Tomorrowland turns to Pioneer for Boutique store install

The organisers of Tomorrowland, one of the world’s biggest electronic music festivals, opened Tomorrowland Boutique recently, their first pop-up concept store featuring a plethora of equipment from Pioneer Pro Audio.

Based in the centre of Antwerp, Belgium, the store not only sold gear from the Tomorrowland fashion collection and limited edition collectors’ items; it also offered a raised ‘main stage’ area with a bar and Steampunk-inspired Pioneer DJ set-up in bronze, enabling live sets from some of Belgium’s best-known DJs.

A History Room set on a balcony above the store also gave visitors the chance to plug in and relive the sights and sounds of previous festivals.

The Tomorrowland team wanted to deliver a slice of the Tomorrowland experience, so a professional sound system was essential. The requirement was for an energetic sound in the shop, but at a level that allowed staff to speak to customers comfortably. For the main stage area, they were after a warm bass and a tight, punchy chest kick, to create an immersive, festival experience. The vibe also had to continue in the History Room, but not compete with the space below. Plus, the system needed to sound good at lower volumes in the day and have the headroom for after-work parties at night.

Pioneer Pro Audio Belgium installed three XY-101 10in speakers and an XY-115S compact 15in bass reflex subwoofer for the main shop area, while the main stage had two XY-122 12in speakers – mounted horizontally with the horns rotated to provide smooth, consistent high frequency dispersion – and an XY-118S 18in bass reflex subwoofer. The DJ Booth featured two XY-81 8in monitors on poles, while the History Room was given an 8in speaker to augment the sound from below.

“This configuration gave a great low-frequency energy in the store without overpowering shoppers and staff," explained Kristian Van Haute of Pioneer Pro Audio Belgium. "We intensified that energy in the main stage area, with just two 12in speakers giving great coverage of the whole room.”

The whole system was powered by four Powersoft K2 amps and one M30, all with built-in DSP. During the install, the team also had to re-cabled the whole venue.

Debby Wilmsen, PR manager for Tomorrowland Boutique, commented: “We’re completely amazed by the whole system. Not just the sound but also the visual impact – the gold grilles match and look like they were made to be there.”

For a full rundown of the Pioneer products chosen for the project, see below.

The Shop
3 x XY-101 10in, two-way speaker
1 x XY-115S single 15in bass reflex subwoofer
3 x Powersoft K2 DSP amp

Main Space
2 x XY-122, 12in, two-way speaker
1 x XY-118S single 18in, bass reflex subwoofer
1 x Powersoft K2 DSP

DJ Booth
2 x XY-81, 8in, two-way speaker
1 x Powersoft M30 DSP amp

History Room
1 x XY-81, 8in, two-way speaker
Amp shared with the shop

Other
Pioneer brackets and monitor poles
All speakers in black with gold grilles

http://www.pioneerproaudio.com