Nowadays

The sound system at Nowadays is a one of a kind 100% hand made custom SBS Slammer Intelligence Series system, 100% Analog layout,

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1 SBS Designs S2 Class AB Amp on Super high freq Arrays,
1 SBS Designs S2 Pro Class AB amp on Mid Highs,

2 SBS Designs S3 Class AB Amplifiers in 12 in mids,

2 SBS Designs S5 High Current amps on 15 in mid-bass,

2 SBS Designs S6 Class AB+B Amplifiers on Sub Bass,

processed by 1 SBS Designs solid state Iso-Q2 and 1 SBS Designs SP-1 vacuum tube expander with 1 SBS Slammer SFX 2 and 1 SFX 4 series X-Overs and 2 Ashly GQX 3102 eqs.

For monitors

2 RCF C5215

2 SBS Slammer SL32 18 in sub-bass horns,
powered by

2 BGW GT 5600 processed by a SBS Slammer SFX 2 hifi Analog X-Over with 1 Ashly GQX 3102

In a floated and fully treated space with wood dance floor on wood tracks counter sunk to be level with the cement foundation

The owners Eamon Harkin and Justin Carter of Nowadays are Audiophiles & they wanted a unique musical one of a kind sound system designed that has not been done before with 4 hifi ground stacks for the traditional NYC ground stack voicing with a very unique look in a custom color to match the plants and space layout visually.

I could not approach this application with the traditional wide speaker stacks that use a lot of floor space and can look visually intimidating for there application. Nowadays is a multi functional space that operates as a restaurant with seating on the floor early evening hours and then turns into a nightclub after 10pm with some of the best techno and house djs local and globally. It is also a vinyl listening room early sunday afternoons and is a community gathering space weekdays as well.

So with all this in mind I had to design the Intelligence Series SBS Slammer using depth over width so it tucks away in the corners to be a bit concealed with a clean line of sight and will not block flow when people are moving about the floor or any egress to exit if an emergency happens. The approach also had to compliment the space visually during restaurant hours to look like art and not a big stack system in a club that just serves food and its apart of the design that not over power the space and its design visually.

Justin & Eamon wanted it to be designed and voiced to be very dynamic not one dimensional musically it had to be warm sweet & musical at low levels with Jazz and easy listening format for the early evening, then at night with DJS to play between 98-104DBA to be full and have a lot of Heft where you feel it in your chest hugging you and PUMP when the floor is full of dancers without any ear fatigue within the sound pressure level we play and set it at without limiters or compressors for long periods of time on the floor so it keeps the clients there from early evening till late and does not hurt the clients hearing.

I also had to design this layout so the structure from build out, its floated and acoustical treatment and room ventilation system did not rattle or resonate which big box stacks can usually do so it does not have a negative aspect when listening or dancing at Nowadays, so all you hear and feel is the music not the room distorting the music from rattles so you get lost in the music,

Another VERY important aspect was to design Nowadays so you are able to really drive the sound system at any time of the day, night or early in the morning and be noise friendly to the neighborhood so you can’t hear the bass down the street disturbing the neighbors sleeping creating community issues which Big box systems can do with the sound pumping from DJ talent, which we achieved as a whole when designing Nowadays.

Much like sports and the music industry, Awards are given to parties that take strides to offer a product and the community an enjoyable venue that safe and is unique and that really push the limits outside of the norm to perform at the highest levels possible each and every night open, and I believe the team at Nowadays really went out of there way taking all aspects to make this venue the safest, the finest and most unique place to go out weather it is indoors or outdoors in there amazing beer garden with the best staff to make sure your safe and the most comfortable at Nowadays.

The design was one of the best executed layouts i have seen in over 20 yrs + as a whole, from the floated room in a room with sound panels on the dance floor, you usually only see isolated room layouts like this in a recording studio with sound panels on the walls and ceiling. The restaurant area as well was treated with sound panels on the walls and ceilings for the best acoustics to eliminate reverb that can tend to ear fatigue.

To a one of a kind hifi Audiophile hifi Analog SBS Slammer Ref system with SBS Designs components used in the finest recording and mastering facilities so you REALLY hear the music as its intended to be heard and felt with a one of a kind floated wood floor on wood tracks that has bounce to be easy on your joints, No other space has gone this far and I feel Nowadays from its staff to room layout and its technology to owners vision have set an all an all new bar for the finest night out in a club restaurant application.