Yamaha QL5 vs TF5

[jaminian]

We are wanting to purchase a QL5. But need to be able to justify spending £12500 instead of £3000.

 

I know that the QL5 is of a better build quality. Are there any other features or specs that makes the QL5 more superior?

Was thinking of using two TIO stage boxes with the QL5 to cut down on costs.

 

Thanks.

[Simon Lewis]

There's quite a jump in terms of flexibility, user interface and capability.... Any argument you have to present is going to be more convincing if it is based on your actual needs and the equipment's actual capability?

The TF5 offers a simplified user interface and a relatively small screen. Although a good desk, there are many in the industry who tend to write it off as too simplified and poor an interface for their needs. If you want to use the Tio stagebox with it, you'll need to pay for the Dante card as well.

 

You've not given any indication of your needs or whether it has to be Yamaha desk. However, although Yamaha make some excellent products I would certainly be considering A&H GLD80 and Midas M32 as well...

[Bryson]

We have a QL5 and a QL1.

 

What you have to think about is that when you buy a digital console, you're not just buying the console - it's also mostly replacing your outboard rack. (In our case, we were able to remove 2m of racked equipment!). So all of those little quality bumps add up.

 

So, the QL has: 64 + 8 possible channels vs 40 + 2 on the TF5, much more sophisticated control of dynamics processors, Dugan automixer, nicer head amps, built-in Dante, larger touchscreen, AES/EBU output, friendlier/more useful scene recall, ability to "cascade" a second console to expand capacity (we use our QL1 in this way to get us to 86 channels), nicer faders. There's probably more, but that's the bulk of it.

 

The other thing you should consider is rider-friendliness. I don't know if you're a rental house or not, but if you are, the TF5 might be a hard sell to rental clients.

[Stuart91]

The other thing you should consider is rider-friendliness. I don't know if you're a rental house or not, but if you are, the TF5 might be a hard sell to rental clients.

 

The OP's profile says that he is an AV technician in a school. So riders and cross-hire attractiveness are less likely to factor into the decision.

 

Some schools have quite sophisticated consoles (I know of one that has recently bought Digico, as a very welcome replacement for an LS9) however the vast majority will balk at the cost of anything in the QL league.

 

In terms of justifying it to the bean-counters, you'd need to make a business case for having it, ahead of other alternatives. Are you renting in consoles to cover requirements at the moment? Can you point at capabilities on the QL5 that will improve the end results? Even if you are struggling with an old, inadequate console, the people signing the cheques may not have noticed anything amiss with the audio quality at events that they've attended, so it may be a hard sell.

 

Also, think about training. Schools are notorious for buying kit that then goes to waste when the only staff member that understands it move on.

[SDA Audio]

Just wondering why you're limiting yourself to the Yamaha desks?

 

A venue within a school I work in opened in 2010 and has an LS9-32 in their main room. If you opened the room now, with the budget they had, it would have an M32 and DL16s minimum. However that's only because at that time the X/M32 and Soundcraft/Allen&Heath options didn't exist really.

 

My experience of the TF series desks is that they're basically digital desk shaped toys. I'd rather walk up to an LS9. The GLD80, M32, Midas Pro1 would all (just about) come in at the same price as a QL1. Whether you get any of the others or a QLx, you'll have a great desk. But don't limit yourself to Yamaha unless you have to.