Audio Under Control at Peoria Civic Center
Sep 27, 2007 12:00 PM
PSA-Dewberry, a leading audio design firm, selected a JBL Control 300 series in-ceiling loudspeaker system for the expansion of the Peoria Civic Center in Illinois. The $55 million project included the development of a 25,000-square-foot multipurpose meeting room, an addition to an existing exhibition hall, a new three-story administrative office space, a box office, entrance hall, and arena loading facility.
An often overlooked yet crucial factor to a successful meeting space is the selection of components that work well with the acoustical requirements of the space. Without a playback system that will deliver the message clearly and loudly, an entire meeting or convention can suffer. To that end, PSA-Dewberry specified the new multipurpose meeting room with JBL Control 322CT in-ceiling loudspeakers, MTC-300BB12 back boxes, and MTC-300SG12 décor grilles and Crown CTs series amplifiers and BSS Soundweb London digital processing.
“From an acoustic standpoint, the room was in very good shape,” says Thomas Craft, audio system designer for PSA-Dewberry. “Our primary concerns were obtaining consistent pattern control throughout the vocal bandwidth, thereby reducing high-frequency beaming. We also wanted to achieve a wide dynamic range, allowing limited distortion at high sound pressure levels.”
Because of the configurability of the space, PSA-Dewberry designed a distributed audio system of Control 322CT recessed ceiling speakers, organized into individual zones that can act discreetly or as part of a larger system.
“We have been seeing a stronger emphasis on achieving higher-quality sound from traditional distributed overhead speaker systems,” Craft says. “This is a very affordable means of reproducing sound in large meeting environments, and much of the product previously offered didn’t have the performance characteristics necessary to achieve quality sound.”
The Control 322CT is one of six full-range, true point-source large-format in-ceiling loudspeakers in the JBL Professional Control 300 series. The Control 300 series offers coax designs featuring 8in. and 12in. drivers, multiple power levels and transformer options, plus a 12in. in-ceiling subwoofer. Through the use of Constant Coverage waveguide design, the Control 300 models feature exceptionally broadband pattern control, ensuring remarkably consistent sound throughout the listening space. The Control 300 models were designed to be easier to install than most large-format ceiling speakers. JBL’s proprietary EZ-Rail feature provides a helping hand by holding the loudspeaker in place while fastening, often eliminating the need for a second installer.
“The 322CT has a very consistent frequency response throughout the stated coverage pattern,” Craft says. “We found that by locating the speakers with minimal pattern overlap, we were able to maintain a consist frequency response for the vocal bandwidth throughout the entire room. The 322CT’s power handling and sensitivity allowed us to achieve desired sound pressure levels with little distortion.”
