REDDITCH, ENGLAND — SSE Audio Group has one of its four new Soundcraft Vi6 digital consoles out on tour with rock band Thunder, selling out all the dates on its UK tour of academies and civic halls. The Soundcraft Vi6 is in the hands of FOH Engineer Pete Russell, who has been mixing the band for nearly a dozen years. Also a project manager for the SSE Audio Group, Russell has been close to the development program of the Vi6, but this is the first opportunity he has had to use the console on the road.
Comments Russell. "I'm very impressed by the amount of information that is available on the surface, and how easy it is to use it. The layout is excellent; within two minutes of seeing the Vi6 for the first time, I could work out how to mix on it. You can't say that of many digital consoles.
"Thunder is a very live band so I can't really program the mix; it's very hands-on, I fly by the seat of my pants. There are no backing tracks. Guitars, amps, drums, they play – that's it. So I'm not using the snapshots or presets for this band, just setup memory and gig memory, plus setup for the support band, although that would be different if it was a band where one could preset or program a lot of the mix."
An unusual aspect of this tour involves the supporting act slot being put up as a competition prize. Dates were divided up between five winning bands, so Russell is seeing a lot of new faces at the mix position. "With the setup memory safely on the desk, I am perfectly happy for the support engineer to come out and use the main console."
With the supporting band(s) using the same console, Russell has no backup plan. "I've got a phone, and Andy Brown and Simon Roome from Soundcraft are at the other end of it! They've given me all the backup I need."
For more information, visit www.soundcraft.com.
Pictured above: Thunder FOH Engineer Pete Russell at one of SSE Audio Group's four new Soundcraft Vi6 digital live sound consoles.
