The renovation of the sound system at the Penzo stadium in Venice
A soccer game is an entertainment event in its own right. To ensure an adequate level of audience engagement, a stadium must meet certain requirements and characteristics in terms of capacity, safety, and also the quality of sound delivery. Arena sound must allow spectators to feel part of the event.
In May 2021, Venezia FC planned a series of changes to bring the Luigi Penzo stadium up to these standards: a new playing field, increased capacity of the stands, restyling of the indoor venues, elimination of barriers, and renewal of the sound system. Adueemme of Eng. Alvise Panizza, System Integrator, with design support from Prase, was responsible for integrating and installing the new sound systems.
The Penzo stadium is located in Sant’Elena, at the far end of the Castello district, surrounded by the lagoon and close to the sea outlet.
“At the design stage, we recommended Biamp Community R-Series speakers. These outdoor horn speakers are designed to withstand atmospheric agents such as rain, wind, UV rays, and saltiness, so they are the ideal solution for such a special environment as the Venetian lagoon.” – the comment of Luigi Schiavone, Application Engineer, Prase Media Technologies.
Specifically, the following were configured:
15 R25.94TZ horn speakers covering the main grandstand;
2 R2-64MAX horn speakers covering the south curve;
2 R2-64MAX horn diffusers covering the north curve;
2 R2-64MAX horn speakers covering the distinguished grandstand, dedicated since 2016 to Valeria Solesin.
The guidelines of the sports club were not to obstruct the visibility of the stands with the new sound system. Therefore, an optimal placement was studied, to ensure proper broadcasting in each section of the stadium, without the use of perimeter supports to the playing field.
The 15 speakers in the main grandstand, the only covered spectator area, were easily placed under the canopy, equidistant from each other to provide even audio coverage.
In the areas of the two curves and the Solesin grandstand, the speakers were installed on the light towers, which, however, are located far away from both the playing field and some points of the stands. With this localization of the speakers, the amplifiers were distributed over 3 points connected by fiber optics, to minimize power runs.
The public address system is managed by a Biamp Tesira Forté matrix that distributes audio via the Dante protocol over the local Ethernet network.
“The amplification system is configured and managed through Powersoft’s Armonia Plus software platform, which allows the amplifiers to be managed through a dedicated interface, simplifying the work of managing the system, both from the point of view of configuration and equalization of the system.” - Luigi Schiavone, Application Engineer, Prase Media Technologies.
The match event does not end with the final whistle, however; it comes time to hear the opinions and hot considerations of coaches and players.
“Given the excellent result of the audio system, the client asked us to complete the facilities with the upgrade of the press room for both video and audio.” – the comment of Eng. Alvise Panizza, System Integrator, Adueemme Sas.
A 2×2 Videowall with LG Business Solutions monitors was installed, and used pre and post-game while the audio system was implemented with the use of 2 Tannoy speakers, model VLS5 WH, 2 Shure MX418 microphones, and 1 QLXD2/SM58 receiver and transmitter kit, which interact thanks to a Biamp Tesira Forté matrix.
The system is managed directly by the staff, via a Biamp TEC-X 2000 touch control panel that allows levels and sources to be set simply by acting on the rotary switch and custom buttons made. This also allows for the selection of different scenarios, which are necessary for the phases dedicated to the after-game. A Dante network has also been implemented in these rooms to distribute signals by taking advantage of Ethernet cabling, a minimally invasive and scalable solution for future needs.
Targeting links: https://www.prase.it/un-impianto-audio-da-campionato/
The video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tmiyH3OXCI
Adueemme Sas di Alvise Panizza: https://www.adueemme.biz/
Brand Biamp: https://www.biamp.com/
Brand Shure: https://www.shure.com/it-IT
Brand Powersoft: https://www.powersoft.com/it/
Brand LG Business Solutions: https://www.lgbusiness.it/
Brand Tannoy: https://www.tannoy.com/
