Clear Sound Brings Community to Princeton Sports

Philadelphia-based Clear Sound Inc. has completed a number of high-profile audio-system projects on the campus of Princeton University, all featuring Community Professional R-Series loudspeakers.

Princeton’s Hoby Baker ice rink, home to the Tigers’ men’s hockey team, was fitted with a scoreboard-mounted center cluster of four R1 full-range, two-way systems. Two R1-66 and two R1-94 systems handle the various coverage areas.

Newly built Roberts Stadium, home to the school’s soccer teams, sported two R1 and 13 R.5 medium throw systems, with BSS London DSP and QSC amplification.

“The R1 systems are ideal for both venues,” says Clear Sound’s Chris Dietze. “Their coverage is unbeatable, and the intelligibility is great. It really cuts through, and that’s such a challenge in these reflective environments.”

Clear Sound has also recently performed a full audio makeover for Princeton’s Class of 1952 Lacrosse Stadium. The much loved venue had a lengthy history of poor sound coverage, now swept away with the installation of only two R6 multi-driver, vertical array systems.

“The R6’s coverage is just phenomenal,” says Dietze. Explaining the challenges involved in the project, he adds, “We needed to provide 100-dB-plus coverage to the far side of the stadium, about 200 feet away from the press box. They didn’t want us to trench across the field, so we were limited to mounting the loudspeakers on the press box. But the R6 is just a sound cannon; it comes through loud and clear across the field and provides coverage on the field as well, which was another thing they wanted to achieve.”

Six R.5 systems provide near fill and cover areas under the bleachers, and Community CLOUD6 ceiling speakers are installed in the team rooms. Shure DSP and QSC amplification complete the system.

Dietz reports that the Princeton lacrosse teams are quite happy with the coverage. “The stadium used to be very underserved. Now, I’m told, the games can be heard some distance away.”