London, UK— The decision to standardize on Point Source Audio (PSA) was led by Dave Cowell, lead sound designer and programmer for Carnival UK. Point Source Audio’s body-worn microphones will support the fleets’ performance venues which are in use a standard 15-hours a day, 365 days a year.

Carnival UK (which incorporates Cunard Cruise Line and P&O Cruises UK) are part of Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest leisure travel company, with a cruise fleet of 102 ships operating in North America, England, Europe and Australia.

“The cruising industry is one of the harshest environments for product delivery I have worked in. When microphones fail due to sweat, cable failure or breakages, it significantly affects our product delivery to the thousands of guests we cater to on a daily basis,” described Cowell.

Having used microphones from different manufacturers over the years, Cowell experienced increasing costs but saw no major benefit change to the products. The variation of microphones from ship to ship—including a mixture of omni and directional units—made the shows sound different, as well as life more difficult for the engineers who had to come to grips with new sound challenges on a routine basis.

“There weren’t many available solutions to consider. First and foremost, I was looking for quality, followed very closely by sweat resistance and longevity,” said Cowell. “While the quality aspect was matched from our previous supplier, there were continued issues with sweat ingress and breakages as well as the aforementioned cost implications.”

Autograph supplied demo units of PSA’s CO-8WD omni headsets for Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth which led to Cowell’s ultimate recommendation to move ahead with Point Source: “From the moment the microphones were plugged in, I could hear the quality. Crystal clear mid and high frequencies made vocal mixing easy. The low end was also great for our male cast members. The gain before feedback was impressive and there was very little EQ applied to any of the performers as the response was so flat out of the box.”

The ability of the headsets to be bent and configured to any conceivable shape without breaking was incredibly important to Cowell. He described the wear and tear the mics typically face: “The production casts are on board between five to seven months and perform two or three shows a night, on average every two days. We have costume changes that run under 8 seconds, so having a unit which dealt with the day to day environment was paramount. The sturdy frame of the headset was also an important factor for the same reasons.”

Cowell summed up his experience by expressing that “our Point Source Audio microphones are delivering monetary benefits as well as continued quality across our delivered product.” He credited the marked improvements by saying, “Thankfully, our relationship with Autograph and the fact we were provided demo units to trial during the aforementioned installation meant that they could be properly tested by myself on board, allowing me to gather an informed opinion on their suitability, both from a product delivery standpoint as well as a cost benefit one.”

Visitors to PLASA 2019 from September 15-17 will be able to demo Point Source Audio’s collection of microphones at Autograph Sales & Installations’ stand H10 in Olympia, London.

To learn more about Point Source Audio products, visit www.point-sourceaudio.com or its UK distributor, Autograph Sales & Installations at http://www.autographsales.co.uk.

About Carnival United Kingdom Carnival UK (which incorporates Cunard Cruise Line and P&O Cruises UK) are part of Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest leisure travel company, whose portfolio of global cruise line brands includes operations in North America, England, Europe and Australia. Their cruise fleet of 102 ships is the most extensive globally, visiting more than 700 ports around the world, employing over 120,000 people worldwide and attracting 11.5 million guests annually.

About Autograph Sales & Installation Autograph Sales & Installations was established in 1982 by Autograph Sound, a global pioneer in audio for theatre and one of Europe’s leading sound rental companies. Then, as now, Sales & Installations’ activities complement those of the hire division by bringing the same design principles, system engineering, technical expertise, and leading-edge technologies to a much broader spectrum of clients in education, worship, industry and retail. They are also acknowledged leaders in providing installed audio solutions for contemporary theatre and dedicated performance spaces.

About Point Source Audio Point Source Audio (@PSA_audio) manufactures and distributes worldwide their SERIES8, EMBRACE, and CONFIDENCE collection of miniature microphones—a unique line of headset, earworn and earmounted microphones known for their robust bendable boom and waterproof features. The company also holds two patents for the EMBRACE concealable microphone as well as the patent for the world’s first modular in-ear comms headset that is supporting the hearing health for audio, lighting and camera techs using headsets everywhere from sports to space. Founded in 2004, Point Source Audio is headquartered in Petaluma, Calif. For more information call (415) 226-1122 or visit www.point-sourceaudio.com. Follow the company on Twitter at www.twitter.com/PSA_audio.

Petaluma, Calif.— Point Source Audio (PSA), manufacturer of specialty sub-miniature body-worn style microphones, has launched Mic Finder, an interactive web-based tool designed to help sound teams—from TV to theatre—pinpoint specific mic elements and mic styles to suit applications from corporate presenters to rock n’ roll musicals to violin mic’ing.

Expanding beyond traditional lavalier and headset style microphones, recent advances in the company’s approach to body-worn mics include the patent-pending Confidence™Collection microphones highlighting built-in redundancy, and the EMBRACE™Collection of concealable microphones that are twice patented. The company emphasizes that these additions present a world of fresh possibilities when sound teams are challenged with unique requisites—from facial hair to drop hoop earrings—when fitting mics on actors or speakers.

The Mic Finder web tool is accessible online via desktop, tablet, and mobile devices. The tool presents a series of questions to narrow microphone choice and shares successful experiences from real-world examples that best match the users’ needs.

“What we’ve learned in working closely with our customers is that no two mic’ing situations are the same; the smallest variable can make one mic selection perfect in one situation, and a disaster in another,” said Yvonne Ho, sales and marketing VP for Point Source Audio.

Users looking for the right microphone simply select the relevant application with various considerations from Mic Finder’s menu settings. Product recommendations are then presented along with customer use cases including:

• Mics that hide
• Mics that survive heavy water/sweat
• Mics for fast-moving musical theatre
• Mics for preaching
• Mics that fight feedback
• Mics that shape and bend
• Mics that accept custom color
• Mics for bearded performers
• Mics that backup themselves

Besides finding the right microphone performance features, sound teams must also battle variables such as costuming, concealment, venue size, loudspeaker placement, vocal projection, and more. Ho explained with examples: “We get questions routinely on how to head mic an actor with no hair, or one who sweats heavily, or sometimes both at the same time.”

The novice sound person can learn about mic choice with consideration for speaking or singing, whereas those new to Point Source Audio mics can discover unconventional mic’ing possibilities including how EMBRACE microphones can be used for violinists or boom headsets for flutists doubling on several instruments in one performance.

The company expects to continue expanding the tool with new products and technology solutions alongside noteworthy applications in real-world environments. To access Mic Finder, visit www.point-sourceaudio.com/mic-finder

About Point Source Audio

Point Source Audio (@PSA_audio) manufactures and distributes worldwide their SERIES8, EMBRACE, and CONFIDENCE collection of miniature microphones—a unique line of headset, earworn and earmounted microphones known for their robust bendable boom and waterproof features. The company also holds two patents for the EMBRACE concealable microphone as well as the patent for the world’s first modular in-ear comms headset that is supporting the hearing health for audio, lighting and camera techs using headsets everywhere from sports to space. Founded in 2004, Point Source Audio is headquartered in Petaluma, Calif. For more information call (415) 226-1122 or visit www.point-sourceaudio.com. Follow the company on Twitter at www.twitter.com/PSA_audio.

PITTSBURGH & BALTIMORE—NEP Group has acquired Broadcast Sports International (BSI), a Baltimore-based designer and manufacturer of wireless networks and high-end wireless A/V systems. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

BSI provides broadcast-quality wireless audio-visual solutions as well as a field service for major television networks, sports leagues and other marquee customers around the world. It offers wireless camera systems, wireless audio systems, wireless communications systems and digital technology to receive, decode and distribute images and sounds.

“We’ve worked alongside BSI’s team for years and share a great deal of respect for their high-quality work and technology,” said Mike Werteen, Global President, NEP Broadcast Services. “BSI and NEP share similar service-oriented cultures centered on delivering exceptional results for our clients, so this is a great fit all around.”

According to NEP the acquisition is consistent with its strategy to become the worldwide leader in broadcast services.

BSI adds wireless capabilities to NEP’s line of specialty capture services, which include Bexel’s specialized engineering systems and production solutions, as well as Fletcher’s specialty camera solutions.

More information is available online.