Italian rental company BH, specializing in classical, contemporary and jazz productions, has become the first customer for Lawo’s new mc²36 (MKII) consoles, which were launched in December 2020. BH took delivery of two mc²36 consoles in April 2021 at Lawo headquarters in Rastatt, Germany, and has placed them in inventory for use at several music festivals in Italy.
BH provides gear and support for the Ravenna festival of classic music, and has used Lawo mixing systems for years in conjunction with d&b audiotechnik’s Soundscape immersive technology. Massimo Carli of BH, who oversees the Ravenna Festival setup, says that “BH’s ambition has always been to deliver the best possible listening experience with the most advanced technology on the market. Since 2015 we have worked with Lawo mc²36 consoles, after going through a truly competitive selection procedure including other manufacturers’ consoles.
“We utilize our mc²36 consoles for highly respected musical events that attract the most discriminating audiences,” continues Carli, “and for our new equipment we wanted a console based on advanced audio-over-IP technology which provides crystal clear sound, flexibility in terms of workflow optimization, and the reliability which is crucial for every sound engineer in live music setups. Even under stress and during hours or days of work in the heat or cold, Lawo consoles never show signs of anomalies or problems. And regarding customization, I daresay that this is a virtually ‘infinite’ console, where the operator can manage whatever he has in mind, and whatever he wants to do, at will.”
Cristian Merli, a BH sound engineers, adds that “The Lawo mc² consoles are the best match for our most challenging and ambitious live mixing and recording productions. The audio quality of the preamps is fantastic; they are extremely quiet with sound and dynamics not heard in other consoles. Another thing which sets Lawo apart is the simplicity of preparing for complex shows or large orchestras. With a few simple steps you can configure hundreds of channels and complex routings in a few minutes. Thanks to the ‘engines’ of the Lawo consoles, it’s easy to manage all the signals from the various sources to the various destinations such as mobile control rooms, TV, PA, stage, amplifiers, multitrack recordings, et cetera, with a single console. You can create matrices and routing for hundreds and hundreds of channels, in just a few clicks, with simplicity and reliability.”
The mc²36 natively supports SMPTE ST2110-30, AES67 and RAVENNA, and provides an I/O capacity of 864 channels including local I/O connectivity. For operation and visualization, the console offers proprietary Button-Glow, touch-sensitive rotary controls, color TFT fader-strip displays, LiveView video thumbnails, and full HD touchscreen controls. In addition, IP Easy (based on the Lawo HOME management platform for IP-based media infrastructures) is designed to help enable fast, less-complicated system configuration, even during operation – a feature BH Audio is exploring in its studios at present.
“The HOME managing platform is going to make our life much easier as it makes setup on the go quicker and easier,” says Merli. “It’s a big step forward towards more freedom of customization.”
The second generation of mc236 console is more compact yet designed to be much more flexible than its predecessor. This isn’t restricted to audio networking and workflow, but extends to control integrations; for example, Lawo is collaborating with BH to integrate a custom OSC interface for remote-control of d&b Soundscape object parameters directly from the console’s surface.
“It’s also important to us that the mc²36 can integrate third-party-solutions and Waves MultiRack/SuperRack. At the Ravenna festival, we experimented even before its official launch with d&b audiotechnik’s Soundscape immersive live audio technology,” explains Carli. “The mc²36 gives you endless possibilities to prepare your layout, and you can change and modify it easily and quickly without interrupting the sound or going into ‘dangerous’ operation. With most of my jobs, you have to add channels or change routing or something right up until the last second – or even during the event itself. With the mc²36, it is never a problem.”
Lucas Zwicker, Lawo’s Senior Technical Product Manager, Audio Production, concludes, “The new mc²36 is powered by our latest A__UHD Core technology and provides a total number of 256 DSP channels. This increased DSP power is vital under pandemic regulations which require one microphone per musician. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, 60 to 80 channels were required for orchestral music productions, now up to 100 channels and more can easily be required.”
Merli sums it up: “In my opinion – and I think I have used all the console brands on the market – Lawo consoles are on different planet compared to the rest; a level above in quality, management, and practicality.”
