Endless Analog Demos Its Dream-Come-True CLASP at Avatar

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN: Nashville-based producer/musician/inventor Chris Estes demonstrated his revolutionary Endless Analog CLASP system in Avatar’s Studio G on Monday. The session featured ace-of-bass and producer Jerry Barnes laying down some of his thick, low-end goodness to Pro Tools HD via 2” tape and the CLASP.

Since the CLASP is such a newfangled, first-of-its-kind product, there’s a lot to understand about what it does and how it works. There are several great reviews and testimonials on the system here and plenty of information to answer any and all questions you may have. But here’s the gist:

CLASP (Closed Loop Analog Signal Processor) consists of a hardware unit that is installed between your mic pre’s, DAW and tape machine (pictured), and the native Bridge plug-in (RTAS and VST), which you open on any track in your DAW session and use to control the tape transport.

These days, most recordings being done to tape are then dumped into the digital realm for editing and mixing. CLASP allows for a totally hybrid workflow, where analog recording and overdubs are done in real time, controlled with the speed and efficiency of digital, and all audio is stored in your DAW, minimizing tape usage. You can use one reel of tape to record an entire record, or several records for that matter.

CLASP essentially allows the tape machine to be used like a plug-in. You control the tape machine and switch between tape speeds stored in the CLASP right from your DAW. And you can monitor analog in repro mode. [See the CLASP connection diagram here.]

The elevator pitch to engineers via Endless Analog’s website: “CLASP provides sample accurate tape synchronization with zero latency analog monitoring while delivering a true analog front end recording solution for Pro Tools.”

Seeing the CLASP in action, its functionality seems instantly essential. It totally streamlines a process that needs streamlining and will allow so many more people to utilize analog tape as part of their production.

At Avatar, the CLASP hardware unit was connected via MIDI to the Pro Tools HD rig and through an Endless Analog proprietary cable to the 24-track Studer A800. Once the tape machine was aligned and synchronized to the Pro Tools session at both 15 ips and 30 ips recording speeds via CLASP, Barnes tracked a bass line and then monitored off the repro head to select his preferred speed.

During playback, Estes pointed out: “Being able to monitor in repro is a really great thing for getting drum sounds, for example, because you can make judgment calls about what tape speed you want to use for a particular song.”

“You can have it on whatever speed and then have the drummer play, mute his headphones, and then listen off the tape in Pro Tools. And you can make decisions about levels and EQ and things like that based on what you’re hearing.

“You can have the tape rolling while the drummer’s playing and, starting with the kick drum, you can bring the level up to find the sweet spot — right where we get just the right amount of tape compression — and dial it in so when you go to do your recordings, there are no surprises.”

CLASP stores information for up to three different recording speeds. Estes relayed to the group: “In a lot of sessions we’ve done so far, people will record the drums at 30 ips, then they’ll go back and re-cut the bass at 15. Then they’ll cut electric guitars at 7½, which sounds really great if the machine is aligned properly. With this [A800] machine, you’d vari-speed it down as far as you can get it and then do an alignment for that.”

“And if you wanted to use varispeed to overdub just a Tom Fill at 15IPS and have the rest at 30?” engineer Roy Hendrickson asked.

“You’d use the sync I/O in Pro Tools and vari-speed Pro Tools up,” says Estes. “So to make the toms sound bigger you’d vari-speed Pro Tools up and do the tom fill, put it back normal, and then the toms would be huge.”

Estes also points out you can daisy-chain up to three CLASP hardware interfaces and synchronize three 24-track tape machines for a total of 72-channels of recording. You can use CLASP with 24, 16, 8 or even 2-track machines, you can combine different machines and tape speeds for different tones. In addition to Pro Tools, CLASP also works with Nuendo and Cubase.

But there’s even more to know…here’s Estes on-the-spot rundown of CLASP’s main functions and features:

1) First of all, the CLASP is a precision measuring instrument, which functions as a sample-accurate synchronization device, so it’s able to profile the tape machine, analyze the ballistics of the machine, calculate to the sample what the latency of that machine is — taking into consideration the transport, the flutter, etc. Then, it’s telling Pro Tools to change the time stamp of the audio that’s coming into the converters.

So, while you’re recording, the meters are actually late but then when you watch the wave forms as they’re going down, Pro Tools is drawing them in relationship to the grid in the correct time. So it’s an actual time stamp, you can take the session to another studio and you don’t have to have the CLASP. You only use the CLASP when you’re cutting tracks.

2) The CLASP is seamlessly controlling the tape transport for you invisibly in the background. It works a lot like the Quick Punch mode — it looks at the track-arming status and as soon as you have tracks armed and you start the Pro Tools transport, the CLASP, analog machine and Pro Tools Quick Punch all start recording simultaneously in the background. It’s extrapolating from the Pro Tools transport and track-arming status. So even though you might have punched in late, you can peel back audio with tape now. Which is impossible otherwise.

3) You don’t have to rewind the tape until you reach the end of the reel. In this case, it’s counting down from 30 minutes (@15 IPS), so you’d only have to rewind every half-hour or so.

4) You now have latency-free analog monitoring. We’re monitoring here through the master-grade analog hardware of the CLASP, not Pro Tools.

5) CLASP compensates for the converter delay times. If you’re using Apogee 16X converters with Pro Tools, for example, that’s 62 samples of converter latency at 44.1, so you simply type in 62 samples in the offset and then everything you play is perfectly in time with where it’s supposed to be when you play it back.

After the demo at Avatar, engineer Roy Hendrickson shared his impressions with us:

“I think what Chris has done here is quite brilliant. The fact that he is getting Pro Tools to record these files into the DAW with an adjusted time stamp is genius.

“And once you’re finished using CLASP and you go back to using Pro Tools normally, there are no side effects, there’s nothing you have to change about your workflow. You don’t have to move your files and it does all those little tweaks that you’d normally have to do — like re-compensating for things like delay manually — this takes care of all that for you in a really elegant manner so you don’t have to worry. You can concentrate on the performance.”

On the Endless Analog website, Chris Estes and Endless Analog VP Amy Becker Estes ask us to: “Imagine experiencing analog tape recording as fast, effortless and timesaving as Pro Tools.” The CLASP system, which Estes started developing out of his garage in Nashville over five years ago, makes this idea – once Estes’ daydream – a reality.

Endless Analog’s CLASP system is available now from Vintage King for $7,495.

Visit www.endlessanalog.com and www.vintageking.com/Endless-Analog-Clasp for more information!

Gig Alert: Tatiana Moroz CD Release Party Saturday, 6/26 at The Bitter End

Singer/songwriter Tatiana Moroz will be rolling out her debut album, Tatiana, at the Bitter End on Saturday, June 26,  at 8:30 PM.

Straight outta Jersey, Moroz puts a subtly sultry spin on her blues/pop/rock explorations. From smokey to sweet to just plain pissed off, her many moods and new collection of songs create a cohesive musical journey.

Recorded, mixed and mastered 100% in the NYC area, SonicScoop gives Ms. Moroz a thumbs up for being 100% home-grown. Among the studios used to record Tatiana were Avatar, Chung King (RIP), Quad Studios, and Big Fat Suite. Mastering was by Angelo Montrone of Majestic Music Factory.

All mixes were by Chris Conway, except “Release In You” by LB Dorsey and “Look Like Honey” by Andros Rodriguez. “Evolution” was mixed by LB Dorsey and Chris Conway.

Congratulations and props to SonicScoop compadre Tatiana!! Party with the best of ‘em at The Bitter End!

Avatar Studios Hosts Paul Simon, Moby, O.A.R. and More

Paul Simon recently spent time recording at NYC’s Avatar Studios, working with producer Phil Ramone, engineer Andy Smith and assistant engineer Justin Gerrish.

Moby‘s also recently recorded in Studio A, with engineer Scott Norton and assistant engineer Rick Kwan.

Meanwhile, roots rock quintet O.A.R. recorded in Studio C with producer Matt Wallace and engineer Mike Landolt. Other acts that recorded in March include Teddy Thompson, Proud Simon, and The Script.

From the jazz world, the Christian McBride Big Band recorded in Studio A with engineer Joe Ferla, while woodwind specialist James Carter recorded in Studio B with producer Michael Cuscuna and engineer Jim Anderson, assisted by Fernando Lodeiro. Other notables were Michel Portal and The Don Friedman Trio, both of whom recorded in Studio C with their producer/engineer teams.

Studio A recently hosted several TV and theater projects as well. Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks recorded music for the upcoming HBO series Boardwalk Empire with producer Jim Dunbar and engineer Stewart Lerman. Also, the cast of Broadway’s Million Dollar Quartet recorded with producer Hank Neuberger and engineer Chris Steinmetz.

And finally, the music for Life Begins At 8:40, a 1934 Harold Arlen / Ira Gershwin / Yip Harburg musical revue, was recorded in Studio A with producer Tommy Krasker and engineer Bart Migal.

For more information on Avatar Studios, visit their website at avatarstudios.net.

On The Record: Producer Jim Keller On Demander’s Future Brite

EAST VILLAGE, MANHATTAN: NYC rock trio, Demander, officially release their second full-length record, Future Brite, today. This bad-ass East Village band has a refreshingly hard-edged, melodic rock sound, combining the sweet (Kathleen Hanna-meets-Karen O) punk-rock-howl of lead vocalist/bassist, Karen Kanan Correa, the thunderous rock drumming of Sivan Harlap and chugging, post-punk guitar varieties by Dave Kurutz.

Future Brite was produced and engineered by Jim Keller (Franz Ferdinand, Mastodon, Franz Nicolay) between studios in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

“I met Sivan on a flight — it was one of those random things that I guess is somehow just supposed to happen,” says Keller. “She gave me a copy of Demander’s first record.  I thought they had some great ideas and I felt like I could help them expand on them.

“I went to see them live a couple of times and they were just having a blast on stage…actually smiling and looking like that was exactly what they wanted to be doing at the time.  That was great to see!  I knew that getting a solid sound behind some well-honed songs would make a good record.”

Keller began working with the group in rehearsals prior to recording. “All of the songs were pretty far along by the time I came in,” he recalls. “We mostly concentrated on song structure.  We took out some sections, used other sections more and just made sure that the mechanics of the songs were working.  Dave and I came up with guitar parts in the studio and they all came together really quickly, which was a treat.

The group recorded drums and electric guitars at Manhattan’s Madpan Studios and bass and vocals at Keller’s own private studio in Brooklyn. “We also did a day of strings at Avatar,” adds Keller. “There are times when you need a solid, commercial room and string dates are certainly one of those times!”

Keller mixed the bulk of the record at Electric Lady in Studio A, and a few songs at his place. John Agnello mixed ‘Math’ at Headgear in Williamsburg.

“For mastering, I went to Randy Merrill at Masterdisk,” Keller adds. “ Randy and I were on staff at Avatar together and I really trust his judgment when it comes to mastering.”

What’s Keller favorite track on Future Brite?

“Definitely the title track. It’s dynamic in every sense.  We spent a long time on the middle section and it really makes the whole track.  It’s a breakdown followed by a great build.  Franz Nicolay (The Hold Steady) came in and just nailed the piano part for the section.  We were also fortunate to have some really talented string players for that section as well.  It’s just a cool song!”

Check out “Future Brite” on Demander’s Myspace, and the album single, “Math,” here!

Avatar Hosts The Strokes, Mary J. Blige, Moby, The Dirty Pearls & David Kahne

Avatar Recording Studios hosted a number of sessions this past month, with high-profile artists, producers and engineers.

Studio A and its famed live room saw the likes of The Strokes, recording with producer/engineer Joe Chiccarelli, assisted by Justin Gerrish. Moby was recording there with engineer Scott Norton, assisted by Rick Kwan, while Vince Mendoza tracked in the room with engineer Jim Anderson, again assisted by Rick Kwan. A Latin version of “We Are The World” was recorded with Taboo of the Black Eyed Peas in Studio A with producer Emilio Estefan and engineer Roy Hendrickson, assisted by Fernando Lodeiro.

In Studio B, the Bill Charlap Trio recorded with producer Todd Barkan, along with engineer Katherine Miller assisted by Aki Nishimura. Oud player Joseph Tawadros was in B with engineer Jon Rosenberg, assisted by Bob Mallory.

Mary J. Blige was in Studio C overdubbing with producer Ron Fair, and engineer Anthony Ruotolo, who was assisted by Charlie Kramsky. Also in C were Nikki Yanofsky, working with producers Phil Ramone and Jesse Harris, along with engineer Tom Schick assisted by Bob Mallory. The Dirty Pearls were in C recording with producer David Kahne, engineer Roy Hendrickson, and assisted by Justin Gerrish. On the jazz tip, Mark Johnson was in Studio C recording with producer Eliane Elias, while engineer Joe Ferla was assisted by Rick Kwan.

Last but not least, indigenous Australian musician Gurrumul Yunupingu was in Studio G recording with producer Michael Hohnen, engineer Anthony Ruotolo, and assistant Aki Nishimura.

Arctic Monkeys, Franz Ferdinand & Finian’s Rainbow Record At Avatar

Arctic Monkeys, Franz Ferdinand, and the cast of Finian’s Rainbow are just a few of the many recording sessions that recently went down at Avatar Studios.

Arctic Monkeys recorded a live performance for WRXP Sessions at Avatar’s Studio A. Matt Pinfield, DJ of NYC’s WRXP “The Rock Show” with Leslie Fram, produced the session. Claudius Mittendorfer engineered the session with the assistance of Justin Gerrish and Fernando Lodeiro.

Franz Ferdinand was at Avatar to record the song “The Eyes of Mars” to promote the Christian Dior fragrance, “Lady Dior.” The song features the current fact of Dior, French actress and singer, Marion Cotillard. The track was produced by Franz Ferdinand’s Alex Kapranos and engineered by NYC-based producer/engineer Jim Keller.

Avatar also hosted film score recording sessions for Remember Me, and the cast album recording of Finian’s Rainbow for PS Classics.

Finian’s Rainbow, which had its final performance on January 17, 2010, recorded with producer Tommy Krasker and engineer Bart Migal, assisted by Bob Mallory, Lodeiro and Gerrish. The album is available for pre-order through the production’s site.

And, Brooklyn rock band Motel Motel recorded their self-produced project in Avatar’s Studio B with engineer Rick Kwan assisted by Aki Nishimura.

Other recent recording sessions at Avatar include: 15 year old Canadian jazz-pop singer Nikki Yanofsky, music for a GEICO commercial, and a City of Hope benefit by famed Opera singer Placido Domingo.