The venue's technical manager, Tony Edwards, said that this was part of SECC's policy of continuous improvement of the facilities. "The heavy utilisation of this Hall means that the turnaround times have to be quick. We need to be able to offer a system that is versatile, with exceptional quality, since it will be used for a wide range of corporate events as well as other productions such as pantomimes. Jim Coubrough, our sound technician, was so convinced about the quality and coverage of the system we have been able to do away with the front-fills and allow the 30° down-fill box to provide the nearfield coverage.
"Sound Acoustics offered an ideal solution. I don't know of a smaller format box," says Tony. "The GEO S system is so discrete that it can be trimmed out of sight, and is easy to de-rig and transport should it need to be moved to other locations on the site."
The PA rig comprises four GEO S805s and two GEO S830s as downfills each side of the stage - all supplied by Nexo's UK distributor, Fuzion plc. Sound Acoustics' Billy Leslie says that it was a compliment to the GEO S that the SECC wanted to purchase the system, after hearing it in operation in Hall 4 during the teachings of the Dalai Lama and also in the drugs awareness event Choices for Life organised by Strathclyde Police. "They will find that this is really easy to re-rig - in fact I have often put a system out with just one man because it's so light. It would be easy for them, for instance, to relocate the rig to the larger Hall 4."
One of the biggest selling points of the system, he continues, is that it doesn't need to operate exclusively in flown mode. "In Glasgow there are so many hotels where flying isn't appropriate, and this system works equally well ground-stacked. When we do fly the system the weight-load is such that we can run this off a quarter-ton single-phase motor, front and back, which means we can come off our own distro."
SECC Glasgow has five interconnected halls - which can hold anything from a small business meeting up to spectacular arena-style concerts for audiences of over 10,000 in Hall 4.The next phase is a £562 million development of the adjoining Queen's Dock. This aims to transform the 64-acre site into a complete entertainments complex comprising purpose built arena, exhibition and conference centres with parking for up to 3,000 vehicles and a completion date of 2008.
(Lee Baldock)
