Hennepin Arts, the nonprofit responsible for preserving and enhancing historic theatres in downtown Minneapolis, has completed a major audio upgrade at the State Theatre. The 2,181-seat venue opened in 1921 and presents Broadway touring productions, concerts and comedy. Audio Logic Systems designed and installed the new d&b audiotechnik KSL-Series system to replace the theatre’s aging unsupported PA.
The room presented three distinct acoustic areas: the main floor, the balcony and a deep 50-foot under-balcony space. Audio Logic Systems used the broadband directivity of KSL-Series and d&b ArrayProcessing to address tonal consistency across those areas. The State Theatre system includes left/right main hangs with 20 KSL8 and 4 KSL12 loudspeakers, 4 SL-GSUB subwoofers placed left and right with a 30-degree toe-in, 6 Y10P front fills, 5 Yi10P under-balcony loudspeakers, and amplification from 15 40D and 2 D90 amplifiers.
The project also produced practical installation gains beyond the change in loudspeaker technology. Using d&b ArrayCalc modeling, the team flew the arrays five feet higher than the previous system, improving sightlines for seats on the outer sides of the theatre. Amplification was reduced from six 44-space racks to three racks, recovering 15 square feet in the amp room and using less power. As part of the wider Hennepin Arts overhaul, Audio Logic Systems also installed a d&b CCL system at the nearby 1,014-seat Pantages Theatre with arrays of 14 CCL8 and 2 CCL12 cabinets.