Although this application was not made in Latin America, integrators in the region can get some ideas on how to turn simple sports meeting spaces into real thematic scenarios that impact visitors.
By: RGB Spectrum/Sound Products*

Sports Radio 810 Zone Bar & Grill is a top-notch sports bar and restaurant in Kansas City. It boasts a sophisticated audiovisual entertainment system with two large screens 15' x 12' wide, plus 48 high-definition plasma screens and 25 smaller interactive LCD screens. Sounds Products, an A/V technology integrator based in Lenexz, Kansas City, Kansas, was contracted to execute the design and installation of this innovative entertainment system.

Bob Scott, Project Manager for Sound Products, explained the project. "The owners of the restaurant wanted to distinguish their sports bar as a place of vibrant and captivating entertainment, a place that created a lively atmosphere and offered exciting sports coverage to their customers who like sports. The goal was to make it possible for customers to come in and instantly be 'surprised' by the eye-catching atmosphere around them."

"The entrance and main section of the bar, which is a large area with a significant amount of open space, represented an A/V design challenge. We wanted a large screen with a quad video processor, with which up to four channels can be viewed simultaneously. The image quality of the display system was vital. It had to withstand high-definition emissions as well as computer sources with excellent clarity and impact. RGB Spectrum's QuadView® multi-image processor was chosen to offer these features. It is the perfect solution for this application. It supports a wide variety of image sources and produces fresh, sharp images."

Truly cutting-edge technology

The QuadView® processor offers a connection of up to 16 video and computer inputs. It receives high-definition video sources through a digital matrix exchanger, including Direct TV satellite and two CATV boxes for local sports networks. Sports fans can enjoy NFL football, NHL hockey, NBA basketball, American and National League baseball, college football and basketball, ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports network and local sports broadcasts. The processor is also powered with computer sources, PowerPoint presentations or DVDs are played with notebook PCs. The Quadview processor consolidates these images and brings them to a 16:9 wide Panasonic 4500 lumen, ceiling-mounted display projector.

Sound Products designed an easy-to-use touchscreen control system so restaurant staff could change video and audio sources, adjust volume, and choose presentation settings such as quad image and full-screen modes.

Sports Zone 810 Zone Bar & Grill, a top-tier sports bar located in Leawood, Kansas, is the result of a highly successful partnership between Union Broadcasting, the owners of Kansas City-based WHB Sports Radio 810 and restaurant and tavern management company K.C. Hopps Ltd.

About the authors*

Sound Products sells, designs, installs and maintains security, video and audio systems and products. Sound Products is the largest DMX Music franchise in the country, serving more than 1,500 customers regionally and nationally, with more than 100 music formats. For more information visit the website: www.soundproductsinc.com.

RGB Spectrum is a leading designer and manufacturer of video and multimedia hardware subsystems. It is based in Alameda, California, and you can visit its website: http://www.rgb.com.