Stage Audio & Lighting Productions of Longwood, Florida, recently provided sound reinforcement and technical support at all venues for this year’s Florida International Festival in Daytona Beach, highlighted by a performance by the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), featuring a concert system based upon a variety of EAW loudspeakers line arrays and EAW digital processing.

Headed by Phillip Kovacevich (pictured below), Stage Audio & Lighting Productions is a leading live event company celebrating its third decade of serving touring artists and corporate event planners in the Eastern U.S. and the Caribbean, and the company counts live orchestra sound reinforcement as one of its specialties.

Veteran free-lance audio professional Jeremy Goldstein, based in Orlando, brought his talents to the event as well. In addition to helping with system management throughout the festival, he also provided the live mix of the first half of the LSO concert.

The LSO show featured a “Pops” style that paid tribute to motion picture soundtracks, with “Darth Vadar” making an appearance to guest-conduct the “Star Wars” theme.

The large-scale system assembled to serve the audience filling the 46,000-square-foot, multi-level Ocean Center arena in Daytona included EAW KF760 Series large-format line arrays optimized with the new EAW UX8800 dual-mode digital processors with Gunness Focusing technology.

These components were joined by EAW KF730 Series line arrays on the stage offering side up-fill coverage, as well as EAW SB1000z dual 18-inch-loaded concert subwoofers on the deck.The UX8800’s companion EAWPilot software proved handy in helping to optimize a wide range of loudspeaker and array parameters, with Kovacevich particularly interested in the software’s Wizard modeling that helps in configuring DSP and in building optimum array structures for a given event’s parameters.

“Wizard proved to be quite accurate in the data it supplied,” Kovacevich says. “We checked its array recommendations with a laser light, and coverage was almost dead on the mark, requiring just a quick adjustment to make it absolutely optimum.”

The main system was supported by several EAW NT Series self-powered loudspeakers on the deck to provide extreme nearfield coverage to the very front seats. The entire set of loudspeakers was time-aligned and optimized with an assist from EAW Smaart v.6, with EAW’s Jamie Anderson on hand to support Stage Audio's efforts in this regard.

“Symphony crowds are purists - they don’t want to hear amplified sound,” Kovacevich concludes. “That becomes a particularly tough challenge in a huge-volume venue like the Ocean Center, where the PA needs to project a significant amount of energy. Fortunately, with our experience and the use of proven tools like the KF760, especially with the addition of UX8800 processing, we were able to attain coverage of the entire venue, with every seat in the house receiving subtle reinforcement marked by a very neutral, open signature.”

Posted by EAW at 10:22 AM | Permalink

The campaign for the U.S. presidency kicked into high-octane mode last week as Oprah Winfrey joined Democratic candidate Barack Obama at Williams-Brice Football Stadium in Columbia, SC, where ACS Sound & Lighting delivered EAW-based sound reinforcement for the more than 30,000 people at the largest political rally in South Carolina history.

ACS Co-Owner Troy Gwin and his crew’s concert-level system effort was headed by EAW KF760 Series large-format line arrays joined by EAW KF730 Series small-format line arrays, with several EAW BH760 “SuperSubs” also on hand for pounding low-end for musical artists such as Arrested Development.

ACS, also based in Columbia, provided “in the round” coverage of the audience surrounding the main stage at one end of the stadium, with organizers adamant that the PA stay out of crowd and TV camera sightlines.

The KF760 line arrays and BH760 subs were transported down to field level from the stadium scoreboard, supplied by ACS through the 2007 football season to deliver reinforcement at University of South Carolina Gamecocks home games. They were joined by KF730 Series line array inventory, with Gwin utilizing the EAW Wizard software program to help with initial system configuration and then doing his own detailed tailoring.

All main system loudspeakers were located at the far edges of the press stages. Two ground stacks of KF760 Series line arrays, including KF761 wide-dispersion modules, provided the longest throw coverage, while two more ground stacks of KF730 Series line arrays handled the nearer regions. The KF760’s were stacked using EAW’s new KF760 fly bars, which proved quite handy on the project.

“The new fly bars are really great – I can’t say enough about how easy they are to use while allowing us to precisely aim and angle the coverage,” Gwin notes. “As a result, the system was absolutely dialed in, with exceptional coverage from the main stage all the way to the ‘nose-bleed’ sections more than 400 feet away.”

Posted by EAW at 10:32 AM | Permalink

EAW has established a new operation – exclusively focused on the EAW brand – that dramatically upgrades our ability to serve the crucial European professional audio marketplace.

The new EAW Europe, which officially opens its doors on January 2, 2007, is based in Wickford, Essex, UK, and is headed by veteran European Sales Manager Sean Martin (shown at right). He is directing a team of six full-time, highly experienced professionals who will work in support of the EAW brand and its European customer base.

The new operation offers the complete inventory of EAW products on the European continent in order to dramatically shorten delivery times. An expansive inventory of repair and replacement parts are kept on hand as well, with an EAW Product Service Centre also instituted in Wickford, in very close proximity to the offices of EAW Europe.

“EAW Europe has been established to directly serve all of the specialized needs of our customers in Europe, streamlining not only the communication process but also the entire way we do business,” explains Sean Martin. “As EAW continues to move impressively forward in developing groundbreaking new technologies, those efforts are being matched by an uncompromising attitude in taking care of our customers, saving them time, expense and hassle.”

In addition to Sean Martin, the EAW Europe team is comprised of UK Sales Manager Moray McMillin, Application Support Group (ASG) Specialist Steve Badham, Service Manager Mark Keeble, Sales Administrator Juliane Becker and Office Manager Lesley Townsend.

“This is a team to truly be proud of,” notes Sean Martin. “These individuals bring years of hands-on experience to their respective positions, and that’s matched by their dedication to excellence on behalf of the organization and its products.”

The directive to establish a strong, dedicated EAW brand footprint is the brainchild of EAW Brand Group Vice President Jeffrey Cox, teamed with Sean Martin’s extensive knowledge and understanding of the unique needs of the European marketplace. It comes as the company continues to increase its focus on Europe’s pro audio community, highlighted by educational efforts such as the B4 Roadshow - conducted by EAW's training and educational staff - held across the continent earlier this year. (Note that EAW also offers a dedicated office serving Germany, and this continues.)

“Not only is EAW a technology company; it is also absolutely committed to supporting its customers. This is something we’ve been addressing with exceptional energy over the past year - product service, technical support, enhanced product and company information communicated via an increasing number of channels, and so on,” states Cox. “The bottom line is that Europe has been, and remains, a very important market for EAW. That’s why we have invested the resources and personnel in establishing a dedicated EAW brand operation in Europe.”

Specific location and mailing address for the new operation, effective January 2, 2007:

EAW Europe
Unit 3 Blenheim Court
Hurricane Way
Wickford
Essex SS11 8YT

Phone: +44 (0)1268 562592
Fax: +44 (0)1268 733240

E-mail inquiries should still be directed to Sean Martin at sean.martin@eaw.com

Posted by EAW at 01:27 PM | Permalink

Noted harpist Vincenzo Zitello, recognized as one of the finest Italian musical artists, performs live in concert with sound reinforcement by EAW NT Series self-powered loudspeakers with Gunness Focusing.

Also widely respected for his skills as a composer, Zitello's compositions have often been played in Saint Peter’s Square in Rome to accompany special worship services.

For live performances, Zitello utilizes his own custom sound reinforcement system that even includes special microphones installed in his harps, along with several premium Neumann overhead mics.

The system, under the direction of Vittorio Sorrentino, Zitello's sound engineer, is led by NT26 loudspeakers, sometimes joined by NTS22 subwoofers. Sorrentino (pictured below) selected the NT Series following an evaluation of numerous loudspeakers.

"The EAW NT26's are very high quality loudspeakers, and are the only ones that can reproduce the unique sound of the harp with all the harmonics and the complete dynamic range, without any coloration or distortion," explains Sorrentino. "We use two or four NT26, depending on the venue size. They are coupled with NTS22 subwoofers when Vincenzo performs with other musicians.”

In January, 2008, Zitello will be performing at Théâtre Max Jacob in Bretagna-France, a high award for an Italian artist to play Breton music in its homeland. (To learn more about Vincenzo Zitello, click here. Our thanks to Edoardo Ravelli of Exhibo for this information and the photos.)

Posted by EAW at 02:58 PM | Permalink

Leading hire company Canegreen of London recently deployed its EAW KF760 Series line array inventory for a series of events at London's ExCel Arena, the largest indoor arena venue in the U.K.

The multi-day event series included a live festival for Islam television, followed by Tamil Remembrance Day and then the two-day Nigerian Festival of Life, with attendance sometimes approaching 30,000.

Canegreen was able to achieve excellent sound reinforcement with a main system headed by left and right line array hangs comprised of 10 KF760 modules above two KF761 wide-dispersion modules, and a dozen SB1000z subwoofers on the deck.

Renowned FOH Engineer Roger Lindsay provided the house mix for all three events (as he did last year), with Canegreen's Paul "PK" Knight and Ace McGrogan on hand throughout to provide expert system engineering and technical support. (Roger, PK and Ace are pictured directly above, left to right.)

Posted by EAW at 02:17 PM | Permalink

The accolades keep on coming for the UMX.96 digital console as it continues its tour with FOH Engineer Don Dodge in support of Foreigner's international tour.

The latest notice comes from Audio Pro International magazine, based in the U.K., which is featuring an exclusive interview with Don on his experiences with the UMX. Sample comment from Don: "The console has a ‘warmer’ sound to it than others, with analog pre amps and VCA section and a very analog layout.”

Be sure to check out the entire interview here.

Posted by EAW at 12:56 PM | Permalink

The online version of Harry Brill Jr's excellent article regarding tips and tricks for EAW Smaart v.6, written exclusively for Mix magazine, has now been posted in the publication's online edition.

In the article, Harry (shown at right handling Smaart duties at the recent ET Live) shares valuable information gained from his experiences with Smaart, including use of certain features that might not be readily apparent to some users. It's a must-read for anyone seeking to get the most from Smaart v.6. Click here to go directly to the article.

Posted by EAW at 07:50 AM | Permalink

The new NTL720 is one of the most exciting products developed by EAW in some time. It's a self-powered line array loudspeaker system so small that we call it the "baby line array module" (BLAM), but it packs a true three-way design and numerous other EAW patented and proprietary technologies into its very small footprint. The NTL720 made its live debut at the recent 2007 ET Live in Orlando - click here to check out photos of it in action.

Also here on EAW.com, there's a wide range of information about this new system:

NTL720 Info Page
NTL720 Product Page
NTL Preliminary Data Sheet (pdf)
NTL720 White Paper (pdf)

And, check out the November '07 issue of Live Sound magazine for an in-depth report on the NTL720.

Posted by EAW at 05:49 AM | Permalink

EAW's Moray McMillan (UK Sales Manager) recently caught up with Foreigner FOH Engineer Don Dodge as he travels Europe with the UMX.96 digital console - the board's maiden voyage across the pond. Don reports all is going exceptionally well, both with the tour in general as well as the performance of the console. Moray sends along the recent photo he took at right, showing Don prior to a recent concert at Shepperds Bush.

More dates remain on the Foreigner swing through Europe. Click here to see where and when the tour is appearing in the coming weeks.

Posted by EAW at 05:23 AM | Permalink