Barco S3-4K

Royal Albert Hall – Teenage Cancer Trust Concerts 2019

27/03/2019 by petermccrea

The annual Teenage Cancer Trust (TCT) fundraising week of concerts and comedy gigs descended on London’s Royal Albert Hall in March 2019 to help support young people with cancer. TCT engaged video solutions specialist Production AV to supply a full video package consisting of LED screens, cameras and mixing, media servers and technicians for the event, which saw crowd-pleasers including Take That, Rudimental and The Script perform over the week. Each performance was mixed with real-life stories of young people affected by cancer and appeals for donations.

Full Concert Video Production Solution for Teenage Cancer Trust

“There are two key video elements that we were required to deliver: one was to display live on-stage action onto IMAG screens, the other to promote how people can donate money to TCT,” said Pete McCrea, Production AV’s managing director. “To achieve this, we supplied Desay M6 LED panels as a central 8m x 4.5 screen flown above the stage and a large, curved 27.9m x 0.9m banner of LED screens across the back of the main stage, displaying information. This was supported with a camera package for the relay of real-life stories and live performances to the screens.”

Production AV supplied Sony HDC 1500R Studio Channels and Agile ARC360 Lite PTZ Remote Cameras, with footage mixed and directed using the company’s Blackmagic ATEM 4k PPU. McCrea and his team also used their Barco S3-4K for switching and disguise 2x4Pro Media Servers for content playback.

McCrea served as Project Manager, taking the helm with pre-production at Production AV’s new HQ near Cheltenham, load-in at the Royal Albert Hall and on-site set-up.

“Pre-production took the form of creating an artist liaison pack, to ensure we had all the screen pixel maps created and resolutions sorted, and the system design clearly communicated,” McCrea said. “Our team was in contact with the artists’ managers prior to the event to obtain assets, pre-program content and test everything well before we were on-site.

“We utilised disguise’s fantastic ‘designer’ software for building and pre-programming all of the content. In the days before the event, we pre-built the control systems and banner screen, patched and programmed the servers to ensure that the get-in went without a hitch. Then it was consigned to the job by our friends at R Jameson Event Transport.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvpo0NLFDQ1/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

Torry Harris Business Solutions – 20 Years of Digital Transformation

21/01/2019 by petermccrea

Production AV were excited to be working with new client, Torry Harris Business Solutions through providing a complete technical event solution that included our new, ultra high resolution Desay x2.6i 2.6mm Indoor LED Screen to celebrate the fantastic 20 years that the company has been innovating the digital experience for clients globally and inspire their increasingly talented team to continue delivering the high-quality solutions THBS are known for.

High Resolution Desay 2.6mm LED Screen Conference Solution

The centrepiece of the solution was a 5m x 2m LED screen using 30 of our new Desay x2.6i 2.6mm Indoor LED Panels that was built upon a ground support system and covered the rear of the stage. Two Novastar MCTRL 4K LED Processors were used to manage the data being fed to the screen with one acting as a fail safe hot back up to the main processor. Content was fed and scaled to the screen using our Barco S3-4K Screen Management System and easily managed when combined with our Barco EC-50 Event Controller. The S3-4K was also used to form a PIP (Picture in Picture) on the LED screen using the video feed from our Sony PMW-EX3 HD Video Camera positioned in FOH. Alongside the video solution, Production AV also provided the audio solution for the conference using our Yamaha TF1 Digital Mixing Console to manage several Sennheiser radio microphones that operated flawlessly throughout the event.

We were really happy with the performance of the Desay x2.6i throughout the day, as all of TBHS great achievements were crisply presented and the colours of the content perfectly reproduced. We’d like to thank TBHS for selecting us as the technical provider for this special event for their company. We look forward to working again with you in the future.

University of South Wales – Video Technology Demonstration Day

18/04/2018 by petermccrea

Production AV is always on the lookout to support up and coming individuals in the event production industry. So we were excited to be collaborating with the University of South Wales Live Event and Lighting Course, Stage Sound Services, Ashley Raines from Barco and Peter Kirkup from disguise to provide their students with a hands on experience using some of our industry leading video production equipment as well as offer advice and insight into the exciting but enigmatic industry we find ourselves in!

USW Video Technology Demonstration Day

Our aim was to provide two workshops for the students to experience and test the capabilities of our equipment. Our first workshop revolved around our DigiLED 3.9mm Indoor LED Screen as well as a Barco UDX-4K32 4K Laser Projector generously provided by Barco. 4K video was fed from our disguise 2x4pro Media Server into our Barco S3-4K Screen Management System and Barco EC-50 Event Controller so students could experience how these tools could be used with projection and LED technologies in event production scenarios. Features like PIP’s (Pictures in Pictures), luma keys and widescreen blend capabilities were demonstrated to show how easy it was to create slick and impressive video solutions whilst having the processing power to manage up to twelve different video inputs.

Having recently invested in disguise 2x4pro Media Servers, we wanted our second workshop to demonstrate the capabilities of these media servers. As our 2x4pro’s were driving a large scale project at the Geneva Motor Show Convention, disguise stepped in and provided a GX1 Media Server. With the assistance of Peter from disguise, four sessions were run throughout the day where students setup a projection mapping solution onto a model car displaying the power and vast creative opportunities that the disguise systems offer.

It was a pleasure putting on this demonstration day for USW students and we’d like to thank the University for hosting us as well as Stage Sound Services, Barco and disguise for attending and helping us create this informative and engaging demonstration of our video technologies. We’re looking forward to seeing some of the students out on site in the near future!

Today we are with @usw__lighting_design @usw_event_production showing off #barcos34k #barcoudx4k32 @disguise_one servers together with friends from #stagesoundservices

A post shared by Production AV Ltd (@productionav) on Mar 12, 2018 at 9:05am PDT

Wembley SSE Arena – Rock Assembly 2017

09/08/2017 by petermccrea

Production AV were feeling excited to be working alongside GLS Lighting to provide the technical solution for the annual Rock Assembly organised by The Transformation Trust’s as an end of term concert at the SSE Wembley Arena. Production AV felt privileged to be involved in providing a day of inspiration and celebration for underprivileged secondary school children and were looking forward to experiencing all the amazing artists such as The Vamps, The Dixon Bros, Sarah Close and Pink Angels here to celebrate their successes and opportunities for the future.

Complete Video Solution Rock Assembly 2017

Our task for the concert was to provide the complete video solution which consisted of projection, LED screen, camera system and video control system. The 6.4m x 3.6m LED screen created using our Desay 6.25mm Indoor/Outdoor LED Panels was flown above the centre of the stage and was used for to display playback throughout the course of the show. On both sides of the stage, a Barco HDX W20 DLP Projector and its projection racking were erected to rear project onto a pair of flown Stumpfl 20ft x 11ft screens. The projection showed the live camera feed from four Sony HXC-100 HD Camera Channels positioned around the venue with the furthest camera from stage having a Canon XJ86X9.3 Box Lens attached to it to maximise the range of focal lengths throughout the show. One camera channel was shoulder mounted and was free to roam around the stage to diversify the visuals and the other two of the camera channels were elevated on the pit floor to provide close up shots of the performers but also rotate to capture the excitement of the groups of school children when they saw themselves on the big screen.

Our Video PPU housed the drivers of the show with the Barco S3-4K Screen Management System comfortably pushing the playback that was gathered and managed using a pair of our Hippotizer AMBA V4 Media Servers to the LED screen as well as the live camera feed to both HDX projectors. Vision mixing was performed using the Panasonic AV-HS400 Vision Mixer and control units for the camera channels were also installed so that engineer settings such as colouration levels so that the camera operators could focus fully on getting the best shots. Production AV were also requested to record the entirety of the show using our Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Studio Pro which was matched to a synced audio feed and then provided on SSD cards following the completion of the event.

With The Vamps closing the afternoon off with a performance to match the frenzied energy of the crowd, Rock Assembly 2017 was over for this year. With 10,000 pupils from across England having the opportunity to explore career options and talk to universities at the Futures Fair before watching the concert in the afternoon, Production AV felt privileged to be a part of this meaningful and benign event. Thank you to GLS Lighting for selecting us as the video supplier for this event, we really appreciate working alongside you and look forward to the next one.

Belfast – Ulster Unionist Party Conference 2016

10/01/2017 by petermccrea

Production AV were back out once again working on behalf of BNL providing the largest scale production we have jointly worked on to date. We were providing a complete video solution for the 2016 Ulster Unionist Party Conference. We were looking forward to being involved in such a prestigious and well publicised event. In his speech at the conference, Colum Eastwood the leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party stated despite party differences with the UUP, they both aimed to “make Northern Ireland work” and was looking forward to “closer party cooperation”.

3mm High Resolution LED Screen with Barco S3-4K Playback

Using our stock of digiLED HRi3900 Indoor 3.9mm LED Panels, we built a 10m x 3m LED screen as well as providing full processing and playback support using our Barco screen management system. Travelling over with the kit to Belfast the day before, the Production AV team were began the load in early next morning and had the screen built into it’s custom set and operational in three hours. A pair of Nova MCTRL660 Processors were used to manage the data being fed to the screen with one acting as a fail safe back up to the main processor. For playback, our Barco S3-4k Screen Management System along with it’s counterpart the Barco EC50 Event Controller ensured that we could output a range of feeds including Keynote presentations, camera feeds and a twitter stream to the LED screen which provided flawless motion to the conference and allowed the UUP to focus completely on laying out plans to do what’s right for Northern Ireland in 2017 and onwards.

The event was a great success and we really enjoyed working alongside BNL to make sure this important event had the best production quality possible. Thank you for selecting us to be the supplier of the video solution we really enjoyed working with your team and the UUP Party itself. We hope to be back for next years party conference to hear the exciting changes the UUP have and aim to instrument in Northern Ireland.

Montpellier Gardens – Cheltenham Literature Festival 2016

19/12/2016 by petermccrea

Having worked with Cheltenham Festivals on the annual Literature Festival for the last five years, Production AV were looking forward to being back for a sixth year providing the video solution to all the venues at the festival. From the 7th – 16th of October, Cheltenham Literature Festival promised to continue delivering an inspiring mix of debate and discussion by welcoming over 600 of the world’s greatest writers, poets, politicians, thinkers and stars to Cheltenham.

In Forum, the main venue of the festival, Production AV provided a full video solution using a our Barco S3-4K Screen Management System coupled with its Barco EC-50 Controller which enabled us to manage numerous signals and outputting them to our Christie LHD700 Full HD Projector via a fibre system. Situated in front of house, three Sony PMW-EX3 HD Video Cameras provided numerous angles for the technical director to select during each event and one camera operator worked back stage controlling the two close up cameras using a pan tilt remote head system which enabled less intrusive production and greater communication between the technical team. The Barco S3-4K, also accommodated two laptops and was able to seamlessly switch between keynote and powerpoint presentations as well as raising the production quality by providing PIP’s of the camera feed when desired over presentations. The last output required from the Barco S3 was to the LG BD370 Blu-ray Player that recorded certain events for later use. Also provided for the guests was the Interspace MasterCue V6 Cueing System and comfort monitors leaving guests with the peace of mind that they can easily manage their presentation.

In The Pillar Rooms, the venue was more intimate and required a smaller technical setup. The main operating hardware was a Barco PDS-901 3G 9 in 1 Out Seamless Switcher that took feeds from two ASUS X555LA 15 Inch Laptops and outputted to an in-house projector as well as another LG BD370 Blu-ray Player for recording purposes. Comfort monitors and another MasterCue System was also set up in this venue to improve the presenting experience.

Working with Adrian Hensley and the team at Cheltenham Festivals is always a pleasure and getting to play our part in providing this yearly gathering of people with fantastic intellect as well as fascinating stories is always near the top of yearly event experiences! We would like to thank Adrian and the team for continuing this relationship between our companies into it’s sixth year and we hope it continues as it is such a rewarding and enjoyable event to be apart of each year.

Superdry Fashion Show – Sportswear Launch

12/08/2016 by petermccrea

Production AV were appreciative to once again work for long term client Tarren Production Ltd by providing a complete video solution using LED screens, flat panel displays, HD camera feeds and screen management systems. It was an honour to be apart of Superdry’s exciting businesses developments namely the launch of their sportswear line.

3mm High Resolution LED Screen with Barco S3-4K Switching

The main centerpiece of the event were our DigiLED 3.9mm LED Panels. We built two 4.5m x 2.5m LED walls on either side of the stage. These screens were used to showcase content that expressed the evolution of Superdry’s aspirational design story, offering essential items for everyday fitness as well as capsule collections for Athleisure, Yoga, Gym, Running and Cycle.

Positioned to capture the catwalk was a Sony PMW-EX3 Video Camera which fed live video to a Samsung ME65B 65″ Flat Panel Display which the models used as reference for their cues throughout the show. Playback of Powerpoints and keynotes were also displayed on screen for numerous talks by members of the Superdry team and brand ambassadors. All content was managed and switched by pairing the Barco EC-50 Event Controller with the Barco S3-4K Screen Management System which functioned flawlessly throughout the event.

Again we’d like to thank Tarren Production Ltd and Superdry for choosing us to provide the screen and video management for this event. We look forward to working on more successful events in the future.

Superdry Sport SS17 ?????????????? #superdry #fashionshow #potd #catwalk #fashion #clothing #cheltenham #designer #fashiondesigner #ss17 #springsummer #work #lovemyjob @sd.stylist @superdryglobal #superdrysport

A photo posted by Victoria Bramwell (@vee.beee) on Jun 21, 2016 at 11:42am PDT

Ecclesiastical Group Leadership Conference 2016

14/03/2016 by petermccrea

Production AV were pleased to once again be chosen as the sole supplier to Ecclesiastical’s annual Group Leadership Conference. With previous years conference’s utilising a simple screen and projector with drape surround, the decision was taken to undertake a massive step up in the visual impact of the event and enhance the narrative of the numerous speakers throughout the day.

3.9mm LED Video Wall Conference Solution

Using our stock of DigiLED 3.9mm LED Panels, Production AV created a 7m x 2.5m LED Video Wall as the focal point of the conference. The 3.9mm LED Wall sat on it’s own ground support; raising it above the presenters stage for improved viewing. Throughout the event it worked seamlessly for numerous speakers with their own unique content requirements. The high brightness of the screen meant that the room could be well lit and the curtains remain open allowing the views out over the lakes to remain and be enjoyed by the delegates.

Using Keynote and Powerpoint, content was fed from various laptops provided by Production AV. Live video was also run directly onto screen coming from a Sony EX3 HD Video Camera positioned at stage right. All the source switching was handled by a Barco S3-4K switching system set up backstage with the Barco EC-50 controller allowing for easy recall of previously stored scenes.

Relay Flatscreens and Breakout Rooms

Alongside the large 3.9mm LED video screen, two pairs of Samsung 65″ Flat Panels were provided to ensure the delegates could clearly see the content in the long thin room. The four screens were set out on Unicol Parabella Stands along the length of the room in order to stop any loss of clarity for those sat further back.

In addition to the main session space, multiple breakout spaces were also provided with a mix of 50″ and 42″ Panasonic Plasma Screens to enable clear communications.

Sound and Lighting for Complete Conference Solution

As Production AV were providing the full conference solution, audio requirements were also covered in full. Sound was projected using a combination d&b E3 and QSub Loudspeakers driven by d&b D12 Amplifers. All the sources were mixed on the QU-32 Digital Mixer utilising the onboard dynamics and feeds to the various speaker sends. Sennheiser EW300 G3 Wireless Handheld and Lapel microphones were provided for the presenters during the day and also during the evening quiz. ETC Source 4 Junior Lanterns and Miltec LED Batten 2’s were also used to great effect throughout the event in creating the relaxed atmosphere aimed to be achieved throughout the conference.

All the equipment was rigged during the load in on the afternoon before the event, with a fairly typical schedule of rehearsals in the morning then moving through the conference sessions and into the evening dinner and quiz, to a post event load out handled by our experienced team of event professionals and led by our in house project manager.

A big thank you to Ecclesiastical for choosing to work with us on the show and we look forward to working together in the future.

Continued Equipment Investment

29/02/2016 by petermccrea

Production AV is proud to announce further investment in equipment in the form of the Barco S3-4K and EC-50 screen control system from Barco. Ideal for switching DisplayPort, HDMI and SDI sources, the S3-4K is ideal for a range of uses in situations from Live Events and Exhibitions to Conferences and Trade Shows. The processors partner with our high resolution 3.9mm Indoor and 6mm Indoor/Outdoor LED Screen products and High quality projection products for a complete solution.

Native 4K Solution

The S3-4K offers native support for 4K sources allowing the capability to manage and switch 4K content for displays. With up to 12 inputs and 10 outputs available in the HD setting the S3-4K offers real flexibility. Combined with the EC-50 Controller for hands on control of sources, layers and Presets the system offers a great solution for switching AV sources at conferences, exhibitions, lives events, music gigs, trade shows corporate events and awards ceremonies.

Increased Flexibility

Where you require additional sources or outputs, then the Barco E2 offers these. Offering 28 inputs over HDMI, 3G HD-SDI and DisplayPort, as well as 14 outputs the E2 is designed for the larger event or show. It will also seamlessly link with the S3-4K to offer additional inputs and flexibility.

Remote Control

Both the E2 and S3-4K can be controlled by the Barco Event Master software, which offers control of the entire system and work flow from a computer or laptop. In addition to this Production AV have invested into the EC50 controller to allow operators hands on tactile control over sources, layers and preset.

For more details on the products please see their respective product pages.

Barco E2

Barco S3-4K

Barco EC-50

If you would like a quotation for a particular project, or a demo of the capabilities of the switcher, then please do contact us.