AUDIO
“Everything about the A8s has been
considered – every piece, every step, how to
simplify it, how to make it reliable, how to
make it consistent,” says Wise. “I think that is
where JBL has won with this product. It not
only sounds great but it’s also so easy to use.”
The A8s are engineered to be a complete
system. “It hangs well, tours well, stores well
and is easy to put up and down,” says Wise.
“Those things brought us to the conclusion that
this would be our preferred product.”
The setup
The full solution includes JBL Professional VTX
A8 Dual 8in (20.3cm) compact line array
loudspeakers and JBL Professional VTX B18
single subwoofers for main left and right PA
duties. These are complemented by JBL AC28
and AC16 loudspeakers, which are on fill duties
in the required locations. In addition, Crown
amplifiers and BSS audio processing are used
throughout the installation.
The entire ecosystem is connected through
a cabling infrastructure that extends throughout
the auditorium, which allows for ease of patching
fill and other ancillary speakers into the system.
Wise worked with the theater’s staff, TED AV,
Sound Technology and HARMAN Professional
Solutions to develop a system that would not
only sound great across the full range of the
theater’s shows, but could also be put up and
down incredibly quickly, because many bands
just play for one night, and touring groups
bring their own sound systems.
Wise also assisted the theater with the
purchase of the major fit-out packages, helped
to devise the tender structure to comply with
regulations and set the standards required of
the sound system.
Sound search
On their quest to find the best products for the
project, Wise and the crew from the Congress
Theatre visited the demonstration facility of
HARMAN UK’s distributor, Sound Technology,
and the project started to take shape from there.
“JBL A8 was a late product to be put in
front of the theater consultants and the theater,
because it is so new, but it blew everything else
away once they heard it,” says TED AV’s head
of AV, Matt Spence, who worked as the PA
integrator on the project.
The Congress
Theatre opened
in 1963 and is
a Grade Two
listed building
AUDITORIA 2019 VOLUME ONE 97