L-Acoustics Brings Maximum Versatility and Sonic Excellence to Warsaw’s Konopacki Palace L-Acoustics Brings Maximum Versatility and Sonic Excellence to Warsaw’s Konopack...

The newly re-built, 19th Century architectural site within the Praga Cultural Center receives state-of-the-art Syva, X Series, and A Series sound systems to support its innovative and experimental programming

WARSAW, Poland – July 2022 – Erected in the 19^th century at the request of Ksawery Konopacki, the Konopacki Palace is located on Strzelecka Street in the heart of Warsaw’s bohemian Praga district, known as Nowa Praga (New Praga). After major reconstruction works on this Neo-Renaissance style building, the Konopacki Palace finally re-opened its doors as the second home of Praga Cultural Centre in September last year. It offers its auditorium, gallery, and outdoor terrace for various functions, including music concerts, art, and an open-air cinema. Such versatility of events required an equally flexible sound system, with L-Acoustics Polish distributor, Audio Plus, delivering Syva, X Series, and A Series systems to bring versatility and cutting-edge audio to one of Warsaw’s newest cultural sites. 

The diverse genre of events at the Konopacki Palace required a uniquely tailored sound system that would keep up with the ever-changing roster of entertainment. One of Poland’s top pro audio equipment suppliers, Audio Plus, worked on developing a solution that would fulfill the task and deliver the vision of Praga Cultural Centre’s director, Katarzyna Sołtys.

“Our vision for the Konopacki Palace was for the venue to become the hub for innovative and experimental cultural projects on a European and global scale,” says Sołtys. “With this in mind, our key objective was to design a system that would work equally well for each of the venue’s events, no matter how big, creative, and technically challenging they are,” adds Norbert Kachniarz, junior system designer at Audio Plus. 

The system installed in the multi-functional, 100-seat auditorium in the basement of the Palace comprises a Syva atop a Syva Low, floor mounted left and right in front of the stage, delivering unparalleled clarity and sound precision across the entire space. 

For the large stage outside on the garden terrace, Audio Plus delivered an A Series system, based on four A10 Wide and SB18 subwoofers, used for concerts and the open-air cinema during summer. The entire system is powered by four LA4X amplified controllers divided into two groups: one for the mobile version and one for the permanently installed system.

Additionally, four X8 and four X12 were supplied, used mainly in the auditorium as stage monitors, but can also be deployed outdoors in a variety of configurations to provide sound reinforcement to the areas outside of the main stage, as well as behind the building where temporary constructions such as booths are sometimes erected for larger events. The LA4X can also be configured according to the type of the event, with their pre-sets adjusted accordingly. 

“The configuration of the LA4X allows for greater flexibility of the entire system,” explains Norbert Kachniarz, who was responsible for the system’s installation on behalf of Audio Plus. “Depending on the event requirements, the amps can be easily reconfigured either to be used partially or as a full system, even if that requires an unusual configuration. The entire complement of LA4X is managed via LA Network Manager. The entire configuration of LA4X is accessed on a computer using LA Network Manager, which is then wirelessly remote controlled on an iPad.”

The system was successfully tested in September 2021 at the Palace’s opening event, with performances taking place in the auditorium and on the outdoor stage, where a large concert took place, with an additional zone behind the stage augmented with X8 and X12.

“We wanted to be ‘universal’ when it comes to hosting events, and the L-Acoustics system provided by Audio Plus empowers us to be just that,” says Michał Klimczak, Technical Engineer at Praga Cultural Centre. “With this new system, we can organize any type of function quickly and effectively, and we know that great sound and perfect coverage are guaranteed. On top of that, we have all the controls at our fingertips readily available on the iPad, plus the L-Acoustics cabinets fit perfectly within the historic character of the building. And all without any compromise on sound quality!” 

“This project is a great example of how we work,” concludes Paweł Kuhn, Marketing Manager at Audio Plus. “If the client needs something, we figure out how to do it efficiently and cost-effectively. Of course, the final system requires some knowledge from the user, but at Audio Plus, we know the value of good product training, so we always go the extra mile when training a venue’s staff and offer technical support where needed to ensure everyone feels comfortable using the system. We are thrilled to bring L-Acoustics’ renowned sound quality to this historic venue!”