General Device Type Format will revolutionize the entertainment industry by offering professionals a seamless way to exchange luminary data from design to production.
Vectorworks, Inc., MA Lighting and Robe lighting announce a new development for the entertainment design and production industry that will change the way lighting designers, lighting fixture manufacturers, lighting console manufacturers and lighting visualizers will work together.
The three companies have jointly led the charge to develop a new data format, named the General Device Type Format (GDTF), which creates a unified definition for the exchange of device data between consoles, CAD and previsualization software.

From left to right Dr. Biplab Sarkar CEO of VectorWorks, Josef Valchar CEO of Robe Lighting, and Gerhard Krude Technical Director MA Lighting.

Currently, most device manufacturers use a proprietary way to define their luminaires. This lack of a standard or unified definition requires lighting console manufacturers to support and maintain a complex web of file formats. Moreover, it makes it virtually impossible for designers to leverage CAD files into consoles and makes it very difficult to link CAD software to previsualization software.
“The industry has long been plagued by the absence of a standardized way to define the description of intelligent luminaires,” said Dr. Biplab Sarkar, CEO of Vectorworks. “Today’s exchange process is fraught with challenges. The workflows are disconnected, time-consuming and often require the manual mapping of data with a high chance of error.
General Device Type Format simplifies the entire process. It creates a common data exchange language that will be the basis of a fully connected workflow, from CAD to previz to console and back. We look forward to collectively working with additional manufacturers to extend the benefits of this high-quality workflow to the professionals of the industry.”

With GDTF, luminaire manufacturers now have an open and universal data exchange format that can be read by any console manufacturer and be included in any CAD or previsualization software. No longer will custom, one-off interpretations of DMX values and conversions for specific control data be needed. The format is human-readable, royalty-free and easy to implement and maintain.

“The General Device Type Format is a fantastic new development that will revolutionize the way professionals can specify and control our products,” said Josef Valchar, CEO of Robe lighting. “It’s easy to adopt, and it makes it possible for us as manufacturers of intelligent luminaires to fully describe our fixtures with detailed information without the need for any additional computational interpretation by control or visualization manufacturers.”

“Our main motivation was to make everyone’s life easier,” said Gerhard Krude, managing director of MA Lighting Technology. “Users of any lighting control system, CAD and previz software that can process GDTF will benefit by the ease of use and the amount of details provided. GDTF contains all the information required to control and visualize all kinds of devices like fixtures, video, pyro, special FX or lasers in a standardized manner.

It supports the manufacturers to structure and provide all the data to make their devices look best — onstage and during visualization. We count on the device manufacturers to contribute. They already have all the information their customers need to perform. Once our industry has adapted to the new GDTF standard, all our lives will become much easier — for good.”
The three companies will discuss the announcement and present information about the GDTF during the upcoming Prolight + Sound show in Frankfurt, Germany. Stop by Hall 3.0 to visit MA Lighting at C51 and C61, Vectorworks at E60 and Robe lighting at D80. For Vectorworks users, devices in Vectorworks Spotlight are currently being updated to support GDTF. Updates will be released in future 2018 service packs.

• For more information the GDTF website
• And for the developers the developer special site

Though certainly better known for its sumptuous Casino de Monte Carlo, the Principality of Monaco is also home to the resplendent Monaco Cathedral, an impressive example of Romanesque Revival architecture dating from 1903.
The cathedral’s soaring vaulted interior presents a dazzling feast for the eyes, but unfortunately it also creates highly reverberant acoustics that had confounded earlier attempts at achieving musical clarity and speech intelligibility when using sound amplification.

The main diffusion in front of the altar with the two columns CAL 64 on both sides.

Determined to overcome the problems using the best available technologies, the responsible ecclesial and governmental authorities commissioned an audio system renovation that culminated with an installation of a high-precision Meyer Sound system based around CAL digital beam steering column array loudspeakers.
Far from being a museum, the cathedral plays a vital role in the spiritual and cultural life of the city. In addition to the regular schedule of Catholic masses, the cathedral hosts a varied schedule of musical events, including symphony orchestras and amplified contemporary ensembles in addition to the world-renowned Monaco Boys’ Choir (Les Petits Chanteurs de Monaco).

Serving as an acoustical consultant and sound designer on the project was Dominique Heymès, who was selected based on his success in earlier renovations at the Monaco Opera House. When taking on his new assignment at the cathedral, his brief was to find a far superior replacement for “a 100V line system that did not allow management of different areas, resulting in intelligibility that was catastrophic,” in the words of Heymès.

“Several options were open to me,” he continues, “but the — revolutionary in my opinion – CAL from Meyer Sound initially stood out as the ideal choice, and this impression was reinforced with further studies and measurements.
I’ve always appreciated Meyer Sound for sophisticated products offering technologies that are often irreplaceable. In this case, the ability to use the CAL directivity beams in a thorough and precise way proved to be a determining factor.”

José Chaves of Paris-based Best Audio plotted the specifics of the new system design. As installed, the system is anchored by two CAL 64 column array loudspeakers placed in front of the altar. To cover acoustically isolated areas or seating shadowed by columns, delay systems were added comprising a total of 25 Meyer Sound IntelligentDC series loudspeakers, including UPM-1XP, UPM-2XP, UP-4XP and MM-4XP models.
In addition, dual 750-LFC low-frequency control elements assure full bandwidth bass extension for contemporary music, while two Galileo GALAXY processors supply system drive and optimization. All loudspeakers are factory color-matched to the surrounding stonework.

The system was installed by Monaco-based Accord Son Lumière under the direction of Jean Michel Mounier and Thierry Chambet. Marco de Fouquières of Dushow in Paris came to Monaco for the final tuning of the system. According to Heymès, the listening tests for the CAL loudspeakers proved to be a decisive revelation, and his conclusions were shared by others participating in the evaluations.
“We listened to classical music recordings first, and everybody was enthusiastic about the fidelity and precision of the sound. I heard comments like, ‘We have never heard anything like that before! Dazzling!’ We followed with tests of live spoken word from different places, and I saw in all eyes the light of complete satisfaction.

I heard comments such as ‘It’s superb, with everything perfectly intelligible everywhere in the cathedral.’ We ended with amplified music tests – guitar, vocals, bass and organ – and the musicians were overwhelmed by the quality of the sound.” Beyond his expertise in sound and acoustics, Dominique Heymès is widely recognized as a multi-media artist, with noted accomplishments as a musician, composer, photographer, painter and writer.

Though commonly referred to as Monaco Cathedral, the church’s formal name is Cathédrale Notre-Dame-Immaculée (Cathedral of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception). It is also known by many in the vicinity as Saint Nicholas Cathedral, taking on the name of the old church which was demolished in 1874. Construction of the current cathedral, designed by architect Charles Lenormand, commenced the following year.

More d’information on the Meyer Sound website

L-Acoustics is announcing new tools and improvements to its design, processing and control toolkit. New features to Soundvision, LA Network Manager and the launch of the P1 AVB processor and upcoming measurement platform.

Soundvision
The first manufacturer to have launched a 3D, real-time acoustical simulation program, L-Acoustics has constantly improved Soundvision, assuring it stays the most powerful sound design tool on the market. Soundvision users will benefit from new Autosplay and Autofilter features. Obtaining the best sound relies predominantly on physics – choosing the right cabinets for the job and optimizing them mechanically.
To accomplish this, the Autosplay feature allows sound designers to define their target SPL along the audience and Autosplay will rapidly calculate the optimal speaker angles. Once speaker hangs are defined, Autofilter applies DSP settings to ensure the system is further optimized for even, clear coverage through any venue.

Une vue des fonctions Autosplay et Autofilter, la façon la plus simple d’optimiser mécaniquement et électriquement son système, ici le déploiement L-ISA Focus pour Odesza au Santa Barbara Bowl.

LA Network Manager
L-Acoustics’ real time systems control and monitoring software, LA Network Manager sees the addition of Autoalign to automatically calculate proposed relative delay and polarity for complementary systems like subwoofers and fills.
Once in live mode, the new Autoclimate tool integrates temperature and humidity information from sensors on the P1 AVB processor and allows the user to adapt the system response to changing atmospheric conditions, without revisiting prior workflow steps. While these new tools provide an optimized path to system design and show control, the user remains in full command, able to adjust any parameter by hand at any time.

Autoclimate tel qu’il apparaît dans LA Network Manager du même projet au Santa Barba.ra Bowl

“From the very beginning, L-Acoustics has created the tools and technology that shape our industry,” explains Jeff Rocha, director of product management at L-Acoustics. “These evolutions to our product ecosystem offer the best of both worlds to our partners: a clear path to highest system performance while always keeping our users in control.” The new Soundvision and LA Network Manager features release throughout 2018.

L-Acoustics can also be found in Hall 3.1, stand C11. Demonstrations of the evolved L-Acoustics ecosystem will be held at Prolight + Sound in Hall 3, Kontrast Room. Feel free to reserve your place through this link

For more information, visit L-Acoustics website

Yamaha has reunited at Abbey Road the best of English sound around its system Rivage PM.

On 14th March around 60 of the UK’s most renowned live mixing engineers, theatre sound designers and representatives of audio rental companies assembled in the legendary Studio Two at London’s Abbey Road Studios for an informal workshop on Yamaha’s RIVAGE PM series digital mixing systems.

Nothing but real musicians to listen to a fine mixing desk

Although most famous to the general public for the groundbreaking albums recorded by The Beatles and producer Sir George Martin in Studio Two, Abbey Road has played host to a literal Who’s Who of the pop and rock industry, as well as many classic orchestral and film score recordings. So it was the ideal location for Yamaha to showcase its latest digital mixing technology.

“This was a way of giving key members of the UK pro audio community a chance to informally network and learn more about Yamaha’s RIVAGE PM series systems, in an inspiring location and friendly, low-key atmosphere,” says Yamaha Commercial Audio UK/RoI sales manager Alex Warren, who co-ordinated the event with UK/RoI marketing manager Chris Irvine. After meeting for a complimentary lunch, followed by a bracing walk along Abbey Road to the studios, guests were welcomed by Chris. This was followed by an interesting potted history of the studios by its head of audio products, Mirek Stiles.

Rick Pope on duty, Nexo system and wedges.

With the free bar open, Jamiroquai’s Derrick MacKenzie (drums), Matt Johnson (keyboards), Paul Turner (bass) and Hazel Fernandez (vocals) performed a few songs, mixed by the band’s Front of House engineer Rick Pope on the Yamaha RIVAGE PM10, through a Nexo M10 PA system and 45N12 monitors.

On the left Andy Cooper, on the right Rick Pope, in the air an in-depth Q&A

Yamaha’s Andy Cooper then hosted an interesting Q&A session with Rick, which included questions from the assembled guests. Rick spent much of 2017 on tour with the RIVAGE PM10 system and a highlight of the Q&A was his honest, direct response to being asked how many times the system has gone down: “Never”.

From here, guests were able to get hands-on with the RIVAGE PM systems – a brand new PM7, supplied by Subfrantic Production Services, and two PM10s. With Yamaha’s Tim Bamber, Christoph Haertwig, Hans Metger, Tom Rundle and Reece Stead also on hand to discuss the systems and answer questions, it gave guests unfamiliar with the systems ample opportunity to discover more.

Studio two quite studious

After a couple more songs from the band and a further hands-on session with the consoles, the event wrapped up around 6pm. In the following days, Yamaha received many positive responses from attendees. A few examples included:
“It was great to view your latest products in a hands on demo, which I think was very helpful as well as being fun for all.” – Paul ‘Pab’ Boothroyd (FoH AC/DC, Paul McCartney)

“A great way to present a fine mixing system, so much better than the normal ‘death by PowerPoint’ we are so used to seeing. Well done Yamaha!” – Chris Wibberley (FoH – Imagination, Monitors – Eric Clapton, Ray Davies)

“Firstly, thanks for a great day at Abbey Road! The RIVAGE PM10 both looked and sounded great, the workflow is logical and the onboard TC M6000 means you might finally be able to lose the outboard rack!” – Tom New (FoH Queen)
“Yamaha put on a great day at Abbey Road, members of Jamiroquai providing entertainment with Rick Pope mixing them on a PM10. A Q&A Session with Rick and the opportunity to catch up with the Yamaha team….this is the way to do it!” – Mike Lowe (Director, Britannia Row Productions)

Behind the group, the Nexo drive and Amps

“I think the RIVAGE PM system has so much to offer and will certainly be my first choice console for the design work I do on a larger scale. It not only continues to offer the most comprehensive and reliable solution, but now also includes enough discreet mix busses that I won’t be constantly having to dust off the DME as the only solution for large scale surround sound productions!” – Nick Sagar (Sound Designer, Tree of Codes, Peter Pan)

“The day was a really well organised and useful event that will be remembered for not only a great band, but the great opportunity to meet with friends, both old and new, as well as learning more about the products from real world users. I couldn’t believe some of the people who were there and they did a great job to get everyone to turn up. Pizza and beer, works every time!” – Andy Simmons (Director of Sales, Orbital Sound).

“I really enjoyed the Yamaha RIVAGE PM Workshop at Abbey Road, I left after getting hands on experience with a great console with some great features. I’ve always been a fan of Yamaha as the consoles have never let me down! Yamaha stepped up with the CL5 and again with the RIVAGE PM range. It’s a system that I would happily use on any show!” – Nikoma Bell (Monitors, Paul Weller)

“We are very grateful to all our guests who made this event such a tremendous success,” adds Alex. “Rick Pope, the band and the staff at Abbey Road Studios, the Subfrantic productions team, Yamaha and Nexo all worked very hard to make it happen, so it was very rewarding to receive many positive responses.”

More information on Yamaha website

Inspirational French LED lighting manufacturer, Ayrton, celebrated the winds of change last week with new headquarters and a growing product line.

Le nouveau siège d’Ayrton à Villebon-sur-Yvette

The masters of LED lighting innovation moved their headquarters to a new, independent 1350 square metre space in Villebon-Sur-Yvette in south-west Paris. The new premises include a brand new lobby, more office space, a warehouse, meeting rooms and a permanent 220 square metre showroom.
A distributor day inducting Ayrton’s broad international dealership preceded the official inauguration, which took place on Thursday 8 March 2018. Over 200 guests attended the Grand Opening event and were treated to a tour of the new premises, a cocktail dinner, and previews of Ayrton’s new light show which will be revealed to the public in its full glory at Prolight+Sound, Frankfurt next month.

Ayrton’s Grand Opening Celebration from Ayrton on Vimeo.

Star of the evening’s celebrations was the new showroom, available to all distributors and clients, which has been designed to facilitate the demonstration of the full portfolio of Ayrton’s unique LED fixtures.

Glyn O’Donoghue, managing director of exclusive UK distributor, Ambersphere Solutions Ltd says: “The showroom is the perfect setting in which to demonstrate units to clients,” “There are over 200 fixtures in the rig with all Ayrton products represented. It will be a valuable resource where we can bring our clients to visit the company in Paris, show them the products in a ‘real’ setting, and spend quality time with them.”

Erik Guertin, international sales manager with Ayrton’s Canadian distributor, Theatrixx Technologies, was equally impressed: “Ayrton’s light show at Prolight+Sound is always something to behold. The level of programming and the way in which it illustrates what Ayrton fixtures are capable of is unparalleled. Having an installation of the same calibre in a permanent showroom with year-round access means we don’t have to wait until the next big trade show to see – or show – the products in action. It’s a fantastic opportunity.”

Ayrton chose the Grand Opening celebration to officially launch Mistral™TC. Mistral-TC is the next in line of Ayrton’s new range of fixtures which signifies a new era in the company’s development as it focuses on a sensational new range of LED spot and wash light fixtures. Mistral-TC is an extremely versatile 300W white LED source spot, feature-rich and incredibly small, which shares a form-factor with its compact sibling Merak™.
Designed for applications requiring perfect colour reproduction, Mistral-TC once again pushes the boundaries of technology with an entirely new white LED module, calibrated at 7000K, with CRI greater than 90 and extremely high TM30 readings, an output of over 14,000 lumens, and an incredible 7° – 53° beam spread with perfect image resolution at all angles. Mistral-TC’s feature-rich system offers CMY colour mixing, variable CTO and a six-position complementary colour wheel.

The effects section includes seven indexable rotating gobos and nine fixed gobos, a continuous graphic animation effects wheel, 15-blade iris, a five-facet indexable rotating prism, and a soft-edge frost filter. Heat is dissipated by Ayrton’s unique liquid cooling system with silent ventilation mode for studio and theatre applications. Powerful, fast, precise, versatile and intuitive, Mistral-TC offers unrivalled performance in its category with nothing of its size, weight, brightness and number of functions on the market.

Mistral-TC’s name follows the trend of Ayrton’s new range of fixtures referencing both the name of a North African desert wind and one of the hottest performance cars on the planet. “It is no coincidence that the new fixtures are so named,” says Global Sales Director, Michael Althaus. “The winds of change are blowing through Ayrton even as we continue to lead the way in performance and quality with our LED automated luminaires.

“Ayrton’s reputation was made with Yvan’s stunningly original designs which combined true innovation with the best build-quality when we introduced the Magic™, Dream™ and IntelliPix™ ranges of Creative Solutions. Ayrton has always prided itself on its ability to lead the field – now Yvan is turning his genius to an unparalleled range of no-compromise LED spot and wash fixtures – a combination which is beautifully embodied in Ghibli and Mistral – and focusing on Ayrton quality and innovation underneath the covers!”

Chris Ferrante CEO

Ayrton’s new range offers improvements to optical efficiency, unparalleled colour rendition, huge versatility and a new concept in compactness that pushes miniaturisation to its limit. Sleek industrial lines take full advantage of the latest technology and deliver superior manufacturing quality. The result is a competitive range of professional lighting tools that simultaneously complement and go beyond the fixtures of the past 15 years.

“Ayrton’s focus has shifted, but the integrity, creativity and ingenuity remains the same,” comments CEO Chris Ferrante. “It was good to celebrate this with our partners, distributors and clients at the Opening Celebrations, and to see their excitement and enthusiasm for the journey as Ayrton continues to lead the way in LED fixture design.”

More on the Ayrton Website

Prolight + Sound (10 to 13 April 2018), the International Trade Fair for Event and Communication Technology, AV Production, Entertainment, and Musikmesse (11 to 14 April 2018) bring together companies with retailers, professionals from the musical-instrument, event and media-technologies sectors, as well as musicians from all over the world.

Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH / Jochen Günther

In 2017, the two events attracted a total of around 100,000 visitors from 144 countries to Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre. For companies of all sizes there is a wide spectrum of options to showcase products, ranging from all-inclusive booth packages to open air live-demonstrations.

Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH / Pietro Sutera

This important international trade-fair duo will move even closer together in 2018 and concentrate their strengths with the audio, DJ and recording segment in Hall 4.1.

The audio, DJ and recording product segment will have a new and centrally located presentation platform. Previously, exhibitors from this segment were to be found in both sections of the Exhibition Centre – with the new concept for Hall 4.1, exhibitors will be able to reach visitors to both Musikmesse and Prolight + Sound with a single exhibition stand.
Hall 4.1 is in the heart of the Exhibition Centre and will be open throughout Musikmesse. The focus of the hall is on products that are not only for professional users in the field of event and media technology but also of interest to musicians, music producers and musical-instrument retailers, e.g., microphones, effects and signal processors, cables, mixing desks, control units, monitoring tools, production tools, DJ equipment and recording hardware and software.

As in the past, visitors will find products for (live) PA systems and permanent installations in Hall 3.1. Also part of Hall 4.1 is the ‘Silent Stage’ area, which was launched in 2017 and presents an innovative stage concept for clean sound and effective monitoring, as well as the Sound & Recording Lounge, which offers lectures on mixing and production.

Prolight + Sound: the meeting place for all professionals

Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH / Pietro Sutera

In the eastern section of Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre, companies present trailblazing technologies for entertainment, integrated systems and creation. There, visitors from all event and media technology disciplines can not only discover a host of new products but also gain inspiration and expertise in subjects of relevance to them from the complementary programme of events.

Professionals from the field of light and sound technology can see new products in action at the PRG/LEA Stage in the ‘Festhalle’ and at the outdoor Live Sound Arena. The lectures of the Prolight + Sound Conference provide answers to questions on miking, PA systems, lighting design, etc.

The growth fields of Prolight + Sound include media technology & systems integration. Technological trends, such as digital audio networks, AV over IP and immersive technologies, are to be found in the exhibition halls and will be discussed by experts in the seminar programme.

Photo Ludovic Monchat

Immersive Technology

New technologies that blur the boundaries between reality and virtual perception will indeed be presented. To be held for the first time during Prolight + Sound, the Immersive Technology Forum on Thursday, 12 April, is made up of lectures revolving around subjects such as 3D audio, virtual reality, 360° film and holography. Additionally, there will be several special areas where exhibitors demonstrate immersive hearing experiences.

PLS Immersive / Pietro Sutera

Immersive Technology Forum

This new lecture programme gives visitors the opportunity to discover:

PLS Immersive

• How to upgrade events through the inclusion of immersive experiences.
• How to earn money now and in the future with virtual-reality content.
• And where appropriate solutions can be used in productions.

The programme of the Immersive Technology Forum has been compiled in cooperation with hands-on experts and is oriented towards content producers, specialists from the technical and broadcasting segments, as well as event managers and organisers.

Special areas revolving around 3D and immersive sound

In addition to the lecture programme, several Prolight + Sound exhibitors will be represented with their own presentation areas for immersive sound.

For example, d&b audiotechnik GmbH will demonstrate the innovative development of d&b Soundscape, a toolbox for the production of hearing experiences. With the combination of d&b loudspeaker systems, highly developed processing, object-based mixers and room emulation, the professional audio-technology supplier offers a new world of sound creativity. There will be presentations on the development, concept and areas of application for d&b Soundscape, as well as practical workshops, on the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of the fair.

In Hall 3.1, Alcons Audio and Astro Spatial Audio will have a joint demonstration area for showing immersive sound systems in operation. The products to be seen include the first Alcons Pro-Audio loudspeaker with patent-applied-for waveguide technology and the Astro SARA II Premium Rendering Engine for object-based audio processing.

PLS Immersive

Furthermore, visitors can experience a unique sound installation in the Klangdome (sound dome) at the outdoor exhibition area. Equipped with a DIY 3D sound system with 31 loudspeakers and a vibrating floor, this geodetic dome is a sound-intensive event location. 6 x 6-channel, 100 Watt class D amplifiers are used in the dome’s Ambisonics 3D sound system to power the water-proof 8 Ohm loudspeakers. In line with the overall ambience, the speakers are installed in ‘home-made’ cabinets.

As well as

Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH / Jochen Günther

As last year, Musikmesse and Prolight + Sound will be held concurrently on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and all tickets are valid for both fairs on these days.

Further information on Prolight + Sound website and on Musikmesse website

Anticipation, Anger, Disgust, Fear, Joy, Sadness, Surprise, Trust – eight primary emotions – expressed and experienced during Skalar, an amazing and compelling piece of immersive kinetic light art created by artist / designer Christopher Bauder and musician / composer Kangding Ray.
Ninety Robe Pointes, 65 x double sided mirrors suspended on 195 special motors each with a perimeter ring of 180 addressable pixels … in one massive cathedral like industrial landmark building.

The edgy side of cool setting is Kraftwerk in Berlin – the still magnificent shell of a derelict power station that once electrified central East Berlin when the city was divided by cold war politics … impressive in scale, beautiful in rawness. Skalar juxtaposes technology and imagination in a cerebral dichotomy to engage the mind and soul in generating the very human reactions of profound emotions.
While Christopher’s conceptual starting point was renowned American psychologist Robert Plutchik’s ‘wheel of emotions’, his physical one was Kraftwerk itself. Working there a couple of years ago sparked the ambition to do something huge and exciting with light in the space. He felt the environment naturally lent itself to being honoured with a work of epic proportions!

Skalar takes over the giant former turbine hall on the third floor which offers a 100 metre long by 40 metre wide performance space … with 25 metres of headroom. Almost out of the blue, the opportunity presented itself when Kraftwerk’s event team were in touch to say that the venue was available for the month of February! The short lead time at that point – November – galvanised Christopher into a plan of action and SKALAR was born.

The idea was also to premier some inventive engineering projects – a bespoke winch system and show control software – on which he’d been working with his company Kinetic Lights.
His other company, creative design practice WHITEvoid has produced the event, with all the technical production and equipment sourcing also co-ordinated via Kinetic Lights.

When the project was energised, Christopher already knew he wanted to use Robe Pointes as THE beam light to compliment and work with the mirror system. It was logical for him to approach Robe who were extremely keen to become a technical partner, delighted at the opportunity to align with an exciting and innovative project.
The self-commissioned work also partnered with the 2018 edition of Berlin’s annual CTM Festival for Adventurous Music and Art for its first week, but then ran-on for an additional three weeks.

Christopher and David Letellier (Kangding Ray) knew they would have to tailor the work exactly to fit into the building. ‘It’s not a place you negotiate with” explained Christopher, “The deal is that you take it on-board and treat it with the respect it deserves, find solutions for issues like reverb times and the special rigging required”. It was more like a privilege being able to work there.
In Skalar, Christopher wanted audiences to immerse themselves in the sonic and visual world created by the installation … and feel direct emotional responses to the work … bearing in mind that each of these would be completely unique depending on the set and the setting – the essential personality attributes brought to the equation by each individual.

The mirror system is rigged in the roof of the space with the lights positioned all around on three sides – 75 Pointes are attached to the walls on ladders and 15 are on three totem trusses on the floor in the centre. This dynamic set up allowed Christopher to blend and bend the lighting in numerous different directions. He was particularly interested in the relationship between the real beams coming from the fixtures onto the mirror and the virtual secondary beams being bounced between the mirror and the end points.
The different resonance and quality of the beams affects the perception and therefore everyone’s reactions and resulting sensory experiences. Each mirror is controlled by three winches which give 7 metres of up / down movement plus pan / tilt, so they can move incredibly smoothly on XY and Z axes making their kinesys three dimensional and fluid. The mirror movement is controlled via ArtNet by Kinetic Lights’ proprietary KLC software platform and the whole system is networked.

When it came to selecting a lightsource, Christopher wanted something bright, precise and intense in output. He also wanted a dynamic fixture with many options to modify the beam as well as something small and accurate in terms of cue repeatability across the vast space. “In addition to the accuracy of the lighting cues we needed a light with highly calibrated colours that matched perfectly. It had to be quick moving, easy to handle and programme … and also readily available. This and the crispness and clarity of the light emitted by the Pointe made it perfect for this installation”.
The frost and the strobing function with its adjustable frame rate are also present in Skalar, and in fact, most of the functions of the Pointes are utilized across the looped Skalar show plus four special concerts. You can even spot some gobos in there, which are not used in the traditional way, more ‘incidentally’ to create volume in the space.
Their DMX data signals are converted from ArtNet and integrated into the KLC computer where Christopher and his team programmed a series of lighting treatments – from being heart-opening, playful, joyful on one end of the scale to dark, fragmented and angry on the other – which are rendered as cues in real-time during playback, triggered by MIDI keys from the Ableton Live system running the master track.

A storyline for the main 45 minute looped show moves through multiple textures and grades of emotional engagement. Only four of the eight emotions are actually involved in this show at any one time, and they are expressed in changes, lifts, drops, intensity shifts, etc. in the melody. Christopher and David also perform four special SKALAR live shows where they are manipulating the sounds and visuals. These performances are more intense and use the expanded range of all eight emotions and the associated lighting and sound treatments. The results have been overwhelming.
News of the installation initially spread virally via social media and word-of-mouth both internationally and locally around the city – a communication MO that appealed greatly to Christopher’s underground performance roots – and have also received plenty of attention in the mainstream media as people have flocked to Kraftwerk to experience the show which runs daily, sometimes for up to 10 hours. The concerts have all been sold out … and SKALAR is another expression of the way light can be used to communicate positively with people in an entertaining if slightly abstract way. Not everything has to be obvious or linear!

The 90 Pointes were supplied as a dry hire to Kinetic Lights by rental company Motion from Feurth. The hazers were supplied by Look Germany, and the powerful L-Acoustics KARA / ARCS sound system came from Complete Audio. The roof flying detail was completed by Kraftwerk house riggers Satis & Fy, and the trussing to support the winch system was sourced from Lichtblick in Berlin.

With SKALAR being such a success, Christopher would love to tour the work internationally … the idea of scouring the world for awesome industrial spaces in which to present it is just one of many elements he’d relish in sharing with a wider audience!

More on the Robe website

Live sound provider Gamung Productions experiences considerable growth after upgrading their inventory with JBL Professional speakers, Crown amplifiers and Soundcraft consoles. CSA Indonesia recently supplied Gamung Productions with a complete inventory of live audio solutions by HARMAN Professional Solutions.

Founded in 1996, Gamung Productions provides full live sound production services for conventions, conferences, concerts, trade shows and more. In order to better serve an impressive client list that includes television stations and international corporations, Gamung Productions decided to upgrade its inventory with a more robust selection of audio systems to support events of any size or scale. The HARMAN systems supplied by local dealer CSA Indonesia include JBL, Crown and Soundcraft solutions, and have propelled Gamung Productions to become Indonesia’s leading sound system provider.

“Tour sound and event audio vendors need a versatile set of solutions that consistently deliver reliable performance in any venue,” said Setiawan Winarto, CEO of CSA Indonesia. “An inventory of high-end products is essential to supplying performances with remarkable sound quality and coverage—no matter the size of the event. With the addition of JBL line arrays, Crown amplifiers and Soundcraft consoles, Gamung Productions gained an advantage over its competitors, establishing a reputation for versatility and reliable service.”

For large high-profile events, Gamung deploys JBL VTX V25-II line arrays and G28 subwoofers. The VTX system enables Gamung to deliver powerful sound reinforcement and coverage in a compact and lightweight footprint. For medium-sized events, Gamung relies on JBL VT4888 line array speakers to provide high-quality audio for a variety of concert audio and corporate AV applications. The JBL systems are powered by tour-grade Crown I-Tech HD Series amplifiers.
Gamung also added JBL SRX Series and PRX Series self-powered speakers to their inventory to provide smaller events with premium audio quality and coverage. JBL PRX speakers are Wi-Fi enabled and give Gamung’s engineers sophisticated DSP control over system tuning and real-time performance via the free PRX Connect app, allowing them to optimize systems faster than ever.

For mixing, CSA Indonesia supplied Gamung with new Soundcraft Vi3000 audio consoles. In addition to providing excellent sound quality and comprehensive I/O, the Vi3000 helps Gamung’s engineers create great sounding mixes using advanced features like automated microphone mixing, VM2 wireless monitoring and Vistonics II™ touchscreens. When an event’s floor plan does not allow the consoles to be operated from an ideal listening position, ViSi remote control gives Gamung’s staff wireless mix control capability using the Soundcraft ViSi iPad app.
“We’re proud to be the first company in Indonesia to own a Soundcraft Vi3000 and offer complete HARMAN tour sound solutions,” said Farid Boy, Owner of Gamung Productions. “Whether we’re faced with a ballroom presentation or an outdoor concert, HARMAN’s audio solutions bring these events to life, ensuring that every word, musical note and sound effect is delivered with absolute clarity and dynamic range. We trust JBL, Crown and Soundcraft products to provide seamlessly integrated live sound systems that meet the needs of our valued clients with reliability and efficiency.”

Ramesh Jayaraman

“We’re happy to see our products being used by Gamung Productions, a leading touring and rental solution provider in Indonesia,” said Ramesh Jayaraman, VP & GM, HARMAN Professional Solutions, APAC.
“We thank CSA Indonesia for trusting HARMAN products to provide Gamung Productions with a reliable and versatile inventory of live sound solutions, and ensuring satisfaction by following up with excellent customer support.”

And more information on Harman website

The latest technologies and solutions draw record crowds and connect the international AV community. The largest and busiest Integrated Systems Europe in its 15-year history drew record numbers of exhibitors and attendees from around the world for four days of business, education and networking at the RAI Amsterdam between 6-9 February.
Throughout 15 halls, visitors experienced a vibrant showcase of the latest AV and systems integration technologies, products and solutions as ISE confirmed its position as the international destination of choice for AV professionals.

The number of exhibitors totalled 1,296, of which 294 were exhibiting at ISE for the first time. Combined, they filled 53,000sqm of exhibition floor space. Floor space already confirmed for ISE 2019 currently stands at 103% of the total booked for ISE 2018. The number of registered visitors by the end of the show had reached 80,923, an increase of 10.3% on the 2017 edition. Importantly, almost 20,000 visitors attended the last day of the show. On a distinctly positive note, over 30% of the total attendees were visiting ISE for the first time, a key benchmark for exhibitors in their quest to develop new sales leads.

Mike Blackman, Integrated Systems Events Managing Director, commented: “It’s been a great show that has delivered on all fronts. I’m delighted to report that visitor numbers and exhibitor satisfaction have both been very high. On behalf of ISE, I’d like to thank all our attendees, exhibitors, partners and our co-owners AVIXA and CEDIA. This combination has made ISE what it is today and ensures that we are able to build on our successes year on year.”

Highlights of the show included: an Opening Address from architect and inventor Carlo Ratti that explored the evolution of smart building and ‘Senseable Cities’, nine dedicated B2B conferences covering a wide range of AV topics from innovation and design to theme park ‘night-time spectaculars’, a Stand Awards competition, ‘Tech Tours’ to three leading AV installations including the Amsterdam ArenA and five days of professional development programming curated and delivered by AVIXA and CEDIA.

ISE 2018 also saw the debut of the World Masters of Projection Mapping competition, a joint venture between the Amsterdam Light Festival, RAI Amsterdam and ISE. The competition saw leading video artists’ project video artworks onto the EYE Filmmuseum in the centre of the city. The competition culminated in Florian and Michael Quistrebert receiving the winner’s award for their artwork Stripes 5 on the last day of the show.
Many exhibitors once again used the show as a launchpad for hundreds of new products, technologies and solutions. Technology and business trends included: a growth in IP and the crossover between broadcast and AV; commercially viable virtual, augmented and mixed reality technologies and solutions; the increase of devices for the smart home; the divergence of digital signage with both smart systems and ‘plug and play’ gaining traction; the increase in small pitch LED displays; 4K everywhere; IoT everywhere; the growth of projection mapping; networked audio and the continued progression of the collaboration market.

For both AVIXA and CEDIA, the show provided a unique platform for the associations to reinforce recent initiatives and to cement their key role as providers of exemplary professional development programmes.

Dave Labuskes, CTS, CAE, RCDD, Chief Executive Officer of AVIXA commented: “What a great week here at ISE in Amsterdam. We kicked off the week with our TIDE conference and never stopped learning and connecting with the global AV community. It was very exciting to unveil our new AVIXA brand to the ISE audience and welcome attendees to our vibrant stand. Although the week has come to a close, we’re already looking forward to InfoComm 2018 and our TIDE conference this June in Las Vegas.”

Tabatha O’Connor, CEDIA CEO, commented: “CEDIA has enjoyed a phenomenal ISE 2018. We are so proud to be co-owners of this amazing event. Our training programme featured more than 50 classes, across business and technical topics, and certification examinations that were very well supported by the industry. Meantime, our booth was buzzing with visitors, finding out more about our new strategic plan, meeting friends from the CEDIA community, and making great, new connections. Our exciting programme of CEDIA Talks on the booth also proved extremely popular. We look forward to our own CEDIA event in San Diego this coming September and a spectacular return to Amsterdam for ISE 2019.”

ISE 2019 will be held at the RAI Amsterdam from 5-8 February 2019.

The passage of time, not to mention a serious onstage accident that hospitalized him with a broken fibula, has done nothing to dampen the fierce cataclysmic flames that emanate from Marilyn Manson when he performs.
After 20 years, 15 tours and 10 studio albums, six of which went platinum or gold, the Ohio-born icon still fearlessly smashes through all comfort zones, shaking up audiences with his menacing music and darkly theatrical stage presence.

This intoxicating combination of sound and sight is very evident in Manson’s current Heaven Upside Down tour of Europe and North America, both in its music, which opens with a cover of The Doors’ eerie Vietnam-era song “The End,” and in its richly evocative lightshow that designer Nico Riot controls with his new ChamSys MagicQ MQ500 Stadium console.
“There is a strong theatrical element to a Marilyn Manson show,” said Riot, the co-owner of Nantes, France-based Chirac Design. “We create a moody, immersive look on stage with saturated colors, lots of strobes and blinders, a large abstract cross of lights, and V-shaped configurations on either side of that cross to draw attention to Manson.”

Riot’s 15-universe show also features a variety of uplighted backdrops. Not surprisingly, given the artist’s iconoclastic nature, Marilyn Manson’s shows are often unscripted. Manson, who comes on stage in a goth-decorated wheel chair (a result of his recent accident), later moves around on crutches, which he occasionally uses to rearrange par fixtures.
Riot, who has preprogrammed material on his Cue Stack, is ready to busk at any moment. “Busking is perfect for a show like Marilyn Manson,” said the LD. “Manson can change the songs right in the middle of his performance. He can also flip the set-list. This means that I have to be flexible and ready override my Cue List with direct changes from the Programmers Palettes. All the shortcuts available with the MQ500 are quite handy for smooth busking changes during a song.”

For Riot, the Heaven Upside Down tour represents a continuation of his involvement with ChamSys. “I first encountered ChamSys in 2014 when I was on tour with Gojira, which was opening for Mastodon in the US,” he said. “Michael Howe, Mastodon’s LD, introduced me to the MQ80. At the time, I was looking for a compact desk that I could take on a plane. I was also impressed that I didn’t need any external nodes or even a single switch with the MQ80. From a programming perspective, ChamSys just seemed to fit with my philosophy.”

Upgrading to the new MagicQ MQ500 Stadium has resulted in numerous advantages for Riot. “The new console provides me with the extra comfort of having two screens and more accessibility buttons,” he said. “Another thing I like is being able to use the execute buttons as flash buttons to link to my different pages. This has been very important.” His new console also enhances his busking, according to Riot. Given that he works for fiercely independent clients like Marilyn Manson, that’s a valuable benefit indeed.

For more information, visit the Chamsys website

MG12XUK

Since being first introduced in 2003, they have become standard equipment at many venues, with refinements and upgrades continuing to expand their suitability for a wide spectrum of sound reinforcement situations. The sonic quality, design and reliability of the third-generation MG series (released in 2014) has enjoyed particular worldwide acclaim.
The new MG10XUF and MG12XUK models add broader choice to the popular 10 and 12 channel categories within the third-generation MG Series line-up.

While the adoption of linear faders in the MG10XUF offers fine level control and direct visual feedback, the MG12XUK employs rotary controls which mean the console has more compact overall dimensions. With the release of these new models, users gain greater freedom to choose configurations that best suit their individual needs. All other features are the same as current third-generation MG Series XU models.
These include: All models feature Yamaha’s state-of-the-art discrete Class-A ‘D-PRE’ microphone preamplifiers. These studio-grade preamps utilise inverted Darlington circuitry to deliver outstanding sonic quality with ample power at low impedance.

A good preamp design, the entry point for the real sound.

The high-resolution sound of D-PRE preamps is a highly regarded feature of Yamaha’s professional mixers, satisfying the requirements of the most demanding sound engineers.
With big, natural sounding bass, a rich midrange and smooth highs, all with very low distortion, D-PRE preamps offer an impressively wide frequency range which handles signals from any audio source without colouration, faithfully retaining the most detailed nuances of the original sound.
An upgraded 1-knob compressor makes it possible to add optimised compression to a wide variety of input sources via a single control. Yamaha’s acclaimed SPX effects are an accepted industry standard, ubiquitous in sound reinforcement and recording applications. 24 updated SPX effects are included in the latest MG models for versatile creative processing.

The MG10XUF. 10 stands for ten input channels, XU is the digital addition and the final F stands for fader, while K on the other model very likely means Knob…

The new models also feature a USB 2.0 audio interface capable of 24-bit/192kHz quality for playback of digital content from a PC and/or recording of the mixer’s output to DAW software, such as the included Steinberg Cubase AI.
USB Audio Class 2.0 is also supported, allowing operation with USB Audio Class 2.0 compliant tablets and other devices, without the need to install driver software. Both the new models are compatible with the Apple Camera Connection Kit or Lighting to USB Camera Adapter for seamless recording and playback of digital audio to and from an iPad or iPhone.
All models are designed with emphasis on durability, incorporating practical features that ensure reliable operation in a wide range of challenging conditions. A powder-coated steel chassis provides improved structural strength, while the placement of the rotary controls above the surface of the chassis protects internal components by absorbing impact or pressure applied to the control knobs.

“The third generation of our MG mixer line-up was released in 2014 with an extensive choice of models,” says Yoshi Tsugawa, General Manager, PA division. “The MG line-up rapidly earned an enviable reputation with users in a wide range of applications throughout the world. These new models expand the line-up even further, providing additional choices that will ideally match the individual needs of more users.”
For more information, please visit Yamaha website

Martin Audio’s award winning micro line array, O-Line, has been given extra powers of coverage, consistency and control thanks to the addition of scalable resolution driven by Martin Audio’s new iKON amplifiers and updated DISPLAY array optimisation software.
O-Line has long been famed as a versatile micro line array designed for a wide variety of architectural applications – from houses of worship to transport terminals. In many applications an O-Line array can be driven using only one amplifier channel, with simple EQ and limiting the only processing required.

However, it can now also be taken into a new dimension of coverage, consistency and control when combined with an iKON iK81 eight-channel amplifier with onboard DSP to independently control and power each individual enclosure or groups of enclosures.
This unlocks the full potential of O-Line – further refining coverage consistency and increasing the ability to ‘dial-out’ the influence of the room by accessing DISPLAY’s ‘hard avoid’ capability and electronically adjustable coverage to tackle the most difficult acoustic spaces. This can also enable additional benefits to any installation.

More often than not, many installations can suffer from height restrictions and the combination of both mechanical and DSP optimisation can compensate this challenge. There is also the scenario that following an installation something changes in the venue and rather than have to de-rig and re-rig, electronic optimisation alone can provide a level of coverage change. Similarly, it may be that the venue is multi-purpose with changing sizes of audience and so by using DISPLAY with VU-NET control it’s possible to have different presets to cater for these coverage changes without the need to re-rig.

Pour la mise en œuvre de la résolution évolutive, une ligne O-Line doit être contrôlée par des amplis avec DSP iKon et le logiciel DISPLAY de Martin Audio.

Unlike many DSP ‘steered’ columns, an O-Line array does not produce unwanted vertical sidelobes in the audio band. This is critical in reverberant environments as sidelobes firing above and below the array simply adds to the reverberant energy, impacting on intelligibility. O-Line’s ability to reproduce very high frequencies without sidelobes makes it the ideal solution for both full-range speech and music reproduction in reverberant spaces.

Constitution d’un module O-Line et raison de l’absence de lobes secondaires dans l’aigu.

An O-Line array is finished in a neutral light grey that blends into the background of most architectural spaces. with modular design in multiples of four cabinets. Sonically, it is very clean and musical, and capable of surprisingly high output levels for its very small size, with 16 cabinets capable of an astonishing 134db [peak] and a throw distance of up to 40 metres.

Dom Harter, Managing Director, commented: “O-Line has been a tremendous servant to the company, not only for its prowess with challenging acoustic spaces, but also because it laid down the ground work for the development of MLA technology. It’s fitting that events have come full circle, and that recent developments of Wavefront Precision and iKON amplifiers, that borrow so much from MLA, have now enabled extra powers of coverage, consistency and control for O-Line – making it the definitive column micro array solution.”

La résolution évolutive selon Martin Audio à l’ISE

For more information on Martin Audio website