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PR AGENCY CONTACT:
Robert Clyne
Clyne Media, Inc.
Tel: 615.662.1616
www.clynemedia.com
Rick Plushner
Guitar Center Professional
Tel: (818) 735-8800 x2238
www.gcpro.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE LOOKS TO GUITAR CENTER PROFESSIONAL FOR THE A/V NEEDS OF ITS NEW EXPERIMENTAL MEDIA AND PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
— GC Pro’s tremendous breadth of products and systems, combined with its massive pricing power, enabled the EMPAC to add more equipment and capabilities while staying within budget —
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA, April 14, 2009 — The newly opened Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) at the renowned Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, New York) was intended, from its conception, to be a space where the arts, technology and science would challenge and transform each other. As part of the nation’s oldest technological university, EMPAC draws strength from being part of a great research school, able to offer artists, visiting scholars, researchers, engineers, designers, and audiences opportunities that are available nowhere else under a single roof. And a significant part of what is under that roof was sourced by Guitar Center Professional (GC Pro), the outside sales division of Guitar Center that focuses on the needs of professional users. EMPAC’s designers and builders benefited greatly from the vast array of product solutions and pricing power that only GC Pro can offer.
The $200 million-plus EMPAC will provide unsurpassed facilities for creative exploration, as well as for research in fields ranging from visualization to immersive environments to large-scale interactive simulations. Officially opened last October, EMPAC operates nationally and internationally, attracting creators from around the world and sending new artworks and innovative ideas onto the global stage. It features a 1,200-seat classical theater, a 400-seat theater, two black-box studios and additional studios for up to four artists in residence, as well as an audio recording studio and a broadcast video studio.
This ambitious space required a diverse and advanced array of technological products and systems, and Todd Vos, Lead Audio Engineer at EMPAC, knew exactly where to go. “PK Pandey [GC Pro Senior Account Manager, Eastern U.S.] and I have known each other for quite a while,” says Vos. “I knew PK and GC Pro would be able to provide the basics we were looking for as well as the more esoteric pieces.”
Those needs ranged from over 100 wired and wireless microphone systems from manufacturers including Audio-Technica, DPA, Schoeps, Neumann and Shure, to large-format consoles such as the Soundcraft Vi4 Digital Console with DSP core and Yamaha DM2000V2 Digital Production Console, and a full MADI infrastructure throughout the facility. GC Pro also delivered on the video side, providing platforms including the JVC SR-DVM700 three-in-one video recorder, Pyro AV 3G fiber-optical HD-SDI transmitters and receivers and an AJA 3G HD-SDI multiplexer.
“One of the great things about dealing with GC Pro was that they offered products ranges at both the project studio level as well as elements found in major broadcast systems. Given scheduling, this was a great benefit as it was important for us to consolidate as much equipment as possible under single bids,” explained Vos, who worked closely with EMPAC Audio Engineer Jeff Svatek and his counterpart in video, Eric Ameres, in making technology choices. “GC pro was the only retailer that walked this line.”
And not only did GC Pro offer the widest array of technology choices; it also offered the absolute best prices. “For anything over $5,000, we had to put competitive bids out, GC Pro’s numbers beat everything else out there,” noted Vos. “That enabled us to add systems that were thought to have been out of reach financially and stay within budget.”
Photo File: RPI_EMPAC.JPG
Photo Caption: The 1,200-seat classical theater Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) at the renowned Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, outfitted with gear from sourced by Guitar Center Professional (GC Pro), the outside sales division of Guitar Center that focuses on the needs of professional users. (Photo credit: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute / Ray Felix. © 2009. All rights reserved.)About Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is the nation’s oldest technological university, offering degrees in engineering, the sciences, information technology, architecture, the humanities and social sciences. It is pre-eminent in research into biotechnology, nanotechnology, IT, and the media arts and technology. In addition to its MFA program, RPI offers bachelor degrees in Electronic Arts, and in Electronic Media, Arts, and Communication – one of the first undergraduate programs of its kind in the United States.About Guitar Center Professional/Guitar Center
Guitar Center Professional is the outside sales division of Guitar Center that focuses on the needs of professional users. Its clientele includes recording studios, audio engineers, producers, recording and touring musicians, live sound venues, post production facilities and more. Emphasizing extraordinary individualized service via local account managers, GC Pro offers expert consultation and a comprehensive selection of the world’s finest equipment for music and audio professionals. More information on GC Pro can be found by visiting www.gcpro.com.Guitar Center is the leading United States retailer of guitars, amplifiers, percussion instruments, keyboards and pro-audio and recording equipment. Our retail store subsidiary presently operates more than 200 Guitar Center stores across the U.S. In addition, our Music & Arts division operates more than 100 stores specializing in band instruments for sale and rental, serving teachers, band directors, college professors and students. We are also the largest direct response retailer of musical instruments in the United States through our wholly owned subsidiary, Musician's Friend, Inc., and its catalog and Web site, www.musiciansfriend.com. More information on Guitar Center can be found by visiting the Company's Web site at www.guitarcenter.com.
The Guitar Center logo is a registered trademark of Guitar Center, Inc. Other brand or product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.
MEDIA CONTACT: Robert Clyne, Clyne Media, Inc. at (615) 662-1616
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