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Loud, clear,
and cute
The latest Funktion-One speaker system, the Dance Stack,
was designed specifically for nightclub use. Already the centerpiece of
Miami Beach super venue Maze, the Dance Stack is generating considerable
excitement among club patrons and owners alike. "It's amazing how
many comments we receive nightly from guests," says Maze co-owner
Stacy Gallowhur. "It was the single most important investment of
out club build-out."
Tony Andrews obviously knows his stuff. The new Funktion-One
Dance Stack actually embodies decades of successful speaker system design.
But why, exactly, does it sound so good? To find out, we asked Andrews
about the Dance Stack, Funktion-One, and the current state of nightclub
speaker systems.
What inspired you to develop
the Dance Stack?
The combination of circumstances and events areas follows: My love of
dance music goes back to the original release of "Papa's Got a Brand
New Bag," so I have an intrinsic affinity for dance culture. In particular,
grooves which rearrange your molecular vibrations in a positive manner,
assuming sufficient amounts of sonic power. Contrary to our traditional
touring roots it was the dance world that was first to pick up on the
excellence of our new technology. This enthusiasm inspired us to orientate
our technologies and efforts into a loudspeaker system statement which
the dance world would both understand and appreciate.
When did you start the R+D process?
About 30 years ago. Seriously though, the Dance Stack project [was] formulated
in March 2002. The Infrabass 219 had just been born and dance people were
really enjoying our 15-inch mid-bass which we had in our Resolution 9
for the Millennium Dome project. We developed a 10-inch version of our
eight-inch Axhead mid-range device for a thicker, more impactful mid.
We involved Dan Agne and Dean McNaughton from Sound Investment in the
conceptualizing and evaluation of the prototypes, because of their enthusiasm
and their extensive knowledge of major club sound in the US. Then we engineered
the whole lot into one stack for placement in a right angled corner of
a space, delivering the right frequencies at the right height for a no-arguments
result.
How does this new system address
the deficiencies of typical nightclub speakers?
If you mean by "deficiencies," screeching high-mid and flaccid,
boxy bass, then we have reduced the possibility of the first and eliminated
the second. Screeching high-mids are caused by a combination of things.
The first is large metallic diaphragm compression drivers with industry-average
crossover points. Ninety nine percent of the ones I have ever listened
to have a natural tendency to become extravagantly fierce with all kinds
of distortions and sonic artifacts. Frankly, I believe they are virtually
unusable, which is why there are no such things in any of our products.
Our unique technology allows us to achieve these frequencies more correctly
with good old-fashioned organic paper cones! The other side of the problem
is that misinformed engineers often accentuate these frequencies (2.5K
- 4.5K) to give the system more "cut", which only adds insult
to injury.
Moving on to bass, people love the physical euphoria of
bass frequencies, and there is no doubt in my mind that quantity is no
substitute for quality. By this, I mean that across the two or more octaves
that we generally term "base," it is far more exciting and pleasurable
if the bass is even in power from 30Hz to 130Hz at a medium level, than
a loudspeaker running flat-out, producing a one-note, boxy honk. Our bass
technologies give us even power at all bass frequencies and firm solidness
in the infra/sub bass, resulting in an overall musical bass.
Accordingly to the Funktion-One
website, equalization is "an unnecessary evil." Given the correct
crossover settings and relative drive levels, how accurate is the Dance
Stack's overall frequency response?
There is more to accurate response than measured energy at frequency.
Although the measured response of the Dance Stack is substantially plus-or-minus
3dB from 35Hz to 17KHz, this does not take into account the nature of
the sound. The human ear is exceptionally responsive to first sound arrival.
Although time alignment is very helpful in achieving simultaneous arrival
of the frequency bands of the system's components, the dynamic of the
frequencies must also be even from all components. It this is not the
case, then certain parts of the spectrum will be perceived to be literally
behind others. We make sure that all our loudspeakers jump very fast in
unison.
Is a perfectly flat frequency
response essential to good club sound?
Yes and no, because good dynamic response and lack of distortion can give
a pleasurable result despite an uneven frequency response. Spikes and
peaks are far more annoying than deficiencies. Having said that, it is
preferable to have the frequency response as even as possible.
Nightclub systems are often "tuned"
to the rooms in which they are installed. Does the Dance Stack need this
sort of treatment in every installation?
Yes, but only in the bass area because of any environment's penchant for
its own set of standing waves. These give a particular frequency slant
which may need compensating for.
The intrinsic distortion of loudspeakers
is rarely discussed, even in professional audio publications. What do
club owners need to know about speaker-induced distortion?
It hurts people! It causes long term damage to hearing. Patrons should
not be going home with their ears ringing. If a system is unbalanced response-wise
and inherently distorted then it cannot be loud as well. Clean, even sound
allows more level whilst remaining pleasurable, without causing harm.
How important it terminal SPL
in the nightclub environment?
If you mean by this the amount of noise that you can have out of a loudspeaker
before melt down, then it is irrelevant. What is probably far more important
is how loud will it go before distortion content becomes inhumane.
Funktion-One has a reputation
for building high-efficiency systems. What makes the Dance Stack more
efficient than the average club speaker?
Big question. In a nutshell, the holistic combination of driver and waveguide
for maximum conversion of amplifier energy into acoustic energy.
The Dance Stack is an eye-catching
speaker system. Was it visual appeal part of the design process, or a
happy accident?
Let's say that we took advantage of the shapes that have emerged from
the function of our technologies. What I enjoyed was not beiung size-constrained
by the need or easy transportability.
I've read that the newly designed
Infrabass cabinet is capable of reproducing frequencies as low as 20 Hz.
Do nightclubs really need bass that deep?
Will clubgoers even notice it? I'm not sure whether they need 20Hz. But
you can't help having some of that if you are going to have a decent amount
of 35Hz/ Clubgoers will absolute notice it because it is so physical you
can't fail to, even if you are deaf! However, believe it or not, there
are few tracks that actually have these frequencies present and there
ar ea lot of electronics in use that don't deal with infrabass frequencies
very well in the first place.
What other benefits does the
Dance Stack offer to the people on the dancefloor?
Low-mids are dry and defined; mid is clear; and high frequencies are transparent.
Combining this with our tight, sold bass and smooth upper-mids gives an
enlightening experience.
What should DJs know about the
Dance Stack in order to make the most of its capabilities?
Focus on keeping the gain structure at around 75% of capability. Do not
drive the mixer into the red. Listen to the sound on the dancefloor. For
those of you who do not understand what I mean by driving the mixer into
the red, consider this: When you are driving your car you would never
arrive anywhere if you had your foot on the accelerator pedal pressed
to the floor. Why drive a sound system in this way?
You've been involved in loudspeaker
design for much of your adult life. What do you love most about your art/work?
I love the fact that we are still uncovering levels of clarity and information
retrieval that we have never experiences before, and are able to pass
it on to others for their pleasure.
You've stated that the pursuit
of high fidelity audio is a pursuit of purity, or truth. Would you elaborate
on this statement?
Another big question. Let's just say that the intrinsic righteousness
of this pursuit appeals to my sense of direction.
The Dance Stack has set a new
standard for high fidelity, high volume nightclub audio. What's next for
Funktion-One?
We have been experimenting with surround sound for years and are currently
working on a product utilizing this experience. We are also very close
to a further breakthrough with our Axhead technology and further possibilities
with bass.
Any parting thoughts?
Be discerning about the sound you are listening to and look after your
ears. If you find t6hey are beginning to itch, take this as a warning
that to remain in the environment will give you permanent damage. After
the health tip, I would like to leave you with these thoughts: Would it
not be better, wherever possible, for the DH to be sharing the same soundscape
as the people, rather than being isolated in their own sonic environment?
Finally, when I see the musical experience being used as a vehicle for
a negative attitude, I am caused to remember Shakespeare's words "Music
is the food of love."
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