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JeffS
07-10-2009, 06:15 AM
Looking for some helpful tips...

I'm opening my a Bar/Pub in a few weeks, and I was curious about a few things.
1-speaker set up for TV's
2-surge protectors?

I've got a pretty good size area, roughly 2400sq/ft, however I'm only going to have TV's at the bar and on one side of the pub floor. I was curious about some wall mounted speakers for the TV's out on the floor. Should I look into getting some good size bookshelf speakers our a couple of Surround Speakers. And then what about the speakers for the bar?

Second question...I'll have a total of 5 TV's that are going to be mounted. Is it a good idea to place a surge protector with each TV?

Any help or concerns would be greatly appreciated.

Jeff

Auricauricle
07-10-2009, 08:55 AM
If I felt like mounting a TV, my wife and I would need to talk for awhile....She's the jealous type, y'know.

I think the answer depends on what they will be used for. If you are using the TVs as ancillary equipment, I wouldn't worry too much about the sound in the bar as they tend to be used mostly as visual stimulation (IMO). On the other hand if they are meant to be watched and listened to, I might consider having a decent surround system, seats, etc. As far as surge protection goes, I think that sounds prudent, but I don't know much about it to give a "professional" opinion.....

Kevio
07-10-2009, 10:59 AM
You can't really do surround sound with 5 TVs in the room (who are you goind to surrund and from which direction?). It may not even be possible/desirable to do stereo.

If TV sound is not a priority (visual stimulus scenario mentioned by Auri), you can use the speakers in the TVs. If it is a priority (e.g. sports bar during the world cup), you'll want to install a separate sound system, probably a bunch of commercial ceiling speakers, and drive that systems from the line output of one of the TVs.

Surge protectors can be a good investment if there's frequently a lot of lightning in the area (e.g. Florida) or if you're in an industrial area where big machinery may affect the power.

What I'd do is install without. If you make it until the warranties expire on the TVs without anything being damaged from surges, you're good.

nightflier
07-10-2009, 01:34 PM
Having just completed a sound setup in an large exercise room, if there's one piece of advice I can give, get the most efficient speakers you can get. It will make a world of difference for what you plan to use to distribute the sound to them. Consider that fact even if the price is a little higher.

The person who originally set up the room purchased 6 Infinity Primus 160 speakers because they were "a great deal." Well two receivers and an integrated amp later, they discovered that this maybe wasn't such a good deal after all. I replaced the integrated amp with a preamp (an older Nikko unit we found on eBay for $40), and ditched the speaker selector completely. Then after some discussion on this forum, we purchased three AudioSource amps for $80 each, daisy-chained them together and the system is louder than it's ever been. It's been driving hard (and loud) almost 18 hours a day for the last month with no problems to speak of.

So what speakers should you get? Try the Klipsch Synergy series - inexpensive, very loud, very efficient, and available just about everywhere, so they'll be easy to replace if you do fry them. They are also not too flashy and will blend into dark corners easily.

As a side-note we already lost one TV in the exercise room. Why? Because someone threw something at it (no one knows who or what, of course). So if your bar is going to be a rowdy one, I highly recommend a TV with a thick glass front, like a Plasma. It makes keeping it clean a whole lot easier too. Alternatively you can buy glass screens to protect the TV. Frankly, have the TV's installed and protected professionally- mounting them is a lot harder than you might think, especially if they are large & heavy. If cost is an issue, lease them.

Oh, and I almost forgot: whatever you get, secure it with computer cable locks. We've had quite a bit of A/V and computer gear mysteriously grow legs and wander off. Somehow it's always the shiniest newest gear that seems to be inbred with that mysterious fast-growth hormone.