ATK Audiotek used over 140 Powersoft DIGAM K10 amplifiers to drive the JBL VerTec arrays plus subs, front fills, delays and monitors at the annual Grammy Awards telecast.
Ventura, CA (March 30, 2012)—Production sound provider ATK Audiotek has standardized exclusively on the Powersoft DIGAM K10 amplifier, and in recent months, put it to use on three very different PA system configurations— the Super Bowl pre-show and halftime musical performances, Grammy Awards broadcast, and Academy Awards telecast
ATK, which has been handling the Super Bowl entertainment segments for many years, has traditionally configured the main PA system on a series of carts for rapid deployment onto the field at halftime. This year the rig comprised 18 carts, each loaded with four JBL VerTec VT4889 cabinets, 16 of which also included a pair of VerTec VT4880A subwoofers. Eighty-four Powersoft K10 amplifiers located around the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis provided power, with an additional 18 K10s driving Madonna’s onstage monitor system.
“We had four amp positions underneath the bleachers,” explained Kirk Powell, system design engineer, ATK. “Because of the limited amount of room on the sidelines at Super Bowl, the less space we take up, obviously, the better off we are. Being able to cut our amplifier space needs down by at least 50 percent was a huge help for us.”
According to Brett Valasek, general manager, ATK Audiotek, “It has helped in the amount of truck space required compared to our old amp packages, and it has definitely helped in the amount of power I need to have supplied for the power distros.”
The Grammy Awards telecast, another longstanding ATK account, required over 140 K10 amplifiers to drive the four main 12-box VerTec arrays plus subs, front fills, delays and monitors. Although not required this year, in past years, flown barges were used to position the amplifiers close to the delay speakers flown high in the roof of the Staples Center arena in downtown Los Angeles. “Obviously there’s a weight limitation, so when you go from a 60-pound amplifier to a 26-pound amplifier, it makes a huge difference,” notes Powell.
The Academy Awards broadcast, held in a traditional proscenium theatre – formerly known as the Kodak Theatre – in Hollywood, placed very different demands on ATK’s sound system. There, 57 Powersoft K10 amplifiers supplied power to the 15-box left and right hangs of VerTec and two eight-box VerTec subwoofer clusters, as well as various models of EAW, JBL and other brand monitor, side fill, front fill, under-balcony and under-seat speakers.
All 450 of ATK’s K10 amplifiers are fitted with optional plug-in cards that allow them to be interconnected through Powersoft’s proprietary AESOP (AES Ethernet Simple Open Protocol) network. In the next phase of standardization on the K10 platform, ATK will upgrade every amplifier with DSP cards, enabling control of processing, monitoring, and other functionality using Powersoft’s Armonía Pro Audio Suite of software.
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