Wall of Sound Paraphernalia Unveiled

‘The Grateful Dead’, is a rock band that is known for its contribution in the cult psychedelic movement. You can now buy the band’s memorabilia collected from concerts to inner circles online. Sotheby’s has launched an auction to celebrate an exhaustive list of the band's antique and quirky souvenirs. This includes crew member equipment, outfits worn on stage and band related posters. It's a great opportunity for the Deadheads to buy collectibles like actual sound equipment that were used during production.
One of the band's legendary projects was the largest sound system they ever built, the grand 75 ton ‘Wall of Sound’. To create a distortion free, clean sound during the band’s live performances, their audio engineer wanted to create a one of a kind sound system of colossal hifidelity.

604 speakers mounted on each other were used in total to achieve this, by using a set of speakers for every instrument along with its own channel. The bass had a quadraphonic encoder that sent signals from each of the four strings to a separate set of speakers.

586 JBL speakers and 54 Electro-Voice tweeters powered by 55 McIntosh MC-2300 amps of 600 watts each were implemented. This use of amplifiers was traditionally used in audiophile home stereos only, which made it quite interesting.

The sound the whole extravagant setup created was unbelievably clear and far superior than any other technology people used then. Every Wall of Sound concert was like a once in a lifetime experience for fans and the band.

The band let go of The Wall of Sound in 1974 because of obvious reasons. The experiment however avant-garde cost the band tons of money and had technical challenges. The entire system required an entire day to set up between show venues. Separate crews were used to dismantle it and start building the new setup at the next venue simultaneously. Although it was the greatest live sound experience ever during its time of glory, the band retired their dream project after a prosperous 7 months.
The auction sale gives you the opportunity to own the few remnants from these Wall of Sound days of the band. From amplifiers that powered the guitars to Klipsch speakers, so much is up for grabs. Just like the concert this sale is a rare opportunity for audiophiles, sonic enthusiasts and fans.