Technical director Rhys Scott was looking for a console that would be intuitive to use, flexible, fast to work on and with high audio quality. Furthermore, as the console is largely used by volunteers, it needed to be accessible and logically laid out. "I met the Innovason team at the Messe in Frankfurt earlier in the year and was given a demo of the Sy48. It was extremely impressive, and there was no doubt that it met all of our criteria," said Scott. "We were looking to have the new console in place before we moved to our new venue at the Piccadilly Theatre, and fortunately for us, Innovason launched their 'New for Old" initiative just at that time, allowing us to purchase the Sy48 Evolution package within the budget we had available.
"Since the console arrived we've been extremely pleased with it," continued Scott. "The audio quality is fabulous and the team has found it very easy to use. Furthermore, we've found the support from Innovason to be fantastic, including being available on a Sunday before a service. The problem was an operator error, I have to confess, but it would have caused us a serious problem if we'd not been able to contact Hervé who resolved it for us very quickly."
The Sunday service is a mixture of contemporary worship led by an eight-piece band with a distinctly rock 'n' roll feel, preaching and other church activities. Every Sunday, ChristChurch's production team, working alongside the Picadilly's staff, transforms the theatre from the set of the West End musical, Guys and Dolls, into ChristChurch's home. The sound system, video system, trussing, backdrop and instruments are all dropped onto the stage via a chain hoist and set up in preparation for the service. "We've really appreciated the Sy48's ability to store settings and recall compression, EQ and even mix settings," remarked Scott. "It's made a huge difference to our set-up and sound check time, which, as you can imagine, is very tight. Now, I'm pleased to say, we've all got a little bit more breathing room!"
Scott also notes that that the future potential of the desk, particularly with regard to the Aviom interface, is of great interest to the church. "We currently run two Aviom networks for the band's in-ear monitors, so the ability to add a further two directly from the desk is extremely good news." He also commented that the release of the plug-in processing that was previewed at the recent PLASA show is potentially a significant addition for the church.
"The Sy48 has already proved itself to be an extremely valuable asset for us in every possible way," concluded Scott. "It has everything we were looking for in terms of features and audio quality, and with the new functionality that is slated for next year, it'll be even better still. It was the ideal choice for us."
(Chris Henry)
