In mid-December, Metallica celebrated its 40th anniversary with four days of events dubbed the “San Francisco Takeover,” culminating in two concerts for fan club members only at the city’s Chase Center arena, and as with nearly all Metallica shows in recent years, the band employed Meyer Sound loudspeakers and supporting components to deliver sound reinforcement in an in-the-round configuration.
“We have never worked with a vendor or manufacturer where we’ve had the kind of close, collaborative relationship we have with Meyer Sound,” says Dan Braun, Metallica’s creative director and production designer. “They are not simply equipment providers, but really partners in what we do. It starts with John and Helen and extends down through everybody we work with in the company.”
Meyer Sound director of system optimization Bob McCarthy was principally responsible for ensuring that the sound for the anniversary concerts — in a system employing 286 loudspeakers — would maintain the band’s standard despite the size and weight of a very large oval loop video screen. The design comprised 10 main arrays interspersed with the video screens, with long throw arrays of mixed LEO and LYON loudspeakers and short throw with LYON only.
In addition, six inner down fill arrays employed LEOPARD line arrays except for two long-throw with three LYON each. Deep bass reproduction was supplied by 40 1100-LFC low-frequency control elements, with visceral sub-bass (13–30 Hz) propelled by 48 VLFC very low frequency control elements. The system was deployed by Bay Area rental company UltraSound.
Meyer Sound has worked with the band to create technology that provide more power with uniform coverage. Metallica’s 2008–10 “World Magnetic Tour” introduced the TM Array, a proprietary central subwoofer cluster for in-the-round arena shows designed to ensure even coverage with minimal cancellation. For the “WorldWired Tour,” the company worked with the band on creation of VLFC, a sub-sonic loudspeaker designed to be able to reproduce the chest-slamming sensation of explosions to accompany visual effects, but with no danger to band or audience. Metallica was the first, and so far, only, act to use VLFC in large-scale concert applications.
In between, at the request of Dan Braun and the band’s monitor engineers Robert Cowan and Adam Correia, Meyer Sound developed the MJF-210 stage monitor, designed to deliver very high undistorted output in a lower profile cabinet. The MJF-210 made its debut with Metallica in 2013, about the same time the band staged its landmark first concerts in China with Meyer Sound support.
When Braun created the visual effects for the “WorldWired Tour,” he called on McCarthy to design a system that would maintain undiminished power and clarity despite the limitations on weight and hang points imposed by the size, weight, and proliferation of the visual technology.
Metallica inaugurated the Chase Center along with the San Francisco Symphony for the celebrated S&M2 concerts where McCarthy was confronted with the challenge of providing in-the-round arena reinforcement of a rock band surrounded by a full orchestra.
“Bob’s design for S&M2 was absolutely brilliant,” says Braun, “and he did it again for these anniversary concerts. Meyer Sound fully understands the importance of integrating the design of the sound system into the design of the full production. Metallica is doing things never before attempted with lighting and visuals, but never compromising the audio quality. That level of manufacturer cooperation is rare in our business. It’s been a great journey, and we look forward to doing more of the impossible together in the future.”
Formed in 1981 by founding members James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich, Metallica has sold more than 120 million albums worldwide. The band has received nine GRAMMY Awards, two American Music Awards, and multiple MTV Video Music Awards, and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.
