WISEMANS FERRY, Australia – Norwest Productions deployed EAW KF740 line arrays for one of the six main stages at the Playground Weekender music festival, where artists including Bjorn Again and Orbital, among others, performed. Norwest chose the EAW gear for its combination of sound quality, accuracy and ease of rigging.
The Playground Weekender, situated in this town about 75km northwest of Sydney, features an eclectic gathering of international and local artists on the multiple music stages with cabaret acts, a cocktail bar, a healing area, yoga and an array of international food and market stalls.
Along with the need to effectively cover a large area, the P.A. system had to be integrated into the visual presentation, and to go up quickly. Norwest said the KF740 fit all of those requirements, and was able to fly the entire system in less than an hour.
The main system included 24 3-way KF740 modules flown in two line arrays on either side of the stage using 12 KF740 modules each. These were augmented with eight EAW SB1002 large format dual-18 subwoofers and 16 EAW SB1000z large format subwoofers, as well as four EAW KF650z compact array loudspeakers offering 60-degree horizontal dispersion used as front fills.
Powersoft DIGAM K10 amplifiers powered the KF740s and Lab.gruppen FP6400 amps were used to power the system's subs.
"One of the advantages of using this array is that it isn't as heavy as some other arrays, and still packs a lot of punch," said Scott Harrison, audio systems engineer at Norwest. "As we were hanging [the system off] of the stage roof superstructure, weight was very important. Given the short time frame we had to get the P.A. in the air, the easy rigging was a great advantage. With input from EAW's Resolution software, we got a hang that looked like what the computer said it should, and covered all the area it needed to. From start to finish we had both of our 12-box hangs flown in under an hour."
The KF740's efficient use of power also helped keep weight down. "We were also able to keep the rig down to one amp rack per side, plus a sub rack," said Harrison, adding that "all the engineers who came to mix were impressed with the sound of the P.A. In particular, I had comments about how even the sound was, in both planes – left to right, and the transitions between boxes front to back – how it had a great presence without being overpowering, and how well it carried right out past 250 feet from the stage."
The rig operated at medium-to-high SPL during the weekend for an estimated crowd of approximately 10,000 people. "We never saw a sign of a clip light or any signs of speaker stress," Harrison said, noting the diversity of artists using the system, ranging from 3-piece bands to 25-piece orchestras, as well a choir. "The tonal character of the system was considered excellent. I thought the SPL and clarity of the boxes was great, and when combined with the weight/size combo and the easy rigging, it goes up fast, and doesn't disappoint. I'd definitely use it again."
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