In today’s post, we will examine a recent project we completed with Richer Sounds for the Panam bar & restaurant in Liverpool. We were first contacted a few days before the cup final and asked to update their current restaurant bar Audio Visual System. Our engineer arranged the survey for that evening to discuss their requirements and begin designing a new system. We discovered that the existing system was outdated and no longer functioning correctly. It was running off a composite video amplifier serving 720p. There were also a few old flat-screen TVs and a redundant projector installation with a big screen. The image quality was inferior, unlike the rest of the building and view, which was terrific.
The client decided on four wall-mounted QLED 4k 50″ flat screen TVs around the main bar area. Supported by a 4K Optoma UHZ65 5000 lumen projector with a 3m wide electric projector screen. Firstly, we explained the need to upgrade the distribution system from composite to HDMI to enable 4K. A new 4K Freesat box was then provided, located 50 meters from the main bar area, along with the audio equipment. We connected the Freesat box to an HDMI distribution amp in the bar area using 4k HDMI over CAT6. We then ran HDMI over fibre-optic from the distribution amp to each screen and the projector. This was the most cost-effective way to serve the area with a 4K signal from the office to multiple screens in the bar area.
The new Restaurant Bar Audio Visual System also needed to provide an audio feed for the existing house system. We achieved this by using an HDMI audio de-embedder before the HDMI over Cat6. This provided an analogue stereo audio signal we could plug directly into the existing audio switch. Four 50″ QLED screens were wall-mounted at a high level using tilting wall mounts—two screens on either side of the main bar area, catering for the main central area. The projector and screen were more complicated to install, as the mounting positions were not easily accessible.
We mentioned before that the projector and screen installation was particularly challenging. Most of the challenges were sure to the ceiling. Constructed from cast-iron beams and pillars, the space between the beams featured a suspended arched red brick ceiling vaulted on either side. A cast Iron arched beam runs through the centre of the bar area, which was also the desired location for the screen and projector.
To hang the projector screen beneath the cast-iron supports, we had to suspend the screen from above. We used a 10mm threaded rod along with articulated Lindaptor SW10 M10 Swivel units. This allowed us to counter the contour of the arched bricks, providing a level mounting. For additional safety, we also offered a high-tensile steel cable anchored to the tie bars on the ceiling.
As with the screen, the projector needed to be mounted directly beneath a main cast-iron beam. We used a RA Technology projector mount and secured this to two short lengths of Unistrut. This created a cradle platform that we could suspend beneath the iron beam. We suspended the platform using the same Lindaptor swivel units as before, with M10 threaded rods. These swivel heads made it possible to fix to the arched brickwork. Next, we run a 20M HDMI over a fibre-optic cable back to the distribution amplifier. Lastly, we installed a trigger on the RF screen controller so that the screen automatically lowers when the projector is turned on.
AV Installs provides a complete range of Audio Visual Installation services and sales. We offer TV lift mechanisms, ceiling recessed projector lifts, motorised TV brackets, and a wide range of other commercial audio-visual installation services for various businesses.
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