Staged by BBC Studios for a live audience of 22,000, and broadcast to over 13 million viewers, DiGiCo consoles played a central role in an intricate audio design by Ben Milton Associates, that managed three discrete stages and complex time alignment.
Audio rental company, Britannia Row Productions, was appointed to realise this huge logistical challenge, which took place in the environs of Buckingham Palace, with the audio system for the landmark show spread across three independent stages in front of the Palace. The first stage, designed as a catwalk in the round, was constructed around the Queen Victoria Monument (QVM), with two further stages erected in front of the palace railings and linked to the circular stage by a walkway, one hosting orchestral-based content and the other rock and pop acts.
Everything was time aligned between each stage, including synchronising when artists were performing from two stages simultaneously, explains sound designer, Ben Milton. For instance, if there was a performer on the QVM stage, complemented with the orchestra on the second stage, we wanted to make sure the sound image would be coming from the right place, and timed to work together. Balancing the sound image and time synchronisation was our highest priority.
DiGiCo consoles were installed throughout FOH and monitor positions, managing the performances of artists such as Queen and Adam Lambert, Ed Sheeran, George Ezra, Duran Duran, Craig David and Andrea Bocelli, with three broadcast trucks, allocated one per stage. The audio system's full console list included five Quantum 7 and three Quantum 338 consoles from DiGiCo's elite range, alongside an SD5, SD10, and the compact SD11i from the industry standard SD range, with 19 supporting SD Racks, five mini racks and several DMI/Orange boxes. Quantum 7 consoles were installed either end of the Orchestral stage, managed by Simon Fox at FOH and Billy Birks on monitors. On the north, Rock and Pop stage, an Q7 was selected for FOH and a Q7 for monitors, manned by Stefano Serpagli and Phil Down, respectively. Finally, on the QVM stage, an SD10 was chosen for FOH, managed by Chris Vass, and a Quantum 338 at monitors for James Neale.
All the FOH boards were fed into a separate Quantum 7 console which acted as a matrix mixer, and from there into a TiMax immersive spatial system for distribution via an L-Acoustics PA system. Each FOH console could send feeds to its own dedicated OB truck for broadcast duties, one of which was installed with an SD7, and mixes could be returned to stage from FOH for monitor mixes. The team utilised gain sharing on the orchestra stage as it had a huge channel count of 192. All monitor consoles across the stages had access to feeds from every other stage, so they could dovetail from the stage before them to the stage after, selecting any inputs and content they needed for their mix.
This design meant I could navigate all the busses through the master Q7 console, so the engineers had the choice of which buss to use, so it would all be time synchronised. Also, if there were any last minute staging changes, we could just reallocate the buss, explains Milton. The matrix Q7, additionally took all guest speaker mic feeds and VT packages which could be placed on top of whatever else was coming through, and the monitor access was managed by bussing everything through the Q7. It played out like a choreographed performance bussing all FOH feeds in that manner, with all three stages mixed independently for the broadcast trucks, and then the celebrity guest speakers could be mixed in around it.
It was DiGiCo's buss structure that made the timeline synchronisation possible. Being able to organise settings in a particular way was a huge advantage, whether the consoles were used for delay for one part of the show, or as the main system on another part as the action rolled from stage to stage, notes Josh Lloyd, Head of Engineering - Event Support at Brit Row. DiGiCo also offered great flexibility and built-in redundancy, as not only was the Q7 master console running Dante, we also had several Orange boxes offering a wealth of network options. For things that were show critical, being able to support multiple formats was a huge advantage, as we needed to connect MADI, Dante, AES and analogue devices.
Following a detailed pre-production period, the onsite set up was swift due to DiGiCo's offline planning and design tools. The event schedule stretched over four days, with Trouping of the Colour and Lighting of the Beacons on Thursday, full dress rehearsal on Friday, pre-show on the Jubilee Concert on Saturday, and the Pageant show and Mall procession on Sunday.
The cable runs for the events were long some up to 300m to the stage - but as DiGiCo operates on Optocore, the team were able to connect all the consoles to the Optocore Festival box and run them back through two fibre optic cables. Some of the DiGiCos were located at a distance from their stage boxes. For example, the Queen monitor consoles and the QVM monitor console were a good 100 - 150 metres from their stage boxes.
The Optocore Festival box and its easy plug n play integration was definitely a highlight for us, says Tom Brown, Brit Row Account Manager. DiGiCo's ability to drop things on to the Optocore network to have I/O locally and also remotely really helped. The ability to move things around the loop was very helpful. For instance, we could have analogue outboard next to the monitor console, yet the in-ear devices local to the performer.
DiGiCo is always my first choice, so I always knew DiGiCo was part and parcel of the event from the outset, says Milton. All the engineers were comfortable with it and all the acts used the concert boards it's a rider pleaser. I didn't have to bring in any other consoles, apart from for
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
09/06/2026
Last month, Spotify hosted PURE FLOWERS LIVE, a special event celebrating the re...
09/06/2026
Last month, RADAR U.K. artist Skye Newman took the stage in East London for a sp...
09/06/2026
Company to cease operating on 30 June 2026
Australian loudspeaker and amplifier manufacturer Wayne Jones Audio have announced that after much consideration,...
09/06/2026
Increases low-end weight and character
The latest plug-in release from Sheffield-based fedDSP aims to offer an all-in-one solution for users in search of mo...
09/06/2026
Introduces AI Studio Assistant, Moises Studio integration & more
Fender Studio have just announced the launch a significant update that brings an array of n...
09/06/2026
The BBC has found its Hercule Poirot.
After Deadline revealed last month that t...
09/06/2026
X-Rite Pantone Launches Offset360 to Modernize Color Control Across Existing Pre...
09/06/2026
09 Jun 2026
VEON Appoints Serkan Ozturk as Chief of Staff & Strategy Officer Dubai and New York, June 9, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON), a global digital oper...
09/06/2026
Tuesday 9 June 2026
Katie Price: Nothing to Hide, a candid and unfiltered accou...
09/06/2026
Enni Continues to Rely on Arvato Systems - And Will Be Using AEP.EnerS4 Billing Solution
Arvato Systems to implement transformation project for SAP S/4HANA Ut...
09/06/2026
These special programmes will highlight RT 's connection with the Irish diaspora
This year, RT is marking 100 years of public broadcasting in Ireland with...
08/06/2026
At Spotify, our commitment to the LGBTQIA community is year-round. Through GLOW, our global music program, we celebrate and amplify the contributions of queer ...
08/06/2026
Get Hands-on With Keyboard & Synth Brands
GearExpo UK wouldn't be complete without some synth action, and we've got some of the industry's most ...
08/06/2026
50 popular in-ear monitoring system profiles added
The latest update for IK Multimedia's headphone-correction system has just arrived, and introduces ca...
08/06/2026
Manny Marroquin signature cans upgraded with SLAM Technology
The flagship model in Audeze's Manny Marroquin Signature Series has just been treated to an...
08/06/2026
Air domain supremacy redefined - New counter UAS, space solutions and directiona...
08/06/2026
he BBC and BritBox have announced that Edward Bluemel (We Might Regret This, My ...
08/06/2026
Plus, 20% off TVs ahead of kick-offMonday 8 June 2026
Sky introduces Real Time...
08/06/2026
FOX Secures Live NFL Game Package in Mexico Starting in Fall 2026 Agreement Features Thursday Night Football, Sunday Games Package, Thanksgiving Day Games, al...
08/06/2026
FOX One, FOX Sports and Indeed Name Austin Franklin and Kevin Akoto as FOX One C...
08/06/2026
Meet us on the show floor
Stand #286310 Discover Nara, the media management tool used by major facilities including Harbor and Molinare.
Nara v2 introduces re...
08/06/2026
L'art de l'Image dans Reflet dans un diamant mort' Une conversation avec le directeur de la photographie Manuel Dacosse, SBC et l' talonneur Pe...
08/06/2026
Embracing today's modern media workflows: FilmLight presents Nara 2.0, with FilmLight API Designed to support the growing demands of today's production ...
08/06/2026
Moderated by Andy Minuth, FilmLight's Colour Workflow Specialist
Wednesday 18 February
6:00pm / Doors open
7:00pm / Presentation in German
8:00pm / Drin...
08/06/2026
Join us on April 14 at 10:00am for a technical roundtable with the Filmlight dev...
08/06/2026
You're invited to FLAPI Classroom The fundamentals of coding and machine-assisted development
These sessions will help you build the skills needed to cre...
08/06/2026
With Sylvain Canaux (St Louis, Paris) and J r me Cloutier (MELS, Montreal)
Wednesday 6 May
Pick your time: 1:00PM / 5:00PM
Note: The presentation will be hel...
08/06/2026
FilmLight, 1107 N El Centro Ave, Los Angeles
Doors open at 3:30pm
Join the FilmLight team on June 9th at 4pm to learn how FilmLight products and APIs can stre...
08/06/2026
The Creators List launched to Help Brands Connect With Top Creators In CannesThe curated directory launched by Tubefilter, Comscore, Whalar Group and Gospel Sta...
08/06/2026
Irish YouTube star DavidMC joins Aisling O'Reilly to tackle all things socce...
07/06/2026
Company introduce 21 new protective covers
Decksaver have just announced their Sping 2026 Drop, which sees a total of 21 new models added to their ever-grow...
07/06/2026
Sunday 7 June 2026
Dynamo Vs Houdini comes to Sky later this year
The last time the world saw Dynamo, he buried himself alive. This weekend, he returned.
Mom...
06/06/2026
Check Out Leading Monitor Brands
We'll have monitors of all shapes and sizes at GearExpo UK, so whether you're looking to upgrade or expand your set...
06/06/2026
Two Originals offerings join MPC line-up
Following on from their partnership announcement at NAMM 2026, Spitfire Audio and Akai Pro have announced the relea...
05/06/2026
Built from the same recordings as flagship library
Sonuscore's LUX Orchestral Strings has been met with widespread praise since its launch in late 2025,...
05/06/2026
High-end converter, interface & headphone amp upgraded
Said to represent the next evolution of RME's all-in-one reference converter concept, the all-new...
05/06/2026
Win a Soundgas Type 636P & Type G preamps
Soundgas, one of the UK's leading vintage and boutique audio equipment specialists have just announced the lau...
05/06/2026
New leadership of Technology Systems Division at Rohde & Schwarz On July 1, 2026, Hansj rg Herrbold and Andreas H gele will take over as Executive Vice Presid...
05/06/2026
Hitachi and Intel announced a strategic collaboration to explore opportunities t...
05/06/2026
05 Jun 2026
VEON's Kyivstar to Expand Digital Mobility Ecosystem with Acqui...
05/06/2026
RT Radio 1 Folk Awards to take place on Tuesday 10th November 2026, Vicar Street, Dublin
Moya Brennan, D nal Lunny, Mary Black and Christy Moore among previou...
04/06/2026
Steinberg DAWs now boast in-depth Tonalic integration
Celemony's innovative virtual session musician plug-in has just received an update that brings ARA...
04/06/2026
Get Hands-On With Over 20 Mic Brands
GearExpo UK is fast approaching, and if you've been looking for a chance to check out some new mics, then you'r...
04/06/2026
Combos feature new Amplifier Intelligence engine
Positive Grid's latest release sees the company introduce two new combo amplifiers that promise to offe...
04/06/2026
BackStory follows four Irish young people as they travel back to their parents' homelands
Modern Irish identity is enriched by cultures and influences from...
03/06/2026
Step sequencer-style panning tool revealed
Alongside their flagship self-titled sound-design platform, Sound Particles offer an array of creative effects an...
Staged by BBC Studios for a live audience of 22,000, and broadcast to over 13 million viewers, DiGiCo consoles played a central role in an intricate audio design by Ben Milton Associates, that managed three discrete stages and complex time alignment.
