When Stephen Curry was looking for a Bay Area space to feature his award-winning bourbon, Gentleman’s Cut, he partnered with the MINA Group and Westin St. Francis in San Francisco to create The Eighth Rule – an intimate bourbon-driven bar with only 40 seats, hidden behind an unmarked door below the historic Westin St. Francis. Providence Sound and Vision had already been working with the construction management team renovating this historic hotel and they came to us with a very specific goal. “The client desires a high-fidelity sound system capable of delivering audiophile-level performance. This system should create an inviting atmosphere for conversations over cocktails and transition to nightclub-level volumes for parties hosted by Stephen.”
Mapping Out The Space With Meyer Sound
For the solution, Providence’s Jeff Ehrenberg turned to Meyer Sound, located in Berkeley, just on the other side of the Bay Bridge. Having recently completed a Meyer Sound installation at The Regent Santa Monica, Jeff knew that Meyer’s compact yet ultra-powerful line of speakers would exceed the client’s expectations and make for a low profile and clean installation.
The first thing we did with the Meyer engineering team was to model the space in three dimensions using Meyer’s proprietary MAPP 3D software. This enabled us to predict the system’s performance and virtually place the speakers in the optimal locations for even coverage while ensuring we could hit the SPL levels of a nightclub when needed.
The system design consists of:
(14) Meyer Sound UP-4slim ultra compact full range install speakers
(3) Meyer Sound USW-112P 12’ subwoofers
(2) Meyer Sound MPS-488X Power supply
All tuned by a Galilieo GALAXY 408, a system processor so articulate you often find them tuning premium studio monitors in world-class studios.
Once we knew where the speakers would be placed, we worked with our team’s Civil Engineer to create shop drawings (or plans) for precise speaker mounting locations and cable paths. The UP-4slim and USW-112P subwoofer are part of Meyer’s IntelligentDC platform. These are active speakers powered remotely by the MPS-488X power supply.
The signal path travels out of the GALAXY into the MPS-488X, where line level audio and DC power merge into a five-pin cable that carries both audio and DC power to the Meyer speakers. The cable we chose for this application was the Belden 1502P. Not only is Belden a premium cable that is sure to deliver optimal sound quality, but the “P” stands for Plenum, which is code-compliant for running through walls and crawl spaces without having to run through conduit.
Installing The Speaker System
The interior design and finishes at The Eighth Rule are very high-end; it would be very difficult to run cables cleanly without access to the open construction site. Fortunately, when we started the project, the drywall had been removed and the walls and ceiling were wide open, allowing us to run cables behind the walls easily.
While the walls were open, we ran all our cables and then waited almost a year for construction and interior design to be completed. Once done, our team returned to mount the speakers, terminate the connections, and test signal. Once we had the system up and running, Meyer Sound Engineer Tom Dalske drove over the bridge and did a wonderful job tuning the system, ensuring that the upper and lower levels of the bar were even, time-aligned, and in-phase.
A Space That Sounds As Good As It Looks
The result: a clear, articulate, musical sound system that allows music to be enjoyed while sipping a cocktail and connecting with friends and family. Then, when the Golden State Warriors win their next championship and want to celebrate, the system can bump at club levels without the ear-fatiguing distortion found in typical sound systems.
Although we usually recommend a design for acoustic treatment to accompany a premium sound system, the blend of wood, custom finishes, curves in the walls and ceilings, curtains, and heavy leather upholstered seating does a wonderful job of breaking up the waveforms and reflections that are usually a problem for most restaurants and bars.
Grab A Drink And Enjoy The Music
If you live in the Bay Area or visit San Francisco, be sure to grab a cocktail at The Eighth Rule and enjoy what might be the best sounding bar in The City. The Eighth Rule is reservation only which can be made on their website.
If you have a restaurant or bar and you would like to elevate the guest experience with enhanced music or sound, please contact us using the form below. We would be happy to give you a complimentary consultation and help you sound better than ever.
Your Space Deserves The Best Sound – We Can Help.
If your space is struggling with poor acoustics, uneven coverage, or outdated audio, we’re here to help. At Providence Sound and Vision, we design tailored audio solutions that bring clarity, warmth, and precision to any environment—whether it’s a hotel, restaurant, bar, gallery, live venue, or all of the above.
Fill out the form below, and let’s find the perfect sound solution for your space.
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