DiGiCo delivers versatility to Lithuanian theatre
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Opened in 1989, the theatre was originally built as a conference space, providing a multi-purpose setting to cater for various events. Consequently, the main hall suffered with poor acoustics when staging concert and theatre productions, causing the theatre major problems.
"We are a theatre that uses a lot of music in our performances, so the quality of sound is very important to us,” says Keistuolių Theatre director, Aidas Giniotis. “We had been tormented for a long time with inadequate acoustics and muddy sound, with waves hitting the back wall and gathering in the corners of the hall, and no degree of sound engineering could fix the problem.”
The decision was made to close the venue and consult a specialist firm to renovate the theatre and make it fit for purpose, with an improved audio system, new lighting, new chairs and better ventilation. Keistuolių Theatre reached out to national installation firm, Sonus Exsertus, which has a lot of experience implementing stage technology solutions in many Lithuanian cultural institutions.
Sonus Exsertus admits that it was faced with a difficult task, and this was one of its most complex challenges to date, with a lot of attention paid to the design and adaptation of the sound system to the existing topology of the hall.
"The non-standard layout of the hall poses a dilemma in terms of architectural acoustics, as it is fan-shaped, wide and has a very steep parterre. We had to perform our investigative sound simulations with great precision and care, and devise a unique solution to achieve the best possible acoustics, and at the same time clean and expressive sound,” explains Mindaugas Indrašius, CTO of Sonus Exsertus.
Sonus Exsertus selected a DiGiGrid system running on the SoundGrid network, comprising a DiGiGrid IOC audio interface and two DiGiGrid IOS-XL audio interfaces with built in DSP servers, plus a DiGiGrid D desktop interface for remote control. At the FOH position, a DiGiCo S21 compact console was installed, with additional D2-Rack to manage monitor duties. The new DiGiCo system was complemented with a Meyer Sound loudspeaker system.
“We are so impressed with the S21 – it’s one powerful little console with huge capabilities. The time and resource saving it offers us is amazing. The preset functionality, the ability to record certain elements of a show for seamless playback in other performances, is a huge bonus for us,” comments Giniotis.
“We are pleased to say we have achieved what we set out to do,” concludes Indrašius. “We have an extremely compact, yet highly powered sound system, with equal distribution and high-resolution sonic quality throughout the hall.”
