Designed and installed by DBS Audio Systems of Coatesville, Penn., the network-controlled systems cover the lower level of Building 543. This 96,000sq.ft structure, built in 1939 as a steel plate-bending shop, encloses 70ft ceilings, vast expanses of glass, and layers of exposed steel and concrete. Now home to an upscale dining/events area, an Indian-themed coffee bar, and a long open promenade,it's an acoustical house of horrors wherein Urban Outfitters nevertheless expected premium-quality speech and music reproduction for both everyday activities and special events.
"We had brought temporary Meyer systems into the building several dozen times," recalls Dave Brotman, owner of DBS Audio Systems. "We were the only company that cared enough to array loudspeakers in the right areas and align them correctly, so they came back and asked for a permanent installation with the same power and accuracy."
Divided into three main areas, the system comprises nine different loudspeaker models from Meyer Sound's UltraSeries, Industrial Series, and M Series. Loudspeakers were selected for power and directional characteristics using the MAPP Online Pro acoustical prediction programme.
"Shortly after installation was complete, we brought in a console and used the system for a charity event with a 12-piece band in the main event space," says Brotman. "The sound was perfect and the client was ecstatic. Then last week, they did a wedding on their own in the Jharoka space, using the iPad to control music playback and the wireless microphone levels. It went off without a hitch."
(Jim Evans)
