Les Mills Victoria Street: a sound system for The Arena

Project snapshot

• Client: Les Mills Victoria Street
• Location: Auckland CBD
• Sector: Gym and fitness
• Scope: Full sound system and two flat-panel displays for "The Arena"

The venue

Les Mills Victoria Street is one of Auckland's best-known gyms, and it is split into several distinct areas. One of them is The Arena, a dedicated space used for CrossFit-style training and for national competitions. It is a big, hard room full of people working at maximum effort, and the sound system is part of the atmosphere rather than background.

The brief

Fit out The Arena with a full sound system and two flat-panel televisions. The sound had to be loud and clear to motivate the athletes, and the whole thing had to be easy for staff to run without a technician.

What we installed

• Six single 15-inch full-range loudspeakers as the main system, positioned to cover the training floor evenly so the energy is the same at the back of the room as at the front.
• Two double 18-inch subwoofers for the low end that a training room needs. Bass you can feel is what separates a gym system from an office paging system.
• Two flat-panel displays for programming, timers and competition information.

Loud, but clear

"Loud" is easy. "Loud and clear" takes design. A big pair of speakers at one end of a room like this produces a wall of sound near the stage and mud at the far end. Spreading the load across six tops and two subs means the system runs with headroom to spare, so it stays clean at high level and every coach's instruction still cuts through the music.

Ease of use

The system was set up so gym staff can select a source and adjust the level without touching anything in the rack. The tuning, limiting and protection are locked in, which keeps the equipment safe and the sound consistent from one class to the next.

Our role

Design and installation of the audio and visual system, with a focus on ease of use for the Les Mills team.

Fitting out a gym or studio?

From a single group-fitness room to a multi-zone club, we design gym sound systems that take a beating and still sound good. See our AV installation service, our Flex Fitness case study, or get in touch.