Cornerstone Tavern, a popular entertainment destination in Raleigh, NC, recently doubled its capacity with the acquisition of a neighboring building, with locally based A/V firm Avant Systems Integration designing and installing a sound system for the new property that’s centered around Ashly Audio components as well as the company’s new customizable iPhone remote control app.
That effort proved so successful that the owners had a matching system installed by Avant in the original facility as well.
“Cornerstone Tavern is a busy place, maybe the busiest in all of Raleigh,” explains Scott Carneval, president of Avant. “You can see why; the vibe is totally cool. When they acquired the property next door, they asked for our help to make it sound great.
“So, we built the new system around Ashly’s ne8800 processor and KLR-series amplifiers, and Martin Audio’s new CDD-series loudspeakers,” he continues, “and we gave them intuitive control over the system with Ashly’s new free iPhone app [a new variant on its existing iPad app]. They loved it so much that they requested an identical system for the original property. We tied both of the systems together to unify parties and events when needed.”
Inputs to each system consist of DJ inputs, a Sonos Connect music streaming system, and a 3.5 mm jack for staffs’ phones or other music players. A fourth input in each house is the output from the other house.
Each Ashly ne8800 8×8 Protea digital matrix processor equalizes and levels the disparate input sources, and then routes the signals to a collection of Ashly KLR two-channel amplifiers. Power is provided by the KLR-4000 (2,000 watts/channel), KLR-3200 (1,600 watts at 2 ohms, 800 watts at 70 volts) and KLR-2000 (1,000 watts/channel).
The loudspeaker system includes Martin Audio CDD8, CDD10, and CDD8WR [weather resistant] loudspeakers and Martin CSX218 subwoofers. The entire system is controlled by the Ashly Remote App, which now works with the iPhone as well as the iPad.
“This was our first opportunity to use Ashly’s new iPhone version of its customizable user control app,” Carneval says. “Just like the iPad version, which we’ve used numerous times, it was easy to set up. We gave them control over which inputs are active and their volumes, but that’s about it. They love having the ability to control the sound system from their phones. Ashly’s free apps work as well or better than third-party solutions, and they help keep budgets in line.
“As for Ashly’s DSP and amplifier hardware, we chose Ashly at Cornerstone Tavern for the same reasons we’ve installed Ashly hardware at a dozen other locations already this year: they always work great, they’re easy to use, they have all the features and product options we need, and Ashly’s customer service is top-notch.”