Prosound News - April 2008 - (Page 40)

[40] Rich Breen, engineer for the Yellowjackets sessions, admits to initial skepticism regarding the effectiveness of the piano garage. “When it became clear there was no way to fit either Marcus’s kit or the Steinway into any of the iso booths [at BiCoastal], this seemed like a real problem, as I knew the piano would figure prominently and Marcus would be hitting hard,” Breen says. “I spoke with [Yellowjackets pianist] Russ Ferrante about it, and we figured we’d just gobo and blanket the hell out of the piano and hope for the best—of course, even with all that, the drums would be strong in the piano mics and we didn’t really want to lose the definition that iso would give us. In order to accommodate the Yellowjackets’ full lineup and drummer Marcus Baylor’s large kit, BiCoastal Recording owner Hal Winer built a “piano garage” to isolate the instrument within the studio’s tracking room. Pianos (continued from page 27) Winer also consulted with Gavin Haverstick, an acoustical engineer with Auralex Acoustics, to determine an optimum treatment for the interior of the piano garage. Haverstick, says Winer, recommended Auralex’s 2-inch StudioFoam, which is affixed to the interior walls and ceiling of the piano garage. The piano’s lid was removed for its stay in the garage. better stronger faster 250x faster than MIDI EuCon is a high-speed, hig h - r e s o l u t io n , Ethernet protocol that a l l o w s E u p h o n i x c o n t r o l s u r f a c e s to directly communicate with any software application. Br in g y o u r Ma c a n d P C w o r k s ta t i ons to life and work faster, more efficiently System 5-MC Integrated DAW Controller 2008 model with new charcoal ﬁnish and more creatively. While it wasn’t ideal, we were resigned to the situation. “When Hal first told me about [the piano garage], I thought it was kind of a crackpot idea, but when we got there, he enthusiastically showed us how the thing went up in about 15 minutes, and I was really impressed! In any case, it totally solved the problem. Frankly, the iso we got from it is probably as good or better than what I usually get with the piano in an iso room in many studios. The drums remained well defined and punchy, even when Marcus was pounding the hell out of things, and while I was worried the piano would sound ‘boxy,’ it ended up being just fine—you’ll hear the results on the final CD, and I think it’s excellent.” Breen used a pair of prototype Sennheiser MKH 800 Twins in a side-address configuration. This, he explains, “made it a little easier to get them in the right spot in the box.” The piano garage, agrees Ferrante, is “a very ingenious solution to the problem of sound leakage into the piano while tracking in the same room as other instruments, and worked perfectly for us. The ‘garage’ is meticulously constructed in a way that almost completely seals off outside sound. From a pianist standpoint, there was really no compromise. The piano had a rich tone while being monitored in the headphones and was completely satisfying to play. At no time was there ever a problem punching into the piano or drum tracks, as there was virtually no leakage into either. I was really pleased with the piano sound, too. In other sessions when the piano has been blanketed for isolation considerations, I’ve felt the piano sound suffered. Thankfully, I didn’t feel that way at all with the ‘piano garage.’ “I guess my biggest compliment,” Ferrante adds, “would be that after the initial curiosity of seeing the piano buttoned up like that, I completely forgot about it and was able to play without giving it any further thought.” —Christopher Walsh euphonix.com Visit us at NAB Booth # N5217 AND BiCoastal Recording www.bicoastalmusic.com psn April 2008 OTHER TRADEMARKS ARE PROPERTY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS. ©2008 EU P H O N I X IN C . AL L R I G H T S RE S E R V E D . SY S T E M 5 MC EUCO N ARE TRADEMARKS OF EU P H O N I X IN C . AL L http://euphonix.com http://www.bicoastalmusic.com http://euphonix.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Prosound News - April 2008

Prosound News - April 2008 Sound Business Contents Sound Retail Mojo’s Working at NY Noise Studio Showcase: Jungle Room Studios Software Tech Tracks Sessions Nomad Takes Root TCB at NYC’s JSM SoundScreen White Space Turning Gray Audio for Video and Broadcast Field Reports:Sony PCM-D50 Linear PCM Recorder; Holophone H4 SuperMINI Surround Microphone Sound Innovations: Earthworks Audio PianoMic System Frozen Liquid Live Sound Showcase: Jill Scott Centerstage Soundcheck Sound People View From the Top Product Spotlight Advertiser Index Company Index Classifieds Music, Etc.

Prosound News - April 2008

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