When you’re thinking of purchasing a restaurant sound system for the first time or upgrading your existing system, do you feel equipped to make those decisions? There are so many options out there, it’s difficult to figure out which one is right for your space. There are speakers, amps and mixers to consider. Inputs, outputs, volume zones, audio zones.... Where do you begin? Then, when it comes to installing everything, you need to make sure placement is correct so that you avoid any audio hot spots that could be bothering customers or inhibiting conversations.
One of the major problems with installing a sound system in restaurants is shorting yourself on the amount of speakers you purchase and not paying attention to where they are placed. Music should enhance the experience not over-take it. The easiest fix for this is to purchase more speakers. This will give you even coverage across your restaurant with the ability to turn the volume down because you don’t have to cover as much space with one speaker.
Panera is an example of a store doing intelligent things with their speaker placement. Most of their speakers are over the seating area and they deliberately did not put speakers over the ordering area to avoid major conflicts with sound level becoming too loud while placing an order. They also wanted to put speakers in the area between the 2 doorways that people walk through upon entering. This gives guests an early introduction to the mood they’re creating with music.
No matter what your goal is for installing a restaurant sound system, there is a solution out there for you. We’re here to give you a good, better and best option when it comes to purchasing your sound system.
Your Good Option: These are the same products that have been installed since the 70’s. Much of the time you will find in-ceiling speakers or smaller cone shaped speakers lacking range. This type of solution works best in 2 environments, very small spaces or very large spaces where you need a ton of coverage. I’ll give you 2 examples: a very small space, like an over the counter burrito shop, may use 1 or 2 speakers and because they don’t have a large area to cover, they don’t have to deal with audio hotspots. A large location, such as a 15,000 sq. ft. retail store, would use this option because it’s more cost effective when buying multiple speakers. In this case, you must make the investment to buy enough speakers so that the sound is even throughout your store. The main difference between a good solution and a better solution are the bass effects and the range of the speakers.
Starting Cost: $500 worth of equipment
Product Examples: TOA, Bogen, Speco
Your Better Option: In better solutions, you will want to get an amp plus speakers. You should only need a device that has multiple inputs with a single output. In this case, you would need to have the same audio throughout the entire location but you will have the ability to control zone volume. The standard is to have your space not vary by more than 10 decibels. You could scale this option for locations from 500 sq. ft. to 4,000 sq. ft. This is the ideal solution for restaurants but needs to be accompanied by decent speakers. No matter what kind of amp you have, if you don’t have decent speakers, your sound will be affected. By spending just a bit more, you will get a solution that has higher fidelity, you will limit audio hotspots throughout your location, and you will be able to scale easily.
Starting Cost: $700
Product Examples: JBL, Crown, Bose, QSC, Atlas, SONOS
Your Best Option: Your best option involves an amp with digital sound processing and an advanced mixer with multiple inputs and outputs. This will give you the ability to change audio zones and volume zones. This is best for large companies where you have multiple things playing over your speakers requiring you to use different audio inputs. In this case, you could get away with the same quality of speakers from your better solution, while increasing the control you have over your audio zones by purchasing a better amp.
Starting Cost: $3,000
Product Examples: Bose, DBX, Crown
While all 3 of these options could work for your business, we suggest going for the better option. It’s worth the investment to get better speakers and a bit of control over your different volume zones. Of course, your sound quality starts with the audio source. Make sure you are using a high quality solution for your music needs and pair that with speakers that will enhance that quality audio. It is such a waste to hook up a high quality solution with a sound system that’s just, good.
The last tip we have is to make sure you invest in enough speakers over anything else. Your restaurant space has different pressure zones that affect the volume levels of your music and that can be very annoying for customers. If you have more speakers and better coverage, you will be able to lower the volume across your location, resulting in a more even sound and a better experience. Music is a huge part of building a restaurant's atmosphere and is a great way to engage your customers. For more information on music as a way to entertain and engage your customers, download our report below!
