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Following on from the release of their latest album, the LA-based pop rock outfit began their current tour in the US with Southern Californian audio rental company, Sound Image. For the European leg, Sound Image called upon UK partner SSE Audio to provide the audio equipment and rigging services, enabling a smooth transition.

AUDIO “I go way back with SSE, to my time with FM and Wet Wet Wet,” said FOH Engineer Jim Ebdon. “Their standard of packaging, equipment and line systems are brilliant and their crews are always very professional. It’s a pleasure to work with them.” The shows feature up to 12 K1 per side on the main hang, with six K2 underneath, plus side hangs of six K1 and six K2 each. There are 12 SB28 subs per side deployed in a traditional L-R configuration, with three on stage kicked

out 90º to spread the low end image. Rear hangs of 12 KARA per side ensure that seats can be sold past the 180º line, while six KARA lipfills and eight Kiva frontfills complete the system. It’s all powered by LA8 amplifiers, with system control via a Lake matrix. Two Lab.gruppen LM44 processors are located at FOH, with Dante going to LM44s and LM26s at stage left and right, connected to the LA8 amps via AES. The shows feature a 70 metre long runway and a B stage so, as SSE Project Manager Pete Russell explained: “We need to ensure that the main hangs don’t swamp the runway and B Stage. We use Soundvision, which has proved that the K2 cabinets gave us more control of the horizontal dispersion pattern.” As well as equipment, SSE provided Sound Crew Chief Perttu Korteniemi and PA Techs Pete Hughes and Mark Pantlin.

“We’ve been using the widest 110° setting

MAROON 5 ARE CURRENTLY IN THE MIDST OF A WORLD TOUR, PROMOTING CURRENT ALBUM V AND LATEST SINGLE THIS SUMMER’S GONNA HURT LIKE A MOTHERF***ER. FOUR UK ARENA SHOWS IN LATE MAY HELPED TO EASE THEIR PAIN, AS TPi FINDS OUT.

MAROON 5

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

on the K2 waveguides and have just used the array delta plate to slightly adjust the azimuth angle. The results have been excellent, giving even coverage without any feedback issues from the vocal mics,” said Korteniemi. “The only real challenge has been the need for good sightlines to the B stage, so there are no delays - we have had to make sure there are enough cabinets for the throw in the main hangs. But K1 does that really well, the transition between K1 and K2 is seamless and the sonic quality really consistent. Because the system has so much headroom we haven’t had any feedback, despite the B stage being well out in front of the PA.” “SSE’s L-Acoustics systems are great, they are tried and tested. I don’t have to do anything to them - I don’t even have to think about the daily deployment,” said Ebdon. “I mixed the UK shows on the K2s because the FOH position was a little closer than I ideally wanted it to be, but because the sound is

so consistent between the K1 and K2 it wasn’t a problem. I could just get on and mix!” Ebdon has used his trusted combination of the DiGiCo SD7 and Waves package since it was introduced, following his experience with DiGiCo’s first digital mixing console, the D5 Live. “DiGiCo consoles don’t colour the sound in any way,” he said. “I find the SD7 the easiest digital desk to operate and most musical. I do like the fact that the surface has 52 faders!” “I used to use a lot of snapshots and programming, but halfway through the last tour I realised that I wanted to mix because I like mixing. I can pretty much get my whole mix on the top fader bank, so I have a startup position using snapshots with a few mutes, but from then I’m mixing, changing EQ and doing what I’m paid to do. It’s more interesting, productive and more fun - the band play and I play the band, so I need to have some artistic sympathy and musical awareness. The console makes it

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Opposite: The tour’s audio department was supplied by Sound Image and its UK partner, SSE.Below: Maroon 5 frontman, Adam Levine.

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Below: Neg Earth provided the tour’s visual elements; Sound Crew Chief Perttu Korteniemi of SSE; The UK tour retained many of its previous suppliers; Ebdon’s DiGiCo SD7 from FOH.

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an easy task.” Ebdon principally uses the Waves plugins for subtle compression and other sweetening. “I don’t go crazy with them, they are really just a little bit of tinsel on the top,” he said. “I’m also using a Focusrite ISA 430 on Adam’s voice, because I like to have analogue processing on the lead vocal, and a Sonic Farm Creamliner across the analogue mix just to warm it up.”

As well as the band microphones - a mixture of AKG, Royer, Sennheiser and Shure - Jim has a selection of audience mics as he records every night direct from the stage racks to Avid ProTools. “It’s very simple to do. I’m sometimes asked for a number of songs, fully mixed, within a few days, so I mix down the 64 ProTools tracks on the bus with a small pair of Genelecs,”

he said. “The whole system works really well.” “The number one reason that I hold the SD7 in high regard is that it sounds the best. It’s a really musical sounding board and I don’t think anything’s better,” said Monitor Engineer Kevin Glendinning from behind the second DiGiCo console. “I’ve been with Maroon 5 on and off for a long time and there used to be masses

of wedges, side fills and subs - there was stuff everywhere. Nowadays it is a lot more streamlined - a combination of Sound Image wedges and Shure PSM1000 in-ears with JH Audio earpieces - but things have grown over the years and we’ve increased the number of inputs and outputs. We have 75 inputs now, which is a lot for monitors.”

Part of the increase is down to a comprehensive comms system, put together by Sound Image Tech Marcus Douglas. “It’s as crucial as the monitor system. The days of hand signals have gone, we have talk mics that can supersede our listen buss,” says Kevin. “It’s a very effective way to do it, but it has built the numbers up because everyone has to double up on microphones.” With a full SD-Rack, plus an SD-Mini Rack and utilising the SD7’s local inputs for talkback and other uses, the setup could get very complex. But things are kept as basic as possible. “We try to keep it simple, the sound comes in, we EQ and do some dynamic work on it, then the sound goes out. I don’t do things just for the sake of being flashy. If I have to leave for any reason, Marcus can take over. It keeps our head straight and if there’s a problem it’s usually fixable,” said Glendinning. “The DiGiCo sound is so natural, musical and pleasant. There’s no harshness to it, it’s very accurate and it just sounds right. I also like having the dual engines. It’s nice to have it in your back pocket if something happens.”

He continued: “The SD7 also has room to

“The number one reason that I hold the SD7 in high regard is that it sounds the best...” - Monitor Engineer Kevin Glendinning on DiGiCo

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Below: L-Acoustics K1 & K2 was the sound system of choice in the UK; The band performed four UK dates as part of their tour; Jim Ebdon at FOH; Lighting Director Brian Jenkins also operated the lighting design on a grandMA2 console.

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grow, if required. You don’t ever want to tell a client ‘no’, especially this band. They are all very music savvy and production oriented, which keeps me on my toes. But I think the cat’s out of the bag - they know the board can do anything! I’m lucky to be able to work with these guys and do my job.” Ebdon agreed: “It’s a great job, they’re a great band to work for, they’re fantastic guys and we are always busy.

LIGHTINGThis is Lighting Director and Programmer Brian Jenkins’ second tour with Maroon 5 and, like Ebdon, it’s a job he clearly enjoys. “I work with LeRoy Bennett on other shows, who was asked to do the production and lighting design for this tour. Roy has made a brilliant show with these guys and I’m more than pleased to be a part of the team,” he said. “It’s a fun group of professionals to be around and a lot of that credit goes to Production Manager Alan Hornall. He works as hard as anyone and chooses a lot of his team members personally. Loyalty can be a hard thing to find in this industry, but thankfully there’s still a few good guys out there!”

Lighting and video equipment for the entire tour is supplied by Upstaging, with rigging on the UK leg by Neg Earth. The rig includes 108 Clay Paky Mythos, 53 Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Wash FXs, 24 Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330s and eight Robe BMFL Spot moving heads, plus 216 Ayrton MagicBlade-R, 95 Robe Robin CycFX 8 and eight Robe Robin CycFX 4 moving LED strips.

A total of 471 Upstaging Saber 1000 1m and three Saber 500 0.5m fixed LED strips are mounted around 19 Plexiglas columns, while 14 Truss Pods fitted with 28 NavHoists are used to automate the MagicBlade-R fixtures. 15 HES FQ-100 foggers, eight Le Maitre LSG hazers and four Reel EFX DF-50 hazers also feature, some

of them filling the Plexiglas columns with fog at different points in the set. Video is provided via four Barco 40K and four 26K projectors, with media delivered by five Green Hippo Hippotizer HD V3s, two Grasshoppers and two Chipmunks. A Tait Navigator system is used for the set’s moving elements. Control for the whole system is via a pair of MA Lighting grandMA MA2 consoles.

“With the multi-user environment - both with the real rig and the MA3D software - the MA2s have allowed us to work more efficiently when we’re up against a tough timetable, but without sacrificing creativity,” said Jenkins. “Jason and I program in a similar fashion and the MA is what works best for us. We also

“SSE’s L-Acoustics systems are great, they are tried and tested...” - FOH Engineer, Jim Ebdon

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Below: Monitor Engineer, Kevin Glendinning and Sound Image Tech, Marcus Douglas.

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receive incredible support from MA and (US distributor) ACT Lighting, which I think is the lynchpin of this crazy world we work in.” “There have been a few productions that have surprised MA by pushing the console past the limits of its software, so a lot of kudos goes to the development teams for implementing these new ideas continually pushing forward useful software updates.” He continued: “Upstaging, Clay Paky and all the other manufacturers and vendors have

taken great care of us. They all take great pride in their work and set the bar high for others to follow. For example, recently we had Clay Paky technicians come and visit our setup in Milan. It’s great that, even half a world away, there’s that support and camaraderie.”

CATERINGWhen Maroon 5 flew back to the UK leg of their tour, Eat To The Beat (ETTB) were on hand to provide top-notch catering

services for the band and crew. With such a substantial tour in terms of crew numbers, there were plenty of hungry mouths to feed, and ETTB’s Chloe Whitehead led a dedicated team of caterers to serve up some mouth-watering dishes. Having catered for the band on numerous occasions, including the recent Overexposed tour in 2014, ETTB were delighted to be involved once more and look forward to the next advent in high-end tour cuisine.

TRANSPORTMcGuinness trucking supplied Maroon 5 with 18 trucks, and is also a vendor following on from the success of the last tour, further cementing long-term relationships. “They were very happy with us last time and so we got a call to come back on board again,” explained Managing Director, Frank McGuinness. “This tour has gone very well too, although we did have a slight complication when we came to do our load-in in Wembley, because a WW2 bomb

had been found on site that day! “We’ve had a couple of situations this time. There was an issue in France when we were arriving into Calais, due to problems at the border with migrants. It made the national headlines, and certainly caused us a problem, but we managed to come through various different ports and continue on with the tour smoothly. “The Maroon 5 crew are great however; they’re very professional, happy people to work with. Production Manager Alan Hornall called us after this tour to say ‘thank you’ for our service, which was helped along nicely by our Lead Driver, Anthony ‘Swish’ Curtin.” Bussing was supplied by Coach Service which began working with Maroon 5 over 15 years ago. For this tour the company supplied four crew buses and two band buses. “I’ve known their tour manager and former production manager for years,” stated Clemens Behle, Managing Director of Coach Service. ”They are a very experienced crew who are easy to work with - even when there’s last minute changes.” TPi

Photos: Perttu Korteniemi and Sarah Jameswww.maroon5.com

www.eattothebeat.comwww.sseaudiogroup.com

www.negearth.comwww.coachservice.com

www.mcguinness.eu

“Upstaging, Clay Paky and all the other manufacturers and vendors have taken great care of us...” - Brian Jenkins, LD