SHEFFIELD ACADEMY

In November 2007, Academy Music Group (AMG) completed the leasehold acquisition of the former Roxy nightclub on Arundel Gate in Sheffield. A large, purpose built entertainment venue, the Roxy has had various incarnations from the Top Rank Suite in the 1970s and 1980s, famed for gigs by The Police and The Jam, David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust tour in 1972, to The Clash, Killing Joke and Elvis Costello.

Legendary DJ Don Letts was a resident at the Roxy, representing its cutting edge status as a cult venue in the North of England, and in the late ’80s it was known as ‘Barry Noble’s Roxy’. Sheffield welcomed its chart nights, such as TV’s ‘Hit Man And Her’ and hit-makers of the day including Kylie Minogue.

Consistently reported for demolition since the ’90s, AMG was delighted acquire the venue and add it to its already wide portfolio. Located in a prime City Centre position, Carling Academy Sheffield opened on Friday 11 April, with a sell-out gig from local heroes Reverend & The Makers.

AMG) prides itself on pushing the boundaries in live events for both large scale touring productions and providing only the very best and state of the art in-house facilities.
Over the years, AMG has developed a strategy of multi-room formats and Carling Academy Sheffield is no exception with an overall capacity of 2,350 and a second, production-complete venue (Carling Academy 2 Sheffield) for 400-600 people.

“Choosing the right partners and equipment is vital to the success of any multi-purpose space,” says group operations manager, Richard Maides. “At AMG, we work on a venue-by-venue basis to ensure we spec each site accordingly to its core trade, welcoming the latest in new technology in an ever-changing environment.”

Carling Academy Sheffield is Liverpool-based Adlib Audio’s first AMG project, for which it has specified and installed a Nexo Geo D sound system, with Soundcraft digital consoles.
The sound design was created by Adlib’s Andy Dockerty in conjunction with Roger Kirby and Mark Burnley, working closely with AMG’s group technical manager, Ed Jackson and Richard Maides. The final system optimises the venue’s requirements for the live environment with the diversity of a leading dance/club system.

Carling Academy Sheffield features a deep balcony wrapped around a dancehall style room, so the team chose traditional side hangs stage left and right, each comprising nine elements of Nexo Geo D10. These are complimented by a block of six ground stacked Nexo S2 subs per side. These can be moved and stored under the stage to accommodate visiting production and there are also extra loading points next to the house PA for touring systems.

To ensure excellent sound coverage across the main room’s voluminous interior, there are over 40 peripheral speakers carefully positioned around the room, all manufactured by Adlib.

This includes 24 600W AA 1214s and six AA218 dual subs. To get around any limited or low ceiling height issues, there are a combination of landscape mounted AA81s and AA218s, 16 in total, and these cover the corners and approximately 15m under the balcony.

The G10s and the Adlib cabinets are powered by a combination of Camco V6s and Crown I-Tech & XTI amplifiers. Processing is via BSS Soundweb London modules.

Voted TPi’s Favourite Sound Rental Company of 2008, Adlib has supplied a comprehensive monitor rig for Carling Academy Sheffield including Martin LE1500 wedges, selected because it’s an industry standard box that “does the business”, plus two Martin Blackline H3 tops and two S218 bass cabinets for side fills, and Adlib’s own AA215 dual 15 drum sub. Also supplied is a vast selection of mics of all types and varieties.

For control in the main room there are two Soundcraft Vi6 digital consoles, with outboard graphic equalisation and playback.

Carling Academy 2 Sheffield features three elements per side of Nexo Geo D10s, run with Adlib’s touring AA218 HL dual 18 subs. AA1214 high powered boxes are used for wide outfill, and another Soundcraft Vi6 controls both FOH and monitor mixes. There are also six sends of monitoring using Martin LE1500’s with Soundweb London and Nexo processors and a 48-way multicore in each room with monitor, record and split options.

The Academy has the diversity for a third smaller area, for stand-alone, intimate nights and can act as an additional room for a club set-up at the top of the venue. Here, audio is dealt with by AA218i dual 18" subs and AA1214s — the smallest high-output box Adlib manufactures.

Adlib has also kitted out the DJ booths with Technics 1210s turntables, Pioneer CDJ 1000 MK3s and the brand new Allen & Heath 3D mixers in the main room and Xone 92s elsewhere.

LIGHTING
Once again, AMG has turned to Bristol-based Utopium to handle the lighting installation, which has been designed and co-ordinated with Angus Chinn using leading lighting brands including Robe moving lights and Avolites control.

“Sheffield is slightly different in that it is designed with a technical duality to function as both a live and a club venue, which gives it a challenging and exciting edge,” says Chinn.

There are three straight over-stage trusses and two triangular trusses over the dancefloor — the latter can be lowered in to make the space more intimate if required.

The equipment available, across both stage and dancefloor areas, includes eight Robe ColorSpot 700E ATs, eight ColorWash 575E AT Zooms and six ColorSpot 250E ATs, four Robe REDBlinder 2•48s, four Martin Atomic Strobes, eight bars of six PARs, six ETC Source Four Juniors, a Look Solutions Unique water-based hazer and a Unique Viper high output smoke machine, six floor cans, four Studio Due CS4 moving ACLs and a 1.2m mirror ball.

“This pool of lighting kit does not have fixed positions and can be shared and moved between over-stage and dancefloor rigs as required, giving incoming artists real flexibility,” says Ed Jackson.

Chinn states: “I chose Robe moving lights again for all the same reasons that I have specified them in the past — great reliability, lots of creative options and competitive pricing, plus excellent back-up and support from Robe UK.”

On the control side, Chinn again went for Avolites, with two Pearl Experts for the main room and one of the new Pearl Tigers for Carling Academy 2 Sheffield.

Having two consoles for the main venue allows the FOH position (for the stage) to be completely and seamlessly struck for club nights when the lighting rig can be operated from a side position close to the DJ booth. Dimming in both Academy venues is via LightProcessor Dimensions.

For the balcony and lounge areas, Chinn specified many of Anolis LED fixtures. Anolis ArcLine strips are strategically positioned between the reinforcement speakers around the rim of the balcony, giving a soft colour-changing glow to the area.

All 10 bars throughout the Academy are backlit with Anolis LED ArcLinks which can be patched into the main Avo consoles and run together with the stage and dancefloor lighting programme, or alternatively be controlled locally by DMX Light Switches.

The 400-600 capacity Carling Academy 2 is a positive step in continuing AMG’s policy for encouraging and developing new bands and artists to play in professionally equipped venues. Here Chinn specified four Robe ColorSpot 250E ATs and four Robe ClubScan 250s, which are ideal fixtures for smaller spaces. There are also two Atomic strobes, four PAR 64 floor cans, 12 Anolis ArcSource 12 RGBs and five Anolis ArcLine Optic 36 RGB fixtures.

It is the first time that Utopium has specified an Avolites Pearl Tiger for an installation. “I wanted to keep the Avo theme going, and the Tiger was ideal for Academy 2,” adds Chinn. “It’s exactly the right size and it has the same operating system as the larger Pearls and virtually all professional LDs can operate a Pearl, not to mention the Avo service and back-up.”

A/V
For the installation of the video system at Carling Academy Sheffield, AMG opted to work once again with Scott Wakelin, now of Dimension Audio, the leading supplier of specialist A/V and audio services.

In recent years, Academy Music Group has invested heavily in A/V technology and multiple screen relay across its venue estate as the demand for high quality visuals becomes a bigger part of live production.

The main stage at Carling Academy Sheffield features a 6m drop-down screen, using a Sanyo projector and a high resolution three-chip camera focused on the stage. Carling Academy 2 Sheffield features exactly the same facilities with a 3m drop-down screen over its stage and high resolution camera and projector.

Additionally, Carling Academy Sheffield features no less than 16 Samsung LCD 32" screens over bars and across the venue controlled by Kramer Video control equipment.

Appointments at the new venue include general manager Richard Hunter and technical manager Paul Glave, who relocates to his home town of Sheffield after working at the Carling Academy venues in Bristol and Birmingham. The venue’s first month of trading sees Good Charlotte, James, KT Tunstall, The Human League and The Kooks gracing the main stage.
TPi

www.sheffieldacademy.co.uk