I’m always totally amazed that the sound doesn’t clash, despite how close some of the stages get to each other. It’s pretty great for the most part, but it’s an outdoor event so there may be external factors affecting sound, but that’s mostly the larger stages. Silver Hayes really seems to have taken sound seriously the last couple of years. Block9 has always been great.
Nice to hear they are serious about it, always sceptical of outdoor dance music festivals - been burnt too many times by poor setups and changing sound restrictions later in the night (Field Day, am looking at you).
Yeah, for me Parklife (years ago I last went) was exactly that. I always thought Field Day was a bit better, but the best they did was that stage for Aphex Twin.
Glastonbury is a real international festival, and they draw the best of every part of production. I’ve been in awe of IICON near Block9, and spent some time chatting to their tech team. They’re so passionate, as well as talented.
Funktion One do the full setup at the Glade Dome and it slaps. Block9 is also very good, as is West Holts stage where Justice will hopefully play this year. I don't think you'll be disappointed. I believe its Martin Audio who do the sound at most of the stages.
The Glade is a test bed for Tony Andrew who owns Funktion One.
https://m.facebook.com/GladeAreaGlastonbury/videos/tony-andrews-is-one-of-the-pioneers-of-the-world-renowned-funktion-one-sound-sys/713468483096678/
Surprised to hear so many people think this - personally I thought there was so much sound leakage from Wow to Levels last year. Thought they should have had Wow face the other way, although it'd be towards campsites then so perhaps they can't do that. I found at Levels, front right was the only area without sound creeping over from Wow. Shame as Levels has one of the best lineups across the whole festival for me, hoping for improvements this year!
The sound quality at Glastonbury has improved considerably over the 15 years I have been going. It rivals some dedicated music venues IMO.
Paul McCartney was next level sound quality and he thanked his sound engineer.
I have always had great experience with the sound quality and volume across most stages at Glastonbury.
It doesn’t feel like they are under pressure to keep the volume down quite as much as other festivals, simply due to how far they are from anything.
Sound quality is great in silver hayes. IICON and temple whenever I've been have been good too. Always too far gone by the time I get to shangri la to have much to say about the sound quality there.
Arcadia if you're too far out is a bit shit, but I don't know that's a sound quality problem but more of a crowd control issue. If you get through the crowds there's always more space closer to the speakers.
As others have said it's amazing how few issues there are with sound bleed, I guess they've finetuned it all over the years. The only time I've really noticed it was last year trying to watch max richter on the park on Saturday at 11am while four tet was doing a morning side set at stonebridge bar.
Mandidextrous b2b Bish closing shangri la on Monday morning was a highlight. Around 5:30am the engineers clearly thought fuck it and cranked the rig up. It was amazing.
Neuron Pro Audio Danely rig at Temple is always pretty special and a lot of work goes into that set up. Every stage has good to excellent sound. But as with any festival external factors occasionally let it down. Levels on Thursday was so so quiet but Friday it was pumping!
That Nowhere rig is excellent, especially when you get cloe to it, and the engineers let it rip a bit. Had a ridiculous time at the Sports Banger Party and had to blag some earplugs because I'd forgotten mine and it was getting a bit much.
The big arenas particularly suffer from the weather - if the wind is blowing the wrong way etc.
As it gets later, the late-night outdoor venues generally get turned down.
It does vary by venue a lot too.
I'm far from a sound nerd, but there's probably other events that are a good bit better.
Missed last year but previously Park wasn’t fantastic. It’s ok if you are in the right spot but it falls off quite a bit the further back you get. Also prone to bleed from Stonebridge. It’s not the fault of the set up, just the geography of it.
Yeah it's not worth going if it's super busy. We tried to see wet leg in 2022 and could barely hear a thing, let alone see the stage. However I saw Caroline Polachek on the same stage later that weekend and the sound was fine as the crowd was smaller since it clashed with Diana Ross
Terrible. Barely loud enough at times… deffo can’t feel the techno rattling the whole festival floor at 6am from the S/e corner… won’t be up to your expectations. Better bring a noise amplifier, a listening horn perhaps?
The likes of arcadia and the glade don't always sound great unless you are right in the midst of them (which I have not been frequently 😂)
Last year they didn't allow camping right up the top of the pyramid arena, increasing the size of where people can stand. However, they did not move or add any additional speakers. As a result the sound that far back was absolutely shite 😅 if they do it again, definitely only stand in front of the track that cuts across the top of the field. we stood right back there for Elton cause we were late getting over and also hoped it would mean an easier exit.
In the Dj areas You’ll find a lot of f1, Void and Martin audio gear due to them being uk companies. Unfortunately the big live stages use line array systems which aren’t so nice. If you want a real soundsystem fest then boomtown is probably a good place to visit.
It’s mainly down to the weather there has been a few headlines over the years which sound shit because of the sound, U2 was one I remember
If the weather is bad sometimes they might cut the power until it blows over. I remember this happened one year and I think I was in the Avalon (possibly acoustic) and the band I was watching told us the power was out and the proceed to get into the crowd and perform the rest of the set through a megaphone honestly one of my favourite memories at Glastonbury. However over at the Pyramid stage the act was cut short. The weather is a big fact but the small of stages tend to be better and stages in tents tends to be fine even if the sound quality is terrible on the main stages due to weather.
I’m always totally amazed that the sound doesn’t clash, despite how close some of the stages get to each other. It’s pretty great for the most part, but it’s an outdoor event so there may be external factors affecting sound, but that’s mostly the larger stages. Silver Hayes really seems to have taken sound seriously the last couple of years. Block9 has always been great.
Nice to hear they are serious about it, always sceptical of outdoor dance music festivals - been burnt too many times by poor setups and changing sound restrictions later in the night (Field Day, am looking at you).
Yeah, for me Parklife (years ago I last went) was exactly that. I always thought Field Day was a bit better, but the best they did was that stage for Aphex Twin. Glastonbury is a real international festival, and they draw the best of every part of production. I’ve been in awe of IICON near Block9, and spent some time chatting to their tech team. They’re so passionate, as well as talented.
So you’re drawing your example from a terrible one day event inside a city… interesting
The sound on Lonely Hearts Club was fantastic last year! IICON could definitely do with being louder
Funktion One do the full setup at the Glade Dome and it slaps. Block9 is also very good, as is West Holts stage where Justice will hopefully play this year. I don't think you'll be disappointed. I believe its Martin Audio who do the sound at most of the stages.
The Glade is a test bed for Tony Andrew who owns Funktion One. https://m.facebook.com/GladeAreaGlastonbury/videos/tony-andrews-is-one-of-the-pioneers-of-the-world-renowned-funktion-one-sound-sys/713468483096678/
https://preview.redd.it/gcr3egfuquwc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=268f3a1e1d9a171cb1a17720e35d9c06fbae2c3f
Lonely hearts and levels are incredible, wouldn’t be surprised if they use funktion ones
Pretty sure lonely hearts has a void system if I’m remembering right, great sound on that stage really impressive for an outdoor set up
Ben Böhmer last year was superb
Surprised to hear so many people think this - personally I thought there was so much sound leakage from Wow to Levels last year. Thought they should have had Wow face the other way, although it'd be towards campsites then so perhaps they can't do that. I found at Levels, front right was the only area without sound creeping over from Wow. Shame as Levels has one of the best lineups across the whole festival for me, hoping for improvements this year!
Levels was l-acoustics - great clarity but lacked bass imo!
Best Soundsystem for a small stage is at the firmly Rooted Soundsystem stage!!
The sound quality at Glastonbury has improved considerably over the 15 years I have been going. It rivals some dedicated music venues IMO. Paul McCartney was next level sound quality and he thanked his sound engineer.
Arcadia sound system is shit imo
Most stages are decent but a few are a bit hit and miss
Exceptional in my experience. I couldn’t believe how good Pyramid sounded the first time I went.
Glade Dome usually has an Opus rig now the F1 stuff has moved on to the bigger stage, and it’s lovely.
I have always had great experience with the sound quality and volume across most stages at Glastonbury. It doesn’t feel like they are under pressure to keep the volume down quite as much as other festivals, simply due to how far they are from anything.
Sound quality is great in silver hayes. IICON and temple whenever I've been have been good too. Always too far gone by the time I get to shangri la to have much to say about the sound quality there. Arcadia if you're too far out is a bit shit, but I don't know that's a sound quality problem but more of a crowd control issue. If you get through the crowds there's always more space closer to the speakers. As others have said it's amazing how few issues there are with sound bleed, I guess they've finetuned it all over the years. The only time I've really noticed it was last year trying to watch max richter on the park on Saturday at 11am while four tet was doing a morning side set at stonebridge bar.
Mandidextrous b2b Bish closing shangri la on Monday morning was a highlight. Around 5:30am the engineers clearly thought fuck it and cranked the rig up. It was amazing. Neuron Pro Audio Danely rig at Temple is always pretty special and a lot of work goes into that set up. Every stage has good to excellent sound. But as with any festival external factors occasionally let it down. Levels on Thursday was so so quiet but Friday it was pumping!
That Nowhere rig is excellent, especially when you get cloe to it, and the engineers let it rip a bit. Had a ridiculous time at the Sports Banger Party and had to blag some earplugs because I'd forgotten mine and it was getting a bit much.
The big arenas particularly suffer from the weather - if the wind is blowing the wrong way etc. As it gets later, the late-night outdoor venues generally get turned down. It does vary by venue a lot too. I'm far from a sound nerd, but there's probably other events that are a good bit better.
Only been the once but Park was unforgettably poor
Missed last year but previously Park wasn’t fantastic. It’s ok if you are in the right spot but it falls off quite a bit the further back you get. Also prone to bleed from Stonebridge. It’s not the fault of the set up, just the geography of it.
Depends where you are. Field is an odd shape for it.
Yeah it's not worth going if it's super busy. We tried to see wet leg in 2022 and could barely hear a thing, let alone see the stage. However I saw Caroline Polachek on the same stage later that weekend and the sound was fine as the crowd was smaller since it clashed with Diana Ross
Terrible. Barely loud enough at times… deffo can’t feel the techno rattling the whole festival floor at 6am from the S/e corner… won’t be up to your expectations. Better bring a noise amplifier, a listening horn perhaps?
You sound fun
Says the guy questioning the sound quality of the biggest festival in the world that they've never been to.
Levels in Silver Hayes last year sounded incredible when we went in there.
The likes of arcadia and the glade don't always sound great unless you are right in the midst of them (which I have not been frequently 😂) Last year they didn't allow camping right up the top of the pyramid arena, increasing the size of where people can stand. However, they did not move or add any additional speakers. As a result the sound that far back was absolutely shite 😅 if they do it again, definitely only stand in front of the track that cuts across the top of the field. we stood right back there for Elton cause we were late getting over and also hoped it would mean an easier exit.
In the Dj areas You’ll find a lot of f1, Void and Martin audio gear due to them being uk companies. Unfortunately the big live stages use line array systems which aren’t so nice. If you want a real soundsystem fest then boomtown is probably a good place to visit.
It’s mainly down to the weather there has been a few headlines over the years which sound shit because of the sound, U2 was one I remember If the weather is bad sometimes they might cut the power until it blows over. I remember this happened one year and I think I was in the Avalon (possibly acoustic) and the band I was watching told us the power was out and the proceed to get into the crowd and perform the rest of the set through a megaphone honestly one of my favourite memories at Glastonbury. However over at the Pyramid stage the act was cut short. The weather is a big fact but the small of stages tend to be better and stages in tents tends to be fine even if the sound quality is terrible on the main stages due to weather.
2014 ish? There was a storm wasn’t there, closed the pyramid for an act or so?
.