Eichelberger Performing Arts Center

The 700-seat historic Eichelberger Performing Arts Center in Hanover, Pennsylvania renovated its theater and upgraded its permanent audio system. After hearing an audio demonstration given by 1 SOUND in the theater, Bill Fitch, CEO of Fitch Electronics, without a doubt knew that the new 1 SOUND Contour CT212 and SUB215 were the perfect fit for this theater.

Fitch Electronics installed two of 1 SOUND’s new Contour CT212 as the main left and right on the orchestra level for the bottom 450 seats. The Contour CT212 is a 3-way point source with controlled directivity, a long throw, and a max SPL of 145 dB. The CT212 has an intimate sound at lower volumes and an unprecedented clarity and lack of distortion at high SPL, especially for a loudspeaker of its size, making it the perfect loudspeaker for this application where there are theater plays, touring rock bands, comedian acts and more on the system.

To support the balcony level of 250 seats two Contour CT28s were mounted with their Wall Bracket accessory. For bass two SUB215s were hung in the center of the hall above the proscenium. To rig the subwoofers in the air, M8 eye bolts were screwed into their rigging points at the top of the subwoofer and used to hang the subs in combination with custom hanging hardware made by 1 SOUND. The SUB215 is 1 SOUND’s newest subwoofer that is a compact, deep, and punchy sub with two 15-inch tetracoil technology drivers. This sub can reach a max SPL of 140 dB and is less than 18” wide or tall. For extra support in the first rows, Fitch Electronics specified five Panorama MS34s as the front fills on stage.

The Panorama MS34s were deployed in 1 SOUND’s Mono + Stereo mode utilising their proprietary M+S Controller interface, maintaining the stereo image in the seats next to the stage. The MS34s were all run on one wire across the lip of the stage. Three full-range Cannon C8s were mounted to the ceiling using their C-Clamp accessory for under-balcony audio support. Fitch Electronics powered this new 1 SOUND system with Powersoft T904A and T604A amplifiers recommended by 1 SOUND.

Lou Mannarino, the Audio Designer and CEO of 1 SOUND, visited Eichelberger after the installation and did the system optimisation for the venue in time for the theater’s reopening after their proud renovation.

The Eichelberger Theater building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is considered worthy of preservation so it was important for the loudspeaker installation to not be intrusive to the space. This in combination with wanting the 100-pound subwoofers off the floor created a challenge in how to install the product while preserving optimal loudspeaker positioning for sound. Fitch Electronics had to think strategically about the installation.

With their knowledge of the building and 1 SOUND’s accessory options and their willingness to custom fabricate rigging hardware for unique projects, they were able to make a successful installation without sacrificing the loudspeaker positioning. 1 SOUND suggested to Fitch Electronics to utilize the SUB215 rigging points and that they would make secondary custom-fabricated hardware to rig the two joined subwoofers from the ceiling safely. Together, they were able to achieve the theater’s criteria of having the loudspeakers aesthetically blend in and not take up any floor space, while creating an ideal sound design where the bass was even more distributed for the room with that positioning. This was the first completed installation to utilise 1 SOUND’s new SUB215.

After hearing through word of mouth from fellow audio industry experts and also performers about the new 1 SOUND system in the Levoy Theater, a theater similar in size with similar touring performers that installed 1 SOUND despite the hurtle the loudspeakers not having brand name popularity at the time, Fitch Electronics asked 1 SOUND for a demonstration. 1 SOUND brought the proposed loudspeakers for the design to the theater for an audio demonstration with the team of Fitch Electronics and the Director of Eichelberger Performing Arts Center.

The Director of the theater was invested in the theater’s current room renovation. He had a goal to renew the theater bringing it a new life for the community and needed to be certain of the investment in a new audio system. The client instantly heard the premium audio quality from the loudspeakers, felt that they worked aesthetically in the space, and felt assured in the brand’s support.

He quickly admitted that he understood and felt the quality of this investment for this historic theater.

For 1 SOUND the completion of this project felt like a full-circle moment. Having drawn inspiration from his experience of mixing sound in theaters into 1 SOUND loudspeaker designs, Mannarino and the team at 1 SOUND were very excited to hear and experience the feedback from the team at the Eichelberger Theater and Fitch Electronics. It was emanant throughout the process of discovery to completion and beyond, the pride that all parties felt from doing a job well done and the feeling of empowerment from experiencing the final result.

“It was such a pleasure to work in this historic theater and with Bill Fitch and his sons at Fitch Electronics. For us [1 SOUND] this was our first completed installation using our new SUB215s so I was pleased to hear their performance in this theater, their sonic clarity and musicality in the low frequencies, and also their efficiency and impact at higher SPL. This project incorporated three of our new products we just launched this year, including the CT212 and C8 as well, so it was a proud moment for me hearing the results. They did a beautiful renovation at the Eichelberger Theater.” said Lou Mannarino about the project.