The Brief
MY 802 is the third yacht of CMN’s ‘60m Line’ and features the same structural design and layout as its predecessors, with owners choosing bespoke interior finishes and materials. In line with the standard specification that the shipyard wanted to provide onboard, the brief included an onboard entertainment system giving guests the ability to access and enjoy high definition satellite, music and movie content, and able to use their own iPods. There was also a requirement for a discreet projection based home cinema system, in addition to the standard LCD and plasma displays throughout the yacht. As My 802 was to be available for charter, it was imperative that any system was reliable and intuitive to operate, with redundancy built-in to the system where possible.
The Proposal
First and foremost, MY 802 featured a cable infrastructure system covering every major cabin/area onboard. Proprietary data cable, speaker, coaxial and CAT5E/6 cables were utilised, not only to support the systems currently installed but also to support future additions and upgrades.
The Technology
The entertainment system itself comprised individual, standalone systems located in every cabin, which each featured a satellite receiver, media client, iPod docking station, audio video switching and amplification. The equipment in each cabin operated as a standalone system, with the exception of each Kaleidescape media client, which communicated to a central server for access to content. Even if the Kaleidescape connection was lost, a guest within a cabin would still be able to select and view local discs, satellite channels or their own iPod. In addition to the local cabin specific sources, a Kaleidescape audio player provided four independent audio feeds that were utilised for external areas and for party or vessel-wide audio, with guests or crew able to set a single piece of music playing throughout the yacht. A Crestron control system was selected to provide intuitive operation of the entire entertainment system, with a combination of wireless handsets and wall-mounted touch panels. The simple nature of the system and its continued reliability has been praised by everyone who has been onboard.
The Installation
The Sky Lounge featured a completely hidden projection system, with a motorised projector lift that was built into the deck head design, invisible when retracted. There was also a sofa unit that had a motorised seating section, which slid back to allow a 90” wide tab-tensioned projection screen to rise out of the base. A local surround receiver provided 5.1 surround sound in this area, with motorised blinds closing to finish the transformation. In addition to the motorised devices in the Sky Lounge, a number of devices in other areas concealed displays that were not in use. The Main Saloon featured a lift with swivel mechanism in a piece of furniture behind a sofa. When activated, the display rose up behind the sofa, and could then be rotated for viewing from any area within the Saloon. The Master Cabin display device was mounted within a motorised artwork frame, where the artwork concealed the display when it was not in use. When a video source was selected, the artwork automatically rolled out of the way.
All of these devices helped to realise the full potential of the amazing design of the interior of the yacht. Every detail was considered, including all of the in-ceiling speakers being custom painted to match the ceiling material into which they were mounted.
The Challenges
A few challenges arose during installation, largely due to the space that was allocated for the equipment’s head-end locations. Areas had already been dictated by the interior layout, which meant that our options where limited and our design team had to propose alternative solutions. As the vessel was constructed in France this also created logistical challenges during the installation as we were working within tight deadlines and allotted time frames.
The Follow Up
The infrastructure and equipment specification featured onboard My 802 have been adopted by the shipyard as their standard specification for this line of yachts, with this vessel being the second yacht to feature a Sensory installation. We took on a third project with the yard, demonstrating how pleased they were with the system and our involvement with them. Sensory International was awarded “Best Marine Installation” across Europe in 2011 for this project by our industries governing body.
