Attracting major artists and their fans, the South by Southwest festival (SXSW) in Austin, Texas features a wide variety of music along with film, interactive media and conferences. This year’s event saw Allen & Heath and dB Technologies among the companies providing sound reinforcement for the various stages.

Mixers from across A&H’s dLive, GLD and Qu ranges were employed in many participating venues across the city during the six-day event, most notably for the renowned British Music Embassy showcase, which hosted artists including Slaves, Kate Nash and Rag ’n’ Bone Man. At the Latitude 30 club, British production company CATO Music installed three dLive systems to manage FOH, monitors and broadcast duties for up to 12 bands a day.

With a new band appearing approximately every 40 minutes, a quick set-up and easy navigation for each visiting band engineer were the key system requirements. In addition, the system needed to provide a multitrack recording feed for the BBC, which broadcasted much of the British Music Embassy programming.

A dLive S5000 Surface with DM32 MixRack was installed for FOH, digitally split via GigaAce to a DM64 with S3000 for monitors. Also, a new C Class system, comprising the C1500 rackmount Surface and CDM32 MixRack, was employed for system control, continuity, VT, DJ, announcements and the recording and broadcast feed for the BBC via Dante.

‘The set-up we provided meant it only took a few minutes for an engineer to get comfortable with dLive,’ says Cato Music’s Simon Buckley. ‘Everyone was very happy with the intuitive workflow, and exceptional FX and processing options. Combined with the rich audio quality, we ensured a smooth run.’

dB Technologies DVA Series T8 line arrays, DVA S1518 subs and DVX DM12 TH monitors provided sound reinforcement at the Brush Square East Tent, meanwhile, for week-long events including the Fresh Cuts/SXSW Party, sponsored by the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music. ‘The dB Technologies monitors sound very clear,’ says Andrew Lloyd, FOH Engineer. ‘And the DVA house system has a controlled low end and excellent stereo imaging. I also like the dB system’s networking capabilities and its solid rigging set-up.’

At Austin’s famous Threadgill’s World Headquarters, further DVA Series K5 line arrays, supported by KS10 subs and DVX DM12 TH monitors provided FOH sound for multiple artists at events like the 360 Showcase and A Night with Jimmie Dale Gilmore. ‘Every artist has complemented us for the on-stage sound [monitors] and, yesterday, at least ten people in the audience told me that it sounds great,’ says FOH Engineer, Andrew Twenter.

‘Our DVA line array systems are great choices for outdoor events like the ones at Brush Square and Threadgills,’ adds dB Technologies National Sales Manager, Colin Studybaker. ‘Both the DVA K5 and T8 systems sound great with minimal set-up required and both systems are suitable for all kinds of weather. And we’re grateful to Music Labs and Threadgills for their help in setting up and operating the systems.’