Henan fantasy city comes to life with Dante's design and management

Unique Henan immersive theater AV systems: Land of Drama are based on networks of Audinate, managed and monitored with Dante Domain Manager.

A platform Dante AV over IP is in charge of monitoring the more than one hundred audiovisual installations in the Henan theater complex. It is an extension of more than 400.000 square meters and attended by more than 10.000 visitors per day, figure that doubles on vacation.

In the theater complex Unique Henan: Land of Drama, known as the largest fantasy city in the world, the story is told 5.000 years of Chinese civilization in this region. Designed as a self-guided maze, comprises dozens of outdoor spaces, included 56 patios and 21 theaters. In the staging they intervene 800 actors to offer about 700 minutes of show.

The numerous lighting systems, The installation's video and sound are controlled by a combination of pre-programmed presentations, synchronized and timecode based, audio activated routines, as well as production and live mixing.

In Unique Henan: Land of Drama , many elements of the overall sound system and the many independent systems are based on Audinate networks, managed and monitored with Dante Domain Manager (DDM).

“It's like a theme park, but everything is based on theater and the audiovisual experience. There are large interior and exterior spaces, restaurants, panoramic views…”, explains Steven Cai, gerente de Marketing de Audinate APAC.

Each theater presents a different environment, in terms of features, forms of action and construction conditions.

“Each theater is unique. “The only way to manage such a set of venues and provide consistency and reliability to the project was to design all the audio systems around a Dante network with many products enabled for this platform.”, adds Steven Cai.

Steven explains that the large number of speaker points dictates creating a very flexible sound system architecture ,that allows adaptation to ongoing and evolving space and production changes.

The main theaters, micro theaters and open-air stage spaces are built on a Dante system architecture, simplifying cable installation and connections between large systems. The three main theaters operate as independent networks, and micro theaters and performing spaces are interconnected through a fiber optic network.

The integrator for this project has been Advanced Communication Equipment (ACE), who has had to take care of more than a hundred AV installations, all involved in a great project.

“Many spaces operate independently and others are linked to each other.”. Some sound systems are hidden for background music, and others are large concert level productions with full online matrix. They even have mobile sound systems that can be relocated and positioned as needed to better cover larger crowds.. The flexibility required here is the key”, comments Cai.

The Dante platform is a complete AV-over-IP solution that allows transporting audio data, video and control over standard Ethernet networks 1 GB. Compatible with more than 3.000 Dante-enabled products from over 500 manufacturers, replaces analog and digital point-to-point connections with software-based routing, effortlessly sending AV channels to anywhere on the network with full digital fidelity.

Much of the sound system architecture is based on centralized control. Sound source equipment and digital mixers, primary and backup, They are located in a control room. The digital processors and amplifiers are located in four separate equipment rooms.

Fiber optic interfaces are located at the performance locations, which can be connected to mobile streaming computers on site, wireless microphones and other equipment, as needed. All devices in different locations are connected via fiber to form a complete network that allows access, Quick system configuration and administration anywhere on the network, comment Andy Wei, Solution Manager de Audinate APAC.

With such a large and complex system, hundreds of Dante-enabled devices are connected to the network. Some of the main components include various digital mixers Soundcraft Vi1000 y You2000, digital wireless microphones Shure ULX-D Series, a range of digital processors BSS. For signal routing and device control, powerful management software required.

Andy adds that the Platinum version of Dante Domain Manager software is used for system-wide routing and network configuration.. The system mainly adopts a multi-channel way of speaker arrangement. Location doesn't matter, There are that can be positioned to enhance the sensation of a surround sound experience. At the same time, Each channel can be processed separately to facilitate processing flexibility.

Dante Domain Manager is a server-based audio networking solution that provides a complete, centralized view of an entire networked Dante deployment..

Can show all devices in all spaces, while enabling seamless AV network expansion. Allows administrators to define independent, non-interfering groups of devices that can only be accessed by authorized users. Support staff can stay on top of issues with a system-wide dashboard and a comprehensive set of alerts and audit logs to quickly track and resolve issues.

“With the evolutionary nature of the programs and performances, the content, Speaker positions and connected equipment in use are constantly changing; “Only a Dante network managed with Domain Manager could take on a project of this scale.”, Steven aggregate. “Along with the flexibility, “Sound quality and system reliability are also essential”.