Originally the headquarters of the Norwegian America Line passenger and freight shipping company, Oslo’s Amerikalinjen building remains an architectural landmark in the city 100 years later. Since reborn as a premier urban boutique hotel, it is equipped with a comprehensive Genelec sound system supplied by Norwegian pro audio specialist, Benum.
The remit was clear. The Amerikalinjen wanted the best possible sound in all areas of the hotel, to match its high-quality services and fittings. The requirement was for four distinct areas – reception, restaurant, cocktail bar, and the luxuriant conservatory at the heart of the hotel.
‘Genelec was a completely natural choice for this installation,’ says Benum CEO Ronald Hernes, who oversaw the project. ‘First, the sound quality is second to none. Second, they are active speakers that are therefore easier to cable and install, and there is no need for an amp rack room. Finally, you know that once they are in, the client will have trouble-free service for years. There’s no doubt that, for a project of this calibre, Genelec ticks all the boxes.’
Nevertheless, he recalls that the mission was not without its challenges: ‘From an architectural point of view, the building is beautiful with lofty ceilings and large windows,’ Hernes elaborates. ‘It looks wonderful, but it’s not ideal when it comes to speaker placement. Our main concern was achieving the required coverage with such large volumes of space to cover. In the conservatory, we also had to think about the reflections off the glass roof. Fortunately there’s quite a lot of greenery which helps deaden the room a little.’
Benum suggested increasing the number of loudspeakers in each area to achieve optimal coverage and sound quality even at low levels, yet still conserving sufficient headroom to be able to turn up the volume when required for a more party-like ambience.
‘We opted for eight of the larger 4030Cs in the cocktail bar to make sure they had enough power for the late-night crowd. For reception, the restaurant, and the conservatory garden we used lots of 4020Cs. Each area also benefits from a pair of 7040A subwoofers (except reception which only has one) to provide a subtle, but critical boost to the low end without being too physically imposing.
‘In total we installed 38 4020Cs, eight 4030Cs and seven 7040A subs. Everything is on a Dante network distributed via an Allen & Heath dLive DM0 MixRack which is broken out into analogue at each zone via a Neutrik interface, and then to the loudspeakers via Sonifex active balanced splitters. Each zone is equipped with an A&H IP1 network controller which gives local operators access to source selection and volume. Finally, we put an A&H IP6 in reception which provides control over multiple zones.’
‘High-quality audio, especially in the common areas, was an early focus,’ explains Wilhelm Hartwig, Amerikalinjen’s General Manager. ‘We chose Genelec as a premium Scandinavian brand and we are incredibly happy with the results. We are getting positive feedback on the sound on a weekly basis. I’ve worked at many hotels but I can’t ever remember guests commenting on the sound quality before. That is really quite something.’
