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Inside the new Sandman Comedy Club in Richmond, VA where sound reinforcement is delivered by Renkus-Heinz ICONYX Live loudspeakers.

Renkus-Heinz Helps Deliver Serious Sonic Performance At New Virginia Comedy Club

ICONYX Live loudspeakers help in meeting acoustic challenges while maintaining the desired aesthetics at the Sandman Comedy Club in Richmond.

The newly opened Sandman Comedy Club in downtown Richmond, VA, a stand-up comedy and entertainment venue with seating for 250 guests that includes a main showroom floor and a mezzanine with space for 64, has been equipped with a sound reinforcement system utilizing Renkus-Heinz loudspeakers.

The club replaces a microbrewery, and long before that, a 1940s-era bank, with a couple of the old vault rooms still intact. Owner Michael Sands, whose childhood nickname “Sandman” inspired the club’s moniker, took over the space just a few months before the COVID shutdown and has spent the past 16 months refurbishing the space, building the stage, and designing and installing the sound, video, and lighting systems.

Following current safety guidelines, the club opened under limited capacity in late April with a week-long gig featuring actor, author and stand-up comedian Finesse Mitchell. Soon, the Sandman will also host open-mic events, karaoke nights, and become available for corporate events and private parties. “We have a multi-use space with a lot of personality and decoration, and a big balcony. We need excellent spoken-word support for the comedians, and we need top-level music support for many other uses,” says Sands. “We’ve been very impressed with the sound thanks to Renkus-Heinz loudspeakers.”

Vladimir Syrovatka Jr., Chief Engineer at CODE 3 AV (Midlothian, VA), the firm that designed and installed the club’s new AV systems, initiated the project by acoustically modeling the space with EASE modeling software. The software allowed Syrovatka to evaluate how to provide optimum coverage for the entire space and address reflective surfaces, with Renkus-Heinz ICONYX Live loudspeakers helping in meeting the challenging acoustics while maintaining the desired aesthetics.

The club is a large square space with a 22-foot-high ceiling, with the mezzanine balcony beginning at the 15-foot level. Syrovatka explains that the beam steering capabilities of the ICONYX Live loudspeakers were needed due to the challenge presented by the balcony, and he chose to couple an ICL‐F‐RN digitally steerable loudspeaker with an ICLX-118S-RN subwoofer.

“We’ve used Renkus-Heinz systems in other projects and have always had great results. After going through the modeling process, we saw that an ICONYX Live system would be able to provide excellent coverage for this space,” Syrovatka explains. “I think everyone is going to be very pleased with the quality of being able to support musical acts as well as the comedians.”

The club has a sound booth and will soon have a dedicated tech on staff to manage the AV and lighting during performances and events. The AV systems also utilize Crestron DMPS3 multimedia switcher with a QSC Core 110F audio processor and operate from an iPad. Additionally, the club can broadcast presentations if an organization wants to have a live event and share it remotely or record it for later use.

“Whatever Michael does on the show designer, he has the ability to capture presets on his touch panel. He can make changes and recalls without having to go back to the controller and the complex setup required for the various scenes,” adds Syrovatka.

“The system worked flawlessly and comedians Finesse Mitchell and Matt Rife raved about the sound quality,” Sands concludes, referring to the opening weekend performances. “Our customers said the sound was very clear and they could hear and understand everything the comedians were saying, which is very important to put on a good show. Overall, we couldn’t be happier with the equipment and look forward to many years of great shows at Sandman Comedy Club.”

Renkus-Heinz
CODE 3 AV

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