Universal Studios Hollywood - Technology

[Jon Fu]

This might be a niche thread, but I've always been fascinated with the audio and visual aspect of theme parks - especially with Universal Studios Hollywood.

If you find any information related to the tech used at Universal, feel free to add it here.

I'll start: Special Effects Stage apparently uses some pretty high-end equipment left over from Creature.

It's composed mainly of Meyer Sound's M1D and a few trap boxes from their lineup.

 

[UniversalFan]

Didn't Universal just add new speakers to Animal Actors a few weeks ago?

 

[Jon Fu]

Didn't Universal just add new speakers to Animal Actors a few weeks ago?

If you're talking about the Bose speakers out front or the Community speakers inside, then no. Those have been there for quite a while if I recall correctly.

 

[Allen The Actor]

Ahhh the technology Universal uses is great on the newer stuff They really love to use top of the line equipment, ill give them that! The sound system on Transformers is soooo amazing. Can't get over it. I wish they'd update the sound system on Jurassic Park too.

 

[Jon Fu]

I wish they'd update the sound system on Jurassic Park too.

To their credit, they do. But that entire attraction is hellish for audio equipment. I've seen them rotate and switch speakers on a constant basis, so it's the environment that's causing havoc.

Regardless, I still stand by my word that our Jurassic Park has the best sound out of all three attractions - with Japan at a close second. 

 

[Allen The Actor]

Really???? Hmmm....I just went a few days ago a bunch of times and it seemed so muddled and fuzzy sounding and not loud enough. I hope they'll readjust it then.

 

[Jon Fu]

I've seen the speakers change, for what it's worth.

Who knows. Maybe the problem goes a bit deeper.

 

[Allen The Actor]

Maybe they've been water damaged? Gosh I don't know, but it didn't sound that good when i went, with the exception of the interior from the first T-rex to the drop.

I actually wish the roar of the final T-rex was louder and with more of a bass to it. Similar to the effect you get when Megatron talks, which is epic.

 

[Jon Fu]

The park uses a plethora of Bose speakers throughout the park and in CityWalk:
 
FreeSpace DS 40SE

http://worldwide.bose.com/pro/en_us/web/fs_ds_100se_loudspeaker/page.html

Panaray MA12EX

http://worldwide.bose.com/pro/en_us/web/panaray_ma12ex_modular_line_array_loudspeaker/page.html

I personally think it's a step down from their previous park-wide setup, but I'll leave that to the experts.

 

[UniversalFan]

Those Bose speakers are great.

 

[Jon Fu]

Those Bose speakers are great.

Really? I personally think they sound a bit worse off. A downgrade to what they had before.

Then again, Bose isn't really respected in the pro audio world.

 

[spinlok]

Really? I personally think they sound a bit worse off. A downgrade to what they had before.

Then again, Bose isn't really respected in the pro audio world.

That's right… they're "Better Off with Something Else" 

 

[Jon Fu]

That's right… they're "Better Off with Something Else" 

I don't want to say all Bose products are bad (I have a pair of their computer speakers and they don't sound half bad), but I do think it's a downgrade to the Tannoy system Universal had before. For what it's worth, Islands of Adventure uses Bose throughout the park and it sounds quite decent.

On a different note...



IMG_5905 by InsideUniversal.net, on Flickr

 

[BehindTheTheme]

Ahh the JBL's. They used to be every were in the park. Are they still used?

 

[Jon Fu]

Ahh the JBL's. They used to be every were in the park. Are they still used?

Definitely. The park uses a combination of JBL Control 23s (found on the Studio Tour tram - four on either side with two JBL Control 18S subwoofers), JBL Control 25s (found along the Star Way) and JBL Control 28s.


Here's a link:


http://www.jblpro.com/catalog/General/ProductFamily.aspx?FId=23&MId=2#Surface-Mount Speakers

 

[Jon Fu]

Here's a good profile of the audio system used in King Kong: http://blog.mixonline.com/briefingroom/2010/10/04/mighty-king-kong-sounds-larger-than-life-on-tiny-kiva/

 

[Allen The Actor]

My one gripe with that: King Kong's growl isn't loud enough for my taste. Not the fault of the sound system, I just wish they made his growl louder

But yeah, sound system is fantastic

 

[William]

I think King Kong and the T-rex at the end of JP should both be louder. Just my opinion, though.

 

[BehindTheTheme]

My one gripe with that: King Kong's growl isn't loud enough for my taste. Not the fault of the sound system, I just wish they made his growl louder

But yeah, sound system is fantastic

Ride was actually louder when it first opened but the bass was shaking the sensors on the attraction and making the ride malfunction. or so i hear.

 

[Jon Fu]

I personally feel that both are plenty loud, but both attractions face unique challenges. Jurassic Park has to deal with the constant stream of liquid (which wrecks havoc on speakers), and King Kong needs to have its speakers located up high because it doesn't use an acoustically transparent screen. Like the Simpsons, King Kong was originally supposed to have its sound located behind the screen facing directly towards you (the ideal position), but for whatever reason, the creative team favored the current setup you see now.

I've also heard stories about Peter Jackson not liking the original screen, hence the sacrifice in sound.