Impact AV Australia has provided an audio visual design and installation for the new function centre at Merewether Surfhouse in NSW’s Newcastle.
The design was specific to suit the low ceilings and the high ambient light from the glass exterior walls and had to create a flexible audio visual environment for various room layouts in the multi-room facility.
New function centre, Merewether Surfhouse has received a new AV installation courtesy of Impact AV Australia.
Silas Creel, Impact AV Australia’s managing director liaised with Greg Donovan, Screen Technics’ managing director to design new flip down ceiling mounted screen lifters for 100” DNP front projection screens. This new lifter design and screen installation is a first for Australian audio visual installations and uses two linked activator motors to lift and drop down. Installed to rotate, they were built into the roof with the roofing panels attached to the back of the screens providing a seamless and customised solution for the function centre.
The screens are designed to disappear into the ceiling, maximising the Surfhouse’s ceiling height.
To complement the screens, Impact AV Australia also installed Panasonic 6000 ANSI lumens DLP projectors using Screen Technics’ in ceiling projector lifters.
By using DNP Screens which have a high gain surface, and combined with powerful Panasonic projectors the high ambient light was minimised. The screens were positioned with backs to the exterior glass walls to keep direct sunlight off screen surface without using block out blinds.
The lighting system was designed to provide maximum flexibility in a corporate function centre.
Also installed were ETC Source Four Jr. Zooms profile lamps purchased from JANDS. They were perfect for the Surfhouse because they have wider lens angles for shorter throws. Also perfect for the Surfhouse were Martin Smart Macs, purchased from Show Technology because of their fan-less feature using alloy heat sinks to dissipate heat, this reduces the noise levels inside the venue. The Smart Macs also have the wider lens angles for the short throws.
130 metres of Show Technology Pro Shop Tri Colour LED strip lights (30 LEDs/m) were installed in the coffered ceiling section for a coloured roof wash. The LED strips are controlled by low-voltage dmx controllers, allowing colour changes and various light levels.
The lighting control for the venue uses the Jands Vista Lighting System. It was chosen because it is a reliable and flexible system of Australian design. Impact AV Australia has been running V2 Byron for awhile now in hire stock, and are happy with the ease of use and reliability of the product.
There were two separate sound systems installed which can be combined with each other. The first sound system was powered by Apogee AE-2 speakers and Apogee amps for the main public address system. The second system installed was the BSS Blu-160 audio signal processors and I/O expanders that control the JBL Control CTM in ceiling speakers for the background music system. JBL Control 25AV speakers were used for the outdoor balcony. Crown amplifiers were used with all the installed JBL speakers.
The installation has been very successful with all events, and there has been a strong interest in the Hunter Region for the Surfhouse and Impact AV Australia’s audio visual installation.
