"Listening to Leo is really like listening to a very high quality stereo system, with that level of imaging and detail," reports Doug Ebey, audio-video manager for the theatre. "What impresses me most is that we can get full, in-your-face concert sound and still stay within our preferred level limit, which we cap at 100 dB. Everyone has been thrilled with the performance of the system."
Leo Family loudspeakers were chosen for the 3,000-capacity venue by the Las Vegas-based consulting firm Coherent Design, which was charged with design and specification.
"The owners asked us for a sound system that would compete with the best venues in the area, including those in nearby Dallas," says David Starck of Coherent Design. "They wanted to fully support 'A-level' acts without bringing in rental systems, and we were confident from the beginning that a Leo-based system would handle anything they would throw at it. We probably could have done the whole system with Lyon, but the extra headroom of Leo gives that in-your-face sound with zero distortion. It really takes the sound to another level.
"After the fantastic success of the opening Aerosmith concert, the owners were immediately confident they had a world-class system," continues Starck. "In fact, I was told that Steven Tyler said from the stage that the room sounds amazing."
The Grand Theatre is a multipurpose venue with front seating removable or telescoping to open a flat floor providing up to 10,000sq.ft of event space. Accordingly, the room is equivalent to half of a small arena in volume, with throw distances of 125ft from the stage to back seats.
To ensure uniform coverage with abundant headroom, Starck specified a main system of eight Leo-M over four Lyon-M line array loudspeakers per side, four Lyon-M loudspeakers as centre-fill, and two flown arrays of six-each 1100-LFC low-frequency control elements in a cardioid configuration. Eight JM-1P arrayable and eight UPJunior VariO loudspeakers supply out-fill and front-fill, respectively.
Four MJF-212A and 12 USM-1P stage monitors provide onstage foldback, while two UPQ-1P and four JM-1P loudspeakers, one 600-HP subwoofer, and two 1100-LFC elements provide side and drum-fill. Drive and optimization is provided by a Galileo Callisto loudspeaker management system with four Galileo Callisto 616 array processors.
System integration for theatre audio, along with all other AV systems in the broader resort expansion, was contracted to FBP Systems, Inc., with engineering by Robert Coggins and Rick Malone and project administration by Mark LaBouff.
Upcoming shows at the Grand Theatre include Counting Crows, Rascal Flatts, The Jacksons, Merle Haggard, and Styx.
(Jim Evans)
