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HK Audio Contour Array Powers Sugababes Gig
Currently promoting their Greatest Hits collection, top British R&B band, The Sugababes recently played an impressive private gig at the 100 Club in London's Oxford Street, performing a whole set of numbers to an appreciative audience. To ensure that the girl band's performance had a real impact, Concert Sound (Luton), organising the show equipment, chose HK Audio's versatile new ConTour Array, hired in from London-based ConTour users, Euroscope TV and Picture it Facilities Ltd.
HK Audio's ConTour Array bridges the gap between conventional PA systems and large touring line arrays. Whereas full-on line array rigs for smaller applications are not a cost-effective proposition, ConTour Array is claimed to be the first of its kind to put the technology to more efficient use, and is applicable to a variety of sound reinforcement situations, including such medium-sized club gigs.
As such, the ConTour set-up used for The Sugababes consisted of eight CTA 118 active powered subs, plus eight CTA 208 mid/high speakers, also powered from the subs. An active, direct-loaded sub, the 1 x 18"-equipped CTA 118 Sub serves as the system’s 'engine room' with all required circuitry on board, including a 56-bit DDO-Pro digital controller with two 1,000-watt RMS power amps, one to drive the sub’s 18“ speaker, the other a CTA 208 mid/high unit, as here, or alternatively a ConTour Series CT 108, CT 112 or CT 115 enclosure. Onboard filter presets fine-tune the component integration of each configuration with the onboard display indicating all information relevant to the given setting.
The 100 Club consists of a wide - but not deep - room, and so Concert Sound's Sugababes rig utilized 4 x 4 ConTour Array box stacks in 2 x sub + 2 x mid high format with one stack either side of the stage, a further stack being placed three meters from each corner of the room stage side, all stacks in a line along the back of the room to project across the space.
FOH engineer was Chris Madden, Chris having already notched up considerable line array experience with HK Audio's Cohedra system touring with such varied acts as Mike Scott's Waterboys and, more recently, Charlotte Church's 'Crazy Chick' outing.
Though Euroscope TV and Picture it Facilities Ltd. had only been in the possession of this ConTour system for a week by the time of the Sugababes show, such was the potential of the system for rapid turnaround set-ups that it had already been out on demo for the Cage Rage 17 live internet broadcast show at the Wembley Indoor Arena, in addition to providing live sound for the Asian Television Awards at London ExCel Arena.
For the Cage Rage show, a 16 x box ConTour Array system was utilized, with 8 x CTA 118 subs on the floor with three hangs - a 1 x 4 box 'stereo into mono' central hang, plus 2 x 2 box side hangs, also stereo into mono configured.
In picture: The Sugababes performing their live set at the 100 Club in London's Oxford Street, flanked by stacks of HK ConTour Array.
10th January 2007
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