%20copy.webp)
Live Venues
Overview
Adlib completed the installation of a new audio system at the famous Night & Day Cafe in Manchester, a grassroots live venue central to musicians and creatives since the early 1990s. The project involved deploying a comprehensive CODA Audio loudspeaker system
Partners & Collaborators
Project
Night & Day Cafe
Sector
Live Venues
Department
Integration
Expertise
Audio
Location
Manchester, United Kingdom
Year
2026
%20copy.webp)
Night & Day in Manchester’s Northern Quarter has been a hub for musicians and creatives since the early 1990s. Originally a chip shop, maverick Dutch entrepreneur Jan Oldenburg purchased the location in 1991 and gradually began merging it into a music venue following his addition of a piano, and later a stage.
Long before this area of Manchester became the bohemian hotbed it is today, Oldenburg had transformed the room into a fully-fledged music venue, which became a crucial meeting point and played a key part in the growth of Manchester’s vibrant cultural scene.
Oldenburg’s daughter, Jennifer, grew up with the venue, and worked there with her father since she was a youngster – and she now owns and runs Night & Day alongside her husband, Ben Smithson, following the sad passing of Jan in 2018.
“Night & Day is a family business and we’re fiercely independent. It’s an honour to be involved in running it,” said Ben Smithson, who heads the venue’s operations.
With a capacity of 250, Night & Day is a place for local promoters and bands to cut their teeth, a venue for up-and-coming artists to play during national or regional tours, and a room for late-night clubbing and afterparties. The list of acts who have performed at Night & Day before advancing to stardom include Ed Sheeran, the Arctic Monkeys, Jessie J, Paulo Nutini, Elbow, Kasabian, the Courteeners, My Chemical Romance, Kneecap, and Manic Street Preachers.
“There is so much history in this venue, which we’re really proud of, but for us, operationally, it’s all about what’s on tonight, and what’s coming up,” said Smithson.
“That’s the most important thing, and the exciting thing for us is that of the artists that come through here, a small percentage will go on to bigger stages – but we don’t know who.”
%20copy.webp)
With the venue operating shows on between three and five nights per week, Smithson was aware that its existing sound system needed some attention, and the time had come to reinvest in the room with a major upgrade.
“Our first step was to reach out to sound engineers who had experience of working here previously – some more than two decades ago – who are now working on major tours and festivals, specifying equipment there,” said Smithson. “They gladly came back and gave us their thoughts and recommendations based on what was quite a high budget for a grassroots venue. That feedback gave us a direction, and led us to CODA Audio.”
Having then looked further into the history of CODA Audio, Smithson was suitably impressed. “The more we learned about them, the more we liked, including that their equipment is manufactured in Germany with a holistic design philosophy, and they have a lot of patented technologies,” said Smithson. “When you add in the backstory of its founder being a former musician – it all felt right. We had our heart set on CODA Audio, and so we reached out to Adlib to design and install a new system.”
%20copy.webp)
With a brief in place, Adlib set about designing the new audio setup with specific performance and aesthetic parameters in mind, as Roger Kirby, Project Manager, describes: “The old system hung below the proscenium, and was not only visually impairing but also physically, with punters often banging their heads on them,” said Kirby, who has been working for Adlib since 1992. “We were mindful of not having hanging loudspeakers, so we designed a distributed system based on four CODA Audio HOPS10i-Pro deployed in two phases.
“We initially looked at CODA’s APS loudspeakers, which are slightly larger, but opted for the HOPS technology, which has amazing power handling for its size, and this allowed for the boxes to be installed above the proscenium, ahead of the stage, allowing for clearer sightlines during performances.”
Further down the venue, just behind the mix position, are two CODA Audio HOPS8i as rear delays with two more set up as side stage fills, while three CODA Audio U4 dual 18-inch subwoofers line the front of the stage.
The placement of the subs was the cause of much discourse between Smithson and Adlib, with an agreement reached not to place the subs under the stage for the benefit of the performers. In addition to this, Kirby explained: “The subs are set up on isolators, which has a really positive effect on the sound response as it prevents any unwanted harmonics. By removing sound bleeding into the fabric of the building, less energy is wasted, and the flown loudspeakers are also installed on isolators from the ceiling structure, suspended on a shock mount.” Smithson is particularly happy with this deployment. “This enables the audience to get a full head-to-toe image of the performers, and adds to the intimacy,” he said. “We really needed new audio foundations, and that’s what Adlib have provided. There was old cabling all over the
place, and Adlib did a clean sheet install, removing and replacing all of the old cabling.”
With limited room on stage, two stage boxes were added to make it easier for artists, and a new power supply and new distribution boards were also added. The rack room remained in its legacy place, with the amps and processing set up perpendicular to the door to allow access to the front and rear of the equipment. “This was all done against the backdrop of a busy working venue, with shows happening regularly,” said Kirby. “We squeezed it in across two phases; the first one was the cabling, which took two weeks, then the loudspeaker deployment and commissioning took just over a week.”
The project wasn’t without its technical challenges, as Smithson explained: “Due to our proximity to an electrical substation, periodically we get increased voltages dependant on other localised use in this area. In the installation phase, this was causing amplifiers to go into protection mode, Adlib’s engineers deployed an electrical monitoring unit, to identify the over-voltage.”
Kirby added: “Initially, we didn’t know the cause, so we utilised a voltage logger to capture the data and saw that the voltage was surging in the early hours of the morning. “We fed this data back to the technicians at CODA Audio, they were very responsive and quickly diagnosed the issue by reproducing the same conditions at their factory, and immediately sent over new hardware.”
The team ultimately opted for the upgraded range of CODA Audio LINUS 6.4i which had been developed to be able to handle the significant voltage fluctuations. “I was overjoyed to get to the bottom of it as quickly as we did, because a venue like this can’t afford to cancel shows due to power issues,” said Kirby.
Processing is handled by a single NST Audio DM88, which allows venue staff to input a code on a control panel and adjust the loudspeakers, in pairs, if required. The venue’s first upgrade came prior to the new loudspeaker deployment, in the form of a new audio console, which replaced the almost 15-year-old incumbent.
%20copy.webp)
%20copy.webp)
“The desk upgrade was also the result of feedback from our experienced sound engineer contacts,” said Smithson. “For this type of venue, the Allen & Heath SQ7 does
everything we need. We had considered other Allen & Heath models, but the SQ7 fit the mixing space nicely, and also fit the budget.” The sound system installation took place in the second half of 2025 and feedback has been unanimously positive from punters and engineers alike.
“In April we welcomed local favourites the Courteeners back to perform as part of their 20th anniversary celebrations and to highlight their grassroots beginnings,” said Smithson.
“Having played this venue on numerous occasions in 2006 and 2007 on their journey to arena-level status, their sound engineer knew the room intimately, and was very happy to mix the band on the SQ7, and with the sonic capabilities of the CODA Audio system.
“To be able to accommodate that level of artist in here without having to bring any extra equipment in is an amazing feeling,” Smithson added. “They did an incredible 90-minute set, and we’re very fortunate to be able to welcome them back.”
Despite the challenging nature of operating a grassroots venue, Smithson was pleased to note the financial support the venue has received – notably from a generous grant from Elbow and Co-op Live for Northern Quarter grassroots live music venues which went towards the new PA, and from the Music Venue Trust, which has recently introduced a £1 levy on ticket sales to be reinvested in grassroots venues. “It’s a fantastic initiative – and much needed for small independent venues around the country,” he commented. “It is in effect on the Courteeners arena tour later this year, which is a nice full-circle moment for us.” For Kirby, the project was hugely fulfilling. “I’m fully aware of the legacy of this venue and even mixed a few gigs here back in the mid 90s,” he said. “It’s a well-loved room, historic in Manchester, and means so much to the city, and everyone at Adlib is delighted to have delivered this level of upgrade to it,” he added, reserving special praise for Adlib’s Systems Technical Manager George Puttock, for their sound design work and commissioning on the project.
Smithson, too, is delighted with the results. “Because of the intimacy of this venue, the experience of the audience has been massively elevated by the new system,” he concluded. “Adlib came in and delivered in buckets. We were super impressed with them at every stage, including the work prior to installation, modelling the venue to ensure full coverage in the areas we wanted. The project has exceeded our expectations.”
%20copy.webp)
%20copy.webp)
Credits
Learn about our services, projects, and expertise.
Equipment available to buy directly from our online store.
.webp)
.png){kind=logo}
