DBS Audio has a long-standing reputation for excellence in audio, which is a primary reason they’ve been long-standing users of Midas consoles.
However, until their 2010 festival season, DBS’s use of Midas was previously restricted to the Midas analog line.
“It was our first leap into digital,” says founder and president David Brotman. “We are solely a Midas console house and again, I wanted to move into something that no one else had – and from an integrity standpoint, something we already had.”
“So we were waiting and hoping that Midas would release something within our price range. After 15 years with them, we have a lot of trust in the Midas name. So when it was time to go digital, the Pro6 was an easy choice.”
Located in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, between Philadelphia and Harrisburg, DBS Audio has been providing sound for shows all over the Northeast since 1992. Over the years, DBS Audio has built a reputation on the festival scene, while also doing tours and installations.
“When we built the company, we made it a point to shoot for the highest quality,” said Brotman.
“I also wanted to be something completely different, not built on the same inventory as everyone else. So we built the company starting with 100% Midas consoles and Meyer Sound enclosures.”
“Originally, we were going to wait for our factory training, thinking it would take a while before we got comfortable with it,” he said.
“But literally after having the Pro6 in the shop three days, it was clear – this thing is easy. So we brought it out on a gig, and it performed flawlessly.”
“Every job we’ve done with the Pro6 so far, I haven’t brought any outboard gear,” he said. “The Klark-Teknik reverb sounds phenomenal and the delays all sound great. But for multi-stage festivals, I’ll probably carry a small rack of reverbs and delays just to keep people happy with the brand names they trust, and those integrate into the console just fine.”
“It’s amazing how much they’ve gotten inside this unit, between the control surface and the brain. And the whole thing weighs about 200 pounds, that’s another bonus.”
“Frankly, I’ve never been happy with the sound of any digital console I’ve tried before this,” said Brotman. “But it’s no surprise that Midas is the exception. First, it’s got those great Midas preamps.”
“But the best thing about the Pro6 is the latency control. I’m a real fanatic about time alignment, and in our world, time is your enemy.”
“Midas is really the only digital console that addresses that, so you don’t get any phase smear, even with old analog devices patched in. It’s pretty amazing how they did that.”
“It fits right in with how we work as a company. We’re very clear about our work and we only want it one way – perfect. That’s a big reason why we’re a Midas house, and the Pro6 just confirms that commitment.”
