High-Tech Meets Elegance at Iceland’s Hippest Bowling Lanes

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January 12, 2014

Reykjavik, Iceland | January, 2014 – When a bowling alley houses 22 lanes plus a VIP/private party area, a sports bar, cafe, and restaurant, live DJs, and more than 50 screens to showcase all the best in live sports and entertainment, it’s clear that this is not just another blue collar beer-and-peanuts joint. Keiluhöllin Egilshöll, is a noteworthy blend of both high-tech and elegant design, boasting one of Iceland’s largest AV installations to date and being named Bowlers Journal’s “Best New Lounge/Restaurant.”

Inside this 30,000 sq. foot venue, club-like LED lighting pours over the lanes and neon bowling balls, with sleek, softly lit lounges with plush couches tucked away behind. LCD screens hover over the lanes and line the dimly lit brick walls of the bar and cafe. The restaurant, meanwhile, is free of screens, filling the space with decorative lighting and rustic stone walls.

Despite the venue’s singular elegance, it still presents all the acoustical challenges associated with any bowling alley — hard, reverberant surfaces, ever-changing audio material, and of course, the inevitable din of the game itself.

Reykjavik-based AV designers ETOS designed and installed the high-end sound and video systems for this uniquely diverse venue. As ETOS General Manager Jakob Kristinsson explains, the audio system had to not only transmit intelligible announcements over the din of a cacophonous bowling alley, but also deliver full spectrum sound and hefty bass for music and live DJs – hence the decision to go with the power, pattern control, and full-range performance of the Renkus-Heinz CF/CFX series.

Across the six zones covering the 22 lanes and VIP area, ETOS installed 12 CFX151 cabinets, with six CFX18S subwoofers for low end reinforcement. Featuring a two-inch extended range titanium HF driver, and a 15-inch heavy duty woofer that can handle up to 700W, the CFX151s powerfully deliver the full spectrum performance required in the main bowling area. The built-in crossover also includes EQ and high-frequency protection, ideal for the dynamic changes in audio and occupancy levels.

Augmenting the primary setup, six CFX121 cabinets in three zones cover the restaurant area, with four more CF121 units across the four zones covering the sports bar and cafe. Audio networking is courtesy of two Peavey MediaMatrix Nion n6 systems.

The video component of this AV installation is extensive as well, including more than 45 LCD displays and 15 projectors from Philips, LG, and Panasonic. Rounding out the impressive look and sound of Keiluhöllin Egilshöll is a full Crestron controlled LED and lighting system, including five wireless control pads.

The installation’s intense schedule compressed about 800 hours into an eight week span to complete the entire project, from design to doors opening. Since then, ETOS reports the system has been performing flawlessly, blending the best in design with the best in technology.