IP-based audio install for Balis Nusa Dua Convention Centre

The BNDCC – situated on 70,000 sq-m of land – recently received a short site inspection by Indonesian president Yudhoyono alongside a delegation of government ministers, in preparation for the summit. It is divided into the Head (the ballroom at the upper most level), the Body (the meeting rooms at the mezzanine floor) and the legs (the convention room and plaza on the ground floor).

The 80m x 60m Convention Centre was designed to be flexible and as such can be converted into five smaller separate rooms according to the size and nature of the functions being held. These include plenary sessions, welcome receptions, exhibitions and corporate events. The Centre’s location on the ground floor has sufficient loading docks for easy set ups and tear downs.

The 4,800 sq-m space with a 9m ceiling height required over 300 Smaart Live measurements points via NTI calibration microphones to ensure uniform coverage throughout the rooms. Leo Tanzil was project designer for PT Kairos Multi jaya and he concluded that an IP-based audio solution using a Cat6 infrastructure would allow the facility managers to set up the audio system any way they needed.  Powered by Lab.gruppen C series C48:4 and C28:4 Four-channel amplifiers, a total of 48 unobtrusive EAW CIS991 Three-way ceiling speakers now provide evenly dispersed audio in 128W, 100V mode.

‘The convention centre will be frequented by politicians and businessmen and so a discreet audio system was required as they don’t really want audio engineers attending meetings operating a mixing console,’ explained Mr Tanzil.

A total of five Allen & Heath iDR-8 16x16 matrix mixers with 16 inputs and outputs lie at the heart of the solution. Each unit is dedicated to a zoned partition via the Cat6 network while the desks can either operate independently or as one. The matrix offers a range of DSP functions, in addition to analogue mic/line inputs on XLR with 48V phantom power, which can be configured simply on an HP smart-touch Tablet PC. The facility managers can simply adjust volume and source in each of the zones on any of the zoned surface control PL4 wall panels in the Convention Centre. Alternatively they can also discreetly control the system using the Tablet PC via WiFi, as the six Proxim AP4000M routers within the building include a roaming protocol meaning the signal will not drop between zones.

When an event requires more inputs or a more complex set-up, an iLive T console can be integrated into the design via a Mini Multi-Out (MMO-8) card, which provides a digital audio connection between the console and the iDR-8 matrix mixers via Cat6. However, the model chosen for project is a 12-fader iLive R72 which includes ACE, enabling users to connect two IDR racks via Cat5e, thereby increasing the channel count to 128.

In a simpler set-up, the signals from the Shure MX412D gooseneck microphones are sent via the iDR-inputs (connected to RJ-45 wall panels) on the Cat6 network to the patchbay in the control room then fed directly into the iDR-8 matrix.

‘For every 64 sq-m of carpet in the 4,800 sq-m space, there is a facility floor panel providing the technicians with a very flexible and discreet set up,’ furthered Mr Tanzil. ‘The staff have never used a digital system before, but they fully understood how to use it after just one day’s theory and another setting it up on their own under supervision.’

www.baliconventioncenter.com