19 Jun, 2018 | ApexPro News, ETC
ApexPro, the South African distributor of ETC Lighting, hosted a talk with Anne Valentino at the Market Square Auditorium on 13 June. The event was attended by an impressive number of young lighting designers, who were treated to a two-hour long presentation on the philosophies behind the development of modern lighting control consoles.
Valentino spoke with Pro-Systems Africa News following the presentation and shared with us her extraordinary professional journey in entertainment technology, spanning some 30 years. During her career, Valentino has taken the lead in developing some of the most renowned lighting controllers to enter the market and has been a true trail-blazer in the evolution of digitised lighting control.
Despite advances in gender equality over the past two decades, one cannot deny that the manufacturing and technology fields remain largely dominated by men. Valentino has set herself apart not simply as an outstanding woman but, more importantly, as an outstanding innovator and thought– a leader among her peers on the global stage.
Article from www.pro-systems.co.za
19 Jun, 2018 | Bosch
Bosch has expanded its Dicentis family with an interpreter desk that supports up to 100 interpreted languages.
The design of the desk logically separates the incoming and outgoing languages in two vertically aligned columns via a high-contrast screen for quick comprehension and intuitive operation. Three assignable buttons provide the interpreter with short-key functions for quick access to supporting functions such as “video select.” The HDMI output enables an external video screen to be added, so the interpreter can see the participant speaking or the participant’s presentation.
Dicentis uses encryption standards for all audio and data. Audio and control is handled by Omneo IP technology, which also allows for system integration with third-party solutions. Omneo also enables the use of existing network infrastructure.
The Dicentis interpreter desk is fully compatible with the Dicentis platform and complies with the simultaneous interpreting equipment standard ISO 20109. It enables the creation of passive overflow rooms adjacent to the main meeting room in case there are more participants than can be accommodated at the main meeting location.
Using the Dicentis Meeting application, all languages and interpreter desks can be remotely configured and managed.
12 Jun, 2018 | ETC
After avid musical instrument collector Steven Kern Shaw passed away, Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee received a generous donation of more than 500 vintage instruments. 100 of them are now on display in a unique venue that is part art museum, part performance hall.
The grandson of one of America’s great composers, Jerome Kern, Steven Kern Shaw grew up surrounded by music. Spending much of his life acquiring iconic stringed instruments, it was Shaw’s wish that “these instruments be played and heard.”
Belmont is known for high-level graduates in the music and entertainment industry and seemed like a natural place for an instrument donation of this magnitude to be housed. The focus on the history of stringed instruments is apparent. One exhibit shows the history of the mandolin and includes renowned instruments designed by Lloyd Loar in the 1920s. There are only a handful of their kind in existence in the world.
When asked to light the iconic instruments, Wallace Powers from SESCO Lighting in Nashville, Tennessee, agreed. Working with a tight timeframe and even tighter installation constraints, Powers knew a call to ETC was the first step. “We had less than three months from design to shipment to museum opening,” remembers Powers. “We couldn’t have made this happen with anyone other than ETC and the fixtures we had.”
With only 139 square metres to work in, Powers chose DataTrack* with DMX system and track-mounted Irideon FPZ fixtures. “The ceilings are low at only 9 feet [2.7m] tall and the DataTrack had to be installed only one-foot [30cm] away from the wall to maximise space. This means the throw distance is substantially shorter than many traditional lighting options can accommodate.” Powers goes on to say, “They wanted the look and functionality of theatrical lighting which meant individual fixture control was a necessity.”
ETC’s Irideon FPZ fixtures were up to the challenge. Every FPZ fixture was programmed to be dimmed and controlled individually throughout the museum.
Because of the nature of the collection, with its premiere model acoustic guitars from Martin and electric guitars from Fender, not to mention the collector himself, it was a very high-profile job. “Security was definitely a concern,” says Powers. “Everything had to be well lit.”
It’s been one year since the museum known as the GIG or, Gallery of Iconic Guitars, opened. It continues to attract the attention of music fans with its intimate experience of both music and the history behind it.
30 May, 2018 | ApexPro News
ETC’s (Electronic Theatre Controls) senior controls product manager, Anne Valentino, will be conducting a talk about lighting control philosophies and the ideas behind what makes a good lighting console in Cape Town on 11 June. The event will be hosted by the manufacturer’s South African distributor, ApexPro, and takes place at the Artscape Arena Theatre from 1pm. The event will repeated in Johannesburg on 13 June at The Market Square Auditorium.
Ms Valentino has amassed 30 years of experience in lighting and entertainment technology, having worked for the likes of PRG as VP of marketing, Vari-Lite as director of marketing, and Strand Lighting as dimming and control product manager in addition to ETC where she has previously served as director of R&D. Throughout her career, she has been responsible for some of the most renowned lighting controllers to enter the market, including the early Strand consoles, the Vari-Lite Virtuoso and the ETC Eos family.
If you are interested in attending either event, RSVP with your name and contact information to mathew@apexpro.co.za before 6 June.
30 May, 2018 | Symetrix
Atlona and Symetrix have formed a strategic partnership to ‘accelerate integration, and tighten interoperability, across the A/V over IP ecosystem’. The overall aim is to simplify the process of designing and deploying networked systems to and from a digital signal processor (DSP) using intelligent on-off ramps for audio, video, and peripherals such as USB signals, that are easy to configure, control and manage.
‘As the DSP is the central part of most A/V systems, Symetrix is continually seeking ways to help our integration partners build the most cost-effective and flexible systems possible,’ commented Trent Wagner, senior product manager at Symetrix. ‘As our industry moves toward everything over IP, we’re committed to addressing the new time-consuming challenges our customers face in building out a networked architecture. Our collaboration with Atlona simplifies the programming and control of these systems, and help us build stronger IP bridges and on/off ramps for audio, video and USB.’
The partnership benefits from the common architectures that both companies share, such as Dante audio support, and the fact that their product catalogues complement each other rather than overlap.
‘Working together with Symetrix, we have developed a clear problem-solving solution for systems integrators that have found it time-consuming and difficult to program and control disparate components of a broader A/V over IP ecosystem,’ stated David Shamir, director of product management at Atlona. ‘Our collaboration will remove the mystery behind the design and integration of an interoperable networked system, and clearly communicate how to leverage the individual strength of each component outward from the DSP.’
22 May, 2018 | Symetrix
Symetrix and Visionary Solutions are excited to announce the native integration of Visionary Solutions’ PacketAV® Duet Dante™-enabled IP video encoder and decoder products into Symetrix’ Composer DSP programming and control software. The integration, co-developed by Symetrix and Visionary Solutions, enables PacketAV Duet and E/D4100 video encoders and decoders to appear as native units in Composer 7.1 and later. Harnessing the flexibility and scalability of converged IP networks, PacketAV Matrix products ultra low-latency 4K UHD video can be streamed over IP together with a Dante-enabled Symetrix DSP system, offering a complete Audio, Video, and Control solution, all while bypassing the constraints of traditional switch matrix systems.
Scheduled for release in the third quarter of 2018, Symetrix Composer 7.1 takes full command of the PacketAV Matrix products, with drag and drop configuration, network discovery, video routing, and video wall control. Live video previews for at-a-glance confidence monitoring of both encoders and decoders are supported, and may be freely placed on custom user interfaces deployed to Windows®- or Web-based devices.
Composer also fully manages the Dante audio interfaces on Duet products, including discovery, device naming, channel naming, and audio routing. Using Visionary’s PacketAV Duet encoders and decoders, audio from an HDMI source may be stripped off and routed through the DSP for processing, mixed with other sources, and distributed to sound reinforcement systems throughout a facility, as well as re-embedded into the IP video stream for local playback at the displays.
A design can be completed offline, without hardware. Once the hardware is installed, Composer efficiently locates all hardware on the network; updates and reconciles network names, IP addresses and channel configurations as necessary; and configures initial audio and video routes.
“We are very excited to have Visionary Solutions as an integration partner,” declares Symetrix Senior Product Manager Trent Wagner. “PacketAV Matrix products elegantly bridge the IP video and IP audio worlds, while Symetrix DSP and control makes system management effortless.”
“System designers will reap major benefits from this new level of integration,” observes Scott Freshman, Chief Operating Officer for Visionary Solutions. “Composer is well known for its ease of use, and with version 7.1, configuration and management of PacketAV Matrix products becomes faster and simpler than ever.”
