Andorra (January 9, 2024)—Andorra is one of Europe’s smallest countries, squeezed in between France and Spain. While it’s only 181 square miles in total, its location, nestled up in the Pyrenees mountains, makes it a “go-to” destination for skiing and the “apres-ski” (literally translated: After Ski) party culture that accompanies it these days. That’s a top priority for the Pyrenees’ largest ski resort, Grandvalira, and its L’Abarset venue, which offers fine dining and heavy partying, replete with DJs and live music. The venue recently installed a new d&b audiotechnik sound system, but given its location near residential areas and the pressures of heavily enforced laws that ensure that the natural surroundings are not disturbed, the audio system design process was not simple.
L’Abarset had to balance its entertainment reputation with environmental responsibility. “From project conceptualization, we knew that sound quality was the main focus, and everything would hinge upon that,” says Àlex Orúe, hospitality & corporate business director for Grandvalira-Ensisa.
The challenge fell to Ibiza-based technical production company, Onlivelighting, led by Toni Prats and Toni Torres. “We chose d&b because it’s rider-friendly and meets the DJs’ demands,” says Prats. “We wanted to seamlessly integrate the loudspeakers into the unique architecture, and to do so, we used a distributed sound system for even sound coverage, where they will have less visual impact.”
At the same time, they had to be aware of how the sound would spread off-site, away from the crowds. “We had to pay special attention to any potential effect on the natural environment,” says Prats. Using d&b’s NoizCalc package to determine potential environmental noise pollution, they discovered that hotels and nearby residential areas might be affected, but that the biggest problem was in fact an area far away on the other side of the valley. Armed with that knowledge, the Onlivelighting team optimized the system accordingly. “It led to us adding point sources in order to reduce the pressure of the main system while achieving the same pressure in the listening area,” says Torres.
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Sound reinforcement was needed both inside the venue, in the restaurant area, and out on the terrace where revelers gather to enjoy the performances. Inside, d&b 8S point source and 18S compact subwoofers are installed. Outside, point sources are also used, with V Series and Y Series in combination and B6 Subs hidden within space’s architecture. All are powered by 40D amplifiers and system control is via R1 remote control software and an R90 touchscreen.
“Thanks to the great dispersion control of both the V and Y point source cabinets, we can optimize very effectively where we want to avoid noise,” says Torres. “We also work actively with the R1 to correct the system according to the rather extreme weather conditions in L’Abarset.”
