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The Florian Krygier Municipal Stadium has recently undergone a complete modernization which includes the installation of a new sound system based on RCF P Series speakers. The Florian Krygier Municipal Stadium located in Szczecin, Poland, is a football stadium with a long history. It was built in 1925 with the name of Florian Krygier, named after a Polish football coach who was an instrumental figure in Pogoń Szczecin’s history. Since the 1950s club management was under MKS Pogoń Szczecin until 1989 when Szczecin City Commune transferred operations to the Municipal Sports, Recreation and Rehabilitation Centre (Polish: Miejski Ośrodek Sportu, Rekreacji i Rehabilitacji - MOSRiR). Until the beginning of 2007, it was the most prominent facility in the Polish Orange Ekstraklasa football league. It is currently used for football matches and is the home stadium of Pogoń Szczecin. The stadium itself has recently undergone a complete modernization, so only part of the old stadium is still in place. A significant reconstruction started in 2019 with planned completion scheduled for 2022. The investment includes the Training Centre for Childres and Youth (Centrum Szkolenia Dzieci i Młodzieży), remodeling and expanding the stadium, football fields, and associated infrastructure. The new stadium will reach 20,500 seat capacity and 22,000 square meters of covered area. It will transform into a “closed” stadium with four grandstands and roofed. The first phase of modernization of the stadium within the west and south grandstands has been completed recently with a new sound system based on RCF P Series speakers. All P 6215 are suspended to the roof of the stadium coupled in vertical clusters, two speakers per cluster.
Installation
Belli&Pettinati has chosen RCF for the restoration of the Duomo dei Militari, a church of historical significance in Padua (Italy). Maintaining a small footprint and paired with compact S 5012 subs, the RCF L 2406-T column loudspeakers ensure a full dynamic range, high intelligibility and excellent musical performance for church services and live music events hosted by the facility. The Church of San Prosdocimo is of very particular significance as it was the first Military Church to be used by the Italian Ministry of Defence-Army. Built in Padua between the 15th and 17th centuries (original construction on the site, however, dates as far back as 1180), it was modified and extended several times until the early 1800s, when Napoleon’s emanations had it adapted and transformed, comprising other places of worship, a bakery and military warehouse. Subsequently, restoration works begun in 1988 with the building rededicated in 1990 and reopened for public worship with its own military chaplain. The effects of the 2012 earthquake in Emilia made it inaccessible until 2019, when a new and definitive restoration was begun. Inside, as well as housing precious works, such as paintings, sculptures and artistic stained-glass windows, it features an impressive pipe organ, the result of a collaboration between two specialized German companies — Steinmeyer, dealt with the sound and Laukhuff, the console’s electric-electronic controls — capable, among other things, of guaranteeing 64 free memory combinations for a performer's personal use. A feasibility study for implementing the new audio set-up began last autumn, with some given constraints: the use of materials that are reliable over time requiring no specialized assistance for their daily management; a non-invasive layout, but integrated into the architectural features of its location (which, due to its origin and historicity, is protected by the Superintendence of Fine Arts) and providing the possibility to easily host small, selected acoustic music and artistic events.
Installation
Tunbridge Wells Baptist Church in Kent, UK, has substantially upgraded its PA with an RCF HDL 26-A ultra-compact active two-way line array. The system was specified and installed by Adlib after the company successfully bid for the full audio-visual contract—including lighting and projection—after the previous system had reached end of life. Stated Adlib’s, Tim Robinson, “The process started back in October 2017 and we have been through several iterations along the way.” The quotation they provided not only exceeded the remit for performance but also met the budget, as well as the requirement for a discreet, elegant system, finished in white. After considering various options Robinson was convinced that “the HDL 26-A has provided the church with the best outcome available.” He explained, “The acoustic modelling in EASE Focus showed that we could achieve incredibly even SPL and consistent tonal balance throughout the audience, whilst maximising gain before feedback on stage. The availability of the system in white was key to accommodating a system of this size with the interior design.” Each of the two hangs comprises seven HDL 26-A elements, integrated with a pair of flyable HDL 35-AS 15” subwoofers. Despite the loudspeakers being self-powered, there were no practical weight constraints. “Even though they’re self-powered, the HDL 26-A system is still lighter than some externally-powered competitors,” he confirmed. “The structural engineer had confirmed that there was plenty of capacity in the roof, thanks to the PA being sited directly under a massive concrete beam, so installation with RCF’s flying hardware was ideal.” One design criterion was that all LF elements should be flown. “The compatibility between the HDL 35-AS and HDL 26-A made that an easy decision. For practical reasons, it keeps the floor clear and all items out of harm’s way; and for acoustic reasons it maximises the efficiency and coherence of the arrays and meant we would not be murdering the front rows with sub.” In addition, the provision of six RCF HD 10-A active two-way wedge monitors provides additional flexibility. “Being self-powered, this provides maximum value to the client because they can be used in different configurations in other parts of the church, redeployed as three stereo PAs,” says Robinson, who favours self-powered monitors in multi-use facilities. Finally, a pair of RCF MR 50 have been installed in the foyer, driven from the matrix on the mixer so that it can be run independently. But, he adds, the RCF system would be nothing without the advanced control of RCF’s proprietary RDNet. “The granularity of control afforded by individual amplification and FIR processing in every box is marvellous and really helps deliver tonal consistency throughout the whole audience area.” RDNet Measure, the 4-input, dual-channel FFT measurement system included in the latest version of RDNet, is a further bonus. Robinson said, “I can see lots of engineers, whether already RCF users or not, installing the free software for that feature alone.” As for distribution, he says, “The audience area is almost exactly square and so the 100° horizontal coverage and variable vertical coverage [of HDL 26-A] make it ideal.” The new PA will comfortably handle both the house worship band and spoken word. In future it also has the capacity to serve any private hire functions that the Church may wish to entertain. Summing up, the installer says, “While the HDL 26-A sounds as good as I thought it would be, the HDL 35-AS far exceeded my expectations. I was expecting a total of four 15” to deliver a nice full range system, which would be more than sufficient for a worship band, but hardly trouser-flapping sub. The fact that the HDL 35-AS goes so low and so loud, despite the box being so physically small for a 15”, means there’s some RCF witchcraft in there somewhere!” Finally, he says, the support received from RCF throughout the process was exemplary. “They were always highly communicative, and all components arrived on time from the factory, despite being in the middle of a pandemic.”