Audio coordinator and main house mix engineer Van Metschke specified a console with 48-channels and four stereo inputs. He explained: "We have a typical rhythm section, drums and bass, plus a couple of guitars, piano, keyboards, and an occasional string section or horn section. And we could have up to 16 vocalists on individual mics. We also have a 50-voice choir once a month."
As Metschke explains, the decision to purchase the Paragon PII was based on a long-standing desire to work with the console: "I was previously the front-of-house mixer at Saddleback Church, in Lake Forest, California, where we had a chance to demo the console." Although the console ultimately didn't fit it into the church's plans, he adds, "It's been one of my favorite analog consoles for a long time."
Metschke reports that the church demo'd several leading digital consoles before selecting the Paragon PII. "It's not that we didn't like the digital consoles, we just didn't need the recall features and playback cueing in our venue. No one could dispute the sonic quality of the Paragon in comparison with the digital consoles. The only thing we wrestled with was the industry trend towards digital. But from a stewardship and application perspective, we couldn't justify the extra expense."
(Sarah Rushton-Read)
