Since the inauguration of Portugal’s Golden Globes awards ceremony in 1996, production company Auditiv Audiovisuais has been involved with the sound reinforcement and broadcast. The company recently returned to the 4,300-capacity Coliseu dos Recreios in Lisbon with a Martin Audio WPC line array, providing the auditorium sound for the first time at the 2024 edition.
Also serving as the event’s technical directors, Auditiv’s Daniel Bekerman and João Escada made the decision to deploy an advanced scalable PA in an effort to bring fresh innovation to the 2024 event. They recognised that the system could be adapted to the space and be visually unobtrusive, as well as providing improved coverage and observing the venue’s weight restrictions.
Two hangs of 12 WPC speakers were used in two-box resolution, powered by Martin Audio iKon amplifiers. Low-frequency extension was provided by SX218B subs, with Blackline X12 handling close fill and out fill, as well as stage side fill. LE1200 wedge monitors completed the set-up in a fully Martin Audio deployment.
To ensure fully optimised set-up, Auditiv used Martin Audio’s Display2 predictive software, VU-Net for control and SMAART for integrating the front fill, out fill and subs with the main system, with system tech Isaac Bugalho bringing the best out of the WPC. He was joined at FOH by Tiago Mendes, with Guilherme Vales managing monitors.
The event was hosted by Clara de Sousa, one of Portugal’s leading journalists and TV presenters, with each award presented by different guests. The evening’s content comprised a mix of various award presentations and live music, including a resident classical orchestra.
Bekerman declares himself ‘100 per cent happy’ with the new system’s performance: ‘Although we were satisfied with the system used in previous years, the WPC brought improvements, mainly in terms of coverage uniformity,’ he says. ‘With two balconies and a VIP audience, including TV station representatives, the venue is very challenging, and the audience very demanding. With WPC, we were able to use more loudspeakers, achieve better vertical dispersion, and maintain a wider 100° horizontal dispersion. All this was accomplished with less flown weight [the venue has tight limits], a reduced footprint and a simpler, faster rigging set-up, making coordination with video, scenery and lighting crews easier.
‘The WPC met this demanding challenge in every way possible.’
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