Guests at DJ’s Dugout Sports Bar and Blazin’ Pianos in Omaha, Nebraska, get more than just food and sporting events, with an experience that starts before they even walk in the door. High definition images on screens that are clearly visible through the complex’s giant windows grab the attention of passersby. Inside, guests are surrounded by digital sights and sound meant to be bigger and better than any they’ve ever experienced.
“We wanted it to look and feel like you’re going someplace really special to watch a game,” said Dennis Pitzl, President / CEO of local audio/video installation company CONCEPTS AV Integration, who designed the system.
The installation is the first of DJ’s Dugout’s four locations to have a completely digital audio/video system. According to Pitzl, the CONCEPTS AV design team proposed the Quad−view projection system and 65−inch plasma displays to draw in the crowds, then they used 44 displays and a 220−inch Quad−view dual projection system to allow for the display of four simultaneous broadcasts. The entire video system makes it possible for DJ’s to show up to 36 different sporting events at one time. The audio system is designed to be heard over the noise of a crowded, high−ceilinged bar, but it does not challenge conversations when the bar is less crowded.
DJ’s Dugout required an easy−to−use control system that could be accessed from multiple locations, including behind the bar. The system required 50 outputs from a switcher to route all of the sources to the plasma displays and projectors throughout the complex. “There was never a digital switcher big enough to accommodate these needs – until the Kramer VS−3232DN modular switcher,” he said. By populating two Kramer VS−3232DN CORE™ switchers with a combination of HDMI and DGKat™ input and output cards in four input/output increments, CONCEPTS AV Integration created a switching system that resulted in a high−quality digital image on every video screen. An output card to the touch panel makes it easy to control the system.
The switchers feed video to three projectors with 116−inch screens, a 22−ft. wide dual projection split−screen system, and 29 65−inch plasma monitors around the room. In addition, signals are routed to 9 monitors on the “Dueling Piano” side of the complex. “There had to be a monitor everywhere people looked, so that anyone could see a screen without turning their head,” Pitzl said.
The system also incorporates 25 Kramer VM−2Hxl HDMI distribution amplifiers to distribute signals to two outputs each, 48 Kramer PT−572+ DGKat digital receivers, a Kramer SID−X1 multi−format video over twisted pair transmitter and three Kramer FC−46xl audio de−embedders. Signals are carried throughout the complex by more than 40 Kramer HDMI and DA cables. Two PCs capture live events broadcast over the internet from ESPN3 and the Big 10 Network. The switchers, amplifiers and receivers are housed a case with glass doors against one wall in the main room, which enables serviceability and creates a “wow” factor. “The install had to be very clean, because it’s all on display as you walk in the front door,” Pitzl said.
The 6,800 square−foot complex offers sports fans a larger−than−life experience in sports, as well as a variety of food and drinks. An “air wall” divides the sports bar from the “Blazing Pianos” room, where dueling pianos entertain throughout the weekends. DJ’s Dugout currently has four locations in the Omaha, Nebraska, area. Their first all−digital facility has kept fans coming back for the one−of−a−kind multi−media sports experience.
