Last September, Bangkok’s Together Festival returned after a two-edition hiatus to deliver a programme filled with the EDM A-listers. Staged over two days in a 3,267-square-metre exhibition hall at the Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC), the festival showcased various EDM styles. With a dynamic range of sub-genres from big room house, and hardstyle, to euphoric, vocal-led tracks, an equally dynamic PA was needed to support the various musical content.
Festival organisers looked to Bangkok-based L-Acoustics rental partner, One Systems Global Production, to supply a full-range PA that would fit the musical styles and fill the exhibition hall with powerful, clear sound. A production partner since the first-ever edition of Together Festival in 2016, the technical and system engineering team at One System had a good grasp of the festival’s programme and they specified a system based on L-Acoustics K series to achieve the festival’s goals.
Anusorn Peetiwattanaphan, systems and front-of-house engineer for the event, has worked on renowned EDM festivals such as the S20 Songkran Music Festival, Waterzonic and 808 Festival over the past decade. Knowing that an L-Acoustics system is always a first choice for world-class EDM artists, Peetiwattanaphan set to work designing his K series-based system using Soundvision 3D modelling software.
Peetiwattanaphan explained: “Soundvision improves my efficiency as it allows me to plot all elements according to the space, no matter the shape and size. On the hardware side of things, installation and cabling is accomplished swiftly with detailed reports for my deployment team.”
Peetiwattanaphan also needed to manage a vast exhibition hall made of concrete: “My team and I minimised reflections using K Series’ Panflex variable directivity. With careful planning in Soundvision, I was able to focus sound to the audience, avoiding the reflective walls.”
The main system included 10 L-Acoustics K1 with six K2 down per side. Front-fill consisted of six stacks of two Kara II boxes each while out-fill was accomplished using 10 K2 per side. Thirty-six SB28 subwoofers produced low-end rumble. DJs were served with six L-Acoustics Kara II for monitoring and the entire system was driven by 48 LA8 amplified controllers, running through an L-Acoustics P1 processor.
Peetiwattanaphan concluded: “The system I designed yielded the results I was expecting. The L-Acoustics range of premium hardware allowed for smooth operation with minimal fuss, despite the acoustic challenges. It was wonderful to be back to creating exciting sound for festival-goers in Thailand.”