Crown Wins World Cup!

By the time you read this, the May 31st Opening Ceremony of the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Seoul, Korea will have already taken place and a month of non-stop football (or 'soccer' to us Americans) in Korea and Japan will have millions of fans around the globe cheering on their respective teams.

For the Opening Ceremony, all eyes were on the 64,640-capacity Sangam Stadium, also known as Seoul's World Cup Stadium. Following months of planning, Korean rental sound companies Daishin Sound and Kukae Sound, in tandem with our distributor Daiyoung Corporation, teamed up to provide 64 JBL VT4889 line array speaker systems, each powered by its own Crown MA-5002VZ amplifier. In an effort to deliver the best possible sound reinforcement to the attendees, along with the added demands of portability and fast removal, four VerTecs(tm) and four Macro-Techs were mounted on a total of 16 portable sound system carts, which could be wheeled into position around the field perimeter, then quickly removed for the first match pitting Senegal against France, the current world champion.

Additional temporary systems providing field coverage were positioned in Sangam's four corners. Each of these systems was comprised of four JBL SR subs and mid-hi boxes respectively powered by three Crown MA-5002VZs and two MA-3600VZs. Furthermore, monitor speakers in the stage area were powered by 11 MA-36x12s equipped with IQ-PIP-AMCb cards to provide crossovers for bi-amping.

"Crown amplifiers were specified for the World Cup for three primary reasons: great sound, power, and reliability," notes Jerry Stutzman, Crown's director of sales for the Pacific Rim. "That third reason was particularly important to all parties involved when considering the magnitude and global significance of this event."

Crown's participation in the World Cup, however, was not simply limited to the Opening Ceremony. Sangam Stadium also benefits from a permanently installed Macro-Tech system that will be used throughout the month of games and well beyond. The fixed system is comprised of 56 MA-3600VZs, nine MA-2402s, and five CT-1610s, all equipped with IQ-PIP-MEM cards. IQ-INT 2 Interface and IQ-RPT 2 Repeater products are also present.

Furthermore, all nine of the other new Korean stadia built specifically for the World Cup games will additionally boast Crown products. For example, Suwon Stadium, 44 kilometers south of Seoul, features five IQ-USM 810s mixer/processors and 40 various Macro-Tech models, each employing an IQ-PIP-USP2. Ulsan Munsu Stadium, on the southeastern coast of the Korean Peninsula, utilizes eight USM 810s in conjunction with 41 Com-Techs and 36 Macro-Techs. Half a dozen of the remaining Korean venues also use large quantities of USM 810s in their permanent systems, so, regardless of what national team triumphs in the final match, Crown ends up a winner at the World Cup!