Toby Francis Drives Grand National Tour at FOH

Los Angeles, CA (July 29, 2025)—Toby Francis is well known for lugging racks of analog outboard along with him on tour, and his current gig at front-of-house with Kendrick Lamar and SZA is no exception.

Francis has taken an analog approach on the road with Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ariana Grande and Katy Perry, and for Lamar and SZA’s The Grand National Tour, he has once again with a system based around two 23-space racks of analog outboard gear connected via Dante using Focusrite RedNet A16Rs. “I’ve used RedNet A16Rs for about seven years, and they’ve never failed me,” Francis says. “They’re rock solid, sound incredible, and from my perspective, were purpose-built for the road. I’ve got four A16Rs out on this tour—three active and one spare—but I’ve never had to swap out a single unit.”

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The racks interface with a Rupert Neve 5060 Centerpiece summing mixer. A DiGiCo Orange Box converts Dante to Optocore, ensuring all FOH inserts are mirrored across both engines of the dual-console setup. Using a DiGiCo Quantum 852 console at FOH to create mixes heard through the tour’s Clair Global-provided Cohesion P.A. system, Francis is again running multiple RedNet A16R analog interfaces and D64R MADI bridges to enable high-channel-count Dante connectivity.

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Given his love of analog vibes, the RedNet units are crucial: “I love transformers and tubes, and I mix with a lot of analog gear because I want every nuance to come through. RedNet converters let me hear all those details clearly, and that translates into the big, deep low end and immersive dynamics Kendrick’s team wants to deliver every night.”