The Ultra Music Festival has now cemented its place among the world’s electronic music festival. Held in Miami each March during Miami Music Week, Ultra is a big dance music festivals and consistently features Elation Professional lighting on its stages.
The music festival hits the road as well, under the moniker Road to Ultra, and in September played two highly anticipated shows in India, one of which included Elation Professional lighting gear supplied by Elation partner Star Dimensions India Pvt Ltd.

Road to Ultra Mumbai, which took place at the Mahalakshmi Racecourse in Mumbai on Sept 7^th, was an historic event as it marked Ultra’s first show in India. While the main festival in Miami sees multiple stages and hundreds of artists, the Road to Ultra events are organized on a smaller scale with fewer artists and follow an arena format with one stage. Still, the entertainment technology that backs the production makes for a powerful experience not to mention the music lineup, which was quite impressive. Duo sensation The Chainsmokers headlined, along with a cast of supporting artists, many of which brought an Indian flavor into their sets.

Star Dimensions handled lighting and trussing for the event and turned to 12 Elation Platinum SBX™ hybrid moving heads and Platinum Beam 5R™ beam effect moving lights for what Ashish Mehta, Director of Star Dimensions, described as an “out of the box” design. “We had the SBX fixtures on both a front bar and back bar truss, creating mesmerizing effects on stage and towards the audience while the Platinum Beam 5Rs were used for nice mid-air gobo effects,” Ashish Mehta explains. “We rigged many 5R Beams across the stage and sound tower extension and their sharp narrow beam created a larger than life look.”

Star Dimensions has regularly had their inventory of Elation lighting out on many of the top music events in India, including Justin Bieber’s 2017 shows, David Guetta’s 2017 Mumbai show, Sensation India, A State of Trance and many others. “We have used Elation products for years and find them to be very reliable,” Mehta stated.
“They stand up well to the tough conditions we often experience here in India and they have a performance to value ratio that is hard to beat. Road to Ultra was a great opportunity for us as well as the EDM scene in India and Indian EDM lovers were naturally eager to immerse themselves in the experience.” Ashish Mehta and Star Dimensions also provided technical support for the show, along with Syam Gopinath, who executed the trussing and lighting plot.
The Road to Ultra event, brought to Mumbai by Percept Live, might not have included the entire Ultra package you’re used to seeing at Ultra Miami, but there wasn’t a dull moment throughout the show. Mehta sends a special thanks to everyone from Percept Live, especially Percept Live’s technical head Yogesh Malhotra, who stated, “We’ve handled a lot of EDM events and DJ concerts in which Elation has been a part of the rider – fixtures like the Platinum Beam 5R series, Platinum SBX and Elation LED Par lights – and we have found them to be outstanding products.”

For more information on the Elation website

Martin Fournier. photo ©Studio Gehin

Chauvet has announced that Martin Fournier has joined the company as its European Sales Director. Martin Fournier is an experienced lighting industry figure in Europe, having spent the last 22 years serving the professional lighting market in Europe.
He comes to Chauvet from Harman International, where he most recently served as that company’s Sales Director for France and Benelux Professional Solutions. Fournier began his career in 1995 with Martin Professional.

“Martin is a very valuable addition to our team, and we are excited to welcome him,” said Albert Chauvet, CEO of Chauvet. “He shares our passion for excellence and has spent 100 percent of his career focused on lighting.”

Michael Brooksbank, Chauvet’s Managing Director of Europe, shared Chauvet’s enthusiasm. “Martin brings a diverse range of skills and experiences to the table. He has excelled in many facets of the lighting business, including: sales, distribution channel management and brand development. Most importantly, he is committed to providing excellent customer service.”

Fournier will be based in Paris, France where he currently resides.

Legendary industrial rock pioneers Nine Inch Nails (NIN), led by the charismatic Trent Reznor, are back on the touring circuit, with a series of Summer and Fall Festival dates. Their long serving lighting designer, Paul ‘Arlo’ Guthrie, has extended his association with German LED moving head pioneers GLP, and their unique solutions — in particular the new JDC1 LED hybrid strobe — dominate a full production inventory.
This has been supplied by Curry Grant at PRG. In total, the LD has included 24 of these fixtures, which contain 216 white LEDs and 1320 RGB LEDs. These are supported by 15 of the versatile X4 Bar 20 battens and four X4 S compact moving heads used as a dynamic floor package.

Photo Bree Kristel Clarke

Guthrie has been associated with the band since 2013, joining them for their 2014 European dates, which was based on an original design concept by LeRoy Bennett. Today it is Reznor himself, along with band colleague, songwriter and producer Atticus Ross, who have major design input. “They are completely involved,” confirms the LD. “We started talking in February about these shows and considered a lot of production elements. We went down a couple of roads investigating different technologies and in the end went with our original idea of the ‘anti production’.” What he meant by this was to conceive a ‘grungy’ set — “the opposite of what everyone else was doing … par cans, heat, smoke, dirt, no lights moving and no video.”

Photo Bree Kristel Clarke

And of course, strobes play an integral part in this static presentation. Arlo was introduced to the JDC1 by GLP’s US president Mark Ravenhill while he was in LA considering options. “I wanted something that could move, change colour, strobe, be bright and be low profile. I thought [the JDC1] would fit in perfectly — and so Curry bought them for us.”

Designed in three sections, the JDC1 contains format-filling LED panels both above and below the tube itself, while the vast number of RGB and white pixels interplay to produce stunning effects. All three light sources can be controlled either as independent sections or as one complete unit, while continuous operation as a blinder or wash light is possible without any reduction of output. Furthermore, the RGB face can be divided into 12 separate ‘pixel’ sections, as can the bright white tube, enabling the entire array to be fully pixel-mapped.

Photo Bree Kristel Clarke

Although the NIN show is primarily using white blinders, the pixels come into their own in several songs. “We use the individual pixels in the strobe strip to create a cool shadow effect in one song in particular,” Arlo reports.
Meanwhile, the X4 Bar 20s are set in a line along the upstage edge. Explaining the rationale, Arlo Guthrie states, “This gives us a sheet of light behind the band. As for the X4S [LED heads] these were originally mounted on camera dollies but we repurposed them as a low-profile floor lights.

“We managed to get some unique effects out of these GLP lights that I haven’t seen from other fixtures.” The LD himself programmed the show on a grandMA2. “The show itself is meant to look like it’s busked, and I operate it all manually. We have no lights moving whatsoever during the entire set.”

Photo Bree Kristel Clarke

And he is completely unequivocal when it comes to evaluating the JDC1. “They are a killer effect,” he effuses. And he adds that with their compact form factor they are easy to accommodate discreetly within the stage set. “In fact, all the GLP fixtures seem to combine unique feature sets in very well engineered and built packages,” Arlo Guthrie concludes. “It’s fun to see what everyone does with them.”

More information on the GLP website

When the leadership team at Joppa, Maryland-based Mountain Christian Church (MCC) found a prime location in nearby Abingdon to establish its fourth area campus, there was one thing that wasn’t quite so ideal—the facility’s low 13-foot ceilings, which limited sound reinforcement options for the planned 600-seat worship space.
However, AVL systems provider Mankin Media Systems of Franklin, Tennessee was able to recommend a very effective and elegant solution in the form of L-Acoustics’ brand new Syva colinear loudspeaker system.

The Abingdon’s Mountain Christian Church FOH. Über impressive.

This project is noteworthy in that it represents both the first North American permanent install for Syva as well as the world’s first house of worship to adopt the new system. “The Syva system at Abingdon’s campus is the magic secret that really made the room what it is,” says Mankin’s Tim Corder.
“In the project’s early ‘Dream’ phase, we explored multiple loudspeaker design approaches for this space and they all had significant compromises—either they were too large and compromised the height of the room to the point of being a deal-breaker, or they created too much potential variation in experience throughout the space to be acceptable. Syva was the perfect solution. The finished result blends into the space unlike anything else possible, without compromising quality in the least.”

Two of L’Acoustics’s main products. On the left of the screen, Syva and lighted below, the low pump, AKA the KS28.

“In our area, buildings with taller ceilings are difficult to find and in high demand,” notes Technical Arts Pastor Bob Rufenacht, who works with all of MCC’s campuses and has been part of the church’s AVL ministry for a decade. “Syva was key to this project. Its sleek and compact form factor, which is no wider than the support columns they’re mounted on, allowed us to keep speakers out of the way of our sightlines and out of the way of our lighting angles. It enabled us to tuck the lighting up into the ceiling structure without being blocked by speakers and facilitated raising our screen heights to help with message visibility.”

Yamaha CL3 for the audio mix.

Although Rufenacht was initially concerned that they would need more fill speakers than originally planned, he points out that the system tuning process did a great job of filling the gaps and smoothing out the coverage in the room.
“It was impressive to see how the acoustics were adjusted in the room without changing the speaker locations or directions,” he says. “In fact, Syva ultimately gave us a less costly solution requiring fewer speakers than other systems we had considered, so it’s a real ‘win-win-win’ for us that sounds absolutely great.”

Although the satellite church’s message is streamed over the Internet from the main Mountain Road campus each week utilizing Mankin’s SlipStream by Guardian service, everything else is staged live at Abingdon’s campus, including the praise team and other service elements. Since opening in mid-September, MCC’s newest location is regularly drawing approximately 1,000 people out to its three Sunday services, and audiences, musicians and staff members alike are reportedly thrilled with the results.

Precise, smooth and uniform coverage thanks to some addition to the Syva’s main throw.

Mankin’s relationship with MCC goes back several years, having previously installed an L-Acoustics Kara system in the 1,600-seat auditorium of its Mountain Road campus, followed by an ARCS WiFo System that went into the church’s Bel Air campus this past May.
“The quality we’re getting in our new room is very impressive—fully on par with our larger systems—and everything is clearly heard,” Rufenacht shares. “This system can do anything we ask it to do for us. Syva was exactly what our room needed and L-Acoustics delivered exactly what we required.”

Using L-Acoustics’ Soundvision 3D acoustical modeling software, Mankin’s system design placed single Syva enclosures on the pre-existing structural columns framing the far left and right sides of the stage. On the stage lip directly below each Syva are two Syva Low enclosures per side, extending Syva’s LF response, while a single KS28 sub per side adjacent to the stage further solidifies the system’s bottom end.
Two additional Syva systems mounted on structural columns out in the house provide additional delay coverage to the back left and right corners of the room, while three X12 coaxial enclosures flown over the audience provide additional spot fill. A quantity of AVB-ready LA4X amplified controllers power and process the entire system.

The entire Abingdon’s MCC venue

More info on Mountain Christian Church website and on Mankin Media Systems website

Over fifty Amadeus speakers installed featuring ‘3D Sound’ control, nearly seven hundred actors and twenty giant 30-foot soft LED screens create a re-enactment of the ‘Xi’an Incident’ commemorating the event’s 80th anniversary. Amadeus, based in France, one of the premiere manufacturers of high-end sound reinforcement systems and custom studio speakers, has announced a 50-speaker install with ‘3D Sound’ control.
The sound system compliments twenty 30-foot giant ‘soft LED’ screens and performances of 700 actors in China’s first live event dramatizing the historical 1938 ‘Xi’an Incident’ – which is credited to have created modern China. The State-run theater is located in the exact location where the ‘Xi’an Incident’ happened.

Amadeus worked with its distributor, Guangzhou Sign King ET Co., Ltd., Swiss-based company Sonic Emotion, and British manufacturer of digital mixing consoles DiGiCo to design and install the sound setup within the massive new building.
The ‘Xi’an Incident’ live show relates to “…the kidnapping of the Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek while visiting disaffected Manchurian troops at Xi’an. Chiang was captured by conspirators headed by Zhang Xueliang, who attempted to force him to give up his campaign against the communists and lead a national war against the Japanese, who had occupied Manchuria in 1931.
After Chiang had refused to accede to their demands, the communists, headed by Zhou Enlai, also became involved in the negotiations and eventually Chiang was released, having promised to take a more active role against the Japanese and to allow local autonomy to the communists. Zhang Xueliang was imprisoned by Chiang, but the incident led to limited cooperation between the communists and the Kuomintang against the Japanese,” as described by the Oxford University Press, a department of the University of Oxford.

Wymen Wong, of Guangzhou Sign King ET Co., Ltd., stated, “Amadeus delivered the best solutions, both in terms of products and services, matching the design constraints and goals that the Show Director’ expectations. The audience also expects a lot from a sound system and AVLS combined everything as a whole.”

Gaetan Byk, Marketing Manager at Amadeus states, “The setup’s complexity, as well as its artistic dimension, implied dual implications for Amadeus, both material and immaterial, offering a savoir-faire, an expertise, more than just offering well-developed speakers.

Amadeus’ legitimacy stems from the prestigious legacy gained in the professional audio world over the last 25 years. Our long list of users includes many of the greatest sound engineers, composers, mixers and producers in France.” “Our great relationships with major French theatrical, musical and cultural institutions, and with professionals with talents, sensitivities and careers – both original and complementary – helped us to achieve state-of-the-art system implementation in this amazing performance space,” adds Byk.
“We solicited the services of the prestigious Théâtre National de Chaillot (Chaillot National Theater) which acquired a similar immersive sound system last year. We were able to work with Marc Piera, the Theater’s Sound Department Manager. Marc Piera is also a composer, musician and sound engineer, who began working in the entertainment industry in 1982, in ballet, theatre, music, and on various other live performance events,” says Byk.

Piera has completed more than 300 original projects, mainly as a music composer or sound environment designer. Since 2006, he has continued to complete consulting projects involving electro-acoustic multi-diffusion for prestigious French institutions such as Bibliotheque Nationale de France (National Library of France), National Museum of Natural History, Theatres de la Cartoucherie, and Theatre de la Cite Internationale, to name a only a few. Piera joined the Amadeus team on the ‘Xi’an Incident’ project for a few weeks as a system engineer in charge of the on-site speaker tuning, as well as a mixing engineer, and a spatialization technologist – each one a very important component of the projects’ success.

Marc Piera explains his ideas about working with immersive sound and spatialization, “I believe since my beginnings working in live theater, that inside each sound technician is an electro-acoustic ‘creator’ able to sublimate, reinterpret or magnify a musical project. These new techniques of diffusion finally offer us the choice, that of building our space, with its depths, its images and its relationship with the scenic elements of the stage. These new sonic techniques allow us to be architects of the sound, sound creators, finally freed from the dictates imposed by the « acceptable » or usual physical positions of the loudspeakers in a theater.”

Here is a video presentation of the show:

More information on Amadeus website

Claypaky Axcor 300 Series

Claypaky Axcor 300 Beam

The new Axcor 300 family of moving LED fixtures brings Claypaky’s no-compromise quality and performance to the broad mid-market.
The range consists of a spot light, a wash light and a beam light, all driven by a white LED engine with a rated power of up to 180 Watts.
The quality of their effects, their construction, and their high light output derive from the high-end products Claypaky specializes in.

The AXCOR SPOT 300 has 17 gobos on 2 wheels, including 7 high quality dichroic rotating gobos. Weighing just 20 Kg and measuring a little over 500 mm, this unit incorporates features that are not often found in models of this size, like a rotating prism, a motorised iris, a soft edge filter, a 16-bit dimmer, and a 8-40° zoom.
The AXCOR BEAM 300 has an even more compact body – less than 500mm – and is able to emit a super-concentrated solid beam with a beam angle as small as 2° and a surprising light output. The wealth and quality of its colors and aerial effects, its electronic focus and its 140 mm diameter front lens make the Axcor Beam 300 the ideal beam moving light in any application area, and the perfect replacement of a Claypaky Sharpy!

The AXCOR WASH 300 has a 140mm front PC lens and linear 5.5° – 42° zoom. Producing colors is its speciality: it is fitted with all the components you need to produce any shade of color you desire, with a light diffusion uniformity comparable to higher-end models.

The AXCOR 300 models boast cutting-edge electronic and software technology, with all the features that enable optimal fixture management and maintenance over time.
With a physical size, power consumption and price-point that disguise their strength and creative potential, the Axcor 300 range enables a new world of expression in touring, events, TV, theatre and installed lighting markets. Now, more designers than ever before can achieve their biggest ideas.

More information on Claypaky website

Danish hip hop band Suspekt are known for their disturbingly intense lyrics and raw style. More recently, – still gripping to the fringes of alt.culture – they have gained a massive following and the fans just can’t get enough of their live performances!
All of this melodrama was a great atmospheric starting point for lighting designer Johnny Thinggaard Lydiksen, who used 104 Robe fixtures for the initial show design which was kicked off in a stadium at the start of the year.

He was asked on-board for the first time with the band to create a new live visual experience. They wanted a fresh look, and so he started with the music, finding plenty of inspiration! In addition to the Robes – 48 x Pointes, 48 x Spiiders and 8 BMFL Spots – Johnny decided on a slightly old-skool look, mean, dirty and powerful, adding over 400 PAR cans to the stadium show rig and 24 x strobes.
The design also had to be scale-able. Slightly smaller for a summer festival tour, and then further compressed for an autumn club tour – with 10 x Spiiders, 10 x Strobes and 16 x 8-lite audience blinders on wind-up stands!
The overriding idea was that all versions kept the same continuity and aesthetic.

“I wanted to keep it brutally stark. It was the vibe of the music that gave me the idea for the wall of PARs for an extreme contrast in lightsources and basically very moody and slightly scary lighting,” explained Johnny talking honestly about his concept.
Apart from Suspekt’s lyrics being hard and nasty, the music often doesn’t follow a linear rhythm, which was simultaneously challenging and liberating for the design. The multiple single lightsources were a perfect vehicle for the fragmentation that Johnny wanted to achieve.
‘It was more about creating an environment in which they can perform… rather than lighting the band or even each song in a narrative manner,” he elucidated. The Spiiders were positioned on 7 floor standing wheel bases, arranged in banks of four fixtures – ACL style – deployed at different depths around the stage, with four mounted behind five truss pods in the roof. The Pointes were outrigged on six double-stacked pre-rigged truss towers each filled with a double row of PAR cans facing frontwards. The eight BMFLs were on downstage side trusses, serving as the main band key-lighting, creating a darker and more sinister look rather than ‘traditionally’ located front key light.

The Pointes were used extensively in conjunction with their frost filters to subvert a standard beam look, however over the course of the set, Johnny made full use of their almost endless combinations of features and effects. He started using Robe products in 2014, specifying them for another popular Danish band – electro rockers Carpark North. Since then he’s regularly used Pointes, BMFLs and now Spiiders in his designs.

Pointes are now a ‘go-to’ fixture – he likes the precision of the beam, the fast zoom, and the gobo projection capabilities – although gobos were only used twice in the Suspekt show – plus the fact that they are small and cost-efficient to tour, so you can have more units. “There is simply no other fixture that can go more than a pointe right now,’ he declares.
“Robe makes very creative and highly robust fixtures,” he says, also mentioning that he receives excellent support from Robe’s Danish distributor, Light Partner, an important part of any successful sales operation.

The stage set comprised a replica classic black Mercedes, customised to contain the DJ decks and a number of flame effects and pyros. Upstage a flown aluminium set piece in the shape of the band’s star logo hung behind the drum kit. The balance of the PAR cans – those not on the vertical onstage towers onstage – were in Swoboda-style pods in the roof made up from two sections of fully loaded pre-rigged truss sections strapped together.
For Suspekt’s summer festival tour which has just finished, the ‘specials’ rig was re-scaled to contain 108 PARs, 24 x Pointes and 22 x Spiiders, all brought in ‘under’ the production rigs provided locally at each event. As a practical lighting design concept, this idea of re-engineering all worked seamlessly. Lighting equipment for all legs of the tour was supplied by Copenhagen based rental specialist, Comtech.

Lighting for the summer tour was programmed by Johnny on a grandMA2 console and operated by his brother Jimmy Sorensen, also a lighting designer and programmer in his own right. This kept things nicely in the family whilst Johnny was out with Carpark North, also with a floor package that featured some Robes – 28 x Pointes and eight Spiiders, again supplied by Comtech.

For more info check Robe Lighting website

ETC’s newest addition to the ColorSource® fixture family is the ColorSource CYC. A fixture with a sole purpose of creating beautiful, smooth washes of light on a cyclorama or wall, ColorSource CYC produces a wide range of bold colours using a unique, all-LED, five colour mix of red, green, blue, indigo, and lime.
ColorSource CYC eliminates the need to replace expensive lamps and highly saturated, coloured gel that burns through after a couple of shows. Furthermore, these fanless, LED fixtures consume a fraction of the power of other standard CYC fixtures. However, lower power consumption doesn’t equal reduced light output. In fact, it’s possible to light a full cyclorama with a fraction of the fixtures typically required.

ETC cyclorama ColorSource CYC

With a compact and lightweight design, this affordable fixture practically blends in with the background. ColorSource CYC can be quickly set up on a stage floor, or hung from a pipe with ease, meaning it’s no longer necessary to lug around large, clunky, boxy fixtures or setup ground row after ground row or border after border.
Each fixture includes an optional hanging yoke, power in and thru connections for easy installation, and standalone presets and sequences, making installation and set up a breeze.

With the new ColorSource CYC fixture, comes an update to ETC’s CYC Tool. This powerful fixture app will do the work for you – calculating the number of fixtures required and how far apart to space them to get full cyclorama coverage.
The latest version of the CYC Tool is available to download now via iTunes and Google Play.

Learn more about both the ColorSource CYC and the CYC Tool on the ETC website

Philips Lighting, describes how its latest lighting fixtures are trying to improve the quality of the television pictures for the current series of South Africa’s televised talent contest, Idols.
Delivering crisp backlight beams and a qualitative keylight, the LED-based new Philips VLZ Profile fixtures from Philips Entertainment Lighting are providing a range of light output that enables even more finely color-balanced television pictures for the latest series.

Photo ©Duncan Riley

Produced by [sic]entertainment and broadcast on Mzansi Magic channel 161 DSTV, Idols is currently in its 13th season. The lighting designer, for the seventh consecutive year, is Joshua Cutts, one of South Africa’s leading practitioners of the art of lighting entertainment shows for television. For this year’s run, Cutts, along with director/executive producer Gavin Wratten, wanted to build on the show’s successful 12th season by further enhancing the set and lighting design.

Photo ©Duncan Riley

“I was looking for two things,” says Cutts, “a strong, iconic backlight and a strong profile with framing capability for my keylight. It was also important for the television cameras that these fixtures had low levels of green within the lamp and reflector.” Cutts found what he was looking for in the Philips VLZ Profile, when he was introduced to the fixture by Philips Entertainment Lighting’s local sales partner, DWR Distribution.
“I was very excited by the VLZ as a powerful LED profile that I could use as keylight,” says Cutts. “I was amazed at its brightness and the color of the white LED on a person’s skin. It was great to see an LED profile competing perfectly with the existing large profiles on the market. The VLZs have great optics, so my iconic backlight is very sharp and crisp, which is a great bonus.”

With the quality of the television pictures in mind, Cutts praised the Philips VLZ’s light output. “I am really enjoying the color temperature of the LED source,” he says. “The quality of the output is outstanding and refreshing. The great color temperature has allowed me to set the white level of my cameras to 6000 Kelvin, making the other light sources on the stage – LED screens and LED washlights – appear more accurate in their color. What I see with my eyes in the venue is now what I see through the camera on screen. All the colors are richer and fresh.”

Photo ©Duncan Riley

He adds, “Dream Sets provided all the technical equipment for Idols, and their project manager Eben Peltz and I have worked closely together over the past few years to raise the technical standard of the show. New technology like the VLZ allows us to do just that – and keep it exciting. They delivered way beyond my expectations and I would happily use them again to create great television!”

Grant Bales-Smith, General Manager EMEA, Philips Entertainment Lighting, says: “The VLZ family of fixtures is a result of our commitment to providing the professional show lighting market with lighting tools that meet both the practical needs and the required performance standards of leading lighting professionals. High quality lighting is essential to the production of beautiful television pictures, and we are delighted to be fulfilling that need.”
More information on Philips Lighting website

Starting in 1985 Rock in Rio is a recurring music festival that originated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas. Brazilian entrepreneur and advertiser Roberto Medina was responsible for the inception and organization of the festival. Rock in Rio is one of the largest music festivals in the world.
For this year’s edition in Rio de Janeiro lighting designer Terry Cook of Woodroffe Bassett Design (WBD) trusted in an MA system consisting of 4 x grandMA2 full-size and 3 x grandMA2 light, 4 x MA Network Switch, 6 x MA NPU (Network Processing Unit), 2 x MA 8Port Node, 4 x MA 2Port Node and 4 x MA NSP (Network Signal Processor) that were used as 4 Port Nodes.

Paulo Lebrão worked as the FOH/system manager. He commented on the choice of the MA system: “First of all, grandMA2 is the most complete system available today. I would say each lighting designer or operator likes to use a console that makes them feel comfortable and that grandMA2 gives us the most helpful tools. Second all bands visiting the festival and playing on the main stage used grandMA2 on their tours. So it worked perfectly well for this stage and all the people involved.”

“We originally built the control system for Rock in Rio to accommodate all bands on the setlist with their different setups”, continued Lebrão. “When the bands arrived with their showfile their lighting designer or operator just had to send us the DMX data via Art-Net or sACN to include it into our MA system. We had two sessions for the shows. One was used as our main session with full access to the whole lighting rig. The second was used by the multiple lighting designers and operators of the bands to patch their showfile for our rig. This had the great benefit, that they could do their programming while we could do all the set changes and maintain the rig during all their shows e.g. re-setting a fixture or re-striking lamps or helping out with followspot zoom sizes as the rear spots in the rig were automated.”

“For the first time we used the MA Network Switch and liked it a lot”, explained Lebrão. “It was very easy to create VLANs with it or to set filters in the network. We had a complex network this year with six VLANs running on the same network. One VLAN e.g. was used to connect the VIP area to the main stage FOH. Doing this we could control the VIP area’s lighting from the FOH during the opening show of the festival, running the same Timecode as for the main stage, allowing us to replicate the lighting moods of the stage in the VIP area. The flexibility of the system was great.”

“The other VLANs were used this way: one VLAN for MA Net2, one VLAN for Art-Net, one VLAN for the show file transfer. Between MA 3D and the FOH, we had a shared Windows folder. Every time a programmer finished a job we saved a show file in this folder and if someone had any problem when arriving at the FOH we had a backup of the show file on this folder. Another VLAN was configured as guest, if bands needed a network connection between the FOH and the stage. An additional VLAN was an Internet connection for all guests at the FOH. The whole system was redundant.”

John Coman (WBD) worked as associate lighting designer, Caio Bertti (LPL) was the Account Director, Willian “Ablinho” Quintino worked as FOH manager, Wanderson “Magrinho” Soares as FOH assistant. Sergio Antonio was the audience lighting operator and Sergio Grandini the crew chief. LPL Lighting Productions delivered the MA system. Lbits Ltda is the exclusive distributor of MA Lighting in Brazil.

More information on MA Lighting website

NEXO’s new additions to its range of NXAMP TDcontrollers are unveiled. The NXAMP4x2 MK2 and NXAMP4x1 MK2 amplifier models are the result of close collaboration between R&D engineers from NEXO and its parent company Yamaha.

Since its launch ten years ago, the NXAMP range of controller/amplifiers has become one of NEXO’s most successful and well-known products, sitting at the heart of most NEXO touring systems and installations. The new NXAMP4x1 MK2 and NXAMP4x2 MK2 models present NEXO’s expertise in DSP control in lighter, sleeker 2U packages with touchscreen control.
Available in 4x 1000 Watts and 4x 2000 Watts, and weighing in at just 16Kg and 16.6Kg respectively, these ultra-low distortion Class D amplifiers combine 32-bit/96KHz converters and 64-bit signal processing to deliver significant advances in sound quality over the already highly regarded MK1 NXAMPs.

The new “small” NXAMP4x1…Let say just lighter and sleeker !

A native dual Ethernet port offers seamless integration with NEXO’s proprietary NeMo system management software. Amplifiers can be remote-controlled and daisy-chained via a Remote Control card fitted as standard, with optional Dante, EtherSound and AES/EBU network cards also available.
Four high-end analogue inputs use cascaded converters for low output noise, and four digital inputs are available through the
rear panel expansion card slot offering optional AES/EBU, EtherSound™, Dante™ or AES67 inputs, all with automatic analogue fall-back. In addition to the expansion card slot, other rear panel connectivity includes RS232 serial and GPIO ports along with Speakon outputs for each of the four channels.

The new design in the Nexo’s lineup, the NXAMP4x2mk2, but still small and light.

The back side of the mkII with the communication card supplied as standard.

Ideal for use in touring and fixed installations, the amplifiers feature a universal power supply (100 – 240 Volts) using PFC (Power Factor Correction) technology for maximum efficiency and smooth current draw.
The NXAMP4x2 MK2 is a new design in the NXAMP range, ideal for NEXO’s GEO Series of compact line array systems, and for the ever-popular PS Series cabinets. The NXAMP4x1 MK2 replaces the NXAMP4x1 model, which NEXO will continue to support as a legacy product.

More information on Nexo Website

A new competition dedicated to projection mapping has been launched as a cooperative venture between Amsterdam Light Festival, Integrated Systems Events and the RAI Amsterdam. The World Masters of Projection Mapping competition will take place from 14 January until 9 February 2018. Work from five competing artists will be shown on the facade of EYE Filmmuseum.

Photo ©Janus van den Eijnden

The creativity of the finalists will be showcased on Thursday 8 February when a panel of judges will decide upon the overall winner of the competition. The following day the winner will be announced on the final day of ISE 2018 at the RAI Amsterdam as part of an exclusive event featuring all finalists. The winning entry and those of the finalists will also be projected onto the EYE Filmmuseum during the Friday evening after ISE 2018 has finished.
The challenge for the artists will be to create a work of video art to be mapped onto the atypical three-dimensional architecture of the EYE Filmmuseum, to be experienced from multiple viewpoints. The projection mapping will be fully visible for the public from boats sailing on the IJ, the quay near Central Station and the Amsterdam Tower. The competition will also be streamed in HD, live on the internet.

Photo ©Iwan Baan

The World Masters of Projection Mapping competition is an initiative from Amsterdam Light Festival, Integrated Systems Events and RAI Amsterdam. Amsterdam Light Festival is an annual cultural winter event exhibiting tailor-made light artworks on the canals and the former Marineterrein. Integrated Systems Events is the producer of Integrated Systems Europe, the world’s largest Audio Visual and systems integration show. RAI Amsterdam is one of The Netherland’s leading exhibition and conference centres and the long-term home of ISE.

Lennart Booij, artistic director of Amsterdam Light Festival commented: “With this first edition of the World Masters of Projection Mapping we are keen to show the high-quality artistic level of projection mapping combined with the possibilities of technological innovation. This is an outstanding opportunity to display art on one of Amsterdam’s most iconic and spectacular facades: For over four weeks, EYE Filmmuseum will be the canvas for contemporary video art, and accessible for everyone to admire and experience.”
Mike Blackman, ISE’s Managing Director commented: “The addition of the World Masters of Projection Mapping competition to the Amsterdam Light Festival presents the finest in creative, technical and production skills. I believe it will strongly resonate with ISE exhibitors and attendees. The fact that the final will take place during ISE 2018 adds to the excitement. We are delighted to be working with both the RAI and Amsterdam Light Festival on this new venture. Both organisations have a proven track record regarding events in the city of Amsterdam and we are confident that we can make the World Masters of Projection Mapping a great success.”
Paul Riemens, CEO RAI Amsterdam commented: “Connecting people, ideas and visions at RAI Amsterdam creates quality and added value for organiser, exhibitor, visitor and the City of Amsterdam. By opening up our network in the City and supporting communities around events, we generate a platform that will enrich this connection even beyond the event days and liaises to new partners. The World Masters of Projection Mapping is a prime example of ‘connecting’.”

Photo ©Iwan Baan

More information on ISE website

In the downtown area of Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, a new venue is redefining standards of clubbing and evening entertainment. Loft is a “club,” if you can describe it as such, that combines a bar, restaurant, cafe and dancefloor over two stories.
Russian installation specialist Muztorg.PRO has provided Loft with a light system that’s as versatile and exciting as its entertainment options with a package that features 16 Rogue R2 Spot, 16 Rogue R2 Wash and 8 Epix Bar Tour fixtures from Chauvet Professional.

“To give the impression of separate areas within the large single venue space, it became quickly apparent that a creative visual solution was required,” commented Roman Kosinov, Project Manager at Muztorg.PRO.
“In addition to a modern sound distribution and partitioning system, the Chauvet fixtures enabled us to create the illusion of separate visually portioned areas within the bar, restaurant and club.”
On the ground floor of the venue, which incorporates a large dancefloor, bar and main stage, a selection of 240W Rogue R2 Spot fixtures positioned from ceiling truss creates a dazzling array of fast-moving and colorful visuals for the club’s DJ and club nights. “With their fixed-slot, rotating gobo wheels and the 3-facet prism, the Rogue R2 Spots transform the main dancefloor area with their incredibly punchy looks,” said Kosinov. 
 
Whilst the spots are generating dancefloor excitement, the Rogue R1 Washes that Kosinov hung on ceiling truss are adding a touch of elegance to the venue with their background washes. “The R1 Wash fixtures have a small footprint, but their output and zoom range allow us to paint the entire dancefloor with beautiful saturated colors,” he said.
“In this sense, the R1 Wash provides an excellent base upon which the R2 Spot fixtures can provide the necessary eye candy and punchy looks.” Adding to the excitement on the dancefloor, are the pixel mapped Epix Bar Tour LEDs mounted on two vertical truss structures. The Epix fixtures open a wide range of design options,” said Kosinov. “The club can use them to change the entire look of the dancefloor.”

 
Within the restaurant area in the upper tier of the venue which looks down onto the main club the R2 Spot and R1 Wash fixtures worked together to create an elegant, but relaxed dining atmosphere. Although both the Rogue R2 Spot and R1 Wash fixtures were limited with regards to the height from which they could be hung from the ceiling on the upper tier of the venue, they were nevertheless still able to achieve excellent color mixing to ensure precise and even lighting ambience on and around the tables within the dining area.

“The soft and saturated illumination of the R1 Wash and bright accurate projections of the R2 Spot fixtures work together harmoniously within the restaurant area to ensure a comfortable dining ambiance,” commented Kosinov. “Most importantly, the versatility of the fixtures has enabled us to create a completely different atmosphere within what is effectively the same space.” 

More on the Chauvet website

Alcons Line-Source QR24

The QR24/110 is a modular 2-way column loudspeaker to be used as scalable vertical array system, for both permanent and (limited) portable applications. It combines a 1:1 linear and dynamic sound reproduction with superb intelligibility and throw, in even the acoustically most challenging environments.
The symmetrical acoustic design, in combination with the wide, patented 110-degree horizontal dispersion of the RBN High Frequency drivers (all the way up to 20 kHz), offers a coherent horizontal pattern control with seamless coverage; This widens the “stereo sweet spot” significantly, for the off-axis positioned audience.

By using only 2×12″ RBN pro-ribbon transducers for the mid-high frequencies, the system’s 90% active frontal radiation results in a sharply-controlled vertical dispersion. This offers a unique, SPL-independent intelligibility-over-distance, without the necessity of DSP-based beam-shaping.
The flat frequency response and the fast transient response of the RBN mid-high frequency transducers, in combination with the sharply controlled dispersion, brings a maximum “gain-before-feedback” up to directly in front of / under the system.
Each purpose-designed RBN1203 12″ pro-ribbon driver has a peak power handling of 2 kW (200 msec), creating a virtually infinite system MHF headroom of 4 kW from 1kHz up. The low-mids are taken care of by 4x high-excursion, vented 6.5″ transducers, which are co-axially mounted behind the pro-ribbon drivers, delivering a frequency response of 74 Hz – 20.000 Hz (-3dB). The controlled (cylindrical) projection can be extended down to the lower frequencies by enlarging the array length through adding extra QR/QM modules (extending the “near field”).

Vertical opening according to the frequency

Assembly of a column of two QR24 that can be mounted on a tripod.

Up to two QR24 units can be combined on a single tripod stand, forming a 1,32m / 52-in. tall array; In flown configuration, up to 11 cabinets QR24 can be connected, with the integrated flying hardware under a safety-rating of 10:1, forming arrays of more than 7 meter / 24-ft tall. The passive filtering allows multiple modules to be combined on one amplifier channel, up to 3 units.
The QR24/110 is powered and controlled by the ALC amplified loudspeaker controller; Through the integrated processing and feedback, the ALC offers QR24-specific drive processing with optimal response and reliability and utmost user-friendliness.
The Signal Integrity Sensing™ pre-wiring dynamically compensates for speaker cable/connector influences between the QR24 and ALC; This offers a 1:1, undistorted, natural sound reproduction, regardless of cable length and amplifier impedance load (system damping factor 10.000).
The QR24 is also available as QR24/80, with 80-degree horizontal dispersion and can be combined with the QR24/110 in the same array.
Certified EASE data for the QR24’s with a 1-degree resolution accuracy is available on the Alcons website. As all Alcons speaker systems, the QR24 comes with a 6-year “no-hassle” warranty.

Philip de Haan, head of Alcons Audio R&D: “The QR24 remains a unique tool in the sound designers toolbox. We always get surprised looks when we demonstrate the unique razor-sharp edged vertical dispersion or the intelligibility at distances in excess of 100m / 330ft with only 2 QR24 on a tripod stand.” Ever since the first installations at Red Bull’s Hangar-7, the Koekelberg Basilica in Brussels, the Finnish National Theater, or the Flex club in Vienna, the scalable Q-series has made the crucial difference in tall ceiling theatres, reverberant churches, all-glass dome venues, low-ceiling clubs or deep, 10.000 seat council meetings.
Phil continues: “the natural cylindrical wavefront of our pro-ribbons is the prominent part of the QR24’s unique combination of a high-output, full-range HiFi response with a flat SPL coverage over distance, in even the most difficult acoustical environments. Or as a client put it: “using Q-series is like switching off the room reverb”!”

More information on Alcons website