Absolute Technical Solutions relies on Yamaha for ASEAN Summit
Published: ASIA
MALAYSIA: Absolute Technical Solutions Sdn Bhd was called upon to support the recent ASEAN Summit Gala Dinner taking place at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. Having catered to the 26th Summit Gala Dinner in 2015 with a gigantic 4K LED video wall encircling the room, Absolute’s attention this year turned firmly to the audio. With over 1,500 VIP guests – including President Obama – and over 600 performers and musicians, the organisers gave the brief that the audio system must be ‘failure-proof and maintain the highest possible audio quality, clarity and reliability’. To achieve this the company called upon Yamaha digital mixers and Yamaha and Nexo speakers.
Yamaha CL and QL series consoles were reportedly selected for their ability to operate with full redundancy. The inbuilt Premium Rack processing and Dan Dugan Automatic Mixer were also essential tools for the event. ‘The flexibility of the Dante network, virtual soundcheck and easy gain compensation capabilities also reinforced our decision to choose Yamaha consoles,’ explained Absolute Technical Solutions’ Simon Khoo.
‘We needed the virtual soundcheck feature as the time allocated was limited, due to the controlled noise level imposed at the venue and other ongoing setup activities, such as stage building and decoration,’ he furthered. ‘The gain compensation also saved us a lot of time and manpower by eliminating the need to line check individual consoles.’
A total of 184 input channels were required to support the performances, which included the 60-piece National Symphony Orchestra performing with Permata Seni – a youth programme for talented musicians under the patron of the Prime Minister’s wife, and backed by composer/arranger Aubrey Suwito and his band.
‘We had a total of nine Yamaha Consoles – five CL5 and four QL5, with seven Rio3224-D and one Rio1608-D I/O units,’ explained Mr Khoo. ‘The Dante network system was connected using Yamaha SWX2200-8G gigabyte switches.’
FOH sound was mixed by Mr Khoo on two QL5s and a CL5, monitors were mixed by Zashrill on two CL5s and a QL5, while the broadcast mix was handled by studio engineer Peter Chong on two CL5s and a QL5. The flexibility of the CL and QL-series outputs reportedly allowed the monitor consoles to be cascaded, providing 32 main mixes while maintaining independent mixes on each console. ‘We were also able to decide which mix stayed at the dedicated console and which mix was cascaded,’ said the FOH engineer.
‘The FOH loudspeaker system was designed for the audience to experience very comfortable listening levels. It had to accommodate a very wide and narrow seating arrangement, so we decided to use a combination of Nexo PS15 and Yamaha DSR112 speakers for the main system,’ offered Mr Khoo. ‘Yamaha DSR112 were also deployed as stage monitors for the dancers and choir, while an Aviom system of wireless in-ear monitors was provided for the performers and musicians.’
He concluded, ‘the event was a success and went without a hitch, thanks to the Yamaha solution. Both the venue operator and client were also pleasantly surprised with the ease and time taken for the setup and sound check.’
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