Howard Technologies goes digital with Soundcraft
Published: MEA
SOUTH AFRICA: Howard Technologies has added a Soundcraft Si Compact 24 to its inventory. The South African sound specialist purchased the desk from Bloemfontein-based Toms Music.
The company was set up by Irvin Howard in 2000 and specialises in all aspects of staging and production. With a growing work roster of multi-act shows it needed a digital desk that was compatible with this type of presentation, and also expandable. ‘We operate in the corporate sector doing conferences and concerts — and memorising each set was becoming a challenge,’ stated Mr Howard.
‘Soundcraft has always been one of my favourite desks, they have strong pre-amps and are really clean sounding,’ continued Mr Howard. ‘In this instance, expandability was important, as was simplicity, portability and the ability to handle multi-track recording through Logic/Pro Tools.’
This wish list had evolved from Mr Howard’s experiences on other desks, which he had found less than intuitive. ‘Then I did a show where the Si Compact 32 was set up. I was really hesitant at first but the guy who had set it up literally took 10 minutes to explain the desk. It was a breeze. I knew then that I wanted a Soundcraft Si Compact.’
In addition to the functionality and the Soundcraft name, Mr Howard was impressed by the looks and the console’s FaderGlow. ’But the simplicity was the real hook, and the fact that there are buttons for every function is great,’ he explained.
‘There is not a band that will complain about being mixed through a Soundcraft desk — and the name appears on most technical riders,’ continued Mr Howard. ‘This desk will now not leave my sight. Either myself or my technicians will always be present, even if we’re not mixing the sound. We’ll leave our other desks to handle the dry hire!’
Soundcraft mixing consoles are distributed in South Africa, along with the entire Harman Professional portfolio, by Wild and Marr.