BAR-CELONA BECKONS FOR MARTIN AUDIO AQ'S

When Andrew Costi and Jim Dee realised that their 120-cover Bar-Celona restaurant in the Kingswood suburb of Bristol, was starting to draw more of a clubbing crowd, gathering for drinks at front of house, they came up with a brainwave.

Says Andrew, 'My business partner owned the building two doors down and so we converted it from an Italian restaurant and then purchased the building in between, to create an entertainment venue.'

The result is that they not only have one giant piece of real estate (with a roof terrace) but can bridge between the restaurant and their vibrant new live and dance venue – via a conservatory area which is used for wedding receptions and private events.

The Bar-Celona MD brought in local installers CPM to specify and design a sound system built around Martin Audio's stylish AQ range, finished in a sleek, factory-fit mid-grey. This would not only service the needs of the DJ's, who play out to the 350-capacity club from Thursday to Sunday, but also the Wednesday night karaoke/open mic performers and occasionally live bands.

Within this long narrow rectangle, CPM's Trevor Brooks has installed a pair of two-way AQ15's, flown left and right of the stage, reinforced by a pair of S215 subs. Further down the room a combination of AQ8's and AQ5's have been installed, while the system presets satisfy the decreasing volume requirements, back towards the door.

Visually the venue is brought alive by LED décor lighting, providing a striking feature down the long bar front and the DJ console, while LED spots off the front truss provide the stage with production lighting. A Sanyo projector fires DVD footage and sports events from terrestrial TV onto the back wall, and the owners have sensibly provided Nintendo Wii games as an additional form of entertainment.

Andrew Costi says that the conversion has cost the owners in excess of £250,000, but with Bar-Celona looking to build on its 2am weekend license, this spend has been fully justified.


Further information from:

Maureen Hayes, Martin Audio Jerry Gilbert, JGP Public Relations
Tel: +44 (0)1494 535312 Tel: +44 (0)1707 258525
Fax: +44 (0)1494 438669 Fax: +44 (0)1707 267140