Just off the coast of the North Sea lies the Norwegian island municipality of Askøy. Bounded on all sides by coastal fjords, the municipality of 30,000 people is home to several boat-building companies, football clubs, and a bustling seafood industry. Although ample ferry services transported people between Askøy and the nearby mainland for several decades, the island’s population greatly expanded after the opening of the Askøy Bridge in 1992. To expand its options for local artists and theatrical performances, the local government recently commissioned the creation of a new cultural hall — the Kultursalen Kipo. Powering all the loudspeakers in the Acoustic Enhancement System are Connect Series amplifiers from LEA Professional.
Venue staff contacted Benum Norway A/S to design the audio system for the cultural hall. Based in Oslo, Benum is one of the leading AV integrators in Norway and is well-versed in the challenges associated with performance venues like Kultursalen Kipo. “Norway has stringent acoustic requirements for performance and rehearsal halls,” explained Kyrre Fledsberg, Project Manager at Benum. “For example, the natural reverberation time of the space must be 0.9 seconds but also allow for the implementation of an audio system that could increase reverberation up to 3 seconds. LEA Professional’s technology was the ideal solution for making the audio sound amazing in the hall.”
The hall is a flat-floor auditorium in which the audience and the stage area have the same acoustic volume. There is no separate stage house or fly tower. The audience is seated in front of the stage on telescopically retractable raked platforms (amphitheater style) to provide good sight lines and strong direct sound, with seating for over 300 people. A Dante-enabled SIAP Mark V DSP drives the audio system and is acoustically adjustable to all types of performances by simply selecting the appropriate preset (theatrical performance, orchestra, choir, and more).
Benum installed multiple Connect Series 168D amplifiers to power the 48 loudspeakers mounted throughout the venue. The 8-channel CS168D provides 160 watts per channel, Dante and AES67 connectivity, and easily works together with the SIAP DSP to accommodate the specific system requirements of the cultural hall. All Connect Series amplifiers are professional-grade, support Hi-Z (70V or 100V) and Lo-Z selectable by channel, and feature Smart Power Bridge technology. With three ways to connect, the venue can engage the built-in Wi-Fi access point, connect to the Wi-Fi, or connect to the local area network via Cat5 or Cat6 cable.
“We are proud to see LEA Professional technology in a growing number of prestigious European installs such as the Kultursalen Kipo,” said Brian Pickowitz, VP of Marketing for LEA Professional. “Our goal is for our technology to provide users with strong connection and convenience within their audio systems, and this installation is another great union between performance and user experience.”
