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Speaker Coverage · Install line array

K-array Kobra KK102 I — SPL & coverage in a 30 × 18 m hall

Problem. A 30 × 18 m conference auditorium needs confirmed SPL at the rear listener and a defensible horizontal coverage radius before the K-array Kobra KK102 I is specified as the install line-array of choice.

Answer. At a 15 m listener distance and 60% drive, the planner reports roughly 100 dB SPL — comfortably above the speech-intelligibility target — with a −6 dB horizontal coverage radius of about 26 m across the seating plane.

02 / In depth

How this preset reads — the engineering view.

The Kobra KK102 I is rated 126 dB SPL at 1 m. Sound pressure falls with distance under the inverse-square law, so at 15 m and full output the planner shows roughly 102 dB at the listener; dialled back to the 60% drive setting used in this preset, that figure settles to roughly 100 dB — still well above the 85 dB speech-priority target most auditoria design against.

The cabinet's nominal 120° × 35° (H × V) dispersion is what sets the roughly 26 m horizontal coverage radius on the −6 dB axis for this room. The wide horizontal spread suits a broad seating plane, while the comparatively tight 35° vertical pattern keeps the wavefront aimed at the seating bowl rather than the ceiling, reducing slap-back and preserving intelligibility. The Kobra KK102 I is a passive cabinet, so it depends on matched external amplification sized to the box's power handling — the planner assumes correct gain-staging, not a specific amplifier.

Use the planner by dragging the listener-distance and drive-level controls and watching the SPL figure move — that is the direct physics of the inverse-square law playing out per box. The suggested box count is a separate, simpler estimate of front coverage based on room area and cabinet dispersion; treat SPL adequacy and box count as two different questions the tool answers side by side, not one derived from the other.

The planner does not model room reverberation or RT60, so a live, hard-surfaced hall will read a few dB hotter than the figure shown here. It does not divide the room into separate audio zones, does not size or place a subwoofer (the Kobra KK102 I's line-array format targets a defined high-pass crossover point, not full-range coverage on its own), does not account for array rigging, splay angle or mechanical hang points, and does not perform the DSP delay/EQ tuning a commissioned system needs to hit these figures in practice.

What this preset deliberately does not solve

  • SPL and coverage figures are free-field estimates — real rooms with hard surfaces or heavy furnishing will shift the reading, typically upward from reflections.
  • The passive Kobra KK102 I needs an external amplifier matched to its power handling; the planner does not select or size that amplifier.
  • Box count is a front-coverage estimate only — final array size, splay and rigging require a proper acoustic design pass, not this triage figure alone.

How this preset differs from its siblings

Other install line-array options in the catalogue trade off SPL headroom against physical size and dispersion width differently — a narrower-dispersion column reaches further at the same power but covers less width per box, while a lower-rated-SPL column needs more boxes or closer spacing to hit the same 85 dB speech target. The Kobra KK102 I's combination of 126 dB @1 m rated output and a wide 120° horizontal pattern makes it a strong fit for wide, moderate-depth rooms like this 30 × 18 m auditorium, which is why it earns its own preset rather than sharing the generic install-line-array page.

03 / Hydrated calculator

Try the configuration — live.

The calculator below is preloaded with this preset’s state. Adjust any input — your URL stays shareable.

— Planner · speaker coverage

SPL, coverage radius and quantity, estimated.

Pick a brand, model and application. An indicative free-field SPL at the listener, coverage radius on the -6 dB axis and a planning-level box count for the room — a starting point for design, not a final specification. K-array, KGEAR, JBL Pro, d&b, L-Acoustics, Fonestar, Ecler.

SPEAKER · K-arrayLISTENER · 15.00 mROOM 30.00 m × 18.00 m · COVERAGE r ≈ 25.98 m
IndicativeIndicative planning estimate

Max SPL at listener

102

dB · target 85 dB · headroom +17 dB

Coverage radius

26.0

metres · -6 dB axis

Quantity

1

boxes for 540.0 m²

A planning link — not a quote.

model
K-array Kobra-KK102 I
max spl
126 dB @1m
spl at listener
100 dB · max 102 dB
dispersion
H 120° · V 35°
power
240 W applied · 400 W RMS
bandwidth
150-18000 Hz
impedance
8 ohm
coverage
r ≈ 25.98 m · area 2120.6 m²

The one-metre Kobra — sixteen 2-inch drivers, Spot/Flood from 7° to 35° vertical, 126 dB peak. EN 54-24 certified stainless column for larger auditoria, transport halls and houses of worship needing both intelligibility and evacuation compliance.

What changes this estimate

  • Room drawings & obstructions
  • Confirmed ceiling height
  • Finishes & absorption in the space
  • Final loudspeaker model & dispersion

Feasibility

102 dB max at the listener carries 17 dB over the 85 dB target — comfortable headroom; a smaller cabinet may be more cost-effective.

A planning link — not a quote.

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Brief us on the project — with this configuration.

Presets are a typology starting point. The brief wizard captures the room geometry, programme and constraints we need to translate this configuration into a real design.