SAN DIEGO — High-end aerobatic planes weren’t the only things that took to the skies at downtown San Diego’s Big Bay for the second-to-last stop of the 2007 Red Bull Air Race World Series. L-ACOUSTICS line source array elements were also flying in precise formation at five different locations along the north and south peninsulas of Embarcadero Marina Park, delivering audio reinforcement throughout the event.
The world’s best race pilots descended upon San Diego to push themselves and their aircraft to the absolute limits by racing through a slalom course just yards above the water at speeds of up to 250 mph. Part of a worldwide, 10-city exhibition, the Big Bay event also marked the kick-off of “Fleet Week,” a celebration of the U.S. military, which further helped draw massive crowds down to the city’s scenic waterfront for the weekend.
California-based Sound On Stage was contracted as the exclusive sound reinforcement provider for the race. According to General Manager George Edwards, “The benefit of using L-ACOUSTICS line arrays and various boxes in this particular application is two-fold. First is its proven ability to cover wide and long distances, and second is the absolute clarity of the spoken word. This is a unique event. There is no stage; it’s not about entertainment. The whole thing is about taking the announcer’s voice from one microphone and distributing it cleanly to a hundred thousand people or more.”
Getting that single microphone’s message out loud and clear was a combined total of 16 L-ACOUSTICS ARCS, 28 dV-DOSC and six V-DOSC line source array elements, plus four high-power dV-SUB and 14 SB218 subwoofers, all spread out between five SR positions. When asked if he was pleased with the results, Edwards commented simply, “At the end of the day, we wouldn’t use anything else.”
Sound On Stage has previously deployed L-Acoustics loudspeakers for other Red Bull events in the past, including the Red Bull Soap Box Race and human-powered flying competition, Flugtag. The Red Bull Air Race World Series next heads down to Perth, Australia, for the final race of the season, which takes place on Nov. 4.
ACTION ITEM:
For information, please visit www.l-acoustics.com.
