In Melbourne, the long-awaited Federation Square integrates civic spaces, a transport hub, tourist and civic facilities. Buildings and open spaces include a large irregularly shaped city square (or plaza), sunny sheltered areas for al fresco dining, street theatre and music, gallery space, performance space and facilities for cafes, as well as other multimedia facilities, a function centre and offices. A galleria and indoor amphitheatre sit between the two major building complexes, and the development is topped off by a free-standing viewing tower.
At the centre of it all, in the large open-air plaza, is a giant 16:9 high-definition LED screen, which provides visual communication and entertainment as well as coverage of live sporting events. This is FED TV, and it plays a central role in building the buzz for Fed Square's myriad events, cultural festivals, exhibitions, event launches, wine showcases, book clubs, fashion festivals, films, concerts and Guinness Book record attempts.
AV specialists Rutledge Engineering have installed a substantial PA system for FED TV, using a line array solution for the main front-of-house system, and a couple of full-range units to act as a secondary in-fill speaker system, capable of supporting audio from the FOH speaker system as timed overflow, or as independent sound reinforcement if in any case the main FOH PA system is not required.
To drive both the main speaker hangs, and the in-fill speaker system, Rutledge Engineering turned to Group Technologies for their German-made high-power high-efficiency stereo power amplifiers. Camco's 2x3000W Vortex 6 were chosen for the main left and right arrays and subs, with Camco Tecton models handling the supplementary system.
Camco's export sales director Mick Anderson highlighted the long-standing supportive relationship between Camco and its distributor Group Technologies. "GT has built up the Camco brand in Australia to the point where its qualities of reliability and sonic performance are recognised for high-profile projects by an elite installation contractor such as Rutledge Engineering. Camco has proved it has the credentials to be at the heart of the power specification of such a detailed and important installation."
(Jim Evans)
