How to resolve AdBlock issue? Allen & Heath dLive Duo for Islington Assembly Hall
One of north London’s most popular music venues, Islington Assembly Hall has played host to an eclectic mix of artists since it re-opened its doors in 2010, including Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Fred Again, Skepta, Ed Sheeran, Jessie Ware, Doechii and Laura Mvula to name a few. The venue, which dates back to 1930, offers a full line-up of everything from folk and blues, electronic, pop, soul, rock, metal and r’n’b each month. IAH recently took delivery of a complete Allen & Heath dLive digital mixing system, comprising an S5000 surface at front of house with an S3000 at monitors. Each surface is partnered by a 48 input / 24 output dLive DM48 MixRack equipped with Dante 64x64 audio networking card.
The dLive system – along with analogue splits and cases – was supplied by audio specialists Patchwork London following a visit to the venue in 2024, as the company’s Sales Director Louis Jemmott explains: “Our Senior Project Manager Chris Parker visited IAH during a run of shows in December 2024 and began discussions with the venue’s Technical Manager, Tom Watt about upgrading their existing mixers,” he says. “While various options were discussed, we quickly felt that dLive was the best option for the venue’s requirements. We began with demos of a compact dLive C1500 and CDM32 MixRack and ultimately settled on the S-Class surfaces as being the ideal solution.”
“The dLive stands out as the most thoughtfully designed platform,” agrees Watt. “It’s intuitive, flexible and powerful, but it also doesn’t let you over-engineer a show to the point of slowing yourself down. That balance is important for us. “A compact footprint is also a big consideration for in-house desks these days and I’m really happy with how many channels and control features the surfaces manage to pack in without taking up unnecessary space. A large proportion of the desks that visiting engineers bring in are Allen & Heath – often dLive – so having the S5000 in particular gives them the option of working on a larger surface if they prefer.”
“dLive is a very rider-friendly system at this point,” Jemmott continues, “which is important for a venue of this type. It’s easy for in-house and touring engineers – and even local apprentices and trainees – to use, while offering real flexibility and great sonic performance. It’s proving to be perfect for IAH and the wide range of events and gigs they host.” Watt sums up his thoughts on the dLive system by saying, “I’m a sound engineer by background and having spent time behind the desk recently I genuinely love it. It sounds fantastic and feels like the natural evolution of the previous generations. Everything is exactly where you want it to be, and it’s incredibly quick to troubleshoot. I’m really happy with our choice, and all of our house engineers agree it’s the best fit for our venue.”