EV's new arrival

So you need your own cabs to make a noise down the pub and you've been casting an envious eye at the Electro-Voice Sx200s, but can't quite manage the outlay. Fret not, EV's distributor, Shuttlesound, has released the EV Sx100, which handles a worthy 200W continuous and is ideal for small to medium FOH and monitoring applications.

The Sx100 weighs less than 16kg, with a built-in carrying handle and a rugged, roadworthy cabinet constructed from high-impact polypropylene.

They retail at £999 per pair.

Shuttlesound. (Contact Details)

Hi REV

Having only last year brought a top flight reverb unit to the market for well under a grand, Yamaha has now launched the REV 500, featuring the same 32-bit internal DSP, advanced algorithms, and 20-bit AD and DA converters, all combining to produce levels of sonic performance and realism, 'previously only available from reverb processors with four figure price tags'. The REV 500, however, retails for what would appear to a reasonable £399 (inc. VAT).

The spec includes balanced XLR and quarter-inch jack I/O connectors (with input and output levels independently switchable between -10dB and +4dB), true stereo processing, 44.1kHz sampling, large LCD, and real-time MIDI control. A fast, intuitive user interface includes four front panel rotary controls, providing real-time control of the four principal parameters for each effect patch.

Other useful features include the 100 preset programmes and the 100 user programmes organised into effects types; and there's a quick audition facility that gives you an on-board drum sample to fire through the selected effect.

Yamaha-Kemble Music (UK) Ltd. (Contact Details)

Phil takes the mic

Phil Collins, the epitome of the classic rock musician, was recently presented with a Classic Limited Edition M88 microphone from beyerdynamic. Phil was presented with this unique microphone by Rob 'Cubby' Colby, when he was in New York appearing on a US television show. The M88 microphone has apparently been Phil's favoured microphone through his career with Genesis and as a solo artist, and he looks suitable chuffed with the results of his loyalty.

Tho M88 Classic, which has a limited production run of just 999 pieces worldwide, is released as the original design with individual documentation housed in a more splendid wooden case than I'm likely to be buried in.

Beyerdynamic. (Contact Details)

Studiomaster Magnificent Seven

Studiomaster celebrated its 20th anniversary by giving away up to £20,000 worth of sound equipment to up and coming bands as part of its UK Sound Search Promotion. After almost a year of gigs checking out new music from all over the UK, plus a mountain of demo tapes, the Studiomaster Sound Search crew have finally emerged blinking into the cold light of day with their definitive top seven unsigned bands. In no particular order they are:

Jam Jah Man (Birmingham) — seven piece groove/funk/soul combo.
Dog Tomas (Matlock, Derbyshire) — four piece indie/pop.
Bustamente (London, SW19) — solo artist soul/groove.
Rhythm Conspiracy (Manchester) — four piece ragga/funk.
Salty Dogs (Tollesbury, East Anglia) — high energy roots/rock.
Steve Taylor Band (Torquay, Devon) — four piece lyrical pop.
Harmonica Jones (Irvine, Ayrshire) — six piece roots/pop crossover.

Studiomaster's Stake Farley had this to say: "We were very encouraged by the professionalism of all the bands. We intend to keep in touch with the winners as their careers develop, just as we have with our established customers like Phil Collins and Mike Rutherford. If any record or management companies are interested, we would be pleased to pass on the information to the bands."

Studiomaster. (Contact Details)

Turbosound road to Wembley

News just in tells us that Turbosound has won the contract to install the new house system at Wembley Conference Centre in London. The system is a combination of Floodlight and HiLight enclosures.

Turbosound have recently appointed Turnkey as their exclusive central London dealers for their sound reinforcement products. The range on permanent display includes the HiLight and Impact series of cabinets, all of which are wired in for instant comparison. Other cabinets are available for demonstration on request.

Turbosound. (Contact Details)
Turnkey Sound Systems. (Contact Details)

Savage deal struck

After much wheeling and dealing, high level management meetings, power lunches, strategic breakfasts, and negotiations around hotel minibars long into the night, Savage Audio purchased a 56-channel Midas XL200 from LMC in Birmingham at the Live! Show in London. Savage are in the business of hiring and selling, and no doubt the new purchase will help meet the great demand on their hire stock.

Savage Audio Services. (Contact Details)

A&R list

If you're a musician or band member and you haven't heard about the A&R list, it's just as well there's a magazine like ours to save you from own ignorance. A&R List European Edition 1997 is out now, sizzlingly hot off the presses. Inside you'll find 500 entries, each with full addresses, telephone and fax number and contact numbers.

Short of giving you the favourite restaurant and name of Creation Records A&R man's dog, you won't find anything more useful in giving you the inside running.

Also of interest is the Gig Guide, which contains an up-to-date list of venues, rehearsal rooms, and recording studios, 900 entries in all with the relevant details. Both digests will cost you £6 a piece, send off a cheque to Mr M Bell at the address below.

TMR, (Contact Details)

ARX create right Ambience

ARX Systems announce the release of the Ambience 1 Ultra Compact Loudspeaker System suitable for installation, audio-visual, and multimedia applications.

Constructed from a lightweight high impact resin cabinet with a heavy-duty protective steel mesh, the Ambience 1's frequency response is 60Hz to 20kHz ±5dB and power handling is rated at 100 Watts program. The Ambience 1 features integral 2nd order frequency management, uses a two-way complement of a 5.25-inch low frequency driver, and a three quarter-inch high frequency soft dome radiator.

The Ambience 1 is available in both 8 Ohm and 100V versions, with an optional magnetically shielded model available for applications which require close proximity to video monitors.

While on the subject, have a look at the new ARX website, which features more than you could ever possibly need to know about the Australian-based manufacturer. Here's the address: http://www.arx.com.au

ARX International. (Contact Details)

Live! & kicking

The Live! Awards went off with a bang, when over eight hundred people attended The National Ballroom in Kilburn London. The event was hosted by Jools Holland, who presented some 28 awards to the newest, the brightest, and the best products and people in Europe during 1996. The old rockers in attendance were given a treat with Peter Green and The SAS Band giving it some well into the night. Interesting awards include: Best tour going to Manic Street Preachers, Best UK Venue won by Brixton Academy, and Best Audio Product taken by the Martin Wavefront 8 Compact.

The Live! Awards also fell in the middle of a two day exhibition of live performance products and services, staged in The Roundhouse Theatre in Camden. The exhibition was well worthwhile a visit, just for a look at some of the new gear you were unlikely to see unless you're a jetsetting exhibition junkie.

Mojo Working. (Contact Details)

Beyer's Blueprint for success

Beyerdynamic are pleased to announce the introduction of the Blueprint series of power amplifiers. The A75 is a new 1U stereo amplifier capable of delivering 50 Watts per channel into an 8 Ohm load (or 75 Watts into 4 Ohm) and is designed specifically for studio monitoring and high quality sound contracting installations.

A generous heatsink for convection cooling, along with a unique thermal integration of all the critical semiconductors, ensures optimum performance is maintained at all output levels.

Balanced and unbalanced inputs are catered for, and the output is via a 4 pole Speakon connector. For sound contracting use, a VCA option is available for remote level control. These high quality amplifiers are available now priced at £349 excluding VAT.

Beyerdynamic. (Contact Details)