In this pursuit, AT&C Professional System Ltd, in collaboration with 2B Heard, embarked on the mission to design and install a fully networked, high-specification audio system throughout the boutique. However, the challenge arose from the constraints imposed by the building’s historical significance, forbidding the installation of speakers on walls or ceilings, thereby limiting the available space. Nevertheless, a meticulously crafted technological solution was chosen, designed to deliver precisely controlled dispersion from elegantly compact enclosures.

Leveraging positional drawings and initial acoustic predictions, Dave Wooster, the esteemed director of 2B Heard, meticulously handpicked a selection of K-array speakers from the Lyzard, Truffle, and Rumble sub-compact ranges. The subs were ingeniously concealed within floor vents, ensuring the absence of visible speakers. Across all 26 individually controlled zones, including the luxurious changing rooms, Browns’ specially curated playlists resonate through 22 Lyzard-KZ1mini point source and 72 Lyzard-KZ14 ultra-miniature line array loudspeakers. Additionally, the audio experience is enhanced by 17 Truffle-KTR24 compact subwoofers and 44 Rumble-KU44 compact subwoofers. Delivering flawless audio to these numerous loudspeakers, dispersed throughout an intricate web of discrete spaces, necessitated the implementation of a creative power amplification infrastructure. This feat was made possible by the deployment of multichannel intelligent amplifiers from Innosonix, another esteemed brand distributed by 2B Heard within the UK. However, the greatest challenge lay in striking the perfect equilibrium between sound coverage and the designers’ aesthetic expectations.

The physical minimalism of the speakers and subs, coupled with the availability of various standard cabinet finishes, rendered the integration seamless. The polished silver treatment allowed the speakers to blend effortlessly into the contemporary decor, often becoming invisible. A few units were finished in black, while in one area, white line arrays were seamlessly integrated into the surrounding white ceiling light fixtures. As you wander through the store, immersing yourself in sweet melodies, you’ll appreciate the artistry behind the design, considering the hard and audio-unfriendly surfaces. The small Lyzard-KZ14 speakers possess an exceptional ability to deliver wide coverage in expansive spaces, which undoubtedly contributed to the resounding success of this project.

“The system sounds great. From our perspective as audio purists there have been trade-offs – in certain areas larger, more visible speakers could have given us slightly better coverage, but we stuck to the brief and the client is delighted with the end result. When you walk around the store and hear sweet music all the way through, it’s so satisfying considering that the surfaces are hard and audio-unfriendly. The small KZ14 line arrays gave us the ability to produce good coverage in very wide spaces, and that’s what made this project work – you just can’t use another brand. “The client is really happy,” “Nobody expected that we’d be able to produce audio of this quality without the hardware being visible, and they didn’t think the tiny K-array speakers could do the job.”