Is there a plug and play (ish) solution to have physical remote Dlive faders? Something like the new Xzone k3 would be the perfect size and layout. The ME or IP remotes are probably overkill. Also I cannot have a pc/mac in between, the whole purpose is to save space 
The IP Controllers are the “official” A&H solution you are looking for. The IP6 has 6 encoders and the IP8 has 8 faders. Both are pretty customizable and allow you to program them to work as needed. The IP6 is the same size as the ME units. The IP8 is definitely larger, but not huge IMHO.
FYI - you cannot use an ME device to control channels/busses on the console. It is a self contained personal mixer and it can only control that single mix which can only be outputted on the ME device’s headphone outputs. So that option isn’t going to work in this situation.
There is another alternative however….. The third party app Mixing Station supports MIDI controllers in a way that the A&H consoles don’t support [natively]. This option obviously requires a device running Mixing Station, but it doesn’t have to be a computer. You can connect a MIDI controller to a phone or tablet tablet running Mixing Station and it works great too. I do it quite regularly with Android tablets/phones and I’ve never had a problem. I believe it will work with iOS devices as well (at least those running recent versions), but I haven’t tried it myself. You’ll also have a screen setting it up this way, so it’s a dual purpose solution that likely saves space vs having an external monitor. If space was really a factor, running it off a phone that is simply tucked away really wouldn’t take up any more space IMHO.
FYI - The Mixing Station device does not need to be hard wired to the system either (although it can be hard wired if that is desired). You can connect the tablet to the console over Wifi and the Midi device to the tablet over USB, and it will work normally.
Mixing station is great but the solution is too complex for what i need in this scenario. Basically I need a way to give 3 or 4 physical faders to director’s or guest technicians who only send a couple of channels (mostly via Qlab) to the mains, but want faders since they are also doing lights and/video, and at my venue’s foh, audio and light desks are too far apart to be controlled by one person. Hence one of the two desks needs to be remoted in depending on which one needs more interaction. The IP8 is perfect if not a bit too big, and way to expensive.
Was looking at the Novation Launch Control XL3, price is affordable…
The root of the problem stems from the fact that A&H does not have a very robust MIDI control protocol set up. This means you cannot simply plug in a MIDI controller and program it to work with the DLive (or any of the A&H consoles). The consoles simply don’t support the MIDI commands needed to make it work. You’ll have to use some sort of MIDI converter - something that takes the MIDI commands and converts it into the A&H command protocol language that it does understand. Mixing Station is the easiest way to do this because all of the work is already done for you. It might be possible to do this with a Bome Box or another MIDI converter, but I have never actually heard of anyone successfully doing this,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶c̶e̶r̶t̶a̶i̶n̶l̶y̶ ̶w̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ ̶t̶a̶k̶e̶ ̶a̶ ̶L̶O̶T̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶p̶r̶o̶g̶r̶a̶m̶m̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶g̶e̶t̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶k̶.̶
[EDIT - I looked at some previous forum posts and it seems that the Bome Box supports A&H consoles DLive natively - although it looks like you also have to purchase the optional Bome MIDI Translator Pro software to be able to customize the MIDI programming if you want to do things like program a MIDI control surface to work with the DLive. Still, it looks like it could be a “stand alone” solution that would work without a computer attached. Total cost seems like it would be in the $350 USD range for the box and the software].
This means that if you want a “plug and play” solution (with regard to the actual hardware - you’ll still have to send time programming the device to do what you want) then the A&H IP Controllers are really the only option. The IP6 encoders can be set to control the volume of any channel/buss on the console (as well as a wide range of other functions). The end user just has to twist a knob vs push/pull a fader. The unit has LCD screens for each encoder so that you know exactly what you are controlling. I agree with you that the retail prices are WAY overpriced for what they do. I personally would not pay full retail prices for them. Sometimes you can find them used for a good price however - especially if you have time to wait for deals to popup. When I had time to be patient, I was able to find and purchase both IP6s and IP8s at far below retail prices (actually far below normal used market values IMHO).
If you don’t want to pay for the “plug and play” convenience of the IP Controllers, then Mixing Station is the next best option IMHO because all of the MIDI conversion programming has already been done for you. That being said, the Bome Box could also be a good alternative, I just don’t have any experience with it to know just how easy it is to use/program.
If you decided to use Mixing Station, for the end user outside of having to turn on/connect an external controller (a tablet or computer for example) it is as simple or as complicated as you want to make it. If you only need 4 faders, then only program 4 faders…. Get a midi controller that only has 4 faders, etc, etc, etc. All of the “complicated” work is in the design and setup/programming and not the actual user experience that is the end result. While I’ve never used a Novation Launch Control XL3, I don’t know why it wouldn’t work with MS.
How about setting up custom Control on a tablet with the channels/ faders they need? Not physical faders but a simple and low cost solution.
That or some combination of Director or Mixing Station is what i use at the moment. But Touchscreens are not always the preferred option, especially for fine operations.
Another point of IP6 versus 8, the 6 runs easily on POE while the 8 is power hungry due to the motorized faders and most POE switches or POE injectors can’t handle it. The IP6 is an easy 1 wire solution in a crowded space. I like the 8 because of tactile motorized faders but we use a 6 on stage (mic stand) and an 8 in our video booth (where the extra p/s isn’t an issue). Either is quite versatile and easily customized from the console. No experience with Custom Control yet but wanting to try it.