The future of the audio world is being shaped in Shanghai with Genelec solutions

The Shanghai Vocational School of Contemporary Music has implemented a wide selection of Genelec intelligent active monitors in its facilities.

Alex Wei (SunYart’s director of digital technology) and Zhang Minggang (technical director) were responsible for creating the basic layout for the installation, while the technical execution was handled by He Weier and sound engineer Sam Toyoshima. Coordinating both the technical and aesthetic sides, the Shanghai school team decided to deploy Genelec SAM monitors calibrated with Genelec GLM monitor management software throughout the complex.

The project is not without its challenges. For example, one of the centerpieces of the facility is a large 300-square-meter recording studio with variable reverberation time. The space features more than 70 rotating columns with different heights and diameters, as well as different sizes of sound absorption holes that are used to achieve a variable reverberation time between 0.8 and 1.2 seconds.

The control room for this space features a pair of 1236 main monitors inserted into the window that occupies that entire wall, creating an effect similar to the equipment floating on the glass. Wei worked with Toyoshima’s design, calculated the angle, center of gravity and friction of the base precisely and compared various construction materials and methods. With this sorted out, the two 1236 monitors were installed, remaining stable at a 6-degree angle to the glass.

A flexible configuration

Beyond the 1236s, three 8351 coaxial near-field monitors have been installed on retractable stands, which do not obstruct the sound of the main monitors when lowered, but can be mechanically raised to provide a 5.1 system for surround mixing. The 8351s are accompanied by two 7380 subwoofers.

Another unique space at the Shanghai Vocational School of Contemporary Music is the “staircase classroom,” where students sit on steps instead of chairs. On one side of the classroom is a large window that takes up the entire wall overlooking the studio. When the teacher is working, students can enter the studio to observe through the window from the steps. Above the mixing desk, a high-definition camera shows the teacher in action on a screen, while Genelec 1238 three-way monitors transmit audio to the class.

The Shanghai project is completed with four recording spaces, including a mastering room on the first floor, equipped with 1238 stereo monitors and a 5.1 system with 8351s and a 7370 subwoofer. In addition, a multifunctional 5.1 teaching studio has been built, featuring 8260 monitors and a 7370 subwoofer, and two other smaller studios located in the basement has been equipped with a pair of 8351 monitors.

School staff describe the results as “better than we imagined.” Wei, in particular, is “proud” of the complex: “What we have finally achieved is excellent sound quality, and very accurate sound image positioning. Teachers at the school, teachers at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and visiting teachers from other schools think it is the best studio they have ever seen.”