Monitors for Nando - DM7-EX Meets the Challenges of 160 Show Brazil Tour

When faced with 160 shows in multiple types of venue with different band lineups, Brazilian monitor engineer Alexandre Simi knew he could rely on the Yamaha DM7-EX digital mixing console to reliably deliver a great mix to every performer every night.

Alexandre Simi has been a live sound engineer in Brazil since 2000. Working with many rental companies and artists, his career highlights have included the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the 2016 Rio Olympics and the annual, world famous Copacabana New Year celebrations. He has also worked with a wide range of artists who are well-known in Brazil, such as Skank, Lô Borges, Pitty, Titãs and Nando Reis.

In 2024 Nando Reis performed 160 concerts throughout Brazil, which featured three different line-ups of musicians.

For his ‘Hits’ shows, the band comprised drums, bass, keyboards, guitar and acoustic guitar, needing 40 input channels, 10 stereo and seven mono monitor sends.

For the tour promoting his Uma Estrela Misteriosa (A Mysterious Star) album, it was drums, bass, two guitars, keyboards and two acoustic guitars, needing 43 input channels, 10 stereo and nine mono monitor sends.

Finally, for Nando’s solo Voz e Violão (vocals and guitar) shows, eight input channels, four stereo and four mono monitor sends were needed.

Not only this, the concerts took place in a wide variety of venues - ranging from outdoor public spaces, beaches and festivals to theatres, hotel venues and even shows in private residences.

As the monitor engineer, these shows presented Alexandre with a significant challenge. He needed a mixing console with at least 48 mix buses, which would consistently deliver a high quality mix to every musician, regardless of which line-up was playing and what venue each show was in.

However, touring logistics meant that a large format console was not an option, but a compact one could mean too many compromises on the mixing features. On top of that, of course it had to be ultra-reliable, while travelling thousands of miles around the world’s fifth largest country.

Alexandre is a long term user of Yamaha digital mixing consoles, saying that likes the high end flexibility of the operating system, as well as the well-renowned reliability. The DM7-EX was the perfect combination of size, channel capacity and features which he knew he could trust to deliver consistently good monitor mixes for the 160 Nando Reis shows.

"As a monitor engineer, I've never had a problem with a Yamaha console that would prevent me from finishing a show,” he says.

Alexandre had previously used a Yamaha RIVAGE PM10 digital mixing system in 2023 for the major Econtro tour, which brought the original line-up of Nando’s previous band Titãs back together. Having chosen the DM7-EX for the 2024 shows, he describes it as ‘the remarkable compact’.

“I was impressed by the 96kHz sound and love the native plug-ins. In particular, the DaNSe noise suppressor helped to achieve a clear sound in the acoustic guitar channel, even in a noisy environment,” he says.

The console was supplied by Rio-based MAC Audio Sound Services, along with two Rio3224-D2 I/O racks.

“The system was perfect for Alexandre, and we helped him to program the system with the speed he needed,” says MAC Audio CEO Fred. “We have worked with Yamaha Brasil’s pro audio team for many years, the operational support is always available and they are very easy to work with.”