With an acoustic design created primarily with opera performances in mind, the 2,196-seat Toyama City Arts and Culture Hall (Aubade Hall) opened in 1996 in the Japan’s Toyama City. Now a new medium-sized, multi-purpose hall has been completed at the same site with a maximum of 652 seats which, along with the stage, can be moved to enable a wide range of configurations from conventional raked theatre seating to a flat floor for exhibitions.

Loudspeakers from NEXO’s GEO M, P+ and ID Series were selected for a uniquely flexible sound system in the new medium-sized hall.

“Actually, we have been using NEXO speakers in the large hall for a long time. Therefore, we are familiar with the sound of NEXO and thought that the sound of NEXO would suit the medium hall as well” reported Akira Sone, Head of the Stage Technical Department, Sound, at Aubade Hall.

GEO M10 Series line arrays are used for the proscenium speakers and movable side speakers.

“The GEO M10 has a good balance of size and power, making it suitable for use in a medium-sized hall,” Sone continued. “We compared it with several other models, and the GEO M10 was the perfect match. We particularly focused on its ease of handling and size, and its great advantages include sufficient volume and ease of installation and movement.

“We introduced NEXO’s P12, P10 and P8 as portable utility speakers. When there is no space on the stage for side speakers, we can pull the sound image downward by placing a P12 on a stand on the stage in addition to the proscenium speaker.

“We wanted to be consistent, but we had used the NEXO ID24 for the wall and auxiliary speakers, and the NEXO P8 for the ceiling speakers in the past, and we were satisfied with the sound quality, so we chose NEXO speakers overall. Another reason is that the main hall is also NEXO, so there is a backup element to it.”

The Yamaha Sound Systems team was in charge of the stage sound equipment installation and also adjusted the speakers in a system that also includes Yamaha CL5 and CL3 digital consoles and NEXO NXAMPMk2 Powered TD Controllers.

“On this occasion, we deliberately asked them to leave us some room to adjust it” said Sone in conclusion. “The shape of the stage and the audience seats change in the middle hall, so we were conscious of being flexible and free to adapt to those changes. I think that if the work being performed changes, the ‘best thing’ that people expect will also change. This is due to how we are involved in the work and our relationship with the outside operator.

“As a hall, I think our job is to discuss questions like, ‘What kind of sound do you want? How do you want it to sound?’ and then provide ‘the best thing’.”

NEXO