Marking the burial site of Husayn Ibn Ali, third Imam of Shia Islam, the Shrine of Hussein Ibn Ali is one of the oldest in Iraq. As well as attracting hundreds of thousands of faithful visitors each year, the site hosts conferences, meetings and lectures – primarily held in the 318-seat Sayed Al-Awssiya’a auditorium, which has now completed a substantial audio and video upgrade.
Baghdad-based Qurtuba Broadcasting and Communications Services (QBCS) provided full audio, video and control systems for the auditorium, working with Ardh Al-Quds, the main contractors on the project to install Renkus-Heinz’s Iconyx IC Live steerable array loudspeakers. The site’s historical status proved a challenge in designing the audio system: ‘The architects placed severe constraints on the locations of the speakers, and the methods of installing them,’ says Abdulrazzak Hummadi, CEO of QBCS. ‘This led us to seek an alternative to traditional loudspeakers.’
After reviewing a wide range of alternatives, audio engineer Ricardo Castro suggested the IC Live array for the venue. IC Live beam steering is designed to create tightly focused beams of sound that can be accurately steered directly toward the audience, and away from walls, ceilings, and other reflective surfaces, dramatically improving intelligibility. ‘The site is fully occupied with people, 24 hours a day,’ Hummadi says of teh installation process. ‘Needless to say, this required both patience and careful planning.’
The slim, low-profile IC Live design also made it a god choice for minimal visual impact. Nonetheless, says Hummadi, the system was an unknown to the customer, and had to pass the critical listening test: ‘Due to the fact that this was our first time working with Renkus-Heinz and Iconyx technology, we approached the decision making process very slowly and thoroughly. The support provided by the company was outstanding, and that helped make the decision that much easier.’
The audio system is comprised of left and right arrays of two IC Live ICL-FR arrays each. A pair of PN61-R compact two-way loudspeakers provides front fill.
‘The first test was simply amazing! The Sound Transmission Level testing showed excellent results, with very consistent coverage throughout the entire venue,’ Hummadi reports. ‘It was truly an amazing opportunity to work with these Renkus-Heinz products. Despite the many constraints we had with it being a holy site, I think we have built an effective and attractive solution.’
More: www.renkus-heinz.com
