In the 40 years since Yamaha produced its first professional audio mixer, every new generation of the company’s mixing consoles has become an industry standard. November 2014 sees the birth of a new era in live sound mixing, as Yamaha launches the RIVAGE PM10.
Yamaha’s PM1D and PM5D digital mixers have been a mainstay of large scale live productions throughout the world for more than a decade – be they touring live music, festivals, theatre, musicals, dance, municipal or corporate events. Bringing yet greater levels of quality, flexibility, functionality and reliability to the iconic PM name, the RIVAGE PM10 is a brand new flagship which will again redefine the direction of the digital audio mixing industry.
New Rupert Neve Desing Microphone Preamplifiers
RIVAGE PM10 features many exceptional Yamaha innovations, delivering a true industry milestone for large format digital mixers. At the core of the RIVAGE PM10 is Yamaha’s quest to deliver the very best possible sound. This is achieved with the newly-developed RY16-ML-SILK Hybrid Microphone Preamplifier.
This unique design features an analogue section which delivers supremely consistent, natural-sounding audio, even at high gain levels. It is partnered with a 96kHz, 24-bit A/D converter, followed by enhanced Yamaha VCM digital modelling of Rupert Neve Designs transformer circuitry and acclaimed Silk processing.
The audio engineer can have a completely transparent audio input path or, using the Silk Red and Blue modes and the Texture control in the console’s selected channel, can be very creative with the colour and character of each individual input.
With RIVAGE PM10, Yamaha has taken its collaboration with other manufacturers much further. As well as forging closer ties with Rupert Neve in the development of the RY16-ML-SILK, new VCM models of the Rupert EQ773, Rupert Comp 754, Rupert EQ810 and Rupert Comp 830 are featured.
TC Electronic reverb
Not only that, but Yamaha has worked with TC Electronic to include two stunning reverbs, the VSS4HD room simulation reverb and the highly creative “NonLin2” stereo reverb, as featured in their popular System 6000 devices.
Yamaha has also been working closely with Eventide to add the H3000-Live Ultra-Harmonizer as a future standard inclusion in the RIVAGE PM10 system.
More flexible user interface
The system is operated via a user interface that will be familiar to every Yamaha console user, yet which delivers even more flexible operating possibilities.
One of the most important and attractive aspects of the RIVAGE PM10 control surface is a full Selected Channel section. This was a key element of the PM1D and PM5D consoles and is a fundamental aspect of the design for RIVAGE PM10’s user interface.
24 of the control surface’s channel strips extend virtually seamlessly into the twin, 15-inch touchscreen displays, while rotary encoders feature ‘horseshoe’ ring indicators for optimum visibility. A third display screen can be added via a DVI socket, if required.
Further innovations include greatly enhanced Scene functions, dual monitor busses, the ability to run up to 384 effects processors at once and four USB connections for data storage, mouse/keyboard control and two track USB recording.
A new TWINLANe ring network and still DANTE
The backbone of the RIVAGE PM10 system is Yamaha’s newly developed TWINLANe ring network, which can handle up to 400 audio channels at 96kHz, 32-bit over distances of up to 300 metres. TWINLANe can connect up to eight RPio622 i/o units and, at launch, up to two CS-R10 control surfaces and up to two DSP-R10 DSP engines. (This will be expandable with a future upgrade.)
Up to 96 mic preamps per RPio622
Image RPio622_TiltA + RPio-Rear The RPio622 features six of Yamaha’s new RY card slots, into which can be inserted three different types of i/o card, providing up to 96 mic preamps per rack. In addition, the RPio622 and DSP-R10 feature the new HY card slots (two and four respectively) for further i/o (One HY card slot in both the RPio622 and DSP-R10 is needed to connect the units to the TWINLANe network), while all three hardware components of the system feature two of Yamaha’s familiar MY card slots.
With the CS-R10 control surface also featuring 8 x 8 local analogue i/o and 8 x 8 AES3 i/o with sample rate conversion, a fully-expanded RIVAGE PM10 system can accommodate over 3000 i/o.
Multitrack recording by HY-Dante
A new, optional HY-Dante card can be used to integrate multitrack recording or other hardware, including other Yamaha digital consoles. In all, RIVAGE PM10 is one of the most powerful and flexible digital mixing systems ever developed.
The ultimate digital mixing systems?
“For a number of years, the industry has been asking when Yamaha will launch a new, state-of-the-art digital console for large scale productions. We have always said that, when it comes, it will be as much a landmark for the industry as the PM1D and PM5D were. So I am very pleased to say that, with RIVAGE PM10, that time has arrived,” says Chihaya ‘Chick’ Hirai, Director of Pro Audio Business Unit, Yamaha Corporation of Japan.
“We believe that RIVAGE PM10 will be another pivotal moment in the history of digital audio mixing. It delivers a system which will be the most versatile, the most user-friendly and the most reliable for all larger events.
“We look forward to introducing sound engineers to RIVAGE PM10 and inspiring them with the dawn of a new age for live sound digital mixing systems.”
