Pro16 Digital Snake for Live 8 Concert in Berlin
Overview
Delivering high quality audio digitally for the PA Speaker and delay towers for over 200,000 people was made easy with the use of Pro16 digital snake products. Details
Key Features
- Simplicity of setting up a very large system
- Fidelity of the audio, especially over long distances
Products Used
- Pro16 Series
- 2 AN-16/i Input Modules
- 7 AN-16/o Output Modules
- 7 A-16R Personal Mixers
- 1 A-16D Pro A-Net Distributor
1100 Meters of Digital Distribution
Sonic Sound Tour & Production GmbH, based in Kassel, Germany, was in charge of the audio system design and installation for the 2005 Live 8 concert in Berlin. The event, which was held to raise awareness of poverty issues in Africa, attracted over 200,000 people to Berlin’s Tiergarten Park. Performers at the Berlin concert included Roxy Music, Audioslave, A-Ha, Faithless, Green Day and Brian Wilson.
The audio system spanned 1100 meters through Tiergarten Park, and included numerous audio delay towers and the distribution of both stereo and mono audio signals. Sonic Sound specified an Aviom digital snake as the audio distribution system to the amplifiers and delay towers for the entire event.
The system included two AN-16/i Input Modules at front of house that were used to distribute audio to the amp racks at each delay tower. Delay towers were positioned at every 100m up to 1100m from the stage. At 100m, 200m, and 400m, delay towers were placed at both the left and right. Each of these six stereo delay towers was outfitted with an AN-16/o Output Module for access to the outputs processed for the appropriate delay at that tower.
Back To Mono
The same is true for the mono PA at 300m. At 500m and beyond, mono PA towers all received the same audio signals, with local XTA processors at each tower used for processing the delay required at each location. At each of these mono PA towers, an Aviom A-16R was used to select the appropriate output channel.
CEO
Sonic Sound Tour & Production GmbH
An A-16D Pro A-Net Distributor was used at 300m opposite the mono PA tower to extend the A-Net signal from the AN-16/o at 200m to the one at 400m. The AN-16/o on the left side at 400m is daisy chained to all the A-16Rs in PA mono towers 2-8.
The Pro16 digital snake simplified setup and delivered excellent audio performance throughout the park. According to Sonic Sound’s CEO and head of sound Heiko Breidenbach, “The ease of cabling a very large PA return system like this with Aviom products was great. Everyone was impressed with the clear sound of the system.”
