052 REPORT
SPARTAN STADIUM
Company: Lighthouse and Danley Sound Labs Location: East Lansing, USA
Football is central to the Michigan State University (MSU) experience, and nearly 80,000 students pack its Spartan Stadium at home games. Consistent with its importance to the school’s soul, MSU has regularly expanded the facility since it was first constructed with just 14,000 seats in 1923. Recently, Spartan Stadium received a multi-million dollar audiovisual system upgrade, thanks to Panasonic and Lighthouse, committing to the installation of new HD LED displays and score- boards. The project features a new scoreboard / video screen in the south end zone measuring 5,300 sq ft. In the north end zone, two LED video displays provide 1,654 sq ft of stunning LED video per display, and a one-of-a-kind, 450ft long LED video wall spans the north end zone, providing animations, video, sponsor messages and live statistics and scores on 4,500 sq ft of brilliant LED video. Combined, the north and sound end zones deliver entertainment and information to Spartans fans on 13,300 sq ft of Panasonic and Lighthouse LED displays. “Lighthouse’s collaboration with Panasonic at Spartan Stadium resulted in a unique, spectacular LED video installation,” said Ed Whitaker, Lighthouse N.A.S.A. Director of Sales. “This past season, Michigan State fans have enjoyed a game day experience like no other.” “Lighthouse’s LED display technology, combined with Panasonic’s broad array of
product technology and services, makes today the best time to be a sports fan,” Ed added. “Michigan State is an excellent example of how our partnership can revolutionise one of college football’s great facilities.” The new sound reinforcement system is centred on Danley Sound Labs loud- speakers and subwoofers. Apart from fills, just six Danley Jericho J3s provide all of the new system’s full-range coverage with point source fidelity, excellent pattern control, and tremendous return on investment. Led by Director of Audio Engineer- ing Larry Lucas, Anthony James Partners conceived and designed Spartan Sta- dium’s new sound reinforcement system. Pro Media/UltraSound installed it under the guidance of Senior Designer and Engineer, Demetrius Palavos, who managed the project from the germ of an idea to system commissioning and beyond. “There is definitely a shift occurring at the collegiate level that follows the shift that has been underway at the professional level for some time,” noted Demetri- us. “Everyone is recognising that fans are routinely exposed to high-end home entertainment systems and car stereos. Even headphones and iPods offer a full-frequency experience. Such experiences have raised expectations for game day. School officials are now recognising the need to meet those expectations at the collegiate level.” At the same time however, budgets remain tight given the stark economic realities of shrinking endowments, state-mandated austerity measures, and charitable gifts that are, well, less charitable than they might have been a few years ago. “Danley’s most obvious advantage is its unprecedented return on investment for the client. Danley fidelity and coverage would be excellent at any price, but the actual price tag is tremendously low relative to that kind of performance. We were lucky at MSU because the Danley Jericho J3 had just become available during the designing stages.” Danley Sound Labs pioneered the Jericho series as a point-source alternative to the ubiquitous line array. Using Tom Danley’s unique insights and approaches, the J3 delivers appropriate SPL by distance while completely sidestepping the destructive interference that regularly degrades line array fidelity. Whereas Spartan Stadium’s previous sound reinforcement system resided in the south end zone, Larry designed the new system to fire only from the north end. “Previously, addi- tional energy spilled out of the north side and into the community of East Lansing,” explained Larry. “By placing all of the loudspeaker elements at the north side, we could be sure that any excess energy would spill out onto the campus instead.” Larry’s design used the two smaller scoreboards on the north side as rigging points for the Danley Jericho J3s and Danley TH-812 subwoofers that support them. The scoreboards are approximately 200 ft apart, and the coverage from each effectively splits the stadium in two. “Firing 500 to 600 ft to the south end zone seating was the most complicated and difficult throw,” said Demetrius. “It’s a balancing act to get that right and to still get even coverage and SPL at mid-field, beneath the clusters and the upper deck.” The system affixed to the northeast scoreboard is a mirror image of that affixed to the northwest scoreboard. On each, a pair of stacked Danley Jericho J3s handle
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the far throw, whereas a single J3 handles the intermediate throw for the near - and medium-sideline stands. On each scoreboard, three vertically-stacked Danley TH-812 subwoofers collapse the low-frequency beam to provide throw. Ten smaller Danley SH-46 loudspeakers provide fill for areas on the north side of the stadium that are in the shadows of the larger boxes, such as very near the scoreboards and under the near balconies. The system’s front end is straightforward. A Yamaha LS9 provides user control of input source selection and volume. Its output feeds a pair of Peavey MediaMatrix NION processors with Dante cards, which in turn feed HP ProCurve network switches over fibre. At each scoreboard,
Lab.gruppen 7000 Series and 9000 Series amplifiers power the Danley TH-812 subwoofers - with crossovers provided by the MediaMatrix NIONs - and the Danley SH-46 full -range loudspeakers. Prior to amplification for the Danley Jericho J3s, signal first enters a Danley DSLP48 processor. “In its processor, Danley has optimised the crossovers and processing necessary to get the very best performance from the J3,” explained Demetrius. “You can’t really recreate that in another manufacturer’s processor.” All rack equipment is housed in environmentally-controlled conditions, which include both air-conditioning and heat. “Michigan starts its season humid and hot and ends it cold and snowy,” observed Demetrius. An analogue backup over fibre allows the system to operate even if the MediaMatrix NION or its Dante network go down. Although never easy, tuning the new system at MSU was less challeng- ing than it might have otherwise been because the Danley products are honestly specified and sound good out of the box. “In such a complex environment, having a well-designed and engineered product is essential,” said Demetrius. “Danley does a good job of engineering up front, which means there is less time required at commissioning to get the system optimised. One of the surprises to the MSU staff was that the quality of their source material needed to be improved. With the previous system, they couldn’t hear what was lacking. But with the new Danley system, it was obvious.”
www.lighthouse-tech.com /
www.danleysoundlabs.com
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