Can Auracast serve outdoor events?

Why it matters

An outdoor event needs coverage checked with people present: in the cited test, a crowded square exposed reception problems that an empty-site check had missed¹.

What the evidence shows

• About 5 m reliable. In an independent test by Pro Audito Schweiz at an outdoor event of about 2,000 people, with the transmitter at about 2 m, reception was reliable for virtually all tested receivers only up to about 5 m in front of it¹.
• Line of sight decides. The authors report that, without nearby reflecting surfaces, the signal relied almost entirely on line of sight. One person in front can disrupt a belt- or chest-worn receiver, and at about 8 m, with the tester's own body in the way, there was no reception¹.
• An empty-site test is not enough. A functional test in the empty square did not reveal these limits; only the crowd did¹.
• The authors' conclusion. Under real-world conditions Auracast did not reach the often-promised 100 m and should for now be treated with caution, as a supplementary option outdoors¹.

Where sources disagree

Graf reports manufacturers’ theoretical ranges of up to 100 m, while warning that occupied theatres can have much shorter ranges². The outdoor test also contrasts advertised ranges under ideal conditions with its crowded-site result; these are different conditions, not measurements of the same installation¹.

What would settle it

More outdoor tests with higher mounting, several transmitters and different crowd densities would show whether the limits of this one transmitter position recur elsewhere. The test used one position at about 2 m, while Graf recommends mounting above the audience indoors^1,2.

Planning while it is open

• Test in advance and consult a specialist, as the authors recommend, and do not rely on a check in the empty site: only the crowd revealed the limits¹.
• Mounting transmitters high, above the audience, is a Swiss expert's advice for theatres²; the outdoor test had its transmitter at about 2 m, so how much height helps outdoors is untested¹.
• Consider alternatives for large outdoor events, as the authors suggest: the same test found the 5G feed covered the whole venue, but the phone-to-hearing-aid Bluetooth link sometimes dropped out and streaming latency was about 360 ms. The existing FM system was stable with 8 ms latency, although its difference from the loudspeaker sound sometimes exceeded the 40 ms the authors recommend, depending on position, and neckloop users heard interference from nearby tram lines¹.

Sources

1. Auracast practical test outdoors. Pro Audito Schweiz. Pro Audito Schweiz; English reprint by the Center for Hearing Access, 16 September 2026. Independent (Pro Audito Schweiz, Swiss hearing-loss association) ↩︎ https://centerforhearingaccess.org/wp-content/uploads/Pro-Audito-Schweiz-Auracast-practical-test-outdoors.pdf
2. Bluetooth Auracast in theaters and event venues. Graf B (Pro Audito Schweiz). Proscenium no. 3, pp. 10-11, Swiss Association of Technical Stage and Event Industry; English reprint by the Center for Hearing Access, September 2026. Nonprofit advocacy (Pro Audito Schweiz, Swiss hearing-loss association) ↩︎ https://centerforhearingaccess.org/wp-content/uploads/Proscenium-Technical-article-Bluetooth-Auracast-in-theaters-and-event-venues-1.pdf

Change log

• 10 October 2026Published with 2 sources.
• 13 October 2026Qualified the outdoor range result, added the streaming connection limitation and cited the evidence gaps.

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