When you decide to open a nightclub on the ground floor of your music academy – which happens to be nationally renowned for its first-class music production facilities and tuition – you’d better install a sound system that can live up to your reputation.
Bass Valley
The garage at the Bass Valley, Barcelona.
We needed a system that would respect the concept of Bass Valley and Pioneer Pro Audio seems to be a perfect partner. From guests to artists, every single person who comes here mentions the sound.Samuel Escudero | Production Manager | Bass Valley
Pioneer Pro Audio stepped in when a new club needed a system that could blow away Barcelona’s audiophiles.
In early 2019 the team at Spain’s premier music school, Bass Valley, opened a performance and events venue on the ground floor of their building in Barcelona. “We built it for sound lovers,” explains Production Manager Samuel Escudero. “We host top DJs and we want to be known as people who try to make things right for the artists, the industry and people who love to go to a place and hear the audio properly.” But the new venue, The Garage, had a major problem. The initial sound system just wasn’t doing justice to Bass Valley’s prestigious name.
Having spent considerable time and money transforming the former warehouse space into a 300-capacity venue with advanced acoustic treatment, the team at The Garage quickly realised after opening the club that their sound system wasn’t up to scratch. When looking for a new solution, the objectives were clear, says Escudero. “We mainly organise electronic music events and that’s highdemand music. So, we needed high pressure to play every frequency clearly – a sound where you can notice every detail of the production.”
Local rental and installation company Moduspro Audiovisual Services was enlisted to find the answer. “We knew they wanted the best sound in town,” remembers CEO Jordi Buscà, adding: “We were sure we could achieve that with the Pioneer Pro Audio XY Series because of the speakers’ balance of pressure and intelligibility. You can hear all the instruments perfectly and voices sound so clear.”
To offer the flexibility the venue needed for staging club nights and live shows, Moduspro Audiovisual Services installed a four-point system with XY-3B threeway full range speakers either side of the stage, XY-2 mid-high speakers at the rear of the room and a trio of XY-218HS dual 18-inch horn-loaded subwoofers supplying powerful low-end. Using presets on the mixer, the club’s management can easily switch to a live gig configuration which uses only the boxes at the front.
Because The Garage had already been decked out in acoustic treatment, Moduspro Audiovisual Services needed to get creative when it came to installing the gear. “We couldn’t make holes in the walls or ceiling because it would damage the acoustic material,” explains Buscà. “But the XY Series speakers are so easy to mount they allowed us to be creative and we found a way to put them in the best positions.” What was Escudero’s reaction on hearing the system for the first time? “A big woah!” he chuckles. “You can have a lot of pressure but with a smooth sound. Other sound systems hurt your ears, but it doesn’t happen here.” And how did he find the experience of working with Pioneer Pro Audio? “They’re great professionals,” he says. “They’re always ready to listen and to help you.”
The Garage at The Bass Valley is the latest in a line of worldrenowned nightclubs to partner with Pioneer Pro Audio. Since launching in 2013, speakers from three versatile ranges have been installed at venues including London’s Fabric, Sankeys, KM5 and Ushuaia Tower in Ibiza, Café D’Anvers in Antwerp, and Sound Nightclub in Los Angeles.
ESC
At a glance
The garage at the Bass Valley, Barcelona.
recap
Overview
XY-81
1 installed
Overview
XY-3B
2 installed
Overview
XY-2
2 installed
Overview
XY-218HS
3 installed
Overview
K-Series amplifier DISCONTINUED
1 installed
