Dortmund-based production company, B+B Veranstaltungstechnik, have added two new Soundcraft Vi4â„¢ consoles to its inventory of digital mixing desks.
The investment follows the company’s policy for regular inventory upgrade, and although a multi-brand operation, the company chose the Soundcraft digital platform based on the impressive features-to-price ratio.
While these are the first Vi4’s to be added to appear in B+B’s rental fleet, the company’s Sebastian Müller-Eckhard has previously designed installation systems based around the Vi4 (at the local Konzerthaus), and a Vi6 in FZW, a 1,500-person capacity live venue.
“The Vi4 is all about the sound,� he says. “It’s one of the best sounding desks on the market and you don’t need any external hardware because everything is already in the desk — in fact the internal dynamics and effects are perfect.
“As for the GUI, we recently put a Vi4 out to a local
festival and the headline band’s engineer had never worked on a Vi console previously. So I prepared a show file, sent him a link to the Virtual VI software and he was able to get an impression of how it worked straight away.
“We had 44 inputs plus effects and there was only a brief line check — everything went well, as it’s just so simple and intuitive.�
The new Vi4’s will be used for both FOH and monitor mixing. “In a monitor situation you are able to have direct access to 24 output mixes by pressing just one button — which is perfect. You also have a further eight busses for effects, etc.,� notes Sebastian. “Finally, the overall quality of the sound and the low latency make it ideal for monitors.�
As for the new V3.0 software, he says the automation has been hugely improved, making the Vi a very useful tool for theatrical productions, and he is now eagerly anticipating the next development … with fade-time possibilities.
In any case B+B themselves will shortly upgrade their new Soundcraft consoles — adding more DSP to give them 72-channel capabilities.
Summing up, Sebastian says that B+B’s sound engineers are thrilled by the acquisition. “Seeing other engineers, unfamiliar with the console, preparing their mix in just a few minutes was also very important in our decision making — plus the fact, of course, that Vi mixers are appearing on the technical riders of more and more artists all the time.�
