Ynot Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Hmmm... A cross-forum topic if there ever was one!! Soundcraft have today officially announced the arrival on the market of the Si-Performer - a digital mixer with DMX capacity to control basic lighting built in!There's a short LSI report here. As they say ETC needn't worry about their market share, but it does look like a useful option (maybe) for small pub giggers.... (though it does seem a fairly over spec'd mixer for the pub market). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lewis Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Be interesting to see if this is "the shape of things to come" and indicative of total system integration, or perhaps an evolutionary dead end. One suspects the former, but there may be some challenges in getting the HUI right, Canny move from Soundcraft though, who perhaps don't have such a large slice of the mixer market as they would like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichM Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 It's an interesting concept, but unless the price is anywhere near that of an X-32 plus basic DMX controller I can't see it selling very well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medina Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Sound guys have enough trouble getting sound cues on time, let alone adding LX cues into the equation! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shez Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 At least the lights would always flash in time with the music Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilflet Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 depending on what theyve done sound to light wise it could be really useful. If you can set chases timed off levels in certain chanels or groups/flash to a gate opening and closing small venues with a parcan rig could look well opped Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart91 Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Where it could really get interesting is if the DMX out on the Soundcraft is used to drive the DMX in on a lighting console. So on shows with one operator the Soundcraft snapshots could be advancing the stack, or you could have a lighting op there but still be getting tempo etc. in from the sound desk. I'll definitely be interested to have a play with one, but can't see me buying one at the moment. I could see it being a great solution for small touring shows and cover bands that want to boot their production up a level without bringing additional operators along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indyld Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Where it could really get interesting is if the DMX out on the Soundcraft is used to drive the DMX in on a lighting console. So on shows with one operator the Soundcraft snapshots could be advancing the stack, or you could have a lighting op there but still be getting tempo etc. in from the sound desk. That isn't really how DMX is used. We already have plenty of choice in other show control systems to drive cue stacks and I can't imagine a useful situation where a "proper" desk would require a published DMX personality itself in order to be driven by the output from another DMX outputting device. Many desks have had audio beat detection for years and it has never really taken off with serious shows. It sounds like the desk may be useful for single op shows, but then is it much easier than having two small desks sat next to each other and either pushing two buttons/faders or syncing using your show control protocol of choice. All a bit gimmicky at first glance for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart91 Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 That isn't really how DMX is used. We already have plenty of choice in other show control systems to drive cue stacks and I can't imagine a useful situation where a "proper" desk would require a published DMX personality itself in order to be driven by the output from another DMX outputting device. That will be true in many situations. I was thinking along the lines of a touring covers band with, say a Leap Frog 48 which has DMX in. The DMX input can be mapped so that channels trigger certain memories on the desk. The sound op changes snapshot on the Soundcraft, and at the same time triggers the "look" for the next song. I remember, years ago briefly experimenting using the midi capabilities of a K3 to advance cues on a lighting desk, but the big advantage of DMX is that almost every lighting tech out there knows how to make it work, so this could be far more "accessible" than having to learn a new or unfamiliar control protocol. Again, I'm thinking of smaller, single op shows, I don't think it's about to put every lighting tech out of a job. Many desks have had audio beat detection for years and it has never really taken off with serious shows. I've had a couple of bands insist upon having a feed for beat detection, and it's always been problematic. Integrating it within the audio console might make it easier, who knows? It would certainly be interesting to try... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave SA Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Oh Soundcraft. Could the si range get ANY more embarrassing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 With the advent of the cheap competition, this neat idea could have legs? Look at all the bands who post on here who want to have flashy lighting controlled by the band, or by sequencer or by the sound desk - it seems a niche others haven't yet found. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted August 25, 2012 Author Share Posted August 25, 2012 With the advent of the cheap competition, this neat idea could have legs? Look at all the bands who post on here who want to have flashy lighting controlled by the band, or by sequencer or by the sound desk - it seems a niche others haven't yet found.I'm personally not sure how much validity the idea has if I'm honest. Let's face it, to do two jobs at once from the same console (and do both well) is a pretty tall order. I can't see it viably replacing the need to have 2 separate operators for anything more than general LX states or a bit of sound to light, but if that's the market it's aimed at then mmaybe it does have some legs. Just not very long ones... :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timsabre Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 So how much does it cost? Surely it will be out of the "pub gig" price range - and that's the only useful scenario I can think of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cedd Posted August 27, 2012 Share Posted August 27, 2012 DMX aside, it looks to be a better spec sound console than the SI Compact range. Hopefully at a comparable price point too. 80 inputs to mix, 2 card slots, VCA's, LCD scribble strips, custom fader layers, . Seems like it fixes a lot of the shortcomings of the SI Compact range. Assuming they're somewhere near the ballpark of an SI Compact (no doubt it'll be a bit more, but long as we're not talking leagues apart), regardless of the DMX capabilities, I think it looks a far better sound desk on paper than its' brothers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alec Posted September 13, 2012 Share Posted September 13, 2012 Yup, I too see it as where the Si Compact needed to go, adding all the things Cedd mentions above to make it a far more credible mixer (other than *still* having 22/30 faders - grr! To me the DMX is an afterthought, but it could certainly help out in some venues, and doesn't seem to hamper the rest of the operation of the desk. Pricing, look slike q £2k+ premium over the exising Si Compact models - hmmm... Thomann are listing as follows: Si Compact 24 - £3,836Si Compact 32 - £4,634 Si Performer 2 - £6,154Si Performer 3 - £6,953 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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