Funktion One put first in Hong Kong nightclub
Published: ASIA
CHINA: A new nightclub in Hong Kong’s Lan Kwai Fong area has opened with a comprehensive Funktion One installation and the distinction of having even altered its interior design in an effort to provide the best possible audio performance.
The Tazmania Ballroom combines a pool hall with a cutting edge nightclub experience intended to raise the bar within the Lan Kwai Fong area, which is renowned as one of Hong Kong’s most active nightlife destinations, boasting more than 100 restaurants and bars serving a high-profile clientele. Located within the Central district, the area was once just a small L-shaped cobbled lane adjoining D'Aguilar Street, but has quickly risen to become one of the most stylish parts of Hong Kong, appealing to a heady mix of visiting tourists and Western expatriates working in the surrounding financial district.
Opening each night at 10pm, the Tazmania Ballroom is located within a 600-sq-m rectangular space and boasts a music policy based on contemporary hip hop and an interior design that uses custom-lighting, stainless steel panelling and white marble flooring to create a unique visual appeal. However, while the design is crucial to the swelling popularity of the nightclub, it came second to the audio installation during the club’s construction. According to Wingo Tsen of the company behind the install, Hong Kong system integrator New Energy Audio and Light Limited, the owner of the Tazmania Ballroom and its interior designer shifted their plans to accommodate the optimum positioning of the Funktion One loudspeaker installation.
The result is reportedly a high-powered system the match of any in Hong Kong, with visitors to the club introduced to the concept as soon as they arrive courtesy of two F81 loudspeakers installed in the ground-floor reception area. Moving upstairs to the club proper, the main sound system comprises eight R1 enclosures providing solid coverage across the entire venue. Two of the loudspeakers are positioned at either side of the DJ position, firing directly onto the dance floor, while the rest are located around the main room, supplementing the coverage. Meanwhile, a seated section of the club is covered by an additional two pairs of F55 cabinets.
Providing low end are 12 discreetly installed F118 subwoofers, none of which are visible to the nightclub’s patrons but which nonetheless dictated the venue’s final design. According to Mr Tsen, when a conflict arose between the best position for one of the subs and an element of the nightclub’s design, the interior plans were swiftly changed.