El Paso, TX––The Speaking Rock Entertainment Center recently combined a Stageline SL260 mobile stage with a Martin Audio MLA loudspeaker system to bring the highest quality sound to outdoor concert events, water parks and multiple stage festivals.
Owned by the Tigua Indians of the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, Speaking Rock is a celebrated venue known for popular local shows featuring a variety of artists ranging from heavy metal to Spanish pop, hip hop and vocal bands at skateboard festivals.
Production Manager Scott Brown explains the choice of MLA: “Speaking Rock has two other venues with a different brand of loudspeaker. I had read up on MLA, liked the technology behind it and wanted to check it out. I first heard MLA at a Franklin Graham Crusade event and thought it sounded amazing. Turns out it worked within our budget and the technology far surpassed the other systems we were looking at, so we decided to go with MLA.
“I like the versatility, audio quality, and the power behind each box which means I don’t have to hang a lot of cabinets,” Scott continues. “I can rig what we purchased and know the systems will easily fill the venue without killing the PA. The sound quality alone––the fullness, richness and intelligibility––is unbelievable. And MLA’s control is very helpful because when we do the outdoor events, we’re surrounded by residential neighborhoods and now we can make sure the sound doesn’t bleed past the audience area. We don’t get any complaints, but the audience still gets the full show.”
The MLA Mobile system consists of 7 MLA and one MLD (downfill) cabinets per side with four MLX subs ground-stacked in front of the stage. Consoles include Midas Pro Series for FOH and Avid Profile for monitors.
“And those MLX subs,” he adds. “The power behind them is astonishing. I thought we were going to come up short with four MLX, but they stay ahead of the music really well and sound amazing. In the cardioid formation, it’s unbelievable how much they cancel out. It’s a perfect situation.”
Asked about reactions to MLA, Scott points out that guest FOH engineers “really love the system. The first time I rigged MLA for a show, I didn’t get to mix on it, but we had guest engineers for the bands that day and they were shocked how great it sounded right out of the box. They loved the headroom and the fact that they could sit at the console without having to make a lot of adjustments, which is a good thing.
“More importantly, the first time my boss who runs the Entertainment Center got to hear it, he turned around and gave me a huge thumbs up. So that was definitely a good thing!”
For more about Martin Audio, please click to www.martin-audio.com.
About Martin Audio®
Founded by audio engineer David Martin in 1971, Martin Audio pioneered the use of all-horn-loaded bass designs in world-class touring loudspeaker systems for groups such as Pink Floyd, ELP and Supertramp. Located outside of London, Martin Audio now embodies a sophisticated mix of acoustic design, research, mathematical modeling and software engineering for a wide range of products in the installation, cinema and touring sound markets.
