The first restaurant to be opened by Finnish chef Matti Wikberg’s BW Restaurants, Farang has since been followed by seven further restaurants and a cocktail bar in Helsinki. Farang remains the company’s flagship venue, recently moving to new premises spread over two floors with both public and private dining facilities and a large bar. Key to patrons’ experience is a soundscape delivered by a 4000 Series Genelec sound system, designed and installed by Finnish A/V integration specialist, 4Business Oy.

‘The brief from Matti was very clear,’ explains 4Business’ Janne Lankinen: ‘With the new premises, Farang is set to make even more of an impact on the Helsinki restaurant scene, so sound quality – along with everything else – had to be absolutely top notch. Genelec was an obvious choice for us as it matched all of the quality and reliability criteria – and Matti was already familiar with the brand as he’d used Genelec almost exclusively for his other restaurant projects.

‘The layout and the surfaces of Farang were a bit of a challenge from an audio perspective,’ Lankinen continues. ‘The feel is quite industrial with lots of exposed concrete and metalwork. There are no convenient – and sound-absorbing – false ceilings or wall panels to hide behind, so we had to make sure that all cabling, mountings and installation were done properly as everything was visible. It also meant we had to be very careful with our system design in order to minimise unwanted reflections and reverberations.

‘The restaurant is situated in a building that also houses newly renovated offices, so we also had to ensure that there was no sound conduction through the structure, especially the low frequencies. Finally, the restaurant is spread over two floors with a very large opening between them; not only did we need to design a system that would cover the whole area evenly with no dead spots or hotspots, but we were inevitably confronted with problems of sound leakage between the two floors.’

Lankinen and his team conducted simulations to determine coverage before specifying a system comprising a total of 54 active Genelec loudspeakers and subwoofers. ‘We decided on the analogue 4000 Series loudspeakers – with Symetrix Prism DSPs equipped with Dante I/O expanders for matrixing, EQ and delay – as it was a useful approach to optimise the overall cost,’ notes Lankinen. ‘Our aim was to ensure that when you move around the space, the audio experience remains similar throughout, and that the sound pressure would not drop at any point in a way that you’d feel that the music was disappearing.

‘We used a mixture of 4020s, 4030s and the powerful 4040s depending on required throw and maximum SPL. Every single speaker was meticulously aligned and DSP was adjusted indivi dually for the best possible results. That, together with acoustic treatment to minimise leakage between floors has enabled us to achieve a system that works beautifully at low sound pressure levels throughout the restaurant, and still has enough power in reserve to be turned up when required for a real party atmosphere.’

For the 7300 Series smart active subwoofers that are mounted in the ceiling, 4Business designed a custom mounting that is mechanically isolated from the structure using Sylomer absorbers soak up vibration. For calibrating the subwoofers, 4Business used Genelec’s GLM software with AutoCal to speed up the final process and ensure that every element of the system was performing at its best.

‘The audio system supports the Farang brand as a top-class, place-to-be venue in Helsinki,’ Lankinen reports. ‘What’s more, responsibility and sustainability are key principles for Farang and BW Restaurants, and Genelec supports and communicates these values consistently, making them a perfect match. The atmosphere in the restaurant is social and relaxed thanks to carefully thought-out playlists and high-quality sound support.’

Matti Wikberg echoes Lankinen’s sentiments: ‘All my goals have been achieved and, frankly, exceeded,’ he admits. ‘Janne and his team identified the challenges from the outset and solved them beautifully. We have crystal-clear audio throughout that sounds amazing, yet doesn’t get in the way of conversation, whether you’re two or ten people at the table. The right atmosphere enhances the experience immeasurably – and that’s what we’ve achieved here.’