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PRESS RELEASE
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Genelec Smart IP transforms Tallinn City Theatre by fusing timeless heritage with audio innovation

NATICK, MA, April 28, 2026 — Sixty years ago, the Estonian Youth Theatre was granted a single house on Tallinn’s historic Lai Street to use as a private rehearsal and office space. In over half a century since, Lai Street has undergone a series of restoration and construction projects, resulting in the unification of sixteen district buildings – each dating back to the 13th century – into one holistic theater complex.  Now recognized as Tallinn City Theatre, the production house is celebrated for its high production values and creative storytelling. However, to bring the sound system into line with the rest of the modern facilities, an upgrade was required to provide all public spaces with ambient soundscapes and even coverage, without disrupting the theater’s bold visual appeal. For this, the theater selected a Genelec Smart IP solution to deliver the necessary combination of exceptional sound quality at low levels and sleek aesthetic design.  Tallinn’s Old Town – Vanalinn – is a UNESCO World Heritage site, recognized for its well-preserved medieval landscape and cultural relevance, therefore making the Lai Street restoration project one of the rarest and most historically significant theater upgrades in all of Europe. “While this is excellent for the theater, it placed certain limitations on the audio system,” says Karl Erik Laas, Tallinn City Theatre’s Senior Sound Technician. “We needed a high-fidelity, full-bodied loudspeaker solution that evenly covers the public spaces and would allow us to digitally adjust the matrix. Due to the historic nature of the venue, we also had the challenge of coordinating the appearance of the loudspeakers with the interior architecture.” Gentle background music, as well as voice announcements, needed to fill public spaces such as the lobby, dining and bar areas, common rooms, and some smaller theater auditoriums. “It has already been decided that the sound system for the theater halls would run on a Dante network, so it made sense for the common areas to follow the same protocol,” Laas explains. “The result was a high-quality solution consisting of over 100 Genelec loudspeakers.”  The theater’s technical team already had a pair of Genelec loudspeakers installed in their studio, so they were familiar with the high-performance sound and vocal intelligibility of Genelec equipment. Regional distributor, msonic Baltic OÜ, supplied a total of 120 Genelec Smart IP loudspeakers to be deployed throughout the theater complex. “Genelec’s Smart IP series is known for its exceptional audio quality, attractive form factor, and installation flexibility,” Laas continues. “We knew Smart IP would be the right fit to meet all of the theater’s requirements.” A system was designed in collaboration with theater, maintenance and design specialists Optimus Systems AS, and the Genelec factory to guarantee the most suitable solution for the multi-venue complex. “A combination of forty-four 4430 and seventy-six 4420 Smart IP loudspeakers was installed by Optimus Systems AS throughout the audience areas, making up twenty-four distinct zones of audio,” Laas reveals. “The new system was expertly planned, with the positioning of the loudspeakers ensuring wide directivity and even coverage, with absolutely no dead spots.” Mounted on walls or flown from the ceiling, the standard RAL black loudspeakers stand out from the wood-paneled, brickwork, and white painted walls, while the elegant oval form factor and discreet single-CAT-cable installation of the Smart IP series ensures they blend harmoniously with the theater’s historic setting.   “Using Genelec’s Smart IP Manager software, we were able to route, tune, and manage the loudspeakers with ease, eliminating many common setup difficulties,” adds Laas. “For networking and power in the common areas, we used Netgear M-4250 switches, while the entire system was run over Dante. Currently, a temporary system is in place to take care of processing and control as we wait for a permanent system to be chosen and implemented.”  Thanks to Genelec, the theater now possesses a sound system that lives up to its reputation. “We’ve received high praise from audiences and production crew since installing the Genelec system,” confesses Laas. “The Smart IP loudspeakers deliver superior quality, intelligibility, and optimal coverage – everything that we were looking for from a new audio solution.”  “Bringing a futureproof audio environment to a historically protected venue like Tallinn City Theatre is really about understanding the building, respecting its history and finding solutions that integrate naturally without drawing too much attention,” adds Jürgen Urbanik, Marketing and Business Development Manager at msonic Baltic OÜ. “The Genelec Smart IP solution makes a lot of sense in spaces where architecture and cultural identity need to coexist and enhance the visitor experience by combining sonic precision, networked flexibility and a discrete visual presence. Projects like Tallinn City Theatre show how thoughtfully implemented audio can quietly enhance historic spaces, helping them function in a modern, connected production environment while preserving everything that makes them special.” Since the Lai Street venue reopened at the end of 2025, Tallinn City Theatre has captured audiences’ imaginations through its artistic performances and innovative storytelling, but it is thanks to the Genelec Smart IP system that the immersive theater experience begins off-stage.  For more information, please visit www.genelec.com.

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Photo file 1: Tallinn_City_Theatre_PR_image_1.JPG Photo caption 1: The theatre required a sound system that would provide all public spaces with ambient soundscapes and even coverage, without disrupting the theater’s bold visual appeal Photo file 2: Tallinn_City_Theatre_PR_image_2.JPG Photo caption 2: The Smart IP loudspeakers deliver superior quality, intelligibility, and optimal coverage Photo file 3: Tallinn_City_Theatre_PR_image_3.JPG Photo caption 3: A total of 120 Genelec Smart IP speakers were installed in the theater complex Photo file 4: Tallinn_City_Theatre_PR_image_4.JPG Photo caption 4: Exterior of Tallinn City Theatre PDF file: Tallinn_City_Theatre_Case_Study_Genelec.pdf PDF caption: Genelec Tallinn City Theatre case study Genelec, the pioneer in Active Monitoring technology, is celebrating over 45 years of designing and manufacturing active loudspeakers for true and accurate sound reproduction. Genelec is credited with promoting the concept of active transducer technology. Since its inception in 1978, Genelec has concentrated its efforts and resources into creating active monitors with unparalleled sonic integrity. The result is an active speaker system that has earned global acclaim for its accurate imaging, extremely high acoustic output from small enclosures, true high-fidelity with low distortion, and deep, rich bass. Genelec is also marking its 20th year of Smart Active Monitoring™ technology, which allows studio monitors to be connected, configured and calibrated for the user’s specific acoustic environment. Each Smart Active Monitor or subwoofer is equipped with advanced internal DSP circuitry, which tightly integrates with the GLM (Genelec Loudspeaker Manager) software application, running on Mac or PC. GLM’s reference microphone kit allows the user’s acoustic environment to be analyzed, after which GLM’s AutoCal feature optimizes each Smart Active Monitor for level, distance delay, subwoofer crossover phase and room response equalization, with the option of further fine tuning by the user. By minimizing the room’s influence on the sound, Smart Active Monitors deliver an unrivalled reference, with excellent translation between rooms. Visit Genelec on social media: https://www.facebook.com/Genelec https://www.linkedin.com/company/genelec-oy https://www.instagram.com/Genelec_oy/ https://x.com/Genelec https://www.tiktok.com/@genelec_oy Other brand and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated. —For more information on the complete range of Genelec Active Monitoring Systems, contact: Genelec Inc., 7 Tech Circle, Natick, MA 01760. Tel: (508) 652-0900; Fax: (508) 652-0909; Web: http://www.genelec.com/.