When Cardiff-based SR Production Services invested in a new Martin Audio Wavefront Precision Compact (WPC) line array, the company knew not only that they would be the first PA company in Wales to operate the system, but with so much event work taking place on sites requiring offsite noise control, it would be able to solve a lot of issues.

‘Generally the events we do are heavily noise-policed,’ confirms SR Director of Operations, Alistair Brick. ‘However, there is one particularly sensitive event – a barn party, promoted by House & Techno specialists, Cellar Door at a farm in the Valleys– where systems we have used previously have never been adequate, as there has always been noise escape leading to complaints. It was principally for this that we invested in WPC with the result that it not only played much nicer than what the promoters had previously experienced, but there were no noise complaints.’

In fact, Cellar Door DJ Jimpy had posted online, ahead of the event: ‘This year’s Cellar Door visit to the farm features a brand new sound system supplied by Martin Audio, the very same audio company which is heard all across Glastonbury including the Pyramid stage. The sound system not only brings an even greater clarity of sound over last year’s event… but provides a high degree of noise mitigation control. This ensures the sound is focused on the event and not on the surrounding area using state of the art technology.’

It was that technology that had attracted SR co-directors Matthew Dunford and Alistair Brick, in their quest for ‘a compliant and current system’. They duly placed the order for eight WPC, six SXH218 subwoofers and a pair of utility XD15s with JP Cavaco at Martin Audio dealer, Enlightened. Cavaco arranged a demo that confirmed that this would be an ideal system, and it immediately went out on a conference for a high-profile restaurant group.

Martin Audio product support representative Simon Purse stepped in with a masterclass in Display, Martin Audio’s optimisation software, which Brick found ‘really easy to navigate, and not the slightest bit clunky’.

He says they are presently running the system in two-box resolution ‘but when we add four further WPC boxes and amplification later on, we plan to increase this to one-box resolution’.

Now firmly in the Martin Audio camp, SR subsequently added eight Blackline X8 enclosures as a conference system (part supplied by Enlightened, part by Leisuretec) and this featured at the Cardiff International Film Festival.

‘Every time it’s gone out it’s been rebooked, and on every occasion where there had been a noise pollution problem previously there was no longer a problem, either with the levels required on-site or off-site,’ Brick says.

However, there had been one further reason for purchasing the WPC: ‘Our engineers really wanted a 10-inch box, which goes a little bit lower than the 8-inch. As one put it to me, “Get a 10-inch system for the love of God … I want to be able to hear my snare”.’

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