- One year after the passing of Thailand’s monarch, King Bhumibol, his cremation was to be carried out in a magnificent and respectful ceremony according to ancient traditions.
- The crematorium site spans more than eight hectares – the equivalent of more than 10 football pitches – located next to the Grand Palace in Bangkok.
- Given the importance of prayer and song, the government’s project inspector, Srimuang Jusntasri asked for three basic requirements of the audio: the sound equipment must perfectly blend in with the structures on site, if visible at all, must be heard everywhere at all times and must sound perfect.
- The most important and visible structure was the Phra Merumas (Royal Crematorium), a heavily-decorated golden structure with nine spires, the tallest at more than 50m of which housed the cremation pyre itself.
- As very few people set foot in it, high-output audio wasn’t needed, yet seamless integration was making the ultra-flat, gold-plated Vyper-KV52 and gold-plated mini Lyzard-KZ12 line array elements perfect for the installation.
- Additional Vyper-KV50W line arrays provided in-fill near the entrance.
- Outside, at columns supporting the roof of the Royal Merit-Making Pavilion, as well as on walls of other pavilions facing the crematorium, Kobra-KK102 line arrays in white were installed to cover the area.
- “These speakers are the best fit for this environment,” explained Tony Puytrakool from Vision One distributors. “They were instantly accepted by the government’s public relations department and fine art department; they are weather-resistant, have the right dispersion and reproduce the sound sources exceptionally.”
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“In such environments, we do not want to see equipment like lighting fixtures or loudspeakers, if possible. These gold-plated units, however, are an acceptable solution thanks to the matching of the surrounding surfaces.”
Srimuang Jusntasri, Project Inspector
