Project: Sullivan Brothers Museum, Waterloo, IA
Venue Type: Museum
SoundTube Product: SM400i and RS1001i-II

How do you mount a subwoofer inside a helicopter?
Commemorating the Sullivan brothers, five boys from one Iowa family who were all killed together in WWII when their ship was sunk, the Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum offers re-enactments or interviews with veterans of each of several wars. Visitor experiences include the Civil War and Spanish-American War theater, the World War I and World War II theater, a Korean War theater, a Vietnam War theater and a theater for Current Conflicts. Systems integrator Triad AV installed surround sound systems in each of the theaters using SoundTube SM400i-BK speakers plus an RS1001i-II-BK subwoofer.

Installation was straightforward in all of the theaters but one. The Vietnam Voices of Veterans Theater uses the front half of a Huey helicopter. A plasma display was mounted in the open door of the Huey. SoundTube SM400i speakers are attached to the top of the cabinet, with the surround speakers mounted to the wall behind the viewing location. Triad AV had a dilemna: where could they put the subwoofer? They couldn.t hang it from the ceiling because of air handling ductwork.

While scratching their heads over this problem, Triad AV's Paul Hohlfield was on his back under the helicopter dressing cables and noticed an eye-bolt halfway up the engine compartment! When he crawled back into the Huey and took off the access panel, in front of him was the same eye-bolt he had seen from below. Using the eye-bolt and the RS1001i-II subwoofer's hanging hardware, Hohlfield soon had a subwoofer installed to complete the audio experience for the theater. If you look closely, you can see the subwoofer peeking out from the underside of the Huey.

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