A virtual press conference from Sound & Video Contractor

Archive of the Loudspeakers Category

Audio and Architecture Integrate Seamlessly In Award-Winning James A. Michener Art Museum With HARMAN’s JBL Professional Loudspeakers and BSS Audio Components

Acoustical and A/V design consulting firm Metropolitan Acoustics deployed JBL AC28/95 compact loudspeakers with BSS Audio Soundweb London signal processing at the James A. Michener Art Museum’s Putnam Pavilion.

DOYLESTOWN, Pennsylvania — The James A. Michener Art Museum recently completed the construction of the Putnam Pavilion, a 2,700-square-foot addition to the existing structure that was the recipient of the prestigious 2012 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Philadelphia Gold Merit Award. With its three 23-foot-high structural glass walls, some of the largest such architectural glass panels in North America, the building’s design is indeed visually striking. In order to maintain the architectural integrity of the space, Philadelphia acoustical and A/V design consulting firm Metropolitan Acoustics deployed HARMAN’s JBL AC28/95 compact loudspeakers with a BSS Audio Soundweb London BLU-100 signal processor and BLU-BIB Break-In Box to overcome some unusual sonic and logistical challenges.

Saben Shawhan, Senior Consultant at Metropolitan Acoustics explained how the building’s unique architecture played a major role in specifying the audio system. “Wherever you have large expanses of glass, you know you’re going to have to deal with the potential for excessive reverberation. Additionally, to give the room a cleaner appearance the ceiling has a series of narrow tracks that are painted black. These tracks house the lighting as well as the sprinkler heads, smoke detectors and rigging points for portable equipment – and the architects also wanted the speakers to be hidden in these tracks.”

The Putnam Pavilion is used for art exhibits, corporate and special events. In addition to background music, sound system uses include support for small musical groups and presentations, so Shawhan needed speakers that would fit in the limited space, and deliver clear, articulate sound with good coverage throughout the space while maintaining a high degree of control. He found the solution in JBL’s AC28/95 compact loudspeakers. “We used 16 of the JBL AC28/95s, which gave us significant output to cover the room. These speakers provide a higher degree of control in the mid-range frequencies than what is available from any other speaker in this size and price range, and the speaker’s 90 x 50-degree waveguide gave us the control over the high frequencies to keep them from bouncing off the glass.”

Because of the varying uses of the facility, audio processing was a major consideration as well, and Metropolitan Acoustics included a BSS Audio Soundweb London BLU-100 12 x 8 signal processor with a BSS BLU-BIB in the system design. “We expanded the capabilities of the AC28/95’s with the BLU-100’s extensive DSP capabilities, and used a little more processing power than would normally be required in less acoustically challenging spaces. For this installation we needed more than just a simple mixer. We never know where people are going to set up in the room, so we divided the system into six zones that can be operated independently. A user can turn each zone down or off as needed, and this helps with feedback control,” added Shawhan.

“The Putnam Pavilion is a high-end space and expectations were high for sound quality. Because Soundweb London is a comprehensive processing system, it gives us the zone management capabilities we needed for the installation, and enables the speakers to achieve the best possible sound in an acoustically challenging space,” stated Shawhan.

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets — supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson®. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 13,900 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported net sales of $4.4 billion for year ended June 30, 2012.

Firehouse Productions Rings In the Holiday Season at Z100’s Jingle Ball 2012 With HARMAN’s JBL Professional Loudspeakers and Crown Amplifiers

NEW YORK, New York — When New York contemporary hit radio station Z100 throws a holiday party, it pulls out all the stops—Z100’s Jingle Ball 2012 was held in Madison Square Garden and hosted performances by Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, One Direction, Ne-Yo, Jason Mraz, Cher Lloyd and others. The sellout crowd enjoyed an immersive sonic experience, courtesy of more than 100 of HARMAN’s JBL VTX Series and VERTEC® line array enclosures and Crown I-Tech HD Series amplifiers.

“For Jingle Ball 2012 we needed a system that would provide plenty of power yet have clarity and presence even over an enthusiastic crowd of screaming fans,” said Mark Dittmar, Lead Design and Integration Engineer of Red Hook, New York sound reinforcement contractor Firehouse Productions. “We went all out with a VTX/ VERTEC setup that provided full 360-degree coverage to every one of the 20,000 seats in the Garden.”

Firehouse deployed seven line array columns—two main hangs of 18 VTX Series V25 fullsize line array elements each, two side hangs of 14 VERTEC VT4889 fullsize line array elements each and three rear hangs each comprising 12 VT4889’s. Sixteen VERTEC VT4886 subcompact line array elements were used for front fill and 24 VERTEC VT4880A fullsize arrayable subwoofers delivered the low end. All the speakers were driven by Crown I-Tech HD Series amps, with the new 4-channel 4x3500HD powering the center hang.

Firehouse has been relying on JBL VERTEC line arrays for more than 10 years especially in major arena situations. “Along with their superior sound quality and installation flexibility, their focused coverage pattern is ideal for concerts where there’s seating all around the venue and 360-degree coverage is required, yet where the sound has to stay clear, focused and intelligible,” explained Dittmar.

“That said, the JBL VTX Series is yet another sonic step up—the capabilities of the new VTX Series are really quite a step forward. The V25 has so much more low-end power that we didn’t have to fly subwoofers along with the main arrays as we did with the previous Jingle Ball—all the subs were placed on the floor, which meant that we had to hang two fewer arrays in the air, making the installation a little simpler and cleaner.”

“The JBL line arrays and Crown amps are made for each other,” said Dittmar. “The output of the amps can be precisely programmed to match the sonic characteristics of each of the VTX and VERTEC speakers. In particular, the inclusion of the newest VTX and VERTEC V5 preset tunings in the Crown amps really took the performance of the loudspeakers beyond anything we were able to achieve before in terms of coverage, coherence, tonal balance and overall clarity.”

“Jingle Ball 2012 was the first time we ever used JBL HiQnet Performance Manager™ software and we wouldn’t have done it if we didn’t have complete confidence,” Dittmar concluded. “Not that a job like this is ever easy, but Performance Manager made doing Jingle Ball 2012 noticeably easier than it had been in previous years.”

For more information on Firehouse Productions, please visit www.firehouseproductions.com

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets — supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson®. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 13,900 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported net sales of $4.4 billion for year ended June 30, 2012.

Watermark Community Church Gives Kudos to KUDO

Acoustic Dimensions and Clair Brothers Audio Systems move and expand L-ACOUSTICS PA from interim worship space to new 3,500-seat main sanctuary

DALLAS, Texas — After four years of holding services in its 2,100-seat interim worship center, Dallas’ Watermark Community Church has now moved its congregation into a beautiful new 3,500-seat main sanctuary. Acoustic Dimensions once again served as the consultant for the client and, as it did in the past, specified an L-ACOUSTICS KUDO loudspeaker system, which was installed by Clair Brothers Audio Systems. more

Bay Area High Schools Give L-ACOUSTICS KIVA High Marks

Aragon High School

Shalleck Collaborative specifies KIVA and KARA systems for half a dozen secondary school theater venues

SAN FRANCISCO — California’s San Mateo Union High Schools District is currently in the process of remodeling — and, in some instances, totally replacing — the theaters of six of its high schools: Aragon, Burlingame, Capuchino, Hillsdale, Mills, and the flagship San Mateo location. Theater consulting for each of the venues was provided by San Francisco’s Shalleck Collaborative, which specified L-ACOUSTICS loudspeaker systems throughout. more

Firehouse Productions Does Its Part With HARMAN’s JBL VTX Series Line Arrays and Crown Amplifiers for 12-12-12 The Concert for Sandy Relief

Firehouse Productions provided a total of 82 VTX line array loudspeakers for 12-12-12 The Concert for Sandy Relief at Madison Square Garden.

NEW YORK, New York — It was the most significant music event of the year: 12-12-12 The Concert for Sandy Relief, held at Madison Square Garden on December 12, 2012 to benefit the Robin Hood Relief Fund. The concert featured many of the biggest stars in the music industry including Sir Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Roger Waters, Bon Jovi, Billy Joel, Alicia Keys, Kanye West, The Rolling Stones and many others. The sound for the event was equally stellar, thanks to HARMAN’s JBL VTX Series line arrays powered by Crown I-Tech HD Series programmable amplifiers.

To fill the 18,000-seat Garden, sound reinforcement contractor Firehouse Productions of Red Hook, New York deployed a large JBL VTX Series rig including two main left and right PA columns of 18 V25 full-size line array elements, complemented by two outfill arrays of 12 V25’s, with four VERTEC® VT4886 subcompact line arrays serving as under-hangs. Eighteen S28 and four G28 dual 18-inch cardioid arrayable subwoofers were ground-stacked to complete the VTX installation. All the speakers were driven by Crown IT12000HD power amplifiers with system control provided by JBL HiQnet Performance Manager™ software.

“We had to be completely at the top of our game for this one—although we’ve done many high-profile events, it’s not every day we get to do the sound reinforcement for a concert that’s broadcast around the world to more than a billion people,” said Mark Dittmar, Lead Design and Integration Engineer of Firehouse Productions. “We’d been using JBL VERTEC® line arrays for more than a decade and that product has been spectacular in terms of sound quality, relative light weight and versatile rigging options. That said, with JBL VTX the sound quality we can achieve has gone up a whole other level. VTX sets new standards in clarity and impact, and delivers a consistently smooth and natural response.”

“In fact, the low end from the VTX V25 main arrays is significantly increased—to the point where we’re not flying subs with the system. We stacked the S28 and G28 subs on the ground to give the system additional low-frequency impact but we did not need to fly subs as part of the main array columns as we have in the past.”

“We have used Crown amplifiers ever since we started Firehouse,” Dittmar noted. “The IT12000HD offers us power and flexibility that we can’t get with other products. With the introduction of the VTX line arrays and the newest V5 DSP presets for VTX, the sound quality is spectacular.”

For Dittmar, deploying JBL HiQnet Performance Manager software worked out to be a major benefit. “The JBL HiQnet Performance Manager software makes setting up and controlling the system a lot easier and more accurate. In fact, the 12-12-12 show was only the second time we had ever used Performance Manager – the first being the Z100 Jingle Ball 2012 at the Garden the week before! I’m happy to say it worked perfectly for us,” added Dittmar.

“12-12-12 was one of the most challenging projects we’ve ever done,” Dittmar concluded. “Funny enough, though, the PA turned out to be one of the simplest aspects of the project. Using all JBL line arrays all around the Garden made a huge difference in getting the sound to be consistent throughout the arena, and consistently excellent.”

For more information on Firehouse Productions, please visit www.firehouseproductions.com

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets — supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson®. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 13,900 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported net sales of $4.4 billion for year ended June 30, 2012.

Grammer Engineer ‘Spellbound’ by NEXO GEO S12

BUENA PARK, Calif.—Known for his vibrant pop/rock/soul mix and free-flowing vocal delivery, Andy Grammer is an acclaimed singer, songwriter, and musician who reached the Top 10 at Adult Pop Radio with his first two singles, “Keep Your Head Up” and “Fine By Me”.

Nearing the close of his 2012 tour, Grammer recently performed at North Central Illinois College in its 825-seat Wentz Concert Hall. Sound Works Productions (Frankfort, Ill.) provided a NEXO GEO S12 system, ground stacked on the stage with the sound company’s custom carts. The house rig consisted of ten GEO S1210s, four RS18 Ray Subs, four PS10s and three 4×4 NXAMPs. For monitors, the company provided three RS18s for sidefills/drum subs, two 4×4 NXAMPs, and a Yamaha M7CL digital console.

“Anytime I’m remotely close to Chicago and need production elements, I want Sound Works there with the GEO S12,” states Kevin Flasza, Grammer’s front of house engineer. “Andy puts on a very dynamic show, and the NEXO rig remains transparent through our entire set and easily allows me to reproduce the delicate details I need to highlight at times. What more can I ask for? The GEO S12 reigns supreme when it comes to that size format.”

For more information the Sound Works Productions, visit www.soundworkspro.com.

For more information the NEXO and Yamaha products, visit www.yamahaca.com.

-END-

About Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, Inc.:
Celebrating 125 years of Passion and Performance, and 25 years in the manufacturer of high quality digital audio consoles, Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, Inc. (YCAS) provides a full line of integrated professional audio products offering complete systems solutions for the broadcast, sound reinforcement/installed sound, touring, commercial recording, and post production markets. With the addition of NEXO to the product line, the company remains the official U.S. and Canadian distributor for all NEXO speaker models. YCAS offers comprehensive in-house and field product training for its customers, a dedicated dealer network, and 24/7 technical support.

Milne Stadium Keeps it Contained with Community R-Series

Albuquerque, NM – December 2012….. For nearly 60 years Milne Stadium has been home to generations of Albuquerque’s local sporting events. Recently the 6500-seat arena received a wide-ranging makeover, including a new playing surface, new paint and stucco, and a new audio system featuring Community R-Series loudspeakers.

As Sound and Signal Systems’ William Hartley explains, the stadium’s previous sound system had been problematic for some time. “A few years ago they installed a new scoreboard behind the end zone, complete with a long-throw, single-point line array system. A lot of sound was reflecting off the concrete and glass press box. The problem is, the stadium is surrounded on three sides by the city and the freeway, but the side opposite the press box faces a residential area.”

One of two municipal stadiums serving the Albuquerque School District and surrounding community, the park is busy throughout most of the year. “Sometimes they’ve got two or even three events in a single day,” says Hartley. “So they were getting a lot of noise complaints. It got to the point where they had to turn the system down so low it could barely be heard in the park. It was a compromise that served no one.”

It eventually became a safety issue as well when stadium officials tried to evacuate fans during a lightning storm. “A lot of people couldn’t hear the announcement,” says Hartley. “That’s when the city approached us to find a solution.”

Hartley continues, “We decided to put the speakers on the press box, closer to the audience, and direct the sound down toward the seats and the field.” A pair of R.5-94Z loudspeakers and an R.5SUB subwoofer are mounted on either side of the press box, covering the main seating area and the field. A single R2 long-throw loudspeaker covers the smaller visitor side bleachers. “We took an R2 with a 50 by 20 coverage pattern and flipped it on its side to give us 20 degrees of horizontal coverage and 50 degrees of vertical. We angled it down the field so it’s hitting just the top of the bleachers and none of the houses behind it.” Another R.5SUB augments the R2′s coverage area.

“They’ve got a separate volume control for the R2,” adds Harley. “So they can turn it down if they’ve got a small crowd and don’t need coverage to those seats.” The system is powered by a Bose Power Match amplifier, with a Bose Control Space DSP unit handling system processing.

Hartley says the new sound system has virtually eliminated the neighbors’ noise complaints, while offering a dramatic improvement inside the stadium. “They just love it. They can play music and they can hear the announcements without bothering the neighbors. They’re able to run the system at 100 or 110 dB and you can’t hear it outside the stadium. It’s a really, really full sounding system.”

###

Community Professional Loudspeakers is a manufacturer and supplier of professional audio equipment.  Since 1968, Community has led the pro-audio industry with technological innovations which have become industry standards. Today, Community offers over 150 professional loudspeaker products, including installed loudspeaker systems, weather-resistant outdoor loudspeaker systems, ceiling loudspeakers, high level voice paging systems, and portable entertainment systems.  Visit www.communitypro.com for more information. 

 

Find us on Facebook

 

Follow us on Twitter

New Renkus-Heinz Distributor for France Announced

Bernay-Vilbert, France – December 2012… Renkus-Heinz is delighted to announce the appointment of a new distributor for France, signing an agreement with leading French distribution company SoundCo to handle the distribution of Renkus-Heinz products for the French market. They will also cover the North Africa countries Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, on a non-exclusive basis.

With offices in the Paris suburb and a sales agent team, SoundCo offers its customers support throughout the country.

The company works in all of the entertainment technology sectors including the live sound / PA rental market, the MI market (including both online and retail outlets), installation and system integration companies and the broadcast industry, and more besides.

Another string to the company’s bow is the direct import and distribution of pro audio products. SoundCo is the exclusive distributor for France for Lewitt Microphones GmbH, ESI Audio GmbH, M Pro Audio, Violet Audio and DVK Technologies.

Its customers include rental and service providers in the performing arts, corporate and events sectors; integrators and installers; recording studios; broadcast; distributors (direct sales stores and online) and specifiers and end users including engineers and sound technicians, set designers and stage managers.

SoundCo’s key people are Martin Broucqsault, who holds a postgraduate degree in Marketing Management from top business school ESDES Lyon, and a former sales agent for SCV Audio (Harman Pro French distributor) and EVI Audio, dealing with Electro-Voice, Dynacord, Midas and Klark-Teknik. He has strong experience with PA and rental companies and his combined skills provide marketing and sales strategies for the different markets of the pro audio business.

Jérôme Hardy holds a graduate degree in Electronics Applications. A former sales agent for CINECO, the French distributor for Shure, APEX, Symetrix, Celestion and QSC, and SCV Audio, French distributor for the Harman Pro Group with brands JBL, Crown, Soundcraft, AKG, BSS, DBX and Native Instruments, Merging, NTI and more, and was product manager for Audio-Technica.

Håkan Sjöö, Renkus-Heinz European Sales Manager, commented: “We are really delighted to have secured the services of SoundCo. We believe their deep knowledge of the French market, their enthusiasm and their broad customer base will strengthen the Renkus-Heinz brand in the country and enable us to grow into new markets.”

(Photo: Jérôme Hardy and Martin Broucqsault of SoundCo (left) with Ralph Heinz and Håkan Sjoo of Renkus-Heinz) – click for hi-res image

###

Headquartered in Foothill Ranch, California, Renkus-Heinz, Inc. is the worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of audio operations networks, digitally steerable arrays, powered and non-powered loudspeakers, system specific electronics and fully integrated Reference Point Array systems.

Find us on Facebook
Find us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on Twitter

 

 

Martin Audio Installed In New Chicago Mega Sports Bar/Nightclub


Encompass Technologies just completed a major sound and video installation for the sizeable new restaurant/sports bar/nightclub, John Barleycorn River North in downtown Chicago.

The fast-growing integrator had worked on a host of other venues for owners Sam Sanchez and Michael Gonzalez. As Tim Pickett, principal for Encompass, explains, “There are four John Barleycorns and we’ve been involved with all of them, two from the ground up and two complete rehabs. Sam and Michael also own two Moe’s Cantina clubs that we worked on.

“For John Barleycorn River North, they definitely raised the bar several notches with a substantial budget of $285,000,” adds Pickett. “Unlike the club in Schaumburg where there was a focus on live sound, John Barleycorn North functions as a sports bar and restaurant during the day and becomes a nightclub with a DJ upstairs that can hold up to 1500 people on Friday and Saturday nights.

“The audio system had to be very versatile so they can turn it up late at night for that nightclub sound and feel while providing more controlled sound levels for the sports bar patrons so that everybody can hear it the same way.

“Martin Audio was the obvious choice,” Pickett continues, “because the owners had the speakers in their other clubs and were very happy with the sound and performance. We used 32 AQ28 cabinets throughout the club along with six AQ212’s, four AQ215’s, three F12’s and Martin Audio MA 4.8Q and 6.8Q amplifiers. Two Symetrix Jupiter 8 systems provided turnkey audio processing.
I also want to acknowledge Jack Alexander who tweaked and EQ’d the site to help make it sound even better.”

John Barleycorn North replaces a two-story antique store that was completely gutted and outfitted with new furnishings, audio and a 72-screen video system including five video walls. According to Pickett, “part of the décor includes a glass roof that’s about 50 feet long and 20 feet wide and because they’re located in downtown Chicago, you can look up and see nothing but skyscrapers all around you. It’s a very impressive venue.”

Designed to provide the ultimate in sports viewing, the video system includes 12 Cima 46” LCD and 24 Tovis 46” LCD Ultra Narrow Video Wall Panels, 35 Samsung 60” Plasma Panels, two Samsung 46” LED Panels and a Sharp 80” LED Panel. The complex video switching system for both floors includes one Knox Chameleon 16X64 HD Matrix upstairs and one Knox Chameleon 16X32 HD Matrix downstairs with a Knox Touchscreen control system that functions via iPad.

The whole project took about fourteen months from start to finish and the club has been up and running for about three weeks. Asked about the installation, owner Sam Sanchez commented, “I’ve always been really impressed with Martin Audio. We’ve been using the brand since 2008 at our locations. What’s great is, that at any level, the sound is clear and intelligible. It works if you’re watching the game, or partying the night away. Encompass has done a great job installing the systems and making them just right. I really love that I can call them 24 hours a day any day for tech support.”

Concludes Pickett, “I’ve been very happy with Martin Audio over the years. They have really helped us by providing the right products for our clients’ needs along with excellent customer service. They are a great partner and make a really good product.”

For more about Martin Audio, please click to www.martin-audio.com.

About Martin Audio®
Founded by audio engineer David Martin in 1971, Martin Audio pioneered the use of all-horn-loaded bass designs in world-class touring loudspeaker systems for groups such as Pink Floyd, ELP and Supertramp. Located outside of London, Martin Audio now embodies a sophisticated mix of acoustic design, research, mathematical modeling and software engineering for a wide range of products in the installation, cinema and touring sound markets.

Digg Syndication Del.icio.us Syndication Google Syndication MyYahoo Syndication Reddit Syndication

Related Topics: Case Studies, Loudspeakers, News |

Iconyx Delivers for the Daily Planet

Overcoming a Towering Acoustical Challenge at  North Carolina’s Museum of Natural Science

Raleigh, NC, December 2012.… Already one of the largest facilities of its kind, Raleigh’s Museum of Natural Sciences recently completed work on an impressive new addition: the 80,000 square foot Nature Research Center (NRC). Featuring state-of-the-art labs, research opportunities, and numerous interactive exhibits, the crown jewel of the new NRC wing is surely the SECU Daily Planet, an intensely immersive, three-story multimedia space that engages visitors with a flurry of sight and sound, while offering a powerful message about the wonders of science in our daily lives.

Designed to facilitate both pre-recorded and live content, the Daily Planet’s massive, three-story visual display runs continually-projecting a variety of poetic and informational content to excite the senses. A small stage at ground level also allows for occasional live presentations. The entire Daily Planet exhibit resides in a massive, dome-shaped room with two balcony levels extending seven feet into its center. The three-level design allows visitors to choose from three unique vantage points as they take in any of up to 50 powerful presentations that run throughout the day.

With its unique ellipsoidal shape and vantage points from a main level and two balconies, delivering impactful and immersive audio consistently to all three levels presented numerous obstacles. Rising to the challenge were AV integrators Electrosonic, in partnership with Milford, CT-based SH Acoustics, who created a system centered around Renkus-Heinz’s Iconyx series steerable column arrays.

“Unlike similar spaces – for example, an Omnimax Theater – the Daily Planet needed to accommodate a variety of different formats, including lectures and live performances,” explained Steve Haas, Founder and President of SH Acoustics. “The room’s unique design and its numerous reflective elements created some unique challenges right from the beginning. We knew we couldn’t simply apply tons of sound-absorptive materials because deadening the room too much wouldn’t work well for lectures.”

As Haas observes, the Iconyx steerable beam technology would allow them to more effectively direct the output and avoid unwanted reflections, while at the same time addressing the unique acoustic requirements at all three levels.

The complete Renkus-Heinz loudspeaker complement includes eight Iconyx IC8-R-II steerable arrays for mains, augmented by ten SG61-2R powered two-way systems for surround, with three PN112SUB 12-inch powered subwoofers providing powerful low-end reinforcement.”We decided very early that we wanted to create three different audio experiences on each of the three levels,” explained Haas. “In addition, each level needed to be surround sound, and most importantly, needed to ensure minimal interaction between adjacent levels and the rest of the room. This is where the Iconyx system was a no-brainer.”

Haas elaborates, “The first and second levels each include left, center, and right, as well as four surrounds. On the third level the dome is much tighter, so we opted for just left and right with two surrounds. For low frequencies, we placed all three subwoofers on the second level. There simply wasn’t enough room for discreet subs on each level, so we configured each one as the point sources for the adjacent levels, and delayed the LF signal appropriately from the first level, second level and third level. It actually worked quite well.”

Once installed, Haas and his team were able to take full advantage of the Iconyx system’s beam steering capabilities to dial in the perfect output at the ground floor and both balconies.

“We needed to make sure that we had a very tight pattern-at least vertically-so that the experiences at each level did not interact with each other in any appreciable way.” Haas explains. “We were able to get the second and third levels sounding fantastic with little difficulty. The first level was a bit more challenging, but the Iconyx beam steering, combined, with the careful addition of diffusion materials, made all the difference.”

After the system was configured, Haas worked with the museum production staff to save a number of unique output presets that could be easily retrieved to accommodate different program types.

“There are several different modes including a presentation mode and a media mode,” says Haas. “We even gave the producers the opportunity to have a secondary beam from some of the upper arrays-like from the second level down to the first level-in case they wanted a spot effect or some other secondary sound source.”

In the end the results speak for themselves. The new NRC wing and Daily Planet exhibits are big hits with museum attendees and management alike. And for Haas, this is yet another seemingly impossible acoustic challenge conquered through a synergy of great technology, real-world know how and savvy partnerships.

Haas sums it up: “We like challenges, and we have a very long history of working successfully with Electrosonic on unique projects like this. We absolutely love coming up with unique solutions, and as a technology partner, Renkus-Heinz has always been there with fantastic tools. They’re just great to work with.”

###

Headquartered in Foothill Ranch, California, Renkus-Heinz, Inc. is the worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of audio operations networks, digitally steerable arrays, powered and non-powered loudspeakers, system specific electronics and fully integrated Reference Point Array systems.

Find us on Facebook
Find us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on Twitter

About

Stay up to date on the latest technology news. Select press representatives post company news several times a day. Check back often to get the latest news on product releases, mergers and acquisitions, and product applications. To be included in this virtual press conference, please contact The Wire.

Calendar

May 2013
M T W T F S S
« Apr    
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  

Your Account

Subscribe

Subscribe to RSS Feed

Subscribe to MyYahoo News Feed

Subscribe to Bloglines

Google Syndication