The Festa do Peão de Barretos (Portuguese for “Cowboy Festival of Barretos”) is the largest rodeo in the southern hemisphere and one of Brazil’s most iconic live events. Held annually in Barretos, São Paulo, and organised by the local social club Os Independentes (“The Independents”), the festival attracts close to one million visitors every year. Alongside its world-famous rodeo competitions, the event has established itself as a major music destination, with concerts drawing up to 80,000 fans inside the Barretos Arena.
For the 2025 edition, São Paulo-based Gabisom Audio Equipment – one of the world’s largest and most respected audio hire companies – supplied the complete sound system, entirely based on Outline technology. The setup featured GTO, GTO-DF, Superfly, Mantas 28 and DBS 18-2 loudspeakers, optimised by Gabisom’s System Engineer Targe Vicente, who ensured full coverage and control across the massive open-air venue.
Vicente commented on the system design and on his experience with Outline’s GTO line: “I did all the design and optimisation of the system. The area measures 140 meters in length and 140 meters in width. In my view, Outline’s GTO line sets the benchmark among the very few large-format systems truly capable of handling productions on this scale. What stands out to me is its ability to reproduce the input signal with the precision of a studio monitor, while still delivering the power and projection required for an arena of this size. That combination of fidelity, output and rigging flexibility is what makes it such an effective choice for Barretos.”
At Front of House, mixing engineer Pedro Nery shared his experience of working on such a large-scale production with Outline. Nery was responsible for mixing the Ce Tá Doido Festival, one of the concert highlights within the Barretos programme. Reflecting on the experience, he described the defining qualities of the Outline rig: “The system’s sound pressure level and sound projection, even over huge distances, impressed me greatly. Especially the sub-bass section, which added depth to the sound in a stadium with less-than-ideal acoustics. The Barretos Arena can hold over 80,000 people during concerts, and working with the system was quite enjoyable.”
Given the scale of the event, throw distance, clarity and headroom were critical factors. Nery explained: “The system was very well distributed, with the main track and outfills projecting strongly in terms of clarity and SPL. Delay [Superfly] modules were also employed, which contributed significantly to carrying the sound all the way to the end of the arena while maintaining consistency. What impressed me most was the performance of the sub-bass section – even at 70 meters from the stage, the low end had remarkable depth and control.”
Detailing the system configuration, Nery added: “The Outline system designed by Gabisom combined GTO with GTO-DF downfills, Superfly as delays, DBS 18-2 for the sub-bass section, and Mantas 28 at the front of the stage. The whole setup served the event with a large margin of safety for mixing, without ever having to push the system. The delays and front-fills were essential in ensuring that the vocals carried clearly through the mix, while the main PA gave me all the headroom I needed. I even chose to run the subs at -12dB in the matrix, to maintain a flatter mix, and even so, the performance was truly incredible.”
From a mixing perspective, the Outline system also gave him the precision he needed to handle the festival’s unique dynamics: “A very important detail that made me comfortable mixing on the system was the fact that we had five main singers. They walked along the catwalk and also on one side of the stage, directly beneath the PA, in areas that are normally very difficult to manage. Even at considerable SPL, I had no issues with feedback – and that gave me a lot of confidence.”
Beyond the technical aspects, Nery emphasised the value of working with Gabisom: “They have supported the Barretos Rodeo Festival for many years, and collaborating with their team is always a very positive experience. They consistently bring the very best in professional audio to Brazil, ensuring that engineers have access to world-class technology not only here in Barretos but also at other major festivals. Using the Outline system through Gabisom was extremely rewarding – it impressed not only those of us mixing but also the wider audio community, judging by the number of posts and reactions from professionals who experienced it.”
Processing was managed by the Outline Newton, the company’s patented FPGA-based processing platform, while amplification was provided by Outline GTA Series units, completing a fully integrated signal chain from input to loudspeaker.
Few venues challenge a sound system like the Barretos Arena, with its vast scale, open-air acoustics and crowds of over 80,000. In 2025, São Paulo-based Gabisom deployed its extensive Outline inventory to ensure clarity and power throughout the arena. Within the very select group of systems capable of meeting such demands, many industry voices point to Outline’s GTO as the benchmark.
