The release introduces new features and options that significantly expand the capability of the C10 HD.

• C-Play, which integrates a professional audio playout system into the console surface, delivering integrated recall of playlists with console projects and a competitive price benefit. Compatibility with external studio systems is also enhanced.
• Version 4 includes integration with Mosart Medialab Newscast Automation. Mosart is one of the world’s leading production automation systems and adds to existing support for Sony ELC and Ross Overdrive.
• Full duplex connectivity with Reidel RockNet Audio Networks (including remote preamp control and compatibility with their Independent Gain System) expands compatibility with installed audio networks.
• Audio Follow Video capabilities are also enhanced with independently programmable ramp on/off fade times.

Version 3 also introduces Loop Redundancy Mode for the SSL Morse Stagebox and the new Alpha-Link Live-R Madi I/O unit. Building on the success of the Alpha-Link Live low-cost console I/O unit, the new Alpha-Link Live-R unit adds a set of Redundant Madi optical fiber connections to the existing Alpha-Link Live low cost console I/O unit. The new Loop Redundancy Mode reduces the number of cables required for redundant fibre system installation and doubles the amount of audio signals that can be passed between the C10/C100 and the modular B-RIO I/O Unit.

Version 3 also brings several surround production additions. The 5.1 Foldown system adds user adjustable individual centre, rear (LS and RS) and LFE gain setting, an overall stereo output level trim and a new M-3/M-6 mono fold-down option. A new 5.1 BLITS Tone Ident generator routes to all 5.1 format PGM, ASG, Channel and Utility Buses.

Additional significant features include an Automatic Mix Minus Off-air Confidence Cue and Conference Mix option that improves communications in fast paced talk show environments. Gate/Expander and Program Delay options to enhance the C10’s flexibility to precisely re-time audio in applications that introduce video processing delays.

V3 Software for C10 HD is due for release in June 2011.

More: www.solidstatelogic.com

The Performance Hub is the heart of a new multi-million pound performing arts centre at the Walsall Campus of the University of Wolverhampton in the UK. And at the heart of The Performance Hub recording studio is a Solid State Logic AWS 948.

The Performance Hub integrates the music, dance and drama teaching provision – along with related technical support – into one building, with the AWS supporting recording that allows the university’s students to learn traditional analogue workflow and DAW control within a single studio.

Claiming ‘final world tour’ status, Judas Priest is set to visit metal excess on Europe, South America, Mexico, and 35 stops in Canada and the US. The next stop is Japan in early 2012.

With the help of supplier Major Tom Limited, the Epitaph tour will see the band using a Meyer Sound at FOH and on stage with a DiGiCo SD7 handling the FOH mix. The Meyer Sound system includes 48 Milo line array loudspeakers, 24 700-HP and four 600-HP subwoofers, three M’elodie line array loudspeakers, and six MJF-212A stage monitors.

Capable of delivering 40 inputs to mix, the Si Compact features 14 main buses (all with dynamics, delays and BSS graphic EQs), four matrix buses, four dedicated FX buses, four dedicated Lexicon effects engines and a range of option cards to interface with other systems such as Aviom, CobraNet, AES/EBU and Madi.

All Si Compact models can connect via Madi to the new Compact Stagebox, adding remote connectivity.

‘We believe that this very cost-effective, powerful mixer will be a natural choice for larger install or medium tour sound and house of worship systems,’ says Soundcraft Studer Marketing Director, Keith Watson.

More: www.soundcraft.com

The new console’s worksurface is constructed from anodised aluminium, overlaid with polycarbonate panels to provide clear and concise user feedback. A large 15-inch, touch-sensitive screen provides both information and fast control of all the main parameters. The control surface features 37 100mm touch-sensitive faders, providing fast access to the console’s large number of channels, which include 96 with full processing, 12 of which can be configured as full Flexi Channels – and outputs that can be assigned across the surface. All inputs have dual mono inputs for fast ‘Main’ and ‘Alt’ channel switching.

Smart Key Macros are provided, accessed via four layers of ten backlit keys. These can be programmed to control any functions, simple or complex, that can then be recalled at the push of a button.

Local I/O, positioned on the rear of the console, comprises eight mic inputs, eight line outputs, eight mono AES I/O, two Madi connections with redundant cabling connections, 16 GPI and GPO connections (with the option to expand to 32 GPI and GPO), Midi, plus Word Clock, Madi and Optocore for synchronisation.

Standard input channel processing includes channel delay; single and multichannel presets; HPF and LPF with an industry leading 24dB/octave; four bands of parametric EQ with band curve selection; compressor and date; dual insert points and access to all busing. Standard output channel processing includes output delay; eight bands of parametric EQ (previously only seen on the SD7); compressor and gate; dual insert points; groups with buss to bus routing, plus Auxes that have direct talk to output with dim control.

Dynamic EQ provides both expansion and compression on all four bands of parametric EQ. These processors can be assigned to any of the input or output channels, whether stereo or LCR, with ten units being allocated as required. In addition, any input or output channel can be mastered via the multi-band compressors – again, ten units can be allocated.

Forty-eight assignable buses can be configured as mono or stereo groups, or auxiliary buses. There is also an additional stereo or LCR Master buss and 16x12 output matrix, highlighting the SD range’s routing flexibility. Meanwhile, dual solo buses give monitor engineers accurate monitoring security.

Insertable FX and graphic EQs can be routed, controlled and snapshot recalled for the most complex show design. The 24 graphics can easily be inserted and controlled from the worksurface and 10 Stealth stereo FX units can be configured at any time from the 33 Stealth FX. Integration with Waves plug-ins offers yet more processing options.

DiGiCo provides complete control of plug-in parameters, as well as recall of snapshots and single loading/saving, directly from the worksurface. 16 stereo Sound Grid racks can be inserted, with up to eight plug-ins in each rack.

As with  all DiGiCo consoles, the SD Ten software runs on a standard PC or Intel-based Macintosh for offline preparation and remote control of the console. One SD Ten can also be linked to another, using a standard Cat5 crossover cable, providing 74 faders for control. In this configuration, the audio engine of the first SD Ten provides complete redundancy for the other.

Expansion options:

• Second-generation Optocore optic connections. Just like the SD7, an SD Ten can connect to up to 14 SD or D-Rack IDs with 448 audio channels on a single redundant optical loop.
• Five redundant consoles can share all inputs from the stage racks, and outputs on the system can be assigned in blocks of eight. For example, a single rack can provide 56 inputs to both consoles with 40 of the outputs assigned to the monitor console and 16 used by Front of House for feeds back to the stage.
• One console can even directly route outputs to another console on the loop, for convenient tie lines.
• D-Rack, SD-Rack, SD7 and SD Ten can operate together at 96kHz. The audio advantage here is clear, but also means just over 1ms of latency when routing a stage input through a channel and buss, with processing back to a stage output.
• Sound Grid Waves can be added, allowing full connection and control of a Waves Sound Grid, providing low latency plugins on a floating point digital console.
• Connectivity to the outside world isn’t restricted to just the D-Rack and SD-Rack. The SD Ten comes with different I/O options because tailored DiGiCo systems and complex set ups are completely user configurable.

The SD Ten also features dual hot swap, switch mode, PSUs as standard.

More: www.digico.org

French musician, composer, engineer and producer David Chalmin has made an API 1608 analogue mixing console the centrepiece of his Studio K recording facility in the heart of Paris.

‘When I decided to invest in a new console, I knew right away that I wanted something with a distinctive sound,’ he says. ‘I was going to invest a lot of money and I didn’t want a “transparent” mixer. I can reach transparency in the digital world; I wanted analogue.

‘When you think of analogue, you think of colour, and when you think of colour you think API. I know the 1608 has the colour that I love.’

Having been part of Stockholm entertainment scene for nearly three centuries, Hamburger Börs is one of the Swedish capital’s best restected venues for everyting from live music to corporate events.

While the original club was demolished in the 1970s as the city’s underground system was extended, a new building took its place on the same site, and has since hosted Sammy Davis Junior, Liza Minnelli, Tower of Power, Grace Jones, and Rod Stewart. Now part of the Wallmans group of dinner show clubs, Hamburger Börs continues to stage international artists and prestigious events.

Reliable but aging FOH and monitor consoles recenetly made way for replacements in the form of a pair of Innovason Eclipse GT consoles with DioCore racks (one with 64 inputs and the second with 48 outputs to handle the monitor systems) and three SR16 mobile stageboxes to replace the venue’s old analogue snakes.

‘We’ve had two Innovason Grand Live consoles since 2001 and, while they still work perfectly well, they are quite old ladies now and it was time to upgrade to more modern technology,’ explaines FOH engineer and head of sound, David Granditsky. ‘We explored a number of other options, but we decided to stay with Innovason because they ticked all of our boxes in terms of system requirements and we’ve always had excellent support. We are a very demanding client from the point of view of technical support and service, and Brollan [Söderström of Electrosound, Innovason’s exclusive distributor in Sweden] and Innovason have never let us down. We have never, ever had to cancel a show due to technical problems.’

Granditsky was looking for a system based on an audio network that would minimise bulky analogue cable runs and allow the system to be readily configured. Onboard effects were also cited as an important factor, along with size and weight.

‘We sometimes need to move the monitor console down from the balcony where it is normally situated,’ Granditsky explains. ‘This is now a considerably less daunting task than previously. Also, the fact that the Eclipse has such a small footprint has enabled us to gain six seats. In terms of functionality, I particularly like the way that Innovason handles Overram functionality [the ability to edit individual parameters in existing snapshots] and offline editing on the Eclipse. We also like the Mars recorder – we used it the other day to record a live album that was released a couple of weeks after the opening of the current show and it worked like a dream. It’s also very convenient for setting up shows as we can sound check singers without the band being present, or vice-versa.’

‘This set-up means that the venue can swap quickly and easily between any number of system configurations, which was one of the major considerations for the new mixing system,’ confirms Brollan Söderström. ‘We can now switch over from one configuration to another with virtually no analogue repatching. Monitor outputs are swapped between the monitor and FOH desks by simply following the EtherSound hierarchy. The four stageboxes are set up in such a way that some are in constant use for managing the long-running live shows, while others are available for visiting guest productions, thus avoiding the need for analogue repatching between different productions and shows. The system is perfectly tailored to the venue’s requirements, and I know that David and the other sound guys at the club are delighted with the results.’

More: www.electrosound.se
More: www.innovason.com

It made up of two parts:

• DiGiCo-Control software. This allows control and set-up of SD Racks or D Racks via USB. When used in conjunction with the Dante DMI, it also allows control of the SD or D Rack via the standard Ethernet port on a computer. The software is free of charge.

• The Dante DMI (DiGiCo Multichannel Interface). This is a Cat5 solution which connects onto a high speed FPGA bus, allowing an SD or D Rack to be connected to a router/switcher, which can then be plugged into a computer (Mac or PC) Ethernet port. It not only allows control of the rack (including preamp gains and 48V phantom power) but access to audio data and interfacing with a DAW of choice for recording.

A dual rack option, for example, uses two D-Racks and would support 64 channels of audio to control and record to a laptop. Redundancy is also possible by plugging in another computer (with DiGiCo control and DAW software installed) to the router.

An added, but significant, benefit is the ability to control all functions of the rack using a building’s standard network infrastructure, without the need for any special equipment.

This is intended to establish ‘a fresh approach to multiple recording applications’, including broadcast, live touring, studio recording, rehearsal room and multiple fixed installation environments – with no need for a console or other large-scale interface.

‘This is a big move for DiGiCo,” says DiGiCo MD, James Gordon. 'We feel that it is a clear statement that we are not only a console manufacturer, but a digital solutions company.’

More: www.digico.org

Manufactured with a steel chassis for strength and a polycarbonate-overlaid, aluminium work surface for reduced weight, the SD11 features 12 touch-sensitive moving faders below a 15-inch touch-sensitive screen.

Sixteen mic preamps, eight line outputs and two mono AES I/O are standard. Additionally, an SD11 may be connected a DiGiCo D-Rack via Cat5E, providing a remote I/O rack frame with an additional 32 mic inputs and up to 16 outputs. Further connections include a Madi port, GPI/O, Midi, Overview screen output, Word Clock I/O, Ethernet port for console remote control/networking and USB port for file exchange and session back-up.

The SD11 features 32 input channels with full processing, eight of which can be configured as full Flexi Channels. All inputs have dual mono inputs for fast ‘Main’ and ‘Alt’ channel switching, which are well suited to corporate events where a large number of spare microphones may be required. Standard input channel processing includes channel delay; single and multichannel presets; HPF and LPF, with a 24dB/octave; four bands of parametric EQ with band curve selection; compressor and gate; moveable insert point and access to all busing.

Standard output channel processing includes output delay; four-band parametric EQ; filtering; compressor and gate; moveable insert point; groups with buss to buss routing; and auxes that have direct talk to output with dim control for fast monitor communication. Dynamic EQ provides expansion and compression on all four bands of the parametric EQ. These powerful processors can be assigned to any of the input or output channels, whether they are aono, stereo or LCR and four units can be allocated as required. Multiband compressors are also installed, giving extended dynamic control of any input or output channel. Again, four units can be positioned on either input or output channels.

One of the more unusual features for a digital console with the SD11’s small footprint is that it has 12 Flexi Buses, which can be user configured as either mono or stereo. In its maximum configuration these could be used as 12 stereo mixes – equal to 24 buses.

As well as this busing, an additional stereo or LCR Master bus and 8x8 output matrix is provided, facilitating the SD range’s routing flexibility. Eight control groups (VCAs) are also provided for faster access to multiple channels and buses, user and snapshot configured for ultimate show control. Dual solo buses are also provided, making the SD11 well suited to managing FOH and monitoring.

An unlimited amount of Snapshots can be saved and recalled, with user-defined recall scopes being set globally, per-snapshot or per-channel function. Additional tools include feature-defined crossfade, sequence fire, Midi control and a Snapshot notes panel.

In addition to the SD11’s core processing functions, insertable Stealth stereo FX and 12 graphic EQs can be routed, controlled and even snapshot recalled for the most complex show design. Four Stealth stereo FX units can be configured at any time from the palette of 33 effects.

More processing is available through the SD series’ integration with Waves plug-ins. Unlike all other Sound Grid platforms, DiGiCo provides complete control of plugin parameters, as well as recall of snapshots and single loading and saving, directly from the console’s surface. Sixteen stereo Sound Grid racks can be inserted, with up to eight plug-ins in each rack.

Like all DiGiCo consoles, the SD11 software runs on a standard PC or Intel-based Macintosh for offline preparation and remote control of the console. One SD11 can also be linked to another, using a standard Cat5 crossover cable, providing 24 faders for control. In this configuration, the audio engine of the first SD11 provides complete redundancy for the other.

A final important facility is that advanced security options can be configured to protect console settings from accidental or unwanted change. These can also be password protected, making it possible to vary the amount of user parameter control.

The SD11 is designed to be equally at home as a desktop console or mounted in a 19-inch rack – removing the end cheeks and arm rest revelas rack fixings, making it straightforward to incorporate the SD11 into any touring or installation environment.

More: www.digico.org

High-end Sydney mixing facility Remote Recorders has installed a Solid State Logic C200 HD Digital Production Console in its control room to handle all its postproduction duties.

‘We had a very successful run over the years with an SSL 4000 series console, but the time had come where we needed to move into a digital console with more capacity. The C200 gives us the digital console version of Total Recall so recalling the settings of a project is very fast.’