New Zealand-based company Western Audio Engineering has established itself as a live audio production leader, regularly suppling equipment and personnel for shows in Australia, South Africa, Europe and beyond. With a deep focus on the supply of cutting-edge technology, Western Audio has built a formidable reputation in the Festival, Touring and major event sectors.
With a legacy dating back to 1993, Western Audio has grown to become a powerful hub connecting skilled engineers and technicians, ensuring the supply of equipment and talent for some of world’s most prominent events. Over the years, the company has provided audio production for high-profile artists such as Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, Nine Inch Nails, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tame Impala, and many more, solidifying its status as a leader in the industry.
The company’s dedication to quality audio starts with its selective approach to equipment, connecting world-class hardware with world-class production teams. Taking centre stage in Western Audio’s mixing console portfolio is DiGiCo, the UK-based leader in digital mixing solutions.
Over the past decade, Western Audio has been consistently expanding its inventory of DiGiCo systems, which has come to include SD7, SD10, SD12, and most recently, the Quantum 338– a console that represents the pinnacle of DiGiCo’s digital mixing advancements.
This latest investment underscores Western Audio’s commitment to maintaining a state-of-the-art equipment lineup capable of handling a broad spectrum of technical requirements. While Western Audio has a strong presence in the live music sector, its expertise extends well beyond, to the supply of major arts and cultural festivals, comedy, corporate premiers, sporting and much more- each demanding different technical strengths. The Quantum 338’s expansive feature set makes it an invaluable asset across these diverse applications.
Company Director Richard McMenamin expands on what drew Western Audio to invest in DiGiCo’s latest offering:
“As primarily a rental company, our investment in the Quantum 338 was a rider-driven decision. DiGiCo systems are very popular and for us they are always in high demand. We see them on the majority of riders for both Front of House and Monitor applications these days, and we also helped spearhead the integration of three Q338 consoles for a House of Worship client. These were in fact the very first 338s in New Zealand.”
Formerly the go-to Front of House engineer for seven-piece powerhouse Fat Freddy’s Drop, Richard is no stranger to the world of live engineering, having used DiGiCo’s Quantum 5 extensively with the band on tour:
“The Quantum engine is extremely flexible- I would describe it as simply as this: anything you want to, you can do. The routing capabilities are vast and its something I really miss when mixing analogue. I think engineers should try mixing on analogue consoles once a year, just to remind them how much easier digital routing is!”
The Quantum 338 is built on seventh-generation FPGA technology, delivering 128 input channels, 64 busses, and a 24 x 24 matrix- all featuring full channel processing. Like the Quantum 7 before it, the Quantum 338 features all the benefits of the new Quantum engine, including Nodal Processing, True Solo, Mustard Processing and Spice Rack.
Spice Rack supports plug-in style native FPGA processing, allowing engineers to build a rack of up to 8 insertable processor instances, whilst Mustard Processing is a set of channel strips designed to work alongside standard Quantum channel processing. Each strip in Mustard Processing provides a choice of four different boutique-style compressor models, a gate/ducker, two pre-amp modellers, and a four-band EQ which includes all-pass filters. The system is equipped with 36 of such strips.
Western Audio’s early adoption of the Quantum 338 reflects its proactive approach to embracing new technologies in live sound. With its unmatched processing power, dynamic routing capabilities, and advanced connectivity, the Quantum 338 is a powerful tool that will continue to support Western Audio’s pursuit of excellence in the ever-evolving world of professional audio.
For more details on the Quantum 338, visit the official DiGiCo website.
