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Three big-ass
clubs install equally bodacious video rigs.
By
John Landers and Chrissi Mark
Myth,
Minneapolis
As the race to create the club that does it all continues,
Minneapolis’ 36,000-square-foot Myth made its debut
last December intending to be an equally reputable dance
club and live venue for national touring acts. And while
there are separate – and all are massive –
sound and lighting systems for the two event types, one
central video booth controls a multitasking system of
visual play on screens, LCDs and TVs throughout the 4,000-cap
club’s four levels.
The resourceful Randy Keeley of St. Paul, Minn.-based
Metro Sound & Lighting (metrosoundlighting. com),
who headed the install of the sound, lighting and video
systems, insisted Myth’s visual setup please finicky
bands and DJs alike.
“We didn’t have the room for a 40-foot wide
performing area, then 15 feet on either side for speakers
and then another 10 feet outside there for video,”
he says. “Somehow we had to put the video where
the speakers were.” Since the sight of speaker-blocking
screens might turn away many tours, Keeley “somehow”
discovered a non-offensive solution. Though reluctant
to give it up, his secret lies in a France-based company,
Screen Research (screenresearch.com), which makes projection
screens that are, its site states, “acoustically
transparent.” At Myth the two 12-foot wide special
screens, which can also slide up and down, are set in
front of the live sound rigs, ElectroVoice X-fil boxes,
flown on either side of the stage.
The video, like the sound and lighting, showed no favoritism
to club nor live nights from the design phase, according
to Head Tech Tony Mamoud, who mans the video booth most
nights for both kinds of shows. For live acts –
particularly big names like Nickleback and Fall Out Boy
– the club takes on a concert venue appearance,
with videographers providing live feeds of the stage for
visual access on all levels.
When the entertainer is a DJ – The Crystal Method,
DJ Skribble, Junior Sanchez and DJ AM – Mamoud uses
feeds from the two in-house three-chip Sony cameras, which
are remote controllable. And then he gets a bit more creative
with the video programs. “For club nights, we use
two different types of software;” Mamoud says. “We
use an ArKaos to display different, random images like
movie clips, short movie effects, 3-D effects. We also
have a Tidal generator that actually generates tidals,
and different fonts to overlay on top of the video image
in the background.”
Mamoud also controls the club’s 22 LCD screens,
front quad-display video wall and four 150-plus inch screens
from the booth’s Crestron touch panel. More screens
were being added at press time, as the roof-top all-white
Ultra Lounge, and other VIP-friendly areas – where
time-delayed EV speakers allow for conversation –
were getting tweaked with post-opening finishing touches.
–CM
mythnightclub.com
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Do-it-all Myth can run
dancefloor video throughout its 35,000 square feet;
but for concerts the big, acoustic-friendly screens
are all about the live show.
Myth
Gear
AUDIO (Selected)
80 - Electrovoice EVID C8.2LP ceiling speakers
43 - Electrovoice FRi 2082 speakers
16 - Electrovoice P3000RL amplifiers
14 - Electrovoice XSub subwoofers
11 - Electrovoice P900RL amplifiers
5 - Electrovoice P900RT amplifiers
5 - Electrovoice P1200RL amplifiers
3 - Electrovoice Xfil1 speakers
3 - Electrovoice Xfill2 speakers
2 - Rane DA216A distribution amplifiers
1 - Modula Autopatch 32x32
Main DJ Booth
4 - Technics SL-1200MK5 turntables
2 - Pioneer CDJ-1000MK2 digital vinyl turntables
2 - Pioneer DVJ-X1 DVD turntables
1 - Pioneer DJM-600 mixer
1 - Pioneer DJM-909 mixer
1 - Rane MP 2016a rotary mixer
1 - Rane XP 2016a expander
LIGHTING (Selected)
32 - Martin Professional CX-10 color changers
20 - Martin Professional Pro918 scanners
20 - Martin Professional Mac250 Krypton fixtures
12 - Martin Professional Wizard Extreme effects
8 - Martin Professional Atomic-3000 strobes
2 - Martin Professional Club Smoke systems
1 - Martin Professional LightJockey 2
1 - Martin Professional LightJockey Touch
1 - Martin Professional LightJockey Fingers
1 - Tomcat custom truss system
VIDEO (Selected)
16 - DirecTV H10 HD DSS receivers
16 - Sharp LC37D7U SP 37" LCD TVs
6 - Optikinetics Solar 250 projectors
5 - Sony 50” plasma screens
5 - Hitachi CPX1250 projectors and screens
2 - Sony DXC990 cameras
1 - ArKaos media software
1 - Crestron AV2 control system
1 - Crestron TPS-4500LB touch panel
1 - M-Audio Oxygen 8 MIDI video controller
1 - Panasonic Ramsa AGMX70 video mixer
1 - Toshiba SD3980 DVD player
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Peccadillo’s, Erie
The Erie, Penn.-based nightlife nexus known as Peccadillo’s
is actually three venues in one: Peccadillo’s Nightclub
and Restaurant, Woody’s Sports Bar and Outlaws Country
Bar. As the city’s largest and most diverse nightspot,
Peccadillo’s needed a video system as big and versatile
as the club itself.
Matt Orton, of Synergy Pro Audio and Lighting (synergyproaudio.com),
was called in to handle the extensive installation. To
get the greatest visual impact, he spec–ed seven
supersized projection screens for the job. While the latest
and greatest flat screen monitors have their advantages,
“you’re not going to get 100-plus inches with
a plasma display,” Orton asserts.
“There are the four big screens [in the main room],
and then there’s a letter box one on the backside,”
he explains. “In the back room, there’s an
even larger screen. The largest screen is actually in
the sports bar.” There are also 20-odd conventional
TVs throughout the country and sports bars.
Feeding all of these screens with captivating video content
might seem like a challenge, but Orton made sure that
Peccadillo’s would have plenty of visual possibilities.
“We’ve got
a big matrix switch that we can use to assign ambient
videos or even a football game to any screen, in any configuration,”
he notes.
In addition to running Synergy, which serves many of the
city’s nightclubs, Orton enjoys a regular VJ residency
at Peccadillo’s. Orton uses his own computer-based
system when performing, a program called Virtual DJ.
Orton’s video content is provided via hard drive.
“I subscribe to ScreenPlay, and they actually send
me MPEGs.” The ScreenPlay (screenplayvj.com) subscription
service works like a traditional DJ record pool, except
that end-users receive pre-formatted MPG2 video files
instead of 12-inch vinyl singles.
As for format, Orton’s play list tends to be rather
eclectic. “I usually do more older stuff, like classic
rock, eighties, early nineties, retro pop. I [include]
a lot of unique videos that people either haven’t
seen in a long time or videos that they’ve never
seen before. It’s a different approach.”
Out on the main dancefloor, however, more mainstream fare
dominates the musical menu. “The front room is pretty
much mainstream Top 40,” he adds. “They’ll
do music videos, ambient and PowerPoint.”
Being able to instantly switch the visual feeds around
to suit the Peccadillo’s crowd is a significant
advantage, especially with all of the special events and
special guests (everyone from Tommy Lee to Don Vito) that
the club hosts. The versatile Synergy-installed system
can also be easily adapted to meet the club’s evolving
video needs, so future upgrades or interior design changes
can be accommodated with a minimum of difficulty or expense.
–JL
peccadillos.info |
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Peccadillo’s half-dozen
Elite Screens are mega-sized because plasmas just weren’t
big enough.
Peccadillo’s
Gear
AUDIO (selected)
Main Room
28 - EV-loaded 15" subwoofers
4 - Ashly MFA-8000 amplifiers
4 - JBL Control 28 speakers
4 - Synergy Xtreme SXD-212 speakers
2 - Ashly FTX-1501 amplifiers
2 - Numark CDX turntables
1 - Ram Audio BUX 2.8 amplifier
1 - Ram Audio LSM-266 system controller
1 - Rane MP44 mixer
Sports Bar
6 - Crest CPT-2 speakers
2 - Ashly FTX-1501 amplifiers
2 - Synergy Xtreme custom tri-amp speakers
1 - Behringer MDX 4600 compressor/limiter
1 - Behringer Ultragraph Pro FBQ 6200 EQ
1 - Crest Perfomance CPX-900 amplifier
1 - Numark CM200USB Mixer
1 - PCDJ DAC-2 Controller
1 - Peavey PV1200 amplifier
1 - Rane ME15 EQ
1 - Rane Sac 23 crossover
1 - Rane SM26 splitter/mixer
1 - Virtual DJ
LIGHTING (selected)
Main Room
8 - Chauvet Mini Legend Wash moving heads
4 - High End Systems Intellibeam 700HXs scanners
3 - High End Systems I-Spot moving heads
1 - Chauvet DMX-40 Control Center
1 - DPSS half-Watt laser
1 - High End Systems AF1000 Dataflash strobe
1 - High End Systems AF1000 Mini controller
1 - High End Systems Hog PC
1 - High End Systems Trackspot scanner
Sports Bar
4 - Chauvet Intimidator color changers
4 - Chauvet ZX-30RG scanners
2 - High End Systems AF1000 Dataflash strobes
1 - Leviton/NSI MLC 128R controller
VIDEO
Main Room
6 - Infocus X2 projectors
4 - Elite Screens CineTension 120" motorized
screens
3 - Sylvania 6427GFF 27" CRT TVs
2 - Sony DVD players
1 - Edirol V-4 mixer
1 - Elite Screens CineTension 100" motorized
screen
1 - Elite Screens CineTension 84" motorized screen
1 - Marshall VA-3 MK2 monitor system
1 - Numark DVD01 player
1 - Sign SV88 8x8 matrix routing switcher
1 - Sony VCR
Sports Bar
8 - RCA DRD-450RGA Direct TV receivers
2 - Dish Network 311 receivers
1 - Draper 192" projection screen
1 - Optoma EP739 projector
1 - Sony DVD Player
1 - Sony KDFE50A10 50" projection TV
1 - Sony VCR
1 - Sylvania 6427GFF 27" CRT TVs
Country Bar
4 - Sylvania 6427GFF 27" CRT TVs
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Tootsies, Miami
Tootsies Cabaret is something of an institution in Miami.
The self-proclaimed “supreme gentleman’s
club” of south Florida has been around for longer
than most venues in the industry; obviously the powers-that-be
at Tootsies know what they’re doing.
It’s no surprise, then, that Tootsies turned to
proven professionals for the venue’s recent video
installation. As part of a somewhat-overdue makeover,
Sound Stage Systems (soundstagesystems.com) was hired
to design and install a sophisticated video system that
would be just as well-endowed and flexible as the club’s
dancers.
“The owner wanted a state-of-the-art video system
with the ability to send any one of the 24 video inputs
to any of the 45 plasma displays or four jumbo video
screens,” explains Karl Kieslich of Sound Stage
Systems. “He wanted all of this to be done by
a touch screen monitor or by wall-mounted LCD controllers
in the VIP rooms.”
The interconnected system allows operators to perform
some enticing video tricks. “You can display drink
specials or upcoming events on any screen,” Kieslich
says. “There’s a wireless camera that is
used by the staff as they walk around the club. This
info is sent back to the control room where it is edited
and send out to the displays. You can also use the PowerPoint
system and do all kinds of neat stuff.”
The biggest technical challenge was giving each private
dance room a dedicated A/V source and volume control.
“That took some work,” Kieslich admits.
“The entire system is one of a kind. We designed
some of the control interface to make all this happen.”
Was the effort worth it? “The customers love it,”
maintains the installer. “They can choose their
own video and/or music source and adjust the volume
as they like. It’s their own private little club.”
As for the choice of hardware, Kieslich is particularly
pleased with the performance of the Panasonic plasma
screens he installed in the club. “Plasmas are
a great video display to use,” he notes. “They
are low profile and produce an awesome image.”
Kieslich is digging the cost/benefit ratio of the new
breed of plasma screens, too. “The price on plasmas
have been falling weekly. You can now get 42-inch HD
plasmas for around $1,600. The days of those big, bulky
TV sets hanging on even larger metal brackets are gone,”
he says. “Thank God!” –JL
tootsiescabaret.com
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Tootsies is a veteran
gentlemen’s club, but its interconnected video
system is young, hot and very well endowed.
Tootsies
Gear
VIDEO
45 - Panasonic 42" plasma screens
26 - SAT TV receivers
8 - BSS BLU-10 programmable controllers
4 - Eiki DLP LCD projectors
4 - Numark VM03 rackmount video monitors
4 - Panasonic 12' video screens
2 - BSS Audio BLU-32 signal processors I/O expanders
1 - BSS Audio BLU-80 signal processor
1 - custom video switching matrix software package
1 - Knox 64x64 “Chameleon” video matrix
switcher
1 - Dell PC with Elo TouchSystems monitor
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