In the heart of the entertainment district in Scottsdale, Arizona, is Live Wire among the most popular live performance venues in the US Southwest.

The two-level, 14,000-sq-ft facility has a capacity of 1,100, and features a large dance floor, VIP booths, indoor lounge areas, an outdoor patio and a raised concrete stage with extension. The three-sided mezzanine level provides guests with an unobstructed view of all of the action on the first floor.

When the club was in the design process, the owners decided to create a multi-purpose space that could convert from live music to comedy to a dance club. As a result, the room required a versatile sound reinforcement system to meet their demands.

‘Our number one priority was sound quality but we also wanted the most current audio technology,’ explains Jason Jones (aka LTJ), audio/lighting/video technician for the Evening Entertainment Group (EEG), who owns the venue. With Fyxx Entertainment assisting with the installation and tuning, Live Wire has an EAW sound reinforcement system.

‘Not only does Anya sound fantastic, but it was the only system that allowed us to make major system modifications without having to physically adjust the modules. I can use the Resolution software to direct music only to the first floor or just on the dance floor without a problem. Whatever we need can be easily created with a few modifications to the software.’

Jones worked with Fyxx Entertainment’s Adrian de Pamphilis and EAW’s Application Support Group to finalise the design. Because EEG wanted flexibility, the system is made up of four Anya columns – two of four modules and two of two. The columns are hung to the left and right of the stage on an I-beam trolley system that allows them to be moved forward when the stage extension is in use. The two-module arrays are hung left-right to the rear of the room. When in club mode they fly down from the ceiling to the mezzanine level to create a club environment. ‘I think we have the only four point Anya set-up in the world,’ Jones adds.

‘The ultimate club experience involves immersing our customers in sound,’ he continues. ‘We add the two smaller columns to the mix when we are hosting club DJs or EDM artists and people are amazed – it sounds incredible and really adds to the club atmosphere.’

To round out the club system, six EAW SB2001 dual 21-inch subwoofers are located under the stage in a concrete bumper. Jones notes that ‘even with our efforts to minimize vibration, when the bass kicks in you can see the stage slightly vibrating – those subs really deliver’.

Since the club has opened the sound reinforcement system has received praise from all of the visiting engineers and artists: ‘That was the other deciding factor,’ Jones says. ‘We wanted a system that was rider friendly – and everyone we talked to agreed that an EAW system was the way to go. I can’t be happier with our decision.’