Britain's Top of the Pops (TOTP) has been a BBC institution since 1964, broadcast weekly until 2006 and occasionally as one-off specials in the years since. The latest such TOTP special, broadcast on BBC2 in spring 2009, featured performances from Franz Ferdinand, Flo-Rida, Oasis, Take That, Tom Jones, James Morrison and more, live from BBC's Studio 4, as part of this year's Comic Relief charity fundraising special. Aside from the significance marked by convergence of these great artists, a TOTP revival and the world-renowned Comic Relief organization, this program was notable for being the U.K. television debut of the JFL210 Line Array from EAW, a world leader in audio system technology. The JFL210s were supplied and installed by John Henry's Ltd. (JHL), a leading multi-media sound reinforcement provider for the entertainment industry in the U.K. and Europe.
"Rigging the JFL210 hangs was a breeze," commented JHL staff engineer Simon Panos, who looked after the audience sound for the show. "The studio hoists have a maximum capacity of 112 kg, so each hang of four including a flybar came in at a total of 109 kg, which made everyone happy. Additionally, once the four hangs were in the air, the sound was pin sharp and needed very little additional tuning. The FB121 flybar gave us the flexibility to rake the hang just how we needed it. The system was very versatile and had amazing coverage in spite of the cluttered ceiling space it inhabited."
Panos' fellow engineers Robin Tombs and Aden Gregory were equally enthusiastic about the system's hi-fi sound and ease of use, pronouncing it perfect for the job at hand.