Alcons reinforces Brewery House venue

26 October 2012

Sweden - A former brewery may not seem the obvious choice for a live venue, but that is exactly the use that Stockholm's Bryggarsalen has been put to. A newly-installed Alcons Audio system ensures that the sound for live events has a crisp head and a full body. Just like a good ale, in fact.

Originally built in 1914, Stockholm's Bryggarsalen (Brewery House) ended its first incarnation as a brewery in 1970. The ensuing 40 years saw the building put to a variety of uses, until its rebirth as a live music and corporate event venue in 2010. With a restaurant and two bars complementing the event spaces, it's already extremely popular.

Bromma-based Electrosound has previously installed Alcons systems in several other Swedish venues, so the company's engineers knew that Alcons would deliver in what proved an acoustically challenging room.

Originally it contained the washbacks for brewing the beer (giant vats where liquid wort is mixed with brewers yeast), so has a high ceiling with tiled walls and floor. In addition, a balcony at the rear of the space has another flat, tiled wall facing the stage, with two sets of marble stairs leading up to it. This profusion of hard, flat surfaces made careful product selection essential.

"From previous installations, we knew that the clarity and precision of Alcons systems helps a huge amount in a room with as many reflections as this one," says Electrosound's Brollan Söderström. "Alcons really was the obvious solution."

The system comprises six LR14 pro-ribbon line-array loudspeakers flown each side of the stage, with a BF302 sub per side boosting the low frequencies. Three further loudspeakers act as balcony delays, with a Roland M400 digital system taking care of the house and monitor mixes.

"We had to be very careful when positioning the speakers," says Brollan. "As well as not pointing them at the walls, we kept the main system away from covering the balcony and spent a great deal of time working with the architects and designers, explaining why it was necessary to install heavy drapes on as many walls as possible.

"They understood what we were trying to achieve and so, despite the acoustic challenges, the sound is actually very good. The venue is very happy and we have received good comments about it from many other people as well, just like we do from those who have been to other Swedish venues where we have installed Alcons systems - just some of these are Malmö's Nöjjesteatern Theatre and Debaser nightclub; the Berns Salonger entertainment complex, another Debaser nightclub and the Malmen and Anglé hotels in Stockholm, as well as three conference centres."

(Jim Evans)