The House of Blues Las Vegas (HoB), a regular port of call for major touring acts and large corporate events in Nevada, has incorporated a Midas HD96 mixing console acquired from Clair Global Integration (CGI) that’s at the heart of a sound design by HoB sound engineer Justin Oswalt with integration support provided by AVL Media Group.
Oswalt describes the HoB as a “longtime Midas house,” stating, “Once you’re familiar with the workflow of a Midas it’s incredibly intuitive to build a mix and run the show. The sound quality and versatility of the HD96 blew the competition out of the water, so they were an obvious choice for us. You’re really getting an insane powerhouse for your money. Its ability to handle the variety of different show types that we have to put on is unmatched.”
Working directly with CGI via Eighth Day Sound and Audio Associates Joe Blacker, the console was quickly acquired and installed. “We’ve had an ongoing relationship with Live Nation for many years and were eager to work with them again on supplying the House of Blues Las Vegas with an HD96,” Oswalt notes. “We put together a great team for this, including Dave Helberg of Live Nation, Jimm Cash, Kate Serb, and Joe Bunting of CGI, Jason Vrobel of Eighth Day Sound as well as Chase McKnight of Midas and the guys from AVL Media Group.”
Cash adds, “We were thrilled to be involved with this and continue working with AVL Media Group. The relationship there has been top notch as has been their ability to deliver and support these products.”
Once the console was installed, Oswalt and his team got to work integrating it into their setup, doing so with the direct support of Midas and AVL Media Group. “We were also immediately impressed by how hands-on both Midas and AVL Media Group were from the get-go,” he notes. “Chase McKnight from Midas came in personally to train our staff on the HD96 and they’ve been incredibly communicative post-install. That’s a huge draw for us that a spec sheet won’t tell you.”
The show calendars can often see the venue hosting completely different genres on adjacent nights, and as such, Oswalt has become used to expecting the unexpected. He’s quick to point out how important it is to have a versatile console that can rise to the challenges of these different kinds of events. “We might see a metal show the first night, a latin hip-hop show the next, and a corporate event after that,” he explains. “Everything changes, and we need to be able to change with it and deliver at the same level of quality every night no matter what.”
Oswalt concludes that the success of the HD96 at the venue has also had ripple effects, leading to a move towards working with AVL Media Group to adopt the consoles across other Live Nation venues. AVL Media Group director of U.S. sales Kurt Metzler says, “We’re very proud of how well the HD96 has been received by live sound engineers, and specifically its implementation in the HoB Las Vegas. With the level of inventory and support that we can offer, we’re ready to install at any venue that is ready to make the upgrade.”
