Lido Cinema upgrades with JBL 7 series
- Details
Established in the 1920s, the Lido Cinema is one of New Zealand’s oldest and most prestigious cinemas. Originally opened as a single-screen art house cinema, the Lido expanded with a second 44-seat capacity theatre known as The Lounge in 2005.
The Lido recently decided to upgrade the aging 5.1 sound system in The Lounge to a state-of-the-art 7.1 surround sound system. Unable to place speakers behind the screen due to the rear-projection system in the Lounge, the Lido recruited the help of AV integrators Avid Automation and JBL distributor JPRO to install a custom solution. After surveying the location, Avid Automation and JPRO designed a Harman surround sound system comprised of JBL 7 Series reference monitors.
“It’s always been a bit of a troublesome venue for speaker placement due to the rear-projection screen,” says Richard Dalton, managing director, The Lido. “We’ve had about three sound systems in there since it opened and none of them have been particularly good. The idea of working with the AV Integrator and JBL to create a custom solution was rather exciting. The amazing work in the Lounge has exceeded my expectations with a premium audio result - I love it.”
Avid Automation and JPRO equipped The Lounge with JBL 708i reference monitors in the left, centre and right channels in a bi-amplified configuration. The smaller JBL 705i reference monitors are used as surround speakers to create a truly immersive listening experience.
Avid Automation and JPRO designed custom JBL subwoofers to deliver smooth, powerful low-end during intense action scenes. The system is powered by Crown CDi 4|300 amplifiers, which feature advanced digital signal processing to ensure pristine sound in any environment. Equipped with DriveCore technology, CDi amps include JBL speaker tuning presets for quick and easy installation.
(Jim Evans)
