New Year New Hope

DIGICO: NEW YEAR NEW HOPE

In a bid to spread much-needed cheer and positivity following a difficult 12 months, DiGiCo provides three lucky competition winners with some incredible prizes. One lucky winner, Chris Heckmann of Monika’s Sound System Rentals, recalls the euphoria of scooping the brand-new DiGiCo Quantum225 mixing console.

At the start of the year, DiGiCo unveiled a New Year New Hope campaign, which provides three lucky winners from the sector three impressive prizes – a DiGiGrid MGB MADI-to-SoundGrid Interface, a KLANG:kontroller and a DiGiCo Quantum225 mixing console.

Prize winners included Jennifer Werner of LSP Light and Sound Professional, based in Ostrau, Germany, who scooped the DiGiGrid MGB MADI-to-SoundGrid Interface; Paul Janovskis, a freelance FOH Engineer in Melbourne, Australia, who took ownership of the first ever KLANG:kontroller off the production line; and Chris Heckmann of Monika’s Sound System Rentals from Dayton, Ohio, who was awarded the contest’s grand prize – a brand-new DiGiCo Quantum225 mixing console. “Believe it or not, I wasn’t watching the livestream because I was out on a call fixing a panic bar on a commercial electric door – something I have been doing on and off during the COVID-19 lockdown,” chuckled Heckmann.

What followed was a series of texts and an ‘out of the blue’ conference call from the Group One team – DiGiCo’s US distributor. When it dawned on Heckmann that he’d won a brand-new Quantum225 mixing console, he recalled: “I was overwhelmed.” Monika’s Sound System Rentals shares a storied history in the live events sector with Owner, Monika Shroyer, providing audio for bands back in 1979. “In regular times, most of our shows are outdoors – from festivals for a few hundred people, mid-size concerts, to five stages for whole

weekend events such as Dayton Celtic Fest,” stated Heckmann. “There’s that attaches quickly and easily to the left-hand panel of the console. a 600-capacity venue in Dayton, Ohio called Brightside Music and Event This can accommodate an additional channel or overview screen, a Venue, which we had the pleasure of installing a PA and lighting rig for. The KLANG:controller, or be further expanded to fit either a laptop or a script venue was gaining momentum as the COVID-19 crisis struck.” – something particularly useful for theatre applications.

Heckmann went on to detail how the pandemic has affected him and The desk includes 72 input channels with 36 busses, plus Master Buss his colleagues. “It has been a ‘sucker punch’ that never seems to end,” he and a 12 by 12 Matrix. There are four MADI ports and dual DMI ports for recalled. “We are lucky that we are a smaller company, and our ownership added connectivity, eight by eight analogue and four AES channels for local is in capable hands. We had little to no debt when I/O, built-in UB MADI, optional optics and Waves the lockdown began, however, we lost 90% of our SoundGrid, plus dual PSU. business in 2020,” he conceded. “We have been “The nodal processing is what I think will really doing some virtual work at The Brightside and are blow my mind,” commented Heckmann. “This able to pick up a couple of install jobs, which has desk is a perfect match for us. We would love to helped a lot.” have an SD5, SD7, Q7, Q338 or SD10, but it makes

However, news that a brand-new Quantum225 no sense financially for us in relation to the size of was coming his way was a great way to start the our company. The Quantum 225 provides us with year. Sensitive to the hiatus in the large-scale, a taste of all those boards at an affordable cost. live touring market, DiGiCo has designed the Quantum225 to be agile and flexible, allowing “This desk is a perfect match Obviously, this one is free, but if we had not won this, we would definitely look at this console as our the system to adapt to the demands of the for us.Obviously, this one is next purchase.” changing world. Specified with the new DQ-Rack with integrated Dante, end users have a system free, but if we had not won Heckmann hopes the new console might become a permanent fixture at The Brightside ideal for AV installation and the demands of an this, we would definitely look Venue, along with the company’s SD9. “I think we AoIP networking environment. Alternatively, the MQ-Rack and MADI connectivity for touring at this console as our next will explore what the rental market holds for this new desk,” he mused. “They are perfect for larger infrastructure allows the Quantum225 to integrate purchase.” tour support acts.” with existing infrastructure. What is unique to Quantum225 is a custom- Chris Heckmann, TPi Photos: DiGiCo designed, multipurpose mounting bracket Monika’s Sound System Rentals www.digico.biz