NEW CENTURY

An iconic venue is reborn in Manchester with the help of leading technology, including a world-first installation of Robe PAINTE fixtures and an L-Acoustics K2 sound system.

Back in the 1960s, New Century played host to the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Tina Turner, the Rolling Stones and The Kinks before it closed as a fully functional music venue. In the intervening decades it lay largely dormant, hosting the odd special gig, including one by The Fall in summer 2006, but was never considered a permanent part of the modern Manchester music scene.

Today, the hall at New Century has been restored to its former glory, including its sprung dance floor, illuminated ceiling light fittings and wood panelling, and it reopened in September 2022, kitted out with state-of-the-art equipment.

The building is now a self-contained music production facility, with the dBs Institute’s Manchester campus occupying the basement level, a large kitchen and bar area operating on the ground floor and the 1,300-capacity music venue on the upper level.

When it came to selecting the equipment for the main hall, the venue’s Production Manager, Mish Thomson, stated that they wanted a diverse lighting rig to complement the architectural lighting and a state-of-theart PA system that could accommodate any kind of production.

“We wanted an L-Acoustics K2 system because they’re the standard for music venues around the UK, and also because we need this room to be accessible for students at the dBs Institute, so they can use a mixing desk and PA system that are used at other venues or outdoor festivals – so it’s creating an ecosystem of sorts,” she said.

Liverpool-based suppliers Adlib specified and installed the system, which included two DiGiCo SD12 consoles – one for FOH and one for stage monitoring.

“Adlib supplied a complete audio package – everything from mics, stands and stage cables to consoles and monitor system,” said Tim Robinson, Design Engineer, Adlib.

“The New Century team required a rider-friendly loudspeaker system suitable for any level of production that would fit into the venue,” he added. “That made L-Acoustics a natural choice, and while an L-ISA system remains a consideration for the future, given time and architectural constraints during the renovation, a traditional left/right system was chosen for the time being.”

The wide stage posed something of an issue for Robinson and his team, as the speakers could not be hung in front of two murals which flank the left and right side of the stage.

“The inability to place the main hangs in front of the murals was an inconvenience and results in the PA being out wider than might otherwise be ideal,” Robinson explained. “However, as there was always going to be a centre fill anyway, comprised of four L-Acoustics

Kiva II loudspeakers, it is not too detrimental to the system as a whole. There are also plenty of lip fills, so people at the front, who might otherwise have a sub-standard experience with the main hangs out so wide, are very well served.”

Robinson described the dual function of the hall as a commercial venue and an educational resource for the attached college as “a wonderful thing”. He added: “There is great synergy between both their and our belief in the value of quality and relevant education and the lack of it that has, historically, been available on the market. We look forward to seeing the quality of graduates who cut their teeth at New Century.”

While one of the first things concert-goers notice upon entering New Century is the striking architectural light fixtures, the stage is illuminated with a variety of fixtures, including a world-first installation of the new Robe PAINTE units.

Fourteen fixtures from the first batch of PAINTE moving heads are split across four trusses which make up the lighting rig. The rig also includes 14 Robe LEDBeam 150 and eight LEDBeam 350 fixtures, with six ADJ JoltPanelFX and 10 Prolights Sunrise2 completing the set. Neil Hunt from Leeds-based ZigZag Lighting came onboard as a consultant for the venue, specifying, supplying and commissioning the lighting package. Part of the brief was to make the rig “truly adaptable, rider-friendly and bang-up-to-date”, and when tasked with this, Hunt immediately thought of the new PAINTE, which had just been launched to the market.

“The PAINTE is very contemporary, small, punchy, super-fast, it creates nice beams, has a good range of gobos, accurate framing shutters and iris control plus a great zoom,” Hunt described. “The PAINTE’s light weight was another advantage that maximises any spare load capacity in the system, also allowing greater latitude for what incoming shows can ultimately achieve with their lighting.”

The rig is controlled by an Avolites Tiger Touch II Pro console, which was the request of in-house Lighting Designer Emma Towers, who has experience around many of Manchester’s venues including Victoria Warehouse, Mayfield Depot and Manchester Academy, and lights any shows at New Century that don’t have their own LD.

“It’s a very diverse rig and we can achieve a lot of looks with it,” said Thomson. “For example, when we host corporate events, we can put gobos into the PAINTE fixtures to add a client’s logo to the floor

Technical Information

THE HALL:

AUDIO

12 x L-Acoustics K2, 6 x L-Acoustics X8, 2 x L-Acoustics X15HiQ, 4 x L-Acoustics KIVA II, 6 x L-Acoustics KS28, 15 x Adlib AAMP5 monitors, 4 x Linea Reseach 44M20 amps (for monitors), 2 x DiGiCo SD12, 4 x Shure SM58, 6 x Shure SM57, 6 x Sennheiser e604, 30 x König & Meyer instrument and vocal stands

LIGHTING 14 x Robe PAINTE, 8 x Robe LEDBeam 350, 14 x Robe LEDBeam 150, 10 x Prolights Sunrise2, 6 x ADJ JoltPanelFX, 1 x Avolites Tiger Touch

THE KITCHEN:

AUDIO

11 x Outline Vegas 10, 8 x Outline Vegas 6.5, 3 x Powersoft Quattrocannali 4804 DSP, 1 x AtlasIED AZM8 Audio Matrix/ Processor, 1 x AtlasIED Z-CSV Wall Panel www.newcenturymcr.com or walls, and we can add nice texture to the back walls, too. “The architectural lighting in the ceiling has always changed colour, but originally staff here removed each individual bulb, dipped it in paint, and then put it back in. Now we have it all on a system where we can implement colour chase settings, and really do anything with those lights,” she added. “At the moment the lights are controlled from an iPad, but we’re currently putting in a DMX cable so it will be controllable from the desk.”

One thing Thomson wanted to ensure at New Century was a level of flexibility, so touring productions with their own kit could set up without any hassle.

“We made sure that when the venue was built that there were enough lines of multicore cabling so we could facilitate a touring production with their own FOH desk and monitor desk – so they can just plug straight in and go,” she said.

When it came to selecting the equipment to provide background music in the bar, Thomson enlisted the services of local AV solutions company, Neuron AV.

“I introduced the team at Neuron to the building and we were happy with the quote that they gave us, and it sounds fantastic in all the zones down there,” said Thomson.

Alex Morgan, Director, Venues & Installations at Neuron AV, specified and installed 19 Outline loudspeakers, powered by three Powersoft Quattrocannali 4804 amps, all controlled and processed by AtlasIED hardware. “We chose Outline for a few reasons; firstly, because they offer quality at a great price, and the standard of design, build, and components used is up there with the biggest premium PA brands,” said Morgan. “They also integrate seamlessly with Powersoft amplifiers, as the two companies work together closely, and all their presets are natively built into the amps, making commissioning simple. Despite global supply chain issues, Morgan praised Outline and Powersoft, dubbing them “great at managing their stock levels and enabling us to deliver projects to tight timelines.” He concluded: “We’ve also found the AltasIED range of processors to be great for smaller installs where eight zones are enough. They’re really quick and easy to configure and the wall panels have a great feature – a QR code that allows users to login to the processor on the Wi-Fi and make changes to zone levels walking around the venue. We specifically choose our suppliers based on the quality and reliability of their equipment to ensure our solutions will be robust for our customers.”