October 2006 - After a two-year break, the Love Parade has celebrated a fast and furious comeback in Berlin. 1.2 million
revellers attended the world's biggest party, dancing to a whole range of electronic dance music, with DJs and champions of
clubbing culture from 17 different nations. 80x CAMCO Vortex amps provided the power for the biggest sound system of its kind
ever seen in Germany.
The new organisers asked for strict volume limits for the all-important sound systems. A level of 105 dB(A) was set, which was
not to be exceeded at any point in the parade, and maximum volume levels were determined for various measuring points around the
venue.
For the evening line-up of DJs at the famous Grosser Stern, the organisers wanted powerful 360 sound coverage around the Victory
Column. For the DJ stages at the east and west sides, a higher level of amplification was planned, and the floats were also to
be incorporated as mobile components of the square's sound system.
Jesko Purmann and Michael "Miwe" Wengerter from the Kassel enterprise AMBION GmbH successfully tendered a system design using
nearly 90x GEO T tangent array loudspeakers from NEXO, several supplementary NEXO Alpha and PS Series loudspeakers and NX
TDcontrollers, as well as 70x VORTEX 6 amplifiers and 10x 200V amplifiers from CAMCO. It is the biggest central sound
reinforcement operation using the NEXO GEO T system that Germany has ever seen. In addition, there was the networking of the
three locations, i.e. the central mixing / presentation point and the two stages.
NEXO's NX242s, with NXtension cards and ESmonitor software, were used to control the EtherSound distribution network.
The programme involved a stream of different DJs and live bands on two stages, with changeovers every 20 minutes. The stage crews
only had very short time intervals to get the required props and structures up on stage for the short sets. As expected, the
sound reinforcement equipment worked perfectly and never once jeopardised the tight schedule.
The extensive range of equipment used really paid off. Speaking after the Love Parade's successful revival, Jesko Purmann said,
"we managed to meet all the conditions regarding volume and range and even remained below them in some cases, and still we were
able to achieve powerful, homogenous sound reinforcement across the entire venue. The only sensible location for the tangent
arrays was directly on the Victory Column itself, just above the VIP area. The audience areas and the stages were about 30 metres
away from the suspension points, leaving an average distance of 100 metres that we had to cover. The VIPs couldn't be exposed to
any more than 97 to 100 dB(A) but we still had to get sufficient power to the square itself. The accurate coverage and very good
rear attenuation provided by the GEO T meant that everything worked out to plan. It was just perfect. The artists, the guests
and the organisers were all really impressed by the sound quality"
Crew:
Sound design: Jesko Purmann / Michael "Miwe" Wengerter
FOH operator: Martin "Merten" Wagnitz
West stage operator: Dirk Stange
East stage operator: Mathias Jakob
Energy management (audio): Reiner Nehm
For further information contact:
AMBION GmbH
Jesko Purmann
purman@ambion.de
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