The 1,500-capacity theatre at the Pingtan International Performing Arts Centre, located northeast of Jinjing Bay in the Fujian Province of China, has been outfitted with a sonic upgrade with the addition of Allen & Heath dLive mixing systems implemented by integration firm EZPro.
The theatre is noted for bringing shows such as the stage play “Pingtan Impression” directed by noted Chinese dancer Yang Liping to local audiences. EZPro had reliability and versatility were high on the list of criteria to maintain quality performance throughout the year with minimal downtime, plus the ability to meet the demands of different types of performance.
“To meet the needs of a range of performances and activities, flexibility is absolutely critical,” adds Fan Gaoqing, technical manager of EZPro. “With a dLive system, we could store and recall different ‘modes’ by using Show Files, Scenes, and the Preset Library, allowing us to achieve very efficient changes.” Alongside this, the dLive audio engine resides in the MixRack, which makes transporting the surface easier and more efficient.
EZPro opted to install a dLive S7000 surface as the main and a dLive C3500 as the backup. The dLive S7000 is the largest surface in the dLive range, providing operators 36 faders and dual 12-inch capacitive touchscreens in conjunction with 26 assignable SoftKeys for workflow customisation. The C3500 offers 24 faders and dual screens plus 19 assignable SoftKeys, making it a space-saving backup option for the main S7000.
A DM64 MixRack in the control room, connected to the S7000 via the integrated gigaACE port, handles audio processing with a gigaACE audio networking card installed for connection to the backup C3500 Surface. The DM64 is the largest MixRack in the dLive range. Built around the same 128 input/64 output 96 kHz processing core as the rest of the dLive range, the DM64 is equipped with 64 mic/line inputs and 32 line outputs plus redundant power supply options and a trio of 128×128 audio networking ports.
To provide additional analog I/O that could be relocated throughout the venue, a DX32 Modular Expander was deployed, equipped with threee analog input cards to provide 24 more analog inputs to the system.
Elsewhere in the building there were third-party MADI devices that needed to be on the same audio network. To accommodate these devices, EZPro fitted a SuperMADI audio networking card to the S7000 to deliver 128 channels of MADI I/O at 96kHz with highly flexible routing options.
EZPro also utilized a compact IP8 Controller to allow for tactile remote control of levels away from the main mixing position. Connected through the Network port on the rear panel of the S7000 via a network cable, the convenience of the mixing system was greatly enhanced.
“The dLive system ticks all the boxes. A flexible FOH position, ease-of-use and fast setup.” concludes Fan. “And the variety of built-in DEEP processors greatly helped FOH engineers to deliver a studio-quality mix in the large venue.”
