The booths at Jamaica Inn were themed with life-sized models and artefacts, and as such, concealing the audio and lighting equipment became a real challenge. Idea found the solution in a design for the booth ceilings that incorporated a full width cupboard above each, in order to house the control systems.
In most instances, there was a step in the ceiling sufficiently large to discreetly fit a pair of Work Studio 3 loudspeakers (along with the necessary lighting). Other sets contained 'hiding places' large enough to fit one or two Work Studio 3s. Idea director, Ian Dixon said: "We decided to use the Work Studio range of speakers as their sonic quality and 100V line compatibility made them a natural choice, to power these, we used an Australian Monitor IC30 amplifier in each of the first six sets. At 30W, they are exactly the right size for the application and they don't take up as much room as standard 19" units." The amplifiers take signals from a minidisk based control system.
Lighting is mostly low voltage with the odd special effect - all controlled from Zero 88 Alcora desks and NJD DPX12/4 DMX dimmers - while Set seven is a mini cinema which holds about six people standing. This is PIR-activated and starts automatically, allowing enough time for the audience to settle down before the programme starts. In addition to the above, the museum has two smell-o-vision units - one giving a surprisingly realistic aroma of a beach in the shipwreck set and a second unit in Set seven provides a unique 'Bodmin Moor' fragrance of gorse flower and damp grass, made especially for the museum.
The Work Studio 3's and Australian Monitor IC30's were both supplied by UK distributors, Fuzion plc.
(Sarah Rushton-Read)
