Nuts & Bolts (4 gearheads)

Oh, I know how there are friends out there who are all about the gear. While I try not to be one of them, here’s a little peek into what I‘ve been using lately....

Consoles- I recently installed an SSL 6048E at my Waystation studios. I love this console. I feel like as soon as you put a mix up thru it, things sound like a "hit"!. This one came from a big post production place in Burbank called Modern Video so it was well maintained and didn't see much rock n roll abuse. 3 stereo busses and the programmable EQ. I've mixed a lot of records on E's. I love their gritty mids and top and warm, yet tight bottom. 9000's are cool too - punchy and clean with an excellent top end.But for some things they're a little too clean. Occasionally, I’ll mix on an old Neve (8078’s) for the classic sweet open,
fatness we all love. I really liked the
big sound we got on the 1st Macy Gray
record which was done on Sunset Sound’s
custom API console (studio 1)
and on the one of a kind old
Neve that was in A&M’s studio A
(I hear it’s sitting somewhere belly up,
what a shame).

At work at Waystation. Home away from home.

Westlake BBSM 10's, Genelec 1030a's, Auratones and an SSL 6048.

My monitoring changes from time to time. I'm always in search of the perfect monitor and I sometimes use different speakers for different types of music. I've tried alot of things- different Tannoys, KRK's, Dynaudio's, Pro-Ac's, Genelecs, Quested, ATC's. Some less popular ones by Blue Room, Exacta, Bose. I have a pair of NS-10's with a custom crossover that I use alot. But lately I've been using Genelec 1030's which are one size smaller than the 1031's that everyone else seems to like. I've gotten good results from 1031's but the 1030's have a midrange that I like and a tighter but still realistic bottom. They work really well. Along with those I use the Auratones (in stereo mostly) and my big speakers are Westlake BBSm10's which are amazing. They are powered by a Bryston 4b SST and the nearfields use a Yamaha p2200. I use Cobalt cables most everywhere. I also have a listen through an Aiwa boom box and do checks on my home system (NHT's with a Sony 808 reciever). I like checking on multiple systems. You almost always hear something differently and it can even inspire new ideas for the mix.

The Protools HD rig is used pretty much everyday. Many of the things I’m mixing have been recorded completely in Protools and I like to mix them right off Protools into the console. I'd say 95% of the projects coming in are still 48k or 44.1 but occasionally I'll see something that's at 96k (usually it won't be more than 40-48 tracks). This sounds markedly better. Especially with cymbals and vocals. I've done a little experimenting at the 192k sample rate and thought it sounded really, really good. Maybe it's just a matter of time till eveything comes in at that. But I also REALLY love the sound of DSD (direct stream digital) if you haven't heard about it, I think you will...soon. We use LaCie firewire drives (tons of them). I still love the sound of 2" ( I have an MCI JH24 that never gets used). I’m hoping to get my 3M 1" 8 track up and running to fly things over to when I really want that exaggerated tape silk & fatness. A lot of my favorite records were recorded to that format.

Big knob club - Inward Connections mic pre's and compressors. Awesome.

TC fireworx,distressors, Urei 550 & 550's, V72's, TubeTech Multiband comp, Joe Meek, Neve Am6, Neve 2253's, Dept. of commerce comp, neve 1081's, EAR eq and 660 comps, filter factory, Telefunken U-373's, Motown Eq's.

Here’s some of my outboard gear:
Compressors- EAR 660's(2) Tube Tech multiband compressor, Neve AM6 stereo, Neve 2253's, Joe Meek (2), Distressors(2), Altec 438a and Altec 1612's (2), Telefunken u373's (4), Dept. of Commerce mono tube compressor ( very cool, fairchild-ish), Inward Connections (4).

Eq's- EAR stereo tube (beautiful), Motown's (2), API 560's (2), Neve 1081's (2), Moog, Blonder Tongue, Aphex 204's, Urei 550 passive's (2) and 500 filter's (2).

FX- Lexicon 200, TC m2000, Eventide DSP-4000,TC fireworx, Altiverb (which totally rocks but uses a ton of CPU), Echofarm, Sony m200, Filter Factory, plus some plug in's.

Other things that I love are the EMT 252 or 251, the Ursa Major Space station, Yamaha Rev5 and the AMS DMX and RMX. Compressors and Eq’s you ask? Love the Tubetech CL1b, Gates Sta Level, BA6A's, Neve 33609’s, the Avalon stereo compressors and Eq’s, the GML stereo parametric, Pultecs for kik and gtrs, API 550’s.

This is the mix room at the Pass (studio X). I hope to get some more pics and info on the site soon as well as stuff on thepassstudios.com

protools HD rig with 48 outputs. An equitech power conditioner is used. That's the SSL's power supplies rack on the right.

For mixdown, I always go back into protools through
my Mytek converters. I'm anxiously awaiting their DSD converters to use with a Tascam DSD recorder that comes out soon. I occasionally print to 1/2"tape
and sometimes 1/4".
I used to like BASF 900 best
and sometimes still find it but
now all we get is GP9 so
there it is. Preferred 2 track
decks- ATR 102's and studer 820's.
Also the Otari mx 5050 for 1/4"
(sounds really fat).
Larrabee has some 1 inch ATR's
that sound great.

What else could you want to know? I have some favorite microphones I own including a pair of Neumann M269’s, an AKG D-30 for kik and a D-20 too. Also,an American d-22 for a funky drum sound, the AKG d-19's, a KM84 I like when I want a condenser on the snare. The Neumann M582 or KM54 sound great on acoustic guitars. I like the Sony C55p, the Coles 4038 is a favorite overhead. I'll use whatever's around but I'll always try to have a few U47's, U67's and hopefully a Telefunken 251 which almost always wins for recording a vocal. But you people know this stuff so I’ll stop right here for fear of being too indulgent.

A lot of times I prefer only 4 or 5 mics. In this case a D-30 on kik, a D-19 over top, a Neuman TLM193 on the left side and a Coles on the right. There are close mics on the toms and snare that won't necessarily get used.

If you made it this far you certainly qualify as one of the Gearheads, and therefore should be asked to now go outside and do something fun!