Opened in May 2024, Woodland Village is a brand new accommodation site at LEGOLAND Windsor Resort. Offering a tranquil family stay in a woodland retreat, Woodland Village also encompasses an entertainment and hospitality space, The Clubhouse Restaurant and Bar, which required the integration of an immersive, zoned audio system to enhance the guest experience.
David Shepherd of DS Audio led the sound design on the project, having worked with LEGOLAND Windsor Resort on previous areas within the park. Shepherd collaborated closely with the internal technical team and integrators, JPSL, to design and install a full EM Acoustics system that would provide immersive background audio and sound reinforcement for onstage performances.
“The Clubhouse required highly intelligible, zoned audio and an entertainment system to support a small stage area that sits alongside the restaurant and bar,” explains Shepherd. “They wanted to bring the ‘woodland feel’ inside, so we used the sound design to produce a soundscape that could play different bird and wildlife sounds in a realistic, immersive way. The system also needed to be able to switch to a performance system for audiences to enjoy the on-stage entertainment, so versatility was key.”
Shepherd is familiar with EM Acoustics, having worked with their products for several years and praised the quality and clarity of EM Acoustics loudspeakers. One of the key requirements for the park was that the system would integrate into the site-wide Q-SYS infrastructure – which EM Acoustics’ amplifier range offers – whilst the LEGOLAND team were already confident in EM Acoustics loudspeakers as they have been used on several installations within the resort in previous years.
“When working with EM Acoustics and DS Audio, we can always be confident of not only a high-quality final product that sounds amazing, but also one that is reliable, and importantly, integrates seamlessly with our other systems across the Resort,” confirms Mark Boyce, Innovations Manager at LEGOLAND Windsor Resort. “The Woodland Village was a different project, in that we were not just aiming for simple mono or stereo playback, but an immersive soundscape that really transported guests into the right environment.”
The Clubhouse space was split into four audio zones for the purpose of the sound design. Zone 1 comprises the bar and open entertainment area. The other three zones are defined to facilitate the immersive audio effectively and enable The Clubhouse management to extend or reduce the background audio during performances, depending on audience size and preferences.
In Zone 1, the small stage area is equipped with a pair of EMS-81Xs and an S-48 subwoofer. Stage foldback for monitoring is through a single EMS-61 loudspeaker. An Allen and Heath mixing console and Sennheiser EWDx head-worn and handheld mics provide a complete toolkit for hosting a variety of family-friendly performances at The Clubhouse.
The remainder of zones 2-4 are installed with a total of 48 EMS-41 loudspeakers to facilitate the immersive system, with low-end reinforcement from a further three S-48 subs. Four DiQ10D amplifiers from EM Acoustics complete the system, with each loudspeaker on its own channel to allow for the independent control needed in an immersive installation.
“All loudspeakers are hidden behind foliage in the ceiling,” explains Shepherd. “Of course, this has benefits for the overall audience experience and helps create a sense of surprise, but it can be challenging to find products that still deliver clarity when installed in such a way. The form factor of the EMS-41 allows us to maintain that clarity of sound.”
To create the immersive environment, complete with a dizzying array of birdsongs and woodland nature sounds, Shepherd created over a dozen audio stems of differing lengths and contents in both mono and multichannel formats. Each stem has its own individual mapped route of loudspeakers to travel across the space.
This logic was then installed into the Q-SYS System, where 16 channels of audio playback are looped in sections throughout the day to achieve an immersive experience that sounds natural and random.
“The audio setup for the Woodland Village worked exceptionally well, seamlessly blending the sounds from inside the restaurant with the natural ambience outside,” confirms Nigel Woods, Creative Director at LEGOLAND Hotels. “The strategic placement of loudspeakers and carefully curated audio tracks create an immersive experience for our guests, making them feel completely surrounded by the sounds of woodland birds and creatures.”
As visitors pass through the space, the sounds of nature appear to move with them, creating an unforgettable experience, especially for younger clientele. The ability of EM Acoustics loudspeakers to reproduce sounds accurately and naturally has been key to the project’s success. “EM Acoustics products are fantastic for creating immersive environments,” confirms Shepherd. “When you’re looking for as natural a sound as possible, such as when replicating a British woodland, the accuracy of the loudspeakers has to be flawless.” The addition of acoustic treatment in the roof also helps to minimise reverberation, resulting in a perfectly dry, realistic soundscape.
Since its recent inauguration, the sound system at The Clubhouse has already garnered significant attention and positive feedback. “With a great atmospheric track and system design by DS Audio, brilliant audio quality from EM Acoustics’ loudspeakers and installation amps, and full integration into our existing Resort-wide Q-SYS ecosystem, we have a system that not only creates the perfect background atmosphere but can also deliver the audio for nightly entertainment, as well as bigger events should we need it.”
