TAPE, Berlin. Only thing is they always put it a bit too loud!

Club Trouw in Amsterdam (from the people from Club 11).

Real straightforward, but amazing Funktion One system....crystal clear and pure power

Function 1 over rated heard it bcm and privelege really not that good.
Eaw not that good at all there is only so much they can take before they lose it.
Martin all the way for me heard it in Fabric and eden by far the best ive heard those h3's and s18;s are mental.
Pacha's dynacord alpha is pretty shit hot aswell that system might take some beaten.

Sub Club is the best in Scotland by a country mile.

In England, Fabric. Got blown away by it's sheer thud when down a few years ago...

Eden?? Are you joking?

The sound from the Martins in the main room is abysmal.

Space Ibiza's discoteca has to hit the best sound I've heard in a club.. Amnesia's Funktion 1's coming in a close second.

Matter - didn't like the acoustics..

Downstairs Twisted Pepper Dublin,,,Pretty sick

Blah blah blah............everyone is always on about function one nowadays, nights use it all the time to try and drag more punters in. But lets face it, there are some great sounding clubs with it and also some terrible. Proper set-up and engineering is the key, not always the brand name ;-)

care to expand a little more on that set up, club and other brands?

pardon?

one that hasn't been mentioned, the new t bar? first time i stepped into the main room i was pretty blown away.

it's really all about the room and speaker placement. a great sound system in the hands of an unknowedgeable technician (or dj) will never sound as good as it could. there are many solid brands of pa systems out there...

i like panoramabar much better than berghain, the sound is just sexier and not as brutal. i guess in a room with such challenging acoustic properties they just have to push it hard to make it sound acceptable. watergate has a good sound system but it is a bit too dry, sounds like a studio. i like a bit of room reverb, makes you feel the size of the place.

Avalon in Los Angeles

Great quote Marion!

In response to those who've said reactions to the matter system have been mixed - bear in mind that most DJs who've played there so far have been encountering the system for the first time; and also we've been refining the system and how to get the best out of it in our first year - it's constantly improving. In the hands of someone like Josh Wink, for example, it's phenomenal - he's played at the venue several times now, and really does get the best out of it. And we've got 3 dancefloors, not just one, each with a different atmosphere and set-up to cater for other tastes!

I would also say that you can't really get the full experience unless you get right in amongst it on the dancefloor, and feel that bass from underneath! I was lucky enough to get a little run-out on the Room 1 system on Friday and compared to the systems I've played out on before it was like upgrading from a golf buggy to an articulated lorry - a bit intimidating at first but bloody good fun!

If those of you on Twitter are interested in finding out some behind the scenes info about matter's sound, you can follow our Head of Sound Roberto on Twitter at twitter.com/mattersound

We're soon to launch the Timax 5.1 3D sound in Room 1 - it's been installed and we're just fine-tuning it, hopefully to be unleashed later this month and synched with our lighting!


Personal faves of mine include fabric (obvs) and Watergate - sound's all about clarity, not volume. I really hate screeching, deafening systems. I think the acid test is to be on a dancefloor and really feeling the music, but still actually being able to talk rather than shout to be heard by the person next to you.

Zouk Nightclub in Singapore has an awesome sound system

My favourite sound systems are:

Plastic People in London - although given the tiny size of the room it's a different kettle of fish to creating great sound in a main room.
Robert Johnson in Frankfurt.
Warung Club in Brasil - the whole of the main room is of wood construction including the floor - which I think is part of the reason it sounds so amazing. Only been there once but would love to have the chance to hear it again. It was totally unexpected coming across a rig of this quality in Brasil where quality electronic music of any kind is a bit of a rarity.

Systems I also like very much, in no particular order:

Fabric Room 1
Space (Ibiza) The Discoteca
Berghain (more so than Panorama in fact)
Cocoon

Systems that were good but that I wasn't blown away by to the same extent as people mentioning them in this thread:

Cielo
Club Love

System I loathe
Space (Miami) main room.

Definitely Berghain/Panorama Bar on my side ! Sound is very pure.

twilo was pretty good back in the days...

the best i've heard was the funktion one set up at the cocoon night in the sand, amsterdam, 2006. i quite like fuse too. although it's far from the best, i've always enjoyed the sound on the dancefloor, it's not overpowering and quite warm. i haven't been to fabric/panorama bar/berghain/robert johnson, so can't really compare, just talking about my own experiences.

Fabric is dividing opinion isn't it?! Not my favourite but definitely up there. The End's system was top from what I remember, although I'm no expert. Was really impressed with Womb earlier this ear, nice and clear with really even coverage throughout the club.

To be honest I live in Jersey so hearing anything decent is a treat...

Really want to check that out...

Personally I love the sound in Room 2 at Fabric, however Room 1 is obviously clearer!

Space for me has to be number one, followed by Fabric.

fabric after 6 am when there aren't 1000 people screaming is definitely a whole new category for me

godskitchen!

none is Australia!!!

A club that closed down, 3-30 in durban,ZA.

Main room: low slung concrete ceiling, sound system was so loud you couldn't hear the person next to you, entire room was wall to wall speakers,strobes,lazers...darkest most upfront underground music. The worx.

The Vanguard in Los Angeles also has a decent system.

fabric room2

Cocoon Frankfurt

http://totd.tumblr.com/

fabric room 2 when done properly, matter's otherwise

I may be out of place making this comment but i went to space this year for the first time & Umek was playing the main room, it looked amazing but as i got further in the sound depleted massively, there was literally so much bass reproduction that it sounded terrible, i had to leave for another room after a small amount of timei had to depart to another room whaich was a real disappointment, i also found this in privileges main room although not as bad as space. I was standing around the edge of the dancefloor so maybe this was the reason?

For me Corsica is the best along with matter they both blew me away, loudness and the ability to talk are a pretty decent combo.

Plastic People hands down for me

Thanks!

defo plastic people and corsica, loud, crystal clear, no distortion, yet you can talk quietly to the person next to you on the floor and they can here. Ocasionally at Corsica ive heard it too loud, still no distortion and great clarity but the fact the bass shakes your heart around your chest makes it a bit hard to breathe. Been to Fabric and yeah its a good sound, on the balcony is best, but i don't understand the hype, maybe thats what a lot of it is.....hype. Likewise with a number of infamous clubs in europe.

the system at shake it! last weekend was pretty special!

Miami, South Beach: Mansion!

Alll the way!!!!

Half the time in fabric the system is massively overdriven; if you hear a DJ who's half decent and is used to playing there, you'll understand the hype trust me still haven't experienced anything like it

You are spot on with the space comment I thought exactly the same thing, one of my mates explained to me it is designed not just as an all out super club but also somewhere where you can sit down and have a chat, hence the mass of seating and chillout rooms. When you are on the dance floor on the other hand the sound system is pretty special.

And to all the other comments nothing beats Fabric.

Plastic peoples sound system was ace when i went to see dixon in june

for in Leeds probably stinkys and mint club

but the best system ive heard at an event was at dance valley, especially in the hardstyle tent. it was perfect.

surprised Amnesia isn't getting more shouts, lobos has the arse out of that terrace! fabric room 2 is earth shattering when matthew dear is involved but i always loved the end... if you stood in the right place!

Fabric or
rex club's sound is quite nice compared to the size of the club. DC10 is powerfull too !

The End was the best, especially their first sound system. second one was not that good.

But Good sound system really depends on DJ

From villalobos interview..

Q: I recently talked to some people at fabric, and they said that you were among one of the first DJs to take advantage of the soundsystem. What do you think they meant by that?

A: I don't know, of course, because I wasn't there for the context. But the thing about fabric is that it's one of the few clubs that you go to, and when you first walk in, you realize the sound is the biggest instrument you can use in the club.

There is a guy that goes around measuring the average feedback frequency of the night. He will come back to the stage, press a button and the frequency will disappear—and there is no feedback anymore. It's the best sound I've ever heard in a club. When you go there, the motivation to play all sorts of different things is there immediately.

also says..

Berlin, the sound in general has this rotten industrial-grade holes, so the sound is not very good overall. The Berghain has a very good sound, because of the very high ceilings, and the speakers are very concentrated. It's the opposite in Panorama Bar, where the sound is very reflective. The room is most important for sound, then the speakers.

full interview here..

http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature.aspx?1128

Talking in terms of rich bass response, clarity, warmth and loudness, the Martin Audio system in Fabric's room one has exceeded anything else Ive heard. It has blown me away on occassions, but then when Ive returned Ive been disappointed.

Its inconsistent, probably depending on the job the sound engineer is doing, as well as what the DJ is playing. Vinyl/WAV is going to sound good if well produced (especially in the low end), but any DJ playing an MP3 in there or a poorly mastered record isnt going to get the best out mof the system. How the DJ is working the mixer is also a factor - club systems arent going to sound the same reliably every time you go back.

Other top systems Ive heard

- Watergate (perfectly balanced L-R with the shape of that main room)
- Space (terrace)
- Sankeys (before the re-fit) had a slightly vintage sound, incredibly warm and clear
- DC10's was good

More recently I was well impressed with Powerzone, Amsterdam. Insane club, and huge Funktion One system filling that massive room. Minus at the ADE was mindblowing!

Plastic People!!!

What soundsystem does watergate and goldengate have?

"Last time I went to Fabric, one of the sound engineers was walking around the dancefloor of room one with a handheld touchscreen device adjusting the sound levels accordingly."

Believe it or not they had that in MOS in 1995, which is amazing really as wifi wasn't a big thing thn. I remember wondering if it was a remote drinks ordering system or someting as I was only 15 at the time!

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Stereo in Montreal. For years it's been regarded among touring DJs as one of the best sound systems in the world, if not THE best

Watergate = Funktion One

Never been to Fabric, i liked Funktion One in Space, but i falled in love with the V-Prof system in Amnesia Terrace.