RENKUS-HEINZ LINE ARRAY POWERS $21 MILLION OC PAVILION
A high power Renkus-Heinz line array PA has been installed at the OC Pavilion in Santa Ana, CA, a multipurpose 500-seat entertainment venue that hosts a huge range of events – theater, concerts, private functions, corporate events and film shoots. Owner, architect and developer Michael Harrah purchased the property in 2001 and has invested over $21 million in developing it into the most remarkable venue in Southern California. And as its website proudly proclaims, it offers “intimate seating for 500 and a state-of-the-art sound system that is second to none,” adding, “patrons can experience artists in a setting that is reminiscent of days gone by, when the artist’s performance wasn’t just something to witness, but rather, experience.”
The sound system in question is a Renkus-Heinz STLA/9, the company’s most powerful line array product, augmented by PN81 two-way down fill loudspeakers, all self-powered. But as Erich Helzer, the venue’s sound, video and lighting designer and acoustician, says, the system was not only specified to deliver sheer power, but subtlety at much lower power levels too. “One of the great things about this system,” he says, “is that at low levels it doesn’t lose its stability and punch; it delivers a good, solid low end and great dynamics from any vocal or percussive instrument at a very low level.”
The sound reinforcement system has to handle everything that’s thrown at it, from speeches to rock concerts – the typical work of a modern multipurpose commercial venue. On stage there’s a comprehensive range of Shure wired and wireless microphones and a Yamaha PM4000M 52 channel monitor board. Out front, a Midas Heritage H2000 performs mixing duties with TC Electronics, Aphex and Klark Teknik outboard. The main loudspeaker system comprises four STLA/9 cabinets a side, with PN81 front down fills and rear fills – the latter covering the three highest tiers of seating. Erich Helzer sums up the reasoning behind his choices: “I have total discretion to specify whatever equipment I choose, and I needed a very compact and versatile box that could perform extremely well under all circumstances. I’ve worked with Renkus-Heinz for many years and I knew the STLA/9 would fit the bill perfectly. “The other thing that’s great is that the complete, self-powered line array system runs on one 20 amp circuit. I don’t know anybody else’s system that can deliver that kind of power on a single 20 amp circuit – it’s incredible!” www.renkus-heinz.com
