GM Insignia Launch

On Monday, July 21, a pod suspended from a crane above iconic London landmark Tower Bridge opens. Out drops the new Opel/Vauxhall Insignia and, in just six seconds, it plummets from a height of 12 stories to make a jaw-dropping entrance into Potters Field for its world debut. Here, flanked by classical girl band Bond, Vauxhall’s new car brought the crowds to a standstill.

With such high drama and excitement, the need for faultless audio was a must, so Dimension Audio was hired by Silent Associates and C4 Communications, formerly known as Clear!Blue, to ensure that nothing was left to chance.

“The job was divided into two distinct parts,” explains Dimension Audio production manager, James Loveless. “The first was the ‘crash site’ where we installed 20 rock effect garden speakers alongside four d&b E12s, used as subs. The system helped to create the feeling of a spaceship crashing with lots of heavy rumbling, and digital beeps and bleeps.

“The second element was the main show,” said Loveless. “We had limited area to cover and there were a lot of buildings surrounding the space, so we had to be careful with our choice of system. A line array was the ideal solution, so we used our EV XLC system. The wide dispersion can cover a large area, but it can also be zoned to keep noise spillage to a minimum so as not to annoy the neighbours.”

For the girl band Bond, Dimension used a small, but discreet monitoring system. Nothing was allowed on stage, so d&b M4s - a wedge that is small but potent were used and controlled by d&b amps.

At Front of House, there was a Yamaha PM5D digital mixing console. This was ideal as there were two engineers running the show (a band engineer and a show engineer). Additionally the console’s layers system is easy to work on and its internal effects saved space on racks of outboard equipment.

Bond’s own mics and in-ear-monitoring system were utilized, but Dimension supplied a Yamaha M7CL as the monitor console.

This event was a precursor to the British International London Motor Show, which started just two days later. Dimension also supplied the audio requirements for the Jaguar, Mazda and Land Rover stands, with Land Rover’s featuring an exhibit entitled Our Planet, where Dimension had to deploy a loudspeaker system that created a ‘soundscape’ environment. Matthew Eve, production manager for Dimension at the Motor Show, adds, “On top of this, we worked with brand experience agency Imagination at a pre-press event for the launch of the new Ford Focus RS.”

Here, Dimension provided audio for an ambient walk-through area where around 20 heritage RS vehicles were displayed. This lead into the main area for the car’s launch, which featured entertainment from South London ska band, The Dualers, for whom Dimension supplied a d&b Q-Series loudspeaker system and Yamaha M7CL digital mixing desk.

“Both the GM launch and the Motor Show went off without a hitch,” concludes Eve. “With such high profile clients, its important that we provide an equally high quality service.”