BACKSTAGE PA SUPPLIES MIDAS XL8 FOR PRIMETIME ITALIAN TV
Leading Italian rental company Backstage PA has purchased a Midas XL8 Live Performance System for use on primetime TV show Zelig. The system, the third to be sold in the country, was supplied by Midas and Klark Teknik's Italian distributor Texim SRL.
Zelig, a cabaret show which mixes music and chat, is aired on Italy's Canale 5 every Friday night, and has become something of a cult, achieving record audience figures and garnering rave reviews from critics and the public. Recorded in Milan's Arcimboldi Theatre each Monday and Tuesday before 2,400 paying spectators, sound reinforcement was of utmost importance, and Backstage decided an XL8 was the only solution for FOH. The audio system also includes Klark Teknik 9848E processors to control the Electro-Voice speakers, a Klark Teknik DN9331 RAPIDE graphic EQ controller and Klark Teknik DN6000 analyser.
At the controls of the XL8 is FOH engineer Federico Farina, who is more than happy with what has become his workhorse. "I'm getting 94 channels of audio into the desk, passing through the DL431 splitters/converters which employ an even better version of Midas' famous XL4 preamplifier," he says. "I'm very impressed by the immediate familiarity I felt with this console, as well as by its analogue layout. I deal with a large number of channels, including 22 wireless microphones, but I've always been able to keep everything under control. But the thing that's impressed me the most about XL8 is the sound: it's grand! I've really enjoyed myself while mixing this show."
The show is also important in bringing Midas digital technology to the Italian audio contingent, as many different sound engineers are working on the XL8 each week with guest artists.
Backstage has been supplying equipment to the broadcast community for 25 years. "They made the groundbreaking decision to purchase the Midas XL8 in Italy because they were looking to the future and felt an investment in this new Midas technology would be fully justified," says Texim's managing director Pierfranco Galeone.
L to R: Pino di Costanzo - commercial director, Backstage; Pierfranco Galeone, managing director, Texim; Daniele Mascheroni - technical director, Backstage, with the XL8 at Milan's Arcimboldi Theatre
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Editors' information:
Midas live performance mixing consoles have been used by the world's most demanding sound engineers, performers and rental companies for three decades. The company strives to raise the standards of sonic quality through its programme of continual research and development, implementing new control functionality and user-friendly desk operation to anticipate and accommodate the ever-evolving needs of audio professionals who specify Midas consoles for their major tours, festivals, international events, broadcast projects and prestigious fixed installations.