Neal’s company had previously provided sound reinforcement for a Missy Elliot concert at the Bournemouth International Centre; the trio happened to be promoting the show. When the City Centre Leisure Group refurbished the former K-Bar, it decided to work with Neal to install the sound systems. In total, the conversion cost between _1.5million-_2million.
The 840-capacity club has a ground floor dance room (and adjacent tented chill area), which leads down to a VIP mezzanine room, and further down in the basement is the main room.
Martin Audio’s architectural AQ series speakers are used in annexe rooms where clubbers can chill out and the Pulsar Chroma range illuminates these spaces, which are operated from Dynamite wall panels. The combination of Martin Audio Blacklines and ground stacks of the original Wavefront 8’s in front of the DJ booths on each floor provide a punchy sound.
“I use Blackline for aggression and cut on the dancefloor – and for DJ monitoring,” said Neal. ” It has that bite anywhere you need it. The AQ’s produce a smooth, transparent sound and are perfect for the bar areas.”
On the ground floor, two stacks of Wavefront W8 and W8S’s complement sets of AQ12 and AQ8’s, as well as a the F10 DJ monitors. Music is played at reduced volume in the chill out areas, with another pair of AQ8’s.
There are two further AQ8’s for the mezzanine VIP lounge, where a permanent DJ booth has been set up. The basement is home to two ground stacks, each comprising two W8’s and two W8S’s, along with a pair of F10’s that are used as DJ monitors.
“The whole system is correctly time aligned and EQ’d – and any DJ source can be sent anywhere in the building,” said Neal.
