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Just One More for 2-0-1-4: The Big “U”

George Petersen, Editor, FOH Magazine

Just One More for 2-0-1-4: The Big “U”

Welcome to 2014. I’m not sure where 2013 went, but around here, time moves much faster than 1,126 feet/second, and it seems like yesterday that I was penning some kind of welcome address to 2013. This is always the time when journalists everywhere reflect on the past year, but I’m mostly gonna skip that and get to the chase. That said, you don’t want to miss our annual look back at the “Top Tours of 2013” in our expanded “Showtime” edition starting on page 22. (Click HERE to scroll down to the tour listings)

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Bassnectar Goes 360 Degrees with Meyer Sound Leo for New Year's Eve

Bassnectar Goes 360 Degrees with Meyer Sound LEO for New Year’s Eve

NASHVILLE — On New Year’s Eve, close to 17,000 “Bassheads” converged at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena to usher in 2014 with Bassnectar, the electronic music DJ whose immersive live shows have earned him legions of devoted fans. To ensure an equal experience for all attendees, the 360-degree event featured a rotating stage, as well as the largest Meyer Sound LEO large-scale sound reinforcement system to date.

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Schematic showing interior of the new L.A. Forum, full configuration

The Forum is Reborn

INGLEWOOD, CA – The L.A. Forum, also known simply as The Forum, is reopening in a big way Jan. 15 after a $100 million remodeling project – with the kickoff show for the “History of the Eagles” tour, capped off with the world’s biggest record rotating on the roof.  Along with hundreds of concerts, the storied venue has hosted NBA championships, Summer Olympics basketball and numerous movie shoots. It was acquired by the Madison Square Garden Company (MSG) in 2012, bringing the venue full circle in a way – it was designed by architect Charles Luckman, who also did Madison Square Garden.

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Italy’s Montarbo Sets Up U.S. Distribution

LAS VEGAS — Italian professional audio manufacturer Montarbo (Elettronica Montarbo srl) and Audio Innovation Research, LLC (air audio systems) are backing a joint venture, MontAir Distribution, based here, to expand the presence of Montarbo speakers and air/Software Audio Console (SAC) console/DAW products in the U.S.

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Dave Rat, Rat Sound Systems

Travels with Anya

Dave Rat on EAW’s Latest Line Array System

It’s no secret that Rat Sound has a long association with Eastern Acoustic Works. Company principals Dave Rat and Jon Monson worked closely with EAW in the creation of the successful MicroWedge stage monitors line and then contributed throughout the research and development process for Anya, EAW’s latest line array product.

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The sanctuary at Northcrest Baptist Church, Meridian, MS. Creative Sound Solutions installed a system that includes 16 WorxAudio X1i-P powered installation line arrays for house mains as well as an additional two X1i-P enclosures serving as choir monitors. Rounding out the system are two TL118SSi-P powered subs, two V5M-P ultra-compact powered fill/monitors, plus four Wave Series 8M two-way, high efficiency, stage monitors.

Northcrest Baptist Church Steps Up with Beam Steering Technology

With a contemporary program featuring a strong music emphasis, Northcrest Baptist Church (Meridian, MS) has a wide range of offerings including children’s, youth and adult choirs, plus a variety of mission opportunities and worship programs. Recognizing the importance of a quality sound reinforcement and its ability to deliver a high level of speech intelligibility and music reproduction characteristics, the church recently upgraded with a new loudspeaker system from WorxAudio Technologies.

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RedNet modules 1 through 5

Focusrite RedNet Audio Networking

Well-known in studio circles, but perhaps less familiar to sound reinforcement users, Focusrite has a long and distinguished legacy in professional audio. The company was founded 29 years ago by audio legend Rupert Neve (whose circuit designs still grace a number of Focusrite’s products) and four years later, it was acquired by Soundcraft co-founder Phil Dudderidge. After a short bout in the large console market, Focusrite began expanding its world-class signal processing series with a successful line of audio interfaces that were on-time and in-step with the burgeoning studio market.

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Kick Drum Microphones buyers guide, FOH magazine, Jan. 2014

Kick Drum Microphones

Once upon a time, choices for miking kick drums were few — RE-20’s, D12’s, MD421’s and the occasional M88. But as bass drum became more prominent in music mixes, a market opened for specialized microphones for kick applications, with new high-SPL, plug-and-go models that required little or no EQ to provide a solid kick sound. Today, there are dozens of such models available — and even more if you consider all the boundary-style mics suitable for the task. We looked into some current market offerings and found a huge selection to fit anyone’s taste or budget. Speaking of price, all include an MSRP here, although street prices can vary widely if you shop around. So get kicking!

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Open Array software prediction for Washington D.C.’s Warner Theatre, showing the effectiveness of a mid-height line array hang covering multiple zones. Image courtesy of Outline

Dealing with Balconies

Virtually every production company will come to a point in business where they start doing events in rooms colloquially referred to as “soft seaters.” These are the concert halls, civic centers, theaters, churches, converted movie houses, auditoriums, collegiate centers, etc. that host everything from plays to bands to politicians. Soft seaters can be great venues: a fair number were designed with some acoustic intent and/or treatment, and the better ones are well equipped to support a production company’s infrastructure.

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The control panel on the side of the Black12 has I/O, mixing and access to DSP settings.

Alto Professional Black Series

Whether aging a fine wine or tweaking a speaker design, good things often take a while to develop. During the InfoComm show back in 2012, I stopped by the Alto Professional booth and was taken aback by a preview of the company’s just-unveiled Black Series loudspeakers. I had been aware of Alto Professional since 2000, when the company was first launched. That young company had ambition and good ideas, but seemed unfocused and often embarked on products which, I suppose, had great appeal to overseas customers, yet weren’t always quite in sync with the needs of pro users in North America.

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