Beyond Stereo: L-ISA Transforms the CAN Festival and Reshapes Live Sound Beyond Stereo: L-ISA Transforms the CAN Festival and Reshapes Live Sound...

The recent 2025 instrumental post-rock music CAN Festival, set against the dramatic backdrop of Daqing Mountain and the East China Sea, was a definitive statement on the evolution of live sound. We’re proud to have teamed up with the innovative CAN Festival again, utilizing our L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology to create a truly groundbreaking sonic experience.

The sentiment from returning fans was immediate and palpable. This wasn’t merely an upgrade; it was a fundamental shift in how music is delivered and perceived in a festival setting.

Our own David Cooper, Sales Director for APAC, L-Acoustics, articulated this shift: “At CAN Festival, we once again introduced and upgraded the L-ISA immersive and hyperrealistic sound reinforcement system… It was a breathtaking experience… Compared with other festivals I have attended, this is a completely different experience, and it is a very special and unforgettable moment for me.” He lauded the foresight of the CAN Festival team and the exceptional quality delivered by the mixing engineers using L-ISA.

This vision for a “completely different experience” was shared by the festival’s organizers. Mr. Huang Yadong, a key figure behind the festival, aptly described the transition to L-ISA: “The idea behind L-ISA is simple: once you’ve experienced color TV, you’ll almost never want to think about black and white TV again.” Festival visionary Mr. Can elaborated, “L-ISA is like the transition of movies from 2D to 3D. Once you have experienced a live performance with a multi-dimensional sound field, it is inevitable that you will feel that the sound of 2.0 or 2.1 lacks impact.”

Engineering the Immersive Soundscape for Live Sound

Achieving this new dimension of sound required both sophisticated technology and expert execution. The L-ISA system at the 2025 CAN Festival was substantial:

• 60 K2 enclosures provided the primary frontal system power and coverage.
• 116 Kara II cabinets were deployed for surrounds, overheads, and fills, creating the essential spatialization.
• 32 KS28 subwoofers delivered the foundational low-frequency impact.

L-ISA System Designer Li Feng, from our valued partner Rightway Audio Consultants Ltd. (RAC), highlighted the meticulous planning involved: “Only after completing the system design can we predict the effect of the immersive performance and ensure that the unique charm of L-ISA is presented to the audience.”

The unique coastal and mountainous Daqing Mountain venue, while visually stunning, presented considerable acoustic and environmental challenges. “This venue posed a considerable challenge because we are located by the sea, and the impact of sea breeze and waves is very obvious,” Li Feng noted. “Especially during the rehearsal a few days ago, the wind reached level seven or eight.”

Despite these conditions, Li Feng pointed out an advantage of outdoor settings: “It is actually easier to achieve the sound effects we imagined in an outdoor environment because we can effectively avoid the reflection problems caused by indoor walls.” Crucially, he added, “We also used the Room Engine tool in the L-ISA system to create the different reverberation effects required by the band according to their needs.”

Immersive Sound System Engineer Ms. Zhou Fengxin, also from RAC, detailed further challenges: “Strong winds pose a challenge to the structural safety of the speakers… The sudden attack of wind may cause the sound to drift away.” PA Engineer from Hangzhou D&S Stage Art Engineering, Zhu Junlin, confirmed the wind’s impact on perception, stating, “The biggest challenge this time was the strong wind outdoors during the system debugging, which caused our perception of the high frequencies to shift a little.”

The team’s expertise was paramount. “When the wind was a little lighter, we immediately took measures to debug again,” Zhou Fengxin explained. “And during the performance, we were also constantly adjusting: the heat waves during the day and the chill at night, as well as the drastic fluctuations in humidity, all required the sound system to constantly adapt. Although the system’s automatic compensation function can cope with some changes, the judgment of the human ear is still indispensable.”

L-ISA: Empowering the Artist and Engineer

The ultimate goal of L-ISA technology is to serve the art. Wang Tiequn of Hangzhou Das Stage Design, the immersive sound producer for the event, eloquently stated, “I have always been convinced that all technologies are for the service of art, and art is closely related to emotions… Our technology should be able to touch people’s emotions more deeply and guide them into deep inner experiences.”

For the resident sound engineer, Zhu Junlin, her second year with L-ISA at CAN Festival marked a significant evolution in her workflow and creative output. “Last year’s 2024 CAN Festival was my first time using the L-ISA immersive sound system… I encountered a lot of difficulties,” she admitted. “However, this year, Brother Feng invited me to RAC’s Beijing office to learn in-depth about L-ISA’s mixing technology. After this study, I became more proficient in L-ISA, and the effects I wanted to show in the 2025 CAN Festival were easier to achieve.”

Zhu Junlin’s perspective as a “sound transmitter” highlights how L-ISA empowers engineers: “The band is the voice, and what we tuners do is to convey the band’s work to the audience in a better, more detailed, and more complete way.” L-ISA provides the nuanced control and spatial capabilities to achieve this with unparalleled precision and artistry.

A New Standard for Live Sound

The 2025 Can Festival illustrates L-ISA technology’s capacity to redefine live audio. The meticulous system design, the skilled adaptation to challenging environmental conditions, and the empowered creativity of the engineering team all converged to deliver an experience that resonated deeply with artists and audiences alike. More than just a successful event, the CAN Festival stands as a powerful case study for the future of live audio. It demonstrates that immersive sound is not a fleeting trend but a fundamental progression in how we experience music and performance. By pushing the boundaries of traditional sound reinforcement, L-ISA, as showcased at the CAN Festival, is setting new benchmarks for what’s possible, paving the way for more engaging, emotionally resonant, and unforgettable live events worldwide.

As Mr. Can stated, the festival aims to set “our firm attitude towards the production standards of future music festivals.” The enthusiastic reception and the deeply immersive quality achieved confirm that L-ISA is not just an alternative but a progression, offering a richer, more engaging, and emotionally resonant connection to live music.

We extend our sincere gratitude to the entire CAN Festival organization, Rightway Audio Consultants Ltd., Hangzhou D&S Stage Art Engineering, and all the talented engineers and technicians who made this extraordinary event possible. The journey into the future of sound continues, and we are excited to see where these collaborations will take us next.