Opened in 1999 to host the Rugby World Cup, Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium has since seen a range of sports events, as well as concerts from the likes of the Manic Street Preachers, U2 and The Rolling Stones staged under its retractable roof.

Visitors to rugby’s Six Nations were largely unaware that announcements and entertainment during the matches were delivered via a PreSonus StudioLive 24.4.2AI mixing desk, supplied by PAI Group and operated by AB Acoustics.

The new 24-channel StudioLive 24.4.2AI isn’t the first Presonus desk to grace the Millennium Stadium, however: ‘AB Acoustics has been involved in live sound at the stadium for some time and we’d previously used a StudioLive 16.4.2 desk, which we really liked,’ says AB Acoustics’, Rob Ashton, the man frequently behind the desk on match days. ‘It offered great performance in a very affordable, compact package and had worked very well for us. So when the time came for a system upgrade, we were set on sticking with the StudioLive range but extending the scope of what the desk could do. The 24.4.2AI was the obvious choice.’

The desk is used on match days for a variety of different purposes, from commentary to live music performance and music playback. ‘Obviously the Millennium Stadium hosts very large-scale events and we need to handle very diverse audio in a pressured environment,’ Ashton says. ‘So it’s important that we have gear that’s flexible and completely consistent to be able to do that.’

In operation, he likes the ‘analogue feel’ of the console, as well as the power offered by a digital mixer. ‘There’s less hidden away in menus and so on than with other desks, so they’re quick and easy to use and just feel more hands-on than some that involve a lot of navigating through screens to make adjustments,’ he says. ‘The StudioLive desks sound very good as well. Consistency is of real importance to us and the venue, of course, and no matter what’s going through the desk, the EQ section copes very well when creating great sound.

‘The StudioLive AI is noticeably quicker to use too,’ he continues. ‘The processing power of the new version has increased and it feels sharper and very responsive, which is helpful for making quick changes to a mix. And, of course, the extra channels over the StudioLive16.4.2 we had originally are very welcome.’

The PAI Group has been involved with the Millennium Stadium since winning a competitive tender in 2010 to, among other things, update the existing PA system. Since then, the company has supplied and installed new mixers, reconfigured the system DSP and worked on the positioning of loudspeakers.

‘We have a contract to manage, maintain and upgrade the system for the next decade, so it’s a close, on-going relationship with have with the venue,’ says Group Managing Director, Paul Adams. ‘We also have to certify the system each year, so it’s important that we’re working with equipment that we trust implicitly.’

It was PAI that supplied and installed the PreSonus StudioLive desk…

‘We contract AB Acoustics to run the system and they were very keen to continue using PreSonus at the stadium,’ Adams explains. ‘PAI is an integrator – we’re not an events company – and we were obviously happy to be lead by the wishes of those who would be using the system day-in, day-out as it were.

‘We’ve supplied PreSonus desks and other equipment into various clients and the company makes great products. The StudioLive is very intuitive in use and fits the bill perfectly – it’s a lovely product – so we had real confidence in its specification for the Millennium Stadium.’

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