I am in the process of opening a hookah bar and I am looking for a good audio system for under $1200. Music will be played from a Macbook Pro and maybe iPods. The building is a large insulated garage, around 35'x40' usable space with 15' ceilings. We will either suspend speakers from the ceiling/wall or use a couple nice floor standing speakers (I like the Polk RTi10).
First question: What is the most cost effective way to improve audio quality from a computer mp3 source? Im picturing something that processes and filters the music and goes in between the amp and the computer but I dont really have much home audio knowledge.
Second: What would be a good speaker setup that will fill the space with even sound. The volume wont be that high most of the time, but during weekly events I want good loud sound.
Thanks.
EDIT: right now I am thinking about 2x Polk RTi10 with Behringer EP1500 or Emotiva UPA-2. not sure if that would be a good setup.
Good sound with two speakers in a 35' x 40' x 15' space? Not a chance. The people near the speakers will be clown out if you want others farther away to have a decent level. There's no way to cover the whole floor with two speakers and towers aren't designed for large, wide spaces like this.
Unless you address the acoustics, you won't have good sound but you also need to define the use- high/moderate/lower SPL (yeah, I know), low SPL areas (like where the customers get info and pay) or where some just don't want to be blasted out. If you'll have bare/hard floors, you'll need to deal with a variety of problems, all of which involve unwanted reflections.
What do you plan to do with all of that power? The last thing a large reflective space needs is high SPL. Buying a high powered amplifier would be a waste and you would definitely need to be able to limit its output because every place that provides music has a self-appointed expert who "knows" how to set it for best sound.
What is your budget?
Personally, I wouldn't spend the money for a computer to play music- I would find a good device that can play files from a USB drive and if you want to add/edit the music, create playlists, etc, that's easy without the charm of worrying about someone stealing the computer and the last thing you want is to use the company's computer with business files.
You should look into exemptions for music licensing fees-
If you're looking for a way out of a licensing agreement, so you can play the music you want to play without paying any kind of fee, we understand.
cloudcovermusic.com