After finalizing the extensive refurbishments
regarding the conversion to full-digital, the focus of CinemaxX Mannheim is now
on bringing the sound quality in line with the perfect silver screen picture
quality.
After more than 1000 highway kilometers and many
flying hours, where many different sound systems were evaluated in studios and
cinemas, CinemaxX Mannheim decided for a test set-up from company Alcons Audio
in cinema room Kino 10: equipped with 722 seats and a screen of 276 m2 (largest
screen in Baden-Württemberg) it is one of the largest cinema rooms in
Baden-Württemberg.
On preparation, more than 12 hours were spent, to get
the most realistic application of the test set-up. The complete team of
CinemaxX Mannheim saw their decision confirmed, after a wide variety of content,
from block busters to opera and concert registrations, were auditioned through
the system.
From March 09 to March 14 it was time: The complete
sound system and B-chain in Kino 10 were
renewed and brought up to the latest “state-of-the-art”.
For this, a completely new developed sound system was
installed behind the screen, as well as new subwoofers and the complete
surround sound system. Also the amplification and speaker-processing were
replaced.
For the tuning of the sound system alone 8 hours were
reserved and resulted in a more than convincing sound through all tested sound
genres. For the test hearing session, content like Avatar, Phantom of the Opera,
Street Dance and the concert by the sea of Andrea Bocelli were played. With
this, a perfect quality at low sound levels as well as at high blockbuster
levels was guaranteed.
The Cinemarray™ System from Alcons Audio is a complete
new cinema sound system, which design is based on line-source technology and
thus offerring a flat sound pressure level from the front to the rear of the
audience seating. The patented pro-ribbon transducer technology of Alcons is
succesfully being used in live-sound / concert applications around the globe,
due to the undistorted, non-compressed 1:1 reproduction and the natural sound.
Now this techology is specifically developed for
Digital Cinema applications, with the Cinemarray™ CRA30 system as the first
product.
For surround reproduction the same pro-ribbon
transducer technology has been applied. This set-up consist of 24 pcs. of the
CRS8 2-way surround system, which was newly developed as well. Due to the use
of identical components, the surround system blends seamlessly with the screen
system, with which a completely coherent and naturally wide sound stage is
realized (traditionally totally different transducers are being used for
screen- and surround speakers, resulting in a less-than-perfect sound stage).
The result in CinemaxX Mannheim Kino 10 is a crystal-clear response with
unique speech intelligibility under powerful digital dynamics, with a flat
sound pressure level from front to rear of the room. Due to this, the entire
audience enjoys the same experience.
Carsten Albrecht, Alcons Audio GmbH: “this prestigious installation is
the next step in Alcons’ presence in the German
cinema market and a clear indicator of the success Alcons C-series is enjoying
worldwide, as one of the most innovative “Digital Cinema ready” sound systems
available”.
Company fours GmbH from Heidelberg worked in close
cooperation with Alcons Audio on the installation and cabling of the entire
system. This guaranteed that Kino 10 also in sound quality is among the best
cinema screens in Baden-Württemberg.
Michael Braner, Technical Manager
CinemaxX Mannheim: “ "after
all studies and tests we’ve done and participated in, we can only say that
currently Alcons is among the most innovative developers of cinema sound
systems. So we’re very proud that we’ve installed Kino 10 as the first project
and that we have the best cinema sound experience with Alcons Cinemarray™ !”
Technical system lay-out Kino 10:
3x Alcons CRA30n 3-Weg Cinemarray™ pro-ribbon screen
sound system
3x Alcons CRA30w 3-Weg Cinemarray™ pro-ribbon screen
sound system
4x Alcons CB362 2x 18” high-output subwoofer
24 x Alcons CRS8 2-Weg pro-ribbon surround system
3x Alcons ALC2 2x 1kW amplified loudpseaker processor
8x Alcons ALC4 2x 2kW amplified loudpseaker processor
The system is being fed by a Doremi 2K4 Digital Server
with DataSat AP20 sound processor.
More information can be found on:
www.diekinomacher.de and
www.digitalcinemaready.info or
www.alconsaudio.com
Information on the Cinemarray™ concept will be published
in the coming weeks and shown on the Kino Congress in Baden-Baden Germany and
on CinemaCon Las Vegas USA.