SirNickity wrote:Just a thought guys... You can pick up a used iPad for something like this. No need to line Apple's pockets if you're allergic. If there's a dedicated app for the SL, I see no reason why Last Year's Model isn't perfectly adequate, and could stay that way for as long as the electrons continue to flow. I don't think upgrade-itis would affect this kind of use. Heck, you don't even need the battery to still be functional, if you can supply a charging cable or dock.
Even used beat up iPads go for a sizable chunk. About the only thing that devalues them drastically is a broken display.
I know some people just don't want to touch an Apple product, or even be near one, but just think of it as a tool to get things done. A simple bargraph of channel faders. It'll do this, and do the job well. Whether you can freely recompile the kernel's source code or multitask your spreadsheets while watching videos is irrelevant. All you need is a simple remote control. Much better than RDP with a laptop, IMO. I can't imagine how that could possibly be more ergonomic.
It has to do with the position of your hands as you play the piano. A pianists hands are horizontal with fingertips bent... same as a laptop. To manipulate a touch screen device, the device has to be tilted, and the whole movement paradigm is different. Further, it requires full visual focus... there's no tactile feedback My brain just doesn't divide that way. Trust me, I've tried both... trying to manipulate a tablet with the right hand whilst playing rhythm with the left is kind of like rubbing your head whilst patting your stomach.
So just swallow the bile and pick up an iPad 2, used. Or, if the performers have their own, have them install the app and bring their own monitor mixer.
Don't make things hard on yourself (and your performers) for the sake of principle.
I am the performer. I'd be the only person on stage manipulating it. The pastor might want access sometimes, but that would be rare. We might use it for FOH occasionally, but the main FOH operator will have the console. Personally, I don't care if anyone else who might use the system accesses it with an iThing...I just don't like the device and I doubt I ever will.
@Greg:
I looked the X32 over again, and the agonizing truth is that it fits our present and projected future needs just about perfectly. What I can't get over is that it's Behringer. I've spent several years ridding myself of Behringer, and I would have to answer some tough questions about putting back in the same brand that failed. The warranty isn't as good (one replacement and it's over) the service department is less than stellar, it's a brand new product... all of these things mean something to a church board concerned with stewardship over features and functionality. Any of the three consoles would do the job... the decision will come down to price and stewardship measures. In the price department, Behringer wins, but in the stewardship areas, well, Presonus and Soundcraft have far better reputations and track records (and warranties and service departments and future support histories).
I may present the X32 as an option along with the SL and the SiC, but I must be brutally honest about the realities of all of them if I do so. I'm sure I'll be asked what I'd recommend, and my recommendation will carry some weight. If something goes wrong with a product I recommend... well... I wouldn't want that. I'm sure they'd just go through the repurchase process again, but that's not the point.
99% of the time, things that aren't already being done aren't being done because they don't work. The other 1% is split evenly between fools and geniuses.
