Audient Announces Availability of ASP8024 Dual Layer Control Module

Audient has announced that its Dual Layer technology is now available for its flagship ASP8024 console, in the form of a Dual Layer Control (DLC) module. As a result, the ASP8024 can now be the center of a computer session as well as an analogue mixing experience, when fitted with the newly released module.

With the DLC module, the large format console now gives the user control of the computer session plus eight channels of analog moving fader automation. The DLC module connects directly to the computer via an Ethernet connection, supporting control of Pro Tools, Logic, Cubase and Nuendo. A push of the DAW button enables the user to toggle between the control of the computer session and the analogue automation layer.

The new module has eight analogue audio channels enabling the automation of external line input sources or sub group paths. Each channel has a source and destination switch allowing any combination of external I/O and sub group paths to be selected. Below these are the pan controls and mix buttons, allowing users to route the channels directly to the mix and position them in the stereo field. When the eight sources are switched to external input, eight extra channels can be routed directly to the ASP8024 mix bus, and the 24-channel console becomes a 24+8 fader console, giving a total of 64 available analogue inputs.

Full details about the DLC module for ASP8024 can be found on Audient’s recently upgraded website.

Stanton SCS.1 DJ Controller Receives Major Update

DJ gear manufacturer Stanton is now offering several new updates to its mixer control surface, the Stanton Control System1. The SCS.1 features a built-in FireWire® audio interface, assignable encoders, and tight, two-way software control, and is now supplemented by expanded presets, new ASIO drivers, updated firmware and DaRouter software.

“The new capabilities of the SCS.1d enhance the performance of both scratch and general platter control,” says Tim Dorwart CEO of Stanton. “This should certainly help those migrating from traditional DVS turntables, to controllers who require the additional features integrated into the platter, right next to the place their fingers are when manipulating the platter. The new presets for both SCS.1d and SCS.1m extend this functionality to a whole host of other applications for DJ’ing live, composing and mixing”

Development Updates Feature:

New Presets
Stanton has released a new preset for Native Instruments Traktor Pro® application, updating it to match the new features.  Additional new presets include new Generic presets (4 in all) that allow the SCS.1 to be mapped into most DJ software packages; an Ableton Live preset for the SCS.1m, which fully supports clip and scene launching, mixing control, sends/groups, and FX control; a HUI preset that allows the SCS.1m to be used as a DAW controller for many common software packages (ProTools, Nuendo, Cubase, Logic, Sonar, etc).  Because Stanton utilized the HUI protocol, there is little to no mapping needed on the user’s part.

New ASIO Driver
This new ASIO driver for Windows® fully supports Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit varieties), and also is backwards compatible with Vista64 and XP. This installer has also been separated from the DaRouter installer to make it easier for end users to update components.

New DaRouter Software
A new SCS.1 DaRouter has been developed, which implements a better scratching algorithm. In response to user requests, it also allows for multiple instances of DaRouter to run simultaneously, which allows for the use of (for instance) 4 SCS.1ds at once.  This version of DaRouter will also bundle in all the new presets so users have instant access to the new features

New SCS.1M Firmware
Stanton has also updated the SCS.1d firmware, which improves the scratching performance of the SCS.1d, and also makes it more compatible with current DJ software. Like the ASIO driver, Stanton has separated this from the DaRouter installer to make installation and updating straightforward and error-free.

Review: The McDSP 6030 Ultimate Compressor by Zach McNees

In the world of music and audio production, the nature of dynamic compression can mean many different things to many different engineers. From subtle level riding to drastic bone-crunching limiting, a compressor’s job is as varied as the genres of music that we tackle on a daily basis.

In the real world, we’re limited by the hardware that we (or the studio) own. Inside our DAWs however, there is a seemingly endless supply of choices. Often times we come back to certain plug-ins over and over again not just because they sound great, but also because we’re able to dial in the sound we want quickly and move on to the next task.

This brings me to McDSP’s newest creation: The 6030 Ultimate Compressor. McDSP is one of the original third party plug-in manufacturers for Pro Tools and certainly one of the best. Plug-ins such as FilterBank are standards in the industry, and the new 6030 Ultimate Compressor will surely be joining this illustrious group of go-to plug-ins in the future.

Tech Specs:  The 6030 Ultimate Compressor is available in an HD and Native version. McDSP HD plug-ins support the TDM, RTAS, and Audio Unit (AU) plug-in formats. The McDSP Native plug-ins support the RTAS and Audio Unit (AU) plug-in formats.  The newly added Audio Unit (AU) support means all McDSP plug-ins can be used in Logic, Garage Band, Digital Performer, Ableton Live and other AU compatible DAWs in addition to Pro Tools.  The 6030 is available for purchase as a stand alone HD ($449) or Native ($249) plug-in, or as part of the McDSP Emerald Pack HD ($2,995) or McDSP Emerald Pack Native ($1,495) bundles.

What It Does: The 6030 Ultimate Compressor is in actuality, ten different compressors housed inside one unit. Each type of compressor within the plug-in has a distinctly unique algorithm and sound. Some algorithms are emulations of existing classic gear (but with unique McDSP twists) while others were designed from scratch exclusively for use with the 6030.

The Interface: Designed to emulate the popular lunchbox style module format, the 6030 is a sleek, yet simple interface with large buttons and knobs that allow for easy mouse access. The first module on the left side of the plug-in displays buttons for ten different plug-in styles which are labeled: U 670, MOO TUBE, iCOMP, OPTO-C, OPTO-L, BRITISH C, OVER EZ, SST ’76, FRG 444, D357.

The middle section displays metering for input and output along with an overall make-up gain knob. Additional buttons for keying in a side-chain signal and listening to the side-chain are also available here.  The final module on the right changes based on the user’s compressor style selection.

The sharp graphical design of the plug-in modules and the labeling of their button counterparts will make many of 6030 Ultimate Compressor’s flavors seem very familiar to most engineers. McDSP has done an excellent job on the graphics. Everything is well labeled and easy to use.

In Use: Over the past few weeks, I put the 6030 Ultimate Compressor to the test on several different mix projects and at least half a dozen sound sources. Out of the ten emulations available, I found myself coming back to five specific ones on a regular basis.  Let’s dig in a bit on what each of these unique modules has to offer…

• U670: Immediately recognizable as a Fairchild 670 look-alike, the U670 was originally conceptualized for the Compressor Bank CB4 Plug-in. New attack ballistics and a “warmth” factor were tweaked in this version for the 6030. The 6070 offers a commendable emulation of a legendary unit. Controls for Threshold and Time Constant (release) are available. The U670 performs accurately on bass and vocals smoothing out transients and really achieving that milky Fairchild sound without of a lot of “compressor sound.” Even with the time constant knob set fast, the release time of the U670 is relatively slow which is accurate to the original hardware. This unit is not for everything, but will do the job quite nicely when a mellow type of compression is needed particularly on slower tempo tunes or instruments with lots of decay such as piano or bass.

• MOO TUBE: This is an all-tube design with a number of sounds reworked from the ground up by McDSP, such as mid-range sensitivity and output frequency response. There are controls for Attack, Recovery and Threshold along with a hilarious cowhide background to compliment its name. MOO TUBE picks up where the U670 leaves off in its ease-of-use and warmth factor but was a little too transparent for me overall. On female lead vocals for instance, I found it difficult to find a good balance with the threshold where the compressor could level everything out evenly without the meter pegging too much. Certain notes would hit the compressor much harder than others. The controls are very easy to use and the attack and release points do allow for a wide variety of sounds.

• iCOMP:  iCOMP is the black sheep in this family. A blue, techno-like background with only two controls for Threshold and Ratio left me unsure of what I was in for. McDSPs website offers only that iCOMP “Sounds great and is good for songs heading to iTunes.” adding even more to my curiousness. They also state that “Attack and release are automatically updated based on user-selected threshold and ratio control values.” Listening tests proved pleasantly surprising, however.  As a drum bus compressor, iCOMP does an excellent job at leveling things out with a surprisingly pleasant amount of grit and dirt. Relatively fast attacks and release times make this a great go-to compressor for rock drums, bass and guitar. This compressor has the most “sound” to it of the three units I’ve touched on thus far and really surprised me on the depth of what can be achieved quickly.

• OPTO-C/OPTO-L: With the look and feel of the classic Teletronix LA-2A and a sound just as close, the OPTO Compressor and Limiter blew me away. One simple peak reduction knob is all you need along with the makeup gain to do the job every time.  On a recent mix for Philadelphia-based R&B singer Ali Hoffman, the OPTO compressor became my drug of choice for lead vocals. The response characteristics are stunningly similar to its hardware counterpart providing just the right amount of added warmth and softening in the vocal chain. The OPTO compressor can be cranked up a healthy amount just like an LA-2A without having to worry about that squashed compressor sound. Finished off with a fair bit of make-up gain this compressor is good to go in record time. The OPTO C is in major competition with some of my former go-to standards for vocals and bass guitar. The OPTO L limiter also follows suit on everything mentioned above but with even more of that classic, dirty brick-wall limiter sound. The OPTO Limiter works very well as a “sub squeeze” limiter when blending a heavily limited sound on rock drums, guitars and even horns with the original uncompressed sound sources.  A+ on the OPTO Compressor/Limiter.

• 

  6030 flavors

  BRITISH C:  Anyone who’s ever used a Neve 33609 will notice the familiar design of this British emulation. Traditional Brit-style settings for Threshold, Ratio, Attack and Recovery provide surgical control over the sound. McDSP’s website points out that great care went into the design of the algorithm to emulate a distortion-free sound even at high compression levels like the original and they’re right on. The BRITISH C is one of the best representations of what one would hope for in a 33609 replica. The controls allow for a very sharpened and specific sound which works very well on acoustic guitars and piano taking the edge off and adding some snap in a way that I’m used to hearing from a British style compressor. Lead vocals also shine with the ability to focus the attack for any kind of singer’s dynamic range.

• OVER-EZ: This module features controls identical to the BRITISH C, but with a softer knee response, which provides a drastically smoother and more leveled sound. As I tend to like compressors that add something new sonically to the sound, the OVER-EZ felt a little too smooth for me.  On acoustic guitars and lead vocals for instance, the compression, even at fairly substantial levels above 5dB was almost invisible. With a very gentle sound source like classical strings or nylon guitar however, I can see this compressor shining through very well. Although this isn’t a go-to sound for me, when packaged around the rest of the units in this plug-in the OVER-EZ adds yet another distinct flavor to the palette.

• SST ’76: The SST ’76 is a fast reactive Solid-State circuit design.  This unit is one of the first that I go to for big rock guitars. It seems to add just a hint of grunge-y ness and reacts very well to drums and percussive sources.  This compressor is all over a pop rock mix I’m doing for Boston artist Jamie Lynn Hart. On kick drum it really pops well giving my drums more bite and attack even with the meter just nudging around 2dB of gain reduction. On acoustic and electric guitars, this unit also does a terrific job adding a healthy amount of character depending on how much compression is added.

• FRG 444: The FRG 44 is one of the more moderately aggressive sounding units in this package so naturally it ends up on a lot of my mixes!  The key to this kind of compressor is to really beat it up and crank the output and see how it reacts. Standard controls for Attack, Release, Threshold and Ratio allow for lots of experimentation. The FRG 444 sounds brilliant when pushed to the max.  As a “Sub Squeeze” unit and for anything needing a real kick in the face sonically, this unit does the trick. On a drum bus with ultra fast attack and release, the 444 stands up against some of my favorite brick-wall, smash-it-up compressors in hardware or software form. Heaps of harmonic distortion make for a creamy smooth, yet aggressive sound that can really transform an otherwise lifeless sounding instrument be it close drums, room mics, guitars or keys.

• D357: McDSP jokingly warns to use the D357 with caution.  According to their website, this is their most aggressive unit in the package. With LED-style metering and a ratio control labeled as “Some,” “More,” and “Tons,” the D357 clearly isn’t your dad’s Sunday morning compressor. Like the FRG, the D357’s Attack, Release and Ratio knobs allow plenty of control over the sound and generally is best used when you really want to punish something.  In my tests I tended to prefer the FRG’s aggressive sound but the D357 certainly holds its own as a dirty compressor. Typical rock instrument sounds like room mics and attack-heavy piano came out sounding a little too smooth and slightly digital to me and without as much character as some of the other units above.

To Be Critical:  A numeric dB read out would be very helpful on the output knob as I have no mathematical way of calculating the precise make-up gain of one “click.”  This is often useful when wanting to bump up the level of something in my mix in dB increments.

Although controls seem to stay relatively close to each other once set from unit to unit, the ratio varies greatly. For instance, a ratio of just below 4:1 on the British compressor comes up as just over 6:1 on the Over EZ, around 10:1 on the SST 76’ and over 12:1 on the FRG 444.  I would like to see the ratios leveled out a bit more from unit to unit. Also, the gain reduction metering on each unit can sometimes be a bit hard to read. Perhaps if the plug-in overall took up a bit more screen real estate these things would be easier to view?

Wrapping up:  Writing this review, I felt like I was reviewing a plug-in bundle instead of just one individual unit! McDSP has put together one of the most comprehensive, unique and remarkable sounding compressor plug-ins I’ve ever used. With a very affordable price tag, the 6030’s quality and quantity to price ratio is outstanding.  A strong case could be made for picking up this unit over a dozen others that will only give you one flavor of the ten offered here.

Two of the four mix projects I used the 6030 on were at 88.2 khz and the other two were at 44.1. The 6030 sounds excellent at both standard and hi-res sample rates which is more than I can say for other similar compressors in its class. At least five of the ten emulations here get an A from me on quality and the rest are close behind. I raise my glass to you McDSP!  - Zach McNees

Click for more information or to request a demo of the McDSP 6030, and to purchase the plug-in stand-alone or as part of the Emerald Pack bundle, visit the McDSP store.

Zach McNees is a Brooklyn-based producer/engineer/mixer and live recordist who’s worked with Bjork, Rob Thomas, The Gregory Brothers, Pixies, Liars and Alice Cooper. Get in touch with Zach via www.zachmcnees.com.

Geeking OUT: Logic 9, Gourmet Pizza, and Turntables on the Hudson’s DJ Nickodemus

WEST SIDE, MANHATTAN: For partygoers seeking a culturally diverse event where dancing and music takes precedent over pretension, and where the DJ seamlessly weaves urban and world music through clever intersections of house, funk, jazz, and dub, the legendary “Turntables on the Hudson” parties founded by NYC’s DJ Nickodemus are a dance oasis reaching global audiences.

Fresh from his recent tour across Asia, we recently caught up with Nickodemus to see what the DJ, music producer, event producer, remixer, and pizza connoisseur has been Geeking OUT to in the music tech world — in addition to learning about his exciting upcoming plans to add “NYC restaurateur” later this year to his many credentials.

Career Inspiration
“It’s one of those things that’s your hobby and the thing you love to do the most that starts generating money, so it becomes your business! With that came lots of traveling and sampling pizzas from all over the world.”

Geeking OUT Back in the Day
“Well, it all started with the Technic 1200 turntables! They really gave me my start by being able to play all the records I would collect. Eventually, I started scratching and learning rhythm with them by cutting on beat and looping parts in songs. From there, I bought my first sampler, an Ensoniq ASR 10. For me, sampling and looping was the best thing since mozzarella!”

Geeking OUT In 2011
“I really love Logic! I just upgraded from 4.8 — which a friend gave me a crack version to try in 2002. I must have made over 100 songs and remixes on that baby!  Out of pure guilt, I went and bought Logic 9 and I have been really enjoying all its preset sounds and AMAZING effects! The sounds and effects really help give  ideas you may not have thought of before. It’s really a big upgrade… like going from Ellios frozen pizza to Lucali’s gourmet pizza in one day.”

The Here & Now & What’s NEXT
“We do a party every first Friday at Club Cielo in NYC where we get to test all our new productions on a well-tuned Funktion One sound system and a busy dance floor. I’m also currently building a new restaurant/lounge in Chinatown called Louie & Chan with three partners. It has a surround sound Void system… go figure, we have the sound system before the restaurant equipment. We’re hoping to get the doors open, pizza piping and booties dancing by June/ July 2011!”

Words by Shamita Carriman – Entertainment lawyer, founder/ managing partner of Carriman Law Group PLLC, Board of Director of Women In Music, and music tech enthusiast. She can be contacted at info@carrimanlawgroup.com

NAMM News: Sonnox and Fraunhofer Co-Develop Solution to Streamline Mastering for Online Distribution

A collaboration between the creators of the MP3, Germany-based Fraunhofer IIS, and plug-in designer/manufacturer Sonnox Ltd., has resulted in a new plug-in the companies expect “to revolutionize the way audio is mastered for online distribution.”

The new Sonnox Fraunhofer Pro-Codec plug-in is a mastering solution that makes it possible for the first time to precisely audition codecs in real time. This breaks away from the current time-consuming cycle of having to encode the mix to mp3/AAC, preview it, tweak it and then go back and re-render. The entire process can now be accomplished ‘on the fly,’ freeing the engineer to focus on producing a compensated, optimized mix.

The Pro-Codec plug-in enables mix and mastering engineers to audition up to five codecs in real time within a DAW environment, produce an optimized mix and batch encode to multiple formats simultaneously.

All major codecs, including mp3, mp3 Surround, AAC-LC and HE-AAC are supported, as are lossless codecs such as mp3 HD and HD-AAC.

Sonnox has developed an intuitive FFT display to illustrate the input signal, output difference signal and a unique graphical indication of the audibility of codec-induced noise. Bit-stream integrity meters reveal potential decode overloads. Instant A-B auditioning enables engineers to glitchlessly switch between codecs. A ‘blind listening mode’ (ABX) augments codec comparisons.

The Pro-Codec plug-in is compatible with all popular DAWs — Pro Tools, Logic, Cubase, Nuendo, Sonar, Sequoia and Wavelab. Both Mac and Windows are supported.

The Sonnox Fraunhofer Pro-Codec plug-in will be introduced at this week’s NAMM Show, (Sonnox Booth # 6278), and will be available shortly thereafter at a price of $499.

For more information on Sonnox Oxford plug-ins please visit: http://www.sonnoxplugins.com

Pro Tools 9: Do You Need It? We Ask The Early Adopters

In the first week of November, just as they began shipping an unprecedented new product called Pro Tools|HD Native, Avid made an even more stunning announcement: They would break free of Digidesign’s mold by demolishing the distinctions between HD and LE software to offer one platform – Pro Tools 9. For the first time, this software-based version of Pro Tools allows all users access to a full feature set, whether they run the program with Avid hardware, a third-party interface or even a laptop’s built-in soundcard.

“Digidesign was a great brand,” said Tony Cariddi, Pro Segment Marketing Manager for Avid, when we spoke to him for this piece, “but they would have never done something as bold as this.”

That statement is probably true. Long-time Pro Tools users, accustomed to an old parent brand that routinely met user requests only half-way, demonstrated shock and a welcome sense of disbelief when Pro Tools 9 was announced.

To those who aren’t familiar with the limitations Pro Tools LE imposed on laptop-lovers and entry-level users, this may sound like small news. For the rest of us, it bordered on earth-shaking.

It’s been two weeks since the instant upgrade became available for download. As this game-changing release began making it out to the market, we reached out to some of the earliest adopters in NYC. “Does it live up to the hype” we asked, “And what does it say about where the industry has been, and where it’s going?”

Producer/engineer Allen Farmelo (The Cinematic Orchestra, The Loom, Jonah Smith) says he was “skeptical at first”, but he didn’t mince words when it came down to the impact of Pro Tools 9: “It’s really the most significant upgrade of Pro Tools ever.”

So what’s the big deal? For starters, Avid decided to reverse course when they embarked on the Pro Tools rebrand. One of the first orders of business was to actively solicit user feedback through the online market research application IdeaScale. Although it took some time to turn a ship this big, they listened. Gripe number one, said Cariddi, was the absence of Auto Delay Compensation on LE systems. Farmelo weighed in again here:

“I am thrilled that the younger generation of folks getting into Pro Tools aren’t going to have to grapple with the unfathomable out-of-phase junk that was messing up so many LE-based projects. Quite literally, the world will have fewer f*d-up records because ADC is being included.”

For some users, it’s the little things that make a big difference. Producer/engineer Fabrice “Fab” Dupont (Les Nubians, Brazillian Girls, Shakira/Freshlyground) of NYC’s Flux Studios saw one of his long-standing requests addressed: “There’s a Key Command for ‘New Playlist’ and ‘Duplicate Playlist” now! I’m holding back tears of joy.” Farmelo adds, “Want to bus the snare out to an Aux for some parallel work?  One click. Want to create a cue mix from a group of tracks? Boom. One click.“

It’s easy to recommend the reduced-cost upgrade to many current Pro Tools users. With crossgrades starting as low as $250, LE users can unleash features and track counts that were formerly restricted to HD, including multi-track Beat Detective, Digi Translator, MP3 Bounces, and ADC — all the big requests they’ve been asking for.

At first glance, Pro Tools 9 seems like it best serves users upgrading from LE systems, but there is one huge benefit for users who already own an HD system.

Producer/guitarist Eric Ambel (Kasey Anderson, The Yayhoos, The Bottle Rockets), of Brooklyn’s Cowboy Technical Services, explains, “I just ran a big 96k session on my MacBook with no interface and no problem. That was hot! The open model of 9 can only help.”

Dupont likened the new portability of HD sessions to “Science Fiction ” and told us about the stability he’s experienced with internal soundcards and 3rd party systems:

“Yes, it works great. I’ve run it with built in headphone jack, a Metric Halo box, a SoundDevices box, an RME box, some non-descript iffy USB-to-AES device, a Digi003 and an MBox micro. They all worked like a charm. Switching back-and-forth, the mixes came up just right. I even ran it from the optical digital out of my Mac Pro tower that has the HD4 in it. It felt kind of surreal.”

Avid’s recent developments will no doubt win back favor with formerly frustrated Pro Tools users, some of whom may have switched to other platforms. Producer/engineer John Goodmanson (Los Campesinos, The Blood Brothers, Death Cab For Cutie) had been using Logic, but says of Avid and Pro Tools, the new “third party hardware and EUCON support is how they got me back.”

The initial feedback we received for this release has been so generally positive, that it’s difficult to craft an article that sounds balanced. So what are the cons?

Some hardware-dependent features like TDM plug-ins and near-zero latency are only available to those running HD systems. Producers of audiobooks and podcasts may still feel limited by the lack of a simple alternative to a “Real-Time Bounce” option. And, once the post-release promotions end, a MSRP of $600 for a software-only release may muscle out a future crop of entry-level recordists.

And one caveat to some HD users: although Pro Tools 9 is a great for producers who want to take their sessions on the go, what about travelers who own a permanently installed studio system? Pro Tools 9 is protected by the handy iLok protocol, but buyers are allowed only one authorization per purchase. This means that if you take your iLok on the road, you’re taking your ability to run Pro Tools with you… Unless you purchase a second authorization.

This reviewer can imagine a few logical compromises that would easily resolve this issue, but as of press time, the only course of action for traveling producers who run commercial studios is a duplicate purchase at the full retail price.

Lastly, some owners of commercial studios may feel pressure to purchase an upgrade that may not reap them direct benefits. Will Schillinger of Pilot Recording Studios, who recently upgraded to Pro Tools 8, said he may decide to purchase an additional update just to keep his room up-to-date. In a way, “they still have us by the short hairs” he says.

So is it worth the buy? If you’re an LE/M-Powered user without all the extra toolkits, or if you want to work on full-blown HD sessions anywhere, anytime, the answer is a resounding yes. It’s a fairly inexpensive upgrade that offers tremendous value.

We asked the people at Avid what we can expect from future releases. Although they wouldn’t comment on specifics, they reminded us that user feedback drove the changes under the hood in Pro Tools 9 and that they were committed to “staying more open, engaging the users, and paying close attention to new feature requests on IdeaScale.”

Cariddi also mentioned that we could look forward to more and more seamless integration with Avid’s video and live sound platforms. “We anticipate those markets being blurred, and we intend to build bridges in video, audio and live sound.” Fans of Pro Tools’ simple, powerful interface can take heart knowing that Avid has breathed new life into the platform, restoring the long-time, industry-leading DAW with a real sense of innovation and openness to future development.

Click for more on Pro Tools 9 and to upgrade today.

Justin Colletti is a Brooklyn-based audio engineer and music producer who’s worked with Hotels, DeLeon, Soundpool, Team Genius and Monocle, as well as clients such as Nintendo, JDub and Blue Note Records. Visit him at www.justincolletti.com.

Band-Made: Bellevue’s Finest Self-Produce Eponymous EP

Kips Bay, Manhattan: NYC indie synth-pop band Bellevue’s Finest self-produced their latest, eponymous EP in a variety of environments on a range of gear — bouncing between Mboxes and Neve consoles, laptop Logic systems and full-blown Pro Tools HD rigs. The modern indie band’s secret weapon is its production savvy and Bellevue’s Finest has a built-in producer/engineer in singer Frans Mernick.

A recent graduate of the selective Sonic Arts Center at the City College of New York, Mernick produces the band’s catchy pop songs in gritty electro-punk style — combining digitized analog synths and programmed bits with live band performances captured in rehearsal and recording studios around the city. Recording and production concepts are intrinsic to this band of self-proclaimed “gear heads,” who cite 70s era David Bowie and modern electro-pop a la Passion Pit and Hot Chip as influences.

The new EP, out today, began on Mernick’s laptop and grew in layers as the band — including guitarist David Fell, synth/keyboardist David Haken, synth/keyboardist Adam Sontag, bass player David Glickstein and drummer Keenan Mcrae — got together in the studio.

Named for the Kips Bay neighborhood where these guys came up, in the shadow of Bellevue Hospital, Bellevue’s Finest is in its finest form on the new EP — a four-track serving of energizing indie-pop of the cool, danceable post-punk variety. Here, we talk to the band about their evolving sound and the methods applied on this latest release, Bellevue’s Finest (downloadable here):

Bellevue’s Finest released its first EP, 10010, in early ’09. Tell us about your earliest sound and how that’s progressed to your new EP, Bellevue’s Finest?

Frans: A lot of the inspiration for the first EP, 10010, came from my fooling around with Pro Tools for the first time years ago. In fact, our growing knowledge of audio technology has directly influenced our direction as a band.

Our first EP had a very lo-fi, distorted feel. It was a concoction of influences, incorporating chaotic distorted drum samples, heavy guitars and robust vocals.  I remember a good friend once said, “If Spencer Krug, Frank Black, and Julian Casablancas put their seed into Kylie Minogue – your EP would spill forth from her womb.” I never quite understood that, but I love it.

Since this first EP, we’ve gotten a bit less punk and a bit more indie-pop.  Our sound is much more spontaneous and live on this new record. I made a point of capturing live performances this time around, whereas on our last EP, we never had any two people playing simultaneously.

And tell us a bit about your songwriting and production process — how does a Bellevue’s Finest tune come together?

Frans: Sometimes a song starts out with our guitarist (David Fell) working out the progression on his guitar and singing along some lyrics, but recently most of the time, the songs have started on my laptop in Logic.  I have been compiling an extensive collection of analog synth sampler instruments in Logic’s EXS-24. I basically take vintage analogue keyboards, find a sound I like, record every note of that sound, and import it into a digital sampler.

Using these sounds, I start piecing together songs on my laptop. When I bring these songs to the band, everyone generates their own parts, and we work together on the arrangement.

David Glickstein: Once we’re in the studio, we have a good idea of most of the parts that need to be laid down, though there are always spontaneous overdubbed rhythm and synth parts, and last-minute guitar lines. But before we actually record, we like to mess around with the different equipment that the studio has to offer. This is where our music gets some legs. Flux Studios, the studio where we recorded the majority of our EP, has a bevy of analog synths, tube amps, tape delays, and all sorts of other goodies that appeal to gearheads like us.

Flux is top-notch! Tell us a bit about the recording process and equipment setup in the studio?

Frans: The process of making this record was definitely a modern one in the sense that we recorded and wrote anywhere at anytime, wherever we could. We started by tracking drums and bass live up at City College’s Sonic Arts Center in Harlem. They have a nice setup there with smooth-running HD rigs.

The general mic setup was fairly standard — AKG D112 inside the kick, the outside mic changed from session to session, Sennheiser 421’s on the toms, Shure SM57 on snare top and bottom, stereo matched AKG C-414’s as overheards and some Royer 122 ribbons as room mics. Aside from the room mics, most of the microphones were heading straight to API 3124 preamps. The 3124′s sound fantastically clear, but maintain some nice API character, and they are my go-to preamp in a lot of situations.

I ran the room mics into Pacifica pre-amps, which then ran through a pair of stereo Distressors, where I would adequately crush them before Pro Tools. I like compressing my room mics on the way in — it assigns a specific vibe to the drums I’m recording. With Bass, I usually took a DI signal straight into an API preamp, and then also had a 421 on a vintage Ampeg flip-top, heading into a Universal Audio 6176 pre/compressor joined. I would never compress the bass too drastically during tracking, just enough to get some character out of the outboard.

After we finished tracking the drums and bass, I would usually mix them until they were suitable reference tracks for recording, and bounce them. I would then bring my laptop to our practice space, where I would connect an M-Audio MIDI controller, and have Adam control some of my analog synth samples. It was liberating:  We were able to use MIDI within Logic to control sounds of such classic synths as Moog Opus, Korg Delta, MiniMoog, Korg Poly-800, Moog Prodigy, Korg MiniKorg…the list goes on for days.

After that, I’d import these new synth tracks into the session, and head downtown to Flux, which in addition to a Neve console, extensive outboard gear and a nice tracking room, has the best collection of guitar amps I’ve seen in New York City.

We always gravitated towards one: a Vox AC-30 from the early 1970′s. It had that perfect, subtle grit that we were looking for on this record. I would throw a 57 and Neumann U 47 in front of it, David would plug in his guitar, and everything just sounded like butter.

I ran both of these microphones into a stereo set of Mercury pre-amps that they have in Flux. They have output attenuation, allowing me to add some grit from the pre itself, which always gets a warm, classic tone, without having to hit tape.

From an audio engineering perspective, what do you think was most challenging/ compelling about this project?

Frans: The most challenging part of the project was definitely in the mixing stages, because we recorded these tracks using so many different systems, spaces and gear. It definitely was a challenge to make the songs sound like they were coming from a single place. In the end using a variety of plug-ins, as well as the help and guidance of amazing mixer and mentor Fab Dupont, we were able to make the mixes sound natural.

Did you guys master the record yourselves as well?

David Fell: When it came time for mastering, we went straight to The Lodge without any second thought. Joe LaPorta is a great engineer and down-to-earth guy — he was willing to sit with me for as long as it took to go through endless, subtly different options until we got exactly what we were going for. His trustworthy ears and outsider’s perspective were invaluable.

After working on a track for as many hours as we did each of these, you start to doubt what you’re hearing and what you want to hear, and Joe always reassured us at the end of the process, with honest feedback.

What was your sonic objective, or objectives, and give us a couple examples of how you achieved those sounds.

Frans: We wanted to keep a vintage, organic feel, while using modern recording techniques. When recording with Pro Tools, it’s tough to get everything to sound like it’s in one place. I very much relied on subgroup compression. For example, I would take the drums and the bass, and compress them together; for the synths and the guitars I would do the same. This helped the tracks mesh much better than they would have otherwise.

Also, a little bit of synthetic reverb can go a long way with synths, especially ones that were recorded direct.

What’s a highlight track for you on the record, one that — in particular — you feel really captures the sound, energy and/or experience you wanted to produce?

Adam: Our newest single, “Wannabe,” is a song that manages to capture where we’ve come from and where we’re going as a band. While its mellow, wandering synths bring a layer of electro sheen, they’re happy to cede to thumping, anthemic rock n’ roll. But then, the driving bass and the shouting dudes relent, creating, as Frans sings in the second verse, a “world of dichotomy.” All the while, the drums are never quite willing to let you stop shaking your ass. It’s like a pop song, only with a dense, creamy center. Plus, anything we can do to associate ourselves with the Spice Girls is probably a net positive for us.

Listen to “Wannabe” here:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Who’s another artist/producer you can name that you see doing great work in the studio, and in what ways does that influence or inspire you?

Kevin Barnes has been a big inspiration for us in terms of combining intellectual songwriting with outrageous catchiness. He has a unique ability to weave unconventional chord changes and melodies into a familiar, yet evolving aesthetic. The charts are infested with epic synth-pop tracks created by guys like Dr. Luke, and we also aspire to emulate their sonic swagger. (And success.)

What’s your band’s plan with this EP – how will you promote yourselves? What are your hopes and dreams for the next year?

We have an awesome, animated video for “Wannabe” that’ll be released with the EP. We’re already back in the studio, at the beginning stages of a new record. Most likely, we’ll take a similar approach to what we did this time around, where we release a series of singles followed by a full EP come next Spring.

This is our self-titled EP, so we want to get as much Bellevue’s Finest to the people as possible. We plan on attacking the college scene, on the ground and through the airwaves. They will acquiesce! It’s 2010, so we do all that social media jazz.  Not because we think we’re cool or anything, but just because it’s the only way to do it these days on the cheap.  We’re reserving our band fund for a blockbuster ad at Super Bowl XLV.

Check out Bellevue’s Finest and download their new EP at www.bellevuesfinest.com. Catch their EP release show tonight at Cake Shop.

Engineer/Musicians Hatch Three Egg Studios In Williamsburg

Williamsburg, Brooklyn: Last year, we reported on an impressive new recording studio that had soft-launched in South Williamsburg, called One.Point.Six Media. The facility had been years in development, its owner and designer working closely with Michael Blackmer of Blackmer Sound to perfect the acoustics. Studios can be complicated businesses, however, and over this past summer, ownership of this facility changed hands.

Rebranded as Three Egg Studios and officially open for business as of the end of September, the two-room facility is now being run by engineer/producers Bryan Kane and Brian Penny. Band-mates in the now Brooklyn-based post-punk band Bone Gunn, Kane and Penny relocated from Boston last year in search of better opportunities for their band and production efforts.

“Up in Boston, Kane and I had both been working at Kissy Pig Studios,” says Penny. “I was the go-to house engineer there for awhile and Kane was producing bands, and we were also working on Bone Gunn. We’re trying to push into new territory with our music. Everyone kept telling us that our band belonged in New York. Boston is really a college music scene; it was hard to find bands to play with that would still be around next semester! Plus, people weren’t getting what we were doing. Are you a metal band? No. Are you a folk band? No. What are you? People didn’t get it. We’re doing something different.”

“After awhile, we realized we needed to start meeting people who are in the industry and serious about what they’re doing. You need to meet and play with other bands who are still going be together next year.”

They started looking in Brooklyn and found a building in Red Hook that precipitated their move and their first project. In this space, Kane, Penny and co. setup an art + music venue / collective they call “I Made An Art.” They built a stage in the back and started hosting monthly events, inviting bands they liked to come and play, as well as playing events themselves.

“We have new exhibits every month and put on free music events,” says Penny. “And just by doing that, we felt like we gathered more of a community in less than a year here in Brooklyn than we had in four years in Boston. It was cool to see that happen — people here are really looking to be creative together and collaborate within a community.”

All the while, Penny was still traveling between Brooklyn and Boston to engineer records, and working in his home studio. A friend in Boston heard about One.Point.Six being up for sale and told Kane to go check it out. “The former owner wanted to find people who he felt would appreciate what he’d built,” says Penny. “He’d had other offers but he liked Kane and the direction we wanted to take it in, so we were lucky enough to benefit from his labor of love and take it over.”

Three Egg Studios provides another opportunity for community building and growth for both the band and Kane and Penny as producer/engineers. “We were running the day-to-day of Kissy Pig for awhile so we’d already had a really good grasp of what running a studio of this size entails,” says Penny. “Except we were doing it in a college market rather than having the exposure to really serious musicians, bands that are determined to really do something.”

And what Three Egg is providing in Williamsburg will not only appeal to the indie rock set but also to jazz and acoustic musicians and ensembles for its tracking spaces and sightlines for live off the floor sessions. Engineers, according to Penny, will appreciate the room’s accuracy. “Three Egg is the best mix room as far as translation that I’ve ever worked in, period,” he declares. “Learning this room takes half-an-hour as opposed to days. It’s freakish how well the mixes translate.

“We shot out the room and it is quite literally as flat as physically possible for a mix room to be — within 3dB for almost the full spectrum and then a 4dB drop at 115Hz and that’s it. So the coolest thing for me as an engineer is that you come in here and you’re literally hearing what you’re working on, no question.”

Three Egg is impressive looking as well. A Neve 5316 broadcast console sits at the center of the totally symmetrical mission-control-style Studio A control room. From the console, engineers look out to a large live room and two large booths, left and right. The entire Studio A is a done in natural light wood and cream-colored walls, with illuminating light and window boxes accenting the rooms.

Studio B has an entirely different design, kind of an urban rustic log cabin control room with plenty of its own recording and workspace plus tie-lines into the A live rooms. Three Egg is fixing to set up the B room as a 5.1 mix suite. “It’d be perfect for VO and audio post production sessions so that’s our long-term plan, but we’re also open to having a tenant based out of this room.”

Three Egg is equipped with most every DAW platform, including Pro Tools HD3. “Everybody can record at home now which means a lot of people don’t want to pay studio fees for editing time,” Penny notes. “So we built computers that can support all the DAWs — Pro Tools, Logic, Nuendo, Cubase, Samplitude, Sequoia, Live and Reason. We’re going to have Sonar soon. And they all run 48-in and 48-out.

“The premise is that if a client is comfortable working in Logic and that’s what they’re running Logic then we’ll have that running here and it’s seamless integration for you and your project. Or however you want to work; it’s no big deal, we’ve got it all.”

The studio boasts some other musician-friendly features as well. “Jason Rutherford, who wired the facility, has stayed on as our tech,” says Penny. “He wired the whole place for CAT5 so we can do personal monitoring systems in any of the rooms, or set up a monitor and a keyboard in the live room so you can sit there and press play and record for yourself while you’re recording.”

It’s worth noting that the facility also has a beautiful lounge up front with built-in bar and stereo speakers for another listening environment and meeting space. Additionally, an independently owned/operated 5,000-square-foot photo/video stage downstairs could tie into Three Egg for music video productions and photo shoots.

Penny and Kane seem genuinely psyched to have landed in this facility and are determined to build community around the studio, as they have with their Red Hook art space. “We’re really appreciative of the work that was put into these rooms and we really want to make it so others can benefit from this as well,” Penny shares.

How will they do this? “We want to keep the rates on a sliding scale,” Penny notes. “Being an indie band ourselves, we definitely want to be working on music we want to listen to. And at the end of the day if that means we’re not making as much money, but we’ve got cool things going on, then it’s worth it. We’re also not going to require that clients use in-house engineers. We’ll have an assistant here no matter what, but I want to keep it affordable for bands, especially bands that know how to record themselves.”

If you’re interested in checking out Three Egg Studios (which we recommend you do!), visit www.3eggstudios.com and get in touch!

Dubspot Goes Global: Introducing Dubspot Online

Dubspot — NYC’s cutting-edge NYC electronic music production and DJ school — is taking its instructors and classroom experience worldwide with Dubspot Online, a new online educational platform that individually connects students around the world directly with their instructors and peers.

Dubspot Online stems from the same philosophy that founded the school: music technology is only as good as the music you make. Principles are incorporated and practiced versus memorized. Individual progress and artistic growth are encouraged through consistent weekly feedback and direct advice from instructors, as students constantly create new tracks and apply what they learn.

High quality videos, along with audio and text documentation accompany every lesson, and a revolutionary new online community provides a unique venue for sharing ideas and enriching the learning experience.

The new Dubspot Online Community expands the school’s family of like-minded artists, DJs, and producers to an international scale. A varied selection of forums, connected to various courses and tailored to project feedback, as well as technical, artistic, and cultural discussions, encourages interactions on a variety of topics all essential to a well-rounded music education. Participants will not only include students, but the school’s faculty, staff, and artist network of established DJs and producers. Additional tutorials, event, and workshop invitations will also be available, exclusively to online students.

Dubspot Online Upcoming Start Dates:

December 6 – Ableton Live
January 17 – Reason 5 / Logic Pro 9 / Ableton Live
January 24 – Sound Design & Synthesis w/ Native Instruments / Essential Music Foundations
January 31 – Mixing & Mastering

Registration is now open at dubspot.com/online-school.

For more on Dubspot, visit www.Dubspot.com, which has recently been redesigned and re-imagined to provide an intuitive, user-friendly experience, featuring an in-depth overview of the educational opportunities offered, plus videos discussing the school, students, and community, instructor profiles, details on their facilities, and more.

Living Room Recording: Producer Nic Hard Makes The Perfects Feel Right at Home

PROSPECT LEFFERTS GARDENS, BROOKLYN: No slave to the studio, Nic Hard. For this in-demand indie producer/engineer/mixer (The Bravery, Aberdeen City, The Church, The Kin), professional recording often means a move away from controlled conditions into creatively comforting confines.

Hard’s latest project, capturing the arresting rock/new wave/electronic concoctions of Baltimore’s the Perfects, bear out his current preference for recording world-class albums in the living room, as opposed to the live room. A former Philadelphia DJ, Hard had meshed well with the Perfects’ love of synths, electronic drums and ‘80’s influences, first on their 2005 self-titled debut EP and subsequently on the 2009 full-length future automatic.

Collaborating on the Perfects’ upcoming (Spring 2011) album, Hard recently had the band come up to a Bushwick loft where his own personal “Living Room Studio” workflow could be effectively deployed. Recording in sonically informal environs happens every day, of course, but Hard’s approach – borne out of an unexpected set of sessions with the Bravery – shows that there’s always another spin.

Tell us about your take on the “Living Room Studio”. How do you go about it?
Basically, the idea is taking the recording process away from a traditional “pro studio” setup with the big desk, the glass, the sweet spot and the perfect listening environment, and forcing yourself to listen in a more casual way. Instead, we set up a room — rehearsal space, warehouse, house or living room — with whatever gear is needed centered around a couple of couches, coffee tables, and maybe a nice rug.

For most of my career I’ve worked primarily with independent bands. Most bands don’t have unlimited funds, and therefore booking Electric Lady for three months isn’t usually in the cards. I’ve always leaned towards working at less expensive studios so that more time could be spent. To me time is by far the most valuable thing in the recording process: If it came down to it, I’d rather have a month with a Mackie and 57’s than a week at a studio like the Hit Factory (RIP). That’s not to say I don’t use good stuff, but the time means more to me.

That seems like a sound theory and a music-first approach. When did it start to take shape for you?
I’ve done a bunch or recording where gear has been brought into an ordinary space, like The Kin’s “Rise and Fall” record which was done in an old farmhouse out in Pennsylvania. Even with that record there was still somewhat of an attempt to have a “control room” type situation.

It wasn’t until I was working with the Bravery on their most recent record that I got the idea to take it one step further. I ended up cutting almost all of the vocals for that record in the singer’s apartment — oh — and a couple of hotel rooms and on their tour bus! This was done mostly so that (vocalist/guitarist) Sam (Endicott) could be totally comfortable, and take as much time as he needed in an environment that he was used to listening in.

The record was mixed by Michael Brauer, but when it came time to pass the tracks off we still had stuff to finish, so we setup in Brauer’s lounge, which also happened to be a live room. There was a couch, a TV, nice rug and a pair of ProAc loudspeakers. As I sat on the couch and kicked back with my laptop finishing things up I realized that not only it was way more comfortable, but that I wasn’t listening as much to the quality of each individual thing — not focusing in on the technical aspects — but more just listening to the song. Since then I’ve done a handful of records where I’ve gone out of my way to setup in a way that was non-traditional.

I think personal workflow innovations are always best when they’re discovered like that, organically. When it came to the Perfects, where did you and the band work, and what kind of rig did you take with you to the space?
For the last round of songs I did with the Perfects we sublet a loft in Bushwick. Logistically this ended up being more convenient than Baltimore for me, because I was also doing a couple other projects and needed to be close.

The rig consists of a 192, a tower with three Pro Tools cards and a Dangerous Music D-Box. The D-Box has been great in a tracking situation, because one of the things I’ve missed about tracking with a console is the ability to blend mics on guitars or keys down to one track — you know, commit! Using the sum inputs on the D-Box has been great for that.

Typically in these situations I have a friend who I’ll rent mic pres, compressors and mics from as-needed. In the case of the Perfects we had a couple of Vintechs, a pair of Distressors and an LA-2A. We were also lucky enough to have been loaned a couple of BAE pres and a Burl B2 bomber by Audio Power Tools to test out. For this project, a lot of the drum sounds were a hybrid of live and electronic, so I opted to track minimal mics on the kit, sometimes just the Royers as a pair of “kit mics”.

You told me that you’ll also mix in the band’s gear where appropriate…
Since Pro Tools and Logic became “consumer” products i.e. cheaper, it’s allowed artists to have the ability to track themselves. When this began I remember being worried that I’d be out of a job, but it has actually turned out to be great: I get tons of demos that people have put together in their bedrooms or sometimes I’m mixing something that has been tracked entirely in that way.

What I’ve found is that it’s led to is a level of creativity that is unobstructed by technology, and people can come up with some crazy shit when they are up at all hours of the night with the ability to multi-track. The advent of these bedroom room studios also means that a bunch of bands also buy lots or recording gear, and this can always be used in the process and keep the budget down.

The “Living Room” approach sounds like it would be perfect – no pun intended – for a straight-up rock band. How does recording the Perfects’ many electronic/programmed elements live work in this scenario?
With the Perfects it’s a lot of synths, heavily-effected guitars and electronic stuff. I’ve recently been getting into Ableton Live and found that it allows me to do more on the fly, because when searching for sounds it’s just so fast to tweak/add/destroy things, all without having to stop and add a plug-in. Sometimes I’ll loop Pro Tools on my rig and run Ableton on a laptop, synced with MIDI through an Ethernet cable just to have more fluidity in the process of finding a sound.

Moving on to the mix, where did you take the tracks after the recording? What’s your own personal approach to mixing?

As of the beginning of 2009 I’ve had my own mix room in my house, which has been awesome! It has by far been the smartest thing that I’ve done for my mixing — about half the work I get is straight-up mixing, so it has really enabled me to hone my skills because of the ability to gain perspective. I’ll mix for as long as I feel fresh, then I’ll do something else, then later on come back to it. I’ve been way happier with the mixes I’ve been turning out.

Another great advantage has been that the feedback given by the band seems way more useful. I think for a lot of people, listening during a mix session on speakers and in a room they aren’t used to can be less objective than if they listen in their own house, or on whatever they usually listen on. It really takes the pressure out of the situation, and allows me to work on something until the band and I are happy with it.

What did the band think of the workflow?

Given the music’s electronic core and the need to mess around with sounds and parts to find the right stuff, it just seemed like a good way to do it…Oh, that and they don’t have a bazillion dollars!

It seems pretty clear that you like working the “Living Room” way as well — what makes it good for an engineer/producer like you? Do you think this is especially good for NYC recording, or is this a universally useful technique?
The main reason I like this has to be the more relaxed atmosphere and comfort in knowing that I have time to play around. I’m not sure how it will progress or if it will even last for me, but right now it seems to work.

I think that there are probably huge numbers of people all over the place doing very similar things. I think many “pro” engineers and producers still prefer the safety and control of a studio, and the living room thing definitely has its disadvantages — but they’re ones that I am willing to concede.

– David Weiss

« Previous Page — Next Page »