CLIENT
Dinosaurs in the Wild
LOCATION
United Kingdom (Birmingham, Manchester, London)
YEAR
2017–2018
PROJECT TYPE
Immersive Touring Attraction
Scope
Design and integration of multi-channel audio, show control, and monitoring systems for a live, guided visitor experience
Services Provided
- →Loudspeaker system design and specification
- →Signal distribution and network architecture
- →Show control system design and programming
- →System integration support and commissioning
- →Ongoing technical advice during touring deployment
The Brief
Dinosaurs in the Wild was a ground-breaking, hour-long immersive journey that transported audiences back 67 million years to a research facility observing dinosaurs in their natural habitat. Combining cinematic storytelling, animatronics, live guides, and scientific realism, the experience relied heavily on a sophisticated audio and control infrastructure to bring the world convincingly to life.
Auditoria were engaged to design and deliver a high-capacity audio and show control system capable of running seamlessly across multiple rooms, time-synchronised show sequences, and hundreds of audio cues, while remaining reliable and simple to operate across a long-running tour.
The Challenge
With over 200 speakers and 150 channels of playback, the scale of the audio system alone presented a significant engineering challenge. The experience was spread across multiple environments, from time-travel vehicles to laboratories and vast open observation decks, each requiring distinct spatial soundscapes and precise localised effects.
Ensuring accurate synchronisation of lighting, video, and audio across all areas, and allowing cast and crew to keep in step with a tightly timed show flow, added an additional layer of complexity. The system also had to be robust enough for frequent relocation and consistent operation under the demands of a commercial public attraction.
Our Approach
We designed a 140-channel distributed audio system powered by 35 Powersoft Quattrocanali amplifiers, all connected over dual-redundant DANTE networks. A carefully chosen mix of 200 AUDAC loudspeakers, tailored to each environment, provided discrete coverage and impactful effects across the attraction.
Each room included its own atmos system for sounds of A/C and machinery, layered with specific loudspeakers for precise localised sound effects. The time-travel pods featured individual 24-channel sound systems, and The Lookout, the largest space in the experience, made use of over 60 unique audio channels to create a fully enveloping acoustic landscape.
Control was handled by three dual-redundant QLab playback rigs running synchronised sessions across the network. These systems delivered audio cues, synchronised video playback via timecode, and triggered lighting effects via MIDI, all integrated into the master show control system.
Technical Highlights:
Audio Design
Audio System
- 140 channels across 35 x Powersoft Quattrocanali 1204 amps
- 200 x AUDAC loudspeakers, custom-configured by room
- Redundant DANTE audio network backbone
Playback & Synchronisation
- 6 x QLab systems (3 dual-redundant setups) on Mac Minis
- Focusrite Dante PCI cards in external enclosures
- Timecode distributed for video sync and countdown clocks
- MIDI triggers to the lighting system for key moments
Show Control Design
AMX NX220 processors (main and backup) with distributed I/O and relay nodes
Integration of buttons, sensors, and triggers for dynamic show response
Custom-built touchscreen control interfaces for stage management and technician prep
Programming by Luis Miranda, enabling centralised logic across all systems
Clock and Timing System
- DANTE-to-analogue adapters fed timecode to digital clocks in each room
- Cast tracked timing in real-time to keep tours aligned
- Optional pause function triggered by stage management for accessibility or delays, pausing the countdown and activating red status LEDs
AV & Infrastructure
16-camera IP CCTV system for stage management visibility
Fully mapped to all zones for live tracking of audience flow and system performance
The Results
The result was a fully integrated, highly immersive environment where the technical systems were as invisible as they were essential. The distributed audio model allowed for crisp localisation of sounds, from footsteps behind you to a distant T-Rex roar, while the show control system kept cast, media, and effects perfectly in sync.
The touring system proved resilient, easily re-deployable, and operable by local crew with minimal training thanks to an intuitive user interface. Audiences, regardless of age or background, were consistently enthralled by the believability of the experience, testament to the strength of the creative and technical collaboration across all teams.
Acknowledgements
Our Client
A huge thanks to the team from DITW including Executive Producers Jill Bryant, Bob Deere, the creative team and Technical Producer Nick Levitt for getting us involved.
Our Team
The audio and show control systems were designed by Scott Willsallen and Luis Miranda with sound design content creation by Bobby Aitken and Fergus O’Hare. Paul PJ Johnson managed the audio installation and relocation works.
Our Supplier
Thanks to Scott Arnold and Rob Tory from Autograph for supplying the systems and packaging them for touring. A big thanks to Powersoft for their support throughout the project.
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