Recently formed pro audio service provider 22live, based in Redditch, UK, announced that it has been appointed a d&b audiotechnik rental partner following a significant investment in the company’s SL-Series loudspeakers and supporting components.
22live, established in early 2022 by hire director Paul Timmins and offically launched this past January, has already completed two significant tours and an O2 Arena production. Additional members of the veteran team include managing director Spencer Beard, commercial director Alex Penn, technical director Simon Gladstone and operations director Stefan Phillips and finance director Ian Bidmead.
“It was always the intention of 22live to stock two loudspeaker brands,” Beard states. “The company made a strong start in 2022 and has achieved a great deal in a short space of time. We are very pleased with how 22live has developed since its formation and all the decisions that have been made. Today’s announcement increases our potential and offers our current and future clientele further choice.”
22live has committed XSL and KSL loudspeakers to its hire inventory, joined by SL-SUBs as well as its own proprietary subwoofers. The team ino stranger to d&b audiotechnik, with extensive experience around the product range having previously operated with SL-Series. The infrastructure the company has already assembled is designed to be flexible and will also be deployed alongside the d&b system utilizing 24-way loudspeaker multis and intelligent packaging.
Penn explains, “When deciding which additional loudspeaker brand was right for 22live, the d&b SL-Series made sense for several reasons: It fits with our target to be recognized as a quality service provider to high-end touring, it’s a young product line still in the early stages of its lifecycle, and it allows us to cater to a broad range of productions alongside our existing stock.”
Timmins adds, “The other benefit to us of investing in the d&b SL-Series is that it is still niche in comparison to other rider friendly products. In reality we see the fact that it is not quite so readily available within the rental market but already popular and widely accepted, strengthening our position. Meaning we are quoting based on our offering and service rather than just supplying the same equipment that many others have access to.”
22live’s initial XSL delivery is already in progress and much of the system is already booked for its first tour loading in late February. KSL will be delivered in time for the summer, and the company will be looking to take bookings for this as opportunities arise. “The cardioid nature of the SL-Series also opens some doors for applications where a very direct sound field really benefits the production,” Gladstone notes.
Beard concludes, “We are proud to be appointed as a d&b audiotechnik rental partner. We feel it demonstrates d&b audiotecknik’s faith in our team and our ambitions. We honor all the purchasing commitments that 22live has made so far and remain focussed on both loudspeaker brands we represent. We consider the d&b partnership to be a key one to aide our development as we push forwards ensuring that we continue to be a service led, independent company supplying quality in all that we do.”
