As protocols evolve a lot these days, and each pixel on stage has to be in total control, it seems logical that important Leading Italian lighting manufacturer Claypaky announces its commitment to ArKaos’s powerful Kling-Net protocol, which will now be embedded in its newest HY B-EYE product line.

Kling-Net integration into HY B-EYE product line

Giovanni Zucchinali, Claypaky’s Product Portfolio Manager, explains: “as the current and future requirements of lighting and visual design are so dynamic and fast-moving, lighting designers, programmers and operators need the most flexible and creative tools at their fingertips.
We see a strong trend for one of those future developments being moving heads and pixel fixtures increasingly working in conjunction with video content”.

He goes on the explain that the new Claypaky HY B-EYE K25 and HY B-EYE K15 recently introduced to the market, are supplied with ArKaos Kling-Net as standard and already included in the firmware.
Both models feature 4°-60° Zoom range and exclusive parallel beam consisting of an array of individually controllable micro-beams, with K25 comprising 37 x RGBW LED Osram OSTAR – Stage II, while K15 has 19.

“This new and interesting feature greatly expands the already rich effects of the HY B-EYE range, making it an even more versatile and practical luminaire” comments ArKaos CEO Marco Hinic.
“This is why, going forward, ArKaos is supporting Claypaky devices with the Kling-Net software network interface and we are all looking forward to this combination of cutting-edge technologies that will offer faster, more flexible and even more versatile products”.

Kling-Net is a revolutionary plug-and-play control protocol developed by digital media specialists ArKaos for the easy operation of LED and video devices / lightsources.
It allows the distribution of real-time video data to remote display devices – like LED fixtures or LED panels – over Ethernet, adding a degree of ‘intelligence’ with the automatic configuration and connection of display devices to a computer.

It enables the perfect time synchronization of video signals sent to multiple devices and avoids using expensive hardware and video converters to achieve this.
Using Kling-Net, a heterogenic network of display devices from different manufacturers can be created and all controlled all from one computer.

Simple integration into a video show design

One of the many aspects of Kling-Net impressing Claypaky was the opportunity to integrate luminaires very simply into a show video design. This does remove the usual complications and time needed by the user/designer to create a device library containing the pixel mapping information specific to each fixture. With Kling-Net embedded, the fixture itself provides that information.

More information on Claypaky new HY B-EYE Series and Arkaos Kling-Net protocol.

The history of the Z-Bau Nuremberg, a former barracks, a 5,500 square-metre site built in 1937. More than 6 million euros were invested in construction measures, including a new stage, improved acoustics, electrics, lighting and sound technology, making Z-Bau a showcase project for state-of-the-art events locations in Germany.

In the 1990s, the site was used by the US Army – its hall acting as an officers’ casino and entertainments venue – before later becoming an arts and culture centre. Recently, the heart of this home to artists, freethinkers and musicians, was completely renovated.

The company into>noise (Andreas Zeh and Tobias Förster) from Munich was responsible for sound reinforcement technology and relied on products from CODA Audio. The gallery, red salon and artists studios at the venue had been modernised two years ago during the first phase of renovation and CODA’s RX40, G712 and HOPS8 loudspeakers as well as U4 and G18-SUB were installed in these areas.

The newly installed main system, serving a 1000 capacity space, consists of 2 x 9 ViRAY, 8 x SCP sensor-control subwoofers and 4x HOPS8 as nearfills.
3 x TiRAY as centre delay line improves speech intelligibility in the range from FOH to the bar in the back. 10 x CUE-TWO and additional G18-SUB for drum and sidefill applications provide flexible monitoring. The existing RX40 and G712 are also used as sidefills, drumfills or DJ monitoring.

Total XTA & Linus control

The entire system is controlled by 6 x LINUS14D and 4 x LINUS-10C. An integrated XTA DP548 controller serves as a 4 x 8 audio matrix and feeds the LINUS14D amplifiers of the main system, including subwoofer and delay, fully digital via LiNET. DANTE is optionally available as input source for the LINUS14D of the main system.

Andi Zeh reports, as project manager of the audio installation in the Z-Bau : “I am pleased that the Z-Bau again placed its trust in me as project manager for audio in this second phase of construction. Since the CODA Audio systems have already proven themselves in the past, it was only logical to rely again on the company from Hanover.

The particularly distortion-free, high-frequency reproduction is simply something special. The systems are so clean that often one does not realize just what volume the system is capable of. In the Z-Bau, for example, a supplementary DATEQ SPL6 limiter with live regulation for disco operation and an XTI NL2 for self-monitoring of the FoH operator during concert operation, were purchased.

It’s not just the high frequency driver that’s special – the fast and impulse-true sensor-controlled subwoofers really show their advantages in the Z-Bau. The room’s acoustic construction measures are primarily designed for the mid and high frequencies.
Due to the high impulse fidelity and the controllable decay behaviour of the SCP 2x 18″ subwoofers used, the room in the low end can be controlled and is only excited as far as necessary.

Homogeneous sound image

When the installation showed that it was possible to achieve a homogeneous sound image in the entire hall with only a few room correction filters, I realized once again why it was right to rely on CODA.
Phase linearity and the uniform, very neutral acoustic ‘footprint’ of all CODA Audio systems are key to a very comfortable and fast system calibration.”

For the experienced studio and FoH technician Toni ‘Meloni’ Loitsch, who pushes the live faders of the Donots, as well as for popular German artists Yvonne Catterfeld and Silbermond, working on CODA Audio systems is something special due to the very accurate playback.

He states: “I have observed CODA over a number of years and have enjoyed working on their monitors as well as smaller PAs – I’ve always had good experiences! That’s why I found it very exciting to be able to work on a larger system for the first time at this newly renovated club in Nuremberg.
I find working on CODA systems to be a whole new experience – many more heights are transported and mapped without appearing unpleasantly shrill. Using the CODA system, I don’t have to process the mix so much with equalizers to get my desired result.”

Louder than bombs

In late January 2019, successful rock band ‘Donots’ had the honour of inaugurating the hall on their ‘Lauter als Bomben’ (Louder than Bombs) tour.
They celebrated this way the reopening of the Z-Bau, as well as their 25th stage anniversary, with a sold out house, a fantastic atmosphere and hugely impressive sound.

The Z-Bau has always been an important concert venue for the Nuremberg region and its recent renovation further strengthens its position, setting it up for a successful future delivering a new generation of high quality events. The ‘Next Generation’ products from CODA Audio fit perfectly into the concept.

More information on Coda Audio.

Award-winning Front of House engineer Simon Honywill found DPA solutions when he was asked to tackle sound design for a non-conventional new live music and dance production called The Nature of Why. He managed to point DPA microphones directly at PA speakers with no feedback. Here’s how he did it.

Using a combination of DPA microphones and EM Acoustics loudspeakers positioned in a circle around the stage, Honywill pulled off the task of creating an ambient acoustic ‘bubble’ for this unusual performance in which the audience is as much a part of the show as the musicians and dancers.

“I needed to make sure all the microphones I was using were as predictable as possible,” Simon Honywill explains. “DPA was the obvious choice – not just because they are always my first choice but because each microphone sounds exactly the same so you know you are starting from the same base point.”

Commissioned by Unlimited, The Nature of Why takes inspiration from the Nobel prize-winning theoretical physicist Richard Feynman and his search for meaning in the world around us.
It features a cinematic live score by Goldfrapp’s Will Gregory that is performed by the British Paraorchestra, the world’s only large-scale ensemble for professional disabled musicians.

They are joined on stage by 5 dancers, choreographed by Caroline Bowditch, and the Army of Generals, an 11 piece string ensemble of non-disabled orchestral musicians that is famed for its dynamic energy-fuelled performances. The conductor was Charles Hazlewood, who also founded the Bristol-based Paraorchestra.

“The whole idea of The Nature of Why is to have the musicians, dancers and audience in the same space so that everyone is up close and personal,” Honywill explains.

“The performance area is so crowded that an audience member might be standing next to a viola player, yet still need to hear a percussionist who is hidden behind a crowd of other people on the opposite side of the stage.
Creating an immersive soundfield where you can hear everything and know exactly where everything is coming from, even when you can’t see if, was the main challenge. Of course you shouldn’t point a microphone at a loudspeaker, but to achieve what we wanted that was exactly what we did.”

Throwing convention out of the window

And it worked, as can be attested by the reaction of reviewers who described The Nature of Why as a show that threw convention out of the window, reshaped the audience experience and allowed people to see, hear and feel the performance in a totally new way.

With a career in sound that spans more than 35 years, and as a DPA Master, Simon Honywill certainly has the experience to bend the rules of microphone placement when he needs to. For this production he says the choice of microphone was just as important as the position if he was to achieve the acoustic bubble he wanted.

DPA 4011.

Honywill hung d:dicate™ 4011A Cardioid Condenser microphones in a circle over the performance space, with two stereo pairs back to back in the centre so they covered 360 degrees and the remaining eight around the edge of the circle at points of the compass. Each microphone was 2.7 meters above the ground.

“This arrangement allowed me to route the microphones to the various speakers, which I had positioned in ring around the stage,” he says.
“At certain points during the performance the audience hears audio clips from a Richard Feynman interview. This arrangement allowed me to direct his voice through various speakers so that is sounded as though he was in a number of different places. The overall effect was really successful because you feel a wonderful sense of directional placement and space.”

People all over the stage

With people all over the stage it was also important to highlight the sound of various instruments so they could be heard by everyone. A selection of d:vote™ 4099 Instrument Microphones and d:screet 4061™ Miniature Omnidirectional microphones were used to great effect and their input was incorporated into the multitrack mix.

DPA 4099 (2 different versions).

“I had lots of direct sounds to play with, as well as the ambient sound from the d:dicate 4011As,” Honywill says. “All the mics were radio mics and I made sure to set up the overhead mics so there was coverage of the entire area with minimal chance of feedback. I could have done this project with different microphones but I chose DPA because they always give me the results I want.

Predictable sound between each microphone was really important, as was knowing how far I could push the microphones before anything distorted. They gave me a very even soundfield, which was what I needed – and they also gave me a sound I really like, which is why I use them all the time.”

Since its premier at the Bristol Old Vic in May 2018, The Nature of Why has been performed at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London and is about to travel to Perth in Australia. It will then return to the UK for performances in Cardiff and Brighton later this year.

More information on DPA microphones and EM Acoustics loudspeakers.

Elation and Acclaim lighting effects were exploding with beams, effects and blazing colors during the iconic Space Needle in Seattle rang in the New Year indeed. This event was Seattle biggest fireworks extravaganza to date, so it has to be accompanied by a spectacular light show.
The integration of lighting effects into the fireworks, along with a musically-choreographed stand-alone light show prior to the fireworks, was a new element to the storied New Year’s Eve event and one that proved extremely popular.

Illuminate Production Services (IPS) was responsible for the lighting aspect of the event, collaborating with Pyro Spectaculars as well as fireworks designer Alberto Navarro of Infinity Visions. IPS installed and tested the Space Needle lighting in just three days prior to New Year’s Eve. IPS head Rick Franke managed the lighting project and the IPS team, which included son Caleb Franke who served as lighting designer.

“Although they have been doing fireworks for 25 years, a light show like this has never been done before on the Needle,” stated Rick Franke. “They wanted to do something different, something more multimedia, something that would impress. I think we accomplished that with this new light show.”

Perfect Proteus conditions

IPS positioned lighting at 87 different positions from the top 605-foot level all the way down to the ground. Perhaps not surprising for a project of this dimension, Franke says there were all sorts of engineering and show challenges to overcome, not least Mother Nature.
“After two days of good weather the winds picked up to 50 mph sustained winds with peaks at 75 mph,” he said. “We could feel the Needle swaying, which was a bit unnerving to say the least. There were also buckets of rain and extreme wind chill temperatures to deal with.”

In other words, conditions were ideal for Elation’s all-weather Proteus Hybrid™ and Proteus Beam™ moving head effects, which were central to the light show, sending powerful beams of light thousands of feet into the Seattle night sky.

“The Proteus fixtures were made for these kinds of conditions and everything held up great,” Franke continues. “I can’t imagine doing this type of installation with any other fixtures.
We considered using non-IP65 rated fixtures in the core stairwell positions but are glad we didn’t as, with the wind, the rain was coming in sideways.”

With an elevator that only stopped at three levels, IPS workers had to haul fixtures up 100s of feet of stairs to their positions. But perhaps Franke’s greatest concern when dealing with fixtures across so many levels were connection issues.

“Power and data distribution was a challenge as wireless control wasn’t a viable option,” he said, “but we had no problems and I was relieved to see that everything worked when turned on.”

Show lighting & fireworks collaboration

Nine Proteus Beams worked from the 100-foot level, 6 Proteus Hybrids from the 200-foot level, 6 Proteus Hybrids from the top of the Needle at 605 feet, and 12 Proteus Beams were positioned on the roof of the saucer.
Joining the Proteus Beams on top of the saucer were 12 Elation Cuepix 16 IP™ LED matrix panels used to color wash the top of the saucer for what Franke called ‘money shots’ taken from ever-present helicopters for newsreel broadcasts.
IPS had worked with Pyro Spectaculars on a previous project and was invited by owner Ian Gilfillan to be a part of the Space Needle project. While a 30-minute 10:00pm light show allowed the lighting an exclusive stage on which to build excitement, during the midnight fireworks show lighting played more of a supporting role.

“When we got involved with the project, Alberto Navarro, who has been designing the Space Needle NYE fireworks show for 25 years, had already scripted the fireworks show. So Caleb worked with Navarro to design the lighting around the fireworks. The result was a collaboration that led to some interesting effects.”

One striking result of the teamwork was Elation Paladin™ LED hybrid effect lights working in unison with the fireworks. Mounted inside the stair rail up and down the three sides of the Space Needle’s core were 30 IP65-rated Paladin lights (10 per side), all pointing outwards. Right after fireworks were shot off, the Paladins were used to illuminate the trail of smoke in a variety of colors, adding an extra layer of color and effect to the show.

Core lighting

The 55-year-old Space Needle has recently undergone a $100 million renovation, including the addition of enormous amounts of glass, including for the world’s first revolving glass floor 500 feet in the air.
Acclaim Lighting Dyna Drum™ LED wash lights were placed between layers of glass in the floor to downlight the core. Additional Dyna Drum fixtures were used at ground level.

“The Acclaim Dyna Drum HO showed itself to be a great fixture for this application,” says Rick Franke. “You don’t always know how a fixture will perform on a project of this magnitude, especially on a 605-foot tall structure. They had actually been told that LED wouldn’t be bright enough, but the Dyna Drum proved that it was and they were very impressed.” All of the lighting for the NYE show was designed and preprogrammed using Capture™ design software.

The client was very happy with the event, reportedly stating that in 25 years they’ve never had a show that over the top. “The show was fantastic and really built excitement for next year,” Franke said, adding that the event just may emerge as the West Coast answer to the Times Square New Year’s Eve ball drop. “I’m so proud to work with this team of relentless professionals and dedicated family,” he concludes.

More information on Elation Proteus IP65 moving heads and Acclaim Lighting Dyna Drum™ LED wash lights.

As the name suggests, the design concept of Illuminati is shrouded in mystery which is exemplified in its predominately black and white theme, which is reminiscent of royalty and power normally associated with these two colors. The whole technical set-up for sound and lighting was carefully sourced accordingly.

The narrative of the illuminati society has been steeped in mystery and intrigue and this is translated to the design by the symbolic triangular of the logo.
The major challenge in designing the lighting and sound system at Illuminati was that the client wanted a space that could work as a restaurant during the day and a bar during the night and turn to a lounge with a clubby vibe during the week ends.

These initial requirements from the client (Mr. Gaurav Bakaya and Mr. Akhilesh Rao of AGA hospitality) threw up enormous Interior design and technical challenges. SLA & Amate Audio were bought to India by White Eagle Entertainment, New Delhi.
They also designed and executed the lighting and sound system along with Mumbai interior design firm DesignWorx, providing an innovative solution to meet the challenges required for the space. The whole project was managed and executed by Transform Projects Pvt Ltd.

Triangle inspiration

Just like the interiors, lighting too draws its inspiration from the Triangle which is star spangled along the two prominent dome structures. These triangular lighting system has been painstakingly and intricately custom designed to illuminate on both side in order to create an illusion of infinity and space. Most of the lighting fixtures have been customized to the unique requirements of the space and had to meet the design intend.

A vertical moving Light truss and rotating truss have been juxtaposed to creating multiply effects when the place needs transcends into the lounge zone. This movement also helped in camouflaging the technical lights when the place needed to switch back into the restaurant mode.

The sound system had been challenged due to large reflective surfaces of mirrors and glass across the space. These were addressed by using facets and some innovative sound dispersion techniques.

Lighting is programmed by a prefssional software controlling pixel-like each of the 500 odd triangle in color and intensity. This provides a wide range of lighting schemes and patterns combinations, as seen in the best international night clubs.

The passage to the toilet block is spewed by laser beams to give an effect of entering a Star Wars movie set. The end result of Architectural design, lights and sound have created a mystical yet magical experience and the guest feel transported to a world of realm often seen in sci- fi movies.
“This is Matrix meets Tron meets Inception kind of vibe and becomes a close encounter of a different kind!” quotes Akhilesh Rao Aga hospitality.

While this is the first venture of this kind that Akhilesh there’s a lot of room for growth and expansion. The team is already looking at a potential venue in other cities in India and look forward to working with White Eagle Entertainment. “This is our Launchpad.” Arun Kalra from White Eagle Entertainment quoted.

1,000 LED fitted

This installation has been a changing and time consuming but was very successful at the end. As the triangular made for the custom made domes where specially made in acrylic and fitted with a LED which would be able to be seen from both sides of the dome and they were 1,000 of them! Each had to be fitted with the LED and place correctly to insure it could be seen from both sides after which we had to glue them.

DesignWorx remarks “We also had a challenge as the venue had a very low celling height and the client wanted a truss which could be recessed in to the ceiling during the dining hours and once the venue turned in to a club the lights could move in to action and the main sound will be turned on with the surround sound.”
The interiors, draws its inspiration from the Triangle which has manifested itself in many ways in the flooring pattern, in black and white marble resonates with the faceted three dimensional faceted mirrored ceiling which creates the illusion of height and space as well as the reflective Jalli work along the façade.

The highlight of the design is the two dome structure with houses the VIP seating. This intricately designed metal Jalli structure is star spangled with custom designed triangular prism shaped lighting fixture which has be painstakingly and intricately shaped to illuminate on both side in order to create an illusion of infinite possibilities.

The other challenge to overcome the changing need of the space during the day and night was achieved by using a vertical moving light truss holding the technical lights which would hide behind a vortex shape in the ceiling.
A rotating truss have been juxtaposed with the vertical moving truss to creating multiply lighting effects when the place transcends into the lounge zone.

The end result of interior design, lights and sound have created a mystical yet magical experience and the guest feel transported to a world of realm often seen in sci- fi movies.

More information on Amate Audio and SLA lighting products.

We sadly learned the loss of one of the Stage Lighting pioneers, not only in France but truly worldwide. Jean-Charles Juliat is deceased. The announcement was made by his two children François and Frédéric Juliat.

Since 1960, when he joined Robert Juliat’s team, Jean-Charles has never stopped innovating and turning this company, originally dedicated to the lighting of film shoots, into an absolute and worldwide reference for stage lighting, jumping from one idea to another, from follow-spots to DMX512 fixtures, and finally LEDs. 100 years of quality, innovation and beautiful light.

« We don’t have the words to express the deep sadness that overwhelms us and to honor our father, who died today at the age of 76. Inquiring mind, passionate about shows and their lighting, strong personality, Jean-Charles transmitted his values to us and made Robert Juliat a sustainable family business he can be proud of. The flame of his presence will continue to shine in our hearts forever. »
François and Frédéric Juliat.

The SoundLightUp editorial team is fully associated with this tribute and shares with the whole family its sadness for the loss of the man, but also the creator of projectors that made each show even more magical.

Jean Charles, the second-generation CEO of the 100-year old French followspot and lighting manufacturer, was the driving force behind the development of the company for nearly 40 years, from the early 1970’s until he handed over the helm to his son, François Juliat, in 2009.

Blessed with a curious spirit, a passion for lighting and the entertainment industry, and a strong personality, Jean Charles was an ingenious inventor, developing products as he designed tools to carry out his many projects.

With lighting design as his first love, Jean Charles was to introduce an architectural and outdoor lighting dimension to the family company that had been started by his father, Robert Juliat, in 1919. Robert, who coined the Robert Juliat brand, was the son of cinema effects, projection and lighting specialist, Jean Juliat, and opened his first shop in Paris selling cinema and theatre lighting equipment.

From these beginnings, Jean Charles took the decision to ‘go niche and innovate’, creating original, bespoke products that people needed but no-one else was making. The 1960s saw the arrival of a gobo changer, an oil wheel, the first bubble machine outside the US, the Actibul, and the Minuspot – the first spotlight designed for general public use – which sold 100,000 units.

By the time Jean Charles replaced Robert as CEO in 1975 the company numbered 7-10 people working in production, and Jean Charles curtailed his love of lighting design to concentrate on the company. The factory premises were extended to handle increased production demands and Jean Charles employed a dedicated marketing manager to allow himself more time to develop the product portfolio and to expand Robert Juliat’s growing reputation for quality and innovation.

With his customary sharp business acumen, Jean Charles wisely decided to consolidate the company’s energy into developing products for the theatre market after President Mitterand announced a major change in government policy in 1981 with a plan to develop and support theatre in every province across France.

The sound decision paid off when, in 1984, the newly-built Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy, experiencing problems with its huge throw distances, held a shoot-out between manufacturers to find a 2K profile which could meet the challenge. On reaching the final two, RJ’s fellow contestant literally went up in smoke and RJ came away with an order for almost 700 luminaires!

The event was to completely revolutionise the image of Robert Juliat and confirmed the company as a major presence in theatre lighting.

As its brand spread internationally, Robert Juliat moved to a new purpose-built 5500m2 facility at the current site in Fresnoy-en-Thelle, north of Paris. Robert Juliat followspot sales boomed and its ‘niche’ products, such as the HMI profiles, attracted interest worldwide. Today, the company employs a team of more than 70 people.

Jean Charles always ensured that the company he presided over was, and remains, proudly French, with all aspects of its products designed and built in France. Some of the many ground-breaking products to come out of Jean Charles inventive mind include the first HMI followspot in the early ‘70s, the Cyrano and Lancelot followspots and the 600 Series and 700 Series HMI profiles. All bear the same superb optical qualities which have gained Robert Juliat its unbeatable reputation for top quality light production and rock-solid manufacture, with many fixtures garnering awards along the way.

Jean Charles’ master stroke, however, came with the formation of an extensive worldwide dealer network known as the ‘Robert Juliat Family’. Jean Charles claimed that he picked all Robert Juliat Family members “for their like-minded attitude to the Robert Juliat ideals, being enthusiasts who also know and love lighting, and have specialist knowledge in their individual fields and commitment to lighting as an art.” In other words, who had the same passion and integrity as himself. He led by example, chose his partners well, and many of those individuals and companies have since grown to become leaders in the market.

It is bitter-sweet that this year marks the centenary of Robert Juliat as a company when the man who did such a lot to establish its reputation is no longer here to celebrate the achievement. But the Robert Juliat name lives on in Jean Charles’ two sons, François Juliat and Frédéric Juliat, and so the spirit of the RJ Family continues to flow in the company headquarters at Fresnoy-en-Thelle and through the extended family of distributors in France and around the world.

Jean Charles is survived by his two sons, François and Frédéric, and by his wife, Marie-France. The funeral and celebration of his life took place on Friday 15 February at Notre-Dame de l’Assomption, Champagne-sur-Oise, France. The flame of his presence will continue to burn in our hearts forever.

A new washlight steps in the Ayrton family, able to sculpt light like the Bora, but as small as the Merak, which means a mere 60 cm height (head pointing up), and weighing only 22 kg. Levante is a true wonder, delivering 20,000 lumens thanks to its 300 W led engine.

For stage applications, one should better go for the S version and its bigger luminous flux, and its 6500K color temperature with a quite standard CRI of 70. For studio applications, the TC version will be a better choice with its 5700K reference white and an excellent color rendition (CRI 90).

If you can’t wait to actually see it at Prolight+Sound exhibition in Frankfurt early April, Ayrton unveils it on this video:

Ayrton – Levante – Presentation from Ayrton on Vimeo.

Just like the Bora, Levante stands out of the crowd with its framing module, but this time miniaturised, in which each of the 4 blades is positionable on all the usable beam field, to frame any object whatever the projector position is.
It also comprises a 7 rotating gobos wheel to widen its scope of applications, an iris with 15% to 100% variable aperture, and a progressive Frost providing a large choice of diffusing variations.

With a 138 mm diameter front lens, the optical system boards 13 lenses for a very wide zoom from 6.3° to 58° (9:1 ratio) and an even beam without hot spot. A main asset for color rendition is the CMY color mixing system, the progressive CTO, and the complementary 7 colors wheel.

Icing on the cake, to really meet all the lighting designers’ requirements, an additional diffusion filter is inserted into the lenses, to soften or even erase the beam edge, but without changing its angle! That is something stunningly new indeed…

More information on the Ayrton Website.

Now outfitted with a pair of Allen & Heath dLive S7000 mixing systems at front of house and onstage for monitors, plus an S5000 standing-in for broadcast needs, Wave Church’s Great Neck Campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, recently completed a major audio upgrade. Engineered and implemented by Virginia Beach-based S&S Productions, the system improvements bring new levels of control and flexibility to the campus.

A Wave Church Service with well-named Dave Bibel at FOH with an Allen & Heath dLive S7000.

Future-proofing the system was addressed in the upgrade, as was the need to provide the volunteer staff with gear that was intuitively easy to use. “Even if you’ve never seen them before, Allen & Heath dLive control surfaces have an air of familiarity,” S&S Productions’ Cory Sprenkle relates.
“A world of control opens up on the touchscreens that’s as simple as the smartphones we use every day. Our volunteer operators were up-and-running in no time with little instruction.”

The 12-inch capacitive touchscreens on the dLive control surfaces feature dedicated “widget” areas that can be set up to keep track of scenes, meters, FX, and other user-created control functions. Scenes are widely used at the Great Neck campus by all system operators, including Sprenkle, a member of the church himself.

“Every operator has a different way of doing things,” he adds, “and with the dLive systems we can customise our template of controls, save it, and even import it within other shows so we can always mix in the fashion we’re used to.”

There were other benefits too, including the ability to monitor and control the church’s Shure wireless microphone systems directly from the dLive interfaces or via a laptop computer using Allen & Heath dLive Director software.

With 64 busses available at each control surface, stereo mixes became a routine reality in both the house and onstage, where over 14 IEM mixes were created. Networking capabilities were expanded with the use of Waves, Dante, and AES I/O cards, the latter of which were used to carry digital input to the system amplifiers. As a safeguarding measure, each of the new dLive mixing systems is equipped with dual redundant, hot-swappable power supplies.

An Allen & Heath dLive S5000 Mixes Broadcast at Wave Church.

Further complementing the upgrade was an Allen & Heath DM64 stage box and several DX32 and DX168 expanders. “We can use 128 inputs simultaneously,” Sprenkle points out, “with far more than that available throughout the building. Fortunately, our DX32 and DX168 expanders will keep up with just about anything—including future dreams—for years to come.”

More information on dLive consoles.

Lighting designer Joshua Cutts was thrilled to drive a grandMA3 light for the Idols South Africa 2018 finale of the 14th season, hosted at Carnival City in Johannesburg. Hot on the hills of American Idols – the singing competition which has enjoyed 16 seasons since initially being aired in 2002 – Idols South Africa has already season 15 already confirmed for 2019.

The team worked together for the ninth consecutive year and comprised of Dream Sets, who were the full technical supplier headed by Project Manager Eben Peltz, lighting and set designer Joshua Cutts from Visual Frontier with Gavin Wratten once again the Executive Producer and Director. The broadcast was aired on the Mzansi Magic Network.

One arm operation

Deciding that Idols would be the ideal opportunity to test the grandMA3 light, Cutts approached Duncan Riley of DWR Distribution, MA’s distributor in South Africa, and he enthuses what a cool experience it was. “Still running on grandMA2 software, it’s still the same desk for now but with new hardware. It worked out pretty well because I broke my arm before we loaded in, and only had one arm to program with. The console was small enough for me to reach every button with one arm”, says Cutts laughing.

Joshua asserts that, from a hardware point of view, the new console rocks. “I was very impressed with the work MA Lighting have done on the buttons, faders, and the whole tactile experience, which I think is what they wanted to achieve.”
“The buttons were softer and easier to use, the faders were more responsive and the touch screen very accurate.

The grandMA3 light integrated well with my grandMA2 light, the MA NPU (Network Processing Unit), MA VPU (Video Processing Unit) and MA 8Port Node. It worked seamlessly with the system and never gave any problems.”

With his arm not working as it should, and Idols being such a high-pressure show, Cutts was grateful to ask Christopher Bolton to assist him. “I decided to fly Chris Bolton up from Durban to help me programme,” explained Cutts.
“It’s the first time I’ve done that this year. I operated because I know the show so well, but he helped me get the information into the desk which was the tricky part. We used full on time coding. Because it’s such a tight show and we’ve being doing it so well for such a long time, Gavin Wratten and our team worked very closely together.”

Sketching shapes, circles and squares

For the set Cutts sat down with Wratten and sketched some shapes. “We had done circles and squares before and we wondered what shapes we should do this year,” Cutts recalls. “We started with triangles which we found were not enough of a shape.
So, we extended them and made them abstract triangles. I had to think of a way to make them interlink amongst each other. It was less about a construction of major set pieces and rather about using existing stock to achieve something.”

The end result was the tallest set the team had ever created in Carnival City’s Big Top Arena, reaching almost 13m high. “It was a challenge to rig, but I gave the drawings to Eben Peltz from Dream Sets and he and the rigging team built it perfectly, exactly as per my drawing, which I find amazing.
Eben and I know each other so well that we can preempt what the other is going to do. I know what will help him in his job and he knows what challenges I might give him, so we work together to solve it.”

More information on the grandMA3 light.

Merlin PA Hire supplies EV X2 and Dynacord TGX amps for all-OMNEO workflow on sold-out UK tour. Versatility of X-Line Advance X2 line array delivers “perfect sound” across varied venues. FOH engineer Mark Clements praises “crisp and precise” X2 performance and “massive headroom” of TGX.

Front of House engineer Mark Clements

Platinum selling vocal harmony stars The Overtones sold out concert halls across the UK when they set out on a 26-date tour at the end of 2018, accompanied by long-term front of house engineer Mark Clements. For technical production specialist Merlin PA Hire, the sheer variety of venues on the tour meant that the sound system had to be as flexible as possible while still delivering the clarity of performance required for the precise and detailed Overtones sound.

Mark Clements, the band’s engineer for nine years, asserts: “The guys are very particular about what they want and for me it needs to be precise – crystal clear vocals and the ability to retain the character of their individual voices.
It’s not a broad-spectrum EQ, it’s very defined for each performer and there’s a lot of time spent riding the faders.” Most importantly, Overtones shows are renowned for inspiring audiences to leap to their feet and dance in the aisles.

Dynacord TGX-20 amplifiers rack, ready for fully OMNEO workflow, combining Dante audio transport with OCA control.

Delivering the all-important blend of versatility, performance and power was an Electro-Voice X-Line Advance X2 line array system driven by one of the first Dynacord TGX-20 amplifier set-ups to hit the road.
In choosing to use the already award-winning Dynacord TGX amps, Merlin PA’s Neal Allen also adopted a fully OMNEO workflow for the tour, combining Dante audio transport with OCA control.

Merlin PA’s Neal Allen confirms: “It was a leap of faith. The TGX amps arrived two weeks before we came away and this was our first time using OMNEO* all the way through – a fully Dante workflow. But everything worked flawlessly.”

FOH was a mixture of EV X2-212/90 and X2-212/120 elements, plus XLE181 in-fills and front-fills and X12-128 subwoofers.

Depending on each venue’s size and load bearing capacity, Allen specified a configuration to suit with a mixture of EV X2-212/90 and X2-212/120 elements, plus XLE181 in-fills and front-fills and X12-128 subwoofers. Five Dynacord TGX-20 amps per-side were housed in the rack.
“When you’re preparing for a tour you need to think about the biggest venue and the smallest venue and select a system that will cater for both,” he says. “Truck space is always at a premium, so you need flexibility in the speaker rig and the amplifiers. That’s what we get with X-Line Advance and TGX.”

Mark Clements adds: “The X2 sound is crisp and precise. It also throws for days and the detail is top notch. With the TGX amplifiers, the headroom is a massive improvement and they sound great. They’re also very easy to use – with the software everything is accessible in a second.”
For the band, meanwhile, achieving what they call “the perfect sound” in the auditorium means they can focus on their performance. “We couldn’t do what we do without our technical team and without the equipment they use,” reasons Lachie Chapman. “On our tour, every night we have people up on their feet from the second song – literally every night. I think that’s testament to the amazing sound that we have.”

For more information, visit the Dynacord website and the Electro-Voice website.

The french Grenoble born (and still based) brand Vokkero, whose communication systems are highly appreciated in the world of high-level professional sports, has adapted since last year its technology for the Live show industry with the Guardian Plus hands-free full duplex intercom system, and now aims to go worldwide with it.

From the R&D department of mother company Adeunis, specialized since in industrial IOT electronics, the brand Vokkero was created ten years ago to answer the requirements of a tender from FIFA, world’s soccer official organization. They wanted the best possible voice optimized hands-free, full duplex system in very noisy environments like soccer stadiums. Anyone who’s ever attended a First League match in an arena such as Camp Nou, Stade de France, Old Trafford, or the like, will understand.
This worldwide contract drove Vokkero to acquire a solid experience in the world of high performance professional sports, as they designed and manufactured since then the official system of communication of football referees of the whole world.

The Guardian Plus, specially derived from the sports’models, allows any user to create in seconds a permanent intercom system, with clear and intelligible communication.
After the successful French launch of the new version of the Guardian Plus, Vokkero Business Development Manager Jérôme Henry is now looking for more distributors worldwide, and will be presenting the whole range at next edition of Prolight & Sound in Frankfurt from April 2nd-5th on their booth Hall 8, G80.

Sync at a glance

The charging base, with a clearly visible button, can synchronize at once 4 belt devices on the same frequency, thus ensuring increased safety and productivity for work teams. For larger teams, extensions (of three devices each time) allow sync on more beltpacks still, since there is no limit of the number of simultaneous users.
Another strong point is the existence of many accessories, including a 4-wire adapter for already existing wired systems, to oneself from any wire connection with the resident installation, but without changing it.

The patented integrated Vokkero noise filter gives clarity and intelligibility to the system and is the key of its intelligibility, with a bandwidth of 16 kHz. This digital audio filtering with intelligent noise suppression of the noisy work environment takes account of the very fast changing noise surroundings of concerts or live entertainment events.
The small downside that this system generated, was that by its effective analysis of the signal before any return of speech transmitted, a minor latency was created, hardly audible, but Vokkero claims to have reduced it even more.

The long range in free field (interesting for festivals, “Son et Lumiere” installations, etc.) can reach 1.2 km, but remains very variable for indoor use depending on the types of walls, buildings, etc. It is obviously much easier to transmit through windows or plaster walls than through reinforced concrete walls with metal rods inside.

The battery life of the rechargeable battery is long enough for most applications, up to twelve hours. Design, final assembly and QC are all made in Grenoble, in the French Alps.

More info on the Vokkero website.
Distribution requests should be directly sent to [email protected]

Anechoic chamber of Adeunis, mother company of Vokkero, for specialized tests.

Sixty82, a Dutch, British and French alliance of innovative industry leaders, specialized in the design and manufacture of the next generation trussing and staging systems has announced an exciting new partnership with the highly-regarded and well-renowned Dutch distributor, Senci.

In partnership with the existing distributor network in the Netherlands, Senci will offer Dutch customers optimized access to the full range of Sixty82 products. This partnership will focus on expanding the Sixty82 product line across the Netherlands as well as enabling the company to provide the growing demand for craftsmanship and technical know-how. This agreement further iterates both companies’ enthusiasm to drive growth and extend relationships with its customers.

The decision of Sixty82 to mandate Senci as the new distribution partner for the Netherlands was based on their existing customer base as well as a dedicated sales force and customer service team. “Besides offering technical knowledge and a broad product portfolio, Sixty82 particularly valued the close relationships we have with our customers as well as our access to the growing markets for the trussing and staging industry.

Sixty82 CEO Fokko Smeding

“We are excited that we can name Senci as our new distribution partner, as it is a highly regarded player in the industry,” says CEO Fokko Smeding. “They have a dynamic and experienced team, that can deliver the expanding demand for top level support.”

Carlos Rego, CEO of Senci, comments: “It is impossible to miss the growing success of Sixty82. With their in-house experience and knowledge of the industry they deliver a wide range of high-quality products.
With our mutual drive to reach an unrivalled level of quality, and the simplicity of purpose that comes with that, we believe that together we can change the current industry standards.”

More info on Sixty82 and on Senci