Jyti Ålander is the sales director for Espoo, Finland-based Electro Waves Oy, a leading Finnish company with expertise in the fields of sound systems, lighting, and water technology. A provider of innovative AV solutions, Electro Waves, in a cooperative effort with some partner companies, played an integral role in the deployment of the lavish Aqua Theatres for Royal Caribbean International's flagship vessels Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. As the designer of the new sound system at Kylpylähotelli Levitunturi, he discussed the challenges of the project and the decision to install D.A.S. Audio loudspeaker systems.
"The new D.A.S. loudspeaker systems are designed to provide ambience (thunder and lightning, music, and nature sounds) throughout the spa while, in the bowling area, the system is intended for loud background music that creates an 'upbeat' atmosphere
"Additionally, there are paging capabilities and, of course, the system handles emergency evacuation notification tasks. We elected to install D.A.S. Audio Variant loudspeaker systems -specifically the Variant 112A powered, two-way, full-range enclosures and the Variant 18A powered subwoofers-as they are specifically designed for the installation market."
In the spa, the Variant enclosures are flown, as this enabled the loudspeakers to blend seamlessly into the environment. The system consists of eight Variant 112A's split into two clusters while two Variant 18A subwoofers fill out the low frequency requirements of the space. In the bowling area, the Electro Waves crew deployed eight Variant 112A loudspeakers - one in each bowling track - plus two Variant 18A subwoofers. These subwoofers reside on the floor behind the room's centre pillar.
The sound system is governed by a ClearOne PSR1212 digital matrix mixer, which handles digital signal processing and audio routing responsibilities. This is tied to an AMX NI-3000 NetLinx 8 In / 8 Out integrated controller. Background music is provided by Viihdeväylä Oy with Vivaldi music software for the PC.
(Jim Evans)
