lighting kit was clearly evident in the first two productions lit with the Ovation fixtures: Shakespeare’s The Two Gentlemen of Verona; and Once on This Island, a one-act musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty.

In the Shakespeare play, lighting designer Elekis Poblete Teirney was able to create dramatic contrasts that accentuated the characters and set them off vividly against the background scenery by calling on the flat even field of white light from the fixtures.

For Once on This Island, lighting designer Glenn Ashworth drew on the color-rendering power of the Ovation ellipsoidal and Fresnel units.

Creating an array of rich ruby reds and brilliant yellows, golds and oranges, he was able to call forth colorful and flamboyant images of the Caribbean islands, where the play takes place.

In so doing, he tickled the imagination of students about other islands far from New Zealand, while also showing them the wondrous creative possibilities opened by LED colour-mixing fixtures. This is exactly the kind of lesson that Toi Whakaari:NZ Drama School had in mind when it upgraded its lighting kit.

Photo Credit: Philip Merry www.chauvetprofessional.com

VIDEO FILES

22 April 2019

Mackie 30th Anniversary Documentary

Claypaky HY B-EYE: Hyper Power of Evolution

30 years ago, Greg Mackie changed the audio world with great sounding gear that struggling musicians could afford and pioneered new technology and innovations along the way. This documentary will take you on a wild ride through the years, including all the awesome 90’s fashion and hairstyles, and much more.

This is really just a teaser video. The B-EYE has revolutionized the way we think of LED show lighting. Its innovative optical unit enhances the uniformity and efficiency of the light output. The rotating front lens and the possibility to control each single LED individually have made spectacular kaleidoscopic projections and charming eye candy effects possible. The HY B-EYE offers the same features but is more powerful and efficient.

ROBE SuperSpikie Product Video

Prolyte M145RV Mammoth Truss Ground Support for NeuroTech China

Four times brighter than the original Spikie and with the addition of rotating gobos – this effects machine has even more looks to blast through its 165mm lens front. In-air effects using different combinations of the gobos, prism or flower effect feature, make this a versatile stage, set or studio piece.

Prolyte set out to design a flexible system for Neuro Tech, that could be built in several different configurations while maintaining a high loading capacity. Examples of these are a ground support frame of 24 x 24m on eight towers only, with a pay-load of 70 tonnes or a free-standing span of 60m on two towers, with a centre point load of 2,15 tonnes. Check out the versatility of the system.

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Sharpy Plus A New Revolution: Your Full Hybrid Light!

HD 35-A Active Two-Way Speaker

HZ-1000 From Club to Arena

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ENNOVATION

April 2019

DASlink Group Manager, the new app by DAS Audio

The new DAS Audio app creates and manages groups of VANTEC and ALTEA 700 systems. The new DASlink GM application is designed to monitor and control these systems both in groups and individually. The app, compatible with Android and Apple OS, eases the configuration of cabinet parameters from a mobile device.

The app allows users to group systems according to their model or physical location, which facilitates and speeds up the setup providing efficient control over the event or installation. The main functionality of DASlink GM is to create groups of systems with different configurations where not only can the group parameters be modified individually but also the control of the gain of the cabinets within a group.

By simply tapping on the screen, DASlink GM accesses the parameters of the systems grouped by “zones”, so the user can adjust them quickly and effortlessly while checking and monitoring the signal that reaches the systems in real time. As a result, the user can prevent clipping in the input and output channels; the app allows to monitor the VU of each system, so verifying their performance is a straightforward step.

Yet another advantage of DASlink GM is its graphical content. It offers an attractive interface and ease-of-use, consequently accessing the systems is faster and more intuitive than using a conventional physical control. For example, from the home screen the user can access the MUTE and SOLO functions of each group without even entering the parameters window. Among many other handy functionalities, DASlink

The app on a mobile GM can also assist to identify the cabinets being adjusted thanks to a blinking function. The cabinet logo emits a blinking light which allows identifying and locating the cabinets within an array system, this way, the cabinets can be rearranged in the app as they are physically in the array.

With DASlink GM configuring and monitoring systems becomes an easier task within everyone’s reach.

The app is already available on Apple Store and Google Play. www.dasaudio.com

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ENNOVATION

25

ENNOVATION

April 2019

LITEC Releases the FLYINTOWER 10-1600 Introducing the new LITEC FLYINTOWER 10-1,600, which provides safety, stability and rigidity for flying up to 1,600kg of audio equipment at heights up to 10m! Designed to bridge the gap in the LITEC FLYINTOWER range, which includes solutions with load capacities from 300 to 2000 kg, the FLYINTOWER 10-1,600 features a 15° inclined mast.

An electric chain hoist or manual winch can be used to lift your line array speaker system.

Dedicated accessories specifically made for LITEC FLYINTOWER 10-1,600 are also available. Custom versions are possible on request.

The LITEC FLYINTOWER 10-1,600 uses standard truss in its construction, instead of custom made truss, making potential replacement of truss sections quick and convenient. The main vertical tower is constructed with QL40A truss, while QH30SA truss is used for the stabilizing legs. Sturdy fork connectors ensure all truss connection points are strong and rigid.

www.areafourindustries.com

Key benefits: * Height: 10m * Loading capacity: 1,600 kg * Main truss: QL40A * Base dimensions: 5.8m x 7.5m

Eos Ti Channel your Purpose

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ENNOVATION

26 April 2019

B-EYE the New frontier in LED Wash Lights

Example of the HY B-EYE being used in a concert / Picture courtesy of Ralph@Larmann The B-EYE has revolutionized the way we think of LED show lighting. Its innovative optical unit enhances the uniformity and efficiency of the light output. The rotating front lens and the possibility to control each single LED individually have made spectacular kaleidoscopic projections and charming eye candy effects possible. A sophisticated effect engine has made it easier to routinely use macro effects, which would otherwise be difficult to program. Today Claypaky markets the HY B-EYE with the same successful features, which have been enhanced and further enriched: the HY B-EYE is more powerful, more efficient, more interactive with the media server (Kling-Net protocol included), more versatile and even quieter than ever.

More powerful: The HY B-EYE fits 40 watt Osram Ostar RGBW LEDs. They are twice as powerful as the LEDs found in the original B-EYE. Higher luminous efficiency: The HY B-EYE is extremely bright thanks to the combined effect of its light source and its special optical unit, which was designed by Claypaky and optimized to make the most of the power of the LEDs. More intelligent and easier to program: The HY B-EYE is the first Claypaky light to be developed with Kling-Net protocol built-in. KlingNet is an advanced plug-and-play control protocol developed by the digital media specialists ArKaos. The benefits of using Kling-Net are all aimed at enhancing the lighting designer’s creativity, while making the management and synchronization of LED light parameters and functions more simple.

Linear Zoom (with automatic retractable lens when the projector is turned off), the HY B-EYE is now a truly universal light, able to adapt magnificently to small stages and rigs, and to large events.

More silent: It is even quieter than the previous model.

Several HY B-EYE units can be used in TV studios without fear of disturbing the show in any way. A new compact, functional body with a HY B-EYE K25 practical, elegant design makes the HY B-EYE ergonomically simple to install on any stage.

From the B-EYE to the HY B-EYE: bigger only in its performance. The HY B-EYE K25 has the same dimensions as its predecessor, and weighs only 27.5 kg (60.63 lb). The K15 version, more suitable for small stages, is only 49 cm high (19.29 inches) and weighs only 21 kg (46.3 lb).

To know more: HY B-EYE K25 HY B-EYE K15 www.claypaky.it

More versatile: The HY B-EYE is not only a new, more powerful wash light, but it also projects extraordinarily visible aerial effects, thanks to the light beam being twice the original power. Thanks also to the 4°-60°

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April 2019

disguise’s Award Winning vx 4 Media Server is Now Shipping The new flagship pro range server has even more network bandwidth with dual 25GbE and dual 10GbE ports; enabling faster media file transfer and higher resolution networked live video capture.

disguise is proud to announce the launch of the new vx 4 server which has been engineered to play back video at higher quality and resolution than ever before.

The vx 4 is optimised for playing up to four times uncompressed 4K60 using its high-performance NVME RAID drive array; as well as the capability of playing lossless 10-bit video. Additionally, it can capture either 16 3G-SDI sources, or four 4K sources (2160p60).

With the introduction of r15.2 and the vx 4, disguise now supports HDR content, and provides a means of applying colour profiles. Consisting of a colour space and a gamma curve, users can now set a colour profile to their content, or capture images and disguise does the real-time conversion.

The vx 4 also offers users a choice of content quality using industry recognised codecs, from delivering high quantities of compressed content to the higher visual fidelity of uncompressed image sequences (TGA, TIFF and DPX).

Like other pro range servers, the vx 4 is ultra rugged with a crossbraced stiff chassis and isolated core components. The new chassis design also features a new hi-res OLED front panel for more detailed system information.

The vx 4 also features disguise’s unique VFC technology, which allows users to output DisplayPort, DVI, SDI or HDMI without changing the system, as well as mix signal formats and resolution types in the same project, with guaranteed frame synchronisation and near-zero latency.

The vx 4 ships standard with the latest in disguise’s VFC technology, the HDMI 2.0 VFC cards. www.disguise.one

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ENNOVATION

28 April 2019

ArKaos and Pioneer DJ Collaborate for Seamless Visual Performance The App, which also supports scratching, unleashes the full potential of seamless syncing between visual effects and DJ performances, enabling DJs, event producers, lighting designers, LJs, video creators and VJs to blow away, impress and WOW audiences with incredible, mesmeric multi-sensory live experiences!

Thanks to integration with the Bridge in GrandVJ, visuals can run in perfect harmony, ‘live’ with the music. All lighting and pixel fixtures and video display elements running via Kling-Net, Art-Net, etc., plus any 3D objects that are mapped using the ArKaos Video Mapper for GrandVJ XT can pulse, move and groove to the beat.

Leading DJ technology brand Pioneer DJ has licensed its PRO DJ LINK network system to media and real-time visual processing specialist ArKaos … to assist artists, music makers and visual creatives in bringing amazing, vibrant and fluid visual effects to DJ performances, which can come alive with exciting, hypnotic visual effects.

PRO DJ LINK enables lighting, video displays and pyrotechnics to be synched with audio tracks that are being played via a professional DJ set-up.

Widely used by DJs at major shows, events, festivals and clubs worldwide, this set-up will typically include Pioneer DJ’s massively popular CDJ-2000NXS2 Pro-DJ multi player and their DJM-900NXS2 Pro-DJ mixer.

ArKaos can now connect its powerful and popular GrandVJ product to the PRO DJ LINK network using a new specialized App, the PRO DJ LINK Bridge.

Compatible hardware currently includes the following Pioneer DJ devices: • CDJ-TOUR1 • DJM-TOUR1 • CDJ-2000NXS2 • DJM-900NXS2 A firmware update for each device - to the latest version – is needed and can be sourced from www.pioneerdj.com/en/support/ GrandVJ is a ground-breaking live video mixer developed by ArKaos for VJs, DJs, clubs, and musicians.

This VJ software runs on macOS or Windows, utilizing MIDI and stateof-the-art live video technologies. vj.arkaos.com/grandvj/about

Compact NX 2 from Obsidian Control Systems Now Shipping Obsidian Control Systems is pleased to be shipping both The NX 2 and NX Wing, the first lighting control products available under the ONYX lighting control platform are now shipping with new ONYX software.

Feature -rich and never restricted in its capabilities, the powerful NX2 is the ultimate compact yet fully integrated lighting controller with all the connectivity and power the ever-increasing size of shows demands.

As a member of the innovative ONYX platform, the NX 2 offers a slate of professional features like a high brightness, full-HD multi touchscreen, 8 assignable parameter encoders, an assistive mini touchscreen, full keypad and command section, a dedicated grand master, and 10 full playbacks with four freely assignable buttons. on Page 29 >>

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Utilizing the latest in industrial components, the NX 2 contains a powerful Intel Hexa-Core processor, high-speed NVMe SSD drive and 16GB of DDR4 RAM. Fast boot times, instant operation and the ability to process 64 Universes right inside the console without the need for costly external processing networks result in unprecedented power in this small form factor.

A Capture license is included with every NX 2 console, allowing immediate access to the popular lighting design and visualization software. Every NX2 lighting console includes a download of the latest version of Capture Solo after a simple online registration. Users receive an unrestricted standard license of Capture Solo and all licenses are eligible for upgrades through Capture or any of its authorized resellers.

Also shipping is the NX Wing, the complementary USB control surface to Obsidian Control Systems’ ONYX platform. Based on the NX 2 console, the NX Wing utilizes the same rugged design and components with an identical footprint and layout. Through its USB connection, the NX Wing provides a responsive professional hardware surface to operate ONYX on any PC system without compromises. The NX Wing provides extensive connectivity with 4 DMX Ports, MIDI and Timecode ports while unlocking 128 Universes of control when connected to ONYX on a PC.

Obsidian Control Systems products are distributed exclusively by Elation Professional worldwide and are available in various sizes to accommodate any scale and budget. www.obsidiancontrol.com

Designed for use with all new NX and existing M-Series hardware, fully updated ONYX software is available and shipping in each NX series console. Powerful yet easy-to-learn, the stable and efficient programming platform is fast to program and fun to operate. ONYX scales from the smallest shows to the largest touring productions with easy-to-use tools and optimized graphical work environments that can adapt to any task and complexity.

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ENNOVATION

30 April 2019

Penn Elcom Provides Perfect Fit with New WeatherSeal Flightcase Latches whereby some pieces might be randomly a little bigger or smaller.

When swapping lids between identical cases, that gap was always necessary to make sure any lid would theoretically fit any case. With the gap no longer necessary, any free lifting lid will fit any case and users can mix and match freely and with confidence!

Hinged lids work in the same way using pairs of latches and lid-stay hinges.

Penn Elcom launches a new range of its famous MOL automatic positioning latches, and lid-stay hinges utilizing the innovative WeatherSeal technology.

This helps create seamless flightcase latches and hinges that help close the lids even tighter, eliminating any gaps, making the case interior dust and water resistant, keeping the contents safer and protected from ingress when closed.

Manufactured using Penn’s latest CNC technology, flightcases can be safer and more secure than ever before using these new MOL latches and lid stays.

The latch is mounted in a generous recessed dish for use on large-sized cases. Tough PennBrite zinc plating offers excellent protection against corrosion and gives that cool distinctive PennBrite finish - used on most of Penn’s flightcase components - which exudes quality and robustness.

Penn Elcom’s recent investments worldwide in new CNC machining resources has enabled the manufacture of these case elements to such accuracy that the size variation can be eliminated, leaving no need for the ‘tolerance gap’ and the lids can be closed super tightly, attaining the dust and water resistant WeatherSeal status.

Engaging in constant dialogue with numerous flightcase manufacturers, users and many companies building their own cases, Penn has listened closely to their demands, ideas and suggestions, and energised their R ‘n’ D team to develop this ground-breaking new case accessory technology and process.

WeatherSeal is set to become a new standard as Penn continues to pioneer in this specialist market.

This new generation of MOL latches is designed with a cantilever automatic open / close function, making locking and unlocking cases a whole lot easier, even with one hand or in the dark!

The fixing holes are 10mm (3/8 of an inch) away from the central split of the dish, making it perfect for use with hybrid edge extrusions.

Now with WeatherSeal manufacturing, MOL is taken to more new levels.

Historically, with latches, hinges or lids, there has always been a little gap where the two pieces of extrusion meet, and this allowed for routine irregularities in the machining process

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ENNOVATION

32 April 2019

Allen & Heath Delivers Feature Thrills and MCA Spills With dLive V1.8

Allen & Heath continues to advance its flagship dLive mixing system with the release of the latest firmware update, V1.8, adding a huge raft of power-features that engineers will love, from MCAs and Talkback Groups through to a hotly-anticipated new DEEP processing plug-in – the OptTronik.

Particularly welcomed in monitor world, V1.8 adds Mix Control Association (MCA), bringing the convenience of DCA groups and spills to monitor engineers, enabling simple control over multiple AUX/MTX sends via a single fader.

This update further improves ease of control by introducing A/B/C/D inputs, enabling up to 4 input sockets to be assigned to every input channel, and provides fast and seamless selection of sockets via SoftKeys – perfect for rapidly switching to a backup microphone, or to pre-recorded files on a playback system.

The addition of 12 assignable Talkback Groups, which can be populated with any combination of the available mix busses, simplifies talkback routing with SoftKey controls enabling the engineer to quickly switch between different talkback destinations such as musicians, technicians or other production staff.

Joining dLive’s acclaimed suite of DEEP processors, V1.8 sees the introduction of the ‘OptTronik’ compressor. Inspired by a legendary tube-driven, electro-optical levelling amplifier, OptTronik’s smooth, musical compression makes it the perfect match for many sources, including vocals and bass guitar.

V1.8 also brings other new features and improvements to the system, such as Undo Scene Store, Mix to PAFL and Solo in Place (SIP).

Download dLive V1.8 now from www.allen-heath.com

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SPOTLIGHT

34 April 2019

Mackie Celebrates 30 Years in the Making

In 1989, the first Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite was placed in orbit; cold fusion was achieved at the University of Utah; the Berlin Wall came down; a powerful earthquake shook the San Francisco Bay Area during a World Series game. Equally earthshaking for the music industry, Mackie released its first product, the LM-1602 line mixer, soon followed by the Mackie CR-1604-and the audio industry was forever changed. For the first time, professional-quality 16-channel audio mixing was affordable for every musician. In that fateful year, the Seattle-area company was just beginning an amazing run that continues 30 years later. Today, Mackie offers a full line of affordable, highquality audio equipment ranging from mixers to sound-reinforcement loudspeakers, studio monitors, recording interfaces, and more.

The Mackie story really began in 1969, when company co-founder Greg Mackie launched Technical Audio Products (TAPCO). Realizing that a new generation of rock bands needed an affordable, durable, highquality mixer that could handle signals from loud instruments, Greg Mackie saw an opening in the market and decided to fill it. TAPCO’s subsequent success, including its immensely popular 6000 and 6100R mixers, confirmed his vision.

By 1989, the music industry had taken another leap. Many musicians invested in affordable polyphonic electronic keyboards, sound modules, and outboard processors and became interested in home recording.

But mixers hadn’t kept up; only expensive consoles offered the features and quality needed for musicians to pursue their dreams. The Mackie CR-1604 compact analog mixer and subsequent Mackie products ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

changed all that, employing new technology and implementing only the required features, while continuing Greg Mackie’s emphasis on delivering affordable, high-quality, “Built Like a Tank” gear. The result was a revolution in personal recording and live sound for bands. Many companies have tried to emulate Mackie’s approach, but 30 years after it shook the industry, the Seattle-area manufacturer continues to innovate and remains a leader in quality gear that doesn’t break the bank.

Throughout its 30 years, Mackie has displayed a lighthearted sense of humor, while delighting customers and dealers with top-quality, innovative, market-leading products like Mackie’s DL Series digital mixers, VLZ and ProFX Series compact mixers, SRM loudspeakers and the brand-new DRM Series loudspeakers, MP Series in-ear monitors, and CR Series studio monitors. But behind the humor is a deep sense of purpose.

“Celebrating 30 years is about recognizing our customers around the world that have put their trust in our gear,” reflects Mackie Marketing Director Shaunna Krebs. “Our customers made our success possible, and we look forward to the next 30 years of providing great gear for Mackie fans everywhere.”

Check out Mackie’s special anniversary documentary in our Video Files page. www.mackie.com

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ALEX COLUMN

36 April 2019

Gain Gain Gain I want to pick up on one of the supporting pillars of working in pro audio - understanding gain structure. As always because of the available space here, I want to touch this broadly and encourage the interested reader to get more detail, or simply to get in touch with me about this. Running your gear and your “system” at the right gain levels is as important as ever and I recognize that I will take this fight to the grave for sure.

Proper and correct gain is important on your mixing console, your system management, your amplification and your loudspeakers as well as driving your wireless handhelds or beltpacks. What is considered “safe” is of course depending on the quality of your gear and also weather you are talking analog or digital equipment. Once and for all, there is NO digital headroom. 0 dBFS is all you can get and one little “bit” more leads to total signal destruction, so you should stay a very safe distance away from 0 dBFS and a safe distance is minimum 12 dB, better even 18 dB. Just because some manufacturers offer you a dBFS metering on their digital consoles, does not mean you can consider this to operate “like analog”. Needless to say that I find it utterly stupid to offer such metering at all, as it makes no sense for the user.

It is very similar in the analog world when you look at an amplifier specification. When an amplifier has a certain amplification range and a specific input sensitivity, then this amplifier will also not have any headroom, but will start to distort and compress audibly as soon as you hit any gain above nominal level. The reason and explanation is rather simple. If an amplifier had 6 dB headroom, it would essentially have double the power and there is no amplifier manufacturer, who will accept to only claim half the possible power of their units, to have some headroom.

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In the analog world it was sometimes cool and sounded even okay to use “saturation”, whether on tape or in driving your gear (mixer or amps) slightly into distortion for a specific effect and luckily even all the engineers from the digital age, can listen to this thanks to “Tape Saturation algorithms” today. I remember attending a festival in Ireland and being at a particular show where everything was at its limits and clipping and it was okay and suited the content of the show. Listening to the bands clean CD a few days later proved the point, it sounded poor and thin and the distortion of the gear at the show just complimented the content. Their music actually “needed’ to sound dirty, it was not great to listen to clean.

In the wireless field of our industry (don’t get me started on this really!), driving your gear at the right gain is even more critical, because the wireless transmission has a more limited dynamic range than the analog circuitry and no “compander” can adequately reproduce the dynamic of the input signal. Oddly enough one manufacturer, “a german wireless company” has even used that to make one of their wireless systems sound better by designing the capsule of the handheld around the limitations of the wireless transmission. Their handheld sounds way better as a wireless than as a wired handheld microphone with the same capsule.

There is no one size fits all and you must check your gain at every stage to make sure you are driving your system at the right level and again this also has a huge upside. Remember that this can almost certainly not be done automatically, so if you do it right and if you are good at your job, this will keep you in the job for life and that’s not a bad prospect at all. As always, I would like to encourage an exchange and discussion about this and for all you audio people out there, I always wish you enough gain under your fader. Good mixing everyone!

Join the conversation and share your thoughts with Alex. Alex can be reached at alex@asaudio.de

18 – 20 September 2019 Bombay Exhibition Centre Mumbai

IN THE WORLD’S FASTEST GROWING, MAJOR EMERGING ECONOMY, NOW IS THE TIME FOR PRO-AV AND INTEGRATED SOLUTIONS PROVIDERS TO JOIN THE ASCENT. In January 2018, India’s Hon’ble Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi talked about the rise of New India.

This is an India with an investor-friendly economy set to grow at 7.5% over the next two years. An India with macro-economic stability, political stability and a regulatory framework that supports investment.

An India with a massive young domestic market of over 600 million Indians under the age of 25. An India with an AV industry which is predicted to grow 7% every year until 2022.

An India which is more ready than ever before to welcome you with open arms to do business.

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EVENT REVIEW

38 April 2019

ProSound Vietnam: A Unique Proposition

by Thomas Richard Prakasam

ProSound Vietnam was on its third edition, and it was my first time attending the event. Luckily for me from what I heard from participants as well as the organiser, it was the best edition yet in terms of set-up and programmes. I met up with Nguyen Thân (also known as Kelvin for those like me who have a slight difficulty in pronouncing the name) who is one of the five key personnel involved in organising the event since its inception.

Thân is the Director of Gong Ty Tnhn Prosound Center Vietnam and Apex Multimedia. The companies are involved in systems integration and event management respectively. Apex is the event management company for ProSound Vietnam.

The other companies in the organising committee are Tan Huu Tai Co., Ltd, Van Nghe Co., Ltd., Long Phuc Co., Ltd., Hien Ann Show Co., Ltd. ProSound Vietnam came about during a discussion in November 2016 amongst five companies that included Thân’s company. The others involved were three major rental companies and a company that specialises in trussing. “We had this invisible aspect where competing companies generally would not sit together, and I wanted to break that mould,” said Thân. “I had the advantage of being an SI which is a neutral position in the market.”

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“One of the main reasons for ProSound Vietnam is for all the companies involved in the industry to come together to create a pro-sound community. The other objectives were to get technicians from around the country to listen to the new technologies in Vietnam as they would rarely get such a chance.”

Nguyen Thân aka Kelvin

The slogan “Together We Win” that appears below the event name

begins to make sense now to me.

Thân informs me that in the first year the event was held only for one day with 12 loudspeaker brands supported by 12 booths and a speaker demonstration. “The speakers were all lined up in a straight row, and during the demo, visitors walked a straight line listening to one brand after another. About 3000 people attended the event.”

Last year again attracted 12 loudspeaker brands, and there were 34 booths with the event extended over two days. “This time we had

EVENT REVIEW

39 April 2019

the scheduled demonstrations in the booths in the morning and the loudspeaker demonstrations in the evening. This time the event attracted around 10000 visitors.”

This year there were 12 loudspeaker brands involved again in the demo but with 24 booths. “This time we only allowed each distributor to take up only one booth.”

The rates to participate? USD2000 for the loudspeaker demonstration.

It is to be noted that the total amount of time offered for the demonstration over the two days is only 40 minutes on one day. For taking up a booth space, it is USD3000 for the two days. Brands can take up both options.

“For the loudspeaker demonstration we provide the truss as well as the electricity required,” said Thân.

The concept The event is held at the Quan Khu 7 Stadium in Ho Chih Minh stadium.

The stadium frankly is run-down, but this should not distract us from the event itself. The booths occupy the entire stadiums fringe area just after the tracks. This year there was a canopy over the booths that covered the whole stretch. Last year the booths were over a single tent each which was not conducive considering the weather. This year’s arrangement helped a little bit more in protecting all from the scorching weather especially during the day time.

A large platform in the centre of the field held the FOH mixers. It was also the VIP area for guests to sit and listen to the loudspeaker demonstration.

The speaker demonstration stages were arranged to face the four sides of the platform. Each day showcased demonstration from six loudspeaker brands. Three loudspeaker brands were each rigged up as a pair in the left-right combination across a stage and faced the FOH/VIP platform. Once the first three brands had completed their demonstration, the guests including those on the field switched to the other side to listen to the next three brands.

A total of 40 minutes that included the compère’s introduction was allotted for each brand. A mix of DJ spin and full instruments live band performance for each brand enabled the brands to show their versatility.

The 12 brands involved in the evening demonstration were: Adamson, dBTechologies, EV, JBL, Outline, TW Audio, L-Acoustics, IDEA, Verity Audio, CPL, PRO MAX and Reyn Audio.

This year the event also had a new dimension. Six technical seminars were held over the two days. These were held in a room inside the stadium. As some of the presenters spoke in English, a Vietnamese translator was on hand to help the audience understand the presentation better. The seminars targeted at the technical professionals received very decent turnout.

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One of the technical seminars being conducted One aspect that caught my attention was the overwhelming numbers of ACME lighting fixtures. The company has undoubtedly captured a fair share of the market in Vietnam and is also a significant part of the inventory of one of the organisers.

The event ended with an impressive light show by ACME All lighting support for the stage events featured ACME fixtures and the last evening of the event saw a special ACME Lighting Show that dazzled the crowd.

Why a unique proposition?

By holding it at an open stadium, there was indeed no concern about deafening sound, and each booth had scheduled time to demonstrate their systems. I was impressed with almost the strict following of the rules. This way of organising indeed resolves the common complaint of high decibels in a closed venue.

This event is organised by the industry and not a third party which adds an interesting dimension of companies coming together for the overall betterment of the industry in Vietnam. I believe continuous engagement amongst the industry players will lead to a more favourable industry.

40

EVENT REVIEW VIP guests included concert organisers, event management companies, some corporate companies and advertising agencies. By inviting them, the organisers have provided them with the opportunity to listen to the different speakers and also experience the whole light and visual concept. Hopefully the guests will take back with them nuggets of information and experience that will help them with any future event plans.

April 2019

If you are interested to know more about the next edition get in touch with Nguyen Thân at nguyenthan@prosoundcenter.vn

The most significant aspect of this exhibition is that it is not for profit.

Any balance of money is given to Charity. All done in a proper open manner. This year the plans are to donate to a Pagoda (Temple) for some refurbishment and to an orphanage that has F&B training for children who will be reaching 18 years of age. At 18, the child has to leave the orphanage, and the training is to help them secure a job so that they can live independently.

Thân mentions that he is also looking into the possibility of getting the children trained as sound technicians so that they can work in the growing hospitality industry and beyond.

The organising committee of ProSound Vietnam

Jimmy Yap, the recently appointed Business Development (APAC) for Spanish brand IDEA with his Vietnamese distributor Bachviet BVPRO

The Bosch team

My thoughts The heat does not help, but the concept is commendable.

A number of the international brands had their regional reps at the show which shows that they take this show seriously. I even saw a couple of regional buyers at the show. That made me think that there is an excellent opportunity for brands to bring their potential clients from the region to the event to listen to the demonstration. Ho Chih Minh has airport connectivity, and it is not too expensive a place. The best part is it only needs to be a one-day event. The early part could be used for a regional tech talk in one of the nearby hotels and the evening for them to listen to the demonstration. Any takers?

There is indeed scope for this show to become truly a community for the pro-sound industry in Vietnam. Kudos to all of them for their effort.

ProSound Vietnam was held on 22 and 23 March 2019.

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Huynh Huu Tai, Director of Tan Huu Tai with ACME’s Vincent Liu

EVENT REVIEW

41 April 2019

PROSOUND VIETNAM PHOTO ALBUM / Pictures courtesy of Prosound Vietnam

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EXHIBITION PREVIEW

42 April 2019

Mumbai Beckons Sound & Light industry to ride the growth wave at the 19th edition of PALM Expo extremely crucial and all-encompassing features such as PALM Summit and PALM Soundscape.

The three-day PALM SUMMIT - Conference, Seminar & Workshop, which will be held in the International Lounge (Level 1) of the main pro audio hall (hall 1) BEC, Mumbai, will gather industry leaders and technology experts from across the globe to this important knowledge platform.

PALM Expo 2018 Attendees India’s premier trade expo for the live events, music production, lighting, staging and ProAV industry is back with its 19th edition, scheduled to take place from May 30 – June 1, 2019, at BEC, Mumbai, concurrently with the inaugural edition of AV Integrated Systems expo.

With foresight of the mammoth potential of the industry, the PALM expo this year features the most ideal exhibit space - with Pro Audio in Hall 1, Hall 2 and Grande Hall, Lighting in Hall 2, PoAV in Hall 3, Demo Qube in VIP Parking Area, Indoor Compact Line Array Demo in Hall 5 and PALM Live Arena in Hall 2 Annexe. The extended space accommodating many new brands, undoubtedly asserts the show as being the finest platform to showcase the latest, most pertinent technologies for the entertainment and install industry.

With a bigger exhibit space, range of new products and technologies and several international manufacturers flooding the exhibit space, the PALM expo is expected to welcome more than 200 direct exhibitors who included top manufacturers, brands, distributors and dealers, and more than 25,000 trade visitors.

PALM understands the requirements of its exhibitors and will thus maintain a quality check process with paid on-site entry for visitors visiting the venue without invitations. The aim is to filter and ensure that only quality industry professionals register for the expo, thereby attracting a more professional audience of consultants, integrators and rental & event management companies.

The expo has taken a firm initiative to improve the skill and knowledge quotient asserting that economic development and business success depends greatly on efficient technology coupled with product information. The objective has led to the conceptualisation of

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Full House Session at PALM Expo 2018 Conference & Seminar A definitive gathering of influential leaders, buyers and sellers, policymakers and experts from around the world, make the PALM Summit a leading conference and seminar platform for the pro audio and lighting industry in India. The Summit will feature international and national technical experts and thought leaders, discussing innovative technology, new products, future trends, critical business insights and pathways towards better business and key strategic and topical issues facing the industry across all segments of the pro audio, lighting and install chain.

Delegates and media can look forward to a comprehensive and diverse program this year. The PALM Conferences will host expert speakers and offer 15 sessions across the three days of the expo with each day being dedicated to one specific theme.

Day 1 (30 May, 2019) is Stage Sound & Lighting; Day 2 (31 May, 2019) is Install Sound; Day 3 (1 June, 2019) is Studio Music Recording & Production.

The PALM Summit has announced the first line-up of speakers for 2019 and among the growing list of speakers are some of the most reputed names in the industry. The speakers this year come from some of the largest brands and solution providers in the industry.

EXHIBITION PREVIEW Waves has been one of the world’s leading developers of professional audio plugins for music production, mixing, mastering, live sound. On day 1 Waves’, acclaimed live sound mixing engineer will share insights and real world tips and tricks about using plugins for live sound mixing.

With more than 1,600 products from over 400 manufacturers, Audinate’s Dante platform has today become a popular go-to medium for networked audio transport. The PALM Summit will also host a session by Audinate’s partners in India – Ansata who will educate on how Dante can be used to route audio for a truly integrated experience.

In most professional audio productions as well as in private home entertainment facilities, there is too often a weak link that prevents harvesting the highest quality audio one could and should expect. On day 2, Didier Weiss – Head Acoustics at Sound Wizard will conduct a session on Room Tuning and Optimization. Delegates will get an opportunity to learn about tools available and processes to follow up, called optimisation, tuning, calibration or audio system alignment.

Leading acoustic consultancy Munro Acoustics will conduct two sessions this year. On day 2, the session will focus on Sound Design and Electro Acoustics for Entertainment Install Venues such as clubs, pubs, lounges etc. On day 3, Kapil Thirwani of Munro Acoustics will educate audiences on everything they ever wanted to know about Atmos and Studio Design.

43 April 2019

The PALM Soundscape is a key feature of the PALM expo and has particularly been instrumental in dissemination of knowledge on technological advancements & industrial trends, empowering the next breed of professionals. Key speakers covering big stage sound, light, visual, festivals, touring tech, FOH, artiste management, music production, A&R - all the ingredients for show biz, congregate in these panels.

As part of the “Big Stage” Series, day 1 and day 2 will delve into one session discussing business and technical intricacies for the big stage.

A session on Next Gen Big Stage Sound will throw light on innovation, techniques & global trends in stage sound systems engineering. Expert panel will also discuss inventory management, ROI & logistical aspects.

A panel discussion Next Gen Big Stage Light & AV will shed light on innovations, techniques & global trends in stage lighting. The expert panel will also discuss lighting effects & mapping aspects.

The panel for Heeding Caution - Safety at Big Stage events will tackle immediate problems concerning safety at big stage & stadium events.

Aspects like rigging, pyrotechnics, crowd management & security would be introspected by a panel of professionals in the fields of pyrotechnics, staging, rigging & large scale events production.

EEMA (Event & Entertainment Management Association) who will have a strong presence at the PALM expo will debate and discuss on the Need for Transformation of the Event Industry Sez who has been the music producer behind the success of some of the biggest local hip- hop artists in the country will conduct a workshop on Hip Hop Music Production giving a rare opportunity to understand his approach, workflow & tools when producing for rappers.

Don’t miss out on a masterclass on Classic DJing Tips & Tricks by Reji Ravindran, who is the curator of this 5th edition of PALM Soundscape.

Whether you play on media players, DVS systems or vinyl, this session is jam packed with practical & timeless tips & tricks - for DJs in any level of their craft.

IRAA 2018 Awards Ceremony & Winners Winner of three IRAA awards in 2018, Sound Engineer - Jaykrishnan Nalinkumar will Demystify Dynamic Processors in his session on Day 3. This one-hour workshop will also discuss different types of audio dynamic processors with its applications.

Veteran Sound Recording Engineer, Daman Sood will educate delegates about Recording Studio Technology in his session on Day 3 Many more speakers will be present at the PALM Summit this year.

For regular updates and to register for the summit, log on to http://palmexpo.in/about_the_conference.aspx

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The first line-up of speakers for the soundscape sessions include Vinay Agarwal - Assistant General Manager – BookMyShow, Ace FOH engineer – Fali Damania, Antonio Marino - Marketing Director World Display/Optic - Osram S.p.A, Jash Reen – Visual Artiste at Wolves Visuals, Khushroo Kekobad from Live on Stage.

Registrations for PALM Soundscape are live now on http://palmexpo.in/soundscapereg/index.aspx

EXHIBITION PREVIEW

44 April 2019

IAAPA Announces Special Events and Program Schedule for IAAPA Expo Asia 2019 Events include Opening Night Reception at Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park and Leadership Breakfast Keynote Address by Joe Schott from Shanghai Disney Resort

displaying the latest products and services designed to take the guest experience to the next level.

IAAPA, the global association for the attractions industry, has announced registration is now open for IAAPA Expo Asia 2019 (formerly Asian Attractions Expo). This year’s event will be held at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre in Shanghai, China, 11-14 June 2019.

More than 8,500 global amusement park and attractions industry professionals from more than 60 countries and regions will gather to buy, learn, and network at the largest international conference and trade show for the multibillion-dollar attractions industry in Asia. The 11,000-net-square-meter trade show floor in IAAPA Expo Asia 2019 will feature innovations from more than 300 exhibiting companies

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IAAPA invites attractions industry professionals from around the world to take part in several professional networking opportunities and impactful education programs during the Expo. This year’s special events schedule includes an Opening Night Reception at Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park, and a leadership breakfast featuring a keynote address delivered by Joe Schott, president and general manager of Shanghai Disney Resort. The networking events offered during IAAPA Expo Asia help professionals make new connections, learn industry best practices, and share ideas with colleagues and peers from around the world.

Opening Night Reception at Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park (13 June) Attendees will celebrate at Shanghai’s newest ocean theme park while networking with industry peers from around the world.

EXHIBITION PREVIEW

Leadership Breakfast Featuring Joe Schott from Shanghai Disney Resort (13 June) The annual leadership breakfast provides senior-level attractions industry professionals the opportunity to learn and network with regional and global colleagues.

Joe Schott, president and general manager, Shanghai Disney Resort, will deliver this year’s keynote address. A 37-year veteran of The Walt Disney Joe Shott Company, Schott will provide insights on emerging trends and new developments affecting the industry.

Lunch and Learn Featuring Michael Croaker, head of entertainment, Village Roadshow Theme Parks (13 June) This interactive session will feature Michael Croaker, head of entertainment of Village Roadshow Theme Parks, as he shares his insights about the challenges Village Roadshow encounters when integrating different intellectual properties (IP) across various countries, culture, target audiences, and within his organization. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask Croaker questions at the end of the session.

Operators’ Reception (13 June) Attendees will come together with other operators from the Asia Pacific region to exchange ideas. This event includes discussions about

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45 April 2019

enhancing safety and efficiency operations, motivating employees, and driving profits.

Young Professionals Reception at Shanghai Dungeon (13 June) Attendees will explore the newly opened Shanghai Dungeon – a horror house recreating historical urban myths based on real life incidents. A reception will follow the experience.

Meanwhile, 4 EDUTours* will offer behind-the-scene look to a few of Shanghai’s top attractions, including Shanghai Disney Resort, Shanghai Natural History Museum, and Hello Kitty Shanghai Times.

In-depth Learning and Education Programs Throughout IAAPA Expo Asia, attendees can take part in an array of general education sessions on a wide range of topics including facility operations, marketing, public relations and communications, entertainment, government relations, security and safety, information technology, food and beverage, merchandise and games, human resources, and more.

Registration by 3 May to Save 30%** To learn more about IAAPA Expo Asia 2019, the education offerings, complete schedule of events, and to register, visit www.IAAPA.org/ IAAPAExpoAsia. Register your visit by 3 May to save 30%* with earlybird discount. *EDUTours are only open to IAAPA members. **Saving off regular on-site registration fee.

KNOWLEDGE HUB

46 April 2019

Common Audio formats: Which One to Use?

by David Aleksandersen

David Aleksandersen

Audio comes in a wide range of formats and types, just like video and images. For a media server operator, knowing your way around the audio jungle is a real plus, potentially saving you time, effort and some sleepless nights. This blog looks at the three major audio categories, and gives media server programmers a hot tip on audio format!

In this article we will touch on: * Audio codecs and containers? * Uncompressed audio formats * Compressed audio formats with lossless compression * Compressed audio formats with lossy compression * Which audio format for media servers?

Audio codecs and containers?

Another aspect, as with video codecs and containers, is to distinguish between the coding format of the audio, the container of the audio data, and the audio codec. The codec handles the encoding and decoding of the raw (original) audio data and the encoded data is (most often) stored in a container file. Multimedia container formats such as

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Matroska (MKV) or Audio Video Interleave (AVI) by Microsoft support multiple types of audio and video.

So, let’s take a look at the various audio formats. They can be broken down into three main categories: - Uncompressed audio formats - Compressed audio formats with lossy compression - Compressed audio formats with lossless compression Uncompressed audio formats This is what it sounds like (pun intended), where the audio is completely un-altered from its original state. It goes without saying that uncompressed files are quite large and will take up a lot of disk space.

The most common uncompressed audio formats are WAV, AIFF, AU, PCM or BWF. * BWF (Broadcast Wave Format) is mostly used in the broadcast industry and supports more meta-data to be stored in the file. * WAV (Waveform Audio File Format) is an audio file format developed

by Microsoft and IBM. It typically contains uncompressed audio and uses the PCM (Pulse-Code Modulation) format. But beware: a WAV file does not automatically equal uncompressed audio.

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47 April 2019

* AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) was developed by Apple and the audio data in most AIFF files is uncompressed PCM. AIFF-C or AIFC is the compressed version of AIFF.

MP3 is the most known file-format, along with ACC (Apples iTunes format) and Vorbis.Other formats are Opus, Musepack, ATRAC and Windows Media Audio Lossy (WMA lossy).

* AU is the audio format developed by Sun Microsystems and was found on their NeXT systems and the early days of the web.

* MP3 (MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed by MPEG (Moving Picture experts Group) and was released in 1993. It became the de facto standard for poorly compressed audio files in the days when people could download pirated CDs online from dubious websites. While you do not need to use maximum compression – a lot of people did.

* PCM (Pulse-Code Modulation) defines the process used to convert analog audio into digital audio signals without compression. The now more-or-less deceased CD (Compact Disc) brought PCM to consumer audio applications when introduced in 1982.

Compressed audio formats with lossless compression Lossless compression is a way to reduce (compress) the audio files without losing any information in the file. The original uncompressed data can be re-created from the compressed version. Since uncompressed files are very large, lossless compression is a way to reduce the file sizes.

Lossless compression formats include TTA, ATRAC Advanced Lossless, MPEG-4 SLS, MPEG-4 ALS, MPEG-4 DST, Windows Media Audio Lossless (WMA Lossless), and Shorten (SHN) – while the most common formats are: * FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) is an open format support for some meta-tags and album cover art. Audio compressed with FLAC can typically be reduced to between 50 and 70 percent of its original size. * Monkey’s Audio (filename extension .ape) was developed by Matthew T. Ashland and is slightly better to compress files than FLAC and WavPack, but it requires more processing power. * WavPack (filename extension .wv) is a free and open-source audio compression format under the BSD license. In addition to the lossless compression, it has a “hybrid” where it creates two files: a highquality, lossy file (.wv) that can be used stand-alone, and a “correction” file which, when combined with the lossy file, provides full lossless restoration. * ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec - filename extension .m4a) was developed by Apple. It is also known as Apple Lossless or Apple Lossless Encoder (ALE), and was initially a proprietary codec. Apple made the codec available open source and royalty-free in 2011.

Compressed audio formats with lossy compression Lossy compression gives even smaller files than the lossless files, and this is achieved by removing some of the audio information and simplifying the data in the files. While the files become very small – also the audio quality is heavily impacted, depending on the level of compression.

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* ACC (Advanced Audio Coding) was designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, and AAC in general achieves better sound quality than MP3 at the same bit rate. ACC was developed by Bell Labs, Fraunhofer Institute, Dolby Labs, Sony and Nokia. It is the default audio format for known products and services such as YouTube, iPhone, Nintendo consoles, iTunes and PlayStation.

Which audio format for media servers?

As far as I have found, all media servers support WAV files. While these files tend to get larger compared to the compressed files, audio files are generally very small compared to the video files played back by media servers. There should not really be any need to use compressed audio files with any media server. And we all like to keep things simple so – let´s WAV! ETA thanks dataton for allowing us to reprint this blog that first appeared on their website in February 2019. David Aleksandersen is Commercial Support Manager at Dataton.

Download a free e-book: The Marketers’ Guide to Projection Mapping Uncompressed audio formats www.dataton.com

LIVE

48 April 2019

CHINA

Robe Pointes at the BMW 7 Launch in Shanghai Lighting / visual artist Christopher Bauder creates stunning show

Lighting / visual artist Christopher Bauder from Berlin based WHITEvoid was asked to reimagine his ground-breaking ‘Mirror Mirror’ kinetic lighting installation for the 2019 world premiere of the new BMW 7 series which took place in Shanghai, China.

He used 52 circular shaped KINETIC LIGHTS mirror disks which worked in conjunction with 42 synchronised Robe Pointe moving lights plus one MegaPointe to stun the 500 VIP guests in the majestic former industrial environment of the West Bund Art Centre, Shanghai.

Christopher was commissioned by show producers China Kingway for whom he’d previously delivered the initial ‘Mirror Mirror’ in 2018 as a stand-alone segment making up Apologue 2047/2, a work directed by Chinese film director and former cinematographer Zhang Yimou.

This time, the show was directed by Mr Bao, CEO of China Kingway assisted by LuLu He and also featured a special electronic soundscape by composer Kanding Ray, combined with a live performance by famous Chinese sheng player Wu Tong. The sheng is a traditional Chinese mouth-blown free reed vertical pipe wind instrument.

Christopher was delighted to look at ways he could adapt Mirror Mirror to meet this brief and work in this dynamically different context.

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The show needed to highlight the styling and proportions of the cars and create a great ambience and anticipation for the reveal, so they developed a series of three-dimensional tableaus that would interplay with artefacts from automotive environments – like streets, landscapes, architecture and nature.

The 52 mirrors – each controlled by three custom KINETIC LIGHTS winches – were arranged in a 7x7 grid over the stage with the Pointes rigged in three rows of 7 fixtures - 21 a side - on stage left and right of the presentation area.

Unlike previous shows, in this setup they had a completely symmetric and square shaped arrangement that was designed to fit the widerangle shape of a presentation that was focussed on the cars.

The installation covered a surface area of 400 square metres with a volumetric height of 8 metres. The 42 Pointes and single MegaPointe were used to create the 3D light tableaus in different sections of the show.

The first row of Pointes each side was 2 metres off the floor, the next was 4 and the final one was 6 metres, with around a metre of horizontal space between each fixture. The MegaPointe was used to create a large ‘7’ sculpted from light - using the mid-size beam reducer

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49 April 2019

gobo - for the show finale. It was mounted beneath the stage that was covered in a glass sheet so the cars could roll over it.

on site, they only needed to make minor adjustments to transfer the computer-generated show into the real space!

The MegaPointe beam shot diagonally into the roof and was deflected by a 45-degree mirror which flipped it into a horizontal beam. The end of the beam was defined by a black stopper plate also attached to three of the kinetic winches… enabling the ‘7’ to appear in split seconds out of thin air… just like magic!

The main overall challenges of the project were the short setup window – three overnight sessions – in which they had to install and calibrate a complex interconnected system. This included the 153 winch motors and direct ArtNet cabling in the roof of the building, and the 43 x moving lights running via DMX from the three rows each side of the stage.

Christopher loves Pointes for this type of installation – for their flexibility, brightness and compact size. In addition to this and ‘Mirror Mirror’ he also utilised Pointes at last year’s SKALAR immersive kinetic light art installation in Berlin.

Each Pointe could hit any mirror at any time in full motion, so once calibration was complete, they ensured that all the Pointes were corrected to match their digital simulation.

The MegaPointe he chose for its flexibility and specifically its CMY colour mixing and multiple beam shaping options, together with the “super-bright and sharply defined flat-field beam”. He underlines that these characteristics are particularly important when working with light as a material combined with beams and haze to make clear lines in a space.

Christopher admits that he enjoys the long, late nights when he, the core team and the crew are alone in the venue fine tuning and finessing the many details of the show.

“It’s really perfect for solo highlight effects like this” he stated, where they required one searing beam to be reflected along multiple mirrors and bend in mid-air.

It is also only working in actual reality that they can fully appreciate the effects that were created in the visualiser software. Only at that stage do they know for sure if the sounds match the power and output of the lights at certain moments or if the colours and intensity will support the dramaturgy and chorography of the show.

Kinetic Lights’ own bespoke KLC Software was used to animate, control and safety check the whole system and all elements involved, which allowed super-fast calibration of the moving lights and mirrors on the motorised winches, all in one control environment.

Christopher explained that it’s especially important to have a reliable and fast method to synchronize both lights and kinetic elements whilst moving everything at the same time in a 3D space.

They used the system’s integrated realtime 3D visualization for preprograming of the show, including all the physically correct angles for the effects of the reflected light beams, and this meant that once

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“We look at every motion and light animation individually and maximise the detail of every aspect of its programming”.

The show hit the spot with the audience and the clients, with all on the production side extremely happy. “I think we captured the spirit of modernity and forward thinking that BMW has out right at the core of the car, and that was our mission” concludes Christopher.

This was achieved with a unique collaboration of theatre, movement, light art, industrial engineering, expression and imagination.

Photos courtesy of China Kingway www.robe.cz

LIVE

50 April 2019

SINGAPORE

Bosch Dicentis Wireless Conference Microphones at the Special Senior Officials Meeting Congress Rental ensures perfect speech intelligibility at event

The Special Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) involves the ASEAN Member States and representatives from other councils and authorities.

The purpose was to discuss the world’s energy accomplishments for 2018 and the priority plans for the year ahead. Congress Rental was delighted to support the 3-day event, held at the Singapore Intercontinental Hotel from the 21st – 23rd of January 2019.

The plenary was fitted with a rectangular conference table and 16 evenly distributed Bosch Dicentis Wireless Conference Microphones for each delegate. To support the speaker and delegates, there was a Congress Rental Technician onsite throughout the event.

The conference microphones were pre-programmed to display the client’s logo on the screen. The microphones allowed delegates to press their request-to-speak button, to put themselves in the queue.

The chairperson then controlled the delegates requests using a touch-screen laptop, pre-programmed with easy-to-use software.

This allowed the chairperson to approve, delete, add and order the queued delegates. During the event, the chairperson commended the technician on how simple and effective the system was to operate.

Challenges Throughout the 3-day event, there were multiple requests to add and remove microphones. Congress Rental’s quality procedures ensured that they were prepared with additional microphones for unexpected eventualities. The technician onsite was able to improve the overall intelligibility of the audio from the PA, by using Bosch operating

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software to turn off the microphones after the delegates finished speaking.

This was an immensely successful event for Congress Rental Singapore, as it demonstrated the benefits and features of the Bosch Dicentis Wireless Microphone System, compared to the wired. It is extremely mobile, suits last minute changes, offers immaculate table presentation that provides more usable space.

www.congressrental.asia

LIVE

51 April 2019

SAUDI ARABIA

CT Delivers a Historical European Tour Event Eight bespoke LED structures ensure spectators could follow the event

The European Tour made history this year when it took its tournament to Saudi Arabi for the first time in its 47 years of running. The groundbreaking event took place at the Royal Greens golf course in King Abdullah Economic City on the 31st January and ran until the 3rd of February. The Inaugural Saudi International was not only a first of its kind, but it was also the first time any Saudi Arabian National had participated in an European Tour event. The tournament made headlines worldwide as the event was set to make a big impact.

Creative Technology (CT) were on hand to deliver all video aspects of this historical event on behalf of their client European Tour and IMG. CT’s Head of Sport, Steven Purkess explains, “CT was contracted to design, engineer and fabricate eight bespoke LED structures, a big departure from the standard scaffold support structures traditionally used at golf events. The complete design and engineering service provided by CT not only included the design for each LED structure but also the foundations. The physical structure fabrication process was split across the CT group, and once delivered to site CT also installed and then subsequently de-rigged each structure.”

The eight bespoke LED structures were strategically placed to ensure spectators could follow the event no matter where they were. The structures consisted of 6 x 9sqm outdoor leaderboard screens which were located around the course and 2 x 18sqm outdoor video/ scoreboard screens which were located on the 1st Tee and 18th Green.

Purkess adds, “We selected the 5mm high end black face outdoor LED as it gave the best resolution for the 3m x 3m Leaderboards. It is a great product and ideal for outdoor viewing in direct sunlight.”

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CT was involved in developing the concept for the leaderboard / scoreboard structures and the graphics shown on all LED and TVs. Purkess goes on to say, “Building on our Scoring presentation system Mercury Sport, we were able to create bespoke Leaderboard and Scoreboard graphics which allowed the spectators and officials to keep abreast of the scores while following the action around the course.”

In the media centre, CT provided a 21sqm A3 Pro indoor screen to allow the press to follow the action in real time and 32 IP TVs ranging from 22” – 65” were strategically placed in various locations. The TVs were used to display CT’s customised Tournament Television Programme (TTV) comprising of live feeds, highlights, interviews, scoring, player information, stats, social media and sponsor advertising. Purkess adds, “All TVs were either wall mounted or placed on the custom built TV stands that CT had manufactured specifically for the golf event.”

CT’s account manager, Richard Smith expresses, “CT has been working alongside The European Tour and IMG to help deliver all video aspects of their tournaments for 10 years. It is thrilling to work on these worldrenowned events and always a pleasure to work alongside our clients, bringing their vision to life. The first Saudi International tournament has been fantastic, and we at CT are proud to have been part of such a historical event. www.ct-group.com

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52 April 2019

CHINA

Clair Brothers Goes Mobile with Shantou University System is flexible enough to handle just about any type or size production

Shantou University was established in 1981 as a pilot college funded by three entities – two governmental and one private donor. The collaboration between the Chinese Ministry of Education, Guangdong Province and the private Li Ka Shing Foundation, is today the first of its kind in China – a public university fully funded over the past two decades by the more than 400-million U.S. dollars in donations from Li Ka Shing, who also happens to be the richest man in Asia. This year marks the proud retirement of Mr. Shing at the age of eighty-nine, who leaves behind his day-to-day duties at the school and a generous, educational legacy in Shantou University itself. One of the magnificent highlights of this school is its 52,000-square meter, state-of-the-art sports stadium complex, known as the Shantou University Sports Park.

It includes an international competition-standard gymnasium complete with basketball courts, multi-purpose halls, swimming pools and VIP boxes. This year, the stadium played host to the university’s 2018 graduation commencement emboldened by the retirement farewell ceremony for Mr. Shing – complete with a substantial, and mobile, Clair Brothers C12 and C8 loudspeaker system.

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The Shantou University Sports Park often plays host to international performers who require the best in high-end production, both indoors and outdoors. To accommodate such programs for different locations, the university decided to invest in a large-scale mobile performance system that could be set up for specific shows, in the recent case, their commencement ceremony. After several close inspection reviews of top brands that would be deemed best for the job, DMT, the Clair Brothers distributor in China presented the powers that be with a demo of components that blew them away. “It was obvious,” explains Chris Fish, technical director at DMT, “from the smiles and the feedback that the Clair Brothers gear was making a real impression compared to the other systems.” The final equipment list at the venue is something to behold for a mobile system; it consists of a thirty-two Clair Brothers C12 full-frequency line arrays, sixteen C8 full-frequency line arrays, sixteen iS218 low-frequency line arrays and eight Clair Brothers 1AM stage monitors, accompanied by SSL L500 and L300 consoles, Clair Brothers/ Lab.gruppen PLM amplifiers, Sennheiser wireless systems and DPA microphones.

LIVE

53 April 2019

Why Green?

In order to meet the requirements of various stage settings in the sports park, the C12s can be used in numerous combinations including modes such as left and right expansion of the mains, plus side fill, or left and right expansion of the mains, plus delay tower. It all depends on what is needed that day. Additionally, the C8s can be used as an independent system combined with the lows of the iS218s when less than half of the audience field is necessary for a performance. In effect, the entire Clair Brothers system is flexible enough to handle just about any type or size production. Additionally, following comments from a number of VIPs in previous years, a pair of 8CX coaxial speakers were installed in each of the eight VIP rooms around the auditorium ensuring that the best and most consistent sound is heard at all times in all areas of the venue.

“In addition to the unbelievable sound they experienced during our demo,” continues Fish, “the University decision makers were excited by the Clair Brothers history, how founders Roy and Gene Clair worked with icons like Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson, and today how the American company has grown itself into a powerful global influence in

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the pro sound industry. With the school’s high standards, it’s important to them to work with, and be associated with, the best in the world.

That’s what Clair Brothers represents!” www.clairbrothers.com

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54 April 2019

AUSTRALIA

Sibos 2018: TDC Delivers Advanced Video Expertise - Again The challenging projection designs were replaced with LED, saving space and money

Sibos (the SWIFT International Banking Operations Seminar) is an annual banking and financial conference that has been convened in cities around the world since 1978, attracting more than 7,000 visitors who work in financial markets who participate as exhibitors and attendees and discuss issues relevant to the financial industry. In October 2018, Sibos came to Sydney for the third time, celebrating the event’s 40th birthday.

A prestigious conference of this magnitude demands the best in audiovisual support – so experience marketing agency George P. Johnson (GPJ) turned to TDC – Technical Direction Company. The brief was to deliver video solutions for the keynote addresses as well as six conference rooms.

“Sibos 2006 seemed to leave an impact on our industry for years, so when GPJ contacted us nearly two years ago to say Sibos was coming to Sydney again, we immediately started putting resources aside to support this impressive event,” said Finn Coffill, project manager for TDC. ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

Extensive resources That was just as well. An event of this size and profile requires extensive resources in terms of both equipment and people. There was, 160 square metres of ROE Carbon 3mm LED screens – yet only half of the stock owned by TDC. A further 70 square metres of ROE Black Onyx 3mm LED panels were also deployed. To enable the large audiences to view presentations in detail, TDC used four Sony HD broadcast cameras as well as 12 Panasonic HD PTZ cameras. ‘Behind the scenes’ were Barco processors and expansion units, all fully loaded with the latest Barco tri-combo in/out cards – and no fewer than eight Dataton WATCHOUT media servers.

“Thanks to the ingenuity and careful system design by Matt Teale, our Technical Project Manager, the client’s briefed system design was reconsidered, and we increased our inventory of Barco Event Master processors,” Coffill continued. “The benefits were extensive: reduced control area footprint, reduced operator count, simplified control and redundancy, and reduced hire cost. Furthermore, the

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challenging projection designs were replaced with LED, saving space and, surprisingly, thanks to our highly competitive LED pricing model, money.”

Experienced team “The keynotes were all about the LED,” recalled Coffill, “As the stage opening was completely filled with an eye-catching design of descending arches. Balancing the brightness and temperature of the LED screens with the stage lighting for camera - both for IMAG and broadcast - takes an experienced team. Thankfully, with our decades of TV studio experience, this was nothing new to us, and was completed before our client even cast an eye over it.”

That experienced team included no fewer than 27 operators – with one remarking that Sibos 2018 was one of the most comfortable corporate shows he had ever done. Over 2,600 crew hours were spent onsite.

Faultless “Corporate events of this size don’t come to town every day, or even every year, ”smiled Coffill, “and despite this overlapping with many other large projects for us – not least the Invictus Games opening ceremony - the team planned, coordinated and delivered a faultless show. It was a feat of design and coordination by our clients, and a huge team of Australia’s best suppliers – as well as suppliers from around the world - worked incredibly well to deliver a successful event.”

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“We would like to thank and congratulate the ICC Sydney venue, all the talented suppliers, our own tireless teams of technicians, crewing coordinators, warehouse coordinators, service technicians and, most of all, our client George P. Johnson,” he concluded.

Photos courtesy of TDC www.tdc.com.au

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56 April 2019

AUSTRALIA

Eurovision – Australia Decides Votes for grandMA3 grandMA3 hardware breathes new life into the established grandMA2 platform

On 14 October 2018 the Australian broadcaster Special Broadcasting Service SBS announced that for the first time, they would hold a national final to select the Australian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019, to be staged in Tel Aviv, Israel.

The Eurovision – Australia Decides national final recently took place at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. The winner, Kate Miller-Heidke with her song Zero Gravity was chosen by the combination of a public televote (50%) and the votes of a professional jury panel.

Paul Collison, lighting designer for the show, voted himself - for three grandMA3 light, 1 x grandMA3 full-size, 1 x grandMA2 light and 5 x MA NPU (Network Processing Unit) for control, plus MA 3D for visualization of the show.

He commented on his choice: “We loved using the new grandMA3 hardware. Even though we’re still on grandMA2 software, the grandMA3 hardware has breathed new life into the well-established grandMA2 platform. The more ergonomic layout of the surfaces made

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

the long days more tolerable, and incredibly accurate touch screens increased workflow efficiency. Then there are the buttons. I’ve not yet met a person who doesn’t love those buttons!”

“It is hard to imagine even trying to use a product other than MA to control a lighting system like this. Though it wasn’t an overly complex

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57 April 2019

“Being our first local Eurovision type show, it was a special project for many involved. Whilst we aren’t new to music shows, it was the first time we had produced a show which resulted in a winner in such a short time frame and that also featured so many top Australian acts like Sheppard, Mark Vincent, Ella Hooper and eventual winner and Eurovision Song Contest entrant for Australia 2019, Kate Miller-Heidke.”

Stuart Anderson (White Light) was the lighting director while Jarrad Donovan worked as lighting programmer. Adam Smith was responsible for media servers. Chameleon Touring Systems provided the lighting.

The show was produced by Blink TV Australia. Show Technology Australia Pty Ltd. is the exclusive distributor of MA Lighting in Australia. www.malighting.com show, the seamless way that multiple users can be homogeneously integrated means that any operator could assist with the focus of lighting positions or make subtle changes from the various surfaces we had located around the arena.”

“The idea of the show is simple”, continued Collison. “Make it look like the Eurovision Song Contest, with ten percent of the lights. We had a great set design from Mark Dyson and encapsulated 100 moving lights in it. Above the stage were four concentric circles of trussing that flew in and out on Kinesys motors.”

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58 April 2019

SOUTH KOREA

Shure Empowers Visionaries Competing in WeWork Creator Awards A total of 24 channels of Axient Digital and UHF-R systems provided crystal-clear audio for competitors, hosts, and judges

WeWork and Shure joined forces in South Korea to highlight the formidable creativity and imagination of innovators competing in the 2019 WeWork Creator Awards, at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, on February 28. As Official Audio Partner, Shure provided its industry-leading Axient Digital wireless solution and conferencing systems with simultaneous interpretation and language distribution.

The WeWork Creator Awards celebrates and empowers creators who work to make a life and not just a living. Through the global program, WeWork – a provider of shared workspaces and services for startups, entrepreneurs, small businesses, and freelancers – has given millions of dollars in funding to innovative businesses and organizations. During the live show portion of each Regional Semi-Final event, finalists take to the stage to pitch their ideas in front of a live audience and judges in the hopes of winning funding to get their projects off the ground or to the next level.

In Seoul, finalists made their pitches with confidence in the event venue’s 1,500-seat main hall utilizing Shure’s industry-revered wireless microphone technology. A total of 24 channels of Axient Digital and ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

UHF-R systems, generated by handheld and bodypack transmitters, provided crystal-clear audio for competitors, hosts, and judges. Axient Digital further facilitated musical performances by Korean artists Eric Nam, Ailee, Mommy Son, and Hyolyn during a post-awards party to celebrate the achievements of the innovators involved. UHF-R was also used for speech reinforcement in WeWork’s masterclass before the Awards Show, where influencers and business leaders extended the benefit of their wisdom to a gathering of creators.

To meet WeWork’s goal of clear, high-quality audio, Shure deployed DCS6000 simultaneous interpretation and DIR language distribution solutions. Six hundred digital wireless receivers were available for non-Korean speaking attendees requiring English translations.

The interpretation and infrared language distribution system were supported by Channel Media, a local conferencing equipment rental provider and member of the Shure Conferencing Network (SCN).

When the curtain finally fell on the smooth-running event, Sang Bum Lee, Business Manager at Shure in Seoul, said, “We at Shure strongly believe every voice matters. This truly shows at an event like

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the Creator Awards, where contestants need to communicate their aspirational messages in flawless fashion to a large audience.” He added, “We were immensely proud to be Official Audio Partner of the event and thrilled by the opportunity to convey extraordinary ideas via Shure’s extraordinary sound. Our congratulations go to all who took part.”

Lee went on to explain that WeWork is no stranger to Shure’s support of forward-thinking enterprises. The collaborative workspace provider is an existing user of Shure Integrated Systems solutions in many of its offices around the world and has installed Shure’s networked audio systems for AV conferencing across numerous meeting spaces.

As of early January 2019, WeWork was valued at approximately US$47 billion and manages over 45 million square feet of office space in more than 425 locations throughout 100 cities in 27 countries. www.shure.com

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60 April 2019

THAILAND

Immersive Audio for an Immersive Festival L-ISA tastes the Wonderfruit

Two years ago, Hugo Heathcote, one of three directors of Polygon Live, and his Polygon co-visionaries Archie Keswick and Nico Elliot entered into discussions about a new immersive audio concept to be delivered for a festival environment. Searching for the right technical partners to bring their 360° audio vision to fruition, the Polygon trio discovered that L-ISA had everything they required.

The destination for L-ISA was Wonderfruit, an annual arts and music festival that takes place at The Fields of Siam Country Club, near Pattaya in Thailand’s Chonburi Province. The team first delivered its vision, the Polygon Live stage, in December 2017, allowing festival-goers to experience a fully immersive event, bringing together futuristic sensory technology that synchronised touch, holographic visuals, light and spatialised sound in an all-encompassing festival environment.

Polygon deployed L-ISA technology for its interactive Polygon Live stage for very good reasons, as Heathcote explains: “Not only does L-Acoustics make the best loudspeakers, they’re way ahead in the development of immersive audio technology. With our incredibly

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talented team collaborating with the team at L-ISA, and working alongside festival Founder, Pete Phornprapha, we produced a programme, from inception to delivery, for a completely new and innovative stage at Wonderfruit.”

The success of the new concept meant that at its second outing, in December 2018, the team could build on the previous year’s achievement. This time, it moved on from just playback in the stage’s 25m diameter bamboo structure, to live performances, allowing L-ISA technology to be utilised by some of the world’s leading underground House and Techno DJs over a four-day period.

“From an audio point of view, the goal was to give our DJs and producers the ability to spatialise their content when playing live,” Heathcote explains. “The design was very much led by the desire to not only achieve the highest quality audio that would encompass everyone who visited our stage, but to maximise our ability to freely move audio within our custom speaker configuration, a hemisphere of loudspeaker sources, encompassing the audience with surround and overhead layers.”

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61 April 2019

The L-ISA system design was a collaboration between Polygon Live and Director of L-ISA Labs, Sherif el Barbari. L-Acoustics Application Engineer, Alvin Koh, also worked closely on the project alongside sound designer and immersive mixing specialist, Davey Williamson, who has been involved in complex L-ISA designs such as SPYSCAPE experiential museum in New York City. “Davey’s proven ability to execute both a technical and creative delivery on L-ISA projects was an invaluable asset to us,” Heathcote says.

with and performed beautifully. We’re at the beginning of an exciting journey and so look forward to pushing the L-ISA technology as much as we can, with the goal of producing truly extraordinary experiences.

Huge thanks to Christian Heil, Sherif El Barbari, and the entire L-ISA team for entrusting us with their flagship technology.”

The team deployed 12 hangs of three Kara with an SB18 atop each hang, placed in a dodecahedron configuration facing the centre of the structure, with a 115XT HiQ below each hang to allow for nearfield coverage. The height elevation consisted of eight 115XT HiQ in a ring, all facing directly downwards. Sub enhancement was delivered through 16 SB28 as a central configuration, comprising two rows of eight in horizontal orientation. System control was via a DiGiCo SD824 Core 2, which sent a MADI stream of 64 sources to the L-ISA Controller.

System calibration was carried out by system engineer Matt Gush, with direction from Williamson.

www.l-acoustics.com

“The results exceeded all expectations,” Heathcote concludes. “The sound was the best we had ever heard - the system was a joy to work

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Having successfully deployed the system for a second time, Polygon Live is now looking to roll out the concept globally.

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AUSTRALIA

Seeing the Big Picture at Australia Day

Big Picture supplies the entire broadcast facilities, LED screens, event communication and network backbone

CCU Operators in NEP HD-10 using Panasonic ROP January 26th is Australia Day and every year the nation celebrates in spectacular style. The flagship event is Australia Day Live held at Sydney Opera House and in 2019 it was bigger and better than ever. Australia’s musical stars, including Kate Cebrano, Jon Stevens and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, took to the stage in an unforgettable concert, featuring dazzling firework displays and a breathtaking maritime extravaganza.

Australia Day Live in Sydney is produced by the NSW Government through the Australia Day Council of NSW and is proudly supported by Big Picture. Big Picture is a part of the NEP Worldwide Network, the leading production partner supporting premier content producers in live sports and entertainment across the globe.

This year’s Australia Day Live was a massive event for Big Picture, who supplied a turnkey technical solution of outside broadcast facilities, LED screens, event communications and network backbone which included a significant amount of Riedel equipment with 68 Riedel Artist Panels

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across OB trucks, production and event control locations, 25 Riedel MicroNs for uncompressed video and audio signal distribution and 22 managed switches interfaced across the event site at the Sydney Opera House and Circular Quay with over 10km of fiber.

This was the first year that Big Picture supplied the entire broadcast facilities, LED screens, event communication and network backbone as the end to end solution. The full broadcast technical supply and management included two HD Broadcast Trucks – NEP Australia HD-10 and Big Picture HD-1.

“In previous years there were various suppliers to do different elements but this year we supplied the bulk of the technical solutions in those areas,” commented Josh Moffat, Special Projects & Business Development at Big Picture. “It’s a challenging job as everything is so spread out. Usually we do an OB or iMag setup for a concert where everything is in one area and everything directly connects to the OB truck or flyaway system in one central location.”

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93 SqM ROE MC-7H build completed on barge at White Bay with LED Technician Ian “Cuzzy” Andrews

April 2019

Panasonic HD Camera on top of South West Pylon of Sydney Harbour Bridge connected via Microwave Link

Panasonic HD Camera with Fujinon HD 101x Lens on Garden Island connected with AirFiber with full camera control and video over IP

The geography of the event was expansive and running single cables to every camera, given that half of them are on the other side of Circular Quay with some on top of apartment buildings and one on Garden Island, was not practical. The Big Picture team worked hard to come up with a technical solution that would facilitate the set-up in an economical and streamlined manner whilst being reliable with built-in redundancy.

other. The Riedel Artist Frames were a mixture of 128 and 64 port, and were linked via a redundant fiber ring to facilitate all event and broadcast communications.

“Australia Day Live is a challenging project for many reasons,” commented Craig Borg of Five Peas, Production Manager Broadcast and Opera House Concert. “Mainly it’s the lack of bump in time we have on all sites, restrictions around site access and working hours, densely populated public / tourist areas, lack of rehearsal time and in some cases no opportunity to rehearse some maritime and aerial elements of the show.”

“It was impractical for some staff to wear five or six 2-way radios so the Bolero system implemented across the project was the ideal solution,” added Josh. “It was seamless and the audio quality and coverage was very good despite being in such an RF congested environment, in fact you really couldn’t fault it.”

“It’s a lot of signals to move around a large distance,” added Josh.

“The first thing we looked at was what we had to move, signal wise, between various locations. We already had a large inventory of Riedel MicroN fiber nodes so the natural solution, and the most elegant one, was to deploy them around the site for uncompressed video and audio transport between all stages and the screen barge located in the harbour. In all there was 820GB of network capacity on the Mediornet system.”

Josh described the Riedel Bolero system as very handy, especially as the crew sometimes had to talk on up to six different communications channels at once. A total of 24 Riedel Bolero Beltpacks were used.

There were also 51 analogue UHF, analogue VHF and a mixture of Zeon and Orion digital radio channels interfaced into a matrix system including three UHF Bases on the Sydney Harbour Bridge Pylon interfaced via IP. Over 7km of OpticalCon Quad Fiber and over 7.5km of 16 Core Fiber ran between Sydney Opera House and Campbells Cove, with the fiber network covering the Sydney Opera House Forecourt, Loading

Remote CCUs were placed around the site with video trunked via the MicroN Network and comms routed via remote Artist Frames, IP Tally interfaces and Camera Control over the network resulted in no noticeable difference between cameras connected directly to the truck and remote over the MicroN network in picture quality or control for technical staff or the camera operators.

Twenty-two Ubiquiti Unifi Switches were used for all network data, lighting control and Dante audio transport with a mixture of 1GB and 10GB links between areas based on bandwidth.

The large Riedel Artist intercom system deployed for communication resulted in no limitations to how the crew could interact or talk to each

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Main Production Gallery inside NEP HD-10 in full swing during show

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Fujinon 4K 107x Lens on Sydney Opera House Main Stage

April 2019

Sydney Opera House Main Stage with ROE CB-5 LED Screens and 40ft Jimmy

Dock, North Boardwalk and nodes all the way around to Hickson Road Reserve. There was also sunken fiber in Circular Quay to the Screen Barge. All of this cable was put in on one overnight run.

“To get the bandwidth we required, the only real option was to run our own fiber,” added Josh. “There were government-owned tie lines available but they don’t give you enough bandwidth for a project such as this. One of the key things with using MediorNet is that the video is uncompressed so you maintain quality and minimize any latency issues, using the government tie lines would have meant compressing the video and limiting the scope for changes as the project evolved.”

A total of twenty-three HD cameras were deployed across the Sydney Opera House Forecourt, Circular Quay, Campbell’s Cove, Quay West Apartments, Sydney Harbour Bridge Pylon and Garden Island. These included ten Panasonic HK-HC5000, seven Panasonic HK-UC4000 4K, two Panasonic AJ-PX5000G 3G P2 ENG camera and four Sony HSC-300 HD cameras located on HMAS Choules. Added to that were a wide range of Fujinon lenses.

“There were several comments made about how clean and crisp our new 4K Panasonic cameras with the 4K lenses from Fujinon performed” said Josh. “Everyone was delighted with their performance.”

Daniel Bovencamp and Nathan Barnier patching Fiber Cables into NEP HD-10

at a different frequency range that is not as saturated allowed the use of a video over IP solution, was deployed to great success.

The screens were exclusively from ROE and included 188m² of ROE MC-7H LED in ACASS touring frames on a barge in the middle of circular quay, 33m² of ROE CB-5 in T4 Touring Frames for SOH IMAG Screens and one 15m² ROE MC-7H LED Screen in ACASS Frames on HMAS Choules.

“Given the technical complexity and scale of the project, in addition to broadcasting live to a national audience, we needed to ensure the technical solution not only met the needs of the project but was a truly integrated solution,” continued Craig. “Big Picture were able to provide this to us in many ways. They maintain a substantial inventory of quality equipment and now being part of the NEP network were able upscale in line with the needs of the project.

“This being said, equipment supply is only one part of any project’s success. The Big Picture team, expertly led and managed by Josh Moffat were not only highly skilled in their respective fields but equally as focused on the overall success of the project and the technical solution as a whole.” www.bigpicture.com

The remote location cameras could have been a challenge to set up in such a congested RF environment and so Ubiquiti AirFiber, which runs

Josh Moffat at Comms Control programming Riedel Artist and Mediornet ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

Sydney Opera House FOH with ROE MC-7H Autocue LED Screen, Panasonic 4K Cameras with Fujinon 107x 4K Lens.

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EVENTS CALENDAR

April 2019

EVENTS CALENDAR 2019 Apr 02 – 05 Prolight + Sound Frankfurt 2019 Venue: Frankfurt am Main VISIT SITE

Jun 09 – 12 Guangzhou International Lighting Exhibition Venue: China Import and Export Fair Complex, Guangzhou, China

Jul 17 - 19 InfoComm China Beijing 2019 Venue: China National Convention Center (CNCC) VISIT SITE

VISIT SITE

Apr 06 – 11 NAB Show 2019 Show starts on April 09 Venue: Las Vegas Convention Center, NV, USA VISIT SITE

Jun 12 – 14 Conference Programme starts on Jun 08 InfoComm International 2019 Venue: Orange County Convention Center, Orlando, USA VISIT SITE

May 08 – 10 SecutechAsia Venue: Taipei Nangang Exhibition Centre, Taipei, Taiwan VISIT SITE

May 08 – 11 Guangzhou Entertainment Technology (GET) Show Venue: Poly World Trade Centre Expo, Guangzhou, China VISIT SITE

Jun 12 – 14 Conference Programme starts on Jun 11 IAAPA Asian Attractions Expo 2019 Venue: Shanghai New International Expo Centre in Shanghai, China

Jul 18 – 20 Pro AVL Indonesia in conjunction with Toursim Technology Asia and Broadcast & Media Technology Venue: Jakarta International Expo, Jakarta, Indonesia VISIT SITE

Jul 18 – 20 Summer NAMM 2019 Venue: Music City Centre, Nashville, TN VISIT SITE

VISIT SITE

June 18 – 20 ConnectechAsia (BroadcastAsia 2019) Venue: Suntec, Singapore

Aug 27 – 29 Integrate Venue: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, Melbourne, Australia VISIT SITE

VISIT SITE

May 15 – 17 InfoComm Southeast Asia Venue: Bangkok International Trade and Exhibition Centre (BITEC), Thailand VISIT SITE

June 18 – 20 ConnectechAsia (CommunicAsia and NXTAsia 2019) Venue: Marina Bay Sands, Singapore VISIT SITE

May 30 – 1 June PALM Expo India 2019 Venue: Bombay Exhibition Center, Goregaon East, Mumbai, India VISIT SITE

Jun 27 - 29 LED Expo Thailand Venue: IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Center, Bangkok, Thailand

Sep 04 -06 InfoComm China Chengdu Venue: Chengdu Century City-New International Exhibition & Convention Center, China VISIT SITE

Sep 18 - 20 InfoComm India 2019 Venue: Bombay Exhibition Centre, India VISIT SITE

VISIT SITE

May 30 – 1 June AV Integrated Systems Expo 2019 Venue: Bombay Exhibition Center, Goregaon East, Mumbai, India VISIT SITE

July 2 - 4 SLV Symposium Venue: Quill Convention Centre, Quill Mall, Kuala Lumpur

Sep 18 – 20 LED China 2019 - Shanghai Venue: Shanghai New International Expo Center VISIT SITE

VISIT SITE

Nov 18 - 24 Exhibition starts on Nov 22 Live Design International (LDI) Venue: Las Vegas Convention Centre, USA VISIT SITE

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

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MARKET PLACE

April 2019

Enquire

FOR ENQUIRIES OR TO LIST YOUR USED EQUIPMENT CONTACT 10K USED GEAR ASIA CONTACT BASED IN SINGAPORE:

MANOJ CHAMANLAL

manoj.chamanlal@10kused.com

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d&b audiotecknik J-series System

Christie Digital Roadie HD+30k

€ 124,270.00

€13,140.00

For sale a used d&b Audiotechnik J-Series system for sale - 12x J8, 4x J12, 8x J subs, 4x (4x)D12 amp racks, frames etc.,.

Enquire

For sale used Christie Digital Roadie HD+30k Projectors in good condition and price shown is per piece. Includes frame and case.

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MA Lighting MA OnPc Command wing/Fader wing

Yamaha CL3

Martin P3 150

€8,000.00

€14,120.00

For sale a used Yamaha CL3 Digital Mixing Desk in top condition and the price shown is for 1 x Mixer, flightcase and optional meter.

€4,300.00

For sale a used MA Lighting MA OnPc Command wing and Fader wing in excellent condition. Includes flightcase & 2 Elo intelli touchscreen 19”/ 17” also with flightcase.

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For sale used Martin P3 150 System Controllers in good condition, a few scratches to casings and the price shown is per piece..

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Panasonic PT-RZ660

Sony SRX-T110

JBL VRX 815m

€10,615.00

€12,130.00

€735.00

For sale a new Panasonic PT-RZ660 Projector that is in perfect condition and the price shown is for 1 x Piece. Includes 3 years warranty.

For sale a used Sony SRX-T110 Projector in good condition and the price shown is for 1 x Projector. Includes 3 months warranty.

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Enquire

Varilite VL 1100AS ERS

L-Acoustics SB118

€2,950.00

€940.00

For sale brand new Varilite VL1100AS ERS Lighting Fixtures, price shown is per fixture and also includes lamp.

For sale used JBL VRX 815m Loudspeakers that are in perfect condition and the price shown is per piece. Includes JBL covers.

We have for sale used L-Acoustics SB118 subwoofer, these are all in good condition and the price shown is per single sub, includes dollies and softcovers

ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY ASIA | www.e-techasia.com

PRICE MIGHT DIFFER AT WEBSITE DUE TO DYNAMIC PRICING MECHANISM