re: Help a club pick a console to replace an aging Crest VX.
honestly, if you've got the room for a large format analog desk, you're in a position to get something really great for very little money. in fact, the larger they are, the cheaper you can get them. you basically have your pick of any number of wonderful, time proven desks.
my $.02...
get a VCA console. no reason not to. i don't think very many people will be sad to see a high quality analog desk, but most would be sad to see no VCAs. i definitely would.
get something with a good reliability track record. these things are gonna get real difficult to fix, real soon. that being said, most are modular and you can practically buy a parts desk in addition to the main one and still come out ahead. so maybe this is stupid.
i think the soundcraft desks mentioned would fit the bill, although i'm not personally a soundcraft fan. the XL200 would be a good choice too.
also, take a look at the yamaha PM5000. someone is gonna say they 'sound bad', but i bet they haven't actually heard one. they were introduced so far into the digital console revolution that most of them on the open market have very low mileage. a LOT of desk for a little bit of money.
lastly, look for analogs coming out of fixed installs. i just unloaded a ML5000 from our church. i practically had to give it away, and it was in excellent shape. i sold it as a package with some processing, but by itself i doubt i would have gotten more than 1500 bucks.
good luck. happy hunting....
