SOUTH KOREA: Powersoft technology has been deployed at the heart of a major audio system upgrade at two of South Korea’s most prominent retail destinations, with Mezzo and Quattrocanali amplifiers now powering both background music and public-address systems at the Lotte Premium Outlet shopping centres in Busan and Yeoju. Designed and delivered by DasanSR, Powersoft’s distributor in South Korea, the project demonstrates how modern, networked amplification can transform large-scale retail audio environments without disrupting daily operations.

Both outlet malls operate as open-air destinations, welcoming visitors 365 days a year, where uninterrupted background music and tannoy announcements are critical. The new systems replace ageing amplifier infrastructure with contemporary Powersoft platforms, restoring coverage in previously problematic zones while significantly improving sound quality, operational stability, and ease of management. At Busan, DasanSR completed the upgrade to a fully live system over the course of two weeks, while at Yeoju the main phase of work was executed over five nights, all without affecting daytime trading.

The two sites share a similar architectural layout, with multiple buildings arranged along pedestrian streets and amplifiers distributed across insulated equipment rooms. Both were originally designed around digitally networked infrastructures using the now-obsolete CobraNet platform from source to amplifier. The 2025 upgrade, which followed an initial phase completed in December 2023, focused on replacing failed and at-risk amplifiers while simultaneously modernising the network architecture. At Yeoju, the system now combines CobraNet and AVB, with AVB audio expanders feeding analogue signals to the Powersoft amplifiers. At Busan, the infrastructure has been migrated to a Dante and QLAN architecture, with Dante audio expanders providing both analogue and Dante outputs in a fully redundant configuration to guarantee uninterrupted operation.

Across both shopping centres, DasanSR installed an extensive range of Powersoft amplification, including Mezzo 322 A/AD, 324 A/AD, 602 AD and 604 A/AD models, alongside Quattrocanali 1204 DSP and 2404 DSP/DSP+D units, and Duecanali 804 DSP+D and 1604 DSP+D amplifiers. These drive a diverse loudspeaker inventory comprising systems from Bose, JBL, QUAD and Biamp. The compact 1U form factor of the Mezzo range, combined with the flexibility of the Quattrocanali platform, allowed DasanSR to maximise channel density while conserving rack space, in some cases achieving eight channels within a single rack unit using paired Mezzo amplifiers.

“The client asked us to maintain high performance, ensure broad compatibility with existing components and make the system easier to service,” explains Project Team Leader Jeong Wang-ho. “By switching to Powersoft, we were able to restore coverage in zones that had gone quiet due to amplifier failures, reduce heat generation and offer operators real-time monitoring of every output channel. The experience at the Lotte Premium Outlets has really confirmed our belief that, for us, ‘digital amplifiers mean Powersoft’.”

Centralised monitoring and control are handled via Powersoft’s ArmoníaPlus software, which DasanSR configured as a unified management hub for both sites. From a single interface, staff can oversee power status, muting, levels and output impedance across the entire system. According to Jeong, the real-time impedance monitoring functionality has proven especially valuable, enabling early detection of cabling or loudspeaker issues before they become audible faults. At the larger Busan outlet, dual-path signal routing using both Dante and analogue outputs ensures continued audio delivery even in the event of a network failure.

In comparison with the previous domestic-brand amplifiers, the Powersoft systems deliver noticeably greater clarity and headroom, with richer low-frequency performance even in high-impedance configurations. Background music, particularly complex multi-instrument content such as jazz, now exhibits greater depth and immersion, while zones where both amplifiers and loudspeakers were replaced have seen what Jeong describes as a “dramatic” improvement. Even in areas where only the amplifiers were upgraded, the enhancement in audio quality was immediately apparent.

The reduced size and increased efficiency of the new amplifiers have also freed up valuable rack space, positioning both shopping centres for future expansion and system redesign. Feedback from Lotte has been overwhelmingly positive, with the client noting that the “premium Italian” identity of Powersoft aligns closely with the luxury positioning of the Lotte Premium Outlet brand.

“Although it wasn’t an easy decision to prioritise sound quality in a non-performance environment, the combination of superior audio, ease of maintenance and operational reliability proved that it was a highly worthwhile and justifiable investment from the end customer,” concludes Jeong.