INTERVIEW: Allen & Heath Opposite: The brand new GLD live mixing system. Below: Allen & Heath’s Specification Manager, Carey Davis; Product Specialist, Nicola Beretta; The Allen & Heath team with the final GLD product design.
clubs, and the trend for even smaller shows to tour their own consoles. We found very specific requirements and rose to the challenge to provide the cost-effective ‘one does all’ digital mix system that is the GLD.
What is the mixer’s most unique selling point? NB: The package for the price. You mentioned it inherits many iLive core strengths but GLD also builds on the trust in the Allen & Heath brand for ‘value for money’ earned by the GL series. On top of this, the ergonomics of GLD make it uniquely easy to set up and operate - the interface combines analogue style controls with an 8.4 inch colour touchscreen, and users can create their own custom strip layouts and give channels custom names and colours for easy recognition. Moreover, GLD is a complete solution, with remote I/O racks including an interface socket to personal monitor systems, USB record and playback, eight FX racks, as well as a digital snake.
This is an affordable option for a brand new live mixer, how will the design infiltrate new markets? NB: Affordability was a key objective during the design stage. GLD brings professional mixing
to a new price point, giving smaller rental companies, houses of worship and live venues a chance to buy a digital, distributed system without compromising on quality. It’s the ideal choice to mix small to medium shows, whether it’s a corporate event, a function, a radio programme or a live gig. Plus, being so versatile and expandable, it’s great as rental stock and in venues looking for a future proofed system that can grow as they grow.
The system’s remote plug-and-play I / O audio racks are a key feature. Why was this feature important to your existing customers? CD: The ability to replace the heavy and cumbersome copper snake with a drum of CAT5 cable is without doubt one of the most desirable advantages of digital mixing. But this technology typically comes at a price and is therefore found only on the more expensive mixers, or provided as a costly option for cheaper systems. GLD builds this in as standard using our new Ethernet based dSNAKE link for easy I/O rack distribution to where the audio is needed. The digital snake is at the heart of the GLD concept, not an added extra.
How was the product’s sonic performance tested? CD: The development of the sound quality was
a major aspect of the iLive design, now highly regarded in this respect. We have taken much of what we learned and more into GLD. We carried out extensive performance testing in the lab as high dynamic range and low distortion and noise figures go a long way to ensure a clean signal. However, ‘golden ears’ listening tests and putting GLD through its paces in the real live mixing environment have been top of our list. People often talk about the ‘sound of the preamp’, but whilst that is indeed important we believe the mix stage is equally critical to good sound. It is one thing to listen to a single microphone through a system, but quite another to mix together as many as you do in a live show. Listening for warmth and clarity in the combined mix has been a major part of our testing.
Why do you feel that NAMM is the best platform on which to launch the GLD? CD: NAMM is an international exhibition and a great opportunity to show GLD to a large proportion of the world market. The show’s diversity of visitors means the product can be launched as broadly as possible before we take it to more targeted shows, such as InfoComm and ISE around the globe. TPi
www.allen-heath.com TPi JANUARY 2012 • 79
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