Meyer Sound Matrix3 Helps Lake of Dreams Win ARCHI-TECH Award

"Lake of Dreams was a very challenging project on which the standards were quite high. We couldn't risk cutting corners with underpowered tools, and the Matrix3 is really the only system designed specifically for the needs of this kind of show." - Philip DiPaula Project Manager, SPL Integrated Solutions

Like most things Steve Wynn does in Las Vegas, the Lake of Dreams production at his eponymous Wynn Hotel is "a spectacular." Lake of Dreams is an environmental theater that uses a wide man-made waterfall as the backdrop for a nightly performance of light, water, music, and computer graphic imagery. While crowds first notice the elaborate visuals, the show's sound is no less complex. The key to managing the demands of the show and smoothly integrating that with the audio in the hotel inside which it is located is the device at the center of the audio scheme: a Meyer Sound Matrix3 audio control system, the keystone of the LCS Series of products.

Now, the technological and aesthetic success of Lake of Dreams has won it the 2006 ARCHI-TECH Magazine AV Awards Grand Prize for Best Project Over $1 Million. Submitted to the competition by SPL Integrated Solutions of Orlando, Fla., Lake of Dreams was one of 46 projects vying for this year's awards, which are designed to honor outstanding examples of the creative and effective integration of technology into otherwise traditional construction projects. Winners are chosen based on seven criteria, including design, solution, concept, results, and creativity. The awards will be presented at the third annual AV Awards Banquet held on June 6, 2006 at the InfoComm exhibition at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.

"To say that we are excited to win the ARCHI-TECH award would be an understatement," says SPL Project Manager Philip DiPaula. "Lake of Dreams was a very challenging project on which the standards were quite high. We couldn't risk cutting corners with underpowered tools, and the Matrix3 is really the only system designed specifically for the needs of this kind of show."

John McMahon, Meyer Sound's executive director for LCS Series products, thinks that the recognition for SPL is well earned. "SPL did a fantastic job on Lake of Dreams, and we are delighted to see them win such a prestigious competition," he comments. "The Matrix3 system was designed expressly to provide an integrated solution to shows with a lot going on, which is clearly what led SPL to spec it for Lake of Dreams. We're happy to be a part of the project and offer our congratulations to SPL for a job well done!"

According to SPL Design Engineer Ed Sullivan, DiPaula chose the Matrix3, because the system, which is equipped with Wild Tracks hard disk playback, could provide source playback, mixing, processing, and routing in a single device. "The Matrix3 system allows the show designer more flexibility than a typical audio system," says Sullivan. "Since the playback device and mixing matrix are integrated into one system, the sound designer can incorporate functions of the hotel's audio system into the cue list for the show.

"For example, instead of simply switching over (from background music) to show mode using a fixed-time fade-out pre-programmed into the audio system, the designer, using time code from the main show control system, can time the fade-out more precisely and combine it with other sound effects triggered by the time code. This combination also keeps the user from having to learn another piece of software or interface with another black box."

The Matrix3 system at Lake of Dreams consists of a single LX-300 digital audio engine that handles all of the audio routing, mixing, and processing, as well as providing 24 Wild Tracks hard-disk playback channels for effects. Playback from the two external 18GB drives is automatically triggered by a cue list created in the system's CueStation programming and control software. The cue list also plays an interactive role in allowing the central control system to determine that the audio system is healthy and ready for operation prior to each show, as well as confirming that the right show has been loaded and is ready to play.

In addition to mixing and playback capabilities for the show, the Matrix3 has the additional duty of interfacing with the audio systems in the restaurants surrounding Lake of Dreams. "We tied into the interior music and paging system so that, at show time, the speakers which are playing background music from the restaurants can be switched over to show audio," explains DiPaula, Sullivan adds that, "When the show isn't running, they send us the audio that's playing inside the restaurant, and we run it through the Matrix3 system and out to the balconies. When we start a show, we can gracefully fade that out before the show starts."

June, 2006

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