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Sound policy & protocols
GENERAL SOUND POLICY
The placement of sound camps at Fort Royale is carefully chosen, taking into consideration the topography and the enjoyment of other participants in order to maintain a pleasant experience for the camps, their surrounding campers, other nearby theme camps, and most notably the Fort Royale Farm’s neighbors on either side of the venue. Nightly sound limits are an effort to minimize sound complaints and maintain the sustainability of the event and community relationships. Please do your part to burn responsibly and attempt to aim your speakers in a westerly/north westerly direction up the mountain. This will enable us to rage better, longer.
Maximum volume all day at 100 ft. distance from source is 90 dB until midnight. At midnight, all sound camps are expected to be emanating no more than 70 dB at 100ft. Try to aim your speakers in a north, northwest or west orientation up the mountain and away from Rt. 220. This volume rule will be tightly monitored and enforced by our sound team and, if necessary, the landowner. If you are not a registered sound camp, you must turn your amplified sound off at midnight to audible on very low within your camp only. No blaring boomboxes at 5 a.m. please. If you want to do that, please register as a sound camp.
Who does the Sound Policy pertain to? Sound policies are for ANY participant, art installation, or theme camp employing an amplified sound system (1 to 10000W) or loud musical instruments. Theme camps are encouraged to include information regarding any sound equipment they plan on supporting alongside their theme camp registration.
DO NOT LEAVE AMPLIFIED SOUND UNATTENDED. In order to maintain a pleasant atmosphere for ALL participants and our surrounding community, the Sound Team reserves the right to turn down or mute any unattended sound installation that violates the published sound policy. Repeat violations of unattended sound may result in sound disablement (and a long chat with event organizers!)
BURN NIGHT SOUND PROTOCOL
Sound camps are asked to turn down the volume at 7pm on Burn Night in order for everyone to hear the signal that it’s time to burn the Effigy.
SOUND REGULATION ON-SITE
Our friendly sound team will monitor sound systems, using an app-based decibel meter. We recommend you use a decibel meter app to be sure your sound installation complies with the event’s sound policies, and particularly when switching between DJs remember that a previous set of tracks may have been recorded at a different sound range than the new DJ, and thus the TCOs (or their appointed volunteers) should be mindful to take new readings periodically.
Remember that the sound team is composed of helpful volunteers, tasked with keeping our event sustainable, and we ask that you please work with them. Violations will be logged against your sound permit, and repeated violations or non-compliance with turn down requests made by the team will be grounds for sound shut-off for that camp for the duration of the event. Repeated failures to comply with sound policy will be grounds for removal from the event entirely
GENERATORS
Generators are permitted at Summerisle, but we ask that participants follow some guidelines for their use. First, all generators must have a sound baffle to keep their noise at a minimum (and we encourage everyone to bring the smallest generator to suit their needs, to keep the noise down to begin with). Never bury the generator to muffle its sound.
Second, be mindful of the direction of your exhaust, and carefully illuminate or cover any cords to avoid tripping hazards in the dark. Lastly, generators in quiet camping should not be left on overnight.