iHeartRadio Music Festival console upgrade is a quantum leap forward…
DiGiCo has released details about the recent installation of two of its mixing consoles at the iHeart Theater Los Angeles for this year’s tenth annual iHeartRadio Music Festival. The two-day virtual streaming, radio and TV broadcast event in late September, featured a host of artists such as Alicia Keys, Bon Jovi, BTS, Coldplay, and Miley Cyrus who played to a virtual audience.
The theatre, where many of the artists recorded their performances ahead of the live stream, installed the DiGiCo Quantum338 digital mixing console, along with a new DiGiCo SD12 mixing console and according to the venue’s head of audio Jason Batuyong, the upgrade has significantly improved the set-up process.
“Most of the time acts would bring in their own tour package desks or rent them in for their shows. The idea was to streamline everything and make it easier for artists to not have to bring in all their own stuff. We picked DiGiCo, because that was all we had been using, really, for every show,” said Batuyong, who works on shows and events such as America’s Got Talent and X-Factor, among others.
The theatre had been closed since the start of the pandemic, so the festival marked the venue’s debut of its new Q338. “We shut down, like everyone else, in March. And we didn’t receive the Q338 until June,” added Batuyong. “We did use the SD12 on a few shows earlier in the year, but the tenth anniversary music festival was the maiden voyage for the Q338, and it was 100 per cent amazing.
“Everyone was extremely excited because, with quarantine, nobody had been able to see this console. Some artists’ FOH mixers were little bit worried about bringing their files and how the file converter was going to work, but all of that worked seamlessly and was absolutely great. But most people started the mix from scratch. That was easier for the shortened sets that they were going to play. And everyone said, on their next tour, they want a Q338.”
Lumens cameras added to Barco ClickShare Alliance Program
Lumens Digital Optics has announced that its 4K and Full HD video conference cameras and auto-tracking camera have joined the Barco ClickShare Alliance Program. The company said the technology partnership will allows both companies to bring users “innovative and seamless video conferencing solutions”.
The cameras are designed for use in a variety of meeting rooms spaces, and the added Barco Clickshare button will ensure that everyone present in a meeting room can see and hear remote participants via the video conference software and share attendee laptop content.
The Lumens VC-B30U is a pan/tilt/zoom (PTZ) camera featuring a 12x optical lens best used in mid-to-large size rooms, while the upcoming VC-TR1 features auto-tracking to capture presenters as they move with PTZ functions. Also included the programme are the company’s VC-B11U, VC-B10U, and VC-B2U models, the latter of which is designed for huddle spaces and work from home (WFH) environments.
Award-winning analogue-to-IP audio solution now shipping
Systems integrator technology supplier Barix has announced that its IP Former is now shipping. The solution allows integrators to add IP functionality to existing loudspeaker installations, transforming analogue loudspeakers into feature-rich, networked IP speakers.
The IP Former effectively replaces the 70/100V transformer traditionally used with analogue loudspeakers and provides an IP network interface, audio stream decoder and amplifier front-end for a two- to eight-ohm speaker, with power supplied over PoE for “streamlined cabling and installation”. The company said that current analogue speaker installations can be retrofitted by simply switching their transformers with IP Former units to help “maximise the lifecycle of customers’ existing investments”.
“Many end-customer projects include advanced IP audio features amongst their requirements, but they already have perfectly good analog loudspeakers in their facilities,” said Davide Nossa, product manager, Barix. “IP Former lets integrators and systems designers simply upgrade those existing speakers with powerful IP functionality, saving the customer significant money compared to new speakers while avoiding the environmental impact of discarding the old ones.”
