HuddleCamHD has released SimplTrack Lite, a plug-and-play auto-tracking camera with built-in compatibility for a range of system configurations. “With the streaming and video conferencing markets continuing to see high demand, we wanted to design an auto-tracking camera that just worked,” said HuddleCamHD and PTZOptics Director of Technology and Information Systems, Matt Davis. “The SimplTrack Lite truly is a plug-and-play solution. It relies on facial framing and auto-tracking as soon as it’s turned on, so whether you’re recording a lecture or streaming a worship service, the video looks great from moment one.” The HuddleCamHD SimplTrack Lite automatically creates smooth tracking shots…
Author: Jacob Waite
Metallica treated their fans to two concerts at San Francisco’s Chase Center in December to celebrate four decades touring the globe. Lighting Designer, Rob Koenig collaborated with Production Designer, Dan Braun to devise a production featuring 45 large multi-layered and overlapping video surfaces. While the screens were key for showcasing video, interviews, artwork, and other archival material spanning the past four decades, lighting highlighted the band and their audience. Koenig and Braun selected 148 Robe BMFL WashBeam moving lights at the heart of the lighting rig, plus another 16 BMFL WashBeams run on four RoboSpot systems. Lighting Programmers, Joe Cabrera…
AV production company, Novatech Creative Event Technology provided technical expertise and Elation’s Professional IP65-rated Proteus Hybrid moving heads for Illuminate Adelaide – an immersive winter event in Adelaide, Australia. Billed as a celebration of innovation, music, art, light and technology, Illuminate Adelaide lit up the city with a programme of events. As presenting partners, Novatech was the technical supplier of the event’s signature project – Light Cycles. Illuminate Adelaide engaged Montreal-based multimedia studio Moment Factory for the creative, design and immersive content while Novatech provided all the gear and crew. As a featured artist at the new annual event, Moment…
HARMAN Professional Solutions has introduced dbx CX Series loudspeaker control systems for the China market. Ideal for rental companies, hospitality venues, houses of worship, touring artists and corporate A/V and education markets, the CX Series provides all of the processing necessary to get the most out of sound systems while ensuring safe, stable operation. Full-featured, multichannel systems offer a comprehensive suite of digital tools: Each input and output channel features dedicated six-band parametric EQ; limiter; compressor; delays; and Butterworth, Bessel, Linkwitz-Riley and 12/18/24/36 dB/octave filters. Internal 96kHz/24-bit resolution with 32-bit floating-point processing ensures pristine audio quality. Front-panel features include a…
Vermont-based Atomic Professional Audio has invested in Ayrton Perseo-S fixtures and put them to work on a New Year’s Eve event held in Burlington. “The main use of our Perseos will be for outdoor concerts in New England giving us a unit that we can use on the downstage truss and not have to worry about inclement weather,” said Chad Voghell, Head of the Lighting Department at Atomic Pro Audio. “We decided to replace an existing lighting system with brighter fixtures that are IP65 rated and similar in weight, with framing shutters and LED sources,” he explained. “We demoed fixtures…
Modulo Pi has introduced a new hardware revision for the Modulo Player and Modulo Kinetic series of media servers. The new hardware reportedly boosts the media servers performance and capabilities. Shipping as of January 2022, the new hardware includes a series of improvements including vastly increased RAM, doubled bandwidth with PCIE 4.0, ultra-fast NVMe disks, and additional slots for optional live input boards. The hardware revision also comes with new server motherboards, as well as new generation processor and GPU. The new hardware specifications depend on the media server model. www.modulo-pi.com
Sage has been confirmed as the naming partner for ASM Global’s NewcastleGateshead Quays arena and conference centre development. Opening in 2024, The Sage will be a 54,500 sq m business and entertainment destination. The venue will support the North East’s businesses by unlocking access to new customers and international markets through commercial and promotional opportunities. It will be the North East’s largest business and entertainment district and will welcome more than one million visitors annually. The development will provide an estimated £70m annual boost for the local economy, creating 2,000 jobs, the majority of which will be sustained over the…
Nothing But Thieves completed a UK tour, with experienced Lighting Designer, Sam Tozer of Vision Factory, masterminding a new stage look for the Essex-based rockers. Working alongside Lighting Director, Ryan Dennett and Production Manager, Andrew Sweeney, Tozer was brought onboard to create a new style for the band’s latest touring campaign. “We wanted to create a show that matched the new art direction of the latest album,” he explained. “We used elements of the set to create a clean look and add dynamics to the performance, with the lighting being revealed progressively throughout the set.” For this reason, he turned…
Monitor Engineer, Martin Capaldi and FOH Engineer, Will Nicholson hit the road with Gerry Cinnamon throughout 2021 following the resumption of live shows post-pandemic. The shows marked some of the first in the UK to use DiGiCo’s new Quantum 338 at FOH, with an SD12 on stage, both supplied as part of the audio package by the production’s rental company of choice, Wigwam Acoustics, part of the Solotech Group. “I’ve been working with Gerry on and off for over 10 years in a couple of different capacities, but I only came on board to start doing monitors for him in…
HOLOPLOT has appointed Klas Dalbjorn to the role of Product Manager. Dalbjorn brings 30 years of pro audio experience to his new position, where he will play a key role in further expanding the Holoplot product portfolio, as the company continues to scale, extending its technological offering to new markets. In his previous roles, Dalbjorn was responsible for directing product management efforts across the Powersoft product portfolio, after building a deep knowledge of the industry at Lab.gruppen AB over a 24-year period. On his new appointment, Dalbjorn said: “It’s a privilege to be Product Manager for the team creating future generations of HOLOPLOT products.…
For many years, Lightswitch has relied on Elation Professional’s IP65-rated Proteus line to add dynamism to Enchanted: Forest of Light at Descanso Gardens in Southern California. For the recently completed 2021 iteration, the visual design group upgraded to Proteus Maximus and Proteus Lucius luminaires to add power and reimagine portions of the popular winter nighttime experience. Tailor made to enhance the historic botanical garden’s unique geography and flora, Enchanted: Forest of Light is an immersive, one-mile nighttime walk through colourful and dazzling lighting displays accompanied by sound and music. Lightswitch has been responsible for lighting design and creative direction of…
Taking place at Liverpool’s Old Christ Church on 27 November 2021, Black Hole – End of Time was an immersive multimedia show exploring the complex ideas of space and time. The visual and artistic interpretation of Liverpudlian Musician and Lighting Designer, Paul Alty’s Behind The Clock three-part album series, the spectacle was centred around a black hole and ran every 30 minutes for 12 consecutive shows each with an audience of over 200 people. Speaking to TPi, Alty explained how he harnessed his discography, 18 lasers and other multimedia effects to create a completely immersive and sensory experience that filled…
Optimal Audio, part of the Focusrite Group, has welcomed the appointment of Erikson Pro as its exclusive distributor in Canada. Optimal Audio Managing Director, Dom Harter commented: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Erikson in what is a large and important market. As part of the Focusrite Group, we’re familiar with Erikson’s excellent work with our sister brand Martin Audio, and consequently approach this partnership full of confidence that our fledgling brand is in the best possible hands.” Erikson Pro Vice President, Christian Bouchard added: “Our long-standing relationship with Dom Harter along with our involvement in the commercial sector through…
Abbey Road Institute is a specialist music production school and the training ground for the next generation of music producers and sound engineers. Its foundations are the expertise and innovation created at Abbey Road Studios. Originally based in St Johns Wood as part of the famous Studio’s complex, the school’s diploma became so popular with students that it needed to expand its facilities to accommodate the growing demand. During the summer of 2021, the Institute moved into and revived the historic Angel Recording Studios in Islington, near Kings Cross. VDC provided the Institute with a variety of Van Damme cabling…
EES, aka Eric Sell, is a Namibian artist with German roots. Having released nine studio albums in Africa, EES and his backing band, The Yes-Ja! Band, rose to prominence in Germany after winning the X-Factor in 2018 with a blend of Kwaito, African House, Afro Pop and Afro-Reggae. When The Game Changer Tour was announced for November 2021, the band’s live sound engineer Florian Hackenberg-Keßler decided he needed something lightweight, portable, and quick to set up and pack down. Enter the 48-channel SQ-5, built on Allen & Heath’s XCVI 96kHz FPGA engine. And, with a comprehensive range of integrated processing…
TSL Lighting has a diverse portfolio of clients across the live events industry. With an impressive remit that encompasses music, theatre, corporate, sporting and e-sport events, the need for reliable, versatile lighting fixtures to handle this varied field of activity is paramount. “Last year, when we looked to evaluate and increase our range of outdoor profiles, we were intent on investing in LED fixtures which were robust and flexible enough to cope with the many demands we put upon our equipment,” explained TSL Director, Loz Wilcox. “We were looking for a fixture which could support our clients on their exterior…
Studio Berlin, a German live TV production solutions provider, has deployed Riedel Communications MediorNet MicroN UHD media distribution and processing solution in its new Ü10 UHD/HDR OB van. Featuring a unique two-vehicle design that enables production crews to maintain social distancing, the Ü10 is outfitted with 38 Riedel MicroN UHD modules for decentralised signal routing. MicroN UHD is the latest generation of Riedel’s MediorNet MicroN family of modular, high-density signal interfaces, bringing more bandwidth, more I/O, higher resolutions, and more processing power to the MediorNet platform. In Studio Berlin’s Ü10, eight MicroN UHD modules are being used as stage boxes,…
Eric ‘EZ’ Wade, who runs production management company, EZ Services, has been touring UK theatres and clubs with Little Simz with technical support from sound system supplier, Entec Live. This is a new relationship which has quickly kicked into overdrive, after the West London technical services company had been strongly recommended. EZ was introduced to Entec Head of Sound, Dan Scantlebury by Monitor Engineer, James ‘Kedge’ Kerridge. This was at the beginning of the year as rehearsals were about to begin. Fittingly, Kedge had also served his apprenticeship at Entec, and so was able to provide the recommendation based on…
