There’s a hip new club in town and it’s called KONG. “Suffering’ for his art, Greg Bester went to check it out of course.
Aside from its name conjuring up images of a very large gorilla perched at the top of the Empire State Building clutching a distressed damsel, KONG is indeed as imposing as it sounds, including but not limited to the bizarre urban Goth decor and the gargantuan, earth-shattering, chest-imploding, arrhythmia-inducing Hybrid+ sound system that was installed there.

The sound, of course, is one thing, and we’ll get to in a moment, but as you enter the club through its black velvet drapes, the mood is set immediately. Life-size ancient Greek statues with wire muzzles, mysterious dark thrones topped with skulls of desert beasts, a samurai mummy encased in glass in the main bar, orchids in glass cubes and a wall of faux-greenery are just some of the strange ornamentation the club is laden with.

There’s a lot of high tech stuff, too. The main dance area is spanned on the entire far side by a large full-colour LED wall; as is the six-metre long DJ booth. And then, of course, is the sound system. Hybrid+, the premium loudspeaker systems brand of South African audio equipment manufacturing giant, Viva Afrika, was the go-to choice for the installation, installed by Mayen Pather of Johannesburg’s Maysat Audio Visual. He comments on the challenges faced when performing the installation.

“The main challenge was that we were contacted late in the project when all the ceilings were complete. I had issues with installing the cabling. It was difficult and time consuming but we got it done. The other problem was to get the speakers on the dance floor to be mounted from the concrete via chains, because the ceiling boards have been fitted and painted. I had to cut the ceiling open days before the club opened and have it ready on time. Luckily everything worked out.’

In a club such as this, aesthetics are as important as the sound. Hybrid+ has got a range of new products aimed at filling specific niches within the market whether it is a full-size line array system for large scale outdoor gigs, to clubs requiring pumping sound to get hips and feet moving. In particular the PRIME series of loudspeakers were selected for their unique look and dance-floor aesthetics. Let’s take a full foray into what was installed at KONG.

Components

The main dance floor is where it all happens but that doesn’t mean the rest of the club should suffer. As I was given an initial tour of the installation in the empty club by Bernard Pienaar, director at Viva Afrika, it was completely evident that the goal here was to give all club-goers a quality aural experience. This was met by the fact that no matter where you are in the club there is a speaker pointing in your direction, with subwoofers strategically placed throughout to make sure the sound is full and high fidelity at all times.

Focusing our attention once again at the dance floor, PRIME212 passive enclosures were selected and placed on each quadrant, totalling four. These 1 100W 2 x 12 mid/high loudspeakers are an intriguing combination of dual honeycomb-shaped speaker cavities and an externally mounted high-frequency waveguide that resembles a gramophone horn. Like the entire Hybrid+ line, the drivers are all custom European-made CELTO Acoustique.

The 12′ woofers are ferrite magnet-based with three-inch voice coils and the high frequency driver is a 1.4′ exit, neodymium magnet-based Aquaplasted 2.8′ TC4 diaphragm. Aquaplast is a substance used to coat loudspeakers in order to smooth high frequency response. Frequency response comes in at 50 to 19 000Hz with a maximum output of 131dB continuous and 134dB peak.

The subwoofers of choice, which flank either side of the DJ booth stacked vertically end-to-end, are four EXS218 dual 18′ passive enclosures. Granted, these aren’t the companion subs to the PRIME range, which would normally be the PRIME218s. Pienaar comments: “The EXS218s were chosen because of the logistics of having to vertically stack the enclosures. The PRIME218s have bevelled edges and would be too unstable and therefore dangerous to stack this way.’

The result is a sturdy vertical stack of four 18′ subwoofers on either side of the DJ booth. The EXS218s handle a whopping 3 000W RMS / 6 000W peak, have a frequency response of 30 to 1 100Hz and boast a maximum output SPL of 136dB continuous and 139dB peak. Additionally, a single EXS218 was placed on the far side of the main bar to keep the bass pumping in that locale where the bar might block the low end coming from the dance floor subs.

The rest of the peripheral sound in the club is handled by Hybrid+ PRIME10CXs, placed strategically throughout. What makes these 300W 1 x 10′ speakers so special is that they are a co-axial design which means that the HF driver is contained under the dust cap of the woofer. They too contain CELTO Acoustique drivers and offer a frequency response of 60 to 20 000Hz and a maximum SPL of 123dB continuous and 126dB peak.

All in all, 16 PRIME10CXs were placed throughout the club periphery from the main bar to the smoking bar. Speaking of the smoking bar, four B212 800W RMS 2 x12′ subwoofers were placed throughout that zone to keep the bass full. The B212 enclosures are made from 18mm birch plywood which allows for a high degree of cabinet flex and therefore an extended low end from a compact design. They have a frequency response of 35 to 1 500Hz and a maximum output SPL of 126dB continuous and 139dB peak at 1m.

The amplifiers installed, of course, were all stereo Hybrid A-series models. Three varieties were implemented, namely A2 400s supplying 820W per side at 4Ohms; A3 000s supplying 1 100W per side at 4Ohms; and A5 000 supplying 2 000W per side at 4Ohms. In terms of what amplifier powered what speaker, here’s the list:

• 1 X HYBRID A-2 400: Main dance floor PRIME212 HF
• 2 X HYBRID A-3 000: Main dance floor PRIME212 Mid
• 2 X HYBRID A-5 000: Main dance floor EXS218 Subs
• 4 X HYBRID A-2 400: Both bars and VIP areas PRIME10CXs
• 2 X HYBRID A-3 000: Smoking bar B212s
• 1 X HYBRID A-5 000: Non-smoking bar sub

System processing came courtesy of three DBX Drive Racks. For the main dance floor a DBX260 Drive Rack was employed along with two Drive Rack PA/+ processors for the surround PRIME10CXs in the two bars and VIP areas.

Of course, the DJ booth would not be complete without DJ equipment. Two industry-standard Pioneer CDJ-2 000s were installed along with a companion DJM-900NXS mixer. For booth monitoring a db Technologies Opera 605D active 600W DJ monitor with integrated DSP was installed and, finally, two Hybrid HH1200 Fazer machines for hazing the dance floor.

When asked about his affinity for the Hybrid brand and why it made the job easier, Mr Pather said: “The Hybrid brand made the installation easy because the new range is compact and easier to work with, not forgetting compact with a big bang. I have been dealing with VIVA AFRIKA for many years and over which will have built a strong relationship regarding trust and service that we provide for each other.’

The sound

On Saturday 1 June I attended the Playboy Playmate of the Year party at KONG to get a view of, er, the club in action and to experience the sound system for myself. Donning my black jacket and shiny leather shoes I must admit that I felt a little VIP as I was ushered into the club, bypassing the crowds at the behest of Ari, the club manager and my contact there. The place was already pumping and the dance floor was starting to buzz. Of course, at this point the DJ wasn’t pushing it much so my friend who I brought with me and I decided to head to the bar to grab a very expensive Heineken.

The first thing I noticed was that no matter where I stood in the club, whether in the main bar area or in the smoking bar, the sound was clear and full. It wasn’t overbearing by any means, but instead was clean and comfortable. This was due, I assume, to the PRIME10CXs – which are compact and loaded with co-axial drivers – could stay nicely out of site while supplying full range sound. The fact that there were subwoofers placed throughout the club kept the low end nice and full as well.

As the night went on the music got louder and louder and, despite being forewarned by Bernard Pienaar that even he found it difficult to stand on the dance floor during peak hour, I took my chance and stepped in there. Sure enough, it was one of the most fantastic onslaughts of club sound I have ever heard. Quite simply put, without finding gratuitous superlatives to describe the situation, it was ear-shatteringly loud. Personally, I have never felt bass quite like it and even when going to the restroom you could hear the bass rattling the stall doors. Saying that, the sound was not ear-piercing; the high-end remained smooth. I’m sure this has something to do with the Aquaplast layer on the HF drivers.

The wrap

The sound system at KONG is immense, powerful and actually sounds rather great, particularly for dance music. The fact that the boxes are 100% Proudly South African, to me, just increases its appeal. Futhermore the unique design of PRIME series fits in perfectly with the unconventional decor of the club and the vertically stacked dual 18′ subwoofers command thoughts of impending bass for those who attempt to take on the dance floor. For those who ever had doubts that South Africa was capable of producing a loudspeaker system of international calibre; think again.