Adlib Audio has installed a predominantly proprietary sound system into the restaurant and bar at Liverpool's first boutique hotel - The Hope Street Hotel.

The newly opened hotel - a collaboration project between three individuals, Andrew Bentley, David Brewis and chef Paul Askew - is an innovative contemporary fusion of elegance, friendliness, comfort and personal service. At Hope Street, the bottom line is to ensure guests are comfortable and relaxed in a well designed environment, as they enjoy the hotel's facilities including the fabulous London Carriage Works restaurant and the Residents' Lounge bar.

Andrew Bentley is a concert pianist and local show promoter, so he knew the importance of sound as a creative element of making the right ambience. He said: "I chose Adlib because I have known them for many years. Apart from getting an excellent sound for the room, they've always been straightforward to deal with and conscientious."

To ensure the sonic vibes of the space were optimised, he asked Adlib's Andy Dockerty to design a system sympathetic to the vision and aesthetics of the building. This had to be as unobtrusive as possible in the restaurant, and loud and proud in the bar.

"It was a challenging project. Everything had to be absolutely spot-on," said Dockerty. The audio system also had to be flexible, accommodating background music in the restaurant and capable of being pumped up for DJs downstairs or for hosting live performances including piano playing on the Steinway in the bar.

Additionally, the system needed to be vocally transparent to cater for the conference-style speaking applications, planned to become a regular feature of the downstairs areas.

The system is a mix of Adlib's own AA81 installation speakers with 15BP sub cabinets and JBL Control 23 cabinets, some of which are sprayed white to remain unobtrusive. Dockerty designed the audio zoning and the system access points throughout the bar and ground floor with potential conference use in mind.

Adlib has an on-going relationship with the Hope Street Hotel, supplying additional sound equipment as and when needed for special events. Recent examples including a Katie Melua recording in the bar for Granada TV, and an appearance by Chris de Burgh.