SAO PAULO, BRAZIL — Sound engineer Christopher Winter chose Loudness Sonorizacao of Sao Paulo, Brazil, to provide the sound reinforcement system for the April Red Bull Air Race in Rio de Janeiro’s Botafogo Bay, which drew one million spectators, making it the largest sports event in Brazilian history. The system included four towers of 16 Vertec VT4889 line array elements each (64 in total), powered by Crown I-Tech 8000 amplifiers. Low-frequency fill was provided by 64 JBL SRX728 loudspeaker subwoofers. The first Red Bull Air Race was held in 2003; in 2007, 12 events are being held across the world, each featuring a contest in which the pilots must navigate an airborne racecourse in the shortest possible time. The result is low-level flying at extremely high speeds, bringing the air race experience very close to the spectators.
Considering the scope of the event, the wide and accurate coverage of the Vertec line arrays proved to be a selling point. “We like the Vertec system because of its great sound quality, light weight and flexibility,” said Marcio Pilot, Co-owner of Loudness Sonorizacao. According to Pilot, the system performed well. “The setup of the Vertec line arrays was very quick and simple,” he said. “The sound quality was perfect and my client was very happy with the equipment and with the Loudness staff.”
David Scheirman, Vice President of Tour Sound, JBL Professional, concluded, “Marcio Pilot and his team have helped to set a new benchmark for air-show sound reinforcement support. All of us at JBL Professional are gratified to see the company’s new JBL Vertec system used to achieve such positive results.”
For further information, please see www.jblpro.com.
