2022 has been a busy year for us here at Parson’s Audio. We’ve been busy doing sound system installations all over New England. The Groton Hill Music Center d&b Installation is one of a series of systems installed at this venue alone.
The Groton Hill Music Center Concert Hall utilizes d&b audiotechnik Y-series line arrays, with 12 Y8 boxes per side, as the main PA. These arrays are on motorized rigging points so they can be raised and lowered depending on the requirements of each concert. Each array is hung using accessories from Polar Focus so that they maintain their pan and tilt angles even if the two hoist lines vary slightly in their length during their full range of motion. This is also important as these arrays are individually amplified to enable d&b’s ArrayProcessing. As a result, the coverage in the room is exceptionally even, starting from a few rows back in the floor seats and extending all the way up to the lower part of the balcony seats.
Supplementing the main line arrays are six Ti10P front fills, which cover the first couple rows of floor seats, and four B22 subwoofers. All of these speakers are installed under the stage behind the fabric and a grill so that they do not detract from the architectural elements in the room. Two of the B22s are being used in Infra mode for extended bass coverage as low as 32 Hz. The upper balcony seats are covered by a pair of Y7P boxes dead-hung from aircraft cable. Lastly, there are ten E6 loudspeakers which are mounted in the ceiling above the parterre seating flanking the stage. These seats are directly overlooking the stage, and are behind the main line arrays, so the E6s provide just enough level to overcome the room noise and keep the system intelligible for the patrons, while still minimizing the sound level on stage.
Due to the nature of this installation, control over the sound system’s coverage was critical. The room is constructed primarily of wood and is highly reflective, so great care was taken by the acoustical and AV consultant (Threshold Acoustics) to ensure that the system can perform with as much power as needed for any genre of music while still minimizing any additional excitement of the room. d&b’s ArrayProcessing–supplemented with the many fills and delays throughout–has made this possible and has enabled a truly stunning experience for everyone in attendance. So far, we’ve heard that guests and technicians alike are thrilled with the space, and are eager to both attend and put on the numerous concerts and other events that are sure to be a great success in this new venue.
