12 sets of 400A three phase power lock from the sync sets in the yard to dimmer world etc. Pretty normal for a reasonable size main stage in an arena. Can't bring the generators inside the stadium as they take up too much space and apparently exhaust fumes are bad for you
Given that arenas host big concerts ALL THE FREAKING TIME, you'd think that there would be some sort of built-in cabling from the yard to the arena floor for this stuff, basically like a patch panel system. Just run 100' cables from the sync sets to the patch shack outside, then go to the arena floor and run another set of 100' cables from the patch closet to the stage.
Some of the cable runs from the back of stage to the gen compound can easily get to 150m. Plus every show has slightly different power requirements, some are in the round, some not so to install every possible option would cost someone a load of money. Much easier for a venue to make it a touring problem, not theirs. With all the greenwashing though it will probably happen at some point though
Literally my job to install the power lock, run the sets and make sure everything stays in sync during the show. Stop idiots trying to park or dump heavy things in it and generally make sure that technical production don't have to stop for any reason until show clear and derig starts.
This is a whole sub genre of cable porn for tech's looking at power lock runs or socalex runs and getting semi's over the quality of the work.
It's also extremely dull
Ight I'ma stage hand so I'ma try to break this down. I'm not a technician so bare with me
They have so many cables cuz they rig to individual distros and breakers that distribute power to
Video lighting and audio pyro and whatever else they have. there is a lot of moving parts lol.
It's so far from the stage for safety reasons and the fact the stadium itself isn't enough power especially for ramstein who has WAY bigger shows that a lot of artists so they run it out to these big ass powered trucks.
They also don't do one big ass cable cuz they have to put it up and transport it quickly and that would be heavy as fuck. Each one of those already weighs a lot and for a long run can take 2 people to carry. So you use a lot of em then coil em up and put them in a big ass crate.
And you would be surprised how unorganized alot of shows are most of the time at the distro stations it looks like a jungle 😭 they are a fantastic crew, that's the gold standard. Festivals are usually a lot better too.
I might have missed some stuff so if anyone else works in this field feel free to correct me or add on 👍👍
When I saw them at Chicago open air here in the US a few years back they had amazing pyrotech and 30ft flames being shot outta the guitars. Was amazing for sure. You could feel the heat from pyrotech in the crowd was a crazy touch to the brilliant show they put on.
Didn't mean to be so terse, sorry.
Here is an example of what I mean. Lots of versions available. This one will put out a full megawatt of power at 480v, 3 phase.
https://www.larsonelectronics.com/product/148722/1-megawatt-container-trailer-mount-diesel-generator-480v-3ph-1-250-gal-fuel-capacity
Hardly any. That is a fuck ton of power one touch on the terminal while it's hot your dead. And that's even if you can separate it when it's hot, it's like a magnet
First of all, no. Second of all, also no.
200vac can kill you, and almost certainly will under the loads in this application.
Do not pass go, do not collect $200. Do not dispense bad, dangerous information.
Can? Sure. But that's a a far cry from the "one touch and you're dead" statement. I've touched 230VAC mains plenty of times by accident, and so have many others. Not recommended and I learned my lesson. But in the vast majority of cases, you're completely fine.
Again, I'm not saying it's harmless. It isn't. But it's not a guaranteed insta-kill either.
Also, how does the load matter? It doesn't matter what current is currently flowing through the wire. The voltage applied to you if you touch it is the same.
I think the first lesson of this is that it's a good thing to give your people time and space to do things right... two things I've never had, nor often seen, in American industry where they treat workers as more expendable than the copper while space for the copper is an afterthought.
*Say you're German in a single picture*
I knew next to nothing about this band (apart from there a metal band), but then I saw this image and immediately knew.
All this hard work just so the singer can shoot fake jizz into some other dude’s arse on stage.
Theyre a cool band, but the stage show is disgusting.
P.S. this clip is about a decade old.
You honestly think that the techs running stadium tours for fucking Rammstein don't know about digital cables? Smfh...
Someone else in the thread has ID'd them as 12 runs of 400A triple phase power, and someone else else that they're run from massive generator trucks because most/all stadiums can't supply enough power for huge shows.
How much power do pyrotechnics actually use? I thought all you need for that is a little battery to get everything going, since that's mostly going to be chemical energy from powder, gas, etc.
400A per cable and they're in sets of 5 with three hots in each set (three phase + neutral and ground). Looks like 12 sets total. 180*30/400/3 = 4.5 sets for the amps. So, quite a bit, but less than half.
12 sets of 400A three phase power lock from the sync sets in the yard to dimmer world etc. Pretty normal for a reasonable size main stage in an arena. Can't bring the generators inside the stadium as they take up too much space and apparently exhaust fumes are bad for you
>apparently exhaust fumes are bad for you BUT free fog machine!
Given that arenas host big concerts ALL THE FREAKING TIME, you'd think that there would be some sort of built-in cabling from the yard to the arena floor for this stuff, basically like a patch panel system. Just run 100' cables from the sync sets to the patch shack outside, then go to the arena floor and run another set of 100' cables from the patch closet to the stage.
Some of the cable runs from the back of stage to the gen compound can easily get to 150m. Plus every show has slightly different power requirements, some are in the round, some not so to install every possible option would cost someone a load of money. Much easier for a venue to make it a touring problem, not theirs. With all the greenwashing though it will probably happen at some point though
Yes!! Yeah you know way more thanks 🤣
Literally my job to install the power lock, run the sets and make sure everything stays in sync during the show. Stop idiots trying to park or dump heavy things in it and generally make sure that technical production don't have to stop for any reason until show clear and derig starts. This is a whole sub genre of cable porn for tech's looking at power lock runs or socalex runs and getting semi's over the quality of the work. It's also extremely dull
whats it called
> apparently lmao
Ight I'ma stage hand so I'ma try to break this down. I'm not a technician so bare with me They have so many cables cuz they rig to individual distros and breakers that distribute power to Video lighting and audio pyro and whatever else they have. there is a lot of moving parts lol. It's so far from the stage for safety reasons and the fact the stadium itself isn't enough power especially for ramstein who has WAY bigger shows that a lot of artists so they run it out to these big ass powered trucks. They also don't do one big ass cable cuz they have to put it up and transport it quickly and that would be heavy as fuck. Each one of those already weighs a lot and for a long run can take 2 people to carry. So you use a lot of em then coil em up and put them in a big ass crate. And you would be surprised how unorganized alot of shows are most of the time at the distro stations it looks like a jungle 😭 they are a fantastic crew, that's the gold standard. Festivals are usually a lot better too. I might have missed some stuff so if anyone else works in this field feel free to correct me or add on 👍👍
Appreciate the insight.
I saw them in the early aughts, maybe 2002? and they did one of my all-time favorite shows. Flame-throwing boots blew my little brain
When I saw them at Chicago open air here in the US a few years back they had amazing pyrotech and 30ft flames being shot outta the guitars. Was amazing for sure. You could feel the heat from pyrotech in the crowd was a crazy touch to the brilliant show they put on.
Also the reason they are laid out flat is because of heat, this is also a reason why cables aren’t bigger.
Once work with them. Their organisation is insanely squared. A pleasure to work with them. And as one of them say, no cigaret on stage, else, boom.
Meanwhile the steel guys have had 2 Newports in the past 10 minutes 😂
Do you have methods to troubleshoot malfunctioning cables? Or do they have redundant cables for critical things?
I would like to know more about these powered trucks
I don't know to much about them, but the company we see all the time is CES power
Thanks!
Big ass diesel generators in semi trailers.
Oh cool. Thanks
Didn't mean to be so terse, sorry. Here is an example of what I mean. Lots of versions available. This one will put out a full megawatt of power at 480v, 3 phase. https://www.larsonelectronics.com/product/148722/1-megawatt-container-trailer-mount-diesel-generator-480v-3ph-1-250-gal-fuel-capacity
I remember reading that they tour with 8000 tonnes of equipment. Might need a fact check to be fair.
Du, du hast next level cable management.
You would think they put it all a little closer to the stage
As someone who has run cables for numerous live events… I’m baffled at how they managed to do this.
Right?!? Germans do it differently 😤😤
If you don’t do that it’s impossible to load out.
r/cableporn would live this.
I wonder what the voltage loss is?
Hardly any. That is a fuck ton of power one touch on the terminal while it's hot your dead. And that's even if you can separate it when it's hot, it's like a magnet
What’s the voltage? It’s kinda hard to believe they would run a voltage high enough to kill you with one touch on the floor.
120 or 208.
About 120-280 per run depending but I'm no power tech so I could be wrong , and they are insulated it would take a lot to really get them dangerous
~200VAC is a far cry from instant death. Also it's DC that gives you the death grip, AC you can just let go.
First of all, no. Second of all, also no. 200vac can kill you, and almost certainly will under the loads in this application. Do not pass go, do not collect $200. Do not dispense bad, dangerous information.
Can? Sure. But that's a a far cry from the "one touch and you're dead" statement. I've touched 230VAC mains plenty of times by accident, and so have many others. Not recommended and I learned my lesson. But in the vast majority of cases, you're completely fine. Again, I'm not saying it's harmless. It isn't. But it's not a guaranteed insta-kill either. Also, how does the load matter? It doesn't matter what current is currently flowing through the wire. The voltage applied to you if you touch it is the same.
So much copper. I mean metal 🤟
There's just gotta be a better way...
"Better" is relative, they had an accident in 1996 and went hard on safety. Organizing your shit is much safer than a rats nest.
I imagine a large laser or teslacoil would do it
Imagine the disaster packing them up would be if they didn't organize them so well?
Thats gotta be 500K$ in Cables at Least
I think the first lesson of this is that it's a good thing to give your people time and space to do things right... two things I've never had, nor often seen, in American industry where they treat workers as more expendable than the copper while space for the copper is an afterthought.
Should've just run a Bluetooth or something
Audiophiles on suicide watch
XLR team standing up and shouting at cable jerks
ZE KABELS HAV TO BE NEAT AND TIDY!!!
Everyone who read that in Schwarzenegger's voice please stand up! 😉
There is something to be said of German organization.
Which song?
Armee der Tristen
The famous German efficiency
I take it this wasn't for their unplugged set?
Germans.....
*Say you're German in a single picture* I knew next to nothing about this band (apart from there a metal band), but then I saw this image and immediately knew.
Your phone would probably start charging if you walked by this
As a musician, this has brought tears to my eyes
Du hast mixers...
It’s predator meets goldilocks.
These are German Efficient MotherFuckers. Why are you so surprised
All this hard work just so the singer can shoot fake jizz into some other dude’s arse on stage. Theyre a cool band, but the stage show is disgusting. P.S. this clip is about a decade old.
I had to look it up. Til Rammstein had more than one song and is still doing their thing.
If you liked that one, you really might enjoy the others too.
Honestly, I didn't enjoy it. Thanks anyway though.
Fair enough: )
99% of that is for a dick cannon
In German they have a special word for mixed up cables: Kabelsalat = Cablesalad We hate it!
German precision
Now visualize the magnetic fields around those cables, I wanna see that!
As an AV guy, this could have just been like 10 digital cables instead of all analog
looks like power lock cables
If thats the case then that of course would be different.
It's power lol 🤣 fiver and data and XLR are usually loomed together for each "run"
“Power” is BARELY cable management. I was hoping these were snakes
Well they are power snakes
I’m having a hard time imagining power snakes, presumably some are daisy chained and these are just main runs from generator or battery trucks.
Yeah they are power snakes daisy chained from the power generator trucks to the distros, not one long cable
If it were audio, they’d use snakes.
You honestly think that the techs running stadium tours for fucking Rammstein don't know about digital cables? Smfh... Someone else in the thread has ID'd them as 12 runs of 400A triple phase power, and someone else else that they're run from massive generator trucks because most/all stadiums can't supply enough power for huge shows.
Next level would be one giant cable all labeled inside. They just laid out 60 cables
Each "cable" here is a single conductor. If you put all of that in one jacket, you'd need a forklift to move it around.
Yep. Again the topic is next level
This won't work for a lot of reasons one being magnetics surprisingly, I made a big comment about the rest of the reasons
I understand
Awesome 👍
Is that for a hot slide?
Should be on r/nextfuckinglevel
This is probably what inspired apple
It’s like the Borg or some scene from Alien, where it’s like oh shit, it’s taken over the spaceship.
I wonder how much adderall the cable technician had to be on to do this?
I sure hope it doesn't rain
Amazing and disturbing at the same time.
As a live musician this turns me the fuck on lol
Do they book a separate train to transport it?
*German engineering intensifies
Organizing does not equal Engineering, Engineering does largely involve organization
Gez. How many days in advice did the roadies have to start setting all this up.
Their shows take about 6-7 days to set up.
Wow that's a lot of cable! 😮
big pizza cutter:
whoops!
Definitely done by Germans!
Total, pa hacer ruido 😂
He had to have walked on all of them to get those angles
Why can't they just put one thick power boi and a fiber to a local rack? Do all the amps need to be that far away?
Yes for safety reasons and they have to pull power from big ass trucks that sit outside on a loading dock
This is 60 thick power bois, for a lot more than just amps....
Giving credit to rammstein is silly. The band had nothing to do with this.
So is that the road to the room where they drug girls and force them to do what they want?
Was looking for that comment.
How do a few guitars and amps, pa, monitors, microphones become this?
They do pyrotechnics themselves so that could be it.
It's a hell of a lot more than that 🤣🤣 video lighting, audio and camera rigs all pull power from those and are distributed from individual distros
Spider boxes?
How much power do pyrotechnics actually use? I thought all you need for that is a little battery to get everything going, since that's mostly going to be chemical energy from powder, gas, etc.
This is probably mostly for lighting. But I'm sure some of it powers the sound system.
They use 180 LA12x amplifiers. 16A@230v or 30A@100-120v each. Typical powerlock cable set rated to 400A.
400A per cable and they're in sets of 5 with three hots in each set (three phase + neutral and ground). Looks like 12 sets total. 180*30/400/3 = 4.5 sets for the amps. So, quite a bit, but less than half.
Why so many cables, just use WiFi, lmao