The 400-seat Staring Lake Amphiteatre is an outdoor performance space in Eden Prairie, Minnesota used for theatrical productions, concerts, weddings and special events.
When the venue’s’s previous audio system started to fail, it began to search for an up-to-date solution: ‘They were looking for a more modern system that would give them higher end features,’ says Nic Hentges of Audio Logic Systems, who won the tender for the project. ‘It had to be flexible and powerful enough to handle theatrical performances, while being easy to control during small events.’
The team at Audio Logic Systems explored multiple product lines before deciding on Allen & Heath’s AHM platform. ‘We felt like the cost and feature set made for an incredible fit,’ Hentges says. AHM series audio matrix processors offer scalable audio processing and distribution with multiple control options.
For simple events such as Yoga classes and weddings, an AHM-32 provides system processing and easy control over a small number of microphones and playback sources through an intuitive IP-6 rotary controller with LCDs, as well as a custom application the installers designed using A&H’s Custom Control editor. ‘If it’s a yoga instructor or city employee with limited audio experience, they can just grab an iPad and have control of the mics and playback while moving around in the audience area,’ Hentges explains.
The custom tailored app can run on any iOS, Android, Windows, or Mac device on the AHM’s network. ‘Our lead engineer found the AHM platform very easy to work with,’ he says. ‘He’s excited about putting it on other projects.’
An Allen & Heath SQ-6 compact digital console was also included to allow more hands-on mixing during larger events with a dedicated audio engineer. A DX-Hub and DX168 stageboxes were added to provide distributed I/O around the stage as needed.
‘The clients had been avoiding digital consoles for many years,’ Hentges reports. ‘They were really pleased once they started working with the SQ. All-in-all, I believe this system to be a great fit.’
More: www.allen-heath.com
