L-Acoustics has delivered a permanent L2-based sound system for the Blue Hall at Sava Centar, addressing the acoustic and architectural challenges of one of the region’s largest and most complex performance venues.
Originally built in 1979, the 4,000-seat auditorium features a wide stage opening dominated by a 20m x 11m cinema screen, alongside retained theatrical rigging infrastructure designed long before modern large-format touring systems. For decades, the venue operated without a permanent professional audio system, relying instead on visiting productions bringing their own rigs.
As part of a major renovation programme, the venue engaged Dicroic and acoustic consultancy Acoustic Design to develop a permanent installation capable of supporting concerts, cinema, theatre and orchestral performances without compromising the hall’s visual identity.
A major design constraint was the cinema screen, which the venue insisted remain completely unobstructed. This ruled out a traditional centre-hung system and forced the main left and right hangs to be positioned widely apart, creating significant coverage challenges across the audience area.
To resolve this, the design team modelled the room extensively in L-Acoustics Soundvision before installation began. The final configuration comprises left and right hangs of two L2 and one L2D per side, supported by a flown centre-fill cluster built from A15 Focus and A15 Wide loudspeakers. Twelve KS28 subwoofers are flown centrally above the stage, while X8 front-fills provide coverage for the front seating areas.
System processing and amplification are handled by LA7.16i, LA12X and LA4X amplified controllers connected over a Milan-AVB network, with secondary AVB and AES67 redundancy paths integrated into the infrastructure.
Ivan Brusic, AV manager at Sava Centar, said: “The main impact is the consistency of quality and performance. From a technical standpoint, we have minimised the time and effort needed to achieve results: no need for daily transport, rigging and tuning.”
According to Dicroic CEO Marko Fio, the venue’s owners were persuaded by the system’s ability to support multiple event formats from a single permanent installation, reducing the operational overhead associated with rental systems.
The installation positions the Blue Hall as one of Serbia’s leading large-format venues, with a permanent audio infrastructure designed to support a varied and demanding production schedule.