Fabric Room Two

Unsurprisingly the decision to replace the sound system in fabric’s Room Two wasn’t taken lightly. But, having been in use for 14 years, it had become tired and needed an overhaul, says Keith Reynolds, Technical Manager at the club. “Even though it was a full-range system, there were limitations in getting a full-range sound out of it. We were starting to get to the point of losing a lot of sound quality.”

The fabric team were clear about what they wanted from a new install. “We were looking for that dance music sound, which is lots of sub-bass, lots of kick drum and then a good full range after that,” explains Reynolds, adding: “I didn’t want a line array system. I still wanted a point-source club sound system, where you’ve got a lot of sound pressure from all around.”

The brief may sound simple, but the unusual shape of Room Two and the construction of the building present a number of audio challenges that can change as often as every half an hour when the club is open. Housed in a Victorian cold store, fabric’s brick structure and railway arch ceilings create reflections that are difficult to control, while the number of people in the room, the temperature inside and even the weather outside can all affect the performance of the sound system, too. Even the self-contained DJ booth had its issues. “I call it the Bass Cave because we’ve got brick walls around it. We always had trouble with sound reverberation around there,” says Andrew Blackett, fabric’s Promotions Manager.

If the team at the club were impressed by the XY Series demo, it’s safe to say they were bowled over by the finished system. “You get goosebumps. It just hits the right note,” says Leslie. And, according to Blackett, the point source system ticks all the boxes in terms of delivering full dynamic range and even coverage in the awkward space. “Everything points in on you, whereas the old system fired at you. The power beats the awkward shape of the room, but it has the warmth in the bass and the mid-range to still fill the room,” he explains, adding that even the issue of unwanted reverberation in the Bass Cave DJ booth has been solved. “With Alex and the Pioneer team installing the new monitor system in the booth, they’ve beaten that and made it sound good in there.”

But it’s not just the fabric team who’ve raved about the new system. After performing at the club for the first time since the install, international DJ Jackmaster said: “I always really liked the system in Room Two, but to my surprise they’ve made it even better. I really noticed the difference in there. The energy seemed to really step up a notch.” And legendary electro artist Egyptian Lover commented that, “It’s the best sound system I’ve played on since 1984.”

Now that the new system is in place and delivering the full-range sound that Room Two needs, it’s just the beginning for the relationship between the club and Pioneer Pro Audio, who has been named official audio partner for Room Two. And as fabric’s Leslie explains, it’s a partnership to be excited about: “Pushing the boundaries a little bit would be where I’d love to see fabric going, both in terms of line-ups and in terms of the infrastructure and systems that they’re presented on. Advancing the technologies that Pioneer has at its disposal – that’s the future for us.”