Dear Darling
hospitality·Green Park, London
Design-led sound systems for hospitality
Hospitality audio consultancy London
Audio systems designed to support atmosphere, service flow and guest comfort across hospitality spaces.
The problem
Sound addressed too late
The venue looks exceptional and sounds ordinary. Guests notice it even when they cannot name it.
Audio is typically the last line item, specified after the interior is fixed and the ceiling is closed. By that point, speakers are positioned for convenience rather than coverage. Acoustic problems get patched rather than prevented.
Staff turn the volume up to compensate. The atmosphere the design team intended is quietly undermined. Understanding why restaurants sound bad is the first step towards preventing it.
We exist to prevent that. Our consultancy brings audio into the design conversation at schematic stage, alongside lighting, materials and spatial planning. Our approach to restaurant sound system design exemplifies how early involvement prevents costly compromises.
“From the initial consultation through to final installation, the process was smooth, professional, and impressively efficient.”
Danio Domingues, Founder, Porto Arts Club / Carbone London
Where we work
Every venue type has a different sonic brief
01
Fine dining and restaurants
Acoustic comfort, discreet speaker placement, and zoning that shifts energy from lunch through to late evening service.
Restaurant sound design02
Members’ clubs and lounges
Immersive, intimate sound that carries physicality without volume. Concealed systems aligned with bespoke interiors.
03
Bars, late night and events
Systems that perform under pressure with real headroom, energy and tonal quality. Designed for long operational hours.
04
Hotels and spa
Lobby to suite, pool to restaurant. Multi-zone systems with centralised control, designed around guest experience.
05
Flagship retail and experiential
Audio as brand expression. Sculptural speaker systems, immersive soundscapes and precisely controlled zones.
06
Co-working and creative
Acoustic separation, ambient sound design and presentation-grade systems for meeting spaces and collaborative environments.
Our process
Three stages, one principle
Resolve sound before the ceiling closes. We join the design team at schematic stage and remain through to commissioning.
The process is collaborative, structured around the project timeline, and designed to prevent the costly rework that happens when audio is left until fit-out. Explore our full framework.
01
Acoustic blueprint
Sonic strategy, system concept and spatial analysis. We define what the venue needs to sound like and map that against the architectural intent, materials schedule and MEP coordination.
02
Engineered procurement
Detailed specification, product selection and sourcing. Every component is chosen for the project, not from a template. We coordinate directly with contractors and the design team.
03
Precision commissioning
On-site installation oversight, system calibration and final tuning. We stay until the venue sounds exactly as intended, and we hand over a system the operators can actually use.
Deliverables
What we deliver
01
Acoustic analysis
Material assessment, reverberation modelling and treatment specification to control the acoustic environment before fit-out.
02
Sound system design
Speaker specification, placement strategy, zone architecture and DSP configuration tailored to the venue and its service rhythm.
03
Design team coordination
Audio drawings and schedules integrated with the architectural and interior design packages, issued at each design stage.
04
Infrastructure planning
Cable routing, amplifier rack specification and power requirements coordinated with mechanical and electrical services.
05
Commissioning
On-site system calibration, acoustic measurement and zone tuning under real operating conditions.
06
Cognitive load assessment
Evaluation of listening effort across the venue using our proprietary CLI framework, ensuring guest comfort is maintained throughout service.
We provide hospitality acoustic design across London including Mayfair, Soho, Covent Garden, Chelsea, Shoreditch, Notting Hill and the City. Our consultancy also extends to hospitality venues throughout the United Kingdom and internationally.
Common questions
What venue teams ask us
A hospitality audio consultant defines the sonic strategy for a venue, covering speaker specification, acoustic treatment, zoning, infrastructure and how the system integrates with the interior design. Unlike an equipment supplier, we work alongside the design team from concept stage to ensure audio is resolved as part of the architecture.
AV installation is the physical fitting of equipment. Hospitality acoustic design is the upstream process of understanding the space, the operational brief and the guest experience, then specifying the right system and acoustic approach to achieve the desired result. The installer builds what we specify.
Through discreet acoustic treatment within existing ceiling and wall systems, architectural loudspeakers concealed in ceilings or joinery, more even speaker coverage that reduces the need for volume, and better zoning. None of these interventions need to compromise the interior concept.
Yes. Most venues we work on require independent audio zones. Each zone can be controlled separately for source, volume and scheduling, while the system as a whole remains cohesive. This is essential for venues that shift energy and atmosphere from day to night.
At concept or schematic stage, before ceiling details, services coordination and material finishes are confirmed. Early involvement means speaker positions, cable routes and acoustic treatment can be resolved within the architecture, not retrofitted afterwards.
We model the service arc of the venue and design the zoning, scheduling and system calibration to reflect how the space is used throughout the day. Background music at lunch can transition into a higher energy evening atmosphere without any manual adjustment by staff.
Resolvethesoniclayerofyournextproject
Whether you are at concept stage or approaching fit-out, a conversation now can prevent the compromises that come from addressing audio too late.