Audio Feed Delivers Eight Stages of Funktion-One Sound at Gottwood Festival

Audio Feed supplied eight stages of Funktion-One sound for the latest edition of Gottwood Festival. Described as a mystical party hidden in the woods, the four-day event brings together a programme of house, techno, minimal and disco with a close-knit crowd and a charming location. Set in the grounds of Carreglwyd, a privately owned estate on Anglesey, it is beautiful, remote and a place where sound is fundamental to the experience.

For the Bournemouth-based audio specialist, led by Oz Jefferies, Gottwood has become a long-running and technically demanding project. Audio Feed first supplied the festival’s Funktion-One systems in 2019 and has returned every year since, developing a close working relationship with the organising team.

“It’s been a journey for sure,” said Jefferies. “They’re a fantastic client and we’ve built a great relationship with them. There are only a handful of festivals that put the correct amount of emphasis on sound and Gottwood is definitely one of them.”

Audio Feed supplied Funktion-One systems for Tree House, The Barn, Boxford, Walled Garden, Ricky’s Disco, Wellness, Lighthouse and The Curve. The deployment included Evolution X, Evolution 2, F-Series, Bass Reflex and infrabass systems, with each stage designed to deliver a deeply engaging dancefloor experience while controlling offsite noise.

Between them, the eight Funktion-One stages demonstrated the depth of Audio Feed’s inventory and the versatility required to deliver a multi-stage festival under strict noise restrictions. The 2026 event introduced an expanded operating format, with a 24-hour licence allowing music to run for an extended period across the weekend. The festival opened on Thursday evening, then again from 11am on Friday until 3am on Monday morning. Digby Neill, Co-Founder of Gottwood, said: “We went into this year’s festival with full confidence in the team around us – especially Oz and Audio Feed. They understand the site, they understand the restrictions, and they know how to get the best out of the Funktion-One systems.”

A historical noise complaint and the proximity of nearby residences mean there’s added pressure to getting the sound right. “After 11pm, we need to measure no higher than 45dB at the closest residences which are around 600 metres away while ensuring the level is good in the audience areas. That has meant a lot of work with the local authorities and Audio Feed over the years, experimenting with stage positions, orientations and speaker setups.”

The scale of the operation was considerable. According to Jefferies, the festival required around 92 pieces of DJ equipment, alongside loudspeaker systems, control, amplification and crew to keep multiple stages running around the clock. Audio Feed had just 36 hours to install the systems before running them continuously across the weekend.

“It’s a challenging environment,” said Jefferies. “You’re installing all of the stages in a day and a half, running around the clock for three days then packing it all down afterwards. It’s important to have a supportive, collaborative relationship with everyone involved and we have that at Gottwood. There’s a great working relationship and that’s definitely something we love about it.”

Audio Feed’s response to the strict noise restrictions has been to use four-point Funktion-One systems wherever appropriate, creating contained sound fields that reduce the distance between audiences and loudspeakers, lowering the overall level required. “We’ve been quite successful with four-points over the years,” explained Jefferies. “They work and people love them from an immersive point of view; the surround-sound effect.”

Neill agreed: “The four-point configurations work really well for us. They allow us to focus the energy where the crowd is and control offsite noise much more effectively.”

For Jefferies, the success of a four-point system depends on careful measurement and time alignment. That process becomes more complex on a festival site, where system positions need to work with the variables of the environment. “It’s challenging when you’re in a field, you’ve got trees, bars, front-of-house booths, marquee poles and things like that in the way,” said Jefferies. “It does take quite a long time and it can be quite frustrating, but the hard work pays off when you listen to it.”

That dedication is appreciated by both the audiences and the production team. Production Manager Angus James said: “Everyone enjoys the sound of Funktion-One and we have a great relationship with Oz and the Audio Feed team – they do a fantastic job.”

Gottwood returns for its 16th year in June 2027, with early bird tickets already sold out. Neill said: “At around 10,000 people, I think we’ve hit our sweet spot and really found our groove. Now we’ll look at how we can make it even better.”