Sydney’s newest underground music venue, Caterpillar Club, is home to one of the world’s largest vinyl collections.
Inspired by the 1970s and the energy of New York’s iconic clubs, the venue hosts live bands five nights a week. According to General Manager Emma Franceschini, “whenever there isn’t a band playing, there’s a DJ spinning records.” The same atmosphere carries through to the hidden Bamboo Room Tiki Bar, where DJs take over on weekends.
The task of bringing the vision of Stefan & Anton Forte of the Swillhouse Group to life was entrusted to renowned audio engineer Anthony Russo of Technical Audio Group (TAG). To meet all requirements, Russo instinctively turned to Martin Audio’s premium CDD loudspeaker systems.
As Russo emphasizes, the system needed to reflect uncompromising quality—where “every seat is the best seat in the house.” The design was created to handle everything from the warm tones of vinyl to the crisp clarity of digital recordings, as well as the club’s demanding live performance requirements.
Well known for his expertise with Martin Audio’s coaxial differential dispersion technology, Russo says he has specified CDD models many times before:
“CDD is the ideal solution for many high-end venues in Australia,” he explains. “Every room at Caterpillar features CDD8 and CDD6 loudspeakers, SX110 subwoofers concealed in ceilings and under seating areas, and a powerful CDD12 FOH system. There’s also a delay system and LE100 monitor wedges.”
In total, more than 60 loudspeakers, 30 amplifier channels, and over 40 kW of power have been installed throughout the venue. This delivers consistent, high-quality coverage across eight zones. Even the Bamboo Room is equipped with a Martin Audio system powerful enough for a full-scale dancefloor.
The extensive loudspeaker deployment allows every detail of vinyl playback to be heard with hi-fi clarity, while still enabling comfortable conversation at tables. The system can scale effortlessly from lounge-level background volumes to concert-grade live performance levels—without being pushed to its limits.
Russo explains the design philosophy:
“Our goal was to deliver a kind of ‘headphone experience’ while maintaining consistent coverage throughout the entire space. There’s always a speaker close by—not too loud, just right. It’s a true hi-fi experience in a live venue, something people aren’t used to. That’s why we’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved.”
This attention to detail extends to advanced digital signal processing, networking, mixing, and amplification technologies. To do justice to its vast vinyl archive, Caterpillar also invested in a custom-built Australian Condesa rotary DJ mixer.
Final approval comes from Emma Franceschini:
“What the Martin Audio system really brings is an added level of clarity to the venue. As a vinyl bar, you want to hear every nuance—and having a world-class sound system like Martin Audio makes that possible.”
