Gilley’s Saloon
Since 1999, Gilley's has served up a rootin'-tootin mix of live music, food and drink and line-dancing for visitors who regularly flock to the entertainment capital of the world.
In 2010, following a brief closure, the Western-themed restaurant and dance hall relocated to Treasure Island Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip and has continued to attract large crowds at its current site, with its mechanical bull-riding ring proving a particular draw for brave visitors wanting to try their luck. However, after 12 years, the Treasure Island team decided the AV installations that had been working relentlessly all that time were due for an upgrade. With a need for audio and lighting that could withstand consistent and rigorous use, the team turned to a new line of high-quality products by Blizzard Pro and K-array. Steve Gorski, President of SG Western, was brought on board to source and order the appropriate K-Array products after having previously sold Gilley's its original audio system 13 years prior. Given his extensive knowledge of Blizzard Pro products, Gorski was also tasked with choosing the appropriate lighting replacements.
"Gilley's wanted to keep the audio system very similar in terms of the wiring, infrastructure, and hanging points," Gorski explained. "It would have added a lot more costs to redo everything. The AV just needed updating with better performance while still being as close as to the original tech as possible, so it was more of a retrofit - a refresh, if you will. And that was the same for the lights also."
The Gilley's team was instantly impressed not only with K-array's wide range of products available but also the assistance and vast knowledge of the manufacturer's cohort, especially K-array USA President Rusty Waite. As Cliff Lum, Manager of the Sound and Video Media at Treasure Island explained:
"Rusty came in and established a great relationship with us, I truly value his extensive knowledge of audio and his in-depth details of all aspects of K-array products. "We didn't have many options to explore due to supply issues with other manufacturers, Lum continued. "As we explored our options, which are very good here in Las Vegas, we found the lead time for the other manufacturers was too great - up to a year or even longer."
This wasn't the case for K-array as its equipment was available to demo with very quick turnaround, the results impressed Lum and the team.
"Rusty was very generous with us and let us take our time demoing the gear until we felt comfortable, and it was a no-brainer for us to go ahead and purchase the K-array package. "The demo was very worthwhile and the setup allowed for excellent headroom and clarity," continued Lum. "The system could be tuned soft at low levels, or we could run it hotter for bigger, louder bands with great results. We are very pleased with it."
Over the course of two months, the team Installed a K-array MUGELLO System in a L-R line array configuration flown either side of the stage, with two Thunder KS4 subwoofers fitted underneath. Veteran live and studio engineer Rick Camp from RC1 Productions was brought in to help tune the system.
"With his vast knowledge and many years of experience both on and off the road, it was fun working with him," Lum added. "With Waite, Camp, and our in-house engineers the cabinets and their internal DSPs were tuned and set. The process was great and again Rusty Waite is a master at his craft."
The lighting for Gilley's, meanwhile, was replaced gradually over the course of a year. Gorski, Carlos Elorza of Convention AV at Treasure Island, and Frank Luppino, Director of Sales & Marketing at Blizzard Pro. worked together to completely renovate the existing installations. With Gilley's having been previously fitted with a Blizzard lighting network, Luppino was delighted to be involved with the venue once again.
"Obviously, Las Vegas is the Mecca of entertainment and to have fixtures in a predominant restaurant and nightclub in Vegas for us was very important. For us, it was quite wonderful to be brought in." After multiple site surveys, the team initially chose 22 of Blizzard's GMAX200 LED Yoke fixtures, 20 Motif Atelier 8FX, before adding 14 Flurry Z installed above the venue's open dance hall and staging area.
The team were still eager to keep the original look of Gilley's whilst ensuring full coverage as well as providing the proper patterns which the team thought the Blizzard Pro Motif Atelier fixtures achieved perfectly, all the while ensuring the technology could run trustfully with intense usage.
"We decided we needed prisms in the moving yokes with gobos in them to give Gilley's the fun vibe, all without breaking the bank, and really that's where we looked at when picking the right fixtures," Luppino explained. "But, also, this technology runs consistently for 16 hours a day, so you need longevity and that's why we chose those fixtures."
Although the whole process was "breezy" according to Lum, the Gilley's team did have to spend time training themselves with the new K-array Kommander amplifier, which was different to their conventional amplifiers. However, with a helping hand from Walte as well as some tutorial videos online, the team were able to successfully setup the system after having demoed all passive components.
"This was one of those projects when it was fun," Luppino explained. "I give a lot of credit to the Treasure Island AV team. They did the install, and I give them a lot of credit because they know what they're doing which was very refreshing."
Both Gorski and Lum similarly praised all the hard work of the AV team in helping to create a "smooth" process throughout the installation through great communication and the application of in-depth knowledge.
As Lum explained: "The break in has gone well and our in-house engineers are experiencing more success with the K-array system on a daily basis. They pay attention to details and are very passionate about their craft- and most importantly room sounds good, the bands and staff are happy in there."
2 x Mugello-KH2
1 x Thunder-KS3 I
1 x Thunder-KS3P I
