FEATURE: LONDON 2012 OLYMPICS AND PARALYMPICS
manufacturer’s name from the back of each tablet with a marker pen, in accordance with Olympic marketing regulations…) Pixel mapping of the content was carried out on the Ai Infinity Server from Avolites/Immersive. “Quite simply this is one of the only server systems that can handle mapping on such huge scale,” said Frederic Opsomer, CEO of Tait Technologies, who drove the development of the tablets. Content for the pixel tablets was provided by the London operation of digital imaging services provider Crystal CG International.
AUDIO
Audio consultant Roland Hemming was employed by LOCOG as venue technology manager for audio, for all London 2012 venues, responsible for all events apart from the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Part of his role was to determine whether or not the installed systems at the Olympic Park venues were suitable for the Games, and to manage the process of adding supplementary systems as appropriate. For the other Games venues, both in London and further afield – which were already in existence – equipment was hired in as required. In all, he was responsible for the delivery of over 400 audio systems. According to Hemming,
two to three times more audio was delivered during London 2012 than in previous Games. This is due, in part, to the increasingly
sophisticated demands from broadcasters. They want ‘up- close’ sound from competitors, which would be completely out of place over the venue PA.
CEREMONIES Australian event production company Norwest Productions has been involved in the Ceremonies since 2000. For London 2012 working in conjunction with UK partners Delta Sound, Britannia Row and Autograph. The scale – and importance – of the four Ceremonies (Opening and Closing for the Olympics and Paralympics) presented many challenges. Norwest’s project
manager, Andy Marsh, commented: “The cable installation took us in excess of three weeks and was more akin to installing cable permanently into a venue.” Merging Technologies’
Pyramix digital audio workstation played a central part in the proceedings. As well as playing back pre-recorded audio, it generated the timecode output, which was used for lighting, video playback, broadcast and pyrotechnics, as well as being used by the stage managers and directors to cue performers. Output from the Pyramix
was fed via two MADI streams into a DiGiCo SD7 console. In the Olympic Stadium, multiple Optocore fibre networks were deployed, with full analogue back-up, principally for the main PA and broadcast systems. There was a total of 696 input and output channels travelling over the 2Gbit Optocore network to various broadcast and PA locations; Optocore also delivered PA and monitor feeds, plus timecode and programme. For the Ceremonies, the stadium PA was entirely L-Acoustics: 220 V-DOSC line array speakers, 100 KUDO line source speakers, 55 ARCS, 88 SB28 subs and XT fill speakers.
OTHER TECHNOLOGY More than 100 Electro-Voice EVH1152 horn-loaded coaxial loudspeakers were installed in the Stadium, along with Zx1i and EVID6.2T.
Community Professional
The 22 trusses holding the L-Acoustics line arrays in the Olympic Stadium also carried moving heads
PA speakers were installed in numerous venues, including the Handball Arena, Basketball Arena, Water Polo Centre, Aquatic Centre,
www.installation-international.com October 2012 37
Outdoor Water Sports Centre and the Olympic Stadium. The models deployed were all from the high-power R series: the R2, R1, R.5, R.5COAX and R.25. As noted above, however – and as was apparent to visitors in some venues – the installed audio was in some cases supplemented, or even replaced completely, by hired-in systems. Also well represented
across multiple Olympic and Paralympic venues was intercom manufacturer Clear-Com. Its HelixNet Partyline Intercom System was deployed across 31 venues during London 2012. A total of 50 HelixNet Main Stations and 550 HelixNet beltpacks were used by teams across the venues. Clear-Com was contracted
to provide communications for three separate groups:
announcers and commentators, on-venue results (OVR) staff and the production teams who manage the stadiums and events. For the Ceremonies, a Riedel system was deployed to handle communications for performers, stage managers, production teams, engineers and technicians. It’s events like London 2012 that give the industry the opportunity to raise its game and work together to produce something really special – and provide a global audience for the industry to demonstrate its capabilities to. I wonder if, as well as encouraging young people to take up sports, the Games will also have played a part in inspiring the next generation of entrants to the world of audiovisual technology?
Panasonic supplied 45 large LED screens across 28 venues (Picture: London 2012)
www.avolitesmedia.com www.clearcom.com www.communitypro.com www.crystalcg.com www.digico.biz www.electrovoice.com www.immersive.eu www.merging.com www.panasonic.net www.rhconsulting.com www.riedel.net www.taittechnologies.com
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