
LAS VEGAS - May 2014 -- Britney Spears is currently taking a break from touring, settling into a two-year residency on the Las Vegas Strip at Planet Hollywood's Axis theater, which was revamped for the purpose at a reported cost of $20 million with new staging, lighting, projection, and sound equipment, including a pair of DiGiCo digital audio mixing consoles. Britney: Piece of Me, which has already grossed nearly $18 million, brings a dance club atmosphere to the 4,600-seat theater, where the singer, backed by 14 dancers and a four-piece band, performs two-dozen hits from her 15-year career.
Marc Delcore, the show's musical director and keyboard player, appreciates the finesse with which veteran front-of-house engineer Robert Cubby Colby, using the DiGiCo SD10 console, is able to deliver every nuance of the band's performance to the audience. I spend as much time as I can during soundcheck with Cubby, reports Delcore, who joined Spears in early 2000 as a keyboard sound designer and programmer before first appearing onstage with her on the 2009 Circus tour. If I ask him to bump a track that might not be sitting where I need it, the flexibility to make that change but also keep what we just did is really important for me.
According to Colby, the DiGiCo console's snapshot functionality enables him to translate the tracks coming off stage, which have been carefully crafted by the musicians, to the audience. With the help of virtual soundcheck and snapshots I'm able to recall sequenced tracks that are a very big part of a show like this, especially a dance show, he says. Britney sings every song live, but there are additional tracks when they're doing the heavy dance numbers. Snapshots give Marc the security of knowing that these levels that they work on so hard translate to the live environment.
Britney pretty much has to stick to her script, but I have a lot of freedom to play different chords or different sounds, continues Delcore. Anything that the band throws at him, Cubby hears right away and he makes the adjustment. He catches everything and is able to make those adjustments with the console. It's important for him to be able to make those changes on the fly. He's such a great engineer.
Monitor engineer Johnny Balistrere, generating 42 sends to side fills and wedges for Spears and the dancers, with in-ear feeds for the band, had not previously used a DiGiCo console. Once he learned that he would be using an SD5, Balistrere spent some time on the phone with Matt Larson, national sales manager at Group One, DiGiCo's U.S. distributor, who also directed him to an online video tutorial. It's a great training video, says Balistrere. I was able to retain most of what I watched and apply it to this console. It's the most impressive, well-thought-out console I have ever used in my career. You can operate it with ease.
Balistrere continues, It's a very musical console. Certain things I want to be digital, certain things I want to be analog. The fact that I can customize digital and analog sounds in my mixes, separating inputs into a digital head amp or putting a DigiTube [tube emulation] on and making it a little more gritty, is one of the greatest features.
By chaining effects, Balistrere is also able to deliver significant sound pressure levels to Spears' wedges without having to worry about feedback, he says. With condenser mics and headsets, I'll take a vocal and send it to five or six effects, turn the sends down, and use them as vocal boosts with minimal effect. I'm able to get 112 or 113 dB, A-weighted, three feet from the wedges with her Crown CM-311A headset mic without even a hint of feedback. I'd never experienced that in my life until I used a DiGiCo console.
Balistrere prefers to fix problem inputs at the source rather than use subtractive EQ. But with the DiGiCo console I find I'm running even flatter EQs than I was previously in other consoles. So I can experiment more with my mic technique and placement, and not have to go right to the EQ section and cut it. It's a very easy, precise, smooth console. I've got to say, it's hard to go back to anything else!
Julio Valdez, systems engineer and designer for 3G Productions the rental house that supplied the show's DiGiCo desks and d&b loudspeaker system notes that the SD10 and SD5 were the natural choices for this massive production that is nightly drawing capacity crowds. The sheer number of channels, pristine 96K sound, and ease of use were all huge factors in making these consoles the right gear for the job, he says. They say you're only as good as your tools, but I really must compliment Cubby on the consistently exceptional mix he's providing. He really makes the SD10 shine and I know he's very happy with DiGiCo, as we all are.
Cubby agrees: "My relationship with DiGiCo goes back to the companys inception and I can honestly say that out of all of the digital consoles available to musical productions and mixers around the world, DiGiCo holds the key to undisputed audio quality and function. And with spill sets and other new features, the company continues to set the bar even higher. I love the SD10.
I also have to give a lot of credit to Marc Delcore, he adds. To be able to work on pursuing the best possible musical experience and audio quality with a musical director and keyboard player of his caliber really benefits this whole production. The same can be said of production manager Jason Danter, who has worked with Lady Gaga, Beyonc and many others. Music is the number one focus of this production, and it has been a pleasure to be part of a show with such great audio facilities and a band that really cares about how it sounds.
Britney: Piece of Me began its most recent leg on April 25. Fol
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/03/2026
Real-time 9:16 AI-Generated Autocropping; Software-Defined Station in a Box; and Software Switcher with Unlimited Layering Are Among Show Highlights
For the fi...
20/03/2026
Signiant Showcases New Content Innovations Driving Visibility, Access, and Actio...
20/03/2026
Caffeine Relies on DaVinci Resolve Studio for End to End Post Workflow
Brie Clayton March 19, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Cloud helps Mexican post faci...
19/03/2026
Live sports production increases complexity, with dynamic audio levels and an overall philosophy that encourages transient volume spikes
Fourteen years ago, Am...
19/03/2026
Advanced Systems Group, a technology and services provider for media creatives and content owners, announced the appointment of Peter Thordarson to the newly cr...
19/03/2026
For this senior from the Bay Area, the speed and pressure of live sports production play right into her strengths
In the live-sports-video industry, the future...
19/03/2026
Grass Valley has expanded its long-term partnership with University of Pittsburg...
19/03/2026
Audio-Technica has released the ATV-SG1 and ATV-SG1LE On-Camera Shotgun Microphones, designed for use with DSLR, mirrorless SLR, and other cameras.
The ATV-SG1...
19/03/2026
Harmonic (booth W2831) announces updates to its XOS Advanced Media Processor aim...
19/03/2026
DAZN and Top Rank have announced a multi-year partnership that will bring Top Ra...
19/03/2026
IHSE, a provider of KVM systems, has announced a partnership with Cyviz AS, a provider of technology solutions for collaboration and mission-critical operations...
19/03/2026
Net Insight has appointed Larissa G rner-Meeus as Chief Product Officer. She joins the company's executive management team.
G rner-Meeus holds a Dipl-Ing. ...
19/03/2026
Leader Electronics of Europe has appointed Rob Stanley as Regional Sales Manager for the UK and Northern Europe. In the role, he will manage key accounts and ha...
19/03/2026
FIFA has announced that YouTube will be a Preferred Platform for the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Under the agreement, FIFA's Media Partners will be able to publis...
19/03/2026
New features across mobile, connected devices, and automotive platforms undersco...
19/03/2026
PSSI Global Services has appointed Ben Bradshaw as Director of Product and Netwo...
19/03/2026
Cobalt Digital has announced its NAB 2026 product lineup, which includes additio...
19/03/2026
Sportradar has released a new report, Innovation in Sports Media: The Next Era of Sports Viewing, examining how the sports viewing experience in the U.S. is evo...
19/03/2026
Matrox Video has been awarded a three-year framework agreement to supply its Con...
19/03/2026
CBS Sports' Jason Cohen and TNT Sports' Chris Brown lead the charge on n...
19/03/2026
A1 Dave Grundtvig and his team deploy plenty of mics to capture the sounds and energy from the stands as well the court
March Madness is a tournament in which ...
19/03/2026
In 2021, we launched EQUAL, a program designed to address an industry reality that persists: Women artists, songwriters, and producers too often face fewer oppo...
19/03/2026
Latest EZKeys 2 expansion arrives
Toontrack's staggering collection of EZKeys 2 expansions has grown once again, and the latest instalment delivers a on...
19/03/2026
New generative AI plug-in due in May 2026
Roland have announced the upcoming launch of a new generative AI tool created in collaboration with Sony Computer ...
19/03/2026
Nick Williams updates users on insolvency process
Nick Williams, the CEO of Native Instruments, has released the following official statement regarding thei...
19/03/2026
Iconic Swedish mic manufacturer back in action
Legendary Swedish microphone manufacturer Milab have announced that production is now fully underway, and mic...
19/03/2026
Acclaimed saturation unit goes virtual
Freqport's Freqtube FT1 (reviewed here in SOS February 2023) offers a convenient way to integrate real valve-base...
19/03/2026
The discontinuation of loss-making business activities as part of the restructur...
19/03/2026
Silicon Valley satire The Audacity premieres 15 April on SBS and SBS On Demand
19 March, 2026
Media releases
From one of the writer/producers of Succession...
19/03/2026
SBS brings communities together at Bondi Pavilion for Harmony Week multilingual ...
19/03/2026
Clarification from SBS regarding Western Sydney expansion
19 March, 2026
Media releases
From an SBS spokesperson:
SBS wishes to clarify some media coverag...
19/03/2026
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics of Europe, is pleased to announce the appointment of Rob Stanley as Regional Sales Manager - UK & Northern Euro...
19/03/2026
The recently announced joint venture between Accedo One and Magine Pro has been officially launched as Leyra. The new company will combine the two complementary...
19/03/2026
Budapest, Hungary, March 2026 - Demand for traditional matrix switching remains strong across live events, rental and staging markets. With a reputation for rel...
19/03/2026
DPA Microphones adds to its CORE microphone selection with the 4097 CORE Micro Shotgun, which delivers a new level of clarity, headroom and sonic transparency...
19/03/2026
Starfish Technologies will present the latest releases of its TS Splicer (Win) and TS Splicer (K8) at NAB Show 2026, together with a new Monitoring Dashboard de...
19/03/2026
Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming solutions, has announced that TrueVisions NOW, a leading streaming platform in Thailand, and part of the TrueVis...
19/03/2026
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced significant enhancements to its XOS Advanced Media Processor that lower the cost of broadcast distribution while enablin...
19/03/2026
Cobalt Digital, the leading designer and manufacturer of award-winning signal processing products, and a founding partner in the openGear initiative has announ...
19/03/2026
Magewell a developer of innovative, high-performance video I/O and IP workflow solutions will be at the 2026 NAB Show on booth C6113. In addition to several...