Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Kaaboo sound system should keep Del Martians quiet

"We created a ginormous version of a noise-canceling system."

Weezer at the Del Mar Fairgrounds September 15
Weezer at the Del Mar Fairgrounds September 15

“I can’t hear them,” said Del Mar Circle K worker Robert at about 7:30 p.m. on Friday, September 15. “There is a lot of traffic, though.”

The opening night of the three-day Kaaboo music festival at the Del Mar Fairgrounds featured the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer, Kesha, and DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal), among others.

Robert, an employee at the store for five years, said, “I’ve never heard them from here [about a mile away]. Do you think they can turn it up louder?”

Many of the neighbors likely wouldn’t make that same request. Last year, the Union-Tribune reported that in 2015, “Del Mar officials said the city received dozens of voice mails and emails complaining about noise over the [Kaaboo] event. Organizers said they set up a complaint hotline, which received 91 calls.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

On the Reddit website, one neighbor complained that the music could clearly be heard from two miles away.

“I can hear the music when I stand outside [of the restaurant],” said Madeline, an employee at the Denny’s on the corner 2203 Via de la Valle, “but it’s not that loud or clear.” She works about half a mile away from the stages. During her interview on Friday night, DJ David Guetta was performing.

“We hired an audio engineer, audio scientists, and the speaker companies,” said Bryan Gordon, CEO and creator of the festival. “And basically created this technology consortium of those three disciplines to engineer a system that is a noise-canceling system.”

Gordon compared the technology to that of noise-canceling headphones, “where you have sound waves that cancel each other out in terms of the bass [but] we created a ginormous version of a noise-canceling system, which has never been done, to the best of my knowledge before, in an event of this scale.”

During the Kaaboo press conference on September 14, Gordon didn’t say specifically how much he’s invested in the equipment and technology. “That’s a six-figure undertaking every year [and] so we used it last year. It was a scientific theory last year and it worked really well.”

Jim Dorrh, the fest’s technical director, is in charge of the lighting, video, staging, and audio systems. “These [sound system] boxes are made for large audiences and have the ability to control the spread of the [sound],” he said. “With audio, the more boxes you have, the more finesse you have with it.”

He said they have sound meters throughout the area and have been “keeping it within the city noise ordinance [around 97 decibels] [and] keeping the audio on the property.”

The French-made L’Acoustics speakers that Kaaboo uses (many are hung in multiples from the scaffolds supporting the stage) have “Panflex adjustable horizontal directivity [and] focuses sound coverage on the audience only, handily addressing the most challenging acoustic environments or noise pollution issues for outdoor events,” according to their website.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

OSHA rules wall falls our fault

Who, U.S.?
Next Article

2024 continues to impress with yellowfin much closer to San Diego than they should be

New rockfish regulations coming this week as opener approaches
Weezer at the Del Mar Fairgrounds September 15
Weezer at the Del Mar Fairgrounds September 15

“I can’t hear them,” said Del Mar Circle K worker Robert at about 7:30 p.m. on Friday, September 15. “There is a lot of traffic, though.”

The opening night of the three-day Kaaboo music festival at the Del Mar Fairgrounds featured the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer, Kesha, and DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal), among others.

Robert, an employee at the store for five years, said, “I’ve never heard them from here [about a mile away]. Do you think they can turn it up louder?”

Many of the neighbors likely wouldn’t make that same request. Last year, the Union-Tribune reported that in 2015, “Del Mar officials said the city received dozens of voice mails and emails complaining about noise over the [Kaaboo] event. Organizers said they set up a complaint hotline, which received 91 calls.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

On the Reddit website, one neighbor complained that the music could clearly be heard from two miles away.

“I can hear the music when I stand outside [of the restaurant],” said Madeline, an employee at the Denny’s on the corner 2203 Via de la Valle, “but it’s not that loud or clear.” She works about half a mile away from the stages. During her interview on Friday night, DJ David Guetta was performing.

“We hired an audio engineer, audio scientists, and the speaker companies,” said Bryan Gordon, CEO and creator of the festival. “And basically created this technology consortium of those three disciplines to engineer a system that is a noise-canceling system.”

Gordon compared the technology to that of noise-canceling headphones, “where you have sound waves that cancel each other out in terms of the bass [but] we created a ginormous version of a noise-canceling system, which has never been done, to the best of my knowledge before, in an event of this scale.”

During the Kaaboo press conference on September 14, Gordon didn’t say specifically how much he’s invested in the equipment and technology. “That’s a six-figure undertaking every year [and] so we used it last year. It was a scientific theory last year and it worked really well.”

Jim Dorrh, the fest’s technical director, is in charge of the lighting, video, staging, and audio systems. “These [sound system] boxes are made for large audiences and have the ability to control the spread of the [sound],” he said. “With audio, the more boxes you have, the more finesse you have with it.”

He said they have sound meters throughout the area and have been “keeping it within the city noise ordinance [around 97 decibels] [and] keeping the audio on the property.”

The French-made L’Acoustics speakers that Kaaboo uses (many are hung in multiples from the scaffolds supporting the stage) have “Panflex adjustable horizontal directivity [and] focuses sound coverage on the audience only, handily addressing the most challenging acoustic environments or noise pollution issues for outdoor events,” according to their website.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Best Kratom Capsules: Top Brands, Benefits & Where To Buy

Next Article

OSHA rules wall falls our fault

Who, U.S.?
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.