The Location
For Northsiders in Melbourne, Bimbo is a staple. Known to many as Bimbo’s Deluxe, this Brunswick Street gem has a rich history of ups and downs - most notably, a fire tore through the premises in 2018 prompting a complete overhaul of the interior.
Element Audio, through years of servicing the venue prior to the fire, was first in line to devise a plan of action and suitable audio design for the renovated venue.
Our team is proud of a long-standing relationship with the Colonial Leisure Group, who boast an amazing profile of venues Australia wide - as well as a tasty beer range with over 7 refreshing brews!
Main area @ Bimbo (Photo: Billy Roberts, 2019)
The Challenge
The fundamental challenge was to assist in returning this venue to its former glory. The interior was re-fit by former Honkytonks owner & visionary Rabindra Naidoo with the intention to capture the original venue, while delivering something new, refreshing and expandable.
Our design team at Element Audio had a host of challenges outside of the primary audio design, including providing a solution to installing a complete DJ setup (including turntables) into the cockpit of a small plane that sits in the main dining area.
Bimbo provides meal services throughout the day and large-scale events over weekends and public holidays. The audio infrastructure absolutely had to meet the demands of this institution.
Custom DJ Console Built Into A Plane @ Bimbo (Photo: Billy Roberts, 2019)
The Solution
Element Audio provided not only a comprehensive installation to suit the venue as it was post-renovation, our team also provided infrastructure to expand the system and zoning areas for when the venue opens their rooftop!
Custom Swiveling Wall Rack @ Bimbo (Photo: Billy Roberts, 2019)
The chosen hardware for this project primarily revolves around the implementation of Funktion-One products for the dance floor and main BGM (Background Music) purposes. Resolution 2 Full Range Loudspeakers combined with BR118 Sub Woofers offer outstanding capabilities for large, loud and crystal clear events held on a weekly basis at Bimbo. Paired with the much smaller F81 Enclosures, the entire venue has been given the power to really push the sound out to a room which is often full of patrons.
BSS Soundweb integration allows for quick and painless control of all zones and areas, while PLD & MC2 amplifiers are the muscle powering everything behind the scenes. All signal processors, amplifiers and network integration units are housed in a customised Caymon rack enclosure.
This rack enclosure was customised specifically to allow for service access and upgrades, while being kept off the floor and out of small spaces for maximum cooling & airflow. Our friends at Audio Logistics were exceptionally helpful in assisting the Element Audio team with this custom design - and the results are outstanding!
Custom yoke brackets were also designed to hang the Resolution 2 speakers.
Our design also allowed for the integration of the venues SONOS system, which is used for BGM throughout the course of regular trading hours.
Our lead technicians also attended the site with Ross from Marshall Day Acoustics to tune the system in compliance with SEPP-N 2 council mandated SPL levels to avoid noise complaints from residential premises close by.
The Result
We let our work do the talking.
Bimbo offers cheap (but amazing) pizza, tantalizing on-tap Colonial Beers and a roster of DJ’s that will get you dancing - no matter how much of that cheap pizza you scoffed!
BIMBO
376 Brunswick St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
(03) 9419 8600