Delta returns to RedFest
Published: MEA
UAE: Dubai-based promoter, Done Events, once again called on Delta Sound to supply the the full PA system and full production control for both the main stage and the additional Reebok Classic stage at RedFest in Dubai. RF, IEM and microphone package for the two days were also supplied as per artists’ requirements.
‘I took a slightly different approach with the system this year, the main system stayed as K1 but I flew K1 Subs behind as an addition and reduced the out fills to Kara and ground stacked them,’ said Delta Sound’s Al Woods. ‘The reason for these changes was to try and keep the sound contained in the bowl. We had other stages in close proximity and Delta is also making a conscious attempt to try and reduce the noise offsite. The K1 Sub gave the engineers extra sub in the air thus reducing the amount of sub needed from the floor SB28.
‘As I arc the ground subs to widen the horizontal pattern by driving them less it reduced the offsite spill,’ continued Mr Woods. ‘The Kara out fills stacked on the stage gave me the ability just to fill a small pocket that the K1 main didn’t cover, again not spilling out of the bowl as much as a large hang of K2 for example.’
Due to the amount of control equipment required, FOH needed to be larger than usual. So to avoid unnecessary sight line issues, the promoter split the positions from centre to stage left for audio and stage right for video and lighting.
‘Initially I was concerned by the mix position being off to one side,’ said Mr Woods. ‘But after walking the field I found the horizontal coverage to be very even and a very good representation of the whole system was achieved at FOH. You have to love the K1 for that!’
On stage, the package consisted of L-Acoustics 115XT speakers for floor monitors, Arcs wide and SB28 subs for side fills and a mixture of SB18 and SB28 subs for DJ fills and drum subs. The IEM and RF systems consisted of Sennheiser 5000 series and Shure UR4 radio microphones and Sennheiser 2050 and G3 IEM. The Patch for all the stage monitors, side fills and IEM was controlled electronically via two BSS Soundweb, a Meyer Sound Galileo and LA Network Manager. Devised by Delta engineer, Mehdi Khelil, it meant that no physical patch changes were needed from any console. At the push of a button mixes were sent to the right IEM or amplifier input. The speaker preset was also changed to avoid unnecessary stage monitor patches.
In terms of consoles, FOH and monitors featured four Avid Profiles and a 60 way Delta passive split system. In addition, The Script were supplied with a DiGiCo SD7 at FOH and a Soundcraft Vi6 at monitors, plus a Delta Sound 72 way split.
‘It was a long meticulous process sifting through the artists riders making sure that everything was exactly as their requirements,’ said Mr Woods. ‘As for our team, on stage we had Mehdi Khelil, Phil Down, Tom Gelissen and Glen The Mod did a fantastic job. Mehdi looking after RF coordination, Tom the consoles, and Phil and GTM running patch and mixing up. It was a long hard few days for all of us but the end result was worth all the effort.’