Yamaha LS9-16
A compact digital desk that packs the DSP of Yamaha's big consoles into a frame one person can carry.
Overview
The LS9-16 is the smaller of two frame sizes in Yamaha's LS9 line. It gives up some channel count and gets portable in return. The 16-channel version carries 32 mono inputs with 16 onboard mic preamps. The larger LS9-32 doubles those figures to 64 mono inputs and 32 mic pres. Both share the same compact footprint, and both are built around the same processing engine. The inputs run through digitally controlled analog head-amps, the same preamps used in Yamaha's M7CL. They're fully recallable, so a scene change resets your gain structure along with everything else. Mic or line level arrives over the same XLR connection, which simplifies patching in the field.
The head-end architecture and much of the console's internal structure are set up identically to the M7CL. That means the LS9-16 gets the same per-channel four-band parametric EQ and dual dynamics processors as the larger, more expensive desk. The dynamics are selectable: compressor, gating, limiting, ducking, de-esser. Pro Audio Review (February 2008, p.80) noted that the LS9-16 shares the M7CL's effects, EQ, and dynamics, and that the internal sampling rate runs at either 44.1 or 48 kHz. That's a lot of processing per channel for the price.
Output routing works differently from most desks. The LS9 has a 16-bus structure with eight matrix outputs to stereo and mono, configurable as LCR if needed. All outputs are routed to "Omni" outs - the LS9-16 has eight of them - and there are no dedicated outputs anywhere on the console. Anything can be routed anywhere. That's handy once you get used to it, and a little disorienting the first time you reach for a fixed output that isn't there. The 16 mix busses can be set up as "Vario" for use as auxes, with pre- or post-fader sends per channel, or as "Fixed" for group-style operation. Expansion comes through the MY card slots, which accept additional I/O of various types - digital, analog via external preamps, CobraNet, even Aviom.
The LS9-16 was priced at $5,999 when it was introduced, with the LS9-32 at $10,999. Both figures were reported in Pro Audio Review (February 2008, p.80). Mix Magazine (2008, p.88) described the LS9 as part of Yamaha's ongoing effort to move advanced digital mixing technology down from the PM1D and PM5D into lower price points. It also described the desk as packing serious DSP power into a compact frame that a single person can transport.
A built-in MP3 recorder and a virtual effects rack round out the feature set, along with a USB recorder/player. The onboard effects library includes programs like de-esser and reverb patches drawn from the same pool as the larger consoles. Yamaha targeted live reinforcement, installation work, and houses of worship with it.
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