Nu metal rap rockers Linkin Park unleashed their third studio album Minutes to Midnight in May 2007. It sold more than 600,000 copies in the first week and went straight to the top of
the Billboard 200 Charts. However, as their current world tour reminds us, Linkin Park are also a phenomenal live act — and has XTA very much at the heart of their sensational sound.
Linkin Park’s tour began back in January 2007 and is scheduled to run until January 2009. They headline Projekt Revolution at the UK’s Milton Keynes Bowl on 29 June 2008 and are expected to take in some of this summer’s key European festivals, before jetting off to Canada and the US.
The band has been playing sell-out shows to around 15,000 fans a night, although at larger venues in Asia, for example, the crowd has swelled to a whopping 40,000.
The PA design includes a big front hang of Adamson Y18s and T21 subs, while the side hangs consist of Y10s and Spektrix. But the variation in venue size means that a massive amount of this equipment needs to be carried — 24 Adamson Y18s, 16 T21 subs, 48 Y10s, as well as 28 Spektrix boxes.
The man responsible for Linkin Park’s incredible live sound is none other than legendary FOH engineer, Ken ‘Pooch’ Van Druten. He is no stranger to full on rock, having engineered KISS for many years, and knows full well that XTA will give him just what he needs. For Linkin Park, he is using nine XTA DP448s and two DP224s to process the loudspeaker system and he is clearly a big fan of XTA. “I have used XTA crossovers and EQs for years, for many different bands,” he reveals. “It always works well.
“I have used different types of processors from all around the world. But XTA always sounds the best. The combination of XTA processors, Lab.gruppen amplifiers and Adamson transducers is my dream PA — it just sounds fantastic!”
So what does Pooch like most about XTA products? “The way they sound,” he says. “That’s all I’m interested in. The band has no idea what gear I’m using to make them sound good. They trust me completely. And if I’ve made the choice to use it, then they know they’re getting the best.”
Linkin Park’s fans also know good sound quality when they hear it. Some have even created websites dedicated to the celebrated Linkin Park sound — lplive.net is a good example.
Fans also leave comments on Pooch’s personal blog (poochblog.evilentertainment.net). For example, on 28 February 2008, Astat wrote: “I’d just like to say I appreciate all the work you do, the live recordings. You mix sound awesome and have actually gotten better with time.”
The Linkin Park Minutes To Midnight World Tour will continue to use the DP448s and DP224s until 2009. Beyond that, XTA will be the vital tool for the systems that Pooch designs for his other clients.
