New York, NY (November 15, 2016)—Tiësto, Hardwell, The Chainsmokers, Bassnectar, Porter Robinson and Steve Aoki were just a few of the acts that played this year’s Electric Zoo Festival on Randall’s Island Park in New York City over Labor Day weekend. To ensure that all 83,000 attendees heard every note, Milwaukee-based Clearwing Productions provided lighting and an L-Acoustics PA for the entire event.
Clearwing provided the Main and Riverside Stages and the Hilltop Arena and Sunday School Grove tents with L-Acoustics K1, K2 and Kara PA systems. Main and Riverside also got a heavy helping of bass from L-Acoustics’ new KS28 reference subwoofers powered by the company’s equally new LA12X amplified controllers housed in LA-RAK II touring racks.
“EDM festivals like Electric Zoo demand accurate, even and powerful LF throughout the entire audience area, and the new LA12X-powered KS28s paired with our LA8-powered K1-SB arrays accomplished this task with ease, delivering extremely smooth frequency response and truly impressive SPL levels,” said Clearwing’s Joe Spitzer, who served as the Main Stage tech, along with Phil Reynolds.
This year, Electric Zoo adopted a “Wild Island” theme. The outdoor Main Stage, constructed in the shape of a giant cobra rearing back to strike, featured two main PA hangs, each comprising 12 L-Acoustics K1 plus two K2 down fills, backed by separate arrays of eight K1-SB LF extension cabinets, all powered by LA8 amplified controllers. Down below, a dozen KS28 subs per side were grouped in fours, flipped upright with 1.5-foot spacing between them—with eight more located in the center, configured as an end-fire array—all powered by LA12X amplified controllers. Six ground-stacked K2s per side plus a dozen ARCS II provided additional fill.
On the outdoor Riverside Stage, which was encircled by an enormous, writhing octopus, the setup included eight K1 plus four K2 down fills flown per side, together with 16 KS28 subs. Two stacks of three Kara provided front-fill, while a pair of ARCS II per side handled out-fill. Power for the rig was generated from seven LA-RAK amplifier racks, along with two LA-RAK II containing the new LA12X amplified controllers.
The Hilltop Arena tent, made over to look like an arctic icescape, featured six K2 per side with 12 SB28 subs, together with four ARCS II for fill, with five LA-RAKs driving the system. For the tented Sunday School Grove, decorated like a tropical jungle canopy, Clearwing supplied a main system of six Kara per side plus eight SB28 subs, with fill provided by two ARCS Wide, and with four X15 HiQ delays. Three LA-RAKs.
L-Acoustics speakers, which have become the monitors of choice for many of the world’s EDM artists, featured on all four stages at Electric Zoo.
Bryan Baumgardner, head of audio operations and logistics for Clearwing Productions, noted that it was Clearwing’s debut at Electric Zoo, which was first held in 2009. But a long working relationship with festival organizers Made Events and SFX Entertainment ensured that everything went very smoothly, he says. “Our client had a ton of drawings of every stage and every coverage area. With L-Acoustics’ Soundvision modeling software and Network Manager control and processing we were able to plan ahead. So we knew exactly what we were walking into, which helped us onsite.”
Clearwing Productions
www.clearwing.com
L-Acoustics
www.l-acoustics.com
