Meyer Sound LEO family on Justin Bieber tour

A Meyer Sound LEO Family reinforcement system from VER Tour Sound was used on Justin Bieber's 138 date world tour.

Selection of the LEO Family system was a collaborative decision on the part of production manager Chris Gratton and veteran FOH engineer Ken "Pooch" Van Druten.

"Chris had used a similar Meyer system with great results on an earlier tour with Ariana Grande, and he suggested we go with it," recalled Van Druten. "Though I had not yet toured with LEO, I had heard it with Ariana as well as Judas Priest mixed by Martin Walker, whose work I respect. I agreed, and it turned out to be the best fit for this artist on this tour. It's giving us the sound we want consistently from show to show, and it's ready to go in a tight time frame."

Van Druten's two decades of top-tier touring reflect a skilled ear for connecting artists with audiences, beginning with legendary diva Whitney Houston and continuing with acts as diverse as Eminem, System of a Down, Motley Crue and – for eight years – Linkin Park. For Justin Bieber, he says, the key is crafting a vocal sound with both impact and intimacy.

"The Meyer system really shines on the vocals, and I suspect one reason for it is that LEO and LYON are two-way boxes," he says. "With the three-way systems you have an upper crossover point right where you want to put the meat of the vocal, and sometimes that can make it difficult to make your vocal really pop. With the Meyer system you don't have that problem because the one crossover is below where you're working with vocals."

The design also accommodates creative use of console plug-ins, continues Van Druten. "People are coming to hear every subtle detail, not just in songs but in Justin's conversations with the audience. I use compression plug-ins to keep his vocal out front, and I find it's easier to get the sound I want when I don't have to compensate for a crossover in the middle of where I'm working."

Configured for 270-degree coverage of larger arenas, the Meyer Sound system comprises main front hangs of, per side, 14 LEO line array loudspeakers over four LYON line array loudspeakers. Intermediate side hangs are 16 LYON per side, with 12 LYON per side as outfill arrays. Bass impact is delivered by 24 1100-LFC low frequency control elements, evenly split between flown and ground-stacked. Eight LEOPARD line array loudspeakers are deployed singly as front fills, and loudspeaker management is entrusted to 14 Galileo Callisto processors.

According to Van Druten, the flexibility of the Callisto processors in a multi-zoned, self-powered system has proven instrumental in dealing with the tour's biggest challenge.

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