Midas XL8 and PRO6 systems have been installed at the newly built Crocus City Hall, which has a 6,200 capacity and is Russia’s largest concert hall. If required, the two-level Moscow venue can be converted into a smaller, 2,200-seater hall, while the stalls can be modified to provide either a seating area for corporate events or a dance floor.
During the building work, the client and designer agreed to position the XL8 in the centre of the hall, where the most important VIP seats tend to be located. “As a rule, clients usually try to ‘hide’ the workplace of the soundman on a balcony, or allocate some space in the central aisle of the hall,” said the hall’s deputy technical director, Vladimir Antonov. “People now envy us for having our front-of-house console in the most logical position. Even though there’s always a struggle to provide as many seats as possible, we have a large, 6m x 3m front of house area – practically the size of another VIP box. All engineers – those who have already worked at the Crocus City Hall and those who have just visited – are of the same opinion: at last there is a hall in Moscow where the main console is situated at the very place where it should be according to acoustic laws.”
The PRO6 monitor console, meanwhile, has been located in a wing of the stage with plenty of room to work comfortably, well away from the performance area. Four I/O boxes have been sunk into the stage floor to work exclusively with the monitor console.
The reputation of the Midas brand, the ability to network the XL8 and PRO6 seamlessly, and the consoles’ versatility were among the factors informing the choice of system, which is said to have met with the approval of visiting engineers.
“The first concerts held here have demonstrated that most engineers are eager to work on our new Midas consoles,” noted Antonov. “For example, for a concert by Turkish star Tarkan, we set up two ‘other brand’ digital consoles that they brought in. When the technical team arrived, we suggested that they work on the Midas XL8. Tarkan’s FOH engineer agreed. And as he studied the console, his eyes began to burn and he started to repeat, ‘I want one, I want one!'”
