Ian Bond deploys his Midas PRO6 on Porcupine Tree

Ian Bond of IPB Audio, owner of one of the first Midas PRO6 live audio systems to roll off the production line, has been using it on a 10-week European tour with five-piece progressive rock band Porcupine Tree. Bond has a long association with the band, having been their front of house engineer for 10 years.

Bond waited a long time before investing in a digital console for his rental company. “You can have all the recall, built in effects and features you like, but if it doesn’t sound good it’s pointless,” he says. “I was waiting for someone to build a console that sounded like a real console. Midas has done this with the PRO6.”

For the Porcupine Tree tour, where the musicians largely create the sound they want at source, Bond is using the console mainly to mix on the fly. However he’s making good use of the PRO6’s POPulation Group and VCA (variable control association) features.

“Once I’ve got the POP groups and VCAs set up I can find things even quicker than I can on a Heritage,” he says. “Setting it up doesn’t take long, and if you need to change things mid gig it’s there the instant you want it. The ability to navigate around without having to go and find things, and the speed of access, are features I really like on the PRO6. But in the end the sound is the most important thing.”

Most processing being used is onboard. “I’ve got very little going on, and have resisted the usual digital temptation to put compressors and gates on everything,” he says. “I’ve steered clear of that and kept it simple, letting the band do what they do and keeping it clean, just as I would do on analogue. I’ve just set up just one scene and have been running it by hand as the show progresses.”

Bond used the new online editor to set the show up on his Mac beforehand. “I was able to create a show, then play with different POP and VCA group setups to see what worked best,” he says. “I dropped the show file into the PRO6 at rehearsals and was up and running almost immediately.

“This is the way forward for me; it shows up other digital boards for what they are,” concludes Bond. “I’m hoping to get it out to the festivals next year, it’s small enough to take around, with a pair of CAT5 cables. I learned that earlier this year, on a small non-production tour with Aviv Geffen in 300-400 capacity clubs, doing monitors and FOH from the PRO6. The difference it made instead of rolling up and using fairly antique analogue house systems meant it was so worth taking it along, especially with a client who’s interested in making it sound right.”