A two-day “pop-up event” in October sponsored by shoe manufacturer VANS that featured DJ concerts in an underground venue in Seoul, South Korea was supported by sound company Sonic Value, which provided LD Systems MAILA, CURV 500, MAUI P900 loudspeakers and more to deliver reinforcement in what was a challenging acoustic environment.
“The location was a real challenge,” says Ethan Yoon, head of the technical team at Sonic Value. “Stone surfaces almost everywhere, lots of pillars, a tubular shape and low ceilings. Due to the almost unhindered reflections from the hard surfaces, it was clear from the start that we couldn’t play the room at high levels, but had to rely on a clever multi-zone system to avoid blind spots or a drop in level or sound quality.”
Sonic Value used a double MAILA ground stack setup as the main PA for the DJ concerts: MAILA L with two MAILA SUB subwoofers each for the external stereo sound reinforcement, and a MAILA M with 2×2 MAILA SUBs as the internal stereo system. “Our aim was to create a natural sound image throughout the room that surrounds the audience,” explains Ethan Yoon.
For this reason, Sonic Value added surround systems to the sides and rear of the main PA. In addition to another MAILA S stereo system at the rear, a total of 10 CURV 500 array systems, each consisting of a D SAT duplex satellite and an SLA SmartLink adapter, were positioned on stands at the sides and rear. Two further identical CURV 500 units were used as front fills in front of the DJ stage to provide sound for the front rows of the audience, which were not fully covered by the MAILA main systems.
“With MAILA, we primarily covered the low-frequency range evenly for the entire location,” adds Inho Cheon, associate brand manager at Sonic Value. The CURV 500s provided support in the mid and high frequencies and, with their precise dispersion behaviour, also ensured an immersive sound image. “We had to adjust the angles of the MAILA satellites several times until we achieved the desired room coverage. The EasySplay mechanism made this easy. With a conventional loudspeaker system, we would probably not have been able to meet the tight time frame.”
Other LD Systems components for the event included a combination of MON 15 A G3 coaxial stage monitors and STINGER SUB 15 A G3 bass-reflex subwoofers to provide monitoring for the DJ stage. The VANS store entrance was flanked by three MAUI P900 column PAs by Porsche Design Studio.
In front of the DJ booth in the market area, Sonic Value placed two DAVE 18 G4X 2.1 PA systems in a DSP-supported cluster setup, each with two closely neighboring satellites on a T-stand above the 18” subwoofers. Two MAUI 11 G3 column PAs served as the monitoring system for the reception-style DJ booth, one in black, one in white, based on the checkerboard design of the most famous VANS shoes.
