An expansion of Photo City Music Hall in Rochester, NY, which presents a range of live performances and events in addition to hosting benefits for numerous organizations, increased the venue’s capacity to 500 served by a sound reinforcement system driven by components from Ashly Audio.
“From when I started working with Photo City, there was always a vision to have it grow to what it is today. I’ve always been a fan of the sound quality of Ashly Audio’s equipment, especially their compressor and limiter algorithm, so they were a clear choice for this project,” says Justin Wyman of Rochester-based JWI Audio, who served as the designer and installer on the project. ”The artists that play at Photo City need power — from punk and rock ‘n’ roll to EDM, burlesque and metal — the equipment used needs to have amazing crystal clear sound and pack a punch. Ashly’s amps can get beaten to the ground and without losing sound quality — they are tanks.”
Specifically, JWI deployed an Ashly 3.6SP Protea DSP joined by two KLR-2000 and six KLR-3200 stereo power amplifiers. The 3.6SP Protea DSP is a 3-input by 6-output unit with a compressor and limiter algorithm. The processor includes a 48-bit fixed-point DSP filtering with 24-bit, 48 kHz, 128x oversampling delta-sigma A/D and D/A converters. Specific to the selection for this installation, processing on the 3.6SP includes gain, parametric EQ, shelving filters, delay, crossover, matrix routing and more. Meanwhile, the KLR 2000 (class AB topology) and 3200 (two-step class H) both incorporate switch-mode power supplies.
“When you’re running a venue, people can overlook that part of the business is selling sound. Sound is the main motivator here and we knew that Ashly had the power to take our venue to the next level,” says Photo City Music Hall owner Daniel Nielsen. “From the very first night, there was an overwhelming response from the crowd regarding the system’s clarity and sound. Honestly, it’s given me a new flame and desire to push bigger shows through the club.”
“We love working with local venues to enrich the listening experience,” adds Noel Larson VP of marketing and business development at Ashly Audio. “With a line-up like Photo City Music Hall’s, clarity, authenticity, and power are critical to delivering each artist’s sound. Dan & Justin knew exactly what they were looking for and we’re proud that from the very beginning, Ashly was on their mind.”
