FEATURE: CONCERT VENUES
room is crucial to successful system deployment. It stands to reason that the larger the room, the more boxes – and the more complex the system design will be. Fortunately, the majority of speaker suppliers now offer
sophisticated modelling tools that, as much as is possible, eliminate the associated element of risk.
QSC is one the companies
to have made great strides in this area. Product manager (and FOH engineer of 30 years’ standing) Brian English remarks: “All QSC WideLine models are articulating line arrays, so the size and shape of the array are the biggest factors in determining the deployment. To assist distributors, consultants and production professionals we offer 2D and 3D prediction and modelling tools which offer suggestions on potential array deployment and configuration.”
to cooling systems, other AV equipment or, better still, more audience seating. Powersoft is among those companies to have enthusiastically embraced Class D technologies in products such as its K Series amps. “The K Series is preferred among top-ranking system designers, sound reinforcement and system techs for making their installation easier – giving them reliable premier grade power and headroom in the smallest possible package size,” says Fanicchi.
NETWORKING CAPABILITY It stands to reason that the larger venues with greater budgets are the best placed to take the plunge and make the most of the benefits that full networking can deliver. But, increasingly, there are signs that the trickle-down is affecting venues at the lower to medium end of the spectrum. Regular Installationreaders
will be well aware, however, that a ‘winner’ in the networking debate has yet to emerge. So with many visiting productions likely to bring consoles operating with different protocols, there is a need for permanently installed audio systems to accommodate as many approaches as possible. “Most installed venues
‘Most installed venues expect full networked control over their systems’
Brian English, QSC
AMPLIFICATION WITH POWER, EFFICIENCY The ability of self-powered speakers (those featuring onboard amplification) to free up valuable rack or equipment room space has lately made them particularly attractive to medium and large venues hosting large systems. But for those adhering to a ‘separates’ philosophy, the advent of amplifiers based around highly efficient Class D topologies has allowed venues to deliver greatly increased power from a much-reduced number of boxes. This trend has arguably been particularly beneficial to small and medium-sized venues that are therefore able to assign valuable space
34 April 2014
expect full networked control over their systems, and these days most of your rental, hire and touring companies utilise some sort of networked solution to run their systems,” says English. “As far as being able to coexist on networks that utilise different digital protocols, I think it’s extremely important these days as there is no one solution that you can say is the industry standard. And, until there is, one must offer ‘bridges’ that can easily convert one protocol to another.”
The earlier description of a
‘quiet revolution’ in concert audio this last half-decade seems apt; after all, line arrays and digital mixers have been a default choice for considerably longer than that. But driven in no small part by cost issues, the impulses that inform them have arguably become more acute. “The market is evolving, but
in my opinion nothing in terms of what people want out of the system is changing,” says Millar. “Everyone wants the best possible coverage and sound for the least outlay. However, cost of ownership and reliability have become
HOXTON VENUE OPTS FOR TANNOY VQ FOR PRINCIPAL PA
A combined concert venue, bar and restaurant in Shoreditch, London, has been equipped with a Tannoy VQ Series system for its principal PA. The site in question, Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen, hosts a wide variety of live performances all year round.
In the main venue, the PA is based around a pair of Tannoy VQ 100s, with low-end reinforcement provided by an accompanying pair of Tannoy VS 218DR bass enclosures. Monitoring comes courtesy of
seven Tannoy VX 15HPs (tuned for live use) and a single VSX 15DR.
Amplification duties are handled by
Lab.gruppen’s PLM Series, with a PLM 20000Q and PLM 10000Q powering the main rig. Each PLM Series amp comes integrated with Dante networked audio distribution and Lake Processing technology, as well as load verification with real-time performance monitoring. Meanwhile, the stage monitors are powered by IPD
Series products, also from
Lab.gruppen. At the core of the IPD platform is a DSP engine equipped with up to 40 real-time, multi-slope parametric EQs, along with adjustable gain, input and output delay, and both high- and low-pass filters adjustable to any frequency. The 1U amps also come with IPD LoadLibrary, a collection of
Lab.gruppen-released presets designed to deliver quick configuration and optimisation of a wide range of loudspeaker systems.
www.installation-international.com
World Changers Church International (WCCI) has upgraded the amplification system in its 8,500-seat World Dome in College Park, GA, with 22 Powersoft K3 power amplifiers
more and more of a concern, as well as back-up and support.” Allen picks up the theme.
“However the audio specs continue to grow, better and faster set-up is always a topic,” he says. “Integration is also starting to become a major factor with most manufacturers.” And this will likely become
even more important as concert venues “increasingly
become [host to]
multipurpose applications, demanding flexible solutions to adhere to various requirements,” says a d&b spokesperson. While a further significant
leap forward in sound quality is difficult to envisage at this point, it is likely to be the ability of venues – regardless of their size – to be able to deploy systems with an almost plug-and-play-style
ease that will constitute the next tangible ‘phase’ in concert hall audio.
www.crownaudio.com www.dbaudio.com www.dynacord.com www.electrovoice.com www.jblpro.com www.martin-audio.com www.powersoft-audio.com www.qsc.com www.renkus-heinz.com www.tcgroup.tc
STUDY CASE
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