For quite a number of years most of our installed church sound systems, requiring a mixing desk, have featured a digital mixing desk. With fantastic, lower priced, desks now available from the likes of Allen & Heath and Yamaha, there's never been a better time to upgrade! But besides the lower price, what are the benefits?
More than a Mixer Upgrade?
Moving your Church to a digital desk isn't just an upgrade to your mixer, it's an upgrade to your entire Sound System! Digital mixing desks offer all the same functionality as an analogue desk but with all these extras:
Save and recall settings
Now your service set-up is instantly recallable at the touch of a button! Perfect for both complex band set-up or simple-to-use single mic set-up. Many digital desks will also allow you to set up passwords or different user levels with only access to the controls you set.
Wireless Remote Control
Digital mixing desks can easily be controlled wirelessly via phone or tablet Apps. Great for the PA Operator and Musicians, but also perfect for Clergy and Service Leaders.
Easily Expandable
Digital stage boxes can be connected to most digital mixing desks via a single CAT5/6 cable. This can replace that failing multicore cable and offer increased inputs and outputs as you need. It also offers flexibility if you need the band in different locations from time to time.
Space Saving
With built-in Effects, Compression, Dynamics and full EQ available on board, large external racks of equipment for effects and processing are no longer needed - everything’s built-in!
And it's common for a compact 16-channel digital desk (16 physical faders) to be used with one or more digital stage-boxes to allow for additional inputs and outputs. Thanks to Motorised Faders (which can move automatically) this allows for banks of faders to be layered and accessed simply and quickly at the touch of a button. A good example is the very popular 16-channel Allen & Heath SQ-5 which can be expanded with stage-boxes to become a huge 48 input, 32 output desk!
Better Monitoring / IEM
Flexible, easy control for Musicians via wired or wireless control, and a greater number of auxiliary outputs, are just some of the ways monitoring and In-Ear Monitoring are better with a digital desk!
Read more about Foldback Monitors / In-Ear Monitoring
Recording
Nearly all digital mixing desks offer stereo recording to USB memory stick. Many of them also offer multi-track recording or connection to Mac/PC as a DAW.
Going further...
A digital mixing desk offers huge benefits to churches, large and small. It’s important that they are set-up correctly and that training is received to get the best out of your investment. DM Music offer advice, installation, training and ongoing support.
Digital Mixing Desk Ranges to consider:
Allen & Heath Qu Series
Allen & Heath SQ Series
Allen & Heath Avantis
Yamaha DM3
Yamaha TF Series
Yamaha QL Series