The task of providing intelligible audio for the historic event was handled by Phoenix-based Clearwing Productions, using two SB-2 sound beams. Clearwing's general Manager David Temby explains that the SB-2 worked well with the house PA and achieved adequate coverage without obstructing the sightlines of attendees or multiple network cameras. "Without the SB-2s, it would simply not have been possible to reach the upper corners of the seating areas," he says. "Any other solution would have called for additional delay stacks, adding significant expense and creating issues with both line-of-sight and time delays."
With the help of Clearwing and the SB-2, ASU hosted a capacity crowd of more than 70,000 who witnessed President Obama's commencement address under triple-digit temperatures. "Using additional delay stacks would have made it necessary to remove a lot more seats," says Harry Hale, ASU's technical director. "The SB-2s blended seamlessly with the main PA, and enabled us to provide excellent intelligibility to the entire stadium."
Only days after the president's speech, first lady Michelle Obama delivered the commencement address to the very first graduating class of the University of California's newest campus in Merced. Bay Area sound company Pro Media/UltraSound provided audio for the 12,000 attendees, outfitting the field area known to students as 'The Bowl' with three towers of 12 Milo line array loudspeakers and one tower of 16 Milo loudspeakers.
(Jim Evans)
