JBL Professional announces VTX F Series

Studio monitor sound quality in a multipurpose fill enclosure

JBL Professional VTX F Series delivers studio monitor sound quality in a line of premium two-way multipurpose cabinets featuring point and shoot flexibility, uncompromised sound quality and the patented D2 Dual Diaphragm Dual Driver used in the VTX V25 and M2 Studio Reference Monitor.

A design collaboration with the world-renowned Firehouse Productions, VTX F Series features a premium transducer upgrade of a tried-and-tested design that has always delivered for their most demanding clients. Ideal for point-and-shoot fill, F12 and F15 are a perfect sound design complement to VTX V25 due to the sonic consistency provided by common large format D2 driver technology. When paired with the F18S subwoofer, F12 and F15 provide a premium-quality, compact Front-of-House or Sidefill Monitoring solution and with their clean lines, F-Series is perfectly suited for demanding tour sound stage monitoring requirements. Standard pole mount socket, M10 mount points and an optional U-bracket accessory allow VTX F Series to be used in a wide variety of distributed fill applications – you name it – F Series is a versatile sound design tool.

Five Key Features

1. FILL For point-and-shoot fill such as stereo in-/out-fill, F12 and F15 are a perfect sound design complement to VTX V25 due to the sonic consistency provided by common large format D2 driver.

2. FOH Standalone (pole-mounted) or when paired with the F18S subwoofer, F12 and F15 provide a premium-quality, compact Front-of-House or Sidefill Monitoring system.

3. FLOOR MONITOR With their clean lines, high performance components and dedicated V5 processing, F-Series loudspeakers are perfectly suited for demanding tour sound stage monitoring requirements.

4. FLEXIBLE Standard pole mount socket and M10 mount points along with an optional U-bracket accessory allow F Series to be used in a wide variety of distributed fill applications – you name it – F Series is a versatile sound design tool.

5. FIREHOUSE F Series is a design collaboration between JBL Professional and the world-renowned Firehouse Productions. VTX F Series is a premium transducer upgrade of a tried-and-tested design that has always delivered for Firehouse and their most demanding tour sound clients.

 

 

 

• Download JBL VTX F-Series Brochure
• Visit JBL VTX F-Series web page 

 

JBL Professional is distributed in the UKROI by Sound Technology Ltd. For more information please call 01462 480000, info@soundtech.co.uk

 

 

Soundcraft Vi4 provides O2 Academy Bristol with digital monitor solution

The 1600 capacity O2 Academy Bristol has moved entirely into the digital sound domain, with the purchase of a new Soundcraft Vi4 from Adlib Audio as its dedicated monitor mixing desk.

The decision was taken to retire the long-serving Soundcraft MH3 40-channel analogue desk in the main room — and after reviewing the complete Vi Series, with intuitive Vistonics II™ interface, Technical Manager, Mickey Spillane, and Assistant Technical Manager, Matt Royston-Bishop, opted for the Vi4 for a number of reasons.

Principle among these was the fact that the latest 4.7 software update enable bi-directional show file compatibility with Vi6 and increases the Vi4 channel count from 72 to 96 channels to mix. With the same high quality preamps and sonic performance as the larger Vi6, the only difference between the two is the number of inout faders - 24 on the Vi4 and 32 on the Vi6.

According to Matt Royston-Bishop the reduced frame size, with one less fader bank than the Vi6, enables it to be ideally accommodated in Monitor World.

He added, “There are now so many people touring with IEM’s that we needed much more I/O capacity — mainly outputs, for the stereo in-ear as well as wedge mixes. The MH3 only had 12 auxes and we now have 32 so nothing is an issue. From an investment perspective all these factors are important, as the desk has to last a long time.”

On top of that, he says, the analogue console, with its associated outboard racks, was becoming less and less acceptable as maintenance costs rose.

One of several MH3’s owned by Academy Music Group (AMG), Matt says that they will retain their larger analogue desk for the odd rider that still states ‘no digital’.

A frequent user of the entire Vi range, the O2 Academy Bristol technician was well aware that this user-friendly platform makes it the easiest desk on the market for a sound engineer to familiarise himself with. “We were looking for something that would be that easy to use, as it’s important all our freelancers can walk up to it quickly. The Vi4 provides us with tremendous flexibility.

“It is also a great sounding desk — something that we noticed straight away on stage; it’s a lot cleaner when compared with the inserts on analogue desks, and both the Vi6 and Vi4 use the same output stage and high quality preamps.”

Acceptability is another important issue, he says, and the Vi6 and Vi4 are increasingly being listed on tour riders.

He believes the investment will be future-proofed by Soundcraft's continual development of the platform, the next update being the imminent v4.8 software release which enables all existing 32 mono busses to become stereo making it even more suitable for high count IEM systems. Along with that is the fact that mix engineers no longer have to edit their show file when stepping down to a Vi4.

And Adlib Audio sales manager Nick Turner adds, “Vi’s are becoming the console of choice. They operate on the same platform across all venues and having a desk that anyone can walk up to is what’s needed for tours that are going through the O2 Academy circuit. It’s a desk that anyone can use.”

Soundcraft mixing consoles, and all Harman Professional brands, are distributed in the UK and Ireland by Sound Technology.  For more information please contact us on 01462480000 or visit www.soundtech.co.uk/soundcraft

Further Links

• AdLib Audio
• O2 Academy Bristol
• Soundcraft Vi4

HARMAN Wins 2014 Technical GRAMMY® Award for Lexicon Audio Brand

Harman International announced today that its Lexicon® brand has won a Technical GRAMMY® Award, which is presented to individuals and companies that have made contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording field.

The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences announced their Special Merit Awards earlier today. Recipients are determined by vote of The Academy's Producers & Engineers Wing Advisory Council and Chapter Committees, as well as The Academy's Trustees. This year’s Technical GRAMMY Award recognises Lexicon’s contributions to the art and science of music recording and reproduction through innovation and excellence in product design. The Lexicon brand is in rare company: the only other such award is being presented posthumously to Emile Berliner, who invented and patented the “Gramophone” sound recording device in 1887.

Dinesh C. Paliwal, HARMAN Chairman, President and CEO; Blake Augsburger, President - Professional Division; and Noel Larson, Market Manager - Recording, Broadcast, Portable PA and Tour, will accept the award during the 56th Annual GRAMMY weekend festivities in Los Angeles January 24-26, 2014.

“We are deeply honoured that yet another HARMAN brand has been recognised with a Technical GRAMMY Award,” said Paliwal. “Lexicon products have long been admired both by recording industry professionals and the discriminating audiences they serve, and we are proud to be the only audio systems company to have received this prestigious validation multiple times from the Recording Academy.”

Founded in 1971, Lexicon is one of the world's premier manufacturers of digital effects processing electronics and home theatre systems. The company was among the first to produce commercially-available digital reverb systems which is used by 80 percent of recording artists, and was also an early pioneer in the hard disk recording sector. Lexicon also markets premium amplifiers for luxury cars, home theatre and distributed audio applications, featuring the brand’s exclusive Logic 7® surround sound processing algorithm.

“Earning this GRAMMY is a testament to the remarkable passion that Harman puts into the science of recording and reproducing great sound,” said Augsburger. “I am very proud of the contribution that our Lexicon team has made in creating some of music’s most memorable impressions, and congratulate my colleagues on this milestone achievement.”

HARMAN is the only manufacturer to earn multiple Technical GRAMMY Awards. The Company’s AKG microphone and headphone brand was honoured in 2010 for its more than 60 years of contributions to the art and science of sound. The JBL brand earned a Technical GRAMMY in 2005 for its state-of-the-art advancements in music recording, loudspeakers, and audio systems integration expertise. HARMAN Professional audio systems are used in the studio and on the road by leading performing artists, and are installed in thousands of performance, sporting and commercial venues worldwide.

Lexicon is distributed in the UK & ROI by Sound Technology Ltd.  For more information please visit www.soundtech.co.uk/lexicon or contact us on 01462 480000.

TesseracT choose AKG for in-ear monitoring system

2013 has been a year to remember for progressive metal band TesseracT.  Following the release of their second album 'Altered State' (recently voted by critics as the No.2 album of the year in PROG magazine), they have toured North America with Katatonia, Cult of Luna and Intronaut, then headlined their own tour of the US, Canada and Mexico. Upon their return to the UK they were main support for Karnivool on their UK tour.  Prior to this touring cycle the band, in conjunction with AKG UK distributor Sound Technology, designed an AKG IVM4500 in-ear monitoring system with full HiQnet network remote control and monitoring.  

Before setting off on a tour of Europe with Protest The Hero and The Safety Fire, the boys also found the time to record a live session at the legendary BBC Maida Vale studios for the BBC Radio One Rock Show - a perfect time to catch up with bass player Amos Williams, to find out how they have implemented the AKG IVM4500 in-ear system and what it has brought to their live set.

TesseracT recording their Radio One live session at BBC Maida Vale Studios (photo credit - Kristell Gathoye)

Looking back on the past five months Amos says, "TesseracT have gone through a bit of a metamorphosis over the last cycle of touring. We've gone from a band struggling to replicate the studio recordings in a live scenario, to a band that is not only able to equal the quality and production level of our studio recordings on stage, but also improve upon these. We put this largely down to the new In-Ear Monitoring system that we designed with AKG and Sound Technology".

AKG IVM4500 in-ear monitoring system rack-mounted components (photo credit - Kristell Gathoye)

He continues, "This system not only allows us to eliminate any stage noise, thus giving our FOH engineer, Aidan O'Brien a level playing ground when reinforcing our sound at gigs, but has had the added bonus of improving our level of playing. We can literally hear every little defect and bum note, as well as details in the tracks we had forgotten about from the studio production. It's like we can now deliver as close to the album production as possible, almost like the audience is in the studio with us, but with the added energy, atmosphere and euphoria of a live show.".

 

TesseracT at BBC Maida Vale studios - note the AKG IVM4500 rack behind Guitarist, Acle Kahney (photo credit - Kristell Gathoye)

AKG is distributed in the UK & ROI by Sound Technology Ltd, contact us on 01462 480000 or visit http://www.soundtech.co.uk/akg

Further Links

• AKG
• AKG IVM4500 IEM system
• TesseracT official website
• BBC Radio One Rock Show - TesseracT live session

Sandown Park converts to BSS Soundweb London

RaceTech extends racecourse upgrade to superior digital platform

A little over a decade ago, RaceTech’s Head of Audio Engineering, Robin Dibble, systematically started placing the UK’s racecourses onto a BSS Soundweb digital audio network. However, with the improvement of algorithms, sampling rates and processing speed, the trusty old Soundweb SW9088’s, affectionately-known as the ‘Green’ boxes, slowly made way for a sleeker, supercharged series, with greater I/O flexibility, known as Soundweb London. The most recent high profile racecourse to benefit has been Sandown Park.

Photo above: Sandown Park, now equipped with a BSS Soundweb London audio network

“We had already quoted for the upgrade back in 2010, when we knew the ‘Green’ boxes were going to become obsolete, but we were only recently given the go-ahead to proceed,” said Dibble.

From the installer’s point of view it offers a number of advantages, he says. “Soundweb London devices provide increased processing power and more flexibility. They are easier to use and have better EQ. From the client’s point of view they run over Crestron touch screens which makes it much easier than the old system.”

In a straight swap-out, Robin Dibble has specified four fixed-format BLU-100’s, offering 12 inputs and 8 outputs. These are used with a BLU-120 and BLU-BOB break-out, which provides an additional eight outputs. This gives the facility a matrix capacity of 48 inputs and 48 outputs.

Photo above:  BSS BLU-100 network audio processor

Sandown will depend heavily on that hub as they operate a thriving multi-purpose venue. Aside from the paging system and race day sound coverage they also host conferences, corporate entertainment, exhibitions and other events (including wedding receptions).

Photo above:  Multi-purpose space at Sandown Park

Robin Dibble confirms that all the premier racecourses (where the BSS DSP solution was fitted) have now been converted to the Soundweb London backbone.

BSS Audio is distributed in the UK/ROI by Sound Technology Ltd.

Soundcraft introduces ViSi Remote 2.0

HARMAN’s Soundcraft is announcing Version 2.0 of its tremendously successful ViSi Remote iPad app, which allows remote control of Soundcraft Vi, Si Compact, Si Performer and Si Expression mixing consoles wirelessly from an iPad device. ViSi Remote 2.0 requires no additional hardware other than a wireless access router connected to the HARMAN HiQnet® Ethernet port of the console. With ViSi Remote 2.0, engineers are free to roam the venue and adjust mixes and other audio parameters directly from an iPad.

With 2.0 comes the ability for Si Compact, Performer and Expression users to adjust channel strip settings per channel including settings such as Gate, Compressor and EQ along with Pan, LR/Mono routing and phase invert switches. This functionality will be added to Vi consoles in a future update.

Soundcraft ViSi Remote 2.0 provides a variety of benefits for engineers including: optimize the front of house mix from anywhere in the room; adjust monitor levels while standing next to the artist; adjust channel strip settings remote from the console; extend the fader count of an existing control surface; use in standalone mode for familiarization with console functions; control a network of consoles (e.g. FOH and Monitor); provide a separate surface for DMX functionality (Si Performer only); and allow multiple users on the same console to control their own mixes.

App Store, Apple, iPad and iTunes are trademarks of Apple, Inc., registered in the U.K. and other countries.

Software updates for Soundcraft Si Compact and Si Expression/Performer

Si Compact V3.0 software and Si Expression/Si Performer V1.5 software are now available for download.

Version 3.0 of Si Compact software provides several upgraded features including: six (6) stereo busses, stereo matrices, pre/post selection per channel per bus, and fully customisable fader layers. Version 3.0 also brings full show compatibility with Si Expression and Si Performer shows.*

Version 1.5 of Si Expression and Si Performer software includes software improvements and support for the upcoming release of V2.0 of the ViSi remote app. Si Compact V3.0 also includes support for ViSi V2.0.

All console software updates are accessed from the appropriate product page of the Soundcraft web site: www.soundcraft.com. To access the software downloads, go to www.soundcraft.com/downloads/software.aspx and select the appropriate console.

* Old Si Compact shows created on version 2.3 and earlier will not be compatible with version 3.0.

Dante Interfacing for Soundcraft Si Series Consoles

The Soundcraft® Dante™ option card is now available for  Si Compact, Si Performer and Si Expression Series consoles. The card provides a 64 x 64 interface to any Dante compatible device from Harman or other 3rd party manufacturer.

Dante provides a digital audio network that uses standard Internet Protocols over both 100Mbps and 1 Gigabit Ethernet. Dante uses audio independent, high accuracy network synchronization standards to ensure all Dante devices are synchronized at all times. Dante runs on inexpensive off the shelf computer networking hardware, and does not require dedicated network infrastructure.

The Audinate® Dante Virtual Soundcard software allows connection of a PC/Mac to a Dante audio network. This system allows the computer to record from and playback to the Dante network using most common DAW packages. Dante Virtual Soundcard uses the Ethernet port on the computer to communicate with the Dante network; all that is required is the installation of the Dante Virtual Soundcard software.

Additional information about the Dante system including the latest software set-up and tools may be found on the Audinate® web site http://www.audinate.com/.

New Soundcraft® Multi Digital card now available for Si Compact, Performer and Expression Consoles

With the Soundcraft® Multi Digital card installed in a console, live recording couldn't be simpler! Standard mic/line input sources can be recorded through an Si Compact, Performer or Expression Console via the multi-digital card to a DAW or similar. This simple yet powerful solution is suitable for recording live gigs but is equally at home in the studio.

The Multi Digital card offers digital audio connection between an Si Series* console and Apple® Mac® enabled with Firewire (1394), or PC enabled with USB or Firewire. Audio capability across the Firewire or USB link is 32 channels in and 32 channels out at 48KHz. In addition to the Firewire/USB ports, the Multi Digital card provides 8 further channels of ADAT in and out at 48KHz. These additional channels expand the connectivity further for functions such as input or output expansion with any ADAT-compatible I/O device.

Connection and setup of the card to a PC is made simple with the use of the Soundcraft digital audio driver and associated control panel which can be downloaded from the Si Expression webpage at http://www.soundcraft.com/products/product.aspx?pid=191.

Firewire connection to a Mac requires no software or drivers.

*excluding Si1,2,3 or '+' plus variants