Last night my company sold off it's last analog board. Allen and Heath 32x8 in a case went to its new home in a Livestream studio.
The end of a very long era.
The end of a very long era.
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The end of analog.
- Thread starter Paulabass
- Start date
My buddy , a long time sound man has gone QSC with
I-pad mixer and is now trying to give away his analogue
system. Sign of the times.
I-pad mixer and is now trying to give away his analogue
system. Sign of the times.
s0c9
Supporting Member
I have three analog consoles... One being an A&H 24x4x2 where the road case is worth more!!
Can't give it away!!
Can't give it away!!
I put my 32x8 on Marketplace for $1000, and I took $400. Sold a 100' 24x8 snake for $100 in a case, and sold my FOH racks for $300 each.I have three analog consoles... One being an A&H 24x4x2 where the road case is worth more!!
Can't give it away!!
I thought I would hold onto one analog board for the client who demanded anolog, and in 2 years it never happened.
I still have an analog 32x4 Soundcraft that I like just fine, it's now the front end to my recording setup.
It's the massive rack of outboard that I don't mind seeing go. The size and expense and time wiring it all up to an analog snake is now down to one ethercon cable connecting FOH to the stage and all the processing in the mixer. I'm 100% on board with this.
It's the massive rack of outboard that I don't mind seeing go. The size and expense and time wiring it all up to an analog snake is now down to one ethercon cable connecting FOH to the stage and all the processing in the mixer. I'm 100% on board with this.
Luckily, I'm just a bass player because all those dobs and knials scare me. I still prefer points and condenser.
I knew a lot earlier: About 15 years ago, back when there were still those 'Bargain Shopper' little newspapers with all the classified ads, here in the Nashville area I saw an ad in one of those for a 48-track SSL board and 2 Studer 2" decks for 10 grand, local pickup only (!). That's when ADAT's were going crazy, and it just went from there. . . . to now. If there's any out there now, I wonder if they're 'free to a good home . . . . .'
I must admit I often feel like a propeller salesman in the early 60's watching all those new Boeing 707's in the pattern at the airport. It often feels like the world I knew is gone.
I must admit I often feel like a propeller salesman in the early 60's watching all those new Boeing 707's in the pattern at the airport. It often feels like the world I knew is gone.
For live production in a festival setting mixing on the fly, ie. no sound checks, I prefer an analog board with knobs I can instantly access without wading through menus and sub menus.
Not the same as a proper system with a digital console, but I helped out a friend once mixing an event on a tablet connected to a Soundcraft Ui 24R. The tablet kept dropping the connection even though I was only 10 feet away from the stage box, and the system had to be reset in the middle of the performance, multiple times. Never again. If I had a analog console with a real snake, all would have been well.
Not the same as a proper system with a digital console, but I helped out a friend once mixing an event on a tablet connected to a Soundcraft Ui 24R. The tablet kept dropping the connection even though I was only 10 feet away from the stage box, and the system had to be reset in the middle of the performance, multiple times. Never again. If I had a analog console with a real snake, all would have been well.
As with everything else the old adage "everything old is new again" will apply here eventually. Hold on to that analog stuff. Keep it in pristine working order because give it time it'll be coming back and then people will pay outrageous bucks for analog stuff. Nobody ever thought vinyl would come back but lots of LP's being pressed nowadays.
It is. We are not in 1995 anymore. Digital gear it's great nowadays.
s0c9
Supporting Member
I'd guess that's because your "friend" didn't know what they were doing (No offence intended!). You can't just stick external WiFi on a digital console and expect it to work flawlessly without some basic configuration knowledge. That knowledge is alien to most!
I'd hazard that it was on 2.4G (not 5Ghz) band, was using the default class "C" IP's (192.168.1.*) and have much interference/interruption from all those "smart phones" in the audience!
I've been running full digital consoles (Mackie, A&H, Behringer, QSC) at "festivals" (and my own gigs) for at least 5 yrs and have never had a problem.
I have seen others have problems.. like their tablet overheating in the sun and shutting down! Too many tablets connected..
I ran an outdoor 3-day festival gig Jun 2019 (10 tribute bands) Sept where WE had 2 tablets (FOH and wedges) and 4 others in the band ran their own IEM mixes (restricted access) on a QU24 using Wifi!
There's a "band wireless for beginners" link in my sig that I threw together to help folks out in that space!
And, no.. I do NOT claim to be an expert in this space.. just had to deal with it for a while!
I had the same thought, but a 32x8 board takes up a lot of real estate. Twenty years from now it might be worth something more than the scrap metal prices you see on CL today, but will that difference pay rent for storing it for twenty years? These things are serious space hogs. Some will survive and be much sought after, I'm sure. But I am very glad my old act divested of all our PA gear when we broke up in the 90s. (Well almost all, I still have an old BGW 250C amp running my studio mons and a couple mics and stands that still work).
one-and-done (with it) experiences are common around here --- i.e., generalizing from one experience.
so much for the science of it! 
s0c9 is correct but he's also more fair-minded about the issue than i am: IME, virtually all failed shows are the result of operator error. 
Hmmm.... multiple problems here.
ALWAYS use a dual band external router mounted in line-of-sight ie- 15 feet up is good.
I have numerous ipad based mixers and I love them, but in a festival situation I always use a digital console. It is so much faster than analog. In selecting and buss- from input to auxes to L/R, I have instant command of that single signal chain. Looking at compressors is SO much easier that going to the FOH rack, and turning knobs labelled 1-10, with one tiny meter. I have cut back soundcheck time by at least half. If it's a band I've worked before, I can cut it down much further. Also, a band can give me a drive with all their effects and aux routing on it. Most of the bands I work with give me a drive with Behringer/Midas, DiGiCo, Venue, and Yamaha formats on them.
I've been an old-school analog guy for a long time, but planning to join the 21st Century soon, largely to help position myself for the post-COVID world.
I will say this: My analog rig is a great teaching tool, which is something I do sometimes. Everything is out in the open & visible, especially signal routing. A digital mixer can appear as just a "magic box" sometimes.
I will say this: My analog rig is a great teaching tool, which is something I do sometimes. Everything is out in the open & visible, especially signal routing. A digital mixer can appear as just a "magic box" sometimes.
s0c9
Supporting Member
Having used analog consoles for many years before the digital revolution, moving to digital was mostly about finding a workflow I liked. Without the underlying knowledge of routing, signal flow and effects, I can imagine it can be daunting for noobs.
I have “more” in my X32R than my entire analog system with its hunk of outboard rack gear, that I can recall instantly for a specific venue/band.
I really don’t miss analog.. and you should have no trouble migrating to digital having mastered the basics on analog!
