Press Release

L-Acoustics is Raising the Bar for Home Entertainment in Surrey L-Acoustics is Raising the Bar for Home Entertainment in Surrey...

A transformative makeover of a loft space in a large Surrey home, with an L-Acoustics professional sound system courtesy of L-Acoustics and integrator Homeplay, delivers the ultimate nightcap for a very happy client.

SURREY, United Kingdon – March 2024 – “The L-Acoustics team has just finished the calibration, and I can honestly say I believed BB King had come back from the dead and joined David Gilmour, Mark Knopfler, and Mick Fleetwood in my bar,” said the client in a text message to James Ratcliffe, lead design integrator and CEO at Homeplay.

This isn’t just feedback; it’s a powerful implication of the emotional impact of music replayed with the highest quality sound. For four decades, L-Acoustics has been making rock and blues legends sound great in concerts around the world. Now, their professional sound system for the home have helped Homeplay deliver a truly exceptional private bar and recreational experience in a tricky loft area of this large Surrey house.

L-Acoustic X4r in-wall coaxial loudspeakers are RAL colour matched with the interior decor while L-Acoustic SB10 subwoofers were integrated into the seating to be almost invisible within the space.
Photo credit: Ray Main

The project began as the client approached an interior designer for inspiration and direction to fully renovate his home, including turning the large, unused loft space into the ultimate personal entertainment cocoon. The requirements included music, movies, a full-sized bar, a pool table, a dart board, and creative lighting to highlight key areas of the space. Having worked with Homeplay previously, the designer called in James Ratcliffe and his team to realise the AV brief.

The bar room AV specification entailed two 4K UHD TVs, one on a motorised bracket, video distribution, Wi-Fi, lighting control to integrate with the whole-house Control4 architecture, specialist lighting, including a framing projector on the dartboard and party scale sound for music, alongside TV sports and movie viewing. L-Acoustic X4r in-wall coaxial loudspeakers were specified throughout the room due to their uniform radial dispersion pattern, small unobtrusive form factor, and high SPL capability. At just over 100mm cubed, these small speakers were RAL-colour matched to the interior design to further disappear into the décor. L-Acoustic SB10 subwoofers were integrated into the seating built around the room, disappearing into the overall aesthetic.

The L-Acoustics system for the Bar Room provides professional sound quality to deliver the full emotional impact of music for the client.
Photo credit: Ray Main

Amplification is provided by two LA2Xi Amplified Controllers, one for each audio zone. As the client already owned a comprehensive Sonos system in the rest of the house, the loft audio integrated Sonos Ports for streamed audio as well as a turntable for the client’s prized record collection.

Balancing the sound throughout the room was a complex task due to the unusual shape of the space, which included sloped ceilings, vertical walls of varying heights, and alcove areas. The L-Acoustics team used their proprietary 3D acoustic software, Soundvision, to help Homeplay map the room and plan speaker position for the best results.

With a tight deadline of just three months before Christmas, Homeplay completed the AV treatment on the house and loft space, allowing the interior design company to work its magic on décor, furnishings, and accessories. The result would be a sumptuous party bar and entertaining area ready for New Year’s parties.

The unusually shaped Bar Room by Homeplay features L-Acoustic X4r in-wall coaxial loudspeakers throughout for their uniform radial dispersion pattern, small unobtrusive form factor, and high SPL capability.
Photo credit: Ray Main

As the paint dried and the final trims were fitted into place, the L-Acoustics team returned to fine-tune the audio performance. Shortly after the team had left the premises, a very excited client felt compelled to text James with the results, adding, “It sounds incredible! Can I have it in the rest of the house?”

Comments James, “It was very pleasing to receive such positive endorsement from the client, literally just a few hours after the team had finished setting up the audio system. Having installed and demonstrated various L-Acoustics amplifier and loudspeaker systems at our premises, I knew the sound would be exceptional despite the awkward acoustic space. Pound for pound, I don’t think there is anything better than L-Acoustics.”

For more information on Homeplay, please visit https://www.homeplay.tv.

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