This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
14 l December 2012


www.psneurope.com


reviewoftheyear 2012: damp with bright spells


Erica Basnicki reminds us of what an eventful 12 months it’s been


IT’S YEAR end, and time to look back. What will 2012 be remembered for, apart from that big


sporting event, and Her Majesty throwing a bit of party? Bad weather did its best to sabotage the festival business in the UK, aided and abetted by continuing adverse economic conditions. In fact, it was mixed fortunes all round for many in our glorious pro-audio industry. Our cover story in January suggested that the Audio Engineering Society (AES) was feeling cautiously optimistic about the year ahead, having turned a financial corner and posting a “small but significant surplus” following two lacklustre years. Despite the improved financial performance, the AES’s 132nd Convention in Budapest attracted less than a dozen exhibitors and drew criticism for a lack of marketing, calling into question the future of the trade show in Europe. Undaunted, newly appointed


executive director Bob Moses spoke frankly, yet confidently, to PSNEurope (June 2012), and in this issue (see page 18) about changes that have already taken place within the organisation and, hopefully, moving on. It’s a


sentiment echoed by


PLASA


CEO Matthew Griffiths who is equally


THAT PESKY ‘SUMMER OF SPORT’


confident about the trade show’s future at ExCeL in 2013, despite doubts voiced by pro-audio manufacturers at this year’s final Earls Court event. Griffiths admitted pro-audio got the short end of the stick over recent years, and hinted that a separate event may be in order, or perhaps even partnering with “other shows”. Regardless, the CEO is embracing 2013 as an opportunity to ‘rework’ PLASA. Also getting another look was


the ‘dark art’ of mastering, which has been exposed to a wider audience both publicly, through Apple’s new Mastered for iTunes initiative (more to come on this in upcoming issues), as well as professionally with the Music Producers Guild introducing a new mastering group (PSNEurope May 2012). The launch took place at Alchemea College, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year (see page 20). Avid looked to improve its bottom line in 2012, selling M-Audio and AIR Software to Akai/Numark parent InMusic Group, and its consumer video product lines to Canada’s Corel Corporation. The company also revealed its aim to save $80 million annually by cutting staff and “darkening facilities”. Shares in Avid Technology have dropped in recent years from a high of $70 to just under $6 as PSNEurope went to press. Despite the figures, Avid’s


JBL’s VTX system debuted on Lenny Kravitz’s European tour


greatest image troubles may have stemmed from an onslaught of email


One of pro-audio’s biggest news-making events took place around the end of July, though what it was, no one would say. Draconian rulings against non- sponsors of that particular event made it impossible to report on it in any official way. Not that it mattered, really. We were all too wrapped up in the excitement of the London 2012 Olympics. What’s that? Oh, that was the big news? Press releases finally flooded into our inboxes throughout September (and they’re still coming), as manufacturers and suppliers could – for the most part – now open up about their contribution to Britain’s economy and morale boosting Olympic Games. Prior to that we relied on sister magazine Installation’s editor Paddy Baker, who snapped photos of kit during a dress rehearsal to supplement what little official information we did have (PSNEurope, July). What we can now say is that


for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Australian Norwest Productions worked closely with


correspondence from irate Sibelius users, who wanted the company to sell the notation software back to its original founders (Ben and Jonathan Finn), after it emerged that the Sibelius UK office was to close and further development outsourced. The campaign had relentlessly pursued Avid since the announcement was made


the UK’s Delta Sound, Britannia Row and Autograph, during which Merging Technologies’ Pyramix was the DAW of choice for playback of the pre-recorded audio. It took three weeks to install


the required Optocore fibre signal transport, which used more than 50 devices, with Dolby Lake processors providing the switchover between networks. Optocore also delivered both PA and monitor feeds, via DiGiCo SD7 desks (what a great 10th anniversary bonus; PSNEurope, September 2012), to the largest Olympic PA system in the history of the Games: from L-Acoustics, 220 V-DOSC, 100 KUDO, 55 ARCS, 88 SB28 subs and a number of 12XT fills – all driven from 280 LA8 amps. Radio microphones for the


ceremonies were Shure’s new Axient system, with Sennheiser G3s used for IEMs and a comms system comprising two Artist 128 frames provided by Riedel (exclusive coverage in PSNEurope, October).


in mid-July, even composing an anthem for their cause (well, naturally…). The group’s efforts relented


somewhat after Steinberg’s announcement that it had recruited 11 of the former Sibelius team to work on its own music notation software (see page 4). The BBC also faced a certain


degree of turbulence, shutting down Bush House, auctioning


The Summer Games was the event of 2012


Broadcast-wise, over 50


Lawo mixing consoles were deployed by various international broadcasters. BBC Sports’ sound team used a 62-fader Studer Vista 9 console in each of its three production room galleries at the International Broadcast Centre, along with a Yamaha 01V96 grams mixer and SpotOn audio playback software, monitored via a Genelec 5.1 loudspeaker system. Broadcast microphones were provided by Audio-Technica. An unspecified amount of equipment was also supplied by AED Group.


its contents (I never did get an RE-20), and preparing to move various departments from Television Centre to Elstree (temporarily) and South Ruislip – all while trying to celebrate its 90th anniversary amid a torrent of child abuse allegations and subsequent management resignations. One annus horriblis indeed.


Photo: London 2012


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52