Dave is the Bob Ross of the audio world...I swear watching this vid with Dave's voiceover lowered my blood pressure 😂 This is a lot of amazing vision, engineering and execution. Thanks for sharing!
L Acoustics must be so happy Rat Sound has been so loyal ❤🎉 Wondering if you still have your Kudos and K1s or time to upgrade 😂 I petition that L Acoustics must sponsor Rat Sound with top of the line equipment. It’s time. 😊🤝
We like L acoustics a lot. Good friends with many people that work there as well. I even got invited to the department head get away in France as an honory member. Kudo is sold off, we just bought more K1 as it is still current and top of class
Mind boggling!! I just want to take a sec to congratulate you for such a inspirational career, thanks for all the contents you share, I really enjoy your videos. Thanks again
This is awesome, Dave! I retired from live sound in 2002. My last tour was my first with line array (vertec) mains. I quit right at the tipping point to digital consoles and line arrays, so I am pretty clueless yet intrigued by all the advances in array configuration, digital routing etc. While I'm not working at it anymore, I really enjoy learning about the latest tech. Thanks!
Dave explained how the 2023 PA was dialed in . Was warmth and clear sufficient and clear . I asked as I go to events and have to plug my ears as the system is harsh and not musical. Especially at high SPL .Great work to have every department to work with each other for the end result.
My man, you're one hell of a narrator. Great, great content. I enjoy a brief talk about what and who you know from the Grateful Dead scene back in the day. That would be a real treat!
Thank you for sharing this amazing bit of history and for always reaching higher. Back around 2011-2012, a band I worked with had to back out of Coachella, so I missed my chance to mix on the main stage. Ah, well!
The way that coachella stage evolves over the years. We can even predict that the video department will add led on the black strip at the top for 2024 stage! Awesome work Dave!! 🤘
The video was one stripe higher for stagecoach. It's all about smooth beautiful lines where everything you see is attractive and doesn't look meshed together.
It’s so surreal, I own almost every FOH console ever used at Coachella except for maybe 2024! YamahaPM3000,PM4000, PM5000, PM7-CL, PM 1K twin Midas Heritage 3000’s Midas Verona, think I saw an A&H GL2800. I have them all in perfect working order!!!
What a great presentation, Dave! Continuity is a luxury many in our business never get to experience. It was very entertaining seeing the trend line of Coachella over the decades, yes decades!! You must feel deep pride and satisfaction from the essential role you’ve played. The festival org team must be pinching themselves with the knowledge you will be there, every year, inventing and accommodating in equal parts, bringing an institutional memory to the sound design. Bravo!
Sick New World in Vegas a month ago needed some of those wind clamps on their delays..Unfortunately as soon as wind picked up and they dropped em down the impact to the sound was pretty bad.
I'm from Australia, I made the trek over especially for the 2007 Coachella. I had been in the industry for a couple of years by then, but not long enough to critique your dual hang config with any kind of experienced ears, but memory tells me it was good. Though Willie Nelson's level was such that the slightest breeze took Willie away from us. All good memories though ✌️
This was super informative, I have no idea about audio tech but now I feel like I have a better understanding and a better appreciation for the next time I go to a music festival, thanks!
Pretty awesome to see Dave reminisce on all the great shows he’s had over the years while explaining the evolution of the PA. I’m a young sound boy, still faking it until I make it somewhere. I hope my sound career will be a fraction as exciting as Dave’s has been
This is amazing you never realize how much work goes into a festival like this. But the changes over the years and all the work that has been done is amazing and very inspirational.
I’ve had the please to mix 3 (well 4 if you count the double weekend) headline shows at Coachella. Twice with Muse and once with The Cure. Always such a pleasure and always a great time getting to hang with you Dave. We also got to figure out how to mix during a full blown sand storm!!!
Dave this is amazing, unique content. Thank you so much. I can't thank you enough for putting the time into making this (and.. of course.. the actual work back over the years actually _doing_ it) .. what a treat this video is.
Hey! Great video! I have a small question. Why in Coachella 2023 (also at ultra main stage 2023) there are some line arrays behind each other? How is that Tequnique called? And what is it used for?
It can be a few things. Sometimes subs are behind the mains so all the energy comes from the same place. Or it can be an end-fire which increases forward energy without increasing line length while reducing rear sent energy
@15:19 As a 20 yr Coachella vet, if you ever need help filling that front of house... I got you man! Thanks for the recap. From the slappy delay of the early Sahara to now you really have outdone yourself my dude. Its so much cleaner(delay, bleed) and just as loud at the festival while during weekend 2 at my house my windows no longer shake. That's PROGESS!!
I'm fascinated by the use of double hanging/buses/submixes. How is the acceptance of the rest of foh engineers? Have you proposed it for other editions with the current systems? And thank you for these wonderful videos.
If ya search Dave rat double hung, there is a good amount of info. Articles and on the blog I did back then. People gad a tough time understanding back then but now I think it would be less challenging. I would use it again if I was still mixing and had a band willing to foot the costs
Absolutely awesome. It is incredible how technology and possibilities were grown despite the fact that physics is just one. Thank you Dave for showing those changes
I never really thought about cardioid for arrays, that was shown for 2023. I would be tempted to go to Coachella 2024 just to really immerse myself in that impressive sound system. Is there still such a thing as a 'DNUOS ECNALUBMA' in todays concerts?
it has been quite a few years since we have had any significant or immediate audio coverage issues that can't be addressed with a radio call. So we no longer implement the emergency vehicle
Hey Dave, I know that the main stage and roof structure is not your domain per se, but I was wondering if you could speak to its basic construction. It looks super solid and I would imagine it’s probably one of the best design structures in North America, but some people have poo poo it as potentially unstable. These of course are armchair quarterbacks who’ve never seen it themselves. But I would imagine you have some insight as to its construction.
Ha, yeah. I don't know stages but was around for discussions of safety factors vs wind and weight. They analyzed why other restructures have failed and built that thing pretty much inevitable. It needs to be way stronger with all that video wall. The stgae strength is never the issue. Touring hanging sets that swing in the wind are a concern but every detail is heavily vetted but the team of structural engineers. This is one of the few or only festival stages that has the PA entirely rigid clamped and we are rated above 50 mph winds. I would say it is probably one of the safest portable stages on earth being deployed
@@DaveRatthat's very interesting. I'm sure ever since the collapse at the Indiana Fair, everyone, including the insurance companies, have taken structural safety a little more seriously.
Perhaps, My take on it is that these large established promoters have taken stage strikes seriously always and there's a few outliers that cut corners or make mistakes and that's where we see these stage collapses. I've sat in production meetings where stage collapses get analyzed. And comments like "of course when you put all that weight on a six post with the video screen the wind will take it out" Look, there's no diagonal bracing there there and there. I was also doing a gig once where we loaded up lighting on the stage and hurt up large crack sound and it was one of the trust sections breaking. They tried to reschedule the shove we ended up canceling. Loading into the show it looked kind of sketchy. Making the call to cancel the show based on a feeling of sketchiness is a tough situation no one wants to cancel the gig and I can see scenarios where people go through with it even though they know it's a risk. Doing higher quality gigs we're concerns are vetted mechanical engineers hired and problems addressed, minimize those scenarios.
I'm a local engineer up in the high desert. I've gotten to work with Hutch a couple of times, he's a great engineer and I've learned a lot from him and modeled my small PA after the one he uses for smaller gigs. I would love to do some mixing on these insane systems!
Seeing the festival and the tech requirements grow over the past years is so awesome. But i wonder: Do you rent parts of the PA and amps? Or did you buy all of that ?
We own most of it but do subhire in boxes, amps and consoles. We try and own 70% of our peak demand and Coachella is our peak demand. Especially when we have tours out as well at the same time
Maybe 6 to 8 million current value of gear but way more if it was all new. As a lot of stuff like cable and cases ans accessory bits like mics we have owned and built up over many years
Seeing Coachella in 2012 changed my perception of outdoor sound. But now it’s hard to listen to other systems. People look at me strangely when I say Red Rocks, except for the first third of rows, is a bad sounding venue, but it’s true. Needs delay clusters in the worst way.
Red rocks is definitely a challenge. Putting in delay clusters without screwing up sight lines would require overhead structures supported on the sides which would be pretty ugly probably not feasible given the natural look and feel of the venue
Really cool to see the changes over the years. Thanks for sharing this! Can you some day please explain how patching works at festivals / how are multiple consoles used for the different bands? Are there different snakes and different mics? How do the outputs all get shared to the same arrays from multiple consoles?
This might be my favorite video of yours ever haha, that's saying a lot. You're the man, Dave! This was great - I spent many years working festivals around the US and this brought back so many great memories. Also, side question (if you happen to know): Does Mountain build these Cochella stages?
Wait.... How does a band get their own entire desk? Are there 12 desks out there, bigger acts get to setup their own station, own desk and outboard, ready to patch in?
I'm surprised at the clamp design and use. I would have thought that something that solid would be more dangerous if a big wind came up. Thanks for all you do brother!
Really interesting to see the progression. The latest setup looks completely mental! What desks are you using there these days? Has it gone all Digico now or not really?
I saw U2 some years ago in SLC and could hear the line arrays shifting in the wind. I wondered why nobody had come up with a solution as it was really distracting.
dave i wanted you to ask few questions? 1.Your favourite Sound System and model for Large events. 2.According to You the Loudest sound system and which needs minimum number of boxes. 3. I want you to compare between funktion one and L acoustics and d&b. There top models for large outdoor applications. Thank you
Favorite system for outdoor events I prefer to mix on L-acoustics K1 K2 Consistency between the the sound of various products they make is extremely valuable. The quality of the prediction software and correlation between what's predicted and what happens. And the modularity to wear you can use multitude of boxes to achieve a multitude of design/coverage/volume goals Not sure about the loudest sound system but having very few extremely loud boxes is a bummer. It limits control and blasts people near them and it's much more desirable to have a multitude of smaller boxes that work well together to form various array types for various coverages. Comparing between those three brands, The worldwide availability and consistency plus modularity and ease of deployability of D&B and l-acoustics is it strong advantage. I'm not aware of any large tours carrying function one though it does have popularity for EDM stages. I personally fine that hornloaded systems are less forgiving to mix on and two dynamic for the already dynamic live bands. Conversely for pre-recorded and compressed music, hornloaded systems help preserve what's left of the dynamics I think for system demos playing pre recorded music, function one and Danley do well but when actually mixing having systems that are highly concentrating all the energy into smallish sources that don't array particularly well, tends to be a disadvantage for venue coverage flexibility and versatility.
Very cool! thanks for sharing. I came into the game in 2008 and got to see some of these major changes in my come up. Was wondering if you know who the LD for coachella was in this time frame? Would be cool to hear their evolution story on this.
Hi Dave. What a great video. Specially, because you showed the transition from analog to digital mixers. Lately, I have realized that sonicly I don’t enjoy today’s shows wether I’m in the venue or when I watch them on tv/youtube. 3 weeks ago I went to a show and I realized they had a digital console... and I went like “oh no... I now know what’s going on”. It feel’s different for me... like no much flavor... And I feel this from the shows, in general, after 2008/2009. What do you think/feel?? Do you enjoy the sound of the digital consoles more than the analog ones? Cheers
I think we will see progress at some point and it could be profitable, but deeper pockets and more patience than I have will be needed. A bit more progress in smaller brighter LED's to minimize negative sound impacts is probably needed as well
Dave. I'm a layman trying to learn about quality audio systems (High-End and/or Hi-Fi). It seems to me that you are a great expert in audio systems that are specific to large “open” concerts, that is, those concerts that take place in large open areas and that gather a lot of people in front of the stage. One question... Currently, are the systems that are used in these open concerts able to produce sound with a quality similar or equal to that of High-End residential audio systems? Or due to the physical characteristics of these large concerts (large areas that need to be covered by the audio) is it not possible to provide sound quality comparable to High-End residential systems?
Hmmm, well yes and no. From a technical aspect, yes and perhaps the sound systems we use or models made by the same manufacturer make amazing home hifi speakers that exceed the specs and capabilities of any home hi-fi stuff that you can buy in a retail store. That said, home Hi-Fi or more specifically many audiophile enthusiasts, add a level of artistic audio voodoo to the audio listening world that oftten diverges from technically measurable and or realistic recreations. Pro sound systems tend to be focused on recreating the signal sent to them, controlling coverage areas and reaching significant volume levels. Audiophile speakers and systems tend to be focused on making recordings sound as enjoyable as possible while adding a visually appealing look. Audiophiles claim to seek accuracy but if accurate reproduction of recordings as they were intended and/or created is truly desired, one would buy actual recording studio monitors that are used when the recording was made. But in the opinion of the audiophile community, studio monitors are too accurate and can highlight audio flaws, audiophiles have similar complaints about live sound speakers as well. Conversely, audiophile speakers are treated more like paintings or fine wine with all kinds of flowery emotional non technical descriptions and the more flowery the description and the more impossible what ever is being described is to measure and prove, the more the money it will cost. With audiophile you pay for the story and the look and the ability to make various recordings enjoyable All that said, check out L-Acoustics web site, they make pro pa systems that own as well as systems with setting that make amazing home Hi-Fi as well Personally I love it all. I love beautiful audiophile gear, I love quality pa, 8 love cool Sonos and Bose Bluetooth, I love all the differing ways audio is recreated and each has its assets and issues
Dave. Thank you very much for answering my questions. So, from what I understood from your answer: yes, an audio system designed for a large open space (a concert, for example) can have audio quality as good as that of a high-end home system. I've been to a few concerts and in some of them I noticed that the audio quality wasn't very good, but this may have happened because the equipment wasn't good and/or because the sound technicians weren't experienced. What I've noticed in my research is that audio systems for concerts are much more complex and different from what we're used to seeing in home systems. In audio systems for concerts, everything is superlative (everything is big and more complex). It's a segment that I didn't have any technical information about how it works, but thanks to UA-cam (watching several videos) I can get an initial/basic idea of how everything works.
12:52 really really curious about this... I remember the first time I saw PVD live was at Mexico, 2017... his sound was waaaaaay more fuller than the rest of DJ's of the night... At first I thought it was because of the mixer he uses (Rane MP2015) but now I'm more informed about what's he using... Just curious to know, he travels with this lunchbox to every gig or this was your idea to improve his sound?
That was just a fill-in gig for me and I didn't want to mix him on the digital console so I brought that in and went fully analog. Not sure what the normal sound engineer
Any special EQ or delays for the array behind the array on the 2023 setup? Would there be any concern about constructive and destructive interference from reflections off the speakers in front, and from the two sources being offset?
Nothing other than time alignment to the sources to each other and surprisingly it actually sounded way clearer because the ground reflection was not as prominent because of the steep angle
Truly massive setups that seem very well thought out. I can only imagine that advancements in DSP has made your job much easier. How hard would it be to operate the massive 2023 system using 2003 tech?
Tough. As the pa's were bigger, heavier, not as loud per size or pound and sound system rigging was crap and we did not have prediction software. We'd end up with that horrible sounding PA like U2 has on Pop Mart tour. I mixed rage against the machine opening for U2 on that rig and it was misery
Maybe do a search on Dave Rat double hung PA. I've put lots of info out over the years. Doing a little mini dead setup for Black Flag using multiple PAs, and all kinds of fun stuff
Also, when clicking the red box you’re selling in the UA-cam app on iOS I am getting an opps page. It doesn’t happen for your other items, just that one
No we didn't do desert trip it wasn't really a festival that was more of a four band show and most of the bands were clair brother accounts. I was a bit surprised we got to do the big four same reasons but since it was back-to-back with Coachella it made sense for us to stay on site. Thank you for the heads up on the sales link working on it now!
hi Dave, great video.. this is probably a novice question but i noticed in some of the graphics it shows subs located behind each other (20:15).. is this actually how you set them up ? if so, wouldn't the sound of each rear sub be obstructed by the box in front of it ? or is there some benefit to this layout ?
Hey, thanks for this! I was wondering, because there is some possible misinformation out there, what is the attendee capacity for the Main Stage? I know it's s standing concert but people are saying that BLACKPINK had 125,000 people watching the performance at the 2023 Coachella Main Stage. I know that 125K is the average daily attendance at the festival so I think that was what they were using. I can't find a definite answer on the internet. Thanks!
Wow. The 2023 system is absolutely insane. Would love to see the amp room and even the processing for the mains/sides/delays!
I share more info in depth on the member side. I can't really share too much inside info on the public side
@@DaveRat And how can I get access to the member side? 🙂
There is a link in most of the descriptions for my vids but some countries it does not work
I thought Dave was awesome before I knew he was awsome.
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Dave is the Bob Ross of the audio world...I swear watching this vid with Dave's voiceover lowered my blood pressure 😂
This is a lot of amazing vision, engineering and execution. Thanks for sharing!
Fun and huge compliment!
haha perfect comparison!
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Thanks Dave. That's a little,lot bigger than my weekend blues gigs!
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😂 i found your channel again after 13 years. Good to know you are doing well. Keep up.
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Thank you for sharing these, Dave Rat! It's such a wonder to see how Coachella evolved.
Fun!
My friend and I have a small church gig next weekend... We'll be wearing our "Sound Human" shirts while while we mix the praise band!
That rules!!
Never been to Coachella, but I've been to many Ultra dating back to 2003. This was well done. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.
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L Acoustics must be so happy Rat Sound has been so loyal ❤🎉
Wondering if you still have your Kudos and K1s or time to upgrade 😂
I petition that L Acoustics must sponsor Rat Sound with top of the line equipment. It’s time. 😊🤝
We like L acoustics a lot. Good friends with many people that work there as well.
I even got invited to the department head get away in France as an honory member.
Kudo is sold off, we just bought more K1 as it is still current and top of class
Mind boggling!! I just want to take a sec to congratulate you for such a inspirational career, thanks for all the contents you share, I really enjoy your videos. Thanks again
So cool and thank you and much appreciated!
This is awesome, Dave! I retired from live sound in 2002. My last tour was my first with line array (vertec) mains. I quit right at the tipping point to digital consoles and line arrays, so I am pretty clueless yet intrigued by all the advances in array configuration, digital routing etc.
While I'm not working at it anymore, I really enjoy learning about the latest tech. Thanks!
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Dave explained how the 2023 PA was dialed in . Was warmth and clear sufficient and clear . I asked as I go to events and have to plug my ears as the system is harsh and not musical. Especially at high SPL .Great work to have every department to work with each other for the end result.
Exactly
My man, you're one hell of a narrator. Great, great content. I enjoy a brief talk about what and who you know from the Grateful Dead scene back in the day. That would be a real treat!
Ahhh, will ponder that and thank you
Thank you for sharing this amazing bit of history and for always reaching higher. Back around 2011-2012, a band I worked with had to back out of Coachella, so I missed my chance to mix on the main stage. Ah, well!
Next time
The way that coachella stage evolves over the years. We can even predict that the video department will add led on the black strip at the top for 2024 stage!
Awesome work Dave!! 🤘
The video was one stripe higher for stagecoach. It's all about smooth beautiful lines where everything you see is attractive and doesn't look meshed together.
You are such an inspiration Dave! Thanks for sharing your wisdom and knowledge 🤙
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It’s so surreal, I own almost every FOH console ever used at Coachella except for maybe 2024! YamahaPM3000,PM4000, PM5000, PM7-CL, PM 1K twin Midas Heritage 3000’s Midas Verona, think I saw an A&H GL2800. I have them all in perfect working order!!!
Oh my and cool collection
Thank you thank you thank you….we appreciate all you are doing.
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What a great presentation, Dave! Continuity is a luxury many in our business never get to experience. It was very entertaining seeing the trend line of Coachella over the decades, yes decades!! You must feel deep pride and satisfaction from the essential role you’ve played. The festival org team must be pinching themselves with the knowledge you will be there, every year, inventing and accommodating in equal parts, bringing an institutional memory to the sound design. Bravo!
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Sick New World in Vegas a month ago needed some of those wind clamps on their delays..Unfortunately as soon as wind picked up and they dropped em down the impact to the sound was pretty bad.
Yep, we don't drop and are safe to 50mph wind on our side. Other festival aspects may have differing parameters
Dave I'd love to see a series where you document some of the current big systems being set up and tuned at shows if you ever get the chance to do it.
Hmmm, I don't go to enough shows to do that. But I will cover some of the stuff I am working on
Thank you Dave! 🤘
I'm struggling with a couple of subwoofers at home, and you're making one of the biggest arenas sound.
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I'm from Australia, I made the trek over especially for the 2007 Coachella. I had been in the industry for a couple of years by then, but not long enough to critique your dual hang config with any kind of experienced ears, but memory tells me it was good. Though Willie Nelson's level was such that the slightest breeze took Willie away from us. All good memories though ✌️
👍🤙🤙and we have come a long way since then
Give thanks for these posts , constant progression and improvement .
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This was super informative, I have no idea about audio tech but now I feel like I have a better understanding and a better appreciation for the next time I go to a music festival, thanks!
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Amazing as always Thanks Dave for this little Coachella's history lesson
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You are a legend Dave, you really do inspire we coming up to do great, Hopefully see you in person someday.
Cool cool yeah I hope to meet you as well and I go to festivals maybe I'll run into you
Pretty awesome to see Dave reminisce on all the great shows he’s had over the years while explaining the evolution of the PA. I’m a young sound boy, still faking it until I make it somewhere. I hope my sound career will be a fraction as exciting as Dave’s has been
Words cannot articulate how great it feels watching your hardwork and dedication for the live music industry over the course of time.. .. 🤟
Awesome and thank you
Never been, most likely never will attend. But that's OK, this is the stuff I tend to look at anyways! Thank you Sir!
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This is amazing you never realize how much work goes into a festival like this. But the changes over the years and all the work that has been done is amazing and very inspirational.
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Dave, always good information! It’s neat to see the progression of sound reinforcement over that period of time!! Thank you my friend!
Cool and thank you
Loved this! Very nice of you to show and talk about all of this, thanks!
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Thanks Dave, this was a really cool video. I’m sure it took a lot of effort to assemble all this footage and make the narration. So nice.
Awesome thank you!
Whenever i need to think on a happy place to relax, I will replay this video in my mind, simply amazing
Love it!
Super interesting, thanks Dave!! 2023’s setup is hugely impressive
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I really enjoyed this, please continue sharing all your knowledge with us. Thanks Dave
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thank you for sharing this❤
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I’ve had the please to mix 3 (well 4 if you count the double weekend) headline shows at Coachella. Twice with Muse and once with The Cure. Always such a pleasure and always a great time getting to hang with you Dave. We also got to figure out how to mix during a full blown sand storm!!!
worked along side you before was pretty cool. thanks for this vid.
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Dave this is amazing, unique content. Thank you so much. I can't thank you enough for putting the time into making this (and.. of course.. the actual work back over the years actually _doing_ it) .. what a treat this video is.
So cool and thank you!
It's interesting to see the evolution of cell phones, too: by 2014 the audience is full of people recording the show.
Right! Great notice
This is the dopest vid I’ve seen all week and it’s Saturday.
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Thanks Masta for sharing this,so much to learn
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Thanks Dave for sharing!
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Another great video! Super interesting!!
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Thank you for this. Thank you for sharing
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Hey! Great video!
I have a small question. Why in Coachella 2023 (also at ultra main stage 2023) there are some line arrays behind each other? How is that Tequnique called? And what is it used for?
It can be a few things. Sometimes subs are behind the mains so all the energy comes from the same place. Or it can be an end-fire which increases forward energy without increasing line length while reducing rear sent energy
@@DaveRat yo thank you so much bro. Keep it up master!!!
Thank you very muc for sharing, Dave , highly educational, god bless
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What a legendary video. One of a kind.
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@15:19 As a 20 yr Coachella vet, if you ever need help filling that front of house... I got you man!
Thanks for the recap.
From the slappy delay of the early Sahara to now you really have outdone yourself my dude. Its so much cleaner(delay, bleed) and just as loud at the festival while during weekend 2 at my house my windows no longer shake. That's PROGESS!!
Cool cool Robert!!
I'm fascinated by the use of double hanging/buses/submixes. How is the acceptance of the rest of foh engineers? Have you proposed it for other editions with the current systems? And thank you for these wonderful videos.
If ya search Dave rat double hung, there is a good amount of info. Articles and on the blog I did back then. People gad a tough time understanding back then but now I think it would be less challenging.
I would use it again if I was still mixing and had a band willing to foot the costs
so you always had used Lacustics ?
why I seen some jbl vertec arrays?
yeah video walls keep expanding , what Pitch resolution do you used?
Sometimes we use JBL in the Gobi Tent
Absolutely awesome. It is incredible how technology and possibilities were grown despite the fact that physics is just one. Thank you Dave for showing those changes
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Simply Amazing! 🔊
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This was super cool to learn about. Great video!
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I never really thought about cardioid for arrays, that was shown for 2023. I would be tempted to go to Coachella 2024 just to really immerse myself in that impressive sound system. Is there still such a thing as a 'DNUOS ECNALUBMA' in todays concerts?
it has been quite a few years since we have had any significant or immediate audio coverage issues that can't be addressed with a radio call. So we no longer implement the emergency vehicle
Hey Dave, I know that the main stage and roof structure is not your domain per se, but I was wondering if you could speak to its basic construction. It looks super solid and I would imagine it’s probably one of the best design structures in North America, but some people have poo poo it as potentially unstable. These of course are armchair quarterbacks who’ve never seen it themselves. But I would imagine you have some insight as to its construction.
Ha, yeah. I don't know stages but was around for discussions of safety factors vs wind and weight. They analyzed why other restructures have failed and built that thing pretty much inevitable. It needs to be way stronger with all that video wall. The stgae strength is never the issue. Touring hanging sets that swing in the wind are a concern but every detail is heavily vetted but the team of structural engineers.
This is one of the few or only festival stages that has the PA entirely rigid clamped and we are rated above 50 mph winds.
I would say it is probably one of the safest portable stages on earth being deployed
@@DaveRatthat's very interesting. I'm sure ever since the collapse at the Indiana Fair, everyone, including the insurance companies, have taken structural safety a little more seriously.
Perhaps, My take on it is that these large established promoters have taken stage strikes seriously always and there's a few outliers that cut corners or make mistakes and that's where we see these stage collapses.
I've sat in production meetings where stage collapses get analyzed. And comments like "of course when you put all that weight on a six post with the video screen the wind will take it out"
Look, there's no diagonal bracing there there and there.
I was also doing a gig once where we loaded up lighting on the stage and hurt up large crack sound and it was one of the trust sections breaking. They tried to reschedule the shove we ended up canceling. Loading into the show it looked kind of sketchy.
Making the call to cancel the show based on a feeling of sketchiness is a tough situation no one wants to cancel the gig and I can see scenarios where people go through with it even though they know it's a risk.
Doing higher quality gigs we're concerns are vetted mechanical engineers hired and problems addressed, minimize those scenarios.
I'm a local engineer up in the high desert. I've gotten to work with Hutch a couple of times, he's a great engineer and I've learned a lot from him and modeled my small PA after the one he uses for smaller gigs. I would love to do some mixing on these insane systems!
Super cool and send my love to Hutch!
@@DaveRat Will do the next time I see him!
I had a front spot for Gozillaz's at Coachella '23. Amazing experience. I hope you blow us away for the Power Trip festival.
Since power trip is more of a show and not really a festival and most of the bands use clear brothers it's highly unlikely that we will be doing it
Dude, so sick, the Shxt people come up with and the ability and willingness to throw it out there on YT, beautiful times 🖤😎🙌 #strongworkyo
Awesome
Seeing the festival and the tech requirements grow over the past years is so awesome. But i wonder: Do you rent parts of the PA and amps? Or did you buy all of that ?
We own most of it but do subhire in boxes, amps and consoles.
We try and own 70% of our peak demand and Coachella is our peak demand. Especially when we have tours out as well at the same time
@@DaveRat Thanks man.
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What a unique story you have Dave! love these videos
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What's a rough ballpark figure of the cost of that Coachella 2023 sound system? Absolutely epic.
Maybe 6 to 8 million current value of gear but way more if it was all new. As a lot of stuff like cable and cases ans accessory bits like mics we have owned and built up over many years
@@DaveRat Amazing .It must be pretty cool knowing you have one of the nicest sound systems in the world 😂
Good gear is part of the equation, great people to work with is key
Seeing Coachella in 2012 changed my perception of outdoor sound. But now it’s hard to listen to other systems. People look at me strangely when I say Red Rocks, except for the first third of rows, is a bad sounding venue, but it’s true. Needs delay clusters in the worst way.
Red rocks is definitely a challenge.
Putting in delay clusters without screwing up sight lines would require overhead structures supported on the sides which would be pretty ugly probably not feasible given the natural look and feel of the venue
gracias por compartir
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Really cool to see the changes over the years. Thanks for sharing this! Can you some day please explain how patching works at festivals / how are multiple consoles used for the different bands? Are there different snakes and different mics? How do the outputs all get shared to the same arrays from multiple consoles?
I'm pretty sure I covered the rat sound drive racks on the member side of the channel
This might be my favorite video of yours ever haha, that's saying a lot. You're the man, Dave! This was great - I spent many years working festivals around the US and this brought back so many great memories.
Also, side question (if you happen to know): Does Mountain build these Cochella stages?
Currently Coachella owns the stage
gracias por compartir¡
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It would be awesome to learn how you design those shows 🔥
Awesome content as always!!!!
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Best video ever!
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Wait.... How does a band get their own entire desk? Are there 12 desks out there, bigger acts get to setup their own station, own desk and outboard, ready to patch in?
Yes bands can bring their own consoles and we make room. Every show day we load in and load out multiple consoles
@@DaveRat that's wild and AWESOME! Thanks!
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I'm surprised at the clamp design and use. I would have thought that something that solid would be more dangerous if a big wind came up. Thanks for all you do brother!
Swing, bang and added pendulum forces vs added strength and support
Really interesting to see the progression. The latest setup looks completely mental! What desks are you using there these days? Has it gone all Digico now or not really?
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I saw U2 some years ago in SLC and could hear the line arrays shifting in the wind. I wondered why nobody had come up with a solution as it was really distracting.
you are the man
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dave i wanted you to ask few questions?
1.Your favourite Sound System and model for Large events.
2.According to You the Loudest sound system and which needs minimum number of boxes.
3. I want you to compare between funktion one and L acoustics and d&b. There top models for large outdoor applications.
Thank you
Favorite system for outdoor events I prefer to mix on L-acoustics K1 K2
Consistency between the the sound of various products they make is extremely valuable. The quality of the prediction software and correlation between what's predicted and what happens. And the modularity to wear you can use multitude of boxes to achieve a multitude of design/coverage/volume goals
Not sure about the loudest sound system but having very few extremely loud boxes is a bummer. It limits control and blasts people near them and it's much more desirable to have a multitude of smaller boxes that work well together to form various array types for various coverages.
Comparing between those three brands, The worldwide availability and consistency plus modularity and ease of deployability of D&B and l-acoustics is it strong advantage.
I'm not aware of any large tours carrying function one though it does have popularity for EDM stages.
I personally fine that hornloaded systems are less forgiving to mix on and two dynamic for the already dynamic live bands.
Conversely for pre-recorded and compressed music, hornloaded systems help preserve what's left of the dynamics
I think for system demos playing pre recorded music, function one and Danley do well but when actually mixing having systems that are highly concentrating all the energy into smallish sources that don't array particularly well, tends to be a disadvantage for venue coverage flexibility and versatility.
@@DaveRat Thank you So much for Sharing your Wisdom with Us. We love your work. Keep it up!
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Very cool! thanks for sharing. I came into the game in 2008 and got to see some of these major changes in my come up. Was wondering if you know who the LD for coachella was in this time frame? Would be cool to hear their evolution story on this.
I do know but that is in his realm to share and not mine
Hi Dave. What a great video. Specially, because you showed the transition from analog to digital mixers. Lately, I have realized that sonicly I don’t enjoy today’s shows wether I’m in the venue or when I watch them on tv/youtube. 3 weeks ago I went to a show and I realized they had a digital console... and I went like “oh no... I now know what’s going on”. It feel’s different for me... like no much flavor... And I feel this from the shows, in general, after 2008/2009. What do you think/feel?? Do you enjoy the sound of the digital consoles more than the analog ones? Cheers
Awsome! Dave i love the pa braces and tell me what you think about pa speakers with led to intagrate with the led wall can we make that happen?
I think we will see progress at some point and it could be profitable, but deeper pockets and more patience than I have will be needed.
A bit more progress in smaller brighter LED's to minimize negative sound impacts is probably needed as well
This guy is legend
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Thanks Dave! Would love to see a video breakdown of the skrillex/four tet/fred again PA in the round!
Love it!!!
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Great Video. 😃👍♥️
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Dave. I'm a layman trying to learn about quality audio systems (High-End and/or Hi-Fi). It seems to me that you are a great expert in audio systems that are specific to large “open” concerts, that is, those concerts that take place in large open areas and that gather a lot of people in front of the stage. One question... Currently, are the systems that are used in these open concerts able to produce sound with a quality similar or equal to that of High-End residential audio systems? Or due to the physical characteristics of these large concerts (large areas that need to be covered by the audio) is it not possible to provide sound quality comparable to High-End residential systems?
Hmmm, well yes and no. From a technical aspect, yes and perhaps the sound systems we use or models made by the same manufacturer make amazing home hifi speakers that exceed the specs and capabilities of any home hi-fi stuff that you can buy in a retail store.
That said, home Hi-Fi or more specifically many audiophile enthusiasts, add a level of artistic audio voodoo to the audio listening world that oftten diverges from technically measurable and or realistic recreations.
Pro sound systems tend to be focused on recreating the signal sent to them, controlling coverage areas and reaching significant volume levels.
Audiophile speakers and systems tend to be focused on making recordings sound as enjoyable as possible while adding a visually appealing look.
Audiophiles claim to seek accuracy but if accurate reproduction of recordings as they were intended and/or created is truly desired, one would buy actual recording studio monitors that are used when the recording was made.
But in the opinion of the audiophile community, studio monitors are too accurate and can highlight audio flaws, audiophiles have similar complaints about live sound speakers as well.
Conversely, audiophile speakers are treated more like paintings or fine wine with all kinds of flowery emotional non technical descriptions and the more flowery the description and the more impossible what ever is being described is to measure and prove, the more the money it will cost.
With audiophile you pay for the story and the look and the ability to make various recordings enjoyable
All that said, check out L-Acoustics web site, they make pro pa systems that own as well as systems with setting that make amazing home Hi-Fi as well
Personally I love it all. I love beautiful audiophile gear, I love quality pa, 8 love cool Sonos and Bose Bluetooth, I love all the differing ways audio is recreated and each has its assets and issues
Dave. Thank you very much for answering my questions. So, from what I understood from your answer: yes, an audio system designed for a large open space (a concert, for example) can have audio quality as good as that of a high-end home system.
I've been to a few concerts and in some of them I noticed that the audio quality wasn't very good, but this may have happened because the equipment wasn't good and/or because the sound technicians weren't experienced. What I've noticed in my research is that audio systems for concerts are much more complex and different from what we're used to seeing in home systems. In audio systems for concerts, everything is superlative (everything is big and more complex). It's a segment that I didn't have any technical information about how it works, but thanks to UA-cam (watching several videos) I can get an initial/basic idea of how everything works.
12:52 really really curious about this... I remember the first time I saw PVD live was at Mexico, 2017... his sound was waaaaaay more fuller than the rest of DJ's of the night... At first I thought it was because of the mixer he uses (Rane MP2015) but now I'm more informed about what's he using... Just curious to know, he travels with this lunchbox to every gig or this was your idea to improve his sound?
That was just a fill-in gig for me and I didn't want to mix him on the digital console so I brought that in and went fully analog.
Not sure what the normal sound engineer
awesome, I am also curious with the rigging system, is there any video discussing it?
Not at this point
Love videos like this
Any special EQ or delays for the array behind the array on the 2023 setup?
Would there be any concern about constructive and destructive interference from reflections off the speakers in front, and from the two sources being offset?
Amazing video btw! Very impressive setup and fascinating evolution
Nothing other than time alignment to the sources to each other and surprisingly it actually sounded way clearer because the ground reflection was not as prominent because of the steep angle
Phenomenal! I'm going to have to make it out to Coachella to hear this beast
Truly massive setups that seem very well thought out. I can only imagine that advancements in DSP has made your job much easier. How hard would it be to operate the massive 2023 system using 2003 tech?
Tough. As the pa's were bigger, heavier, not as loud per size or pound and sound system rigging was crap and we did not have prediction software.
We'd end up with that horrible sounding PA like U2 has on Pop Mart tour.
I mixed rage against the machine opening for U2 on that rig and it was misery
Where are the super subs? You used them on this festival, I thought. Nice progress and innovations. Thanks for sharing
Sahara tent
I’m just curious on your thoughts on recreating the “wall of sound” with current line array technology? Give every band member a hang
Maybe do a search on Dave Rat double hung PA. I've put lots of info out over the years. Doing a little mini dead setup for Black Flag using multiple PAs, and all kinds of fun stuff
Thanks Dave! Did yall run sound at Desert Trip as well??
Also, when clicking the red box you’re selling in the UA-cam app on iOS I am getting an opps page. It doesn’t happen for your other items, just that one
No we didn't do desert trip it wasn't really a festival that was more of a four band show and most of the bands were clair brother accounts.
I was a bit surprised we got to do the big four same reasons but since it was back-to-back with Coachella it made sense for us to stay on site.
Thank you for the heads up on the sales link working on it now!
hi Dave, great video.. this is probably a novice question but i noticed in some of the graphics it shows subs located behind each other (20:15).. is this actually how you set them up ? if so, wouldn't the sound of each rear sub be obstructed by the box in front of it ? or is there some benefit to this layout ?
I have a bunch of videos on subwoofer arrays and all the how and why to do those setups.
So cool!
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This is amazing 🎉
outstanding!
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Great vid subject...thanks! ; )
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Quite intimidating I must say.. I normally work with ‘small’ portable systems like EV ETX, but then this is like ‘the holy grale’ Very cool!
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Hey, thanks for this! I was wondering, because there is some possible misinformation out there, what is the attendee capacity for the Main Stage? I know it's s standing concert but people are saying that BLACKPINK had 125,000 people watching the performance at the 2023 Coachella Main Stage. I know that 125K is the average daily attendance at the festival so I think that was what they were using. I can't find a definite answer on the internet. Thanks!