At the University of Florida, a new kind of gaming lab is redefining how students interact with digital entertainment, and with each other. Designed and installed by GAMELAB, a full-stack solution provider for custom-built, immersive gaming systems, this custom-built space includes 30 interactive gaming stations engineered to deliver high-quality, immersive sound for individual users without isolating them from the social energy of the room. To achieve this, SoundTube’s directional FP-Series speakers were an integral part of the solution.
“Our primary goal was to allow many individuals in a relatively small area to have high-quality personal audio experiences with minimal bleed between stations,” said Tim Dunnigan, CEO of GAMELAB. “At the same time, it was important for users to still be able to talk and engage with each other. Headphones weren’t going to work for this vision and SoundTube’s directional domes were the perfect answer.”
What sets GAMELAB apart is the attention to acoustics in open, interactive spaces, especially in environments like esports lounges, public arcades, and university labs, where communal energy matters as much as individual gameplay.
“The audio dome is one of the only components in our gaming stations that we don’t fabricate ourselves,” said Dunnigan. “And that’s because SoundTube has already perfected it.”
GAMELAB selected 24 SoundTube FP-6020 speakers for the individual gaming stations and 6 FP-6030 speakers for larger multiplayer setups. The FP-Series directional speakers are known for delivering focused sound with minimal dispersion, making them ideal for clustered environments where sound isolation is important.
For this project, the GAMELAB team engineered custom rigid mounts and centering components to ensure the domes were integrated seamlessly into their proprietary gaming station enclosures.
“The audio isolation characteristics of the domes are what make them so valuable,” Dunnigan added. “We’ve had these speakers in the field for years with incredibly low failure rates.”
“We’ve worked with SoundTube for over a decade, and their sound domes remain one of the most reliable and consistent products we use. This project at the University of Florida is a perfect example of how their directional speakers help us deliver immersive sound while still allowing people to interact naturally in the space.”