Replacing the old Civic Hall, which closed in 2004, the G Live venue provides a flexible performance hall, which accommodates 1,000 in all-seat or 1,700 in seated/standing modes. The venue also incorporates a flexible-use 100-seat studio space, substantial foyers, café and bars, kitchens to provide for banqueting, seminar and meeting rooms, dressing rooms plus green room and offices.
The hall acoustics and sound systems designs for G Live were specified by electro-acoustic consultants Peter Mapp + Associates. The main hall has been designed to be an acoustically dry space with an Acoustic Control Systems (ACS) system, supplied by RK Sound Engineering, giving the ability to alter the hall's acoustic characteristics to suit the performance.
An invitation-only preview performance by the Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra in August allowed for measurements to be taken with an audience in place and afforded the opportunity for some system fine tuning. It was judged by performers and assembled industry professionals alike to be an acoustically outstanding performance space.
For Marquee Installations it was a substantial project incorporating an AV infrastructure of 50 custom manufactured facility panels installed around the building, offering industry standard connectivity for video, balanced audio, Ethernet, fibre, loudspeakers, intercom and cuelights.
The show relay and paging systems includes custom made Penton loudspeakers installed throughout the back-of-house, dressing rooms and corridors. A CATV system was installed BOH for distribution of terrestrial and four internal channels, using PCs, DVDs and cameras, and a video distribution system with MUSA video patch bays installed into all racks with distribution amplifiers and monitors.
Over 200 channels of balanced mic/tie lines are incorporated into the venue's audio distribution system, with GPO patch bays installed into all racks with distribution amplifiers and monitors. Foyer bells and buzzers are handled by Ethernet distribution and comms are via a Tec Pro intercom system.
Marquee Installations also installed a 20-channel Cue light system, operated from a GDS custom stage managers console via a cue light patch bay, and Listen Technologies infra-red systems in the main Auditorium and Studio Space for the hard-of-hearing.
The main auditorium FOH system, designed by Peter Mapp in consultation with Martin Audio, is a Martin Audio W8LM/W8LMD 10-element line array system with WS218X Subs, DD6 as stage in-fills and LE1200 stage monitors. The main system is driven by Powersoft M series amplifiers, with K10s driving the subs. QSC amplifiers are used for on the stage monitors.
DSP is handled by three Biamp Nexia SP units, providing system EQ and control, and a RED-1 remote is used for preset recall. The mixing console is a 48-channel Allen & Heath GL3800 and Marquee installations built and supplied the mobile effects rack incorporating Denon DNC635 CD player, Tascam MD-02B MD recorder, BSS FCS966 graphic equaliser, Yamaha SPX2000 multi effects rocessor, Sabine FBX2400 feedback exterminator and Klark Teknik SQ1D 8-channel gate/compressor.
Marquee Installations was also appointed to supply and install the stage lighting, infrastructure and control systems in the main hall and studio space, which was done through collaboration with Lighting Logic.
Rob Whittaker from Marquee Installations commented, "Projects like this involve many businesses and individuals, each with their own specialist expertise. G Live has been a great co-operation and I believe we have brought this together and delivered the best solutions and audio performance for the venue."
(Jim Evans)
