Many people probably don’t know this, but the culinary icon of American cuisine
(if you could call it that) and rock and roll sub-culture, the Hard Rock Cafe, was
actually founded in London in 1971. Founders Peter Morton and Isaac Tigrett,
two shaggy-haired Americans living in the English city at the time, desired
nothing more than to find a decent burger in a locale run amok with Yorkshire
puddings, beef wellingtons and mushy peas. The Hard Rock Cafe was the
brainchild of that quest. And who could blame them, right? English gastronomy,
some would say, is most likely the grim result of a vicious dare.
Black pudding, anyone?

Nowadays the franchise boasts around 145 cafes worldwide with one of the
latest additions being the Johannesburg branch at Nelson Mandela Square in
Sandton. Like the rest of the Hard Rock Cafes around the word, the restaurant
is an unabashed example of unapologetic Americana, sporting a dazzling
collection of bona fide rock and roll memorabilia, a floating constellation of nearly
7 000 drumsticks at the main bar and a full stage for performing bands and
artists.

Of course, like many clubs of its persuasion, top notch sound was a must so
local distributors and installers of high end audio equipment Wild and Marr
supplied and installed the sound system.

Audio

Hard Rock has a close association with the Harman Group internationally and so
it was a natural progression that the audio system at the Hard Rock Cafe should
be installed by Wild and Marr and coordinated by Technical Manager and
Systems Engineer Anton van Wyk. The system was designed to operate in two
modes: as a background music system and, when needed, a live music system.

Background music

Due to the need for switchable audio distribution, the backbone of the system
comprised of a BSS Soundweb London BLU160 signal processor combined with a
BLU120 signal expander. The BSS system, since it uses JBL’s proprietary HiQnet
digital audio over Ethernet transport protocol, was integrated into the cafe’s
network via a Netgear 48 point network switch and Netgear wireless access
point. System control, therefore, forgoing the more common method of a wall-
mounted panel, is handled via the HiQnet London Architect app on a PC or via
the HiQnet Motion Control app for iOS.

A total of 40 JBL Control 47CT 6.5-inch ceiling speakers and 12 JBL Control
40CST 8-inch ceiling subwoofers were installed into three discrete zones, which
were configured to be controlled independently from each other. The retail area
and bathrooms received 14 Control 24CM ceiling speakers and four Control
19CST ceiling subwoofers.

As far as powering the system is concerned Van Wyk says: “The ceiling
loudspeakers are powered by Crown’s new DCI DriveCore amplifier technology.
We used two DCI 4-600 which offer four channels of audio at 600W per channel
in a 2U rack mount profile and two DCI 2-300 which offer two channels of audio
at 300W per channel in a 2U rack mount profile giving us 6 000W of power just
for the ceiling loudspeakers. However this will never be driven to its full
potential due to noise restrictions.’

Live Music

For the stage, a separate system is supplied for live music. For the main FOH
system, four 15-inch, three-way JBL PRX635 were supplied (two cabinets a side)
along with two PRX618S-XLF 18-inch self-powered subwoofers. The XLF suffix
to the model name denotes an extended low frequency response that offers a
useable range down to 39Hz (-3dB). For stage monitors, four self-powered 10-
inch, two-way JBL PRX710Ms were supplied. Since all speakers in the system
are active, there was no need for additional amplification.

Van Wyk comments on the audio system: “The reason we chose the PRX 635
was due to the three-way cabinet design and the midrange driver is ideal for
vocal and speech reproduction. The PRX635 loudspeakers are extremely “flat’
and when we performed the calibration of the system very little EQ was required
to get the system linear.’

In live music mode, the ceiling speakers are muted, which activates the live
music system. The entire system produces 8 000 watts but because of noise
restrictions it will only ever be run at around 60% power.

At FOH a Soundcraft SI Expression is installed, paired to a Soundcraft Mini
Stagebox via two CAT5 cables for redundancy. The Mini Stagebox offers 24
inputs and eight outputs. “This enables us to have the minimal amount of
cables between the stage and the mixing desk,’ says Van Wyk. “Gone are the
days of heavy, bulky snakes and people tripping over cables.’

Distributed throughout the stage are four floor boxes to connect microphones
and instruments. Wild and Marr provided a custom patch panel system where
any of the floor boxes can patch into the system in any configuration for greater
flexibility for the sound engineer.

“This installation goes to show that the Harman range of products covers all the
requirements there are, from background music all the way to rock bands’ says
Van Wyk. “It is a turnkey solution from one company.’

Lastly, as their contribution to the Hard Rock legacy, a collection of past and
present Shure microphones was donated for display at the reception desk.

The wrap

Wild and Marr have once again delivered a robust system using Harman
products that are sure to serve the Hard Rock Cafe for years to come. The
JBL/Soundweb combination along with the Soundcraft Expression console is a
streamlined solution that supplies a flexible routing option and top quality sound
that Wild and Marr have come to be known for in the professional audio, AV and
club environment.