Energywise designs audio for Tashas flagship

SOUTH AFRICA: The recently opened flagship Tashas restaurant in Sandton’s Mandela Square has been equipped with a Bose Freespace sound system. The solution was designed and supplied by local distributor, Energywise Systems, and installed by Elite Technologies.

Energywise became involved following an approach from Munka Projects MD Ilene Grace, who had project managed the opening of previous Tashas venues. Ms Grace contacted Energywise’s Dave Tudor to discuss the audio design for the new location.

‘Ilene and I go back a few years and we recently got in touch with each other again,’ recalled Mr Tudor. ‘We both realised that there was scope for us to work together and she asked if I would be keen to get involved in the Mandela Square project, so, of course I jumped at it. There are a lot of restaurant systems out there that leave a lot to be desired in terms of sonic quality and workmanship, so I was looking at this project as a reference point of how to do things right.

‘The brief from Tasha was very specific in terms of what she wanted,’ continued Mr Tudor. ‘It is essentially a background music system that needs to be full range and split into different zones, also bearing in mind that a large section of the inside seating area is actually within the mall. Intelligibility is everything for her. An even coverage across the frequency spectrum with enough sparkle in the high end is critical in order to achieve this.’

Elite Technologies was selected as the preferred installation company, and Mr Tudor worked closely with Elite’s Jono Blackburn through a number of challenges during the project. ‘Jono and I have formed a good relationship over the last year, their quality of work is amazing and they have access to some really great products that are able to complete the system.’

The installed solution comprises a selection of Bose Freespace products, controlled via a Rolls RM82 rack-mount mixer. A Freespace 3 flush mount system was installed for the indoor dining areas, while four Bose DS16SE environmental speakers take care of the outside seating area. A pair of the manufacturer’s DS16Fs were installed in the kiosk with a further four covering the bathrooms. The system has two distinct sources. The first feeds the main restaurant, outside and kiosk, while a separate second source is piped through to the bathrooms. This second source is a spoken word poetry track, so vocal intelligibility was critical. The entire system is controlled through a Bose PM8250 amplifier so that the various zones can be made louder or softer depending on the overall ambient level which differs during trading hours.

‘The combination of the Bose elements and input from both Elite Technologies and Energywise Systems worked well together,’ says Munka Projects’ Ms Grace. ‘So here’s to a successful working relationship going forward where we can ensure that the right people, brands and expertise are able to deliver exceptional results.’

www.elitetechnologies.co.za
www.energywise.co.za
www.pro.bose.com