Dubbed "the entertainment capital of North Dakota," the State Fair Centre complex is home to the nine-day annual event that includes agricultural and livestock competitions, carnival rides and concessions, and concerts. Acts featured in 2010 included Brooks & Dunn, Kiss, and Darius Rucker. Other events are held at the facility over the course of the year, including demolition derbies, drag races, and a collectors car show. And during the summer months, weekly stock car races are run on an oval dirt track on the fairgrounds.
In August 2009, after funding was provided by the North Dakota Legislature, the Centre's old 3500-seat grandstand was demolished and construction began on a new $15 million grandstand. The new 7000-seat facility features larger, more comfortable seating, a pub and other amenities, including an upgraded sound system featuring Renkus-Heinz STX-Series loudspeakers.
"They wanted a system that offered high output and good intelligibility, but was more than just a voice system," says Dallas Anderson of Bismarck, ND-based Tricorne Audio, the company behind the design and installation of the new system. A total of 12 of Renkus-Heinz's STX4/94 three-way systems cover the seating area, affixed to the canopy some 80ft above the audience.
To withstand the North Dakota winters, as well as the region's summer heat and humidity, Anderson specified the full weatherization option for the speakers which includes a fiberglass coating and additional weatherization on the grill. Electro-Voice CPS Series amplifiers power the loudspeakers, with Biamp Audia Flex providing system drive and processing.
"The end result is nothing short of phenomenal," says Anderson. "The sound is clear, intelligible and musical, with more than enough power to be heard over the din of the demolition derbies and stock car races."
(Jim Evans)
