ResonantLive Sound Archive

Equipment file · Digital live console

Vi6

Soundcraft · 2006

Evidence status · documented

Identity and core specifications are documented; some historical fields remain unavailable.

The Soundcraft Vi6 was Soundcraft's first large-format digital live console, developed with Studer from its Vista broadcast platform. It offered 64 inputs on two layers of 32 motorised faders and the Vistonics II touchscreen interface with knobs mounted on the glass.

Introduced
2006
Category
Digital live console
Intended use
Large-format touring and installed mixing
Production
Soundcraft with Studer (Harman)

Equipment photographs · 1

Soundcraft Vi6 monitor world. Delta rehearsal @ Trackdown

1 / 1 · Soundcraft Vi6 monitor world. Delta rehearsal @ Trackdown

Soundcraft Vi6 monitor world. Delta rehearsal @ Trackdown·Duncan Underwood·CC BY 2.0

Why it mattered

  1. 01

    It brought Studer's broadcast interface to touring, competing with VENUE and the PM5D.

    Pictured in this passage
    PM5DYamaha PM5DLokoz · CC BY 2.0
  2. 02

    SSE Hire ordered the first four within a month of launch.

Engineering record

Architecture
64 inputs, 32 motorised faders, 32 group/aux outputs, up to 16 matrix[1]
Interface
Vistonics II touchscreens with integral rotary controls[2]

Original pricing

No reliable period price located

2026 equivalent

Not calculated without a reliable original price.

Public price evidence was not sufficient to publish a defensible original figure.

Use in the field

SSE Hire ordered the first four Vi6 consoles in 2006[3]

Professional reactions

Release-period reaction · 15 December 2006

Russell said he understood how to mix on the Vi6 within two minutes of first seeing it. He especially valued the visible information and layout for Thunder’s hands-on, largely unprogrammed live mix.

Pete Russell, Thunder front-of-house engineer; SSE project managerFirst Vi6 tour with Thunder; Russell had been involved with its development program. · Manufacturer-published case study · Paraphrased account[4]Front of House (FOH) · Thunder Rolls with Soundcraft Vi6

Later recollection · 10 October 2007

Olp said trying the Vi6 at the 2006 AES convention convinced him to go digital. Its Vistonics interface felt intuitive and friendly compared with alternatives, and he valued having the information visible across the screens.

Kelly Olp, Faith Chapel chief audio technician2007 installation account recalling the initial 2006 audition. · Manufacturer-published case study · Paraphrased account[5]Front of House (FOH) · Church Comes into 21st Century with Soundcraft

Manuals & original documents

No authoritative manual or original document has been located for this profile.

Sources

  1. 1Large-format digital live desk Vi6 by Soundcraftpro-music-news · archive
  2. 2Soundcraft Unveils Large Format Digital Live ConsoleMix · archive · 2006-03-23
  3. 3SSE Orders First Soundcraft Vi6 Digital ConsolesLightSoundJournal · archive · 2006-05-26
  4. 4Thunder Rolls with Soundcraft Vi6Front of House (FOH) · interview · 15 December 2006
  5. 5Church Comes into 21st Century with SoundcraftFront of House (FOH) · interview · 10 October 2007

Contribute to the record

Know more about Vi6?

Corrections, firsthand information, original documents, and credited photograph sources are welcome.

Your email is private and will not appear in the archive. Contributions are not published automatically.

Back to all equipment Back to Digital control and the line array

Help build the archive

A missing piece? A correction?

Contribute to Resonant
Support the archiveVenmo@mercer-aplinCash App$MercerAplinHow it’s used