030 REPORT
COWORTH PARK
Company: Amina Technologies Location: Berkshire, UK
Luxury hotel, leisure and conference operator, The Dorchester Collection, owners of hotels including The Dorchester, Park Lane, has added another prestigious UK venue to its portfolio and chose design friendly Amina loudspeakers to help provide the ultimate in style and atmosphere. Coworth Park is situated at the heart of historic Britain in its own Berkshire parkland. A building of such unequivocally high standard of design and luxury, aimed at the prestigious events market had to include the most flexible, powerful and reliable of AV systems to meet function demands, whilst at the same time being capable of creating an excellent ambience and atmosphere for everyday guests. In trying to keep the visual effects of technology to a minimum, and in order maximise the simplicity of design elegance, the audio element of the complex AV system presented designers and engineers with a major challenge. The owner demanded the very best audio reproduction, with flawlessly even coverage, with- out compromising the interior design of these beautiful spaces. Fortunately the contractor chosen to supply, install and maintain the AV system; CGA Integration Ltd of Bracknell, was very familiar with Amina Technologies range of invisible loud- speakers - just what was needed to make this a very special venue. Amina are a specialist British design and manufacturing company, which have been creating super discrete and invisible audio reproduction solutions for over 12 years, based around the principles of the natural musical instrument. Unlike the conventional loudspeaker, which is piston-like in operation, the musical instrument generates sound from tiny vibrations present over the entire surface of the body of the instrument itself. Whilst the conventional speaker is very directional in nature, the musical instrument is inherently omni-directional, and much more efficient at filling spaces with a very evenly distributed level of sound. Everyone can relate to the violin in the concert hall. It is so effective, yet the musician does not have to wear ear defenders whilst playing the instrument. The technology was duly specified and installed in a large proportion of the Cow- orth Park scheme, particularly in the groundbreaking spa complex. The product is only 40mm deep and is ideal for use in extremely shallow bulkheads and ceilings. Once plastered over and decorated along with the rest of the ceiling or wall, the product becomes totally invisible. The product is not just used within plastered surfaces either. It can also be used within timber panelling, high-pressure laminate surfaces and even embedded within acrylic stone based structures. This is exemplified to good effect in the spa’s pools area, which has a planked timber ceiling. The Amina product is bonded to the reverse side of a thinned out area on the back of a planked ceiling section. Once again the audio quality is stunning for such a reverberant space, yet the sound solution is totally unseen leaving the space to be finished with a classically simple and elegant timber ceiling. The spa complex is heavily dependent on Amina to maintain its clean design lines throughout this space. The product is used within the Spatisserie restaurant area, the gym, reception area, VIP lounge, the relaxation area, and is even featured in the men’s and ladies changing facilities. The invisible loudspeakers are particularly ideal for wet areas, as once plastered over and decorated, the speakers them- selves are not actually in the humid areas at all, but lie in the dry cavity beyond. No maintenance or cleaning required. Wall and ceilings can be repainted at any time. The charming but less formal Barn Restaurant with its stone floor, and large glass doors opening out to a courtyard for alfresco dining, uses only four ceiling mounted Amina invisible loudspeakers to fill the entire space. The mezzanine ceiling offered a very limited void height, which also meant that with less than 30mm protruding beyond the rear of the plasterboard, the Amina product was a natural choice. Coworth Parks’ Drawing Room provides a comfortable environment to relax and indulge in the elegance of a period house. Pianists regularly entertain in this room, with vocal reinforcement being provided through the Amina invisible devices built in to the main plaster ceiling and the adjoining conservatory timber ceiling, to create an all round marvellous ambience. Guests now enjoy seamless audio through the building without even realising that there are no visible sound sources producing it. As the designer intended, guests are able to relax and enjoy, or focus on business, in the simple, safe, elegance of the space provided for them.
www.aminatechnologies.com
www.mondodr.com
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