Located in the prime suburb of Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, this 625-acre (253-hectare) gated community is home to thousands of residents who favour the convenience and comfort of resort facilities right on their doorstep. Life and leisure in the Tropicana Golf & Country Resort is fully self-contained. Every resident is served by the 350,000 sq ft Tropicana Clubhouse – the heart of the Resort –– set amidst the rolling green. Adjacent are 27 holes of the East and West golf courses to delight avid golfers day and night.

Within the Clubhouse is the Grand Ballroom and three function rooms (Greens I, II and III). The Grand Ballroom and function rooms are booked for a number of events including product launches, wedding banquets, company dinner and dance events, exhibits, children parties, alumni gatherings and many other special occasions. In keeping with their philosophy of always providing the best, Tropicana’s management decided to completely refurbish their Grand ballroom and function rooms. Lawrence Tay, an industry veteran from Singapore won the bid to design, specify, install and integrate the various AV equipments for the Grand Ballroom and function rooms. Working under his newly established Systems Integration Company in Malaysia, OTTO Technology (M) Sdn Bhd, Lawrence was adamant that the solutions he provided for Tropicana were a match for any 5-star hotel ballroom.

Lawrence’s job was made easier by the fact that Herman Tan, General Manager of Tropicana Golf and Country Resort was leading the refurbishment and was clear with what he wanted to achieve. “Herman made it easier for me as he had a clear vision and understood and in fact helped crystallize the concept and feel for the Ballroom,” says Lawrence.

The Grand Ballroom can be divided into three separate rooms. When fully opened it has capacity to seat 1200 guests. “The grand ballroom was completely refurbished – other than to ensure the state-of-the-art AV facilities, I also took into consideration the aesthetic feel of the ballroom when integrating the solutions,” says Lawrence.

Crystal Clear Sound

Lawrence specified and installed 24 pieces of Electrovoice EVID C12.2 12” coaxial speakers onto the ceiling of the ballroom. Flushed and in white, the speakers are almost inconspicuous and guests who have had the privilege of listening to the sound system are awed by the crisp clear and well distributed sound and according to Lawrence sometimes even wonder where the sound is coming from. “They are generally used to seeing speakers at the stage but in this case it takes them awhile to realise where the sound is coming from. I chose the EVID C12.2 because it is easy to install and the finishing fits “– it’s an architectural product and is in line with my consideration for the aesthetics of the Ballroom,” says Lawrence. The adjoining function room, Green II also features the same ceiling speakers.

At the heart of the audio systems is the EV NetMaxTM N8000 digital audio system controller linked to the IRIS-Net audio processing chain. IRIS-Net is a comprehensive software platform that encompasses a wide array of control options where signal processing, supervision, and signal routing can all be manipulated. The NetMax N8000 is thecenterpiece of the IRIS-Net solution. It offers an extremely flexible hardware platform that allows for field-level customization of the unit to nearly any application. “The EV NetMaxTM N8000 together with the IRIS-Net software allowed us to configure specific to our Ballroom needs without losing any audio quality,” says Lawrence.

3 units of Allen & Heath’s Wizard and one Soundcraft system make up the mixing console solution and as for the microphones Lawrence elected for a mix of Sennheiser and Shure microphones.

Sharp Visuals

For the main stage area, there are three hidden screens (one for the main stage and one each on the left and right of the stage). 3 SONY projectors cleverly hidden in the ceiling can be activated to be lowered down by the fully automated pantagraph lift system. Similarly the other two segments of the ballroom feature one projector each hidden in the ceiling – this can be used when the ballroom is divided and there is a need to use the projection system.

Lawrence also specified and installed 3 HD-CCTV cameras. Zooming and pan/tilt features enable the CCTV system to also project the proceedings within the Ballroom. Being HD CCTV cameras, the visuals projected are sharp. Lawrence says it is possible to shoot and project images without the need for a videographer running around with his camera, as the CCTV cameras are able to cover all angles within the Ballroom.

Dazzling Lighting

All three segments of the ballroom feature a recessed LED strip that provides a uniform and synchronized 7-colour change. Adding to this are the chandeliers also provided by Lawrence that give the whole ballroom a majestic feel. Both the LED strips and the chandeliers are customized from a factory in China. Supplementing these lighting fixtures are 22 SmartMACs. Again paying attention to the aesthetics, Lawrence opted for the SmartMACs to be in white. Furthermore, the bases of the SmartMACs are hidden within a recess so that it does not look jarring. “Again, I went with the SmartMACs because they are architectural lighting fixtures that are compact and come in white which fits in with my emphasis on the overall feel and look for the Grand Ballroom,” comments Lawrence.

In addition to the Grand ballroom, Lawrence had specified another 10 SmartMACs for the function rooms, Green II and Green III.

For the stage, Lawrence had specified 4 units of ACME Scanners and a number of LED Par cans.

Being in Control

The Otto digital lighting controllers that are installed in each of the three segments of the Grand Ballroom enable a combined or individual control of all the lighting fixtures, from the chandeliers, to the LED strips, normal ceiling lighting as well as the SmartMACs. Preprogrammed and simple to use the Otto digital lighting controllers do exactly what is required of them.

Lawrence also specified a RTI wireless touch screen controller that is able to control every single lighting, sound and visual equipment in the entire ballroom. This additional solution is to enable easy control from wherever one sits. “The RTI system is easily programmable, which is one of the key features that won me over”, says Lawrence.

Meeting Expectations

Looking at the various solutions provided with an eye on the aesthetic aspects of the ballroom, Lawrence has definitely fulfilled the objectives of the owners of the Tropicana Golf and Country Resort. With this refurbishment and upgrade, the already popularly booked Grand Ballroom and function rooms, can only expect more rave reviews.

Email: lawrence.tay@otto.com.my