Mareel - Cinema & Music Venue

[Spinner72]

I can't see the auto-allocation lasting long. Many people have had the knee-jerk reaction that its better for families and groups, but in reality it will often force people to sit apart rather than together, and what EM says above is so true, everyone has a different preference.

 

Initially I was not a fan of unreserved seating, but after a few visits I can see why its so popular, as it gives you true freedom of choice.

[Ironwithin]

I would rather they stayed with the unreserved seating, if people are complaining about not being able to sit together its their own fault for coming late.

[starfish]

I arrived 15 mins before the doors opened on Saturday to see Brave and it was already queued down the stairs - so not arriving late!

 

However do feel that reserved seating should just be for first showings of big blockbusters/bairns films and that it should be done on a similar system to that at the Garrison not a computer choosing what is 'best'.

[zebedee]

I find it interesting that they have said in regards to the reservation of seats that they can't do it straight away because they need seat plans etc designed.

 

Surely they need thd same seat plans to do 'best available' seats - otherwise there would be no way that these seats could be allocated through online booking.

 

They can't surely be manually allocating seats once the booking has been made.

[Ghostrider]

Its a 160 seater, not Hampden Stadium. Does a booking system really need to extend beyond a couple of sheets of A4 and a pen.

[tojo]

I really hope you can give a rough preference of seating - I for one need to be at an aisle or very close. As a family though, we had to arrive at least 20 - 25 minutes before doors opened to get seated together and near the aisle. When doors opened, the queue was right down the stairs and into the foyer. Hope they have a system similar to the garrison.

 

Am I mistaken, but was there no fire exits in either screen room?

 

Overall we found the foyer dull and dirty - however the cinema experience inside the screen was just as good as - if not better - than cinemas south.

[peeriebryan]

Our only gripe last night, though was the music volume at the Blues festival. It was unnecessarily far too loud, probably very close to the point where it was ear-damaging, and spoilt our enjoyment. In fact, we left early to preserve our hearing and thus missed the last act entirely. Why does the music volume need to be turned up to such dangerous levels?

 

I really hope that the Mareel operators have good public liability insurance to cover potential claims for ear damage caused if it continues to allow it to be so high.

Vexed that the volume spoiled your night Dave and please do get in touch with someone at Mareel and/or the Blues Festival with your concerns.

 

Generally the minimum volume levels at concerts are determined by the loudest instrument on stage, usually the drums. The other volumes have to be brought up accordingly to achieve a balance.

 

Hearing damage is caused by a combination of the level and duration of noise exposure. The levels in Mareel are well within legal limits and the duration of exposure from attending a concert is very unlikely to result in hearing damage. Also, there were many 'quieter' amplified acoustic acts at the Blues Festival - human ears are very sensitive to changes in level so it's likely that the bands with drumkits appeared relatively 'louder' when they were preceded by 'quieter' acts.

 

For anyone interested there's a wealth of relevant info available at the Health and Safety Executive website - http://www.hse.gov.uk/noise/index.htm

 

 

Ghostie is delighted to hear that the music was loud ... but we have posted repeatedly on here regarding whether or not there was a volume/sound limiter to no avail.

You may not recall this (abbreviated) exchange from April this year....

 

....Likewise, your somewhat 'silent' acoustic consultants should be able to provide you with information regarding a volume output limiter.

....And there won't be an automatic volume output limiter - our sound technicians are more than capable of controlling the volume.

Also, noise limiters are usually fitted for environmental reasons i.e. controlling sound pollution to residential areas near a venue.

 

 

they will be rules on the loudness at music events, enviromentle health will tell you what the safe limits are, i would have though a brand new building would have a noise limitor or some way on measuring the level to a safe level. It's a small venue, not clickimin so it should be that loud. I have found that some sound men are a bit deaf, so they wont relise its as loud as you think. put it on their facebook page - I don't think they read this

Volume has little to do with the size of the venue - there's several factors involved but one of the main ones is the distance from the speakers. Mareel's PA is a ceiling hung 'line array' which distributes sound pressure levels very evenly around the auditorium. PA speakers sitting at ground level, however, generally mean that people near the front will be exposed to considerably more decibels than people at the back.

 

 

I've been the once and was very impressed with the equipment in the cinema - both audio and visual were awesome!

 

There were however, some surprisingly disappointing things. I don't know what I originally expected, but the building was a mess. To clarify, I was only in the foyer and the area outside the cinema so I am not commenting on the cafe or any of the other parts... yet.

Glad you enjoyed the cinema Sudden Stop. There can be several hundred folk going through the foyer at busy times between screenings so inevitably there's a bit of a mess left behind sometimes. The foyer is cleaned regularly though, as are the cinemas themselves.

 

The paint finish on the walls looked... unfinshed. Whilst I queued to watch my film I thought to myself that this was just a primer and there would be another coat or two to come. Then I realised (having spotted the poem on the wall) that no, this is it. The place has been open a couple of weeks and already it is not ageing well - scuffs and scraps everywhere. The foyer looked plainly soulless and to be frank, a bit dirty.

 

The hand prints on the wall outside the cinema . . . where to start with that . . . Who thought that would be a good idea? People cannot be trusted to draw on the walls - you end up with obscene drawings - C'mon! Who didn't see that happening?

The poem and handprints are part of a temporary exhibition and the walls will be cleaned and re-painted shortly http://angusreid.co.uk/present/exhibition/actions/Call-For-A-Constitution

 

There are still 'what's on' screens and facilities to display artwork be fitted to the foyer so hopefully it'll look more appealing when they go up.

 

Another bit of feedback though, the little stair level lights inside the cinema, reflect onto the inside of 3D glasses. Little downlighters or shrouds on the existing lights would help. Or I might glue some blinkers on the sides of my glasses instead!

The technicians are still working on the balance of light levels - some folk think they're too bright, some think they're not bright enough. Thanks for the feedback though.

[unlinkedstudent]

Ghostie is delighted to hear that the music was loud ... but we have posted repeatedly on here regarding whether or not there was a volume/sound limiter to no avail.

You may not recall this (abbreviated) exchange from April this year....

 

....Likewise, your somewhat 'silent' acoustic consultants should be able to provide you with information regarding a volume output limiter.

....And there won't be an automatic volume output limiter - our sound technicians are more than capable of controlling the volume.

Also, noise limiters are usually fitted for environmental reasons i.e. controlling sound pollution to residential areas near a venue.

 

 

they will be rules on the loudness at music events, enviromentle health will tell you what the safe limits are, i would have though a brand new building would have a noise limitor or some way on measuring the level to a safe level. It's a small venue, not clickimin so it should be that loud. I have found that some sound men are a bit deaf, so they wont relise its as loud as you think. put it on their facebook page - I don't think they read this

Volume has little to do with the size of the venue - there's several factors involved but one of the main ones is the distance from the speakers. Mareel's PA is a ceiling hung 'line array' which distributes sound pressure levels very evenly around the auditorium. PA speakers sitting at ground level, however, generally mean that people near the front will be exposed to considerably more decibels than people at the back.

 

Yep, Bryan, I'd forgotten ... oops, sorry ... ... so what's the maximum decibel output capacity at Mareel then?

[DizzyKipper]

You might ask the admin bods to answer their email

[Siccar]

All I have heard is that the sound is amazing.

Sorry for being positive about a place that disna employ me.

Mareel is pish, I really dinna lik da .......stairs, da roof, da car-park tarmac nor da insulation, da big gay chairs ur da staff dat canna do Calculus. I went tae da bar an axed fur a peerie grain o open hert surgery! Did dey no turn aroond an suggest i Phone an ambulance! SHEEEESH!

(Da experts hiv informed me!)

Wis I could be an expert on everything under da sun.Dan I could spend days and weeks informin Shetlink o me genius on ALL subjects.

Bring da HATE

[shetlandpeat]

Yep, Bryan, I'd forgotten ... oops, sorry ... ... so what's the maximum decibel output capacity at Mareel then?

 

A level the building starts to fall apart.

[Spinner72]

Am I mistaken, but was there no fire exits in either screen room?

 

You are mistaken. The fire exits are the doors with the big green exit lights above them that don't go off!

 

(I know its a legal requirement, but they bug me in every cinema. I like my darkness )

[Sudden Stop]

....Glad you enjoyed the cinema Sudden Stop. There can be several hundred folk going through the foyer at busy times between screenings so inevitably there's a bit of a mess left behind sometimes. The foyer is cleaned regularly though, as are the cinemas themselves.

 

I was there last night (just as you were leaving actually (not stalking you honest)) and the foyer was perfectly clean and tidy.

 

The second run through the carpark at night was still no more fun than the first attempt though.

 

Also, regarding the little stair level lights in the cinema, I don't think their intensity is an issue - it's that they are omidirectional, rather that just downlighters. They are quite annoying even when sitting in the middle of a row.

[Sudden Stop]

Is there a seating plan online somewhere? I'm curious to see where I'm sitting now that it's out of my hands.

[tojo]

Mistake accepted - I can't recall seeing them - possibly the same door you go in? if thats the case does screen 2 only have the one exit, fire or not?