SHENZHEN´S SPRING COCOON

Over 9,000 attendees at Shenzhen’s Spring Cocoon

On 5 July 2025, Chinese indie rock and pop band LifeJourney made a stop in Shenzhen, China, as part of their anniversary tour, The LifeJourney Concert Tour, celebrating two decades on stage. The concert took place at the iconic Shenzhen Bay Sports Center – “Spring Cocoon” Gymnasium, where more than 9,000 attendees gathered to enjoy the band’s greatest hits.

LifeJourney is one of the most influential bands in the Asian alternative scene since their formation in the early 2000s. Their sound, which blends pop melodies with indie rock foundations, has especially resonated with young audiences and solidified their position in the country’s music landscape.

The venue, nicknamed “Spring Cocoon” due to the distinctive shape of its roof, was inaugurated in April 2011 for the Universiade, an international Olympic-style competition for university students (University + Olympiad). Since then, it has become a key location for major events, both sporting and cultural. It is primarily used for special events such as badminton tournaments, gymnastics competitions and large-scale concerts, thanks to its multifunctional design and technical versatility.

The sound system was installed by Hangzhou Dasi Stage Art Technology, a company based in Hangzhou that specialises in technical setups for live events.

A large venue in a sensitive urban setting

Hosting one of the stops of the LifeJourney Concert Tour at the Spring Cocoon Gymnasium involved several significant technical challenges. Acoustically, the venue—originally designed for sports competitions—features a metal roof structure that can generate reflections and echoes difficult to control in a musical context. In addition, being located in an urban area near residential zones and open spaces like Shenzhen Bay Park, the event required special care with sound projection beyond the venue due to potential noise restrictions.

The scale of the concert required a sound solution with high sound pressure capability and even coverage for more than 9,000 attendees, while maintaining speech and musical intelligibility. Lastly, being part of a tour, the system also had to be technically efficient and compatible with tight setup schedules in a multifunctional venue with a packed calendar of events.

Precise coverage with cardioid technology from the ARA series

Hangzhou Dasi Stage Art Technology deployed a sound system built primarily around the ARA series, supported by AERO series units for near-stage reinforcement.

The main system consisted of 18 LARA systems per side, delivering powerful, accurate and even coverage across the front-of-house area. An additional 12 SARA systems per side ensured balanced sound dispersion in the wider areas of the venue.

For low-frequency reinforcement, a hybrid approach was used: 16 SARA-SUB systems flown and 16 LARA-SUB systems stacked on the ground, providing impactful and controlled bass that adapted well to the venue’s acoustic challenges. Since both the LARA and SARA systems feature cardioid technology, it was possible to effectively reduce sound projection toward the rear of the stage and outside the venue—a key consideration in this urban environment.

Near-field coverage was handled by 12 AERO-12A systems as frontfill, ensuring clear audio in the first rows. The combination of the ARA series’ power and directional control, along with the proven reliability of the AERO series, delivered a consistent and high-performance sound experience across the entire venue—fully meeting the demands of a high-level touring production.

“The cardioid technology of the ARA systems helped us keep the sound inside the venue without it spilling into unwanted areas”

Hangzhou Dasi Stage Art Technology spoke very positively about the system’s performance during the event. One of their technicians noted that “the cardioid technology of the ARA systems helped us keep the sound inside the venue without it spilling into unwanted areas”. They also pointed out that “we were looking for a powerful and easy-to-set-up solution, and the DAS Audio system worked really well”. Finally, they added that “the system worked without issues in a challenging venue like this one. The sound was clear for the audience and didn’t cause any disturbance outside the hall”.

The collaboration between the technical team, the installation company and DAS Audio ensured that all expectations for the event were met, delivering a sound experience worthy of a commemorative tour of this scale.