Myanmar’s Thingyan Festival looks to Electro-Voice
Published: ASIA
MYANMAR: Thingyan Festival – aka the water festival – recently called upon installer Pink Khine Zin to provide ‘loud, clear and consistent’ sound reinforcement for an outdoor live band setup. The resulting system was the first to utilise Bosch’s Omneo media networking technology.
This year, Kabar Aye Pagoda Road in Yangon was lined with performance stages and platforms where the organisers could splash water on passing vehicles and people as part of the cleansing ritual to welcome the new year. Prior to the celebrations, the installers had to determine the site dimensions and requirements. The information was then keyed into E-V’s Line Array Prediction Software (LAPS) to determine the number of speakers needed for optimal sound at the event.
The Omneo-based XLC127DVX and Xsub subwoofers with TG5/7 amplification and RCM-28 DSPs were deployed to meet this demand. The festival stage was erected to be 3.4m above the ground and this meant the speakers needed to be tilted severely downwards to ensure sound was projected efficiently towards the audience. The subwoofers were also ‘strategically positioned’ to direct bass at the ground.
Aside from challenges catering for the stage configuration, the most demanding aspect of the event from an equipment point-of-view was the large quantity of water thrown around by the enthusiastic crowd. Not being water-resistant, it was imperative to keep the speakers away from accidental sprays while not impeding sound quality. Temperatures throughout the four-day festival also reached 40-degrees Celsius, placing particular strain on the amplifiers.
Operating flawlessly throughout all four days, the system reportedly impressed both the crowd and band alike.