RCF revs up Jalouse dancefloor sound in cosmic revamp

Dominated by its dramatic ceiling, featuring nearly 3,000 diamond-shaped pieces of LED-lit cut crystal, London West End membership nightclub Jalouse recently underwent a complete audio revamp as part of a general structural refurbishment, to prepare the award-winning luxury venue — owned by Moruf Yoozooph and Freddie Achom — for its next phase.
The three-year old club had never been entirely happy with its original sound system. Brought in with the task of upgrading the system and resiting the DJ console, Cosmic Electronics opted for an RCF dancefloor solution, redeploying the existing system to peripheral bar and lounge infill duties. At the same time they carried out some digital rewiring, and placed the crystal ceiling under computerised lighting control.
“We have worked a lot with RCF over the years and it was only when we became involved in another club project recently that we realised just how powerful and compact the new generation of products were,” stated Cosmic Electronics MD, Keith Damon, who managed the project.
Wrapping the clientele in an improved, and more potent dancefloor sound are two pairs of RCF C5215W's — containing15” high-output LF transducer with 3” voice coil — facing each other across the dancefloor. At the same time the existing subwoofers have received further LF extension with the addition of an RCF S8015 single 15” high output unit, which is sufficiently compact to recess neatly under the existing seating with 1mm tolerance. Capable of delivering 1kW of power (RMS) and maximum SPL in excess of 135 dB, this leaves plenty of headroom for the DJ (and trouser flapping for those seated above).
Finally, in order that the DJ can monitor his own output, a tiny powered RCF TT051A (with 5” woofer and 1” dome) has been flown above the console.
With an eye on the budget, Cosmic UK has continued its optimization programme by completely re-configuring the existing Crest amplifiers and reprogramming the gain structure of the BSS Soundweb DSP.
“The result,” says Keith Damon, “is a clean, warm sound, rich in bass, which envelops the entire club.”
The Mayfair club’s elegant interior, which originally cost £3.5m to build, was designed by Mark Humphrey London. And having been voted best new club at the London Bar and Club Awards in 2009 and Best Club at the same awards last year, Jalouse’s new RCF sound system is perfectly placed to keep its clientele on the dancefloor for the foreseeable future.