An APG iX series sound system is delivering “reference-quality” sound to the jet setters of the French Riviera, with a stylish new installation at Saint-Tropez’s iconic Café de Paris.
Established in 1930, the Café de Paris is a traditional French brasserie imbued with the spirit of Saint-Tropez, serving a selection of fresh produce in a luxurious surroundings with an unmatched view of picturesque old port. “The Café de Paris is known for its masterful style and its prime location, where people come from dawn to dusk to savour a coffee, enjoy lunch on the terrace, have an aperitif with friends during the golden hour, and dine to the rhythm of the St Tropez buzz,” said Alexandre Pirotte, managing director of local system integrator PM Production (PMP).
PMP, which has an office in Gassin, just inland from Saint-Tropez, is something of a specialist when it comes to AV on the Riviera, having also designed and installed APG-based sound systems in a number of other local landmarks, including the Mido and La Môme restaurants in Cannes and the exclusive private Tahiti Beach in Pampelonne. For the Café de Paris, the integrator’s brief was simple: to deliver high-quality, consistent audio fit for a world-class venue.
“It’s often DJs who put us in touch with our customers, because they know that the emotions they want to convey are always much more effective with a well-integrated sound system,” explained Pirotte. “That means a homogenous audio level and, above all, a system that’s well-configured and not aggressive in its sound.” That is also true in the case of the Café de Paris, he continues, but with the additional requirement of multiple audio zones capable of delivering a unique soundtrack to the bar area, the lounge area and the outdoor terrace.
To achieve this goal, Pirotte selected products from APG’s iX series of coaxial indoor speakers, with a range of finishes, accessories and ergonomic options, are tailor made for high-end fixed installations such as PMP’s projects on the Côte d’Azur. All iX-series speakers combine coaxial technology with an integral baffle, with the front face of the speaker designed to eliminate diffraction and provide a consistent, linear acoustic field.
Inside the Café de Paris, PMP opted for 16 iX5 – a miniature two-way, full-range loudspeaker that offers studio monitor-like compactness and sound quality with improved performance and power handling – finished in sun-reflecting cream-white (RAL 9001), and paired them with two iS115 subwoofers.
Outside, one iS112 sub complements two iX8-O speakers, from the iX-O series, the IP54-rated outdoor sister range to the iX series. All iX-O models incorporate a coaxial loudspeaker with passive filtering and bass reflex for wideband operation.
Speaking about his choice of speakers, Pirotte – who, along with his father, the company’s technical director, designed then helped install and set up the system – explained: “APG is a well-known brand in the industry, but not very well known to the general public. After Covid-19 we wanted to highlight French products, but we chose APG for a number of reasons. We’ve always been convinced by speakers with coaxial drivers, and APG fulfils this criterion perfectly. It’s a premium brand, but one which, compared with others, is more reasonably priced. The possibility of choosing colours is a real advantage, especially today, when we are often asked to make technology as unobtrusive as possible.
“Finally, in our sector the APG brand is not as ubiquitous, which also enables us to differentiate ourselves from our competitors.”
Power for the Café de Paris system comes courtesy of Powersoft Quattrocanali amplifiers, while the zoning interface is provided by an Ecler MIMO1212 matrix paired with a dedicated touchscreen. Music can also be streamed via Spotify using any PC.
“Working with APG, we discovered similarities in our philosophy, our business approach and our pride in the quality of the products and services we offer,” Pirotte reflected. “All the projects we’ve done with APG so far have been successful because of these shared values and the trust APG put in their partners.”
Rodolphe Portet, sales and technical engineer at APG, concluded: “We’re proud of the quality of the relationship we’ve built up and developed with PMP and Alexandre over the past two years, with very interesting projects both from a technical and human perspective. This partnership has a bright future and we are delighted to be able to count PMP among our trusted systems integrators.”
