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Riverside Upgrades Comms to 16-Zone DigiPage
The Riverside Studios has installed a new 16-zone digital paging matrix system from Australian Monitor in its multi-arts facility in Hammersmith, London.
Funded by The Arts Council, the new expandable DigiPage architecture was engineered by consultant Matt Howes, to a conceptual design by Richard Nowell Sound Services, and replaces the previous system described by Theatre Studios manager, Barbra Egervary, as “totally inadequate”. Distributed in the UK by Fuzion plc, DigiPage was recommended and supplied by dealers, Amber Sound.
As London’s leading media and arts centre, the Riverside is an expanding facility which today embraces two main performance studios, a cinema, a TV studio and production galleries, rehearsal/workshop space, numerous offices and a large contemporary cafe/bar and terrace. Its internal communication requirement had grown exponentially.
The complex has been divided into 16 zones on DigiPage, each of which has a dedicated local mic/line input, with six global inputs routable to any of the zones; these are currently used for show relay and comms from the studios. The system features Alert, Evacuation, Bell and Pre Announce Chimes, and Priority Ducking Circuitry.
At the Riverside, DigiPage provides a network link between three studio spaces (including TV and theatre) as well as the cinema (on another floor). The main DigiPage Microphone Station (with Master and Slave units) is situated at front-of-house, with three other paging stations set in strategic locations, and supported by 16 remote six-input DigiPage Wall Panels.
Powered by four Australian Monitor AMIS 480P amplifiers, the signal feeds out to 32 Australian Monitor Install 10 loudspeakers, positioned in the key zones, including dressing rooms, restaurants and corridors, along with four weatherised CS210W speakers out on the terrace at the rear.
“Since this is a long building, having these three separate remote control locations makes it easy for the front-of-house manager,” explains Matt Howes. “This is an all-zone system and the operator can select where they want to page to manually from the 16 selectable buttons on each Mic Station by toggling on and off. Coupled with the remote wall boxes, it couldn’t be simpler.”
“The DigiPage system has been a great relief to us,” comments Barbra Egervary. “It is a legal requirement to have an approved FOH system such as this and it improves the level of service we can offer our clients. This is vital when we host activities as diverse as dedicated television studios, commercial events, exhibitions, cinema hire and rehearsals for organisations such as the ENO.”
The installation has been on the cards for the past three years — since the first phase of a complete £2m structural refurb of the building was put in place (incorporating a technical upgrade).
Summarised Richard Nowell Sound Systems’ operations manager Andrew Cotton: “We have provided the Studios with a flexible, cost-effective system which came in within budget. The installation needed to be flexible and DigiPage achieves that.”
In picture: Riverside control rack and main reception
10th November 2005
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