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Terrible Sound in Lucas


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My guess is that DCI will give Indy a year - maybe two to try and fix the acoustics. If it still sucks then DCI will be able to exit the contract (according the article I posted above). The positive reviews of the experience at IU last year and the close proximity to DCI headquarters in Indy leads me to believe that if LOS doesn't work out, IU will be the new Madison.

DCI can only exit the contract if they can prove that the acoustics caused loss of revenue and that it not going to happen. The Indianapolis Convention Bureau as an army of lawyers waiting to support their claim that Lucas Oil Stadium is ok for the Drum Corps Championships. Sure changes will be made but for those hoping for a different venue anytime soon. It is not going to happen.

Do you think that Carolina Crown has issues with the acoustics when they won top brass? I don't think so. Does the fact that this year's Blue Devils members won the first championship inside a covered dome in some way diminish's the value of their rings versus the members of the previous Blue Devils championships? Not one bit. A win is a win.

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$200,000, that is..

Knowing how quickly that money can get eaten up, I wonder what they're planning to use.

Noted and changed. Thanks.

Another interesting bit on the LOS site ... I'd never heard of Lucas Oil until I started watching "Milwaukee Iron" (a sort of Southern take on "American Chopper") on TLC. It says it's a California-based company, but you wouldn't know it based on advertising out here.

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DCI can only exit the contract if they can prove that the acoustics caused loss of revenue and that it not going to happen. The Indianapolis Convention Bureau as an army of lawyers waiting to support their claim that Lucas Oil Stadium is ok for the Drum Corps Championships. Sure changes will be made but for those hoping for a different venue anytime soon. It is not going to happen.

Do you think that Carolina Crown has issues with the acoustics when they won top brass? I don't think so. Does the fact that this year's Blue Devils members won the first championship inside a covered dome in some way diminish's the value of their rings versus the members of the previous Blue Devils championships? Not one bit. A win is a win.

Re: your first paragraph ... Can you back that up with some factual info or sources?

Given the kind of bookings that they've already gotten for LOS, I don't think the loss of one event would pose a major revenue loss to the city ... They could probably fill the 4-day slot up with something else fairly quickly.

As for the second paragraph, it's not the on-field experience that's the issue (although the corps were complaining about not being able to hear the crowd, fwiw, and, as a former performer, audience feedback is worth a lot, IMO), the issue is with the audience experience. While it's great that the kids in corps have their experiences, it's the fans $$$ that pay the bills. If the sound is so off-putting that DCI has problems selling tickets, it's a viable issue.

Edited by DCIHasBeen
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I am a long time drum corp fan, marched until I aged out years ago. I have also have made my living since 1983 as an audio engineer, mostly studio recordings, but I have done my share of live sound mixing on tour as well. I have won many awards, one being a Grammy Award.

When I heard that DCI had passed the rule allowing amplification for the pit, I thought it was the beginning of the end. Then they passed the rule allowing synthesizers.....oh boy. In the shows I saw this past season, Murfreesboro and Seveirville, I can tell you that having any amplification at all is only going to make things worse, in any stadium. Whoever is "mixing" for these corps, they will never be positioned to be able to hear and mix correctly, and they aim their speakers so the "mixer" has to over compensate for not being able to hear them. I imagine that next year they will begin placing microphones on the field and other places, thus starting what will become a sound war.

Drum corps need to eliminate amplification all together. A corp should be able to "mix" themselves acoustically, through drill design and movement on the field. Adding amplification is only creating a slippery slope that will continue until everything is put through a microphone and speaker system. Drum corp, in it's initial design was not meant to be amplified. This is not evolution of the art, only a way for additional non acoustic sounds to be incorporated (voice over narration,synthesizers).

just my .02 cents

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I am a long time drum corp fan, marched until I aged out years ago. I have also have made my living since 1983 as an audio engineer, mostly studio recordings, but I have done my share of live sound mixing on tour as well. I have won many awards, one being a Grammy Award.

When I heard that DCI had passed the rule allowing amplification for the pit, I thought it was the beginning of the end. Then they passed the rule allowing synthesizers.....oh boy. In the shows I saw this past season, Murfreesboro and Seveirville, I can tell you that having any amplification at all is only going to make things worse, in any stadium. Whoever is "mixing" for these corps, they will never be positioned to be able to hear and mix correctly, and they aim their speakers so the "mixer" has to over compensate for not being able to hear them. I imagine that next year they will begin placing microphones on the field and other places, thus starting what will become a sound war.

Drum corps need to eliminate amplification all together. A corp should be able to "mix" themselves acoustically, through drill design and movement on the field. Adding amplification is only creating a slippery slope that will continue until everything is put through a microphone and speaker system. Drum corp, in it's initial design was not meant to be amplified. This is not evolution of the art, only a way for additional non acoustic sounds to be incorporated (voice over narration,synthesizers).

just my .02 cents

Spot on mate.

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$200,000, that is..

Knowing how quickly that money can get eaten up, I wonder what they're planning to use.

'

$200,000 could buy a lot of earplugs! Maybe they hand out earplugs, as we enter the stadium next year. That would get rid of the sound problems! We wouldn't be able to hear anything, so no one will complain.

But seriously, folks: I am sure they could make some adjustments. But Lucas Oil will never be Carnegie Hall. It is a football stadium with a roof over it. It was designed and built for professional football - not concerts or drum corps.

The operators of LOS will never make any changes that the Indianapolis Colts don't consent to. They will not change anything, if it means less attendance, or revenue, from NFL games. So if the changes mean less seats, or less advertising, for the Indianapolis Colts, it isn't going to happen, folks. They will never take out seats, or make other changes, if it causes less income for the Colts - bottom line.

Modern NFL stadiums are built for comfort, not for acoustics. That is the reason for the roof in the first place. That is where there are cupholders in the front of every seat. That way, they can sell $10 beers to drunken imbeciles on Sunday afternoons. NFL fans don't care if they can't hear Peyton Manning calling out the signals before the snap.

This allows the owners of the franchises to sell tickets at outrageous prices. And even at these insane prices, all the single-game tickets at LOS for the 2009 season are sold out. All the season tickets are sold out. And if you want to get on the wait-list for season tickets, you have to pay a $150 deposit.

The Indianapolis Colts are the primary tenant for this building, and they will dictate what changes are made - or not made.

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I was in Indy for championships, and I can tell you that the sound had 100% to do with where you sat. Being a current corps member I didn't actually have a designated seat, and with moving around/being kicked out of different seats I experienced many different parts of the stadium. For the end of the semifinals I sat on the 50 and 15 rows back from the front side and the sound was phenomenal, almost better than any outdoor stadium I was in all year. That being said, there were places I sat that had some of the worst acoustics I heard ever. One section was 344, on the side 1 endzone and mid way up. It was actually hard to hear alot of the corps there. Really what I found was that the closer you are to the 50 the better, even in the nosebleeds the seats on the 50 were pretty nice. Once you hit about the 35 the sound really got funky. If you have to sit on the outsides the sound is alot better toward the front. That may not be what everyone else experienced, but that's what I got.

Hope this was helpful if your looking for tickets next year.

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I was in Indy for championships, and I can tell you that the sound had 100% to do with where you sat. Being a current corps member I didn't actually have a designated seat, and with moving around/being kicked out of different seats I experienced many different parts of the stadium. For the end of the semifinals I sat on the 50 and 15 rows back from the front side and the sound was phenomenal, almost better than any outdoor stadium I was in all year. That being said, there were places I sat that had some of the worst acoustics I heard ever. One section was 344, on the side 1 endzone and mid way up. It was actually hard to hear alot of the corps there. Really what I found was that the closer you are to the 50 the better, even in the nosebleeds the seats on the 50 were pretty nice. Once you hit about the 35 the sound really got funky. If you have to sit on the outsides the sound is alot better toward the front. That may not be what everyone else experienced, but that's what I got.

Hope this was helpful if your looking for tickets next year.

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Dome stadiums in general are a sound nightmare. I won't buy audio performance downloads from a dome performance because they are so bad.

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