UK – Frenzied mosh pits, colorful bangers, gritty riffs, and gut-splitting bass spreads… all that and way, way more were everywhere you turned at Donington Park during the revamped Download festival. So too was ChamSys!
From the jam-packed District X, to the star studded Avalanche and Dogtooth stages, talented LDs were keeping pace with the festivals’ ferocious outpouring of music by running power-packed shows on their ChamSys consoles.
ZigZag Lighting kept FOHs throughout the festival grounds humming by furnishing ChamSys desks, in addition to providing the lighting kit for all stages except Apex and Opus. (PRG supplied kit for the Apex Stage and Siyan for the Opus Stage.)
This year, Download continued to hold its title as the “largest rock festival in the UK,” drawing over 100,000 fans. Those fans were treated to a wider array of pulsating music as the festival featured a healthy representation of younger artists, as well as more geographically diverse performers.
LDs relied on the versatility and intuitive layout of their ChamSys consoles to enhance the reenergized festival’s multifarious performances, which ranged from the nostalgic, to reality bending phantasmic shows. Whether it was a house rig, a touring production, or something on the late-night District X stage, MagicQ delivered the flexibility and reliability needed to keep the keep party times going all weekend long!
Relentlessly running shows on house rigs were the MagicQ MQ500M Stadium Console on the Avalanche Stage 3 and Dogtooth Stage 4, as well as the District X Doghouse. Also moving with the music at District X were the MagicQ MQ250M Stadium Console on The Den, and the MagicQ MQ70 on the Ace of Spades, as well as MagicQ MQ60s on the Hellfire and The Outpost.
ChamSys was also well-represented on touring rigs at the festival. The USA’s Pete Therrien worked his MQ80 and an Extra Wing for Social Distortion on the Opus Stage to rev up energy for the legendary act’s sing-along hits like “Story Of My Life.” Wiktor Kozak and his Mini Connect flawlessly covered the attacking tracks of Polish deathcore band Decapitated on the Dogtooth stage. Then there was Stefan Gunkel crushing it on his Stadium Connect for Cypress Hill, Adam McNally deftly working his Stadium Connect for RØRY, as she made her hugely anticipated Download Festival debut on the Apex Stage, and Richard Wolfgang working wonders on his MaxiWing for The Pretty Wreckless at their Sunday Apex show.
The entire ChamSys team express gratitude to ZigZag Lighting, especially Neil Hunt, Tom Rawlinson, Luke Maxwell, Isaac, and the entire crew, for helping make ChamSys such a visible part of Download. They appreciated the excellent work by the teams at PRG and Siyan.
Teamwork all around, plus performances of all kinds, great music, rides, excellent food choices… Download 2026 had everything needed for a memorable festival, including reliable and versatile ChamSys product on every stage!
