One of our latest pieces of gear in the mastering lab is the Summit MPE-200.  This is a fantastic blend of both analog & digital, this is what Summit says about there product.

The Summit MPE-200 is the first product in the Element 78 line of Class A solid state signal processing units from Summit Audio. The MPE-200 features two channels of microphone preamp and two channels of parametric EQ, all discrete class A transformer coupled, designed by Summit Audio with Mr. Rupert Neve. Add to the incredible sound of these preamps and EQ’s the versatility, precision, and control of a digital interface, and the vision of Element 78 is realized: a no-compromise analog signal path combined with an easy-to-use and powerful digital front-end. Features include 25 on-board presets for instant recall and reset capabilities, full MIDI support for storage of settings and automation, two world-class microphone preamps, two four band parametric equalizers (preamps and EQ can be used separately or routed together internally), two filters per preamp (high and/or low pass, stackable for 24 dB/ octave rolloff), 48 volt phantom power, phase reversal, analog fading and more.

The Chandler Limited Mini Mixer is the culmination of Chandler’s experience working with many types of vintage, discrete circuits. The Mini Rack Mixer traces its lineage back to several types of these amplifiers developed in the 60’s and 70’s.

Each Channel of the 16×2 Mixer is transformer balanced and driven by the New Chandler Line Amp, which borrows from Chandler’s other products but has been redesigned for use in this mixer. The Mini Mixer is jam-packed with discrete amps and classic sound, 20 discrete amplifiers and 22 custom wound transformers in the unit, and delivering all the punch and tone you need for today’s digital & analog environment.

In addition to the mixer section, the unit has a full featured Control Room section including Talkback, Speaker switching, Mute, Mono, Dim, External input (also used as an insert point), and separate Control Room and Stereo Buss outs.

One of the coolest music blogs out there is Cruising For Blues.  Debra really supports the NW Blues scene, as we all should, why because it’s “white-hot” with a bullet!  A majority of blues artist often end up at Fastback Studios as we recreate the sounds that blues artist and fans know & love.  The NW blues scene is big and growing with the help of Blues Society’s such as Washington Blues Society which supports all Washington Blues artist and many festivals throughout the year.  If you want to know the latest on the Blues music scene, add Cruising For Blues to your favorites list and enjoy the articles.

Well, our mastering lab seems to be going very well.  Our primary focus is mastering in this area of the facility but as we started to built it we quickly discovered we could also set it up as a Studio B, which would consist of recording because we have direct access to ISO 1 & 2 and then also as an editing and mixing room when the main engineering lab is in use.  This will make us very diverse as our cliental continues to grow.
 
In our mastering lab we wanted to mirror our main room in the quality & style of gear that we use, so here is a list of our current items
 
Mac G5
5.1 Surround
Pro-Tools HD3
Mastering Software
192 Converters – 32 I/O
Apogee AD-16X (Big Ben Included)
Chandler Limited (EMI) Mini Rack Mixer
 
Analog EQ’s
Summit Audio MPE- 200
Summit Audio EQF-100 (x2)
 
Analog Compressors
Pendulum Audio Vari Mu 6386
Maselec MLA-2
Millennia “Twincon” TCL-2
Requisite Pal Plus
Universal Audio LA-3A
Rohde & Schwarz – Early 1950’s German Comp
 
Misc.
TC Electronics
TC1210
TC2290

 The Leslie 122 speaker makes a great foundational track to most songs.  while listening to the music that Leslie tone adds to the structure buy filing in the gaps and adding to the flow of the song.  The Hamond B3 with a Leslie 122 cabinet bridges and fuses the song together.  Here is how the 122 speaker works. 

The Leslie speaker consists of two driver units - a treble unit with horns, and a bass unit. The key feature is that the horns of the treble unit (actually only one working horn, but a dummy horn is used to counter-balance it) and a sound baffle for the bass unit are rotated using electric motors to create ‘Doppler effect based’ vibrato, tremolo and chorus effects. The rotating elements can be switched between two speeds (or stopped completely by means of optional “brakes”), and the transition between the two speeds produces the most characteristic effects. 

The resulting sound is instantly identifiable as that of the Hammond organ, frequently heard on psychedelic and rock music of the 1960s and 1970s. Unlike a high fidelity loudspeaker, the Leslie is specifically designed, via reproduction of the Doppler effect, to alter or modify sound; faithful reproduction has never been part of its appeal. Much of the unique tone is owed to the fact that the system is at least partially enclosed, but with linear louvres along the sides and front so that the unit can vent the sound from within the box after the sound has bounced around inside, mellowing it. While many organists prefer the fast “vibrato” setting, the Leslie’s slow speed produces a lush “chorus” effect which suggests the sound of a pipe organ in a large hall or church much more effectively than static speakers can. The Leslie might be considered an electro-mechanical sonic effects machine. Many rock and roll organists have turned the box around to expose the horn’s rotation for a visual effect, and in the hope of projecting a more powerful sound from both speakers. One can see such a reversed placement in The Band’s movie, The Last Waltz and the film Woodstock. 

The Model 122 is the classic two speed 40 Watt tone cabinet most commonly used with Hammond console organs, such as the B3, C3 and A100 models. Some organists connect two or more of these to their organ for a louder and more widely-spaced “surround” effect. A modern reproduction is the model 122A. This is the Leslie of choice for recording studios or other sonically demanding applications due to the quiet operation of the Model 122’s differential signal input design. Leslie Model 142 is identical to Model 122, except that it is housed in a 33″ tall cabinet, and thus slightly easier to transport than the 41″ tall Model 122. 

Well today we are using the Neumann U47 on a Calypso vocal session.  George the singer of this session has a great mid-low vocal range that the U47 will capture very well.  I always thought that Calypso music was the “good times sounds” of the cruise ships that entered port… WRONG after talking with george he explained to me that Calypso was the first anti-political voice that the Trinidad people had against the British, French & Spainish..  That’s what I really enjoy about artist coming into our studio, I learn something new evey day.  

Here is a great little article from Mix Magazine that I thought I would share with you about the Bill Putnam’s Teletronix LA2A and how it “evolved” into the Teletronix LA-3A

Some 40 years after its invention, the story of the Teletronix LA-2A continues to be written, but one thing that remains constant is the demand for this mono optical tube compressor limiter, even in these days of digital production. Originally patented by Jim Lawrence in 1965, the LA-2A was produced by Teletronix in Pasadena, Calif., which soon after became a division of Babcock Electronics. A few years later, Babcock’s Broadcast Products division was acquired by Bill Putnam’s Studio Electronics Corporation, shortly before he changed the company name to UREI. 

 The LA-2A’s gain control scheme was revolutionary: Gain reduction was controlled by applying the audio voltage from a tube peak detector to an electroluminescent panel that glowed onto a light-sensitive, cadmium-sulfide resistor, with a second matched photoconductive cell controlling the metering section. With up to 40 dB of smooth gain limiting, flat 30 to 15,000Hz (±0.1dB) frequency response and low-noise performance, the LA-2A soon became a studio standard. 

By 1969, tube gear had fallen out of favor, and the LA-2A was replaced with the “improved” solid-state LA-3A. Later, UREI was purchased by Harman Professional, which made a couple short (200-unit) reissue runs of the LA-2A—first in the late-’70s and then in the 1980s. In 1999, the sons of Bill Putnam regained the UREI brand from Harman and began manufacturing meticulously hand-built LA-2As, 1176s and other UREI studio gear under the Universal Audio brand, delivering the first products in May 2000. The industry’s reaction to these classic re-creations has been overwhelmingly positive.

As studio owners we are always on the lookout for that perfect mic. Telefunken USA is one of those companies that offers two things. 1). Great mics for every studios price range. 2). Customer service. This is not a paid blog report! This is a studio owner that has purchased a mic from telefunken and when I need upgrades, tech support and questions answered that took care of me (on the spot). When purchasing more mics, who will I think of first, when telling other people about what mic to test and purchase, the first words will be Telefunken USA. Well worth the money spent because the quality of the product, customer service & price point.

Here is a microphone that is as obscure and sonically fantastic as the Lomo 19A19.  The Pearl ELM CC22 is one of those “sleeper” mics that has many diverse uses on a recording.  Instead of a large diaphragm capsule it incorporates a large rectangle capsule that in my opinion picks up more of the instrument.  The Pearl ELM CC22 utilizes a rectangular capsule with an extreme (7:1) length/width ratio. The new linear capsule has more than twice the surface area of large-diameter round capsules giving it excellent signal/noise ratio while avoiding in-band resonance. In addition, at high frequencies the narrow width provides uniformity of directional pattern in the lateral sense, while canceling reflections from the floor and ceiling. It is especially well suited to recording orchestras and ensembles.