Meyer Sound breaks records to support papal mass
Published: WORSHIP
MEXICO: More than 375 Meyer Sound loudspeakers were deployed to cover the open-air mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI at Bicentennial Park near Silao, Mexico. A record 268 Milo cabinets were used to ensure the crowd of an estimated 500,000 could hear the words and music clearly.
The challenge of audio system design was shouldered by Rodrigo López of Mexico City-based consulting firm Zero Phase. His assignment was to provide uniform coverage across a vast, irregularly-shaped area – over 1km wide and 500m deep – comprising uneven hillsides, sloped parking lots and open fields.
To augment the main stage Milo arrays, Mr López plotted a system of 40 delay towers laid out along 12 delay lines. Arrays on most towers were configured with five to eight Milo loudspeakers, with some delay lines deploying contingents of 30 M3D and 32 Mica line array loudspeakers.
‘I had some worries about getting clean, isolated signals out to all the towers,’ admitted Mr López. ‘But from that point, I was confident the Meyer Sound systems would perform flawlessly. And even with very high afternoon temperatures, there were zero problems.
‘Meyer was one of only two makers with enough suitable loudspeakers available in Mexico, and I did not want to mix manufacturers. And only Meyer could also supply the very highest level of performance and technical support. So it was not hard to make that call.’
The Meyer Sound roster also included 32 700-HP subwoofers, 10 UPA-1P loudspeakers for stage foldback and various fills, six MSL-4 loudspeakers for in-fill, and a Galileo loudspeaker management system encompassing 24 Galileo 616 processors. Three SIM 3 audio analysers were used for system tuning. The event was mixed on DiGiCo SD7 and SD10 consoles.
The quality of the audio throughout the event was reportedly noted and appreciated by dignitaries in the front VIP section. ‘Apparently they’d had problems with sound the day before with another system,’ said Mr López, ‘but when they first heard the pope speak, they turned around and gave us big smiles.’
In addition to the papal homily, the day's programme included music from a 70-piece orchestra and a 40-voice youth choir.
The Mass at Silao was produced by the event management team of Miriam Villalobos and Gabriel Berumen. Servicios de Audio e Iluminacion de México (SAIM) provided the largest contingent of loudspeakers along with logistical support and crew coordination. Other rental companies contributing loudspeakers were A.C.M.E., Audio Systems del Norte, Creatividad y Espectáculos, Equipos de Audio Video e Iluminación Profesional (ROA), MAAS Producciones, Mix Audiostudio, Py-Eey Producciones, and Sonorizaciones Jar. Additional technical support was provided by Meyer Sound staff from the Mexico office and the company’s Berkeley headquarters.