Chasing Rabbits Elevates Vail's Nightlife Scene with 1 SOUND Audio

	Anthem and 1 SOUND spent time doing acoustical measurements and designing for the auditory experience of people walking the hallways.

Chasing Rabbits, a nightlife venue in the Vail, Colorado resort Solaris Plaza, has opted for 1 SOUND loudspeakers. Designed by the Rockwell Group, the 13,000-sq.-ft. concept comprises four spaces -- the Restaurant; the Library; Moon Rabbit, an intimate cocktail bar featuring live jazz and international DJs; and Rabbit Hole a sophisticated arcade with karaoke during the week and DJs on the weekends. "The interior has been conceived as a maze-like series of distinct experiences that unfold as you move throughout, where you are 'chasing' the rabbit to another world," says Rockwell Group partner Shawn Sullivan in the publication Hospitality Design. Anthem Productions was contracted to take on the venue's installed audio integration, choosing 1 SOUND for all the rooms.

The Restaurant utilizes the smallest model in the Cannon Series, the C4i, which has a 4" coaxial and, the company says, is noted for its extended low frequency down to 100Hz with high-fidelity sound quality. The C4is are distributed throughout the restaurant utilizing C-Clamps to mount to the walls and ceilings. For bass, 1 SOUND's FSUB45 floor subwoofers were distributed underneath the booths for a consistent distributed sound design.

The Library, a dining room/private events space, utilizes Cannon C4is and Tower LCC44s because of their controlled narrow (on the vertical) but wide horizontal dispersion pattern and because of their SPL output. The units are hidden on the bookshelves. SUB310s are used for bass coverage.

Moon Rabbit utilizes Tower LCC44s, mounted and aimed with Tower wall brackets, and SUB310s which are hidden in the room. Chasing Rabbits also invested in a portable Contour system for DJ performances; the units are also used as monitors for headlining DJ monitors in Rabbit Hole. "From our Live Jazz nights in the Moon Rabbit to our DJs in the Rabbit Hole, Lou [Mannarino, founder and designer of 1 SOUND] and Angelo [Poulos, CEO, Anthem Productions] have created a uniquely detailed integration concept for an emotional audiophile experience that inspires our guests and musical artists," says Todd Scheurich, director of AV and IT for Solaris Plaza.

For Rabbit Hole, Solaris Group had several discussions with 1 SOUND and Anthem. The original goal was to create a high-energy bar environment focusing on background music and hosting DJ sets, "Within hours of commissioning and tuning this initial buildout in the Rabbit Hole with Tower LCC44s and SUB310s, that instantly set us apart from every business with 'music' in the Vail Valley," says Scheurich. Next, Anthem and 1 SOUND suggested upgrading the sound system to support bigger parties and headliner DJs. "Sure enough, after the first ski season, we took their lead and made the upgrade to Contour CT28s and SUB2112s," says Scheurich. When the venue had its first headlining DJ, John Summit, booked to perform, Anthem leveled up the DJ monitors to a portable CT28 and SUB215 Contour system, in the expectation that this wouldn't be the last big event. This portable system doubles in Moon Rabbit.

Adding to the challenges, the four main rooms have independent feels and goals yet are situated closely to each other, being connected by short hallways that transition attendees into each new space. The designers had to consider the positioning of loudspeakers and their dispersion patterns so that unwanted sound doesn't bleed into outside spaces. Anthem and 1 SOUND spent time doing acoustical measurements and designing for the auditory experience of people walking the hallways.

"Angelo has the innate ability to foresee ownership expectations and explain the technical integration details that developers and designers do not visually or conceptually understand when building an entertainment venue dedicated to an auditory experience," says Scheurich. "Integrating world-class audiophile technology and one-off entertainment architecture is the hardest concept to coordinate with designers and architects. We have been able to push through those detailed design evolutions with Rockwell, 1 SOUND, and Anthem. I find myself giving a storytelling tour to guests and artists surrounding the 1 SOUND platform and how each room in the venue was crafted for specific audio engagement to the soul.

"The Chasing Rabbits in-house team is constantly asking me about the system and why it sounds so amazingly different from any other venue they go to for concerts and shows." Scheurich continues. "Anthem and 1 SOUND have beyond succeeded in their mission with us, and the Solaris Group is proud to show it off at Chasing Rabbits! The Rabbit Hole at Chasing Rabbits is rapidly becoming a venue that artists are asking to play in. The guest experience and feedback have been exceptional."