Islington Council and Aquaterra, which runs the borough's leisure centres, were forced to shut down the rink to update the coolant gas supply in accordance with the latest environmental regulations. As well as upgrading the pipes, they decided to improve the rink - adding new netting to prevent ice-hockey pucks from flying into the spectators' area.
The refurbishment provided an opportunity to install a high-spec sound system, which was designed by VME, the Manchester-based audio services company. VME chose the distinctively-moulded Do Series loudspeakers from Vieta as the main elements of the installation.
"As you can guess, there is a lot of reverb in this environment," says VME's Ben Hyman. "We needed targeted sound in an array-type pattern. It's a rectangular rink, so we had to distribute sound all the way down the room."
VME picked eight Vieta Do-44 full-range cabinets for the task, wall-mounting them high above the ice sheet. "The physical characteristics of this box meant that we could use less of them," says Hyman.
"We've extended the capability of the system from just providing background music - it offers the right SPLs for ice-shows, competitions and events as well as serving as an announcement system, and we've set it up so that the audio level dips automatically when an announcement is being made. The system also mutes if the fire alarm is set off."
The system is completed by Yamaha P Series amplifiers, Denon dual CD player and DJ mixer, and a dbx Zone Pro 640M loudspeaker management system.
(Jim Evans)
