JBL VERTEC® Line Array System Selected By DSS Inc. To Upgrade The Midland by AMC

With decades of history in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, The Midland by AMC recently re-opened its doors after a renovation process that included installation of a new state-of-the-art sound system featuring JBL VERTEC® line arrays by systems integrator DSS (Digital Sound Systems) Inc. The theater, a longtime fixture on Main Street since 1927, has hosted performances by top artists like Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Dylan, James Taylor, and Duran Duran. The newly revamped venue will continue to provide entertainment for the region with a wide variety of musical artists, comedians and family entertainers.

As part of the renovation, the theater’s permanent floor seating was removed to make space for standing room or optional table seating. Installers also placed a bar in the back of the main space, and removed the last 15 rows of seating in the balcony to install a second upstairs bar area. The new PA system is essentially divided into two separate systems—one for the balcony and one for the main floor area. Combined with the venue’s historical architecture, the building renovation resulted in unique system design and installation challenges. “Overall weight was an issue on this project because we had to keep our total working load under 2,500 pounds,” advised Tim Dressler, Systems Manager for DSS Inc. “We were able to come in underneath that with our system design using VERTEC, with no sacrifice in coverage or output power.”

Upper balcony coverage is achieved with a cluster of six VERTEC VT4888 midsize line array elements per side, supported by an additional four VT4882 midsize arrayable subwoofers for low-frequency reinforcement. In order to reach the bar in the rear of the balcony, the arrays were angled upward. “Initially, we weren’t able to get the trim height we wanted for the new loudspeaker arrays,” added Dressler. “However, with the easy suspension capabilities of the VERTEC speakers, we were able to extend the back hanging points of the VT4882 subwoofers so they are basically hanging flat, right where we wanted them.”

Similar to the system installed for the balcony, the floor level PA system features an array of six VERTEC VT4888’s per side, along with four VT4880 2x18” full-size arrayable subwoofers ground stacked on each side. Additional JBL VRX928LA compact loudspeakers are used as front fills while an additional four VRX932LA loudspeakers were installed for under-balcony reinforcement.

DSS chose JBL SRX712M’s for stage monitors, with JBL SRX728 and SRX715 loudspeakers in use as side fills. All of the loudspeaker systems are powered by Crown I-Tech 6000 amplifiers and were configured with Harman HiQnet™ System Architect™ software.

“An increasing number of well-established performance venues are renovating their facilities and upgrading sound systems to meet the requirements of touring concert artists,” noted David Scheirman, Vice President, Tour Sound for JBL Professional. “DSS’ choice of a modular, full-bandwidth midsize line array system for the Midland by AMC is representative of this trend. JBL is pleased to see the selection of our acclaimed VERTEC loudspeaker system products by a professional regional installer like DSS Inc. for this application.”

For more information on DSS Inc., please visit www.digitalsoundsystems.com