Palace Bar

The Palace Bar, located in the heart of Ocean Drive in South Beach, Florida, has been serving up amazing dining experiences for more than three decades and holds an iconic status within the LGBTQ+ community. To the delight of its party-hungry crowd, the bar underwent a complete sound system overhaul throughout the entire venue, adding more oomph to its shows courtesy of 14 Powersoft amplifiers.

Since its opening in 1988, the Palace Bar has built a nationwide reputation thanks to its exuberant drag brunches and live entertainment. With around 1,500 guests visiting every weekend, the owner, Tom Donall, recognised the need for a sound system that could match the energy of the shows. Thus, he invested in new audio equipment that would be capable of conveying the energy of the Palace Bar shows.

It was important for the bar owner, who has been in the club business for 20 years and knows how important sound is to customer experience, to have the sound, clarity, and the bass impactful and evenly distributed. The brief given to Infinite Audio Systems was to deliver a sound system that is suitable for the lip-sync performances at the bar and is able to deliver “best sound and to give the punch and clarity” to represent the energy the Palace Bar performances create to the visitors. “This is why having high-quality audio was crucial for us. It sets the stage for the energy customers find here, ensuring each visit is a special experience,” explains Donall.

It is not only live shows Palace Bar’s sound system caters to. The venue also has top level DJ’s performing there and the audio system was optimised to ensure it was easy for the Palace Bar’s staff to adjust everything with an on/off switch for the areas they do not use all the time, as well as controlling the microphone volume levels.

The Palace Bar new audio setup consists of 50 Infinite Audio Systems speakers in the lower level, powered by Powersoft X Series, Quattrocanali and Duecanali amplifiers, and 12 speakers on the rooftop, also driven by Powersoft.

The venue comprises four different areas: café, dance floor, roof top and main outside area. Collaborating with Lord Toussaint, CEO of Miami-based loudspeaker manufacturer, Infinite Audio Systems, Tom Donall wanted to cover every part of the venue, so each customer that comes in can hear clear, high-quality sound wherever they are. “We needed a system where we could tailor each area to the requirements of what we needed,” says Donall.

Donall and Toussaint designed the sound system together and went through the requirements of each area. The most important was to ensure the outside areas could withstand the outside elements, especially the salt from the ocean water, and that the audio system would be able to run the live show seven days a week, twice a day, while maintaining pristine sound quality.

One the challenges for the installation was to provide warmth, clarity, and fuller tonality, which was difficult for Toussaint to provide, as he says: “sometimes those don’t go hand in hand.” It was a complex scenario because of the live show that is performed on the terrace, at the front of the building, bleeds out onto the sidewalk and the streets. “It’s a very high-energy show that uses a lot of live microphones and house music tracks and it needs to work on the people, but then it also needs to be distributed across various areas throughout the venue,” says Toussaint.

The main challenge was to equally cover and synchronise all areas during the live shows. This proved challenging because all the areas are vastly different. To combat this, the integrator deployed speaker systems individually for each area, as if they were standalone systems and then united them as one via Biamp Tesira Server Class signal processing.

By using the power of Powersoft amplifiers, Infinite Audio Systems succeeded in captivating the Balance Bar audiences with exceptional sound quality.

The sound system overhaul was driven by a commitment to delivering unparalleled audio quality, ensuring that every guest feels the energy and excitement of the Palace Bar’s performances. Through the design and implementation, the installation achieved seamless coverage across the different areas of the venue.

Recognising the challenges posed by the venue’s outdoor spaces and high-energy live performances, the installation team combined Infinite Audio Systems speakers with Powersoft amplification to create a cohesive audio environment. This not only met the brief of offering warmth and clarity, but it also exceeded the owner’s expectations.

Visitors to the Palace Bar can enjoy high-quality sound thanks to Powersoft’s X Series, Duecanali and Quattrocanali amplifiers. These amplifiers coupled with Infinite Audio Systems speakers ensure best performance even in hard outdoor conditions, while offering easy control and flexibility to meet the venue’s requirements.

Moreover, the audio overhaul has had a significant impact on guest satisfaction and helps boost the Palace Bar’s iconic status within the LGBTQ+ community. The Palace Bar’s owner adds that the Infinite Audio-Powersoft setup exceeds his expectations: “It’s fantastic. Seeing people leave the venue with smiles on their faces, already planning their next visit, is what it’s all about for me. And the sound ties the experience all together.”