Wayward sons and legendary prog-rockers Kansas carry on by commemorating their 40-year anniversary with a one-off special concert on August 17th at Benedum Center in Pittsburgh, PA. Selling out in a matter of minutes, the show was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for loyal fans ( Wheatheads ) to celebrate the milestone, but also to see the band in a unique setting. Accompanied by a 41-piece symphony orchestra in the first act, the next offered a traditional, rockin' set of their classics. The event brought together original members for the first time in 30 years: the five touring members (original members Phil Ehart, Steve Walsh, Richard Williams, and longtime members Billy Greer and David Ragsdale), as well as guest spots by original members Kerry Livgren and Dave Hope.
One day prior, the production crew Chad Singer PM/FOH engineer; Derek Papp, monitor engineer; Darian Cornish, audio tech; Chris Evans Benedum, A1; Jeremy Vig, guitar/violin/bass tech; Eric Holmquist, drum tech; Rusty Banks, equipment relocation specialist; and David Manion, LD embarked on a massive lighting and video load-in followed by backline and audio for the band in time for an afternoon symphony rehearsal.
The Benedum house PA was comprised of 18 Meyer M'elody's and two 700Hp subs per side, supplemented by front fills, out fills, a center cluster, and balcony fills. FOH engineer Singer opted to go with a DiGiCo SD10 at FOH (running on an Optocore fiber snake) with a DiGiRack (on a MADI snake).
We've been using an SD8 for FOH since 2012, says Singer. We typically do 60-70 shows per year so the console was out with me throughout the year that time. I rented the console from Rock N' Road Audio in Atlanta GA, who have a wide selection of DiGiCo consoles available and have been big DiGiCo fans for a long time now. For this show, I needed more inputs than our usual band only inputs, so the natural choice was the SD10 especially since the new converter software was able to take my existing show and load it into the SD10. Immediately, I was able start to building the extra inputs. The transition was seamless. In general I have enjoyed using DiGiCo products because they have great preamps/ converters with plenty of headroom. The routing and layout of the consoles hardware and software has the most analog feel of any digital console out there. I don't find myself ever having to dig though menus or pages especially during show time when all I want to think about is being creative. The consoles just make sense. I think my favorite part of the DiGiCo line is having 12 faders per bank. I had to do a fly-date show with a different console a few weeks ago and had only eight faders per bank. It felt like I was getting cheated!
For the occasion, Singer managed a total of 92 FOH inputs and 10 FOH outputs (Left, Right, center fills, lip fills, subs to the Galileo Processer, TB, stereo symphony mix, and stereo band mix to monitor desk), with the SD Rack handling the 44 band inputs (14 drum channels, two bass, six guitars, two acoustics, six keyboard, two violin, four vocals, intro music, guest inputs for guitar, bass, keyboards, and vocals, plus four audio from video channels, and four emcee mic inputs. The orchestra consisted of 41 members and the DiGiRack handled all 46 symphony input channels (20 DPA 4099 string mics, six woodwind channels, 10 brass channels, four tympani mics, three percussion mics, harp, and a stereo keyboard.
Even with a pretty controlled stage volume, recalls Singer, the only way to have a fighting chance to clearly hear the orchestra without a large phase spear from the drums is to avoid sectional area mics and close mic everything.
The monitor desk only received the split inputs from the band inputs so Singer sent him a stereo string mix, a stereo band only mix (Derek combines it with his ambient mics for the band's ear mixes), and a Talkback channel. The only tricky part of the mix was creating a band-only mix and a symphony-only mix for returns to monitor world, he says, the desk was pretty quick making two more stereo auxes and dialing up post-fader sends of the appropriate channels.
Singer says, much like his trusty SD8, he found a lot to love about the SD10 to boot. The desk can do so much. Even with all those inputs I did not need any extra gear to make audio life any easier. In addition to the 12 faders per bank, I'm a fan of the 12 CG's. You get 24 on the SD10, so grouping can be real specific. Also, the dynamic section is very versatile and with some channels such as the tom-tom channels, I'll use a normal comp followed by a gate. I'll then send the 6 toms to a group where I can have a multi-band to catch low-mid frequencies and follow that with another comp set more like a limiter at the end of the chain and then blend that group in with the original tom channels that are already assigned to the master bus. All controlled with one CG. Then other channels like the symphony violins I use the multi band to catch upper mid frequencies and or the de-esser to knock down some of the shrill factor. I like using those to bring down cymbal and snare bleed without beating up an EQ and therefore altering the sound of the violins or cellos as well.
The dynamic EQ is cool too. I use it on bassist Billy Greer's vocals. He mostly sings in upper registers, so I find myself padding the upper mid-range and hi- frequencies while he sings with EQ and compression. But when he talks to the audience in between songs he speaks softer with a low voice. So instead of always cutting low-end and adding high-end to the EQ manually, I just set the dynamic EQ to do it for me.
Singer makes use of spill sets to handle all of his outs, pink noise and iPod music all in the same fader bank. I have a Dust in the Wind' spill set for when they switch from loud
Most recent headlines
01/01/2026
Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation Announces 2026 Noel Schajris Scholarship The scholarship will cover tuition and housing for one Berklee College of Music stud...
01/01/2026
New year, new games, all with RTX 5080-powered cloud energy. GeForce NOW is kicking off 2026 by looking back at an unforgettable year of wins and wildly high fr...
31/12/2025
Back to All News
NFL Christmas Gameday on Netflix Scores Again With the Lions-V...
30/12/2025
As the College Football Playoff Enters the Quarterfinals, ESPN Blows Out Its Meg...
30/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Original ArticlesTake a look back at all our coverage of big-time productions, game-changing technologies, and state-of-the-art new faci...
30/12/2025
MELBOURNE, Fla., Dec. 30, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) will release its fourth quarter 2025 financial results before the market opens on Thursday, J...
30/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
30/12/2025
It marked the first civilian operational authorization for a HAPS flight in Europe, led by Space42's subsidiary, Mira Aerospace
The flight demonstrated HAP...
29/12/2025
San Francisco 49ers Strike Gold With Halftime Laser SpectacularStunning display caps $200 million renovation of Levi's Stadium techBy Dan Daley, Audio Edito...
29/12/2025
The Cup's Around the Corner: An Inside Look at Broadcast Preparations for th...
29/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Longform VideoWatch the standout keynote conversations, deep dives, and panel discussions from the year for free on SVG PLAY!By Brandon ...
29/12/2025
From crisper Lossless audio and immersive music videos in beta to new Audiobooks+ plans, custom transitions between tracks, and in-app Messages, we keep levelin...
29/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
27/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
26/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
26/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
25/12/2025
Holiday lights are twinkling, hot cocoa's on the stove and gamers are settling in for a well-earned break.
Whether staying in or heading on a winter getawa...
24/12/2025
What is AI good for? Posted by MTI Film on December 24, 2025
What is AI good for?
What is AI good for?
It's been three years since ChatGPT first cap...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
The Boyfriend' Season 2 Unveils Heartwarming Trailer, Key...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
Love, Fights, and Everything in Between: Badly in Love' Returns for Season 2
Entertainment
24 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied t...
24/12/2025
Scripps Research study links sleep variability with sleep apnea and hypertension How consumers' digital activity trackers could enable personalized health s...
23/12/2025
How guilas Cibae as Dominican Winter League Games Are Locally Produced for Glob...
23/12/2025
BitFire's Jim Akimchuk on Supplying Scalability and Customization in the Clo...
23/12/2025
CAMB.AI Enables European Athletics to Offer Multi-Language SupportPlan is to eventually offer translation into all languages spoken in EuropeBy Ken Kerschbaumer...
23/12/2025
Analysis: As sports media values trend negative, scarcity and quality are king By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 14:08
Print ...
23/12/2025
ESPN, Disney, and NBA Return to the Animated Altcast Fray With Second Edition of...
23/12/2025
End the Year on a High Note and Donate to the Sports Broadcasting Fund Today!By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 - 12:25 pm
P...
23/12/2025
The year is winding down, the weather outside is frightful, and it's the perfect time to escape into a story that warms the heart. For listeners looking for...
23/12/2025
A Zeus motor is hot fire tested at L3Harris' Camden, Arkansas, solid rocket ...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Lightware will exhibit several major product innovations at ISE 2026, including the new USB-C BOOSTER-V1, Google Meet. integration for various Taurus UCX models...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Taking the Stage at Carnegie Hall-On a Global Scale Boston Conservatory Orchestra students reflect on their epic concert marking the 80th session of the UN Gene...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's The Great Flood and Culinary Class Wars 2 Top Gl...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things By the Numbers: How the Global Phenomenon Shap...
23/12/2025
Experience the power of WO Automation for Radio's newest service, the System Effectiveness Review. Designed to help you achieve more, a System Effectiveness...
23/12/2025
23 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan and Rakuten Symphony Collaborate to A...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
How Steamy Can It Get? Single's Inferno' Season 5 Pre...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
33 Million Global Viewers on Netflix Watched Jake Paul vs. Ant...
Wayward sons and legendary prog-rockers Kansas carry on by commemorating their 40-year anniversary with a one-off special concert on August 17th at Benedum Center in Pittsburgh, PA. Selling out in a matter of minutes, the show was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for loyal fans ( Wheatheads ) to celebrate the milestone, but also to see the band in a unique setting. Accompanied by a 41-piece symphony orchestra in the first act, the next offered a traditional, rockin' set of their classics. The event brought together original members for the first time in 30 years: the five touring members (original members Phil Ehart, Steve Walsh, Richard Williams, and longtime members Billy Greer and David Ragsdale), as well as guest spots by original members Kerry Livgren and Dave Hope. 
