School's in Session at NYU with Yamaha PM5D Digital Console

yamaha-pm5d-at-nyu-low.jpegBUENA PARK, Calif.—New York University's Jack H. Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is the premier venue for the presentation of cultural and performing arts events for all of NYU and lower Manhattan. Since opening in 2003, the 860-seat Skirball Center has been an educational and community building resource, providing NYU's first large-scale, professional performance space on campus.

Recently the Skirball Center replaced its older analog front of house console with a Yamaha PM5D digital audio console purchased from Scharff Weisberg. “About once a month a client would have to rent a digital board, and it was almost always a Yamaha PM5D,” states Ethan Bade, head audio engineer. “Our purchasing decision was made pretty clear after speaking with engineers who had brought in various consoles in the past, that a 5D would eliminate additional rental costs and save on set up time.”

nyus-ethan-bade-low.jpegBoth Bade and his associate engineer, Alan Busch, are very familiar with Yamaha digital boards and said the recall features are what sold the Skirball staff on a digital console, as there are several events that return on a monthly basis that have the exact same set up each time. “In addition to engineer familiarity, the Yamaha PM5D was particularly attractive due to its ease of connectivity to the DME (Yamaha digital mixing engine) which was upgraded from a DME32 to a DME64. We also have a DSP5D on the deck cascaded to the PM5D via a DCU5D. Drive lines to the DME in the amp room under the house are sent over Audinate Dante cards. Our signal paths are now digital all the way from the stage to the amps.”

Skirball handles roughly 120 in-house presentations and co-presentations each season, as well as more than 100 events by other university departments and clients from the community. The venue is a very versatile performance space, with programming spanning the arts: dance, popular and world music, corporate conferences, theatre, family entertainment, comedy, movie and live event viewings and television broadcasts.

Michael Harrington, the Skirball Center's Senior Director, says, “We are proud not only to have such a unique place in the cultural capital of the world, but to use it for a unique purpose—engaging young audiences, both within and outside the NYU community, in a wide variety of performing arts, including premieres of important and innovative new work from around the world.”

For more information on the Skirball Center, visit www.skirballcenter.nyu.edu.

For more information on the Yamaha PM5D Digital Audio Console, visit www.yamahaca.com.

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PHOTO ID: L to R: Ethan Bade and Alan Busch

About Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, Inc.:

Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, Inc. (YCAS) provides a full line of integrated professional audio products offering complete systems solutions for the broadcast, sound reinforcement/installed sound, touring, commercial recording, and post production markets. The company remains the official U.S. and Canadian distributor for all NEXO speaker products. YCAS offers comprehensive in-house and field product training for its customers, a dedicated dealer network, and 24/7 technical support.