Incubus tours with L-Acoustics K1 and Mixhalo
- Details
“Incubus initially toured with Clair back in 2001, and they’ve been our primary sound reinforcement partner since 2007, but this is the first tour with the band that I have been able to use L-Acoustics,” shares FOH engineer Greg Nelson, who, in addition to his work with Pearl Jam, has mixed for Incubus on and off since 1997 when they opened for 311. “I’m so comfortable with this system and was so happy that Clair and Brit Row were able to provide K1 for this tour. The consistency I was getting from shed to shed was fantastic, and from the front row all the way to the beginning of the lawn systems it was very even and sonically full.”
The 2022 Summer Tour’s loudspeaker design was built around a pair of 16-enclosure K Series mains - 12 K1 over four K2 - with eight more K2 per side flown as out-fill arrays. Left and right hangs of six KS28 subs hung in cardioid configuration were bolstered by six more end-stacked on the stage below, also in a cardioid arrangement.
Two A15 Wide per side flanked the ground subs for out-fill, while six A10 Focus spread across the stage lip delivered front-fill. The entire system was driven by LA12X amplifiers, housed in LA-RAK II touring racks, and managed via the L-Acoustics P1 AVB processor and measurement platform.
One additional component of the touring system was the use of the Mixhalo platform, which was co-founded by Incubus guitarist and songwriter, Mike Einziger. This marks the first joint deployment following the strategic partnership between L-Acoustics and Mixhalo, announced in 2021. The Mixhalo deployment was designed to complement the main audience coverage via K1 by a VIP headphone solution on stage that real-time audio content tailored to the stage experience.
“We’ve had Mixhalo out with us from the start, obviously,” says Nelson. “I send a left-right mix as well as four other mixes that highlight Ben, Mike, Kil, and José’s instruments on top of a left-right mix. The band sells a VIP package that allows fans to stand on the sides of the stage, approximately six feet from Ben and Mike, and Mixhalo allows them to hear a perfect mix of the show via headphones. We also have been using it in select venues for the lawn. I think it’s a good use of Mixhalo on the lawn because some venues’ lawn systems are pretty basic and hardly cover the large crowds that are there. Mixhalo gives people the option to listen when they want to and get a great mix.”
“As we share the same vision of elevating the listener experience, our partnership with L-Acoustics has been organic since day one,” said John Vars, CEO of Mixhalo. “Going back to our roots, we’re excited to team up with them to bring a phenomenal on-stage audio experience to Incubus fans.”
Laurent Vaissié, CEO at L-Acoustics, agrees stating, “We’re thrilled to see L-Acoustics and Mixhalo’s technologies deployed together for the first time on tour with Incubus. It is a great blueprint for future hybrid and augmented audio experiences that will continue to elevate the audience’s live experience.”
