Situated in the French city of Lyon, the new Parc Olympique Lyonnais (Parc OL) has
ensured that its 59,000 capacity stadium will be served by pristine, broadcast
quality audio — thanks to Powersoft’s Ottocanali multi-channel amplifiers and EAW’s
high output, point source QX loudspeakers — as it prepares to be the main host for
a major sports tournament this Summer.
Axente, a well-respected professional audio distributor in France, and integration
specialists Groupe SNEF and Axians worked together to design the distributed sound
reinforcement system that provides fans with an enhanced game day experience.
They teamed up with the design office of Atelier Audiovisuel, the engineering
consulting firm brought in by Vinci Construction, to ensure that all of the stadium
audio needs were met.
The eight-channel Ottocanali amplifiers provide 144 independently configurable
channels to drive the QX loudspeakers. Because each compact 2RU device can
deliver up to 8,000W of Class D power across eight channels into a 4-ohm load, the
stadium will also benefit from lower operating costs as well as higher power density
and less demanding conditioning.
Ultimately, four Ottocanali 4K4 and 14 Ottocanali 12K4 power a distributed system
made up of 20 QX loudspeakers clusters mounted 35 metres (115ft) high under the
gangway. Custom hanging hardware designed by SNEF was utilised to mount the
loudspeakers. The majority of the system is comprised of 16 clusters made up of
two QX596i and one QX564i, bi-amped, with the QX596i shooting down to cover the
first and second tiers of seating while the QX564i covers the upper tier. The four
corner clusters consist of one QX596i and one QX564i positioned to cover the corner
seating areas.
The three-way, point source QX596i and QX564i loudspeakers load ultra-efficient
mid-high compression drivers (90 x 45 and 60 x 45 respectively) with a constant
directivity horn. Four Phase Aligned 12-inch low frequency transducers arranged as
vertical and horizontal pairs leverage beneficial interaction based on their spacing
to extend pattern control will into the low frequency range.
It was Axente’s consultant Alain Hercman who recommended the Powersoft/EAW
system. “The quality of this amplifier platform is far superior to others and allows
us to use fewer amplifiers,’ he explains. “When combined with the state-of-the-art
QX Series – which provide tremendous output and intelligibility – it was a win-win
situation.’
The Symetrix Radius matrix router, also provided by Axente, runs Dante protocol.
The network architecture is designed around a master control room and two
subsidiaries linked by Dante. Taking analogue feeds from the Symetrix matrix
router’s Dante extension cards, the 12K4 devices feed the low-end sections (mono
bridged at 8 ohms) and the 4K4 manages the mid and high sections.
Rodolphe Roellinger, head of audiovisual at SNEF, believes that it was the strength
of the alliance between SNEF and Axians — who worked diligently on both
simulations and provided competitive pricing — that played a crucial role in
securing the contract. Hercman agrees. “It was due to great team work between
manufacturer, distributor, consultant and integrators that we were able to meet the
specification and deliver all components within the budget.’
