ProAudio Review - April 2008 - (Page 27)

was obviously designed – as a channel path to monitor path in-line, or by sending submixes back from DAW to open input channels or the subgroups. In fact, this latter method was great for tracking as the eight submasters have secondary inputs that are normaled to the first eight input channel strips. As for fidelity, its overall throughput is certainly as good as the other conspicuous consoles in this market segment, and it does offer a measure of its own Trident pedigree in the form of what one may call "warmth" and roundness, but is of course most likely the result of multistage THD and EQ phase shift. Nothing necessarily wrong with that, as they are the DNA building blocks of much analog "character." The high-frequency detail was also very good, and didn't exhibit any irritating graininess. The fairly faithful EQ section of major value to the console's ultimate enjoyment. I tended to be a bit shy of the high- and lowshelves, however. The danger is, with only the two sweepable bands, it's natural to reach for the high shelf for brightening, but do that on too many channels at the same fixed point and you may find yourself starting a mix from scratch. This was much more of a problem on the Series 70, with its bands fixed at (from memory ) 100 Hz and 10 kHz. I wasn't thrilled with the overall headroom, but again, it is not built to major-console rail spec and its commensurate cost. With greater attention to internal levels, and a bump up on the amplifiers, I was a happy camper. A few nits I had with the ATB, besides the lack of preamp output points, are its lack of solo buttons on the in-line monitor section of each channel, its lack of a stereo aux pair, and the lack of an LED indicator on soloed channels. I would also gladly trade the input reverse for a proper fader reverse (which would allow recording levels to be set with a rotary knob and the monitor signal to flow down the main channel to the faders. Or just go ahead and flip the current design around so the default is that the monitor path uses the channel strip controls and the tracking/input path uses the rotary knob and pan, as it is on most large-format in-lines I have used. In that way, all the EQ, sends, fader levels and pan settings and tweaks made throughout a tracking day add up to a great rough mix; plus, no recording levels were harmed because they were out of the way on knobs and safe from musicians who will invariably move faders while the engineer is out of the CR. | SUMMARY The obvious markets for the Toft Audio Design Series ATB console are project stu- dios, smaller music-oriented studios, secondary rooms in larger studios, private/commercial production suites, fixed installations and broadcast audio suites – in short, anyone who will appreciate having (or learning about) the flexibility and core functionality of a traditional analog in-line console, and whose clients will be more impressed than with any of the usual suspects in the eight-bus arena. The ATB packs a great deal of features and functionality within its handsome wood-trimmed frame and the appeal of its impressively evocative Trident-esque stylings will go far towards the board's acceptance in a wide range of applications both above and below its price-point station. PAR Studio Editor Stephen Murphy has over 20 years production and engineering experience, including Grammy-winning and Gold/Platinum credits. His website is www.smurphco.com. DIGITAL PRECISION SADiE Series 5… The World’s Leading Audio Editing System The Fastest audio editor for • Broadcast production • Mastering • Remote recording • Archiving & restoration Most robust and portable audio multitrack • High track count mirrored recording Stereo AND Multi-channel Editing • Fastest editor for dialog, music & FX • “Region Editor” – quick compilation • “Playlist Editor” for topping & tailing • “Trim Editor” – fast precision speech & music editing • “3- and 4-point Editor” for sound-to-picture • “Speech Editor” for instant gap removal & splicing • Project-based multiple EDL Cut, Copy & Paste • Faster than real-time EDL-based delivery to playout server, Red Book CD & multi-format audio files BB2 series – radio production; LRX2 – remote multi-track recording; PCM series - from 2 to 256 tracks, mastering & multi-track Contact us now to arrange your demo +1 973 983 9577 +44 1223 424988 Email: sales@sadie.com www.sadie.com • www.prismsound.com www.proaudioreview.com April 2008 | ProAudio Review | 27 http://smurphco.com http://www.prismsound.com http://www.prismsound.com http://www.sadie.com http://www.sadie.com http://www.sadie.com http://www.prismsound.com http://www.proaudioreview.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ProAudio Review - April 2008

ProAudio Review - April 2008 Contents A Little More Recognition Please Studio News and New Products API 1608 16-Channel Analog Console TASCAM X-48 Digital Audio Workstation SSL Matrix Super Analogue Console Toft Audio Design Series ATB Analog Console KRK Systems Exposé E8B Powered Monitor Broadcast News and New Products ZOOM H2 Portable Digital Recorder Producing Surround Sound at 50th Grammy Awards JBL LSR4312SP Linear Spatial Reference Powered Subwoofer Audio Production For Gaming Euphonix S5 Fusion Digital Post Production Console NAB Hot Gear Soundcraft Vi6 Digital Live Production Console Go To A Show! Contracting News and New Products Studio Consoles Studio Wireless Microphones Alicia Keys “Superwoman”

ProAudio Review - April 2008

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