Mondo*dr Australia & New Zealand Issue 2

THE INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATION FOR TECHNOLOGY IN ENTERTAINMENT

ANTHONY RUSSO

TAG’s Technical Director has been fascinated with audio since the age of five.

GLAMORAMA

A Funktion-One sound system has reinvented this late night venue.

ISSUE 2

ULA GROUP

Celebrating 25 years in the world of lighting, video and distribution.

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T H E

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L E V E L

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T O U R

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3 CO N TEN TS

Contents 4 IN DETAIL - AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND

Interview 12 ANTHONY RUSSO Technical Audio Group 17 ALEX MAIR Lexair 20 PETE FLOYD LSC Lighting 46 SOREN NORGAARD Diversified Communications

Install 8 GLAMORAMA Melbourne 14 BIRD’S BASEMENT Melbourne 18 HILLSONG Sydney 22 THE EVENT CENTRE Sydney ISSUE 2

26 CONNECT CHURCH Wellington

Often referred to as ‘Down Under’, Australasia is one of the furthest places to reach for many, but over the time I’ve been working at mondo*dr, I’ve tried to make the trip once every 12 months - and this year was no exception. Personally, it’s one of my favourite places to visit, as it feels like a home away from home in many respects - but obviously with better weather! I haven’t quite made it as far as New Zealand yet, but it’s definitely on my hit list for the near future.

I visited the two honourary capitals of Australia - Sydney and Melbourne - and picked up many stories along the way from the high-end, wowfactor projects, right through to the urban, stripped-back venues. As well as installations, the supplement also features interviews with key industry players - take Tony Russo of TAG, who has been fascinated in the world of audio since the age of five. If you know Tony, it’s well worth a read. We’ve also chatted to Soren Norgaard, who works for Diversified Communications, which runs Integrate, the only remaining tradeshow in our industry in Australia, to find out why he thinks the show has survived against the rest.

The same as our first supplement, I encourage you to have a flick through and send us your feedback. We’ll be doing the next one in the New Year, and it’ll be focussing on Singapore, so if you’ve got a story from the region, get in touch.

28 CLEO ULTRA LOUNGE Sydney 32 ST PETERS LUTHERAN COLLEGE Brisbane 34 MARQUEE Sydney 36 THE ALEX THEATRE Melbourne 38 CAPITAINE BOUGAINVILLE THEATRE Whangarei 40 THE ARGYLE Sydney 42 THE MALTHOUSE Melbourne

In Profile 24 PAVT Melbourne 44 ULA GROUP Gold Coast

RACHAEL ROGERSON-THORLEY EDITOR

EDITOR: Rachael Rogerson-Thorley: r.rogerson-thorley@mondiale.co.uk ASSISTANT EDITOR: Sam Hughes: s.hughes@mondiale.co.uk SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER: Jamie Dixon: j.dixon@mondiale.co.uk ACCOUNT MANAGER: Laura Iles: l.iles@mondiale.co.uk INTERN: Alex South: mondointern@mondiale.co.uk PRODUCTION: Mel Robinson, Dan Seaton CEO: Justin Gawne: j.gawne@mondiale.co.uk FINANCE DIRECTOR: Amanda Giles: a.giles@mondiale.co.uk CREDIT CONTROL: ar@mondiale.co.uk GROUP CHAIRMAN: Damian Walsh MONDIALE PUBLISHING, Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport SK1 3AZ, UK Tel: +44 161 476 8340 Fax: +44 161 429 7214 ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION RATES (7 ISSUES) UK: £30.00 / Europe: £50.00 / Rest Of World: £65.00 Two year rates are available on request.

Subscribe online at www.mondiale.co.uk or call +44 (0)161 476 5580 ISSN: 1476 4067 Mondo DR (ISSN 1476 4067) is published in January, March, May, July, September, November and December by Mondiale Publishing Limited, Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport, SK1 3AZ, United Kingdom. Subscription records are maintained at Mondiale Publishing Limited, Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport, SK1 3AZ, United Kingdom

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4 FAC TS & FI GUR ES

In Detail - Australia

MAIN TRADING PARTNERS

China, Japan, United States, Republic of Korea

80 YRS

84 YRS

EASTERN: GMT + 10 hrs CENTRAL: GMT + 9.5 hrs WESTERN: GMT + 8 hrs

Total land area 7.69 million sq km (2.96 million sq miles)

LIFE EXPECTANCY

POPULATION 23.94 million

(December 2015 est.)

GDP

MAJOR IMPORTS Passenger motor vehicles Refined petroleum Crude petroleum Telecom equipment Computers

2016

2015

2014

(real growth rate)

0.8% 0.5% 0.7% www.mo ndo dr.co m

US$43,267

US$43,845

GDP per capita (PPP)

Currency: Australian Dollar (AUD)

US$43,654

5 FAC TS & FI GUR ES

2015

2014

2013

GDP

Australia Day 26 January

(official exchange rate)

US$1.224 trillion (2015 est.)

Largest city SYDNEY 4.92 million Capital City CANBERRA MAIN LANGUAGE

+ 61

ENGLISH + more than 300 others

Electricity supply

230V 50Hz

Country code:

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6 FAC TS & FI GUR ES

In Detail - New Zealand

GDP

(official exchange rate)

GDP

US$172.2 billion (2015 est.)

2014

(real growth rate)

2015

0.5%

2016

0.8% 0.9%

Currency: New Zealand Dollar (NZD)

POPULATION 4,578,742

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US$34,262

US$33,714

Electricity supply

230V 50Hz

+ 64

US$34.762

(November 2016 est.)

Total land area 263,884 sq km

Country code:

Capital City WELLINGTON

GDP per capita (PPP)

GMT + 11 hours

2015

2014

2013

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Glamorama Melbourne

Taking its name from Bret Easton Ellis’ novel, Glamorama is a late night venue located in Melbourne’s inner north, Fitzroy. Opened by quintet Jeremy (Jem) Koadlow, John Ryan, Simon Henderson, Anthony Cannan and Daniel Teum, who all have a background in live music and hospitality venues.

“We really liked Bret’s ideas about subcultures, youth culture and how they relate to going out and being social” explained Jem. “One aspect of Glamorama is making fun of fashion culture and pop culture, which we felt really fitted in terms of our location on Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. Another aspect is that we didn’t want to take ourselves too seriously, yet we acknlowedge we have some serious offerings in terms of audio and liquor.”

The idea with Glamorama as a venue was to create a unique quality experience for anyone walking through the doors - that meant accessible high-end drinks and audio. The focus for the former is specifically Australian Single Malt Whisky. The focus on the latter was a custom fitted full Funktion-One sound system. The back bar houses approximately 450 bottles, with possibly the largest collection of Australian whisky in the world. In a venue that has a late license until 3am on normal opening days and 5am on Friday and Saturday, hosting the best in electronic music, having unique bar stock really makes a statement with the sound system driving home the quality dance offering.

Within Glamorama is Spare Me Kitchen - the restaurant element (which is a frequently used phrase from the novel).

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Full Throttle Entertainment BRANDS: Funktion-One, XTA, MC2, Pioneer, Technics, Allen & Heath WEBSITE: www.fullthrottleentertainment.com.au / www. funktion-one.com / www.xta.co.uk / www.mc2-audio.co.uk / www.pioneerdj.com / www.technics.com / www.allen-heath.com

Spare Me Kitchen has its own identity firmly entrenched in their ethos of modern quality aligning to the drinks and sound offering. The menu is modern Australian, which Jem explained: “Modern Australia is a melting pot of cultures which have all had an impact on the palette of the Australian consumer. For example, you have an Australian fish, being presented in a Japanese style, using continental flavours such as olive oil and capers within the dish. This is what Melbourne is, a real mixture of different communities - from food, to drinks all the way through to music. And this is what Glamorama and Spare Me Kitchen epitomises.”

The first venture by the team was Less Than Zero - also the title of a Bret Easton Ellis novel - and after its success, they began to look for their next project, inviting Daniel from Novel - an events and touring company in Melbourne - to join the group. The team have known each other in one way or another professionally and personally, with each member bringing a new and unique skill set to Glamorama, which has made the venue work well in the competitive Melbourne hospitality landscape..

“We spoke to a lot of people about sound systems,” said Jem. “Daniel recommended Adam at Full Throttle

who works primarily with Funktion-One. Adam is very passionate about the brand and about what can be achieved by installing the right system in the right environment. His passion mimicked ours, so it was the perfect fit.” Ahead of Adam coming in to spec the system, Glamorama underwent some sound treatment to enhance the acoustics of the room - soundboards have been fitted in the roof and double glazing on the windows to minimise sound leakage.

Adam described the audio brief: “It’s a late night venue - a restaurant meets a nightclub - so it needed to have distinct areas and the ability to make it lounge-like, but, then, at the press of a button, be able to turn into a nightclub-style venue. And we had to integrate all of that with the surrounding neighbourhood.”

Originally the venue ran 90º the other way and it had a stage on one end, but when the new owners reinvented and reinvigorated the venue, they wanted to spin the dancefloor 90º in comparison to where it used to be, and space for tables also need to be considered and included in the audio design. Adam continued: “Because the width of the room - from the DJ booth to the back of the dancefloor - is quite short, an intimate vibe is created www.mo ndo dr.co m

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and I actually think that works really well. We’ve installed the speakers quite wide so you get a really nice stereo image, no matter where you are on the dancefloor.”

The main dancefloor system comprises two FunktionOne Evo 6E and two BR221 subwoofers. “In my opinion, some of the R&D that has gone into Vero was too good an opportunity to pass up, for them not to put it into another line of loudspeakers. Evo sounds amazing and it’s something we wanted to put into a venue,” said Adam. “The Evo line of speakers is really loud, really clean and has great fidelity that really works in the space and the volume levels we can get there.”

A total of 12 Funktion-One F81’s are spread around the venue for fill - in the bar area, in the smoking courtyard and some ensure coverage in the seating booths around the periphery of the room. A further two Funkion-One MB212’s are flown near the ceiling in the Lounge and VIP areas to add extra low-end. Each area is compartmentalised, so although the same musical track is playing throughout the venue - with the exception of the entrance - the SPLs levels are appropriate to the area.

Full Throttle also custom designed and installed the DJ booth - which is attached to the roof for sub bass isolation - and has been equipped with two Funktion-One Resolution 1’s as DJ monitors, as well as Pioneer CDJ-2000 multiplayers, Technics SL1210 turntables and an Allen & Heath DJ mixer. Glamorama has residencies with local DJs but also welcomes interstate DJs and internationals, and is open and accessible for new up and coming talent.

The customisation doesn’t end there, either, as Adam made use of the dead space in the stairwell - which leads

customers from the ground level entrance up to the venue - by installing a floating amp rack. He explained his reasoning: “Firstly, for our company, I wanted to do something that’s more creative and more artistic, other than let’s plug in some speakers and turn it up to loud.

We wanted it to be a talking piece for the venue but also for us as a brand. To have that open space in the centre of the stairwell really lent itself to being something more. So, we decided to put the amp rack and processing on display there. It surprises people when they walk in, catches them off guard.”

It houses three XTA 1048 processors and a bunch of amplifiers from MC² Audio’s T Series - one T500, one T1000, three T1500, one T2000, two T3500 and one T4250.

All feature MC² Audio’s complementary Class AB bipolar topology and the unique MC² Audio current driven floating drive stage. The T Series amplifiers also produce minimal mechanical noise, which is even more important than usual given their position in the venue.

Adam concluded: “It was really nice working with these clients because they let me do what I wanted to do.

They saw the vision I had from their vision. When they described what they wanted to achieve and I threw certain ideas back at them, they were really openminded. Also to see them investing in high quality audio and high quality liquor to give that overall high-end experience was great to witness. Anthony, John and Simon were also quite hands on with the build which was very refreshing. The team were not afraid to jump in and get their hands dirty, it was a delight to work with them.”

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Anthony Russo Technical Director at Technical Audio Group

Was audio something that fascinated you from a young age?

From the age of five, everything electrical fascinated me. A crystal set radio was my earliest memory, along with thinking: ‘why would anyone want to listen to such terrible quality?’. My head was usually in the back of our home TV pulling valves out to see if the picture went funny. I’d get most excited on council clean-up days, dragging back boxes of radios, speakers, anything that had a cord and that could be plugged into the wall.

In my parents’ garage, I’d pull everything apart, join wires, short things, adjust circuit components just to see want they did. I remember grabbing long lengths of sewer pipe from mum’s vegetable garden and experimenting with speakers on the end just to see the effect. I still recall the salvaged speakers on the clothes line, after the cones had been repaired with tissue paper and glue, drying next to the undies.

By age eight, I’d progressed to full blown RF. Engineering with my trusty FM recording cassette desk and my handheld FM radio mic, I would wander the streets mapping where I was going with commentary.

Then I’d rush home to rewind the cassette, and listen to how far I got to before reception cracked up. The best bit was turning the Doobie Brothers as loud as it could go on the Hi-Fi and running up the street to see if Jesus is Just Alright at 300-metres and at 11pm.

Tell me how you first started out in the audio industry?

I was 14 in 1974. At high school, my best friend got me involved with helping to set up his and a friend’s upcoming band. Unloading a truck load of speakers and lights, and carrying a Hammond C3 organ up four floors, for 16 hours, at $5.00 a night, seemed fair at the time. I got to mix, which was great for me, but not great for the audiences or bands sometimes. However, working the Sydney band scene in the ‘70s and ‘80s was an exciting time. The live music scene was full of touring bands such as AC/DC, Skyhooks, Midnight Oil, The Angels, Cold Chisel, INXS and many more. These were bands I worked with, or supported regularly. It was normal to do up to three bump ins/outs in one night in Melbourne or Sydney at that time. Spending weeks on the road,

with little sleep, and driving thousands of kilometres for little pay, was normal. But, as we all know, we aren’t in the audio industry for the money. You just have to be passionate.

It was an era never to be repeated, along with the road skills and problem solving required on a daily basis. The Australian music scene was unlike anywhere else in the world, not only were we exposed to such a fabulous variety of music, but also to fabulous equipment. With high import taxes, local industries made their own mixers, amplifiers, and PAs and from that sprang a large educated pro audio group. This is one reason why overseas production and equipment companies hold Australians in such high regard, when it comes to productions, distribution or engineering. We’ve ‘been there, done that’ with the best talent there was.

Later in the ‘80s, after being on the road in the UK, I came back to Australia and started work at Q Sound, which at the time was doing theatre productions for such shows as West Side Story and Rocky Horror. It was fortunate that the owner of Q Sound, was also the Hill Audio distributor, and from there I was introduced to the late, great, Rob Lingfield, who was doing AC/DC and Live Aid at the time in the UK .

How has your opinion of the audio world changed from when to started out to the present day?

It hasn’t changed in some ways. The audio industry is unlike any other industry. It’s frustrating at times. You never hear of an air conditioning engineer talk about how he thinks the cold air feels so much better from a Carrier than a Fujitsu. Or a civil engineer who thinks Germanmade cranes lift 10 tonnes better than American-made cranes. As I always say, it’s lucky some sound engineers aren’t aeronautical engineers or we’d have a lot more planes falling out of the sky.

Everyday, I strive to make sure we get the message out there - that there is a scientific approach to sound engineering, with ears being the ultimate instrument. Over the years, audiences have become more critical of sound in their lives - they have an intimate understanding of music, what it should sound like and how it should move them. Our job

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is to exceed their expectations wherever they meet pro audio.

When and how did TAG come into the equation?

Around 1984, at the age of 24, I started up AR Audio Engineering, importing SCV Audio and the emerging EAW brand. I was fortunate at Q Sound, as I bumped into Max Twartz, who is still my business partner to this day. We both shared the entrepreneurial spirit and were always working out crazing money-making or marketing schemes. Max had worked with some major international corporations as marketing director, and his MBA skills ensured we had a strong solid foundation for growth.

We changed names to Technical Audio Group in the mid ‘90s and had major successes with many brands at the time. Ultimately, our decision was to focus on four key brands: QSC Audio, Allen & Heath, Martin Audio and Audio Technica. This has given us the ability to support all the brands equally with the marketing, personnel, and finances to make them successful. Indeed, pro rata we outperform many countries around the world.

Describe the early days of TAG and how you contributed to building the company?

The early days of TAG centred around making sure we were always well-presented and appeared bigger than we were. Even with only two of us - then three, and four - we fought against the big guys with brands that were just starting to get recognised. Our award-winning tradeshow stands set the standard back then. Even to this day, we have innovations in product presentations, and hospitality that is legendary within the global audio industry.

Max and I were always thinking of new ideas to woo customers to our brands, from everyday sales and marketing to helping dealers with engineering support to win projects.

TAG built a reputation of having a team of people that were passionate about keeping clients and suppliers happy, and going beyond the call of duty. Indeed, we have many loyal suppliers and clients who have

been with us nearly 30 years, with daily emails arriving at my desk from companies praising us for the support they have received when dealing with TAG. What have been the standout projects that you’ve worked on with TAG over the years?

Together with our collaborators, we have been fortune to be involved with many local and international projects from the Sydney Opera House and World Expo to local projects at the Australian War Memorial, St. Andrews Cathedral and more recently the new, Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour. We have also been part of the supply chain, five years in row, of the AVIA awards - audio excellence in projects in Australia.

What has been the most valuable lesson of your career?

If you’re a boffin, geeky person like me and you want to be succesful, then get yourself a business partner, who understands business and marketing. It’s the only way you’re going to make it. Focus on what you’re good at, and get someone else to sort out the rest, and to tell you objectively, what you need to be doing to grow. Also make sure you surround yourself with the best people in the industry, and learn from them. Then share that knowledge with the younger generation so you leave a foundation for the future. That’s what Max and I have been doing, from sales and marketing, right through to engineering skills pass on the knowledge!

If you didn’t have a career in the audio industry, what path do you think you’d have taken?

I can’t really imagine doing anything else, so it’s weird to think about.

I always liked being an entrepreneur, so I guess I’d have chanced my arm as promoter of ‘things’. Even from age six, I was selling raffle tickets door-to-door with a broken off plant branch stuck in a pot of soil that was wrapped in tin foil, as the raffle prize. I’d say: ‘three tickets for a dollar, got to be in it to win it, sir!’.

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Bird’s Basement Melbourne Made famous in the 1950s for being Charlie Parker’s resident jazz club, Birdland New York has recently taken a step out of the Big Apple to set up a new venture in Melbourne. Bird’s Basement - ironically located on Singers Lane - has been designed to be a stage of past, present and future jazz legends.

The owner of Bird’s Basement, Albert ‘Albare’ Dadon is not only the very successful property developer, but also a very successful touring jazz fusion musician, so whoever took on the task of specifying and installing the venue was taking on a huge challenge.

The contract fell to Factory Sound and Projects & Installations Manager, Jonathan Sinclair, described just how high the stakes were: “Essentially, we were building ‘Albare’s place’, his baby, his home turf, and it needed to fall into his vision every step of the way. Luckily, we all share Albare’s insatiable desire for pristine audio - there was never any discussion about best value, only best result.”

Jonathan worked with Albare’s touring engineer, Joe Petrolo, who was the conduit to all the key technical decisions. Together, Jonathan and Tony Lofts - also of Factory Sound - deliberated a few options and selected NEXO as the manufacturer for the project, to which Joe concurred. “This was going to be a heavily used, heavily critiqued venue, so we needed to know the technology was going to work flawlessly,” said www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Left and right: Melbourne is very proud to be the first of Birdland’s ventures outside of the New York.

Jonathan.

With the decision to go with NEXO made, the team then worked with the manufacturer’s Australian distributor, Group Technologies - specifically Drew Menard - to design a system that was capable of extremely high dynamic range and sound quality, ensured every seat had a stereo image and the system itself had the smallest possible footprint.

The shape of the room is quite awkward, it was designed to fit as many seats around the stage as possible - as is typical in a traditional jazz bar - but that doesn’t make achieving an even coverage easy. The solution was to split the audio into smaller ‘groups of systems’ to maintain even coverage.

NEXO GEOS1230’s provide the front left and right, GEOM620’s as used as front central fills and PS-10R2’s have been installed in the wings and as stage foldback. The systems share NEXO LS-600 subwoofers that have been carefully time aligned to bring a coherent end result. “One thing which impressed all of us was the performance of the GEOM620’s, which as well as for front fill, we also used for the delays in the far corner section. They are a truly wondrous bit of kit for live performance and even though those seats are furthest from the stage, all the reports from guests have been incredibly positive. The vibe is maintained perfectly,” added Jonathan.

NEXO NXAMP 4X4C and 4X1Cs are used to power the entire system. This was a convenient, simple and reliable, choice that gave Factory Sound a turnkey solution to handover to the venue after installation, which was headed up by Factory Sound’s Lucas Howlett.

Jonathan continued: “The system is processed through the Xilica Neutrino DSP, where all the system calibrations are locked away. Xilica is renowned for its pure sonic quality, something which many DSPs actually lack. We are not shy about inserting Xilica on any size PA. There is a custom touch panel for control over each section of the PA, and also to select some

basic presets.”

For mixing requirements, Factory Sound were asked to provide a solution that was compact, simple, and as sonically clean as possible. DiGiCo’s S21 - the company’s newest addition to the S Series at the time of installation - fitted the brief perfectly. Plenty of power, flexibility, two multi-touch touch screens, 21 faders and ample I/O, the S21 has been popular with the mix engineers. “They have been loving the ease of multitrack recording the shows,” said Jonathan.

Nowadays, the venue has a in-house mix engineer, Pete Camilleri, he echoed the praise for the console: “The S21 is a great desk for the price you pay. It’s just had an upgrade too, which has fixed some of the functionality that was problematic before the upgrade. For example, in the graphics area, you couldn’t link left and right EQ, so you would have to individually EQ it, but now with the hit of two buttons and pressing okay, linking them has become a simple process.”

The main challenges of the audio install came with the shape of the room and its acoustics, and the low ceiling. To combat the later, a mirrored black ceiling was created using barisol - a stretched plastic membrane.

Surprisingly, it is all one piece and was custom installed in one session, due to the fact that had any dust made contact with the membrane during the fitting process, the barisol would have been damaged.

Underneath the barisol acoustics panels were implemented, and to enhance the acoustics even further, vertical diffusers down the walls were also installed. Jonathan added: “Glass features offset all the absorption and the result is a room which needs very little EQ, has an extraordinary gain before feedback, but still has life and presence. It’s a very easy room to mix in. When the subwoofers get up and going, watching the ceiling membrane resonating is hypnotic for us sound guys.”

The PA is mounted on a custom-made Global Truss structure, supplied by Design Quintessence in Australia, which was www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Factory Sound BRANDS: Group Technologies, NEXO, Xilica, DiGiCo, Design Quintessence, Global Truss, ULA Group, Robe, ETC, Martin by Harman, Chamsys WEBSITE: factorysound.com / www.gtaust.com / nexo-sa.com / xilica.com / www.digico.biz / www.dq.com.au / www.globaltruss.com / ulagroup.com.au / www.robe.cz / www.etcconnect.com / www.martin.com / chamsys.co.uk

powder-coated black in keeping with the aesthetics of the room. “We had to carefully engineer everything here - the supports have acoustic dampener’s inline, the truss had to be laser marked to within millimetres to ensure the fixing points left the truss with enough clearance from the barisol, and last of all it needed to hold not just the lights - as you would normally expect - but the entire PA too,” continued Jonathan.

The lighting installation also fell to Factory Sound, with Jonathan crossing over into this area but working with his colleague, Josh Evans, this time. To create the jazz atmosphere the pair decided on some conventional tungsten profiles, but these were interspersed with intelligent fixtures too. ULA Group supplied Robe Robin LED100 Beam moving yokes, which were specifically selected due to their compact size, their fantastic colour mixing and their virtually silent operation. Some ETC ColorSource

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PARs, ETC Source Four Junior profiles and two Martin by Harman Rush MH-1’s also feature in the lighting rig.

Lighting control is provided by a Chamsys MQ40-N console - also supplied by ULA Group - which is networked to an iPad, making the system very user friendly.

“Chamsys is still such a wonderfully logical platform for both live and installation scenarios and has not missed a beat on this occasion,” said Jonathan.

The concluding point on the entire installation, Jonathan said: “I was particularly happy with was how versatile the PA ended up being. We have thrown any number of music genres at it - and without exception it ate it up, even at drastically loud, and just as importantly, very soft, SPL. The live shows, whilst predominantly jazz, do range, so this was pleasing - and in my opinion proves it was indeed the ‘right rig for the room’.”

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Alex Mair Founder of Lexair When and why did you start the company?

Lexair Entertainment started in November 2011. so we’ve just celebrated our fith birthday, which I’m very proud of. The reason - I always had a niggling desire to start my own company, and an opportunity arose to start distributing some great products in Australia, so I took it. We also recently launched Lexair New Zealand, as a joint venture with our partner Entertainment Lighting Solutions, giving us local representation across the ditch and bringing us that much closer to our customers in the whole region.

What was your background before starting the company?

I started in lighting while in high school - like many in the industry, it was a childhood interest, which I’ve turned into a career, and I was very lucky that a few local LDs and production companies were willing to take me under their wing at such a young age. I then went to work for Jands - Electronics, as opposed to Production Services - in product support and development, where I learnt the manufacturing and distribution side of the business. I’ve often joked that I’m lucky I do what I do - mostly because I don’t know how to do anything else.

Describe the Australian market when you first began and how does it compare to today?

The whole entertainment technology market in Australia has been a moving target the last few years. Some big guys have been getting bigger, while other guys have had trouble staying in business, and we’ve seen that in all sectors of the industry - from production companies all the way to the event promotors. The overseas factors have made a huge difference as well, in terms of brands being bought and sold. The day of the big tradeshow is also gone in Australia, so you have to be more nimble and promote your product in innovative ways. Technology changes move faster these days too. New products come out all the time, so now more than ever you’ve got to be on the ball and have a great relationship with your suppliers and customers.

What was the first brand you took on distribution for and how did you secure the partnership?

High End Systems (HES) was the first brand I took on. They were looking for a distribution partner in Australia, and so I put my hand up, against the established players. They took a risk on me as a start-up business, and I’m very thankful they did.

How did you continue to build the brand portfolio? Elation is the most recent brand you’ve taken on, what impact has that had?

We’ve been very selective with our brand portfolio, and have really focussed on finding not just great products, but working with companies with great teams. After HES, we took on Green Hippo; and then TMB, looking after their worldwide-exclusive products. Most recently, Elation came onboard and is a fantastic fit for our business - their broad product portfolio has allowed us to dramatically extend our reach, and they continue to develop new and truly innovative products, which are really getting the industry excited Down Under.

You quite recently appointed Tony Lukeman, a well-known figure in the industry, what effect has that had on the company?

I’ve known Tony a long time - until now, pretty much always as a competitor - and I’ve always had a lot of respect for him. He knows the gear and the industry really well - and he’s great with people.

He’s a perfect addition to the team, and his appointment has really solidified my goal of ensuring the company focusses as much on technical support as the next sale.

Can you name some flagship installation projects that Lexair has been involved with?

We were very proud to install some High End Systems Solaspot Pro 1500’s into the Sydney Opera House this year. We also now have 14 Hog 4’s running in the newly extended Adelaide Convention Centre; and more Hog’s in the Positively Wellington Venues in New Zealand, with our long-term partners at Norwest Oceania.

What makes Lexair different from other distributors in the region?

We’re a small and agile team, with a genuine focus on support, no matter how big or small our customer is. We also keep our overheads low, which means we don’t have an Australia / New Zealand price premium. And I refuse - point blank - to sell any product I don’t believe in. I know that all sounds like sales crap, but it’s actually true, and it feels good to run a business with that core ethos.

Tell the readers something they wouldn’t know about Lexair?

The name Lexair is simply my name, dropping the initials - it’s a tipof-the-hat to my old employer Jands, which comes from ‘J and S’, the initials of the original founders.

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Hillsong

Sydney

Canadian loudspeaker manufacturer, Adamson Systems Engineering has recently entered a partnership with Hillsong, a multi-site church with campuses in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Newcastle, Gold Coast, Hobart, Darwin and Noosa as well as numerous international campuses around the world. Together, they plan to upgrade a number of mid-sized Hillsong sanctuaries worldwide.

Most installs will feature Adamson S10 line arrays and S119 subwoofers, but for the first venue upgrade at the city centre worship space in Sydney, a different solution was chosen.

“It started with us looking for a new system that would better meet our needs for the city centre worship space in Sydney,” explained Hillsong Production Facilities Manager, Steve Le Roux. “At the same time, we knew that there were existing systems in other venues that needed to be upgraded, plus new churches under construction that would require sound reinforcement. It made sense to be incredibly thorough - we sat through many, many product demonstrations - in order to decide upon one manufacturer to work with for everything. In the end, Adamson came out the clear winner.”

The ongoing main campus upgrade consists of E12 cabinets - a three-way, true line source enclosure, incorporating proprietary transducer and waveguide

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Technical Information INSTALLER: CMI BRANDS: Adamson WEBSITE: www.adamsonsystems.com / www.cmi.com.au / www.hillsong.com

technology - as well as Adamson’s recently released E119 subwoofer, used to bolster the low-end. “The subs are both compact and extremely powerful - ideal for our city centre space. They provide serious low end when needed while blending seamlessly with the PA,” said Hillsong Head of Audio Ricki Cook.

He furthered: “In particular, we were impressed with the compact S-Series system. It clearly stood out after extensive shootout and real world testing scenarios. The sound is very clean, the control in demanding acoustic environments is amazing and the low-end capability makes it actually sound like a much bigger system. It handles everything you throw at it - no matter how dense your arrangements are, clarity retains impeccable where other systems give up. The music performed at our churches varies depending upon the service. It was important to find loudspeakers that sounded great with everything. After listening to many different demos, it was a delight to hear Adamson - we knew their products would take us into the future.”

James Oliver, Director of Marketing and Sales for Adamson concluded: “We are very excited to form this partnership with Hillsong. They are an amazing organisation with an incredible reach and message for so many people.

It’s an honor to work with them to create custom sound reinforcement solutions for their many locations around the world.” www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Trevor Sykes, Gary Pritchard and Pete Floyd CEO, Managing Director and International Sales Manager at LSC Lighting Tell me how a little bit about how the company first started out?

Pete: Gary Pritchard trained as an electronic engineer and was asked to make a dimmer by his friend who used to light the band that Gary had played in. And the rest, as they say, is history.

LSC has been in business for almost 40 years, what’s the secret?

Quality red wine and regular staff BBQs. What is your most game-changing product range released to date?

There have been many. The Maxim lighting desk was a memorable one, but the Precept lighting console was most likely ‘the one’ as it was the product that made LSC Electronics (as it was then) into a lighting control manufacturer. Released in 1983, it was one of, if not the first, microprocessor based lighting console in the world - but we didn’t know that at the time. International information in those days was much harder to get. It remained on our sales brochure until 1992 when it was replaced by the Atom console. In current times, both the new Mantra console and our sixth generation dimmer, the GenVI, have, to date, exceeded all of our expectations globally.

Has your product portfolio changed over the years you’ve been in business?

In essence, not really. We started out designing and manufacturing dimmers, lighting desks and DMX512 communications equipment and we still pretty much doing that same thing today. Sure, the

technology and our understanding of it has changed, but the end products are still very similar.

Can you share any landmark projects that LSC has completed?

There have been a number of substantial projects over the years, including supplying the lighting control for the 2012 London Olympics broadcast studios, however, our most recent achievement was the supply of a significant amount of 48-way touring dimmer/ distros for Pinewood Studios in the UK. The irony being that of all the choices available to them, they decided to go with a product from the furthest manufacturer in the world!

Where do you see LSC in the lighting market?

An innovative design and engineering company that if based in Europe or America, would be several times its current size. The tyranny of distance and our ability to get to the market is still a handicap for us. The shifting position of distributors over the years due to the internet has not really helped the issue.

How has the Australian lighting market changed from when you first started out to the present day?

When we started out, it was dominated by Rank Strand. LSC and Jands finally challenged Strand in Australia and the market has been quite stable since then. These days, however, like everywhere, the customer has many choices and now there are numerous overseas brands that are available in Australia that weren’t available years ago.

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The Event Centre Sydney The Event Centre, which is based at The Star in Sydney, is a $100m, multipurpose venue that is capable of holding a wide range of events. With an industry-leading, fully integrated systems in place with the highest quality equipment, the Event Centre has won multiple awards Meetings & Events Australia (MEA), highlighting just how well regarded the venue and its facilities are.

The Event Centre is completely adaptable and can be reconfigured to suit any event, from a 20-guest meeting, a 960-person banquet dinner, right through to a theatre event for 3,000 people.

The main floor on level three can be split into two separate rooms with a capacity of approximately 800 and 500. In addition, the balcony on level five offers tiered theatre-style seating for up to 981 guests.

The foyer has the ability to cater pre-drinks and canapĂŠs before guests enter the main room, with its impressive 12-metre ceilings that enable the creation of spectacular productions.

To make the Event Centre a go-to venue for all these events, the team enlisted the help of Show Technology to upgrade the lighting systems throughout the various areas in the venue.

Bruce Dwyer, Head of Lighting at the Event Centre takes up the story: “We needed a plan to bring the lighting up to date - that was our mission, but, www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Show Technology BRANDS: Martin by Harman, Clay Paky, MA Lighting WEBSITE: www.showtech.com.au / www.martin. com / www.claypaky.it / www.malighting.com

of course, there are a lot of things to consider, such as the after-sale service, what is going to meet expectations in the future and so on.

“The commitment to upgrading started about 18 months ago when we’d gathered enough information on what our clients wanted and what our budget was. We put those things together and very quickly worked out where we needed to be.”

Show Technology provided a whole range of equipment, including 12 Clay Paky Sharpys, six Martin by Harman MAC Viper Performers and six MAC Viper Profiles, along with an MA Lighting grandMA2 full size for control.

“We’ve got six Martin Viper Performance fixtures as the front lights and six Martin Viper Profiles on stage. The plan is that people will see that these are available at our venue and want to use them. In fact, we’ve had one gig here where a client has come in and just used all of our gear,” added Bruce.

“The setup can function for a variety of shows, though if there needs to be something different, we can design a rig to suit. But, essentially, it’s a concert hall rig, so there are fixed concepts.”

Elsewhere, the plan was to recreate a lighting design by Ziggy Zeigler on the rooftop, which allowed it to be seen right across the city. Show Technology worked with Bruce to create something based on the original idea.

The basic plan was to have beams shooting into Sydney’s sky, so Show Technology provided 36 Igloos with easy dome enclosures from Clay Paky, as well as 36 Supersharpys.

“We simply wanted beams going right into the sky and the Supersharpys gave us more intensity, as well as coming in at the right price point for us, too - so, that was the light for the job,” said Bruce.

A total of 36 Show Pro Ex36 fixtures were also used to provide an ambience around the eye-catching beams, which is something

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that Bruce discussed further: “The brief was that we’d be able to light the air in between the big lights - they’re pointed forward so you get something to break up the beams. It gives a baseline that you can run chases of colours through.”

The end result is a truly spectacular display that can be seen right across the city and the team from the Event Centre and Show Technology were delighted with the work that had been put in.

“We had some really tight time frames everything got squeezed, which is pretty typical - but we made sure everything ran smoothly,” said Bruce. “There were certainly some punches into the air when the lights first came on. It was a branding exercise really and you couldn’t get any better than having it noticed from right across the city. The whole project was perfect - and it’s not often you get to say that!”

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Production Audio Video Technology Melbourne Production Audio Video Technology - otherwise known as PAVT - was founded in 1982 by Colin and Margaret Stevenson to distribute Countryman microphones and Sony wireless microphone systems to the broadcast and live production rental markets.

In the early days, Margaret ran the business, while Colin was still working in his role as Head of Audio at the Nine Network. However, once Colin left Nine Network and went freelance, PAVT was incorporated in 1985 and the company became the Victoria sub distributor for Shure. Current Managing Director and son of Colin and Margaret, Graeme joined the company in 1987.

Since then, PAVT has grown at a significant rate and now has for separate divisions covering corporate, live sound, commercial and education, with a stable of over 20 brands in total. The company’s head office is based in Melbourne, though there are also offices in Sydney and Auckland, along with the recently-formed partnership in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

PAVT got its distribution start in 1983 during preparations for the broadcast of the opening of the Sydney Entertainment Centre on Nine. Colin, in his role as Audio

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Left: The PAVT team at Integrate in Sydney Right: The PAVT logo and HQ

Director for the event required a significant number of string microphones. At the time, the local distributor had issues with supplying the equipment on time, so Colin got in touch with Carl Countryman for 40 Isomax two-string microphones and, from there, the rest is history.

The roots of PAVT are firmly in broadcast, though, in the late 1980’s, the company made the wise decision to branch out. It became evident broadcast was going through a transition away from live / variety style programing. Plus, with the rental wireless systems and Shure products on offer - as well as Colin’s wealth of experience - it was obvious that diversification into live and theatre productions was needed to grow the business.

Nowadays, the audio side of PAVT has gradually matured into an end-to-end portfolio, while the video distribution is specifically targeted at the corporate and education sectors.

When it comes to deciding on which brands are targeted for distribution agreements, the team at PAVT take into consideration a number of factors, including opportunity, market demand, the company’s desire to be the onestop shop and the quality and reliability of the products available.

Audio is, of course, far more prominent in the company in the present day, with the video market being highly competitive throughout Australia and New Zealand.

However, it’s clear that progress is being made, with Clearone making a fantastic video product, which PAVT distributes in the region, but it takes time for such products to be accepted.

Having been in business for more than 30 years, PAVT is well equipped with knowledge, so if Graeme were to advise a young company starting out, he’d pass on the following wisdom: “There are four things, really, with business compliance being the number one thing to get right.

Compliance laws are very strict in Australia and burn huge amounts of time understanding and completing.

“Next is passion - you have to follow your passion. The industry is one of those lucky ones where some people have turned their hobby into a way of life.

“Also, a pressure release valve is needed. The pressure on business owners can be extremely high, so it helps to have an interest or hobby outside of the industry.

“And, finally, know what it is that you’re selling both technically and strengths and weaknesses of the product.

Listen to what a customer needs and consider carefully.”

He went on to explain what is planned for the future at PAVT: “At the moment, it’s all about the 1%; improving the small things, introducing new products from Audix, Clearone, EAW, Powersoft and so on.

However, beyond that, we will continue to plan and adapt to the ever-changing, challenging business environment so we’re sure to keep very busy.”

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Connect Church Wellington Located on the beautiful Kapiti Coast of New Zealand, Connect Church - formally known as Meadows Church recently underwent an audiovisual upgrade, which also saw the venue reopen with its new name.

Elevate Consulting took on the task of the renovation, Director, Kieran McKinlay, explained the brief: “The existing FOH audio system had seen better days and wasn’t delivering the coverage and clarity the church desired.

Taking this into consideration, we measured the room and started researching the market for a suitable system that would deliver evenly distributed sound throughout the venue.”

Kieran and the team decided on a dB Technologies DVA Mini system for the church, which was supplied through local distributor, Direct Imports. The DVA Composer software determined the characteristics of the room, helping to select the other components required to complete the system. The final line-up includes four DVA Mini per side flown above a dB Technologies Sub18H, combined with a flown pair of dB Technologies Flexys F10’s as directional centre infills. “After some system equalisation through an external digital signal processor the result was outstanding. The clarity and dynamic

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Elevate Consulting BRANDS: Direct Imports, dB Technologies, Cameo WEBSITE: www.elevateconsulting.nz / www.directimports.co.nz / www.dbtechnologies.com / www.cameolight.com

range the system offered was superb and the coverage within the auditorium was even from the front seat to the back row. The subwoofers added plenty of attack, and delivered smooth low-end bass to the mix. On stage, we chose the Flexys FM12’s as they offered a sleek low profile design with a 12-inch woofer and considerable power handling capability. As a complete audio system the client was extremely happy with the headroom, clarity, coverage and overall cost,” said Kieran.

Lighting was the next challenge and the aim was to have a new lighting system capable of an even wash of colour across the stage, as well as some form of movement for the more energetic styles of music. “One of our main priorities was finding a product that was silent so that when the music has finished, we could set a mood of colour on stage with no additional fan noise,” Kieran continued. The Cameo brand was selected as the best for the job. Four FLAT PRO 12 professional PAR light are flown on the side wing truss at either side of the stage.

“Because of the beam angles and power of the LEDs we were able to achieve a highly-saturated, even colour wash that brought the stage to life,” said Kieran.

For the movement element of the brief, Kieran opted for LED fixtures from Cameo, the Auro Beam 150 moving heads - eight are flown on the backline truss. Kieran concluded: “This product had a few key features that offered more diversity than similar products on the market. The first feature is its ultra-fast moving head with unlimited pan and tilt movement meaning it can constantly spin 360º. Second, was the individual pixel control function, which allowed us to program not only split colours within the beam, but individual pixel mapped movement. As a system integrator I have been extremely impressed with both dB Technologies and Cameo product range. Their reliability, price and local support have been a key factor when offering our clients solutions.”

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Cleo Ultra Lounge Sydney Located in the Kings Cross area of Sydney, tucked away down a side street and only accessible via a lift - if you know it’s there - you’ll find Cleo Ultra Lounge. The aim when bringing this project to fruition was to be the first ultra lounge Sydney not a nightclub or bar, but somewhere in between, offering an amazing sound and light experience, cocktail menu and high-end service.

With the changes in licensing and legislation laws in Sydney CBD of late, there are now more rules that nightlife venues have to abide by. Owner of Cleo, Michael Mina, actually believes it might be a blessing in disguise, as he thinks the changes have cleaned up the nightlife crowd. Cleo is Michael’s first venture into ownership of a venue, but he has worked in hospitality for a number of years. His aim with Cleo is not to cater to the masses, but instead to provide a VIP experience for its target audience.

Michael sought advice prior to kitting out the venue, and this is when Adam Ward of Full Throttle entered the fold. Michael said: “He was very honest with me from the beginning and I liked that, we also have a lot in common. Adam then demoed Funktion One in the venue for me and after that I was sold. His services are immaculate - all the wiring, the placement of the loudspeakers, it was all done in a really professional manner and he gave me a lot of advice and vision www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Left and right: Cleo Ultra Lounge is an intimate venue located in Kings Cross, not aimed to cater for the masses, but more to those seeking a high-end experience.

for the venue. He really helped me bring the venue together. It was more than just a sound install, he came with such knowledge and it was just brilliant having him on board.”

Not being on the technical side - because his expertise are in marketing and promotion Michael relied on Adam to specify the right system for the 175 sq metre venue. Adam takes up the story: “We wanted to go with a studio vibe, so it’s almost like you’re in someone’s lounge with a really nice system. We’ve used the smaller speakers the F101’s - and the BR115 subwoofers are hidden in tables, so when you walk in all you see is the smaller speakers, but despite their appearance, they go pretty hard and give out a good sound. I wanted to achieve the highest fidelity we could, while getting that whole studio feel.”

For the DJ booth and monitors, Adam came up with an unusual idea - to mount them on the ceiling, firing towards the DJ. QSC K10’s were selected for the job. “I’ve worked at many venues before and it’s probably the first time I’ve seen booth monitors installed like that,” said Michael. “I think any DJ that plays the venue will be really

impressed. It’s always good to please the DJs and the staff. I think that’s the most important thing when it comes to any business to be honest.”

Despite the aesthetically discreet appearance of the audio system, its ability to pump out high SPL meant that sound spillage was a concern, particularly with the amount of residential neighbours. Additional coating was added to the windows to make them double-glazed and they were then covered with black velvet curtains. The combination has cut off the sound exertion by approximately 70%. The seating booths that have been installed around the periphery also help with sound absorption.

Amplification and processing at Cleo is provided by two MC2 Audio T-500 and one T-2000 amplifier, as well as a BSS Soundweb BLU-100 DSP unit. “BSS handles the brains because we needed good sound quality, but mainly so I could put in particular noises levels limits, so the DJ can’t turn it up past a particular level, in line with the new licensing laws,” Adam explained.

“In the processing, we have DJ control with compression and limiting, while also providing matrix switching that www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Full Throttle Entertainment BRANDS: Show Technology, FunktionOne, MC2 Audio, BSS, QSC, Martin by Harman, ELC WEBSITE: www.showtech.com.au / www. fullthrottleentertainment.com.au / www. funktion-one.com / www.mc2-audio. co.uk / bssaudio.com / www.qsc.com / www.martin.com / www.elclighting.net

enables the DJ booth to be pulled out to do live gigs. The BSS also handles all the loudspeaker management with crossovers delay, and limiting.” Adam also installed the lighting at Cleo, which was specified and supplied by Show Technology. Business Development Manager, Stephen Dallimore, visited the venue to access the requirements and opted for six Martin by Harman MH8 moving heads. Michael said: “To put six lights in such a small place we are really hammering the image of our venue being an ultra lounge; being a total audio and visual experience.”

LED downlights and LED tape, specifically around the bar area, add accent lighting, creating a subtle, atmospheric vibe. Control is simply and straightforward thanks to a Martin by Harman M-PC Lighting controller and computer housed with the amplifiers and DSP, which feeds through to the ELC AC612XUB lighting wall controller in the bar area, which is easily operated by the bar staff due to programmed presets.

Stephen said: “Due to the size of the venue, it was important to use fixtures that would blend into the surroundings and would

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only add to the essence of the venue and not make it into another bar / club. Using architectural downlights above the bar and LED tape at the front, created soft ambient lighting that draws focus to this area but doesn’t overpower it. Taking into account the low ceiling, the Martin MH8 was the perfect option due to its small size, strong output and colour pallet. All this is operated by the touch panel, which really is the most user friendly operating device for venues without onsite lighting operators.”

Michael concluded: “People tell me I’m crazy to open a club in Kings Cross, but it’s where I started and I’ve always had a passion for the place. Kings Cross will always be Sydney’s red light district; it will always be a tourist attraction, but there is an audience here, it’s all about marketing and targeting this market effectively. I don’t think businesses should be scared reopen in the area, I think people should start adapting to the change. I’m looking forward to seeing other businesses opening up in the area.”

Providing an extensive range of professional audio & entertainment lighting connector products.

www.amphenolaudio.com Amphenol Australia Pty Ltd - 22 Industry Boulevard, Carrum Downs VIC 3201, Australia. P +61 3 8796 8888 / F +61 3 8796 8801

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St Peters Lutheran College Brisbane

Opened in 2013, the performing arts centre at St Peters Lutheran College in Brisbane was originally equipped with a ribbon-style PA system, which was suitable for orchestral performances, but was under powered for more challenging applications. After a period of renting in additional equipment to cater for performance needs, the decision was made to upgrade the in-house PA, saving time and cost, while at the same time future proofing the venue.

The performing arts centre hosts iboth in-house and hallfor-hire orchestral concerts, jazz shows, special events, musical productions and full scale rock concerts. The new system needed to cater for all of those needs. Providing intelligibility evenly throughout the venue with clear undistorted headroom was a must, as was transparency when reinforcing acoustic groups.

A team from BCL Production Services - headed up by Jason Howley - collaborated with Clair Bros Australia, led by Wayne Grosser on the design, optimisation and install. Ease Acoustic Simulation software was used to design a system for the room, which was followed by a full demonstration at the venue, where Andrew Snook, Senior AV Technician at St Peters and his team were able to see

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Technical Information INSTALLER: BCL Production Services AUDIO DESIGN & OPTIMISATION: Clair Bros Australia BRANDS: Clair Brothers, Lab.gruppen, Avid WEBSITE: www.brisbaneconcertlighting.com / clairbrothers.com / labgruppen.com / www.avid.com / www.stpeters.qld.edu.au

the coverage, clarity and output of the system.

When considering his options, Andrew said: “Ideally, the system would be able sit at 105dB(c) RMS at all seats in the venue, undistorted with sufficient headroom, and with a usable frequency response of 40Hz to 16kHz or better. Due to the distances from loudspeaker to seat, and the heights and angles of some of our gantry crossovers, I kind of knew the space didn’t really necessitate a line array system, but we kept all options open to see what would be the best fit.”

The final set-up comprises a pair of Clair Brothers CAT114 Curve boxes flown left and right of the stage. The CAT system had a great advantage with its compact footprint, which allowed the system to fit within the proscenium.

The CAT system with two cabinets achieves a larger coverage area compared to traditional line arrays, which require more than four cabinets to achieve the coverage equal to the CAT system. Wayne explained further: “The CAT system is an innovative design that has all of the advantages of a traditional line array, which includes minimal lobbing and cancellation, but uses fewer speaker modules. Each waveguide module - a single cabinet - provides 100° of horizontal coverage and 25° of vertical coverage. When vertically flown, the two CAT waveguide modules create a seamless 50° vertical by

100° horizontal coverage pattern.”

A pair of kiT 12’s are in place on the balcony, six Clair Brothers new 5CX coaxial point source boxes as lip fill, three CS218 subwoofers and a pair of R2D active boxes for stage side fills. “The kiT12’s extend intelligibility back to the balcony seating Even though the main hangs do cover the front rows of seating on the main floor, the 5CX’s were installed under the front of stage to help bring the image down to stage level,” said Jason.

The main system is tri-amp with onboard Lake DSPs and features three Clair Brothers D80:4L and one D200:4L amplifiers. Jason continued: “The system is capable of reproducing accurately what is put into it, both at very low volumes to full output. The new system has also reduced the spill back onto stage which is allowing the client to have more control over headsets and choir mics which have been troublesome in the past.” An Avid SC48 all-in-one live sound console completes the new audio line-up.

Summing up on why Clair Brothers was the ideal choice for this project, Andrew concluded: “Frankly, superior sound.

It ticked the boxes for coverage, headroom and budget, as did most systems we had hung in the space, but it’s a demonstrably better and more transparent sounding system than anything else I’ve heard in here.” www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Marquee Sydney Following the success of its venues in New York and Las Vegas, the Marquee chain expanded even further with the opening of the Marquee nightclub in Sydney in April 2012. Based at The Star, one of Australia’s most impressive entertainment complexes, Marquee Sydney is the latest in a line of nightclubs that have built an undisputed reputation as the go-to venue for music lovers and celebrities, with an incredible line up for both local and international artists performing every week.

World-renowned artists, such as Drake, Calvin Harris, Tiesto, Avicii and many more, have graced the stage at Marquee Sydney, highlighting the club’s position at the forefront of dance music. In term of the interior, the venue is an uber-chic space, which redefines the standard of hospitality in Sydney nightclubs.

The legendary VIP table and bottle service has taken clubbing to the next level, offering an experience that you’re more likely to find among the glamour of Las Vegas - and highlighting just why it has become Sydney’s number one celebrity party destination.

To enhance the club even further, Marquee Sydney enlisted the help of Full Throttle Entertainment, a Sydney-based production house, that offer full-time audio and lighting production and maintenance for the club. Since the LED screens had been in place since the club’s opening, the team felt that the current visual setup had reached the end of its lifespan and needed to be upgraded. www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Full Throttle Entertainment BRANDS: ULA Group, VuePix, coolux WEBSITE: www.fullthrottleentertainment.com.au / ulagroup.com.au / vuepix.tv / www.coolux.de

“There were pixel issues and, to be honest, the technology had moved so far forward it was important that we also moved on with the times,” explained Adam Ward, owner of Full Throttle Entertainment.

With a plan of what was needed firmly in place, Full Throttle searched for the right products to suit the venue, which would offer a significant upgrade on the existing technology.

Aidan Esmond, Production Manager at Full Throttle Entertainment and AV Director for Marquee Sydney, said: “We definitely put in a lot of research. The LED wall market is competitive. There’s a lot of products out there, so we really had to do extensive groundwork. I was very happy ULA were able to come to the table with the right product and the right pricing, as that really is the determining factor.”

ULA Group oversaw the whole install. The team decided on VuePix LED 6mm pitch panels for the venue, with the idea being to revisit the original design plans.

Adam explained further: “The original design for Marquee did have plans for a complete video wall down one side of the main room, but it was pulled from the design. However, when the new wall was put in, we still had the old panels, which

were still functional, so, the decision was suggested to reapply them in the side wall, repurposing the panels.”

As well as the huge improvements in terms of the visual design of the club, maintenance has also been made significantly easier, too, as highlighted by Aidan: “Essentially, if we have issues with any of the panels we can just take it out of the wall, and we’ve got spares that we just plug in and play. The panel can then be send away to be fixed.

That is a great advantage in my view because I can’t have our main feature wall down for any period of time whatsoever.”

“That was one of the technical issues with the original wall. It was essentially somewhat of a dated design and because it was so cutting edge at the time, we found it difficult to service after,” added Adam. “If there was a tweak in the original design, we would have to send it back to China to be repaired, which is completely unworkable.”

The LED screens are now used for content to complement the DJ’s set or the clubbased events, with graphics and logos often on display. Video content is fed through a coolux Pandoras Box media server, which allows for different content depending on the needs for each particular night. www.mo ndo dr.co m

“We’ve definitely tried to push forward and freshen it up as we’ve grown. I think our market, with things like the iTunes festival, YouTube and so on, expect world-class productions at every concert, not just big events,” said Aidan. “That’s why I think the screen speaks for so much of the venue and why it was so important to have that upgrade.”

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Alex Theatre St Kilda Melbourne The St Kilda area of Melbourne is known for its curved buildings and art deco style, and inside the Alex Theatre St Kilda conforms to the genre. Created

by Aleksandar Vass - an actor, writer and producer - who secured the site, which was formerly the old George Cinema, and redeveloped it into a three small-mid sized theatre spaces ranging from 200 seats to 499 seats.

Along with Richard Fitzgerald, the venue was renovated and opened the doors after just 16 weeks and the pair had created a space that was capable of staging or rehearsing live shows, screening movies and providing function spaces, equipping the area with that small-mid size performance space, that Aleksandar - as an actor always felt it had been missing.

After being open for approximately 12 months, it was decided that the audio set-up needed some attention.

Factory Sound was brought in to provide technical expertise, and in theatre one - which seats 499 people spread over two levels and an eight-metre wide by five-metre deep stage encased by a proscenium - it opted for a Quest HPI Series system. “One of the requirements was an installation that could be reconfigured quickly from one show to the next,” said Quest’s Frank Andrewartha. The two Quest HPI-110 act as FOH speakers and are supplemented by two Quest HPI-12S subwoofers. The two Quest HPI-111 delays are truss mounted and service the mezzanine level. “The HPI-111, one of our favourite ever www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Factory Sound BRANDS: Quest, Powersoft, QSC, Allen & Heath, RCF, Sennheiser WEBSITE: factorysound.com / www.questaudio.com.au / www.powersoft-audio.com / www.qsc.com / www.allen-heath.com / www.rcf.it / www.sennheiser.com

speakers, absolutely nails it as a delay line, covering the entire above-balcony, and also the rear section of the ground,” said Jonathan Sinclair of Factory Sound. “They can be re-angled or removed very easily depending on the show.”

Two Quest HPI-25’s are also in place for under balcony fills. “My favourite speakers are the HPI-25’s,” said Bevan Emmett, Duty Technician at the theatre. “We redirected the horn on the front ends as well, just to stop a splash back onto the stage.” Frank added: “Because you can move all the bits around and relocate everything in box, and depending on how you relocate these pieces, it gives you a slightly different pattern control, the HPI-25’s are more directional than some of our other products.” Jonathan furthered: “The sound signature between the HPI-110, HPI-111 and HPI-25 allowed the PA to behave comfortably and not produce good spots and bad spots.”

The PA is powered by a Powersoft M50Q amplifier and two QSC GX5 amplifiers, while processing is taken care of by a Xilica DSP. “Powersoft make some very handy, great value multichannel amplifiers, and these have proven to work well in our installations. Xilica, whilst not one of the big boys, simply sound better,” continued Jonathan. “Especially when used for system crossover/speaker management.

The configuration is straightforward and there is a massive amount of headroom.”

For mixing requirements during shows an Allen & Heath Qu-32 console and stage box have been installed. “We’ve got the Qu-32

in theatre one as standard because it’s a bigger room and then the Qu-24 in theatre two, but they are interchangeable so we can move them if we have to,” said Bevan.

Theatre two is more or less a mirror image of theatre one but on a smaller scale, and it was purposely designed that way. This theatre has a total of 291 seats, once again, spread over two levels. Delays and fills remain the same, however, the FOH PA in theatre two consists of a pair of Quest QM700 cabinets and there are no subwoofers. Bevan continued: “Because it’s a smaller room, a 500-seat to a 300-seat, we didn’t feel we needed the subs so we opted for a more full range speaker instead. Essentially, the systems are interchangeable - as nothing is permanently installed here - so we can easily transfer them from one room to the other.”

The final space is the studio, which has soaring high ceilings, a fully sprung floor and a full wall of mirrors. It is a very versatile performance space and as such, audio equipment is minimal - as it’s rented in as and when required - with just four RCF ART310A active loudspeakers available to occupants of the room at any given time.

Concluding, Bevan said of Factory Sound: “I’ve worked with the company in the past, and before we made the decision, I did look at a number of different companies but Factory Sound was my main choice.

They are local and I know the quality of their work. I also approved of their choice of a Quest PA because I find Quest systems to be good speakers and good value for money.” www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Left: The performance space at the Capitaine Bougainville Theatre

Capitaine Bougainville Theatre Whangarei

The Capitaine Bougainville Theatre, based in Whangarei, New Zealand, is named after the Noumea-registered cargo ship, Capitaine Bougaineville, which sank during a boyage from Auckland to Sydney in 1975. The venue itself is partly built using materials that were salvaged from the ship, so it’s a theatre packed with important history.

The 350-capacity venue is part of the Forum North Cultural and Entertainment Centre, catering for a whole range of events, including intimate theatre performances, music, entertainment and meetings.

With such an important role to play, it was vital that the Capitaine Bougainville Theatre replaced the old, outdated audio system that was in place. The Forum North team wanted a system that would offer an outstanding audio quality for now and into the future, as well as meeting their specific budget requirements.

From there, they enlisted the help of New Zealand distributor, Showtechnix, and sound production and hire specialist, BounceNZ, to help them find a system that suited the venue perfectly.

Ben Brittliff, Technical Manager at Forum North, takes up the story: “We wanted a system that would provide quality sound and coverage throughout the theatre and that would last us at least 10 or even 20 years. Our old system had been in place since 1985, and whilst it was one of the premium systems of its time, it was definitely showing its age and was no longer capable of handling the kinds of shows we are doing.”

Taking everything into consideration at the Capitaine Bougainville Theatre, Forum North and Showtechnix decided to go with EM Acoustics, with the HALO-C system chosen for the venue.

“We hadn’t caught on to the international buzz about EM Acoustics until we met Dave Shepard from EM and Martin McNally from Showtechnix at the annual EVANZ conference, but, having

heard the system there and discussed its capabilities in detail with Dave and Martin, we knew this was the right choice for us,” said Ben. “The system is so compact that at first, the power it generates is a little surprising. However, the technology inside these discreet units meant that they outperformed many of the larger, more cumbersome systems we had been considering. Once we’d heard it, there was no doubting why HALO-C has been chosen for venues like the Royal Albert Hall.”

For the actual install of the EM system, Showtechnix brought in the expertise of Glen Ruske, owner of BounceNZ and a renowned audio engineer, to calculate, align and EQ the system for the Capitaine Bougainville Theatre. In the venue, 12 HALO-C line array cabinets were installed - three per side for the upper balcony and three per side for the stalls. These were supported by two EMS122W loudspeakers from EM for the central cluster, two EMS-118 subwoofers, one EMS-61 for under balcony delay and two EMS-51 for the front fill, with an EM Acoustics AQ-10 amplifier providing the power.

This was the first time that Glen had worked with EM’s HALO-C system and he was certainly impressed - so much so, that he bought a system for his company, too.

“I was amazed at how flat the HALO-C elements were straight out of the box, and how transparent they sounded,” said Glen.

“The cabinets are discreet, compact and sound fantastic - a really flexible option and absolutely perfect for the live theatre work we do all over New Zealand. We need a multi-use system to cover other applications as well and we feel that we can use HALO-C on pretty much anything, from corporate work to a complete L-C-R system for theatre. It really does punch above its weight.”

www.mo ndo dr.co m

You Thank Y ou ULA Group would like to thank all of their loyal clients, manufacturing partners, and suppliers for their valued support and trust over the past 25 years, and for making this milestone possible.

We look forward to the next 25 years ahead. ulagroup.com

info@ulagroup.com

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The Argyle Sydney The Argyle is a dining and nightlife venue housed in the heritage-listed Argyle Stores building, one of Australia’s oldest buildings, in Sydney’s The Rocks precinct. With a unique blend of historic and ultramodern features, The Argyle is a truly impressive space, with high archway entrances, a sandstone outdoor courtyard and sleek timber flooring and beams.

Since opening in 2007, The Argyle has become a huge favourite with both locals and visitors. It’s easy to see why, too, with a series of five unique bars spread over two levels to suit a whole range of occasions.

To accentuate the historical features and bring a real sense of atmosphere to The Argyle, Show Technology was brought in to provide an upgrade to the whole lighting setup.

Phil Hudson, Brand Manager at The Argyle, takes up the story: “This project with Show Technology was all about highlighting the natural beauty of the building. So, the first time I met Stephen around 18 months ago, we spoke about how we could bring out the historic elements of the building - the sandstone, the natural timbers - and we’ve never deviated from our initial conversation.”

“From our point of view, what was really interesting about the building is that it’s from the 1820’s, so it’s actually one of the oldest buildings in the oldest part of The Rocks - it’s really unique. We paid a lot of attention to the demographic of those coming in and www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Show Technology BRANDS: Martin by Harman, MA Lighting WEBSITE: www.showtech.com.au / www.martin.com / www.malighting.com

it’s given Phil a real opportunity to invest in the venue,” added Stephen Dallimore, Business Development Manager at Show Technology.

From there, Show Technology began to source the fixtures that would work perfectly for the different zones in The Argyle. “We put our trust in Stephen to come up with the ideas that he felt were appropriate - and then I researched everything that he said,” added Phil. “I agreed with a lot of what he proposed and we only tweaked a few things, but we pretty much put our faith in him.”

First on the list, Show Technology addressed lighting up the entrance using LED HEX16 strips and nine HEX36 Floods, which allowed the whole area to be lit up in sequence. The lighting effects can be changed as the night progresses.

“The first conversation we had when we came in was how it clearly wasn’t a nightclub - it’s a cool bar, a venue with natural textures of sandstone and timber is really beautiful too,” said Stephen. “We wanted to highlight that while bearing in mind that The Argyle goes from a daytime venue to a post-work drinks setting, right through to a late-night destination. So, it was a case of working out how emphasise that, and the colour presets are ideal for changing the atmosphere.”

Downstairs in the restaurant and bar area, Martin by Harman Rush MH2 Washes and GLP impression X1 fixtures were specified, along with 16 ROXStrips to light up the bar area and LED tape for the walls, all of which is controlled by an ELC touch panel. “It was more of a subtle approach with this project, so it’s not bright, in-your-face, crazy flashing lights. If you see the colours we’ve got now, it’s all about highlighting the timbers, ceilings and the sandstone,”

added Phil. “It’s really brought the space to life.”

Upstairs, Show Technology used a slightly different concept that would work with the low ceilings; so different products were needed to make it work.

“The upstairs zone is more of a dance area as the night goes on, so we used more MH2 Washes, as well as four Martin by Harman MH4 beams, LED ROXstrips for the bar and Martin by Harman Rush strobes,” said Stephen. Control for upstairs is via an MA Lighting dot2 console.

“There’s definitely two separate zones - we wanted to have two different approaches upstairs and downstairs. Monday to Friday, it’s very much a social hub with big groups coming in, so we’ll keep it very subtle, with slow movements. But, even on a Wednesday night, for example, there’ll be 500 people going crazy to salsa with flashing lights - so it’s definitely two zones!” explained Phil.

Elsewhere, Show Technology worked on the Reibey Room, which is a small, dark space where lighting is used to full effect to make it really atmospheric. Using LED tape, Perspex on top of the booths, the area has been totally transformed.

Overall, the changes implemented by Show Technology have been phenomenal, with the main challenge of highlighting the natural beauty of the venue effectively completed. “As it’s a heritage building, there were obviously huge restrictions in place, but the lighting has really exceeded my expectations,” Phil explained. “The transformation of the venue has taken it to another level, not just in terms of numbers through the door, but the actual perception of The Argyle in Sydney - it’s turned it into the go-to destination.”

www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Malthouse Theatre Melbourne

Originally built in 1892 as a brewery and malting works, the Malthouse building in Melbourne, Australia, was donated by Carlton & United Breweries in 1990 for the creation and presentation of contemporary Australian theatre.

The Malthouse houses three theatres within the building: the 500-seat Merlyn Theatre (named after Philanthropist, Merlyn Myer), the 175-seat Beckett Theatre (named after Designer, John Beckett) and the 100-seat Tower Theatre.

Along with the performance spaces, there’s also a café and bar, rehearsal studios and offices. The Malthouse Theatre is a thriving space for art and creativity, with musicals, cabarets, plays, conferences and seminars all held at the venue.

It was decided that the audio system at the Malthouse Theatre, which was over 10 years old, was due for a technical upgrade, however, with the venue run as a not-for-profit organisation, the budget was a major factor in any decision. Also, with the seating configurations changing in each theatre depending on the performance, the new audio system had to be flexible and easily reconfigured - in terms of both loudspeaker relocation and the selection of system presets.

The existing audio system, which was installed in 2006, incorporated L-Acoustics MTD coaxial loudspeakers and had offered 10 years of service with virtually zero problems.

When it came to deciding on a new system, weight limitations and the venue’s low ceiling steered the decision towards L-Acoustics’ new coaxial range, the X Series making The Malthouse one of the first theatres in the world

www.mo ndo dr.co m

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Technical Information INSTALLER: Norwest Productions BRANDS: L-Acoustics, Hills WEBSITE: www.norwestproductions.com / www.l-acoustics.com / www.hills.com.au / www.hills.com.au

to boast a full X Series installation.

“The new L-Acoustics X Series loudspeakers caught our eye, given their size, weight and the fact that they satisfied all our criteria,” said Baird McKenna, Technical Manager at Malthouse Theatre.

“We were a little nervous at first, because they are a new range and this was possibly the first theatre installation in the world to use them, but the fantastic reliability of the previous L-Acoustics system gave us the confidence that they were the right choice.”

That confidence was boosted by Norwest Productions, the system integrators for this project, due to both a long-term relationship with the venue and their past expertise with L-Acoustics products.

“Norwest reassured us that quality and reliability is paramount in the design and development of L-Acoustics products. It gave us further confidence that we were making the right choice,” explained Baird.

The new system at the Malthouse Theatre, which was supplied by Hills Limited, comprises eight L-Acoustics X12 for main front of house sound, four X8 delays, six 5XT with two SB15m subwoofers for front fill, and two SB18m subwoofers in addition to the MTD subwoofers from the

previous system. Five LA4X amplified controllers power and control the system.

Once approvals for the audio upgrade were received, the new audio system had to be installed in a very short timeframe. Garry Gavros, Brand Manager at Hills Limited, was happy with how smoothly the project went: “We worked closely with L-Acoustics to meet the deadline.

It was one of these rare projects where everything fell into place. From resources funding through to implementation - the timing was perfect.”

Overall, the new L-Acoustics system has been a huge hit for the Malthouse Theatre, making the performances at the venue even better for both the artists and audience.

“The X Series delivers crystal clear vocal clarity throughout each of the theatres and is consistent across all audience areas,” said Baird. “An added advantage is that the X12, X8 and 5XT all work beautifully together - there is amazing tonal consistency across the three models.

“Our sound operators are over the moon and find the system a joy to work with - it makes their shows really come to life.”

www.mo ndo dr.co m

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ULA Group Gold Coast

Celebrating 25 years in the industry should not be underestimated, especially given that the founder of the company - who remains at the forefront to this day - was only 21 years old when he started the business. Con Biviano may have founded ULA Group as an entertainment company back in 1991, but it is so much more than that today.

“I started with radio announcing, which then turned into the DJ and rental side, “ remembered Con. “And it was that love and passion for music that correlated into the lighting and audio side. I was always playing with electronics, because I did begin studying electronic engineering, but my interest leaned more towards the electronics, so getting into the technology world just seemed to evolve organically.”

Starting out in the late ‘80s - also known as the disco era - when Stringfellows first hit Australia, and other similar brands followed, Con began by building his own light boxes. Shortly after, he began to import Super Star and King Disco from Taiwan together with Technics turntables from Singapore and then Citronic from the UK which he took on in 1989 at LDI Nashville, while on the lighting side were Griven and Absract. At this time, he was trading as Audio World, which focussed mainly on the rental and installation market.

“When we took on a brand, they wanted distribution

as well, it wasn’t enough just to have rental stock,” Con explained. “As it turned out, I really liked the wholesaling and reselling of products.” The distribution arm was known as Advanced Sound Technology in the early days, which evolved into ULA Group in September 1991, and with Con’s move from Melbourne to the Gold Coast the following year, he made the decision to solely focus on distribution and sell his rental business.

Many of the major brands present in Australia were there for the taking - distribution wise - as many of the distribution companies in the region had closed down at the time, which led to many prosperous opportunities for Con. “Numark and Abstract were big brands for us, we were selling bucket loads of kit in ’93, ‘94, and ’95,” he continued.

It was the clubbing era - not the rock ‘n’ roll touring era of today - so clubs would spend in the region of AUS$500,000 on technology, because that was the most popular form of entertainment.

Over the years that followed, Con was influenced by tradeshows of the time - back when shows were at the centre of the industry - where he’d network, meet new people and see new products. “SIB in Rimini was an important show for me,” Con recalled. “The Italians were the big boys in the nightclub business, no matter what anyone says, they had it. I actually used to do a lot of nightclub design myself, so shows like that were always full of inspiration.” The PLASA show in London and LDI in the US also played their parts.

It was at the former show in 2004 that Con first approached Robe founders, Josef Valchar and Ladislav Petrek with a proposition. Having worked with the Czech lighting manufacturer since its inception in 2002, Con www.mo ndo dr.co m

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was confident they’d make the ideal business partner.

He wanted to start up an architectural lighting company, manufacturing high-quality LED products. After discussions on Josef’s porch back in Czech and a dinner with Ladislav, the deal was sealed and, by the following year, the Anolis brand was unveiled at the ARC Show in London. “Anolis had to be very clean and it was important to have Robe on board. They were doing high volume manufacturing and we were confident we could put in orders for hundreds of fittings, knowing the colour temperature would be even,” said Con. “Today, it plays a very big part of our business, we have a strong market share of major buildings and structures architecturally lit through out Australia and New Zealand.”

After the global recession in 2008, Con was ready to diversify again. He admitted: “The diversification into all the different industries is what keeps it exciting for me. It also keeps the business secure, if one industry is down, one of the others will be up.” Something he felt that was needed in the entertainment world was a cost-conscious LED video screen. Having consolidated Anolis, Con viewed this as a natural consequence, and so he set-up VuePix. “It’s been going almost eight years now,” he said. “We have established ourselves as one of the leading suppliers of LED screens in the Australian and world markets and I’m extremely proud of that.

In his own words, Con describes VuePix products - that are manufactured in the Far East - as stable, reliable, cost effective and good quality, which is backed up by offering a product warranty between two and seven years, depending on the industry. And this is a product that most definitely spans across the industries, from billboards to www.mo ndo dr.co m

roadway systems, TV studios to shopping centres, as well as many transportation hubs, including airports, buses and trains - and not just in Australia and New Zealand, either, but, in fact, across the globe. “And this [VuePix] was all from the vision of being inspired by low-resolution screens as back-drop in the lighting world,” said Con. ULA Group as a company today is almost unrecognisable, but it remains true to its root, with more than 50% of the company’s turnover still coming from the entertainment sector. Brands the ULA Group distributes today are Robe, ArKaos, MDG, Antari. Le Maitre, Lumen Radio, Chamsys, Glassiled, RGBlink, Griven, Chain Master, Milos, Pharos, Litecraft by Acme and Lite Console - plus Anolis and VuePix obviously. “Everything we’ve been doing in our industry for years has now crossed over into other industries, so we’re providing hospitals with specialised lighting and we’re cladding sky scrappers with dynamic LED media facades.

We are creating solutions for people that they never thought were possible. The challenges we’ve faced in the entertainment industry have provided us with the skillset needed for today’s commercial market,” he added.

Spinning so many plates is no easy task, yet there are no signs of Con slowing down any time soon. He is currently on his celebration tour for the company’s 25th anniversary, as he believes it is truly important to say thank you to everyone who has supported and trusted ULA Group over the years. All the major cities in Australia and New Zealand are on the agenda, as well as other parts of the world, before finishing up back home on the Gold Coast.

Con concluded: “The celebrations are a big thank you to everyone including our dedicated team, because, as the old cliché goes, we’re nothing without the people.”

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Soren Norgaard Event Manager of Integrate at Diversified Communications

Tell our readers how long Integrate has been established and the history behind the show?

Integrate was first launched back in 2009 by Alchemedia as an industry event for the audiovisual sector, with the subtext sound, light and vision.

Diversified Communications acquired the show in 2012. Integrate has since its inception been supported by loyal industry leaders such as Amber Technology, Production Audio Video Technology, Canohm, Hills, Hitachi, Kramer, Madison Technologies, NSA, Panasonic, Qualify, Extron, Samsung, TAG and ULA. They all have played a role in the development of the show as technology and the accessibility of the technology has made it more mainstream in everyday applications.

Over the last eight years the event has evolved from live production technologies and entertainment technologies to having a strong presence, from commercial and residential audiovisual, unified communications, digital signage and smart building technologies.

How does Integrate cater to the pro audio / lighting / visual market in Australia? Do you feel the show is serving the market well?

We know how important it is to have an industry event that unites the broader entertainment technology industry. Australia and New Zealand are geographically isolated, and have a smaller population to draw from, meaning that we are almost forced to be more innovative, so there is a real appetite for the latest products and new technology.

Geographically, we do not have the luxury of having niche events for audio technology or lighting, so we work hard to ensure we have the right mix of exhibitors, as well as educational content available for our end customer - the visitor to the show.

In 2016 we launched a dedicated live events stream to cater for the pro audio / lighting audience, which has a comprehensive three-day program focussing on case studies and emerging new technologies within these sectors.

There isn’t really any other show for the professional audiovisual market in Australia these days, why do you think Integrate has succeeded against its competitors?

Integrate at its core is an event for the industry, and we work closely with the industry to ensure that it remains focussed to the target audience. Working with our partners and our exhibitors we’ve also been able to explore new markets to bring into the show, and by doing this we have seen a marked growth in our end user attendance year-onyear.

Do you work closely with industry associations and, if so, what advantages does that bring?

Integrate enjoys some very close working relationships with a number of key association, international associations including InfoComm

International, which runs InfoComm in the US, other international shows and are a partner of the event; CEDIA that also has its own show in the US and is a core partner of Integrate and IMCCA, which has been our core partner for Unified Collaborative Communications over the past few years and provide content for our visitors on the show floor.

While, nationally, Integrate has the support of NECA, ACETA and Rohan Thornton of ALIA has also played a role in delivering content for the show.

In recent years you’ve taken to alternating host cities - Sydney and Melbourne - what was the reason behind that?

Integrate had always been a Sydney show until 2015 when we took the show to Melbourne for the first time, due to popular demand and venue development in Sydney. As it turns out, the industry that Integrate represents is almost a 50/50 split between New South Wales and Victoria. Interstate travel in Australia can be prohibitive but we were delighted that our first move to Melbourne saw over 35% of attendees come from outside Victoria and, at the time, was our largest event to date (we’ve since grown again with our return to Sydney in 2016). By alternating states, we are able to expand the reach of the event and hopefully bring in more audiovisual professionals into the Integrate community, hence our decision to continue to alternate.

What make Integrate different from other tradeshows?

Integrate looks and feels like an international trade event. It may not be among the largest, but it has all the ingredients of a global player.

International attendees coming to the show for the first time are always very impressed with Integrate and draw direct parallels with the likes of InfoComm, Integrated Systems Europe and CEDIA. There is a real energy in the Australian and New Zealand market and Integrate is the place that you can really feel it, there’s a real sense of the community coming together and it’s great to see so many industries and brands recognise the importance of getting face-to-face with their customers.

And you can’t beat our host cities, Melbourne and Sydney are some of the most liveable and innovative cities in the world. Our team is split across the two capitals and while there’s sometimes intense debate over who had the best coffee or beaches, in terms of places to hold events, I think they are some of the best in the world.

What do you foresee in the future for both Integrate and the Australian market in general?

The future of Integrate will very much depend on how it adapts to the rapid changes that are occurring within the industry. I believe big data will increasingly play a major part in the systems integration world. If we can stay fresh, think new and keep up with changes then Integrate has a very bright future.

www.mo ndo dr.co m

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