"The system was two speakers and a 150W amp," says Dohn Fadden of Shoreview, MN-based Electronic Design Company. "In the few areas where the loudspeakers could be heard, the sound was largely unintelligible."
Fadden's new system design faced a few challenges, including the logistics of covering both the home and visitors' seating from a single point. "Mounting the speakers above the press box on the home team's bleachers was really the only viable solution, since trenching for cabling across the field would have been expensive and a logistical nightmare," Fadden explains.
Creating an EASE model of the field, Fadden and design engineer Rustin Bullert created a system that included a pair of Community R.5-HP loudspeakers covering the home team seating, with two more R1 loudspeakers covering the outer edges of the bleachers and the field. A single R2 long-throw loudspeaker in the centre provides coverage to the field and the visitors' bleachers.
But what really has the fans jumping is the bottom end, with two Community WET-215 subwoofers mounted underneath - and physically coupled to - the bleachers. "The bleachers are built against the side of a hill, which acts as a reflector," says Fadden. "So in addition to the 'butt-shaking' effect on the bleachers, the bass frequencies are reflected across the whole field and to the visitors' seating as well." The system is powered by Crown amplification, with DSP provided by a Biamp Nexia unit.
(Jim Evans)
