Finals Seats

[regimentlvr]

I am looking into finals tickets. Are the seats in the 600 level good seats? I am shocked they are still available on the 50 yard line. Are they too high maybe? Any insights would be appreciated. Thanks.

[oldbandguy]

As with many things I think it's a matter of personal preferences. Over the years I've sat in every level. I found the 600 level to be very high for me for both visual and sound. I found the best place to be for sound (the most important thing to me) is between the 40s near the top of level 1 and all of level 2, but that's not ideal for viewing the drill.

[drumcorpsfever]

I have sat in each of the major areas of LOS. One year, I made it a point to sit in numerous sections (including the very top row at the 50). Although you give up the field view, the sound is always best lower between the 40's - especially inside the dome. Each year while at Indy, I renew my seats for the following year through the 3 ticket package. It's always a burden paying for the next year but it's worth it in the long run. Most of the lower centers are gone by now. If I were you, I'd probably go with the 200's and get as close to the 50 as possible. Rather than buy online, I would contact Ticketmaster direct and have them assist you in picking the seats that you want. Unfornately for Indy, Ticketmaster does not allow you to self-select.

Edited December 28, 2015 by drumcorpsfever

[drumcorpsfever]

One other suggestion is to take in prelims. You may luck out and be able to sit in seats that you wouldn't ordinarily be able to get for finals. I have noticed that the past couple of years, attendance has increased. As a result, many of the premium seats are in use for each of the pre-finals shows. However, there's usually some seating flexibility for both days.

[Hrothgar15]

Unfortunately the acoustics in the indoor Lucas Oil Stadium are so ill-suited for drum corps that you won't really be able to hear anything that is "drum corps loud" anywhere higher than the 200-level sections (140, 240), even 200 is pushing it. I'm serious.

[xandandl]

Most years I am seated in section 600 level for the drill viewing.

It tends to have the usual residents year after year, although the seating masters do tend to alternate what rows for each year. One does not want to sit in the first or section row of this section due to the protective glass which not only blocks some of the sound but distorts the viewing when seated. Choose from the third row up to about the 12th for best views from this section. Concession stands tend to be less crowded, bath rooms more ample and less congested, but be prepared to do your Olympic mile time if you are trying to meet with others from lower levels during the breaks. Sure, if you are a zillionaire Friend of DCI, the 400 and 500 levels may give a better experience, but 600 is fine for the dollar and is why so many return season after season.

Edited December 28, 2015 by xandandl

[Ghost]

Most years I am seated in section 600 level for the drill viewing.

This year was my first time at Indy. On Thursday, the 600 section was almost empty and liked the view. By Saturday night, it was crowded.

For those who go each year, did the large finals crowd this year make the sound any more enjoyable?

[garfield]

This year was my first time at Indy. On Thursday, the 600 section was almost empty and liked the view. By Saturday night, it was crowded.

For those who go each year, did the large finals crowd this year make the sound any more enjoyable?

Only when there was lots of applause!

We sit in the Friends 240 section and I didn't notice any difference in sound "absorption" by the increase body of fans. But it was quite exciting to hear that many people cheering and applauding.

[Jeff Ream]

i don't do heights well, so the 600's are out for me. if I do go back, i'll paywhatever to get in the 200's

[N.E. Brigand]

I've only attended Finals once, in 2012. Had seats in the 600 section and pretty far to the left. For BD's encore, I moved to the 50-yard line, still in the 600 seating.

Either way, the sound was not good: the shows sound much better on the video. If the judges had been sitting where I was, every corps ought to have seen their music scores at championships drop many points from their performances earlier in the season.

(I've mentioned this before, but there was one advantage to hearing BD 2012 where I did. You may recall that show incorporated a lot of prerecorded English, French, and German poetry. Lots of fans complained about that during the season. It was so clear on video during the year that I was able to make a transcription. But from where I was sitting at Finals, it was barely audible. I asked the friend who joined me for Finals, who was seeing most of the shows for the first time, what he thought about the poetry. He said, "What poetry?" He hadn't noticed it at all.)

In 2013, when posters here who had seen Crown's show live from the lower sections saw video of Crown's performance taken from the 600s, they were shocked by how different the sound was.

That said, if you go in with reduced expectations for the audio quality from those seats, you may not be disappointed.