Hi, this is my first post so it's going to be both a short introduction and a question.
I'm a church A/V technician for more than two decades and also served as the drummer for around 18 years until I relinquished my latter position last year in favor for a much younger musician. This also gave me a chance to focus on my first love: Pro Audio. I'm still in charge of the overall systems from projection, lighting, communications, video and audio systems.
So, with that out of the way, on to my inquiry.
Right now, we're in the middle of revamping the whole A/V system, starting at the mixing console. I'm looking for a good 24-channel desk that will have the following traits, in order of priority:
1. Reliable and consistent - Needless to say, all mechanical stuff; the knobs, buttons, faders, etc., should last for years. By extension, the electronics should equally be reliable and not "drift" as the console warms up
2. Performance - It should be silent and have lots of headroom. This desk will be primarily for live use so it should be able to perform equally well whether it's sermon time or the band is playing at full swing
3. Best bang for the buck - This goes without saying. We can't afford a P1M digital desk so some compromises have to be made. Our starting budget is P100k but I can probably ask for a bit more if it is well justified
I've narrowed down my choices to the following models for FOH use: (Do note that I've already read up as much as I can about these equipment and feature and spec-wise, they all passed our requirements)
1. Soundcraft lx7ii - My first choice, given the budget that we have. With the extra change, I can buy 2 or 3 brand new Shure Beta 58s to replace some of our aging BG 1.0 and 2.0
2. Soundcraft GB2 - A little over-budget, but depending on how much more it can offer compared to the lx7ii, I might consider this.
3. Mackie Onyx 24.4 - Given that I have had no experience with Mackie consoles and the fact that it's also over-budget, this is a far third for me. But then again, if it rates better than the Souncraft offerings, I might consider it
As for the monitor mixer, I'm looking into the following:
4. Soundcraft MPMi - Due to the space constraint up on stage, we need a console that is compact as possible without sacrificing reliability
If anybody has first-hand experience or information, either good or bad, please share them. For a small church, this is already considered a huge investment, considering that this is just phase 1. Succeeding phases includes replacing/purchasing other outboard gear like compressor/limiters, speaker management systems, wireless mics, new patch cables, direct boxes, etc. But that will warrant its own thread when the time comes.
Thanks a lot in advance.
