Belfast Empire Audio Installation

"Adlib go the extra mile to assure customer satisfaction. When the budget permits, we hope to be installing L-Acoustics X-Series for balcony fills and will have no hesitation in contacting them for their outstanding services and support.”

-Dee Kyle, Venue Engineer, Belfast Empire

The Requirement

Adlib were contacted by Will Barrett, the Technical Manager for Wine Inns Ltd in Belfast who was looking to invest in a new high specification Front of House sound system that would supplement productions at their busy, 500 capacity live music venue - The Empire Music Hall.

Adlib were chosen by Will due to their knowledge of currently feasible sound solutions and also their experience of supplying and installing sound systems in comparable live music venues throughout the UK. Adlib were also able to offer competitive pricing for a project of this size.

The Solution

The Empire Music Hall is a live music venue like no other; thanks to its beginnings as a Victorian era church, it has tremendous charm and character. However, due to the hall’s Victorian interior architecture, this offered some challenges and limitations with any new installation works. Close communications throughout the project were essential to meet and exceed the venue operator’s sound system requirements.

During an initial meeting on site to discuss the pros and cons of the existing ‘rig’ and also to finalise a brief for the new system, a detailed site survey was undertaken where Adlib engineers measured, mapped and acoustically modelled the venue utilising L-Acoustics’ proprietary 3D acoustical simulation software ‘Soundvision’.

The preferred ARCS WIFO and SB18m solution was chosen because it met all of the client’s requirements, offering excellent audio coverage at the desired sound pressure levels in a multi-level room which proved to be challenging for audio.

The final ARCS WIFO system comprised 2 x flown SB18m Subs, 4 x ARCS FOCUS and 2 x ARCS WIDE loudspeakers. For additional low frequency support, a pair of SB28 Subs were conscientiously introduced beneath the ornate wooden stage.

The fully optimised system is driven, controlled and monitored with LA8 and LA4X amplifiers utilising controlled on a new dedicated network utilising L-Acoustics control application - LA-Network Manager.

The Result

Thanks to the meticulous planning and efficient delivery of the installed solution, Adlib ensured customer satisfaction that was further enhanced by flexibility when sequencing the works over a four day period. Mindful of the venue’s busy schedule, the Adlib installation team extended the length of each working day when necessary to avoid any impact with the impressive calendar of live events at the venue.

The Music Hall’s venue engineer, Dee Kyle, added: “We couldn’t be happier with the results. Adlib’s management and on-site team took the time to map the room in its entirety and applied their professionalism, expertise and helpful nature to achieve excellent quality coverage in a multi-level challenging room for audio - Adlib even took the time to analyse and reconfigure our stage monitor processor settings, ensuring optimal performance alongside the new front of house system and then guided us through system operation including LA-Network Manager control.”

‍