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TiMax Finds the Talent at Royal Scottish Academy

Adding natural depth and extra performance realism both to cutting-edge West End and Broadway theatre productions as well as to acclaimed large-scale opera performances worldwide, Outboard's TiMax ImageMaker is synonymous with life-like sound reproduction across a broad spectrum of performance.
   So much so, The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama has invested in the future careers of its technical production arts students by introducing a TiMax Image Maker 16 (8-inputs, 16-outputs) in to its portfolio of equipment. Senior lecturer David Ripley explains: "For these students TiMax is a vital piece of equipment and they need to be learning and understanding its capabilities as standard. There are other systems that deal in playback and creation but TiMax is unique in its context of image placement."
   TiMax enables a sound source to be panned statically or dynamically to multiple locations around the stage and auditorium, which are mapped out as a number of localisation zones. These zones become Image Definitions each of which comprises a different set of level and delay relationships to the speaker system. Sound designers can use these image definitions to deliver their intended directional information while also achieving consistent coverage in the house.
   The Academy houses the 344-capacity Athenaeum Theatre, which boasts Glasgow's largest proscenium arch and a stage the size of the London Palladium. With an opera school and courses ranging from acting through musical theatre, digital film and TV, a production arts course, its easy to see how the performance space is in almost constant use throughout the year. Ripley continues: "The TiMax will probably feature here first in just the drama shows to begin with, but we do have an electro-acoustic composition course that will also benefit greatly from the technology.
   "Our philosophy has always been that where we've identified equipment we feel the students need, we introduce it, but hand it over to them to demonstrate to us how it can be used. We don't want to be restrictive and, as we've found in the past, it will start turning up in unexpected places."
   Unsurprisingly, Out Board have and will continue to offer ongoing help and training with the TiMax. Again, Ripley confirms: "From the off it's been so easy to work with Out Board. The first seminar given by Dave Haydon was so appreciated by both staff and students and I think it was quite an eye-opener for some to just what can be uniquely achieved using image placement with TiMax. There's quite a buzz going round about it!"
   Out Board will also be exhibiting and delivering a seminar at PerformTech (28th-29th May 2008), the supporting trade exhibition with seminar programme, held in conjunction with the Royal Scottish Academy's technical production arts graduation show since 2004. This year the show, held at the Academy, has grown dramatically through partnership with entertainment technology companies, Northern Light and Black Light. The Seminar is entitled ‘TiMax and Source-Oriented Reinforcement' and Out    In picture: RSAMD's Athenaeum Theatre, just one of the performance spaces where TiMax will be used by the conservatoire students.

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TiMax Finds the Talent at Royal Scottish Academy

8th May 2008

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