Audio is one of the most experiential technologies custom integrators can demo for customers, and recently South African-based The Sensory Dispensary lived up to its name by outfitting their new showroom with a slew of powerful and stylish Meridian loudspeakers.
The Sensory Dispensary recently relocated to Plettenberg Bay in the Western Cape and designed and installed the impressive showroom. Now based in the seaside town on the Garden Route, the integrator works with clients locally in Johannesburg and farther beyond.
The new showroom, which is in a residential property, provides the integrator with a space to invite customers, providing them with the opportunity to immerse themselves in what can be achieved in their own homes.
Because the showroom is based in a house, the installation had to be as discreet as possible and fit into the existing design and décor, according to the company.
The main challenge was to integrate a dedicated theater into a home renovation and create a central hub to house the automation, security, distributed music and video, and network hardware.
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Meridian DSP 7.4.2 System Rocks Home Theater
The home theater includes a full-throttle Meridian DSP 7.4.2 in-wall speaker setup, which provides visitors with a fantastic level of detail and immersion.
Other highlights of The Sensory Dispensary’s theater room include the plush seating and star-field ceiling. (Courtesy of Meridian)
The Sensory Dispensary collaborated closely with Meridian’s Design & Specification Service team, who provided them with an enhanced performance solution for the cinema.
Three Meridian DSP750 in-wall loudspeakers are installed behind the projection screen for a totally hidden solution. The DSP750s deliver a maximum SPL of 105.4dB to all seating positions, the company notes. Its built-in custom tweeter with a beryllium dome and diffraction expansion technology ensures a wide sound dispersion, capable of playing over 40kHz.
The Sensory Dispensary installed four DSP520.2 in-wall loudspeakers on the side walls to optimize the coverage for all seating positions within the room.
These speakers incorporate many of Meridian’s proprietary technologies, including FFA (Full Frequency Alignment) and Image Elevation to provide lifelike and spacious sound. These powerful, full-range in-wall solutions require only a 100mm mounting depth and produce wide sound dispersion over the listening area.
Four DSP320.2 in-ceiling loudspeakers serve as the height channels in this room, duplicating the side and rear channels, which give a pseudo-height effect. These products produce at least four times the bass performance of a passive in-ceiling speaker with a similar cabinet volume (100mm / 4-inch mounting depth).
It was a challenge to create a central hub for the technology integrated in The Sensory Dispensary’s showroom. (Courtesy of Meridian)
Meridian adds that the timbre is matched to the DSP520.2, while also integrating the company’s latest audio-enhancing technologies including Q-Sync, True Time and True Link.
The home theater also includes a Meridian 210 streamer and a Meridian processor. A separate feed from the height channels to the rack allows for a potential upgrade path to a Dolby Atmos solution, according to the integrator.
The Sensory Dispensary Demos Distributed Music
The Sensory Dispensary also employed Meridian to provide distributed music to the study, lounge, patio, bathroom, and kitchen.
The lounge has two Meridian DSP5200SE floorstanding loudspeakers, which deliver the ultimate high-resolution performance from a compact loudspeaker. The two DSP devices used by the Special Edition loudspeakers provide the processing to produce all audio to be rendered at 176.4/192kHz regardless of the incoming sampling rate.
This increases resolution, detail and clarity to provide maximum fidelity from movie soundtracks as well as music. The DSP5200SE loudspeakers are paired with a DSW.2 subwoofer to create deep and impactful bass.
Meridian loudspeakers and subwoofers were used for distributed audio in several rooms. (Courtesy of Meridian)
Two Meridian DSP3200 loudspeakers have been installed in the study – along with a DSW.2 sub – provide a large performance for its size. The compact speakers employ Meridian’s DSP technologies, two integrated amplifiers, and two drive units.
The system is capped off by three Meridian 251 Power Zone Controllers and two Meridian 218 Zone Controllers.
The Sensory Dispensary team live by the motto, ‘Those who fail to plan, plan to fail’. Thanks to taking this approach – along with careful planning with all sub-contractors and industry professionals – the team has been able to design a dream showroom.
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