University of Massachusetts Mullins Center

The arena hosts concerts, events and productions by a variety of UMass departments and visiting groups. Designed over 20 years ago by Acentech, the original sound system worked well, but changes in how the sound system and the facility are being used today required a sound system replacement.

The main concern with the prior system was that it was physically in the way of visiting productions, obstructing set design and other important elements. For sporting events, it was critical to have a sound system capable of higher levels for music playback and announcements. To resolve these issues, Acentech designed a distributed sound system, which used more but smaller loudspeakers to replace the original, large center cluster. The new discreet sound system provides consistent coverage in the facility, without acting as an obstacle. Since the system is distributed, the loudspeakers can be turned on or off to tailor the coverage of the system to the event in the facility. Through computer modeling, Acentech designed a new sound system that improved speech intelligibility, coverage, frequency response and overall output, to provide a system that better suits the arena’s diverse usage.

Acentech designed an easily operable control system that could be used by both amateur and skilled operators alike. Additionally, we collaborated with the fire alarm contractor to supplement the existing fire alarm system with the new sound system in case of an emergency evacuation. The audio processor is also capable of expanding to deal with upgrades to the ancillary systems.