Capital FM Summertime Ball at Wembley Stadium

"Thank you so much once again for another successful Summertime Ball. This show doesn’t happen without its challenges, and we genuinely appreciate the hard work and extra mile that you all go to help make it a success. As always, please extend our thanks to your teams, it’s hugely appreciated.”

- Francine Hough, Production North Ltd

The Requirement

For the 7th consecutive year, Adlib were chosen by the Production North Ltd to be the audio supplier to the popular Capital FM Summertime Ball event, which was staged at Wembley Stadium in London.

The Summertime Ball is Capital FM’s flagship live music event showcasing many of the multi-platinum selling artists that feature on Capital FM’s radio station. Over the years the iconic summertime event hosted the likes of Bruno Mars, Shawn Mendes, Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Calvin Harris and many more.

The Solution

Adlib’s System Tech, George Puttock, specified L-Acoustics K1 in order to deliver sound across the 80,000 capacity stadium. Characterised by its volume, impact and low frequency control, the L-Acoustics system was ideal to satisfy presented requirements.

To cater for the very quick turnarounds between the 23 acts, A, B and C line systems were run flip-flop style for the main stage revolve system. DiGiCo consoles were a predominant feature with an SD7 as the master console with SD10s deployed for FOH and monitors on the A+B system. Two of Adlib’s new SD12 consoles looked after FOH and monitors on the C system.

Radio systems were predominantly Sennheiser with Adlib’s very successful first outing of the new Digital 6000 wireless system.

The Result

The event was staged as a live concert with an audience of up to 80,000, but also it was being broadcasted by Capital FM around the world via Capital’s television channel, radio and the internet. Whilst it increased the reach to potential audience in enormous numbers, the live broadcast also added many more technical challenges to what already was a very demanding event.

‍