Breaking News! Do you know how much "cutting-edge technology" goes into a large-scale performance?
The Oriental Billboard, hosted by Shanghai Media Group, is a Chinese-language music award founded in 1993. As the leading chart for original music on the Chinese mainland, it stands as China's earliest pop music ceremony, a cradle for the growth of original Chinese pop musicians, and a witness to the entire developmental journey of the Chinese music industry.
This year's 29th Grace Land Oriental Billboard Music Ceremony is a special edition, not only moving the venue to Haikou but also relocating the stage from indoor to outdoor. Professional teams designed and built the event in terms of lighting, stage art, and audio systems. Inspired by elements like "seaside," "open-air," and "night sky," the stage is designed around the astronomical term "tidal locking." The main stage and four large screens complement each other, with flowing lines that make the audience feel immersed in a galaxy, accompanied by dazzling lights that create a dreamlike atmosphere.
The ceremony scene gathered top singers, and the audio system was configured to high standards, using many world-class devices to bring a long-awaited audio-visual feast to the live audience. How to ensure the sound quality of the performance? How to enhance the sound effects? How to simplify the workflow? I believe these are all issues of great concern to everyone. Today, let's take a look at how much "cutting-edge technology" was actually used behind such a large-scale performance.
~For the sound reinforcement, the French pioneer of line arrays, the L-Acoustics K2 system, was used. It not only delivers clear and powerful sound energy but also accurately covers the required listening area. The mixing consoles employed are the highly stable and powerful DiGiCo. The combination of L-Acoustics and DiGiCo, with their exceptional capabilities, is frequently used in many world-class large-scale concerts.
In addition to the "golden duo" of L-Acoustics and DiGiCo, numerous performance神器 (performance magic tools) were used to enhance sound quality. Among them is the Rupert Neve 5045 Source Enhancer, which many audio professionals call a "sound magic box." When live singers speak or sing through microphones, the 5045 senses and automatically allows signals to pass through; conversely, when singers stop vocalizing, it automatically senses and appropriately reduces gain, thereby minimizing the tendency for system feedback. Importantly, the 5045 achieves this without the need for filters or digital processing. Rupert Neve Designs' custom input and output transformers and all-analog circuitry provide excellent control and sound performance without compromising the integrity of the sound source.
Bricasti M7 Stereo Reverb Processor
The ceremony also utilized the Bricasti M7 stereo reverb processor, designed for professional audio engineers. It combines cutting-edge digital technology, DSP, advanced A/D conversion, and classic analog design. In practical use, the Bricasti M7 offers users multiple effect types and over 200 unique reverb presets, enabling quick access to high-quality sound presets. Users can then fine-tune these presets to easily achieve various desired effects.
We all know that in such a large-scale live performance, the number of microphones required is extremely high, the signal distribution between each mixing console is complex, and when multiple devices are connected in series to pass through signals, the system may suffer from crosstalk issues. These common on-site problems can affect work efficiency and even the performance effect.
To avoid these issues, the ceremony site used American Whirlwind concert-grade audio distribution systems, including two 56-channel and one 48-channel units. The Whirlwind audio distribution system is highly stable, featuring stable circuits and electronic components, durable connectors and cables, impact-resistant casings, and secure solder joints, among other advantages.
In the past, users often struggled with messy and numerous cables when using audio splitters, spending a lot of time organizing them. When issues arose, they were even left scrambling not knowing where to start. The Whirlwind audio splitter system's Patchmaster 60 output signal integrated cables are directly connected to umbrella tails of different colors, with the cables distinguished by color. The multi-core cable quick-disassembly system has reduced a lot of on-site work. Since each channel has a separate ground switch, it also plays a crucial role in maintenance and repair.
In addition, impedance matching issues and balance/unbalance problems more or less exist in live performances. For example, the high-impedance signals output by instruments like electric guitars and basses used by live bands cannot be directly compatible with mixing consoles. In such cases, single/dual-channel DI boxes (click to review) are used for signal matching. Between instruments and stage amplifiers, ISO8 isolators (click to review) can well meet the need for long-distance connection of multiple devices and provide noise reduction and isolation for interconnected equipment on the circuit. As unbalanced signal outputs easily introduce noise into the system, the ISO 8 not only provides isolation but also converts unbalanced signals to balanced signal outputs, eliminating noise at the source.
UNIVERSAL-TRUSS Stand Series Products
Wait, did you think that was all?
How could it be!? In addition to these audio devices, many products from the UNIVERSAL-TRUSS brand were also used, including microphone stands (（点击回顾）), flight cases (（点击回顾）), and more. Each product has distinct features—thoughtful detailed designs, practical functions, and high-spec materials—all reflecting meticulous craftsmanship
The 29th Oriental Billboard Music Ceremony has successfully concluded. Behind every wonderful performance, both the singers who dedicatedly performed on stage and the teachers in various backstage roles deserve respect. Similarly, every element, from large stage equipment to even a single wire, plays a crucial role in the performance and should be taken seriously. Therefore, using high-quality products with strong stability, safety, and ease of use can truly make the performance effects and work efficiency achieve twice the result with half the effort
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Finally, special thanks to AKUS Company for its strong support~
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