Harman at the Australian High Commission
- Details
The Australian High Commission (AHC) acts as the Australian government’s official agency in New Zealand. In addition to providing a range of diplomatic services to the public, including passport, immigration, citizenship and cultural relations, the AHC also represents Australia’s interests to government and business organizations in New Zealand.
A dedicated event space in the facility allows the AHC to host numerous events and meetings throughout the year. The AHC event space consists of four individual rooms that can accommodate multiple events simultaneously or be combined for large events. In order to ensure maximum intelligibility, versatility and ease-of-use during a wide range of events, the AHC hired Audio Workshop and Jands NZ to upgrade their aging sound system with a complete Harman Professional Solutions networked audio system made up of JBL, BSS and AKG solutions.
“We asked Matt Chapman of Audio Workshop to provide a full analysis of our previous system, and recommend solutions to optimise the audio quality with a true world-class system,” said Jonathan Pawley, AV & IT Manager, Australian High Commission. “We’re very happy with the new Harman system, which Jands NZ installed to Matt’s specifications - it exceeded all of our expectations.”
Audio Workshop and Jands NZ relied on a selection of JBL speakers to ensure optimum coverage and clarity in the AHC event space. JBL CBT 70J-1 column speakers provide consistent coverage while minimizing room reflections and reverberation from the atrium’s high ceilings. JBL Control 16C/T in-ceiling loudspeakers deliver premium speech intelligibility and high-quality music playback in four meeting rooms, while Control 29AV-1 speakers offer additional power and directivity for film and video presentations.
In order to ensure maximum reliability, speech intelligibility and system flexibility, also while minimizing signal dropouts during events, Audio Workshop specified a multi-channel AKG WMS470 wireless microphone system.
The entire system is controlled by a BSS Soundweb London BLU-100 signal processor, which can be configured to function independently in each room, or as a single time-aligned system when the rooms are combined. Finally, BSS Contrio EC-8BV wall controllers enable intuitive source selection and volume control in each room, while Harman’s HiQnet protocol allows the entire system to be controlled with any WiFi-equipped device.
“We’re pleased to be involved with the audio installation in Australian High Commission’s event space,” said Matt Chapman, managing director, Audio Workshop. “We strive to understand our clients’ needs and provide them with robust solutions that satisfy their current requirements and leave plenty of room for future expansion. We’re thrilled to see the Harman system has accomplished the AHC’s goals and surpassed their expectations.”
“It is a great privilege to be associated with the Australian High Commission in Wellington,” said Ramesh Jayaraman, VP & GM, Harman Professional Solutions, APAC. “Our solutions are widely used throughout government facilities for their ease of use, high security standards and best-in-class technology. We thank Audio Workshop for their expert consultation, and Jands NZ and for their dedication to customer service and faith in Harman products.”
(Jim Evans)
