uhhhh, Jeff, 500 x 8 = 40000. But your point remains valid.
What I menat by future proofing, what at least having a 48 ch digital solution when the rider calls for it - also having something that is rider accepted.One piece of gear does not future proof your company... and who knows what is the "right" console for the BE du jour..... this will change every time the next tradeshow rolls around.
IMHO the time to buy a varsity level console is when you are either saying "this is crazy, I'm cross-renting ALL THE TIME", or when you are in a scenario where you are CERTAIN that owning that particular piece of gear is going to bring you new business (I used that one when I owned SC48 in its very early days when it was a hot commodity, but I sold it once the market became saturated with them, knowing that I would no longer be "the only game in town" so to speak - a very wise move in hindsight). As you know, I no longer own a large format console, and have no plans to in the near future.
Let's say you spend $500 to rent a console, including pickup/delivery cost. Multiply by your current 8 times per year and that's 4K. At this rate, you need to be renting EVERY WEEK all year to accumulate to the cost range of the consoles you are considering, or renting for more than 6 YEARS at your current rental frequency. Ain't much ROI that's going to happen on that console unless it's used heavily.
hahaha! Jeff's bad math was closer than my bad math!You got an extra zero in there. 4000.
You got an extra zero in there. 4000.
The question for me is do I want to carry that debt, and does it make that big of difference to my production ( to my ears and or the 99 percent of my audience).
One piece of gear does not future proof your company... and who knows what is the "right" console for the BE du jour..... this will change every time the next tradeshow rolls around.
IMHO the time to buy a varsity level console is when you are either saying "this is crazy, I'm cross-renting ALL THE TIME", or when you are in a scenario where you are CERTAIN that owning that particular piece of gear is going to bring you new business (I used that one when I owned SC48 in its very early days when it was a hot commodity, but I sold it once the market became saturated with them, knowing that I would no longer be "the only game in town" so to speak - a very wise move in hindsight). As you know, I no longer own a large format console, and have no plans to in the near future.
Let's say you spend $500 to rent a console, including pickup/delivery cost. Multiply by your current 8 times per year and that's 3K. At this rate, you need to be renting EVERY WEEK all year to accumulate to the cost range of the consoles you are considering, or renting for more than 6 YEARS at your current rental frequency. Ain't much ROI that's going to happen on that console unless it's used heavily.
Personally the SD9s GUI is enough of a turn off for me. It took too long to get familiar with the desk. No one will complain about the "sound" but I had to think about the desk way too much, Id rather be looking at the stage.
I think have my console choices down. I see about 6-8 B.e.s a year so the rest of time it's me mixing... They seem to be semi equal in price so, in your opinion... Who's got the edge and why?
Since this is an old thread I'm just curious Shane, Did you get a cool new console yet or is it still on the list of things to possibly do later?
-Eric
I have extensive experience on all these desks and I'm the slowest at a "throw and go" on the Midas. They sound great, but the ergonomics of that desk just don't work for me. I'd still rather see a Pro2 before a SC48, and depending on what mood I'm in it's a tough decision between a Pro2 and the Digico (I'm a big Digico fan and primarily take them on tour). If, like you mention, you will do most of the mixing on this desk, it's got to be something you enjoy using something you understand in and out.
It is an old thread, and I am currently out of my " production season". I did make a major purchase this year but it was in the amplifier dept (4xlab 10q) as well as two x32 consoles.... I am going to run with the suggestion of renting the big boy digital from the big house in town, but I can see myself owning a second hand m7 or sc48 in the future, the m7 only cause everyone will take it cause they have used one, and the sc cause everyone says they sound great.... For me personally when I'm mixing I'll be using the x32, with another on mons, cat 5 between. The other option I have in my stable is to pull the mh2 with the full rack of toys which nobody has refused either, and I refuse to "baff out". It's been used maybe 20 times ever!! Makes me sick to think about it. . So yeah in all that garble, I'll be purchasing a used 48ch digital at some point, just to have one in house....
Im kind of torn between the sc48 and pro 2. I asked a lot of BE's this year and they all said no they would not take a pro 2. Everyones reason was the same. That they had a bad experience because the tech that came out with it didnt know how to use it. That being said I think within a year or so you will start seeing more pro 2's on riders. It took a while for the Profile to come up on riders as well. I remember when the profile was new, Digidesign sent us one to try out. When we called the act to advance the show they didnt want it. They wanted a 5d. Well they didnt get a 5d and loved the profile when the show was done...
In all fairness, I've killed just about every digital console on the market at least once.
Digidesign:
SC48- Up to 3 deaths: Killed a hard drive, Killed the whole left side of the console, and Killed a DSP card.
Profile- Locked up a whole mix rack(reboot solved it)
Yamaha:
M7- Killed the touch screen mid set
Midas:
Pro 6- Locked up the whole console twice(once mid show, once pre show)
Soundcraft:
vi6- Locked up the surface, still passed audio (Finished the set with no control of anything!), Crashed the console twice.
Digico:
SD7- Crashed this guy the first time I used it!
And that's all I can think of right now...
Evan
So you guys admit that digital consoles often fail? Then why are so many people jumping ship away from analog?
Is this kind of like the argument some car enthusiasts make that "I'd rather push a chevy than drive a ford?"
The text in bold is the major failing of the SERVICE end of our craft. My boss is BE for a "classic" act very popular with the scooter crowd. He's an analog Luddite. His complaint every tour season is that the system techs know as little as he does about the Shiny New Mixerthing® sitting at FOH. "How do I route my MP3 player to the auxes? How do you get a shelving filter on the channel strip EQ?" Silence.
One of things we pride ourselves on is having knowledgeable techs who can assist the BE or BME to get what they need. We don't want our boss talking about us. 8)~~