The Boulder Theater, which first opened its doors as the Curran Opera House in 1906 in downtown Boulder, CO, was recently outfitted with a new sound reinforcement system to support nearly 200 live productions a year that is headed by L-Acoustics K3 line arrays in a system design by Clearwing Systems Integration.
Locally-based Z2 Entertainment, an independent live music promotion and entertainment company formed in 2010, is the sole owner and operator of the 850-seat Boulder Theater, handling all of the booking for the venue. When the theater’s aging sound system began to reveal its shortcomings, Z2 vice president of production Edward Link III says he already had one loudspeaker brand in mind as a prime contender for the project.
“Prior to joining Z2, I operated a sound company that deployed numerous different PA systems for events and shows, and of all of those, my favorites were the L-Acoustics dV-DOSC and K1,” says Link. “Their warmth and depth is what first struck me years ago. Listening to them, compared to other brands, was similar to the experience of hearing a compact disc versus a vinyl record. I also toured as a front-of-house engineer and preferred to mix on L-Acoustics rigs whenever possible; when my clients headlined at Red Rocks, I would always spec L-Acoustics. So when the time came to update Boulder Theater’s sound, for me, it was an easy choice.”
Following a listening of several loudspeaker brands’ arrays in the theater, Clearwing ultimately specified L-Acoustics K3 for the venue. “We did a ‘shoot-out’ in the room and the difference was clear,” says Matt Phillips, system design and sales, Clearwing Systems Integration. “In the end, the customer really appreciated the SPL, size, weight, and flexibility of K3, as well as the ability to use Panflex™ to perfectly cover the unique oval shape of the room. It quickly emerged as the winner.”
Installed earlier this year by Clearwing’s Denver team, the new system consists of eight K3 flown per side as the main arrays, with four KS28 subwoofers ground-stacked below each hang. Five coaxial X8 enclosures spread out across the stage serve as frontfills, and the entire system is driven by three new LA7.16i and two LA12X amplified controllers, all managed by a single P1 processor.
P1 was integral to the new design, says Phillips, providing loudspeaker system control and tuning from FOH. “In addition to acting as the DSP for the system, P1 also functions as an input switcher between consoles,” he describes. “The house console is an Avid S6L 24D, which communicates to the P1 via MILAN AVB. With AVB signal routing, the venue’s engineers are able to send mixes practically anywhere—live streams, distributed audio, recording, and so on. The AES and analog inputs are available for guest consoles with the mic inputs acting as house music inputs while switching between bands. From the P1, signal travels backstage over AVB to the amplifiers and then out to the system. The fact that the audio is going from the console all the way to the amplifiers over AVB at 96k will keep this system relevant for years to come.”
A performance by Al Di Meola on February 3 officially christened the venue’s new system, with Phillips stating, “The system performed remarkably in terms of sound quality and coverage. The clarity and musicality between the previous PA and the new one is obvious even to the uneducated ear. The show was mostly acoustic guitar and percussion, and the subs were barely even tapped yet, but there was still enough LF to fill the room noticeably. Everyone at the venue was extremely pleased.”
Link says that that reaction has quickly become the norm: “In addition to hearing very complimentary comments from many artists and their engineers, fans that have been coming to the theater for 20-plus years have pulled me aside after shows to thank us for putting in this new system and to tell me how amazing it is to hear their favorite acts through it.”
