CHINA: The Grand Hall at Grand Lisboa Palace Resort in Macau has emerged as a landmark project for Asia’s live entertainment and integrated resort market, becoming the first venue in the region to deploy the L-Acoustics Ambiance hybrid acoustic enhancement system. Designed as a highly flexible 2,200-capacity multipurpose venue, the space combines L-Acoustics Ambiance active acoustics with L-ISA Hyperreal Immersive Sound technology, enabling the venue to dynamically transform its acoustic character to suit vastly different applications ranging from intimate classical performances and corporate conventions to high-energy live concerts and immersive experiential events.

Entertainment audio-visual consultants Nova Range oversaw the extensive installation, integrating the technologies into a sophisticated five-zone audio infrastructure capable of operating either as one unified environment or as five independently controlled acoustic zones. The approach gives the Grand Hall a level of operational versatility rarely seen in the region, allowing simultaneous events, partitioned venue rentals, or highly customised acoustic adjustments across different sections of the hall while maintaining consistent spatial audio coverage throughout every configuration.

Located on Macau’s competitive Cotai Strip, the venue was conceived over a four-year collaborative design process between Nova Range and Grand Lisboa Palace management, with the goal of creating a flexible mid-sized event destination capable of differentiating itself within one of Asia’s most competitive hospitality and entertainment markets.

“Grand Lisboa Palace already had a traditional ballroom,” explains Sand Leung, Managing Director of Nova Range and Project Director for the Grand Hall. “Now, the venue was looking to create a larger space that could host medium-sized programs and stand out among Macau’s competitors. The venue needed to handle fashion shows, concerts, conventions, and more with different layouts. A fixed stage was definitely not in the plans.”

Nova Range evaluated several manufacturers during the selection process, but ultimately selected L-Acoustics due to the ability to deploy both L-ISA immersive audio and Ambiance active acoustics from the same loudspeaker infrastructure.

“We found that L-Acoustics is consistently advancing both technologies,” says Leung. “The client wanted tour-level live audio backed by an ideal acoustical environment for all seats. No other system could deliver that combination with such technical efficiency.”

At the heart of the Ambiance system is a network of strategically positioned microphones capturing the room’s natural acoustic energy, with signals processed via 11 L-Acoustics P1 processors operating over a Milan-AVB network. Julien Laval, L-Acoustics Application Project Director for Acoustics Solutions, worked closely with the venue team to calibrate dedicated acoustic signatures for different event types and usage scenarios.

“The key advantage of Ambiance in multipurpose venues is the ability to change room acoustics instantaneously,” explains Laval. “We worked closely with Grand Lisboa Palace to understand what each type of event needed acoustically—whether that’s the warmth and reflection required for classical music or the clarity and control needed for amplified shows. Because Ambiance uses the same loudspeaker infrastructure as L-ISA, both systems can run simultaneously, creating an immersive spatial audio experience within an acoustically optimized environment.”

The venue’s infrastructure has been designed around multiple permanent and portable system configurations. The permanent concert mode deploys a seven-hang scene system comprising two A15i Wide enclosures per hang, supported by four hangs of dual KS21i subwoofers flown centrally for low-frequency reinforcement. Out-fill coverage is handled via two A15i Wide enclosures per hang on either side of the hall, while eight A15 Wide loudspeakers form the front-fill system across the stage edge. Delays are provided by seven X12 enclosures rigged mid-hall, with four A10i Wide loudspeakers delivering rear coverage.

A separate plenary mode positions the stage to the left side of the hall while retaining a similar seven-point scene system, this time supported by two hangs of KS21i subwoofers. Out-fills comprise one A15 Focus and one A15 Wide enclosure per side, alongside six X12 delay speakers and ten X8 front-fill loudspeakers.

For centre-stage applications, the venue deploys four L/R systems using two A15i Wide enclosures per hang on each side of the hall, complemented by centrally flown KS21i subwoofers, dedicated X8 front-fills, and A10i Wide loudspeakers for south-side coverage.

Portable L-Acoustics L Series systems further extend the venue’s capabilities for concert and plenary configurations, using LCR deployments featuring L2 and L2D enclosures alongside flown KS28 subwoofer arrays. Overhead and surround arrays using X8 and X12 loudspeakers, together with Syva Low subwoofers, complete the immersive infrastructure. Several loudspeakers were also custom colour-matched to satisfy the venue’s architectural and aesthetic requirements.

L-Acoustics Certified Provider Rightway Audio Consultants (RAC) Hong Kong supplied components for the various L-ISA system configurations deployed throughout the venue.

According to Nicholas Kirsch, Nova Range’s audio system designer responsible for the L-ISA system design, the immersive audio deployment dramatically expands audience coverage compared to conventional stereo or LCR approaches. “With L-ISA, that area can be expanded to 70 percent or even more. A well-designed L-ISA configuration expands the system’s coverage area dramatically,” explains Kirsch.

Leung also highlighted the artistic and experiential benefits created by the combination of immersive sound and adaptive acoustics. “Ambiance allows the audience to experience more—for example, when performing classical music or music focused on specific instruments, it creates a significantly deeper atmosphere,” observes Leung. “From the performer’s perspective on stage, the results are excellent. Artists hear clarity, leading them to be more engaged in their performances.”

Beyond conventional concerts and corporate events, the system’s flexibility has also opened the door to more experimental and interactive applications. “With so many sound sources and rigging points available, it’s now possible to create very new and original interactive programs,” says Leung. “People might come in for a large meditation and yoga event, with sound surrounding them, making them feel as if they are in another dimension.”

Since opening, the Grand Hall has already hosted several live concerts, with organisers reportedly responding positively to both the venue’s spatial coverage and the seamless integration of the custom-specified, colour-matched loudspeaker systems. And L-Acoustics Application Engineer Frieda Lee, alongside the wider L-Acoustics APAC applications team, played a key role during the integration and optimisation process across all five acoustic zones and venue configurations.

Leung also acknowledged the long-term technical collaboration that supported the project through its multiple development phases. “Whether during the design and calibration phases, or when we needed modifications and adjustments, both teams at L-Acoustics and RAC provided invaluable support. We greatly appreciated their expertise, and even now, after delivery, they continue providing technical support.”