MikeDennis Posted March 10, 2014 Share Posted March 10, 2014 Hi all. I'm still Technical Manager at Thekla in Bristol, the venue/nightclub on a boat. We're going into dry dock this year and I've had the suggestion put to me by my boss that I push for a new PA install while they're spending money. I've never considered a new install a possibility since I've been there so am now trying to pool some ideas about systems that will suit our space. Here are a few photos to give you an idea of the space. The view of the stage from FOH - our Vi1 (which will remain) in view at the bottom of the picture and the balcony that FOH is under in view at the top of the picture:http://s29.postimg.o...qf/DSC_0354.jpg Central front view of the stage from the dancefloor/audience area, with current system (Turbosound Q-light) visible hung either side of stage:http://s3.postimg.or...4z/DSC_0355.jpg View from the balcony that (just about) shows speakers hung to fill in balcony above main stack:http://s30.postimg.o...q9/DSC_0357.jpg Apologies if the pictures aren't very helpful. Essentially, it's a very unusual space, with a less than ideal atmosphere (i.e. quite damp) and the walls are the steel ribs of the boat. These aspects are being addressed in dry dock with some sound-proofing being installed into the hull and an overhaul of the air con/de-humidification system. The subs currently live under the stage - 4 x Turbosound TQ425 and 2 x TSB-118. I am fond of the current system but it is obsolete and, soon, spares will likely be impossible to get hold of and, besides, with this being the only major refurb planned for the foreseeable future, I'd like to get in a proposal at this point for something new. Does anyone have any suggestions in terms of nice-sounding, versatile systems? Versatile in that I will need a number of delays dotted around the place to fill in several unusual black spots. It's worth pointing out that the maximum height of anything we could put under the stage would be 750mm or about 30". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chelgrian Posted March 10, 2014 Share Posted March 10, 2014 Does anyone have any suggestions in terms of nice-sounding, versatile systems? Versatile in that I will need a number of delays dotted around the place to fill in several unusual black spots. It's worth pointing out that the maximum height of anything we could put under the stage would be 750mm or about 30". Is it TQ-440 on top and if so are you looking to replace with similarly configured system with 12" hangs plus subs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueShift Posted March 10, 2014 Share Posted March 10, 2014 Very open ended question you have here. I suggest you contact one of the many professionals available to help you design such a system. There are a huge amount of systems available that would perform well in this space. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
top-cat Posted March 11, 2014 Share Posted March 11, 2014 Very open ended question you have here. I suggest you contact one of the many professionals available to help you design such a system. There are a huge amount of systems available that would perform well in this space. I don't think it's unreasonable to ask here first before contacting a professional company. The problem with contracting somebody is they will simply sell you the most suited system from the brands which they carry. If the company you ask carry Nexo, they won't sell you a Turbosound; even if the Turbo would have been better for the job. The benefit of asking here is that comments come from outside the line of business with genuine feedback on what people have heard, not simply what is going to make good business for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueShift Posted March 11, 2014 Share Posted March 11, 2014 I don't think it's unreasonable to ask here first before contacting a professional company. The problem with contracting somebody is they will simply sell you the most suited system from the brands which they carry. If the company you ask carry Nexo, they won't sell you a Turbosound; even if the Turbo would have been better for the job. The benefit of asking here is that comments come from outside the line of business with genuine feedback on what people have heard, not simply what is going to make good business for them. Sure. I understand your perspective. Equally though, lots of advice on the internet is nonsense :-). And although suppliers will always have a tendency to recommend brands they carry, equally good suppliers tend to only carry good brands, so you end up with a good result either way... There are many 'right answers' to this question. If you wan't quality and reliability, and have some money to spend, I'd look at offerings from D&B and L'Acoustics. The Tannoy V series stuff is also really good for less money than d&b or L'acoustics. A good system for that space will almost certainly require some distributed cabinets to cover odd areas. Try and get a first hand listen to some systems before buying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeDennis Posted March 11, 2014 Author Share Posted March 11, 2014 chelgrian - yes, I imagine it like that. We need coverage for the dancefloor area and the balcony primarily. The layout of the boat isn't changing in the main venue so the sensible place for the subs is going to remain under the stage and yeah, currently TQ-445s hung above but these boxes are all getting on and the spares aren't going to be available at some point. Also, being in such an inhospitable environment means cabling needs to be changed so it's just a good time to get this done really. Blue Shift and top cat - Thank you. I agree with you both!! I guess it's open-ended at this point because I just heard about the prospect two days ago and am trying to pool ideas. I know there's a lot of people in these forums experienced in these matters so thought I'd cast my line and see what I reeled in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueShift Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 Why not engage an independent consultant to do you a design to put to tender? That way you get a degree of open-mindedness in the design process, but you end up with a relationship with a production company for a good deal on supply and support? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatrickSmith Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 Hi Mike, As a few others have commented, this is a very open ended question and you'd be best finding an installer/designer who can work with you on this. Your concerns regarding installers with an agenda for certain products are not unfounded - we all want to make money at the end of the day - but I would suggest that this is more about finding the right company to work with than an issue with this approach in general. You'll sniff out those who care about a quality designed system and those who just want to shoe-horn a specific product in pretty quickly. Ultimately there is no "right" product - there are loads of great products out there that could work for you depending on your design criteria and budget. More importantly you want to find a supplier with access to and history with a range of products, which allows them to approach the solution from a design perspective first before then matching with products of an appropriate cost and performance. I'm part of the sales team at SFL and would be happy to help out if you'd be interested. We have history installing a number of the brands that have already be highlighted to you (d&b, L-Acoustics, Tannoy) and are core dealers for a wide range of the leading pro-audio brands. All of these could work well depending on your budget and other criteria. Email me at pat@sflgroup.co.uk if you'd like to chat more, come for demos or similar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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