Description
LESS FEATHERS, MORE CHICKEN... Making records, most often on 2" Tape, always a journey. Mixmasters is pretty much an Aust icon. Home of a heavenly host of gear and instruments any musician / musical bod who loves records, and the golden era of recording would be happy to share a room with. Based around the first SSL 4000 recording console to find its way to Australia. Usually the first thing to see a track is the Studer 827, via a bank of ancient Neve console channels, and one of the most loveable mic collections in the land, from a host of vintage 47's and 48's to the whole range of Josephson's, and almost everything in between, with more ribbons than a 5 year old girls birthday. Its a musician / bands Xanadu, you can stay in the apartment, and forget the world is out there, and isn't that what we are trying to do ?(within reason)
Mixmasters has been the home to so many albums, it would be just silly to list them. From Original Adelaide icons (Daisy Heads, Lizard train, Krytapinzch etc etc, to national heroes (Jeff Lang, Pigram Brothers, Angels, Shane Howard, Dingoes, Large Number Twelves, Amanda Palmer, Yearlings, Audreys, Jackson Firebird, Laura Hill, Borderers, Huckleberry Swedes, Cindi Boste, Nigel Werne, the list goes on)
Owned, built and run by me (Mr Mick Wordley), I have been on a life long obsession with recording music, sonic landscapes, playing music, and producing music since school days, making it a full time endeavor for the past 30 odd years (very odd)
Its been a trip and a blast to work with many great musicians, producers and collaborators over the years. I have recorded all over the lands, also in
Can I invite you to my table of audio relics, that I have collected ?
Don't want to bore you with geekism, but these are my (our) tools, and when they are ambient, they are "art", and feel nice to "be around'
You can hang a 72 Gold Top on the wall, and just because its not being played, don't mean its "idle", and doesn't belong (and serving a purpose)
So ...
Want (need) a Hammond ? ... next to the console is a 39 Hammond BC, feeding a Leslie in the "Leslie room", but played in the control room, with personal monitors
Piano ? in the studio stands a Yamaha C-2 (1982) 9 foot full concert grand, I am sure it has many children and is a proud mum, its sounds like a matriarch should. Maybe a Rhodes ? ... On the rear wall is a beautiful "suitcase" Rhodes ... or if you prefer, plug the Wurly into the Fender Vibrolux, or the 40's Magnatone, and let the trem "sing"
For those purveyors of microphones ...
In my cupboard lies:
X2 U-47 (VF-14), X2 U-48, X4 U-67, X2 KM-54, X6 Josephson E-22, X4 Josephson C-42, X2 Mojave MA-100, X2 SM-69, X2 KM-84, X2 Mercenary KM-69, X2 JZ 47 vintage, Josephson 715, 716, Josephson 700, RSM M/S, Calrec Soundfield, X2 U-47 fet, X4 AKG 414, X3 AKG C-12A, AKG 451's, X2 460's, Sennheiser MK-20, 421's ..
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Very well deserved, too...these are fantastic units, and get used daily here at Mixmasters!
Photos from Mixmasters Studio's post
Well ...with Mr Jim's help, we got to use this lil' sucker .. vintage Moog flies .. at last ! God help us ...
Timeline Photos
Say no more ... history in the making.
Timeline Photos
Wurlying, no roof ... Vic (can never spell his last name), Adelaide legend, king of Vinyl thru Fender oldie .... Hmnnn, sounds like ... "See the Sky Abut to Rain" ... take me away. Well .. take me back to my Greek Island ... arrive Sunday 5pm ... 30 hours in the air (on the road), start 10 session (Nigel Werne) .. finish 3.30am ... then two days tracking .... Oh dear. Who needs sleep ? .. When you have a train set like this.
Sam ! .. send me some pics of making your record.
Photos from Mixmasters Studio's post
Today we are tracking drums and HUGE guitars on my Studer 827 at 15 ips to hot tape. There is NOTHING like the bottom end at 15 ips, except on a 2" 16 track Ampex 1200 at 15 ips. The Studer 24 track is still very satisfying and it moves tape like a houdini juggler. One can only have true RESPECT for Willi Studer and his engineers. This tape machine would have cost about $120K in its day (not ling ago really) Now you can have one for $15K ... and NOTHING sounds as good ... Except standing in the room I guess. The drums sound amazing. A serious tuned kit, the Mixmasters drum room from hell, and the mics and pre's: Kick: D-6 / 6176 / Pultec / transient designer. Other: RE-20 / 6176 / Pultec / TD. Snare: M-88 / 1064 vintage Neve / Distressor / TD, Other: 57 / 1064 / Distressor. OH: Neumann fet - 47's / 1064's. Hats: SM-7 / Neve broadcast 33114. Toms: Josephson E-22's (4 of them) / 1064's. Room: AEA R-88 / AEA TRP, Over kit: Coles 4038 / Chandler REDD 47. Ahh .... There is nothing like the smell of oxide in the morning ..... the Studer is a BEAST.
Timeline Photos
Who likes listening to AM radio ? I certainly do. There is something about it to me ... its "soft", but very musical. Its sometimes hard to not mix "too good". This is a beautiful old valve AM Radio, That Rob Squire configured for me to sound like my mixes played on AM radio. What a great idea.
Photos from Mixmasters Studio's post
Finally I have a pair of "KEF Concerto's" on my bridge, next to the ATC SCM-50's, These speakers test out wobbly bottom end to the max. If the bottom end holds together on these .... it's GOOD. They have the incredibly beautiful B -139 bass driver in a ported HEAVY cabinet. These are the same driver used in the LINN Isobarik system, as well as most transmission line systems. Thanks to Josh, the KB wizz, and collector of fine curiosities and things of interest. We have to keep these pieces alive. I have an original pair of "Tailor Made" Concerto's from the KEF factory in my home listening room, that I often run down and listen to what I am mixing at the time. Now I can stay in the control room. Oh ... and there is a pic of the oval 139 ... and YES they are "upside down" they work better for me, as the High Frequency driver is in line with my ears .... and as bass is non directional ... who cares ? Actually, I was a little embarrassed with my SCM-50's (cost about $20K) being upside down when the folk from ATC visited , as I am an ATC geek, I listen to passive SCM-20's with a Linn Sondek, and a NAIM power amp in my beach listening room, (they were too heavy to reverse in a hurry) The guys thought it was a great idea .... Why didn't we think of that ?? ... Whew.
Photos from Mixmasters Studio's post
And ... this is Laura Hill, with Richard Coates, and Chris Parkinson. Making music, live, almost the only way ... The Hammond is a "BC", it was born in 1939, I found it in a church in QLD ... Jesse Dean Freeman has just worked on it, and its actually very quiet now. Also it has the original "Tone Cabinet" It is a sweet thing. Just another toy for you to play with at Mixmasters.
Photos from Mixmasters Studio's post
This .... Friends, is an old Moog / Organ (rare) .. just refurbished, and glued back together ... Oh ... old analogue KB's .... But ... this is what you will find hidden in the corner here ... AND !!! they actually work, and we actually play them ...
Delia Obst
Chris Finnen & Jay Hoad "Off The Cuff" Album Promo
https://youtu.be/cZoFdZxwZH8
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