P18
Show review
JUNE 2015
Germany
No Messe-ing around! 2015’s PL+S was another record-breaker. In part two of our show review, Jon Chapple scoops up everything we couldn’t squeeze in first time around
Up close and personal on the Eighteen Sound stand
W
hen the 20th Prolight + Sound and Musikmesse shows closed their doors on the evening of 18 April, over 108,000 visitors from 146 countries had passed through the Messe Frankfurt’s sprawling halls. Exhibitor numbers, too, were equally impressive: a record 928 companies from 41 countries attended, with the organisers hailing the four-day trade fairs’ “excellent trade–visitor standard, good propensity to order and high level of internationality”. However, 2015 was the sister shows’ last hurrah in their current forms: As of 2016 PL+S and Musikmesse will switch halls (PL+S moving from its existing home in Halls 8 and 9 to Halls 1, 3, 4 and 5 and the Congress Centre) and no longer run concurrently, with Prolight + Sound taking place from Tuesday 5 to Friday 8 April and Musikmesse from Thursday 7 to Sunday 10 April. Musikmesse will also open its doors to consumers on all four days. “We are acting from a position of strength and want to expand Prolight + Sound hand in hand with the sector and for the sector,” explains Stephan Kurzawski, senior vice-president of Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH. “To this end, we need more space, which the eastern section of the exhibition centre offers.” In total, the new Prolight + Sound will comprise six exhibition halls, two outdoor arenas, a new indoor arena and a larger area of outdoor exhibition space. This change in arrangements certainly surprised some exhibitors PSNEurope spoke to as they have become comfortable and familiar with the layout of (in
particular) Halls 8.0 and 5.1. Who knows what pros and cons next year’s changes will bring? But that’s more than enough about 2016 for now – especially when there’s still so much left to review from this year. Shall we get started? Harman’s AKG debuted a double dose of new mics in Frankfurt. The dual-diaphragm C314 condenser microphone – the latest addition to the family comprising the best-selling C214, C414 B-XL II and C414 B-TL II, among others – offers “a best-in-class self-noise and dynamic range, flat, high linear frequency response
and neutral sound”, while the D112 MkII (below left), the successor to one of the most popular kick-drum microphones ever made, improves upon its predecessor with an integrated flexible mount. A familiar face received a makeover at the Allen & Heath stand as the Cornish console-maker launched ‘Chrome Editions’ of its GLD-series mixers (below). The GLD Chrome firmware adds auto mic mixing (AMM) capability and further additions to the its processing suite, including new FX and channel-based compressor emulations. The redesigned Chrome Edition GLD-80 and GLD-112 mixers feature a new, metallic livery, while the AR84 and AR2412 AudioRacks are equipped with a sleek black finish.
The AMM can be configured to work across all 44 microphone sources, allowing the user to select which inputs should be auto-mixed without the usual restrictions of a 16-channel insert-based system.
www.psneurope.com