AV Case Study: Norton Music Factory
Norton Music Factory likes to look after its musicians and patrons. A new Adamson point source PA goes above and beyond.
1 April 2025
Liam Norton became an accidental live music venue operator. What started as a guitar workshop in an industrial estate has evolved to now be one of the most respected and vibiest places to enjoy live music on the Sunshine Coast.
“It started with a band wanting to shoot a music video in our space,” recalls Liam Norton. “I thought I’d better put in a drum riser for them, which turned into us building a stage. Our first proper show was a fundraiser, which went well. From that point, we realised we could combine our love of live music with raising money for charity. We now support three charities. There was never any intention to do what we’re doing now, but as things evolved, the stage got bigger and higher, the lights got brighter, and the sound system improved. That’s where the Adamsons came in.”
STRAIGHT TO THE POINT
Norton Music Factory has recently upgraded its PA. The new system is based on Adamson CS7P full-range point source loudspeakers and CS119 subwoofers. The audio upgrade wasn’t a straightforward journey. The original ‘prosumer’ system was doing the job and Liam couldn’t see how a significant investment to step up to a top-tier PA would financially stack up. But after a positive experience at Bluesfest, his eyes were opened to just how good a PA could perform. But his own path to sonic perfection wasn’t smooth.
“I auditioned a number of systems, mostly small line arrays but I just wasn’t feeling it; they didn’t blow me away,” recalls Liam.
Liam then got talking to local CMI rep and long-time musician mate, Scott Mathison, about Adamson. “I told him, ‘Look, you’ve been here before, and you’ve tried different setups for me, but bring them in and let’s see how they sound.’ We loved them! It reminded me of that Bluesfest gig — where there’s no wasted energy in the sound. A system can be loud, but if it’s a mushy mess, it’s pointless. The Adamson system doesn’t sound overly loud because the clarity is amazing. The vocals, the detail in the light and shade, it’s incredible.
The new PA is based on Adamson CS7P full-range point source loudspeakers and CS119 subwoofers.
“The night we first trialled the Adamson PA, my wife, who’s very direct, came up to the sound desk and said, ‘How f***ing good does this sound?’ I looked at my sound guy, we high-fived, and I realised I had to find the money to buy them. From that moment, there was no going back.”
The Norton Music Factory band room is compact and quite narrow. It opens out to an outdoor space. The CMI audio solutions team modelled the space and quickly determined that the more controlled dispersion of a point source solution would work best – a pair of CS7P loudspeakers for front of house, and another (time aligned) pair for the outdoor area. Two CS119 subwoofers fill out the lows. “The transition from indoors to outdoors is seamless – just so smooth,” notes Liam.
BRINGING THE BEST
The Norton Music Factory vibes are first class – people love the atmosphere. Being a not-for-profit venue clearly does make an impact. Liam Norton’s mates happily volunteer and a lot of his family help out as well. Everyone’s glad to be involved. But if you thought a charity-focussed operation would take a more ‘she’ll be right’ attitude, you’d be wrong. Everyone brings their best, which makes sense of the audio upgrade:
“I’ve been a musician for a long time and I know what it’s like to be at the receiving end of bad production,” muses Liam Norton. “I was determined to really look after the musicians. And now that includes a great PA. We love the Adamson speakers. In fact, I think it’s turned us into audio snobs. Anytime I go to a gig somewhere else with my mates… I don’t say anything, but within five minutes they’ll always comment about how our PA sounds so much better. It’s made me realise just how spoilt we are!”
Norton Music Factory: nortonmusicfactory.com.au
CMI: cmi.com.au
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