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eMotion LV1 Classic: Behind the Scenes

Jan 21, 2025 | 6,634 Views

Join Waves’ engineers and designers for an inside look at the making of eMotion LV1 Classic, the new live mixing console by Waves. The team behind LV1 Classic share the know-how and considerations that went into designing the console’s software and hardware.

An Inside Look with Waves’ Engineers & Product Creators

The recently released LV1 Classic has been rapidly making a significant impact in the pro audio industry. The highly innovative digital mixing console, known for its exceptional sound quality and user-friendly interface, has received an overwhelmingly positive response from the live sound community. Major productions have already placed their orders, and renowned engineers are among the early adopters praising the console’s performance.

We set out to talk to key players involved in the creation of the eMotion LV1 Classic: Waves CTO Meir Shashoua, Waves CEO Mick Olesh, Senior R&D Fellow Rich Cabot, Product Manager Yaniv Litmanovich, Mechanical Engineer Yuval Rom, Industrial Designer Boaz Dekel, Director of Hardware Engineering Ami Levi, and acclaimed FOH engineer Ken “Pooch” Van Druten, who served as a consultant for the console’s development. Join us as we explore how Waves conceived and realized its first fully fledged hardware mixing console.

Behind the Sound: Mix Engine to Preamps

“Our number-one goal,” says Waves founder and Chief Technology Officer Meir Shashoua, “was to deliver the most incredible-sounding hardware console, with absolutely zero compromise when it came to sound quality. LV1 Classic encapsulates all the knowledge we’ve accumulated at Waves over the years, into one device.”

“Our journey began by leveraging our considerable know-how, especially Waves’ vast experience in handling digital gain, compression and distortion, garnered through our extensive plugin development—and applying it to digital signal mixing. The heart of a mixer lies in its mix buses, and LV1 Classic excels in this area. All of LV1 Classic’s summing buses use double-precision processing, which ultimately enhances the sound quality you hear. The integration of this signal flow into the console offers a unique, unparalleled audio experience.”

“Our expertise in digital signal procssing and gain stages enabled us to create mixing buses with enormous headroom,” LV1 Classic’s Product Manager Yaniv Litmanovich adds, “while maintaining clarity and cleanliness at all gain levels. For years, Waves’ high management and I shared a common dream: to create a console that encompasses high-end, large-format console sound and capabilities, but in a small and compact form factor, with easy and intuitive navigation, along with an extensive array of exceptional sound processing options. Everything we did with regard to the console’s architecture was done in order to support that.”

Waves Signature Preamps

Equally crucial to LV1 Classic’s exceptional sound quality, alongside its mix engine, are the console’s preamps. “At some point,” Waves CEO Mick Olesh shares, “we realized that we had the LV1 software mixer, the SoundGrid DSP servers, and audio-optimized host computers on which to run everything—but what was missing for a top-grade console was an I/O system and, particularly, exceptional-sounding preamps.”

“This,” he says, “is where Rich Cabot—a technical genius—came into play.”

One of the founders of Audio Precision, the world-leading company specializing in high-performance audio analyzers and testing solutions, Rich Cabot joined Waves as Senior Research & Development Fellow just as the LV1 Classic project was kicking into higher gear.

“We developed Waves Signature Preamps specificlaly with LV1 in mind,” Cabot shares. “The result we aimed at was pristine sound quality and unmatched performance. Our original ground-up design incorporates fully discrete high-end analog circuits, in a way that delivers maximum headroom, lightning-fast transient response, and an incredibly low noise floor. These preamps are able to handle any source, with practically no restraints, and they feature a gain structure meticulously crafted to deliver a wide dynamic range and transients that do not clip.”

“Thanks to its 16 Waves Signature Preamps,” Cabot adds, “LV1 Classic has a clear advantage in being able to handle larger signals. This is a unit that operates without any restraints. The user can be confident: as long as you adjust your input gain, you are good to go. We made certain that every part of the audio chain is designed carefully, so that no link in the chain is weaker than others. This ensures that Waves Signature Preamps have enough dynamic range to handle your audio correctly. They can handle massive common mode interference without driving the input into misbehavior.”

“I’ve worked closely with the rest of the Waves team,” he adds, “to make sure that the end product fit the requirements of the Waves customer base and beyond. Meir developed the digital distortion modeling that’s built right into the hardware, so it doesn’t consume plugin resources. Yaniv’s critical ear fine-tuned the algorithm parameters to get a classic analog sound that must be heard to be believed. This required me to perform at my absolute best in order to match Waves’ proven high standards.”

“Live sound is very demanding,” Cabot notes. “Close-miked vocals, kick drum and condenser mics, all conspire to produce very high output levels. eMotion Classic LV1 can handle those with ease, and its Waves Signature Preamps rock. They will handle anything you throw at them.”

“The combination of the LV1 mix engine with our own Waves preamps, developed with Rich at the helm,” Mick Olesh sums up, “has created a system that is truly unique in the industry.”

Full Plugin Integration

LV1 Classic’s sonic capabilities are rounded off by its integration of processing plugins. “By adding a rack of plugins at each input,” Product Manager Yaniv Litmanovich explains, “we successfully maximized sound quality for each individual input, rather than relying on a pool of processing for the entire console.”

Ken “Pooch” Van Druten, the acclaimed FOH engineer for top acts ranging from Iron Maiden, Linkin Park and Kiss to Justin Bieber and Jay Z, and winner of the prestigious Parnelli Award, served as a hands-on consultant for the LV1 Classic project. As he points out, “eMotion LV1 Classic is a culmination of numerous experienced engineers and designers, coming together to create one of the best live sound consoles on the market today. It is gratifying to have contributed to the evolution of this tour-de-force of a console.”

“LV1 Classic is crafted with precision,” Pooch adds, “and is designed to deliver the best possible mix. From the front end, to the summing, LV1 Classic delivers phenomenal-sounding results—not to mention that the Waves plugin catalog is at my fingertips on every input and every bus/group. eMotion LV1 Classic is a loud-and-proud statement that Waves is a formidable player in the live sound console market.”

A New Breed of Live Sound Mixers: LV1 Classic’s Industrial Design

Refining the user experience, optimizing workflow, ensuring a reliably rugged build, and honing the desk’s aesthetics—all have been key considerations in the console’s physical design. “LV1 Classic represents a new breed of live sound mixers,” Waves Industrial Designer Boaz Dekel notes. “On the one hand, the design was meant to break the mold of what is expected from a product of this class. On the other hand, the console was designed to inspire confidence, instill a sense of familiarity, be absolutely robust, and facilitate a frictionless experience.”

“The large 21.5” touch-screen,” he explains, “is a novel approach for interfacing with a live mixer, and it’s the centerpiece of the unit. The chassis was essentially designed around the screen, with ergonomic and anthropometric considerations to ensure maximum usability and comfort, while at the same time giving the console the protective ruggedness it needs in the demanding realities of live sound.”

He continues, “The knob and fader caps feature fresh custom designs. The faders are all-new 100mm Alps faders. The surfacing of the fader cap—a modeling technique employed in automotive design—ensures an organic feel, orienting and centering the finger on the cap in an instinctive, tactile way. The cutaways on both the left and right sides of each fader cap mark the centerline of the cap, offering visual and tactile indicator of the fader’s position. eMotion LV1 Classic is a high-performance mixing console within a compact and elegant package. Its industrial design guarantees intuitive usability and functionality, comfort, and meticulous attention to detail where it matters the most.”

LV1 Classic

Ami Levi, Waves’ Director of Hardware and Firmware Engineering, remarks about the unique and special integration and digital aspect of the electronic components in the LV1 Classic, especially as far as the integrity of the system and its test procedure. “We aimed for state-of-the-art integration of the on-board IO and DSP with SoundGrid components, using high-end network devices to create optimal architecture. The result is a high-performance audio network. The digital architecture is designed to withstand various extreme operating conditions. Furthermore, it features a dual power supply architecture, which enables seamless power backup.”

“We meticulously invested in the quality of the precision audio clock,” he adds, “since at the end of the day, a digital system relies on a word-clock. All the digital signals in the system need to be clocked/timed: from SoundGrid Ethernet audio transport protocol, to digital, then to analog, and from analogue back to digital converters. This clock is transmitted to all the components within the Waves SoundGrid system. The better the clock, the better the sound you get.”

Yuval Rom, Waves Senior Mechanical Engineer, describes the console’s physical build: “The LV1 Classic console design is extremely robust. It has a rigid structure made out of light, high-quality materials which can withstand various mechanical vibrations and shock/drop tests. The thermal design includes high airflow, yet quiet fans, and a series of thoughtfully placed vent holes to enable sustained performance in high temperature. These crucial aspects were lab-tested in accordance with the strictest standards.”

Regarding Waves’ testing procedures, Ami Levi adds: “We pushed the unit through a process called ESS (Environmental Stress Screening), a method developed by NASA in the late 60s to make sure that the Apollo mission will reach and return from its destination. Basically, this process is to eliminate potential defects in electronic components and assemblies before they are deployed in space missions. We incorporated this system for the LV1 Classic by performing vibration tests and thermal hot/cold cycles. We pushed the units through 48 hours of temperature cycles from -30°C to 75°C (-22°F to 167°F), and tested the console using aggressive vibration by changing vibration frequencies randomly to simulate truck vibrations or actual dropping of the console on a hard surface.”

Enter Stage Center: LV1 Classic in 2025

LV1 Classic’s sound and build have been winning it rave reactions among leading live sound engineers since the console’s release in late 2024. FOH engineer Wil Madera, who plans to take LV1 Classic on the road with Pitbull in 2025, remarks: “I’ve fallen in love with this console. The sound—there’s nothing like it. I’ve been mixing shows with LV1 software mixers for years, so I know the sound of the LV1 very well: it enables me to give my shows the same polished sound that you hear on the studio records. But now this sound is available to us in a great hardware console. The build is great: the faders, the shape of the console, the tilt of the screen where you can see everything very clearly—it all feels so good, and I just want to keep mixing with it.”

FOH engineer and producer John Buitrago (Karol G, Don Toliver, J Balvin)—also a long-time LV1 user—notes, “One of the biggest challenges in our industry is quality vs. size vs. cost. This console is a game changer for me. We finally have a small console, sounding like the big consoles—even better!—with less space, less weight, less budget. I’m proud to have been part of the process, consulting on the creation of this console, and I can’t wait to start using it on the road.”

The eMotion LV1 Classic’s unique advantages for houses-of-worship are confirmed by Jeff Sandstrom, FOH engineer for Chris Tomlin and a leading voice in the house-of-worship audio community via the MxU platform: “eMotion LV1 Classic is the perfect solution for churches in need of uncompromising sound fidelity and powerful processing,” he says, “all in a compact form factor.”

Waves CTO, Meir Shashoua concludes: “eMotion LV1 Classic delivers the best possible sound quality, ease of use, and light portability. It combines superior audio excellence with innovative UX and flexible built-in processing that is unrivaled in today’s console market. Whether you’re an FOH, monitor or broadcast engineer, this console will deliver superior detailed live mixes in any situation or setting. I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved here, and I am happy to see the enthusiastic response from the community of live sound engineers.”

Learn more about eMotion LV1 Classic

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