Britannia Row was the main audio provider for the event, with Turbosound's head of R&D Dominic Harter managing the set-up of the Aspect system which comprised six TA-890H mid-highs, nine TA-890L lows and four TSW-218 subs per side, all ground-stacked. QLight TQ-425 subs along with Turbosound monitor wedges were deployed as monitors for the DJs. Amplification was via eight T-25 and 12 T-45 amplifiers, with control by two XTA DP448s and an XTA D2 for any added dynamic equalisation required.
"The decision to have an outdoor arena - and to use Aspect - was quickly proven right, as it was a stunning success, with a huge crowd enjoying the superstar DJ sets on each day. I have never known such an immediate and enthusiastic response to any system from everyone involved as we had with Aspect at Radio 1's Big Weekend," says Britannia Row's Roly Oliver.
"The DJs, stage managers, promoters and organisers were all universal in their praise. Vernon Kay even described it on his Radio 1 show as "the best and loudest system ever used on Radio 1's Big Weekend". Aspect was an absolute joy to listen to, even with the Force Eight crosswinds."
Stage manager for the outdoor arena was Russell Pate, a heavyweight player in the dance music scene for many years, having managed Back to Basics, Gatecrasher and Heaven, and having been managing director of hard house label Tidy Trax. "Having been involved with large scale dance events for the last 14 years, working with the Aspect rig at Radio 1's Big Weekend was also something of a recce mission," says Russell. "I wanted to find out if what I had heard about the system was true. I wasn't let down."
On the main stage a dozen TFM-450 wedge monitors were complemented by two Flashlight TFS-780Hs and four TSW-721 subs as side-fills.
(Jim Evans)
