Wake Forest University’s School of Business uses Phoenix Audio Technologies solutions to overcome the audio challenges of its uniquely-designed space. With the support of high quality audio, remote students can be confident that they are receiving the best possible distance learning experience, and executive faculty members are assured a professional conferencing environment.
The Challenge
The integrated solution in the Farrell Hall Colloquium did not meet performance requirements. The room is acoustically “live,” with curved walls made of hard reflective surfaces, such as glass, hardwood, and stone, as well as a ceiling with a height of 25 feet. Since the primary objective was to keep acoustical energy to a minimum, the school was in need of a solution that would overcome these physical challenges in order to provide the best possible conferencing experience.
The Setup
Prior to the implementation of Phoenix Audio products, the WFU School of Business conference room was equipped with ceiling microphones and a 70 volt distributed audio system, with a DSP with echo cancellation providing the processing. Due to the height of the ceilings, however, the microphones did not provide high quality audio to remote participants.
The Fix
The Spider conference phone proved to be the perfect solution for WFU. The device provided the unique ability to daisy chain, not only mics, but speakers, allowing to effectively minimize acoustical energy. The setup includes a Spider and up to four additional Quattro3 speakerphones, all connected via daisy chaining.
“We wanted a conference phone system that was capable of covering larger rooms and providing greater audio experience for remote participants,” recalls Jason Bunthoff, Multimedia Manager for WFU, School of Business. “Other manufacturers offer multiple microphone configurations, but they do not address the need for a distributed speaker system. The Spider setup is unique in that regard and we knew immediately we wanted to test the device in the Farrell Hall Colloquium after seeing it on display at InfoComm.”
The Spider is primarily used as an IP phone for WebEx sessions, but the school also tested the USB connectivity functionality in a web conferencing scenario, and found the sound quality to be almost indistinguishable from the dedicated IP setup.
WFU has also found the Spider useful in its larger, flexible classrooms (combinable rooms), further leveraging the ease of mobility of the device. It has since purchased a unit for its satellite location in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The Value
“[The Spider] has allowed us to utilize the Colloquium to its fullest potential, especially when setting the venue up for conferencing needs,” reflects Bunthoff. “As the premier conference space for the School, meetings typically include deans, administration, external business leaders, and board of trustees. First class audio conferencing is essential.”
About Wake Forest University School of Business
The new home of the Wake Forest University School of Business, Farrell Hall, is the crown jewel of the Reynolda Campus located in Winston Salem, North Carolina. The 130,000 square foot facility opened in the fall of 2013, integrating state-of-the-art technology and flexible meeting and classrooms with dedicated social spaces. Its mission is to develop passionate, ethical business leaders driven to achieve results with integrity through a dynamic combination of thought leadership, rigorous academic preparation and an unrivaled connection to the market.
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