The Seongnam Arts Center is a cultural hub in South Korea that prides itself on being a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose performance facility. Ease of use, durability and reliability of equipment are what make one venue the preferred choice over another for visiting performers, and this mounting pressure for technological excellence in Korea was a major driving force behind the Arts Center’s decision for an audio overhaul. Having recently installed a new audio system, the 1,808-seat capacity focused on an intercom systems upgrade comprised of Clear-Com’s® HelixNet® Digital Network Partyline and FreeSpeak II® Digital Wireless Intercom. The new system would be implemented across three performance halls: the Concert Hall, the Ensemble Theatre, and the largest of the three, the Opera House.
The venue had been using an analog intercom system that was already operating at max capacity, and demand for a bigger system, with more channels and more flexibility, was only continuing to grow. Andy Jae Hyung Ryu, Chief Technical Director of One-Up Solutions explained, “Based on the requirements of international and big performance teams we can predict that performance venues in Korea will need to provide larger systems which will mean that digital intercom systems will have higher demand…so they decided to upgrade.”
A FreeSpeak II FSII-Base-II wireless base station, linked with HelixNet, is also installed on the Stage Manager’s desk backstage. The FreeSpeak II wireless intercom system connects 25 wireless belt packs via several 2.4GHz antennas distributed throughout the venue for seamless roaming.
Deputy Director of the Seongnam Art Center Stage Management Department, Lee Byung-kook, comments on the effectiveness of implementing high performance intercom into the venue’s overall technology upgrade. “When everyone can communicate clearly and in real-time, it comes through in the performance. FreeSpeak II and HelixNet allow us to synchronize all aspects that make up the performance — lighting, sound, video, talent and more.” Seongnam Arts Center is one of the first venues in Korea to upgrade to a fully digital intercom system, making it a truly superior multipurpose performance space.