Daktronics Revitalizes Lane Stadium’s Sound System with HARMAN Professional Audio Components

BLACKSBURG, Virginia – Systems integrator Daktronics recently upgraded Virginia Tech University’s Lane Stadium with new HARMAN’s JBL VLA Series loudspeakers, along with equipment from BSS audio and Soundcraft. The stadium seats 66,233 and is home to the Virginia Tech Hokies football team.

The goal of this renovation was to ensure a high output system and even coverage from seat to seat. Daktronics selected JBL Professional’s VLA Series line arrays, which offers revolutionary high-impact sound beyond the reach of traditional loudspeaker designs.

“We designed the JBL VLA system to meet and exceed the initial performance standards of point-and-shoot horn speakers, while also reducing costs,” said David Sturzenbecher, Audio Project Engineer for Daktronics.

Daktronics installed a system consisting of 18 JBL VLA601H loudspeakers, four JBL VLA301H loudspeakers, two JBL PD5212 loudspeakers, two JBL PD764 loudspeakers, powered by 17 Crown I-Tech HD 4x3500 amplifiers and nine I-Tech 9000 amplifiers, with two BSS Soundweb London BLU-800 processors. The system also features a Soundcraft Performer 3 audio/lighting mixing console.

“The system has been functioning great and received many positive reviews. We utilized additional DSP I/O to control additional areas outside of the initial scope to provide added customer functionality,” Sturzenbecher added.

Besides installation, Daktronics was also responsible for system design and programming. Of course, a project incorporating all these elements did not go unchallenged.

“The original design did not call for vertical arrays, so we collaborated with the structure engineer to redesign the space to accommodate for the VLA system,” Sturzenbecher noted. “With support from [JBL Senior Applications Engineer] Brad Ricks and [owner’s representative] Anthony James Partners, we successfully completed the project.”

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets – supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson®. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of 14,600 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $4.5 billion for the last twelve months ended September 30, 2013.

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Daktronics Redesigns Audio System at University of Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium with HARMAN’s JBL VLA Line Arrays

MADISON, Wisconsin – In time for the football season, Daktronics recently redesigned the video board and audio system at the University of Wisconsin’s famed Camp Randall Stadium. Home to the Wisconsin Badgers football team, the stadium seats 80,321 people and is the 41st largest stadium in the world. To match the intensity of some of college football’s most dedicated fans, Daktronics selected HARMAN’s JBL VLA Series line array loudspeakers for the new audio system.

“We modeled different designs from many different manufacturers before deciding to use the VLA loudspeakers. No other system could deliver a confident outcome besides the VLA design,” according to David Sturzenbecher of Daktronics.

The new system consists of 18 JBL VLA301H loudspeakers, 14 JBL VLA 601H loudspeakers, three JBL PD743 loudspeakers, two JBL PD5212 loudspeakers, 12 AWC82 loudspeakers and 21 AW295 loudspeakers. Four line arrays cover west, south and east seating areas, with many fill speakers covering the north seats and upper seat fills.

“The design of the stadium presented many challenges including a very deep under-balcony area that was shadowed from the main display. This area required a completely separate submix in order to blend properly with the main system,” Sturzenbecher added.

With system design/commissioning assistance from Shay McElwain of the University of Wisconsin Athletics department, Draktonics successfully completed this massive overhaul of the stadium’s system.

“After some system optimization over the first two events, the system is currently operating extremely well and has received many positive reviews,” Sturzenbecher concluded.

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets – supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon® and Mark Levinson®. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of 14,600 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $4.5 billion for the last twelve months ended September 30, 2013.

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HARMAN Professional and Daktronics Restore Sound at University of Illinois Football Stadium

CHAMPAIGN, Illinois – With a total seating capacity of 60,600, Memorial Stadium at the University of Illinois was built in 1923 and is home to the University’s Fighting Illini football team. While the stadium’s history is a huge part of its charm, the outdated audio system was not. To that end, systems integrator Daktronics recently designed and installed the new audio/video systems at the stadium, implementing HARMAN’s JBL VLA Series loudspeakers along with Crown I-Tech HD amplifiers to power the audio system. The new system is integrated with existing BSS Audio and Crown back-of-house equipment.

The new main bowl audio system is integrated with the new scoreboard and consists of two line arrays, each equipped with six JBL VLA601H and two VLA901H loudspeakers. Two JBL PD5212 loudspeakers are used for downfills. Also, nine AC28’s were installed to fill shadowed areas under the East upper deck.

The system is powered with 12 Crown I-Tech 4x3500 HD and five Crown I-Tech 9000 HD amplifiers. These were installed in accordance with the existing BSS Audio Soundweb London BLU-80 system and Crown CTs amplifiers. The challenge for Daktronics however, was to incorporate the new equipment into the structural appearance of the stadium.

“Daktronics structural engineering had a defined ‘look’ for the entire scoring/audio/video board structure during the beginning design phase of this project. I was tasked with designing a sound system to fit within this look, and thanks to the modular design concept of the JBL VLA Series, this was easily accomplished,” said David Sturzenbecher, Audio Project Engineer for Daktronics.

“The integration with the existing BSS Audio network was crucial to saving cost as there was no need to add additional DSP components. We did provide new user interfaces for the existing BOH system so the customer can easily see any system issues and make quick adjustments,” Sturzenbecher added.

After testing, Sturzenbecher said, “Overall, the system has been performing great. We are experiencing smooth and even coverage across the stadium with plenty of headroom. We have worked with Brad Ricks from JBL and the VLA Series on numerous other projects with great results, and the vertical arrays really fit well within the allotted area.”

HARMAN (www.HARMAN.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio solutions for the automotive, consumer, and professional markets. It is a recognized world leader across its customer segments with premium brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, and Mark Levinson® and leading-edge connectivity, safety and audio technologies. The company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 14,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $4.3 billion for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2013.

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