About the Project
In the heart of Shanghai, a new venue is redefining the equestrian experience. The Shanghai International Equestrian Center opened as the host of the prestigious Shanghai Longines Global Equestrian Championship, bringing world-class competition to an increasingly enthusiastic audience in China. To meet international standards, the venue required not only top-tier facilities but also an advanced sound system capable of delivering clear, immersive audio across its expansive space.
Unlike traditional sports arenas, which typically prioritize volume above all, equestrian venues require a delicate balance of clarity and subtlety. The sound system needed to project clear commentary, music, and event announcements while ensuring that the natural sounds of the sport—the rhythmic gallop of horses, the cues from riders, and the crowd’s energy—remained an integral part of the experience.
Shanghai International Equestrian Center identified three key goals for the new system:
- Even coverage across both the competition arena and spectator stands.
- High intelligibility for speech and music in an open-air setting.
- Seamless integration with a modern digital infrastructure for precise control and tuning.
To address these challenges, the Shanghai International Equestrian Center partnered with Bose Professional to develop an audio system tailored to the unique needs of equestrian events.
The Bose Professional Solution
Bose Professional engineers designed a system centered around ArenaMatch loudspeakers, chosen for their IP55-rated outdoor durability and ability to deliver clear, uniform coverage.
The system features 54 ArenaMatch modules—including AM40, AM20, and AM10—spread across 12 groups to ensure consistent sound distribution throughout the audience area and competition zone. The system is powered by 16 PowerMatch PM8500N amplifiers, with two backup units in place for redundancy. ControlSpace EX-1280C processors manage digital signal processing, while Dante networking enables efficient signal distribution between the control room and amplifier racks.
A venue of this scale required careful planning to optimize speaker placement and avoid acoustic challenges. Bose Professional engineers utilized Modeler® 3D software to simulate how sound would behave in the space. further refined the design, allowing engineers to preview the system’s performance before installation. This approach ensured that each speaker was positioned for maximum clarity and natural sound reproduction.
With the new Bose Professional system in place, the Shanghai International Equestrian Center delivered a truly immersive audio experience for the recent Longines Global Equestrian Championship. Spectators noted the clarity and consistency of the sound, which enhanced the competition without overpowering its natural elements. The system’s ability to provide even coverage and precise speech intelligibility certainly bodes well for future events at the venue.
By partnering with Bose Professional, the Shanghai International Equestrian Center successfully implemented a reliable, well-integrated sound system that supports both the technical demands of international competitions and the expectations of modern audiences.
