Tag: paris

Technomad Celebrates Decade at DevonWood Equestrian Centre

 Technomad LLC, a leader in weatherproof loudspeakers and audio systems since 1995, announces that DevonWood Equestrian Centre, among the premier horse show facilities in the United States, has surpassed the ten-year mark of trouble-free, continuous outdoor event audio with Technomad loudspeakers.

 

Technomad Paris in the trees delivers clear audio overl ong distances to the Devonwood Equestrian Centre horse arena

 

 

 

With one indoor and three outdoor competition rings, four warm-up rings, a boarding stable and several commons areas, the specialized, international-level equestrian sports facility continues to expand its zoned audio system with Technomad at the core.  The privately-owned, 42-acre facility recently added multiple Technomad Vernal and Vienna loudspeakers in the VIP seating and other outdoor areas including a beer garden, picnic area and several lengthy walkways; and converted its zoned audio distribution system to an all-digital infrastructure.

 DevonWood Equestrian Centre has used Technomad Paris loudspeakers since first opening its gates, installing four in each competition ring, three more in each warm-up ring, and eight in the 250-capacity horseshow stables.  Although the Paris provides clear speech and high-quality musical reproduction over very long distances, DevonWood added two dozen Viennas and Vernals to provide unquestionably good sound to localized audiences and enable a more efficient zoned audio system.

Announcers can target specific announcements or background music to each loudspeaker zone, sub-groups or every loudspeaker in the facility.  Digital audio is transmitted wirelessly to each zone where local mixers and amplifiers directly drive the Technomad loudspeakers.

 According to Justin Rattner, principal at DevonWood Equestrian Centre, intense studies of outdoor loudspeakers were completed before standardizing on Technomad.  Rattner brought in Glenn Micallef, a well-known professional sound consultant and motion picture/television sound engineer, who recommended Technomad after considerable research.

“Most horse competition facilities use traditional metal horns, which are adequate for voice but a terrible choice for music, and top-quality music is absolutely critical for our musical freestyle events,” said Rattner.  “The initial tests with Technomad were very reassuring and we were blown away by how well they covered and how crisp and clear they sounded over very large open areas.  I didn’t have any expectations about service life, but ten years on everybody still raves about the sound — including the professional announcers, who rarely use systems of this quality.  The outdoor Technomads are in the elements 365 days a year and are hit with blistering heat in the summer, year-round rain and occasional snow and sleet in the winter.”

Rattner added that one competition arena is completely surrounded by 100-foot fir trees on two sides and faces Mount Hood to the east, an 11,000-foot mountain that dominates the Portland, OR skyline.  The Technomads in this arena are located in the fir trees, mounted at a height of 50 feet using cherry pickers.

“People often ask me where the sound comes from, because it seems like the audio is coming from everywhere,” said Rattner.  “It is very impressive.”

 

 

 

Technomad Upgrades Chicago River Sightseeing Boats

Technomad LLC, a leader in weatherproof loudspeakers and audio systems since 1995, announces that its Vernal weatherproof loudspeakers are providing audio for narrated tours by Shoreline Sightseeing of Chicago on the waters of the Chicago River.More than 80 Vernal loudspeakers are installed on 18 boats, broadcasting clear speech with supplemental background music on boats ranging from 15 to 50 feet in length.

shoreline-vernal

 

Shoreline Sightseeing is the premier boat touring fleet in Chicago, operating tours on the Chicago River and the Great Lakes that give visitors a historical overview of nearby architecture and other attractions.According to Chad Rice, Director of Fleet Management for Shoreline Sightseeing, the live and pre-recorded audio narrations are significant to the tours, and the audio is intelligible from the shoreline as boats pass through the center of the Chicago River.

 “We take up to 300 people out at a time, and audio is the most dominant aspect of the experience,” said Rice.“Our customers pay to hear exactly what is happening, whether they are receiving live narration on the Chicago River tours or pre-recorded audio on the Great Lakes tours.The Vernals also provide great musical quality based on our special weekly tours with fireworks, which is the only time we use the loudspeakers for background music.”

 

According to Scott Voorhis at Tri-Electronics, a systems integrator for professional sound, video, communications and security systems, the owner of Shoreline Sightseeing wanted to replace their existing loudspeakers with systems that could withstand the harsh elements of the Chicago climate.

“This is a year-round operation, and they needed equipment that could survive the humidity, moisture and extreme hot and cold weather that comprises the Chicago climate,” said Voorhis.“The owner had installed ‘weather-resistant’ loudspeakers from another vendor prior to our involvement, and they were forced to repair components on a regular basis.The Technomad Vernals were implemented for their reliability to survive these conditions, in addition to their compact size and outstanding audio performance.We have had zero problems with the Vernals in this capacity: zero failures, zero replacements and zero complaints.”

Voorhis and his team designed the layout of the loudspeakers specifically for each boat, adding two Vernals to the smaller taxis and up to 15 on each of the larger boats.Mounting locations were carefully considered to ensure clear speech intelligibility, even pattern coverage, and to maintain exceptional audio quality.

Rice added that the weatherproofing aspect was a significant factor in Shoreline Sightseeing’s decision to upgrade to Technomad.They have slowly converted most of their fleet to Technomad for audio, with only one boat to go.

 “We constantly had to replace the older loudspeakers, which simply couldn’t handle the rain or moisture even though they were touted as weather-resistant,” said Rice.“We operate tours from March through November, and can run the Vernals year-round.They can also withstand the direct UV rays, which say a lot about their durability.We don’t even remove them in the winter months.They sound great, and their durability is very impressive.”

Each boat has between one and 15 Vernals depending on its size, as well as a dedicated mixer, amplifier, microphone and processing equipment for live narration and PA announcements.The clear speech emanating from the loudspeakers is also ideal for life-safety related announcements in the case of emergency.

 

Technomad Loudspeakers Provide Game Day Audio Coverage at Jamsil Baseball Stadium

Technomad  announced that C.I.C. Electronics, a Technomad dealer located in South Korea, installed a variety of Technomad weatherproof loudspeakers throughout Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul.  C.I.C. Electronics, a global supplier of professional audio and public address systems selected Technomad loudspeakers for their outstanding audio quality and projection, weatherproof design, and durability.
Jamsil Baseball Stadium, built in 1982, seats 30,265 people and is home to both the Doosan Bears and LG Twins, both professional teams of the KBO Baseball League.  C.I.C. installed Technomad Berlin, Paris616 and Vernal-15 loudspeakers in various areas depending on the amount of power required for each specific location.  The Technomad Berlin, part of the company’s AS Series of loudspeakers, is the largest of the three models.  TheBerlin offers unparalleled projection, fidelity, and power to disperse intelligible voice and music throughout the stadium while maintaining an even pattern.
 
 
The Technomad Paris 616 and Vernal-15 models, part of the company’s MP Series of loudspeakers, offer more compact designs for all-environment installations, distributed systems, and sound reinforcement applications. Like the Berlin, both the Paris and Vernal offer unmatched fidelity as well as very broad dispersion to ensure that clear audio is hitting the most difficult-to-reach areas within the stadium.
 
Jamsil Baseball Stadium comprises part of the Jamsil Sports Complex along with nearby Seoul Olympic Stadium, and was host to baseball events during the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games.
 

Technomad Installed at the College of New Jersey Football Stadium

Ewing, New Jersey – The College of New Jersey recently installed a new, fully weather-resistant sound system in 9,000 seats New Jersey Lions Football Stadium. The system consists of eight 350 watt Technomad Noho/C loudspeakers powered by two QSC PLX amplifiers. The system is used for game announcements and pre-recorded music playback.

The College of New Jersey Lions Football Stadium is an all-purpose field used year-round for Soccer, Lacrosse, Field Hockey, and Football. The field also hosts Division 1 and 3 Conference teams. The field also plays host 13-15,000 guests and students for the College’s annual Graduation Ceremony.

The College of New Jersey’s Jon Bannan, oversaw the installation of the system. Jon is in charge of overseeing all upgrades to, as well as installations of, all of the school’s Sound Systems. Having never heard the Technomad loudspeakers before, Jon made the decision to purchase the Noho/C loudspeakers based upon the company’s reputation of producing mil-spec loudspeakers that can withstand all forms of in climate weather and abuse. Another important decision was the low-profile appearance of the Technomad Noho/C loudspeakers. Jon states, “I had looked into other weather-resistant loudspeakers, but they were big and unsightly and could not be mounted where they had to be positioned. Even if I could install the other loudspeakers where they had to go, they would have obstructed the sight-lines of too many seats.”

Jon notes, “It had to be a clean-looking, low profile system installation yet have the output I needed to cover 9,000 people. I didn’t want oversized, unsightly white or beige air raid horns or bulbous cannon-looking things hanging from all the light poles.” Jon ponders, “Air raid horns? The Cold War is over, and the latter option would look like the wind blew all the plastic garbage cans up onto the lampposts.” Jon continues, “The Technomads were also hundreds of dollars less per speaker.”

Jon states, “When the loudspeakers finally arrived, they appeared even smaller in real-life then what I had expected. I was starting to get worried that they were going to be too small in comparison to the overall size of the stadium.” Jon continues, “But, as soon as I powered up the amplifier rack and pumped some music through the system, I was very impressed. The Noho/Cs absolutely amazed me.”

The Stadium’s light poles were perfectly positioned for the installation of the eight Technomad Noho/Cs. “It’s as if someone had this speaker installation in mind when they installed the light poles,” Jon says. The poles are located halfway up the stadium seating, providing the perfect place where the Noho/C loudspeakers could provide complete sound coverage for all the seating, and not obstruct sight-lines. Jon states, “Installing two Noho/Cs per pole allowed me to provide the tightest, most accurate and even sound distribution.”

Jon adds, “The Nohos respond extremely well to my changes on EQ and I was able to dial-in the exact setting that made everyone on staff very happy. The Noho/Cs is extremely EQ compliant and offers me unrivaled control over every type of program material, regardless if it’s recorded music, spoken word or sound effects.” Jon notes, “A soundman can add lower end punch to the music program during half-time events with just a simple low-frequency EQ boost, and the crowd can actually hear and feel it!”

The two QSC PLX 1602 power amps, running in parallel, drive the Technomad loudspeakers. A Furman ASD 120 Power Sequencer, a DBX 266XL, a Rane dual31 band EQ, and Alesis 12R mixer make-up the signal processing equipment. To keep the processing gear free and clear of prying hands, the processing rack is located in a separate room. A Sony Tape Deck and CD player is located in the Press Box. Twelve wall-mounted mic jacks are also strategically installed in the Press Box. Jon notes, “All a tech has to do is plug in a mic and cue the commentator.” Jon points out, “The system is not constantly staffed by a tech, so I designed the system to be as turnkey as possible. All a tech or an announcer has to do is turn the key and they have power.”

“My boss, the Athletic department, the teams and the cheerleaders are very happy with the dramatic improvement in the sound quality and clarity the Noho’s produce,” Jon states proudly. “The wide dispersion and quick cut-off of the Noho’s 12″ coaxial driver is as equally impressive as the high-fidelity sound it produces.”

With the previous sound system, Jon continually experienced problems with ‘sound bleeding’ off the field into the surrounding neighborhood. “I don’t believe a lot of effort was put into the properly installing the previous speaker system,” Jon notes. “You could hear sound everywhere except on the field. Pedestrians and neighbors of the school could hear the announcer and music far off campus, unintelligibly and loudly I might add, which resulted in many complaints.” Jon quips, “I don’t think we would have received so many sound bleed complaints if the previous sound system just sounded halfway decent.”

Jon concludes, “As soon as the system was up-and-running, I walked the field and the seating and I could not find a single hot spot or dead spot. It’s complete, even distribution. Then I stepped outside of the complex for the most important test. The sound cut-off to more than acceptable levels as soon as I got out of the seating area. The best part, no complaints opening day and since then! Just compliments.”

Technomad Articles : Technomad at the Dolphin Mall

April 30, 2001 – Miami, Florida – Located just five miles west of Miami International Airport at the intersection of the Florida Turnpike and Dolphin Expressway; the Dolphin Mall opened its doors to eager shoppers on March 1, 2001. The 1.4 million square foot retail/entertainment center is Miami-Dade County’s largest, featuring more than 150 stores, an 850-seat, 24,000-square-foot food court with nine different restaurants, eateries and entertainment venues with another 50 concepts debuting by midsummer 2001. The outdoor food court and entrance areas make use of Technomad WeatherTech Loudspeakers, which were installed by Pro Sound Inc., of Miami, Florida.

Also known as Professional Sound Services, Inc., the company is headquartered in Miami, Florida, with branch offices located in Orlando, Florida, as well as Las Vegas, Nevada. The company was founded in February 1975 providing audio and theatrical lighting services to live entertainment events. Over the years, Pro Sound, Inc., evolved into a design, sales, and service firm to many theatrical and club venues, which eventually lead to the professional and commercial installation markets. The company now services sports facilities, convention centers, hotels, nightclubs, theaters, meeting facilities, houses of worship, courtrooms, corporate boardrooms, schools, universities and government facilities.

Predominantly the business comes from the Southeastern United States, with a representative amount of business conducted throughout the U.S. Business also takes the Pro Sound, Inc., staff to the Bahamas, the Caribbean, Central and even to South America.

Rick Scharmann, vice president of ProSound Inc., states, “Pro Sound is principally an engineering based company with strong project management experience and an excellent service support structure. The company owns its 13,800 square foot building in Miami. The Orlando facility is housed in 2,500 square feet of space which is adequate for its operations, while the Las Vegas office is somewhat larger.” Rick adds.

“The Company has a diverse group of core technical specialists that support the operation with a total of over 40 employees on staff. The average employee has over 9 years of experience in audio, security, and CCTV systems. The more senior employees average approximately 14 years or greater of systems experience.”

South Florida is famous for it’s humidity and harsh outdoor environment and Rick is the first to state, “Outdoor loudspeakers don’t last long in the brutal Florida environment. Rick notes, “Even through the Dolphin Mall is several miles inland from the ocean, it is still close enough for the salt air, compounded with the humidity, to wreak havoc on outdoor loudspeakers. For these kinds of applications, we need reliability and quality for the customer, which was pretty hard to find in the past.”

For the Dolphin Mall’s outdoor areas, the entrances and the food court, Rick installed Technomad WeatherTech™ Loudspeakers. There is one Technomad Paris 616 installed at each of the Mall’s six entrances. The large, open-air, central food court is completely exposed to the environment, and a total of 17 Technomad Vernal 15T 70volt loudspeakers cover the expansive area.

Continuing, Rick says, “The output and coverage pattern is very good compared to other loudspeakers of the same physical size. With the Technomad Vernal’s, we found that in the case of the Dolphin Mall, we needed half the number of loudspeakers for the installation compared to if we used similar dome tweeter-loaded loudspeakers of the same physical size.”

Technomad’s Vernal 15 features a 1″ diameter ceramic high-frequency driver, mounted on a 120¡ X 120¡ horn. The Vernal also features an impressive detailed and articulate low-end response from its purpose-built 5.5″ bass transducer: a component that took Technomad over two years to design and perfect. The 60 watt (120 watt peak), 8 Ohm Vernal 15 features a sensitivity rating of 91 dB SPL (800 Hz to 10 kHz, 1w/1m C.W.) and can deliver maximum, long-term SPL of 96 dB (100 dB peak), at a frequency response of 100 Hz -18 kHz. A single Crown CT Series CT410 power amp drives the 17 Vernal 15T 70-Volt loudspeakers.

Rick states, “The Vernal provides excellent full-range fidelity and outstanding long throw coverage, which is why they were used in this application.”

Rick continues, “With the Technomad Paris 616, its output was so great, we only needed one Paris at each of the six mall entrances to cover these substantially large areas.”

The audio specifications of the Paris 616 are equally impressive. The Paris features two custom-designed, rubber-surround 6.5″ polymer mid/bass drivers treated with proprietary low-residue coatings for long-reliable service. The 1″ diameter ceramic high-frequency driver, mounted on a 90¡ X 90¡ horn, offers high-fidelity, audiophile quality performance over large indoor areas, as well as large outdoor areas, even in the most severe weather conditions. Designed for maximum fidelity, dispersion and throw, the 250 watt, 6 Ohm Paris 616 features a sensitivity rating of 95 dB SPL (1w/1m C.W.) and can deliver maximum, long-term SPL of 116 dB at a frequency response of 65 Hz -18.5 kHz. Three Crown CT Series CT210 amps drive the Paris 616, with one Paris loudspeaker per channel.

Both the Vernal 15 and Paris 616 are also available with a 70-Volt internal transformer with 8, 16, 32 watt switchable taps. Technomad loudspeakers a fully sealed, 1/2″ thick, Military Specification, roto-molded polyethylene cabinet, backed by a ten-year unconditional warranty.

“This is not the first time we installed Technomad Loudspeakers,” Rick points out. “We’ve installed them in outdoor applications at the J.W. Marriott, as well as other hotels in South Florida. We’ve also had very good success with them in over-the-counter sales to several cruise ship companies; which is the worst imaginable outdoor environment for a loudspeaker.”

Rick adds, “Technomad makes a very good quality loudspeaker that sounds great in for harsh environment installations. They are my first choice for harsh outdoor environments where sound quality and reliability are paramount.”

Prosound Inc. has offices in Miami, Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada.

For additional information, please contact:

Prosound Inc.
Rick Scharmann, Vice President
scharmann@prosound.net
1375 Northeast 123’d St., Miami FL 33161
P: 305 891 1000
F: 305.891.300