The development of the Simone Veil multi-purpose hall began in September 2020, with the goal of meeting the town’s expanding cultural demands. Spanning 1,000 square meters, the venue was designed for flexibility, featuring a modular layout that can be divided into two independent spaces—accommodating up to 1,024 seated or 2,800 standing guests.
To match the versatile architecture, the hall required a state-of-the-art sound system. With prior positive experience using RCF systems, particularly the HDL 30-A, the technical team had a clear and confident direction for the upgrade. The main requirements were stringent: all equipment had to be flown, avoiding any ground-based setups; a central cluster was needed instead of traditional front fills; and the system needed to handle 90% of typical usage scenarios, with the flexibility to add subs for extra low end when required.
The project was entrusted to Yannick Dahms, application engineer for RCF France, with Paris-based integrator Dushow overseeing installation. Initially, Dahms imagined “a traditional two-hang design with separate arrays for subs and line arrays. However, with only one rigging point available per side, the system was reconfigured, using RCF’s HDL 38-AS flyable subs paired with HDL 30-A arrays. This design is typical in many extensive worship places with live music. Three HDL 38-AS speakers per side proved to be the correct number for the best performance. Also, in the acoustics of the reverberant room, the HDL 38-AS played better than infra-heavy subs like SUB 9006-AS, giving punch and definition instead of uncontrolled infra waves bouncing everywhere.”
The final configuration featured two side clusters, each comprising 6 x HDL 30-A modules and 3 x HDL 38-AS flyable subs, a central cluster with 3 x HDL 26-A modules for the front rows, and 8 x NX 15-SMA as stage monitors. The RCF France team provided the RDNet project design, ensuring seamless system connectivity and management.
“The results exceeded my expectations,” explains Dahms. “Despite my initial skepticism about the HDL 38-AS, the bass response proved more than adequate, even for full-range concerts. I even told the local team they might need to rent additional subs for bass-heavy events. But after hearing it in the venue, I changed my mind.”
The feedback from the hall’s technical team was overwhelmingly positive. “Hearing the system now, with tailored tuning for the venue, makes us proud of the result. This system perfectly fits our needs in terms of cost, power, sound quality, and ease of use,” said Philippe Viguier, director of the venue.
Christophe Ferrari, Project Manager for Dushow, echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the system’s compact design and impressive performance. “We didn’t expect this precision and definition from such a lightweight system. The vocal clarity is remarkable, with great intelligibility throughout the venue, and the full-range audio power is more than enough for even the most demanding artists. The HDL 30-A truly surprised us, and the flexibility of the RDNet management software is seamlessly impressive.”
See more about the HDL 30-A on the official RCF website.
