[JasonParticipant]

Architecturally, I didn’t think another AR84 was an option?

[JasonParticipant]

Yeah, from a price standpoint, a RedNet 4 at $2500 for 8 pres is steep. Are there other Dante preamps/interfaces available that are cheaper?

[JasonParticipant]

Hey guys – sorry to resurrect an old thread. I was just doing some reading on the Focusrite RedNet stuff, and see they have a model that has 8 mic pres. Is this an option for increasing the physical I/O for the GLD? I realize you can still only mix 48 channels, but theoretically this would allow for additional channels to be added via Dante that could be patched in via scene changes? That could be real handy for those couple times a year when we need a few extra inputs.

Also, I see that V1.4 firmware is supposed to add some of the nifty features the iLive had (multi-band compressors, dynamic, EQ, etc). So all that leads me to believe that the GLD is continuing to evolve into an even better piece of equipment.

[JasonParticipant]

We actually do large events a couple times a year that really do need lots of channels. We got our 48 channel board because our old 32 channel board couldn’t handle enough inputs for our Easter Pageant several years ago. Those kinds of events involve 12-15 headset mics, full pit orchestra/rhythm section, choir, vocal soloists, audio playback, etc. Those are the kinds of things that tend to grow each year, and we’re very close to maxing that board out right now.

The system will be installed in a new sanctuary, so new cabling will have to be run. Obviously the cost of a couple CAT5 cables is much lower than copper for 48+ mic channels. A digital snake would be preferred, but not required. In terms of monitoring, initially we’ll probably have the band on personal mixers, and the vocalists/leader on wireless IEMs run from FOH. I don’t foresee us ever having a separate monitor mix position, but I think it is very likely that at some point in the future the band could move to all IEMs mixed from FOH, so we could potentially need 8-10 sends for IEMs (mix of stereo and mono). On the A&H boards, FX sends don’t burn auxes, right? But you do still need returns… The FX can be returned to “short” channels – are they adequate for an FX return (i.e. full EQ)?

[JasonParticipant]

@detonator – I have read all of the info on the A&H site and watched pretty much all of the training videos for both platforms. It’s pretty easy to see what the “features” are on paper – I wasn’t sure if out in the real world one was significantly better than the other. Sounds like the GLD *may* actually be nicer to work on – I gather faster boot times, maybe faster scene changes, faster navigation on screen, better feeling build quality, nicer offline editor, etc.

Is it possible to have more than 48 inputs on a GLD system? I know some other companies will allow considerably more inputs, but you can only mix a subset of them. That might be a possibility for us – if we could have say 64 physical inputs but only mix 48, that could be a possibility (especially if the inputs being used could be swapped with scene changes). From what I remember, it seemed like the GLD architecture is very “fixed” – (1) AR2412 and (2) AR84. Are there any additional capabilities beyond that (aside from getting inputs from Dante elsewhere)?

[JasonParticipant]

One of the things that annoys me a bit right now is that we have a 48 channel board, but because we don’t want to have to re-patch stuff all the time, we end up unnecessarily limiting ourselves. We leave a bunch of wireless mics and un-used vocal mics plugged in “in case we need them”, while at the same time limiting the number of drum mics we’re using (or not running keyboards in stereo, etc) because we don’t have room on the board. If nothing else, having 64+ inputs would allow us to leave everything plugged in, and just build appropriate shows/layers with what we’re actually using that week. Similarly, we only run one reverb and one delay unit, because we don’t have enough aux sends/returns (3 are wasted on stage monitor sends that never get used, others are used to sub mix stuff to send to the Avioms). So while we could “get by” with the GLD, I’m also fairly certain we’d find useful ways to put the extra inputs and outputs to use on an iLive.

My main concern outside of the I/O was whether there were significant sound quality and usability differences between the GLD and iLive lines. Seems like the feature sets is very comparable. In my mind it seems like the GLD ought to have some other limitations, as it is built to a lower price point. However, I guess the iLive line is several years older, so maybe the price of technology has just come down in that time and fewer quality sacrifices had to be made to the GLD line to meet the price point. Speaking of which… are there any substantiated rumors that an updated iLive line may be coming out soon? Would kind of stink for a new system to come out right after we purchased the older one.

[JasonParticipant]

One other thing I’ll note is that we’re very interested in the ME personal mixers. We’re currently using the Aviom system, and while it works “OK”, for those bigger services, it would be nice to be able to hear more than 16 channels (without having to do major grouping). I also play on the worship team, and I have to say the blue boxes don’t really sound very good… and I’d love to have channels labelled right on the screen, rather than having to try to read the tiny print on the paper labels we have taped to the Aviom mixers. Do the ME’s work any better/different on the GLD vs the iLive?

[JasonParticipant]

Yeah, channel count is the main hang-up for me. I’m pretty sure we could “get by” with 48 channels if we had to, but that would probably mean being a little more sparing with mic’ing the orchestra, or not double-mic’ing a guitar amp, or not returning as many effects back into full channels, etc. Normal week-to-week services we’d definitely be fine with 48 channels… it’s those couple of services each year that we’d be pushing things and not have any room for growth. There are a few other boards that were kind of being considered (including the CLs), but I’m not sure they’re in the budget. The iLive seems like the only one that will go over 48 channels in that kind of price range (maybe the Midas Pro2?).

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