Clair Brothers has recently finished up the initial phase of a new sound reinforcement system project at The Wellmont Theatre in Montclair, New Jersey, a former movie palace which has re-opened as a revitalized live music venue featuring a diverse assortment of top performing artists.
The Wellmont Theatre, built in 1922, was converted to a triplex movie house in the 1970s and closed in 2006. It was later acquired by Montclair Entertainment, a partnership between long-time promoter Andy Feltz and the principals of New York-based independent concert promoter The Bowery Presents, which also owns and operates noted live music clubs such as Mercury Lounge and Bowery Ballroom. Montclair Entertainment has since enacted a multi-million renovation of the venue, restoring its original architectural glory while also transforming it into a 2,200-seat, state-of-the-art live music venue. Following an inaugural concert late last year featuring Duran Duran, the Wellmont now regularly hosts live performances several nights a week by top performers like George Benson, George Thorogood & The Destroyers, David Byrne, Ben Folds, Tesla, Southside Johnny & The Asbury Dukes, and many more.
The revitalization effort is headlined by a new concert-level sound reinforcement system designed and installed by the Clair Brothers. The system is headed by Clair Brothers i212-i line arrays driven exclusively by Lab.gruppen FP+ Series power amplifiers featuring the company’s patented Class TD output stage topology and outfitted with exclusive NomadLink networking technology. The mid/high section of each full-range i212-i line array module provides 90-degree (horizontal) by 10-degree (vertical) coverage, symmetrically flanked 12-inch low frequency drivers in their own tuned reflex chambers. Integrated flying hardware includes adjustable rear rigging for a variety of installation applications, which proved valuable on this project, where coverage needed to be optimized both to the main floor as well as a very large balcony seating region.
The main arrays are flown to the left and right of the stage, with two Clair Brothers iS218 double 18-inch-loaded subwoofers at the top of each array followed by ten i212-i full-range line array modules. Fill coverage to the very front seating rows on the main floor is supplied by six Clair Brothers portable FF2-H low-profile full-range loudspeakers placed as needed on top of the front of the stage, time-aligned with the mains. The project marks Clair Brothers’ first foray with Lab.gruppen power amplifiers to drive a larger-scale installed system. “Our touring division has been using Lab.gruppen amplifiers frequently, and they’ve been performing very well on the road,” notes Gene Pelland, Executive Vice President “Based upon those experiences, we felt confident in taking the next step with Lab.gruppen here.”
As a result, Lead System Designer Jim Devennney chose to use the FP+ Series in his tri-amplified approach to driving the line arrays. Specifically, Lab.gruppen FP 6000Q power the line array high- and mid-frequency components, while FP 10000Q four-channel models power the low-frequency drivers. Two more FP 7000 amplifiers drive the iS218 subwoofers, while a single Lab.gruppen C Series C 28:4 four-channel unit drives the FF2-H front-fill loudspeakers. “These amplifiers were selected for this project for their sonic quality and reliability,” Devennney states. “Simply, they have to work every time; system failure is not an option. You don’t ever want a system to let a client down, and you also don’t want to be making additional service calls.”
One Dolby Lake LP4D12 digital signal processor handles all processing needs for the main arrays, while another LP4D8 is applied to the front-fills and subwoofers. Both processors are housed in Middle Atlantic Products racks positioned on a loft about 10 feet off the floor at stage left, preventing unauthorized access and tampering. For this first phase of the project, the NomadLink networking technology in the amplifiers is being utilized for convenient, proper power on/off sequencing. In later phases, further NomadLink capabilities, such as monitoring and control, may be utilized as well. Future phases will also address aspects such as floor sublows, front-of-house console, additional cabling infrastructure, stage monitoring, and more. “What we have provided the client are the essentials of a true concert-caliber system providing exceptional sonic performance and durability that can smartly expand and grow with their needs,” concludes Devennney.