Although they’ve been around for decades, line source (“column”) loudspeakers have enjoyed increased popularity due to recent upgrades in technology.
With a slim physical footprint that addresses aesthetic concerns, they’re an attractive option in many applications, particularly in highly reverberant acoustic environments, offering minimal vertical coverage above and below the enclosure and coherent sound (particularly in the vocal range). This can be achieved passively or in tandem with DSP that offers further tailoring of coverage.
Let’s have a look at some interesting recent applications.
Chaminade Prep, Chatsworth, CA
The new 600-seat Tutor Family Center for the Performing Arts at Chaminade College Preparatory School is equipped with a theatrical sound reinforcement system headed by Renkus-Heinz Iconyx digitally steered loudspeakers.
Designed by JK Design Group of nearby North Hills, CA, and installed by Audio Video Design Build Group (AVDB), the system employs two Iconyx IC Live DUAL columns, utilizing triple HF coaxial transducers, one on each side of the stage.
Art Rautenberg of JK Design Group explains that the loudspeakers were selected both for their control and form factor. “The side walls are all brick, and room is pretty reflective, and we were concerned about the acoustics. Iconyx enabled us to steer the sound and direct it away from the walls and reflective surfaces and into the seating area.”
Further, the architect had left the sound team very little space to mount the loudspeakers, only a small alcove on either side of the stage that isn’t very wide. The columns helped overcome this challenge, set back a bit into the alcove areas, almost completely concealing them from view.
“Iconyx was the ideal solution for this particular challenge,” Rautenberg concludes. “They sound great on the orchestral stuff and great for theater and spoken word programs. They really fit the application perfectly.”
Michael Fowler Centre Auditorium, Wellington, New Zealand
The 2,200-seat, 2-level, oval-shaped auditorium’s acoustics are optimized for classical music concerts, and the venue is also used for events, meetings, trade shows and other functions.
Multi-Media Systems of New Zealand was tasked with providing an upgraded sound reinforcement system for the room, choosing to deploy JBL CBT column loudspeakers in an unusual configuration – a single CBT 70J with a CBT 70JE extension enclosure, complemented by two CBT50LA loudspeakers on either side, each aimed 90 degrees to the left and right. This cluster is flown from the ceiling.
Particularly challenging was adequately covering seats on the sides of the stage, as well as seats around the downstairs walls. The sound team, working with Harman distributor Jands New Zealand, tested a configuration using two CBT 50LAs, one on either side of the single main CBT 70J/70JE column, and it proved to deliver the desired coverage.
“The CBT 50LA loudspeakers can be set to provide midrange and high frequencies only, which avoided having too much bass energy being played into the room,” says Sam Johnston of Multi-Media. “Ultimately, the CBT Series proved to be the ideal solution.
“They delivered the coverage, clarity and sound pressure level we needed, and the small number of loudspeakers required enabled us to install them in a way that didn’t intrude with the aesthetics of the auditorium, while also saving on the cost of the installation.”