When it comes to opening a new entertainment venue, acoustics, sound leakage and noise control are all key factors, meaning equipment choice is paramount.
We always use the right products for the job, it just happens that NEXO has, over the last year, been meeting a very high percentage of our briefs, predominantly with the ID Series. The ID Series is a very aesthetically pleasing box as loudspeaker boxes go. It’s a good size and it’s a good specification. For this project, it met our audio needs and helped with the design needs, too.
Using NEXO’s NS-1 system configuration software, Guy plotted the loudspeaker placement, taking into account the high ceiling and the glass front of the building. The software also allowed Guy to calculate the risk of noise pollution, to ensure the sound system would not disturb the neighbouring hotel and offices above the restaurant.
A total of 21 ID24 cabinets in white are installed across the restaurant floor. Even though they are positioned three-metres above the restaurant floor, the dispersion is excellent and, because we can angle them, we can have more control. For example, zoning in the restaurant is done by speaker location. The ID24’s aim over and across the central island bar, so that staff are not impacted by high volumes, and there are corner tables with lower SPL. Because of the number of loudspeakers in the space, 21 in all, you never have to turn them up too loud. The ID24 is tailored specifically for the installation environment. It is a full-range speaker using twin four-inch drivers in a V formation in combination with an HF compression driver. It has a unique user-adjustable horn, easily rotatable without tools by a switch on the rear panel, giving 60º or 120º high frequency coverage. This allows high frequency horizontal dispersion to be ‘tuned’ for the given application. As the ID24 can be mounted vertically or horizontally using a range of fixing options, this effectively gives the user four different directivity options in each cabinet.
Downstairs, the main bar ‘Jack Solomons’ is set up for a more clubby feeling. So, we added a couple of NEXO ISS110e bass bins flown from the lighting grid which runs round the perimeter of the space. The dancefloor area is home to another four ID 24’s and a single ISS110e subwoofer. A loudspeaker system so small that it has baffled visiting DJs. Until they hear the output of these little NEXOs, there is more than enough SPL for them to play with, and it was important to the venue owners that the aesthetic was maintained throughout all the discrete spaces.
The sound system across the two floors is powered by just three NEXO DTD1.3 amplified controllers, while processing goes through a BSS Soundweb London BLU-100 DSP before it reaches the NEXO controllers, followed by the loudspeakers. The secret is that the ID24 cabinets are 16 ohms, which is a godsend. Using these 16 ohm units in conjunction with the new DTD1.3 amplifiers allows me to get maximum use of the processing – the whole system runs on just three amplifiers. Simple volume controls – three BSS Soundweb London BLU-3 wall controllers – were also put in place so that even staff are able to operate the levels. The music levels are taken very seriously, so it needed to be easily adjustable to obtain the right mood at any given time. All three areas of this venue are individually controllable due to the distinct set-up of each.
