I noticed a couple years back that LCD Soundsystem is promoting a soundsystem that appears to use, or be inspired by the Econowave:
You can see the similarity in the pics; seems to be the same waveguide, possibly the same woofer.
According to the news, they're going to bring the system out for this years Coachella festival:
(Note the reference to "despacio" at the bottom of the flyer - that's the name of the sound system.
You can see the similarity in the pics; seems to be the same waveguide, possibly the same woofer.
According to the news, they're going to bring the system out for this years Coachella festival:
(Note the reference to "despacio" at the bottom of the flyer - that's the name of the sound system.
I'm sorry Patrick, what is the point you are making? Is LCD Soundsystem a sound production company that sets up concerts? Or are they makers of speakers? Even if they copied an Econowave - what's the big deal? It's public domain. Also, lots of pro speakers with a rectangular WG over a round woofer.
LCD Soundsystem is arguably the king of the hipster bands, and they're headlining the second biggest music festival in the world.
They're bringing their soundsystem, named "Despacio", which may or may not have some Econowave DNA in it.
I have mixed feelings about it. Part of me appreciates that the band is trying to promote "audiophile" ideals at a concert. They're working with Jordan Acoustics and Mcintosh, a couple of well respected names in hifi. But it would also be nice if they'd give credit where credit is due - if you're going to use an Econowave for your sound system, give the designer credit.
Then again, I make my living off of intellectual property so I'm kinda sensitive about this stuff 🙂
They're bringing their soundsystem, named "Despacio", which may or may not have some Econowave DNA in it.
I have mixed feelings about it. Part of me appreciates that the band is trying to promote "audiophile" ideals at a concert. They're working with Jordan Acoustics and Mcintosh, a couple of well respected names in hifi. But it would also be nice if they'd give credit where credit is due - if you're going to use an Econowave for your sound system, give the designer credit.
Then again, I make my living off of intellectual property so I'm kinda sensitive about this stuff 🙂
A couple more data points that seem to indicate "Despacio" was influenced by Econowave:
Here's a pic of their monitors, seems to be an econowave with an added sub
Here's one of their strange looking PA boxes, I can't ID the woofers but that's definitely a Parts Express QSC waveguide.
Here's a pic of their monitors, seems to be an econowave with an added sub
Here's one of their strange looking PA boxes, I can't ID the woofers but that's definitely a Parts Express QSC waveguide.
Ok shows how out of touch I am with Hipster bands. 🙂
Coachella is worlds second biggest music festival in the world? There are a lot of big ones in Europe too.
Anyhow, what does LCDSS do with a hifi monitor at a concert for what 150,000 people ?
Isn't it in the end the seige tactics of huge crane mounted arrays etc that power the crowd?
I was in Southern Cal in '83 at the "Us" Festival. Headlined by The Clash. It was loud 1 mile back. Not kidding.
Coachella is worlds second biggest music festival in the world? There are a lot of big ones in Europe too.
Anyhow, what does LCDSS do with a hifi monitor at a concert for what 150,000 people ?
Isn't it in the end the seige tactics of huge crane mounted arrays etc that power the crowd?
I was in Southern Cal in '83 at the "Us" Festival. Headlined by The Clash. It was loud 1 mile back. Not kidding.
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If I'm not mistaken, Electric Daisy Carnival is the biggest concert in the world. Held in Las Vegas, there's about 140,000 people per day. I've been to it about four or five times since 1995. EDC Las Vegas Reports Attendance, Arrests & More For First Night | Your EDM
(On a side note, this is why I was always encouraging Danley to get his gear into the EDM shows, they're all about that bass and people come for the experience, not necessarily for who's on stage.)
Coachella is the second largest music festival in the world, with an attendance of just under 100K : Coachella Earns Over $84 Million, Breaks Attendance Records | Billboard
I'm not entirely sure what the deal is with Despacio? I can't imagine that they intend to use it for the mainstage, it's too small for a crowd like that. Then again, maybe they intend to scale it up?
I lived about fifteen minutes from the US Festival, wish I'd gone. I was way too young. The lineup was ridiculous, and Steve Wozniak lost millions and millions on that.
Yes the lineup was pretty much top billing. I thought Woz only had to pay for construction of amphitheater, I hear it's the largest outdoor Amphitheatre in the world. 670k attended over 3 days I think.
Looks like those are just monitors, their concert rig is sort of a cobbled hybrid looking thing:
McIntosh | DESPACIO: POWERED BY McINTOSH
McIntosh | DESPACIO: POWERED BY McINTOSH
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Funny you mention this Patrick because just last week I had been making my way through the massive 'Geddes on waveguides thread' And I had a good time reading what you had to say about the EDM scene. So much money there. It is a big HiFi experience.
yeah it's a 3 way booth Monitor using a JBL waveguide.
Zilch may or may not have any influence whatsoever.
(there's another thread or two at DIYA saying the same stuff.)
I love both LCD Sound System and Zilch's efforts, but come on
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I definitely notice a correlation between the quality of the audio-video experience and how much the crowd likes the show. I'm not saying that the band is irrelevant, but it's definitely less relevant than it was 30 years ago. I went to lots and lots of raves in the 90s, and I think the reason that the biggest concert in the United States is an Insomniac production is because Insomniac always focused on the spectacle of everything, whereas the competing promoters were more focused on the music. Insomniac brought out the huge sound systems, the fireworks, the lasers, the video screens, the dancers, they set up a carnival(!) The found got married at Disneyland and I think he's trying to create a Disneyland for music fans.
The 18"s could be Beyma 18LX60.
it looks as if their monitors are a scaled-down version of their main PA.
Regards
Charles
That's a cool photo. What act is that playing in the owl's nest. Can't call them a "band" anymore - they look more like dj's or producers on a console.
If you were there when Gang of Four opened the "Us" Festival with "Love will get you (like a case of anthrax)" you will understand part of the reason for my noise induced hearing loss, we provided sound for them on the rest of that USA tour.
Dave Rat's company was doing sound for Coachella for many, many years, using an L'acoustics (K2?) line array system for the last several.
The little personal stage monitors in the OP (provided?) by Despacio have little to do with their mains, which are simply a showcase for outdated Macintosh amplifiers. They are an overblown version of Clair's S4 design (which was already old hat at the "Us" Festival in '83).
Everything old is trotted out as new again.
Those blue light amps remind me of how painful it was to lug just one Mac 2300 up a stairs back in '73...
Art
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Art, were you at Us '83? I believe that concert probably inflicted most of the hearing loss I have today. What kind of gear was used to generate those kinds of SPL's? Did they even have LA's back then or was it the stack a tower of power of speakers methodology? I wasn't into speakers back then so did not look as carefully.
Yes, blue VU meters for $8k a pop. It's a lot of heavy outdated stuff. Not sure what that gets anybody.
Yes, blue VU meters for $8k a pop. It's a lot of heavy outdated stuff. Not sure what that gets anybody.
Ooops, senior moment, we were driving out from Minneapolis to meet up with Gang Of Four who opened for the 1982 Us Fest with our PA that made the Clair S4s used there seem rather tame by comparison. I did work with almost all the bands you saw at the 1983 Us Fest, though none were as loud as Gand of Four.
Clair Brothers had a lot of S4s stacked up at both the 82 and 83 fests, kind of like multiple line arrays side by side, which is a mess in the near field, but get far enough back and it is semi coherent.
From the description of the Despacio PA, it would be rather pathetic by comparison to either Us Fest PA, or Rat's Vdosc K2 system, or even Dave Rat's Rat Trap system from the 1980s.
Time, and bad designs, march on...
Art
Clair Brothers had a lot of S4s stacked up at both the 82 and 83 fests, kind of like multiple line arrays side by side, which is a mess in the near field, but get far enough back and it is semi coherent.
From the description of the Despacio PA, it would be rather pathetic by comparison to either Us Fest PA, or Rat's Vdosc K2 system, or even Dave Rat's Rat Trap system from the 1980s.
Time, and bad designs, march on...
Art
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Agreed! 4.5 tons of amplification is nothing more than big swinging d!€k syndrome! If I worked for that PA company, I'd quit asap.
Half the time the audience doesn't even know.
I paid good money to see Passion Pit this year, and I was *convinced* that it wasn't them. I had to look up the pics on Facebook to convince myself that they'd showed up. When the artists only responsibility is to hit "play" on his Macbook, it really minimizes their need to show up at all.
Back in the 90s the band "Future Sound of London" did a show over Skype basically.
Agreed, I think LCD Soundsystem discovered "audiophile" amps and DIY and got a little carried away. Maybe in five or ten years they'll discover what the pros use.
I heard a L'Acoustic system at the Nine Inch Nails show in 2015 and it's the first time I've ever heard a real soundstage in a live venue. It was eerie. It was like a good home system, but with a stage that was 200' wide.
Have you guys ever heard F1 equipped shows? I have heard it's one of the best sounding fidelity wise - all horns.
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