The Inn at Leola Village, a boutique hotel in a historic village near Lancaster, PA that offers luxury accommodations, spa services and Italian dining, recently upgraded the the audio system in its wedding venue for improved sound quality and simplified control for the staff, with integration firm STRAY Productions deploying an Allen & Heath AHM audio matrix processor at the heart of the new approach.
“The client expressed the need for high levels of control at their fingertips, with the simplicity and consistency that comes from a fully integrated, intentionally designed platform,” explains Herb Seureth of STRAY Productions. “Naturally, we looked at Allen & Heath’s AHM as an ideal solution. We are always aiming for the right overlap between capabilities and cost with the solutions we provide, and the AHM platform fit those needs perfectly.”
The new AHM system feeds the primary wedding reception room as well as the cocktail hour space. Exterior porticos and kitchen zones were also brought under the management of AHM, which allowed for granular routing of various sources to specific locations around the facility.
STRAY also installed several Dante endpoints in the spaces to allow for microphone and line level connections wherever the DJ or musicians set up for a particular event. These inputs, coupled with wireless microphone options and a house music server, give the AHM plenty of sources to work with. The processor’s built-in GPIO functionality also allows for on/off control of system amplification by storing presets that will activate or deactivate the relayed outlets installed in the rack.
An Allen & Heath IP8 8-fader controller is also stationed in the equipment rack, providing adjustment of both inputs and outputs as they feed each zone. Wiring was provided for deployment of future IP8s in additional locations should the client’s needs change over time.
“It was important to the client that they be friendly to the neighbors around the property in how the SPL gets managed; particularly the low frequencies,” notes system designer Kurt Lesh. “To accomplish this, main PAs and subwoofers were fed to different zones for both of the available reinforcement systems. This allows venue management to stay in the driver’s seat when it comes to overall levels, rather than the DJ or the guest band.”
Further control was added via a tailored app made with Allen & Heath’s Custom Control platform, offering fader and mute control for various sources and zones. This was STRAY’s first time installing AHM, with Lesh staing, “I’ve been really impressed with the robust routing options. We have full control in programming what goes where, making the day-to-day client experience as simple as possible.
“It’s amazing how quickly we were able to go from unboxing, to integrating into our network, then making it controllable by the included IP8 and, ultimately, ready for deployment on site.”
