Cheshire-based UK event production company, dBS Solutions has made a ‘significant’ investment in a dBTechnologies VIO line array system.

The move is intended to keep the company is step with a expanding order book, and increased demand for large event production in particular, and follows demonstrations at Manchester’s international concert venue, Bridgewater Hall, and an outdoor showing at the Morecambe Carnival on the Bay radio live stage.

‘As our rental company grows, we have been handling larger and larger events both inside and outdoors,’ explains dBS MD, Chris Bogg. ‘We therefore needed a bigger line array system than the one we have currently but it had to match certain criteria – it needed to be easy to rig and predict, and affordable enough that we could own a big enough system to handle our largest events.’

After demos in different but equally demanding situations, Bogg was convinced that the active VIO system ticked all the boxes: ‘We’ve been impressed by the build quality of other dBTechnologies products, having added the multi-purpose DVX range to our hire stock a few years ago,’ he says.

‘When VIO was released last year, I really liked the integrated networking, the ease of the prediction software and the touring packaging. The plug-and-play aspect of a powered system is also an advantage for us in that we don’t need separate amp racks or external DSP as it’s all in the box. It was also very attractive from a price point of view in that we could buy enough to fulfil our needs and set a competitive rental price. So, when it became clear that we were going to need a bigger system, I was very keen to try it out.’

At Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall: ‘I was really impressed at the speed with which we were able to fly the boxes and measure and predict a venue as complex as the Bridgewater Hall,’ Bogg says. ‘The predictions were accurate, and the system sounded great. The whole team was impressed with the tone, the headroom and the coverage.’

At the Morecambe Carnival, dBS used 16 VIO L210 line array modules and eight VIO S318 subs plus some K5 front fills and an RDNet Control8 interface for remote monitoring and control: ‘Again, the system performed really well,’ Bogg reports. ‘Time was extremely tight on the load-in, but the system was up in the air in no time with no fuss. The software gave us a very accurate prediction of the coverage we could expect, and right out of the box the LF coupling and HF settings produced great sound. We didn’t need any more persuading.’

dBS Solutions purchased a turnkey system comprising 16 VIO L210 line array modules with integrated RDNet providing control and monitoring of each individual loudspeaker, along with an RDNet Control8 hardware interface, a full cabling package from ProCab and transport dollies.

‘In addition to being pleased with the performance and ease of handling of the system itself, it’s also good to know that dBS Solutions is now part of a growing VIO rental network throughout the UK, which will be beneficial for all of us when it comes to pitching for and servicing large events,’ Bogg adds. ‘CUK Audio, especially James [Lawford] and Stuart [Thomson], have been a pleasure to deal with throughout, always ready to go the extra mile to sort out demo systems and support, and working tirelessly to grow the VIO rental network.’