AKG 2 Channel Reverb

The new BX10 reverberation unit is a smaller version of the well-known BX15 and BX20 devices, and is designed primarily with mobile recording and live use in mind, featuring true 2-channel operation (with 35dB channel separation). It has many and varied applications in both stereo and mono modes, and includes 'high pulse density' to duplicate the many sound paths encountered in 'natural' rooms, adjustable input sensitivity to match varied sources of signal, built-in reverb/dry-signal mixing and built-in limiter circuitry. The unit only weighs 47lbs, and measures 17"x12"x19", thus making it ideal for squeezing into the most overloaded of groupmobiles. The only off-putting note may be the price, a cool £1,225.

Startling Studios

Imagine recording in a studio surrounded by acre upon acre of botanical garden set in the middle of the Berkshire countryside — it isn't hard to do. All you need is £700 a day and you're there.

Tittenhurst Park is John Lennon's ex-residence in Sunninghill, near Ascot, where he recorded Imagine, and which now houses a new studio designed by Edward J. Veale called Startling Studios. The first clients to make use of the studio after it opened for business last September were Ring-O Records band Stormer - visitors since then have included Denny Laine, Rab Noakes and Engine, a band featuring former Earthband guitarist Mick Rogers.

Activities at Startling revolve around the MCI 32 in, 32 out computerised desk, of which everyone is suitably proud. With a Capability Brown designed garden on the doorstep and stretching as far as the eye can see, the possibility of recording various instruments in the open air has excited chief engineer Dave Tickle. "With the guitarist's amp just out in the courtyard, for example, you can wind it up to give that sort of sound which would pose all kinds of feedback problems if it was back in the studio," he enthused, and demonstrated the kind of effect possible by playing back a completed track from the recent Engine session. In fact the interior of the rest of the house has provided the scene for many experiments, including recording in the bedrooms and the games room!

Versatility proves to be one of the studio's main virtues, and studio manager Mike O'Donnell stresses the "negotiability" of the £700 a day figure — "it includes everything," he added. This presumably takes in the life-size model dinosaur in the grounds, the food and accommodation to put a glint in a knackered musician's eye, and surroundings which are the perfect ad for "getting it together in the country". Budding bookers or brochure browsers should contact Mike at Startling Studios, (Contact Details).

Macinnes Desk

Macinnes Laboratories announced a new mixer, designed primarily for small studio and PA use, at the Hamburg AES show in March. The desk is 18/4 configuration, making it suitable for the smaller studio facility, 4-track mobile, and most PA applications. It features 2 foldback sends, 2 echo sends (one with pre/post facility), gain, pan and equaliser controls. The equaliser is three-band, with treble control ±15dB at 10KHz, mid-range ±18dB at six switch-selectable frequencies, and bass ±15dB at 100Hz. Phase reverse, mic/line switch, PFL and full routing are fitted to each channel, and the channel fader is a linear carbon type with a 74mm stroke. The output section contains monitor volume and selector, PFL master and Echo/Foldback gain controls. Ins and outs are XLR 3-pin series in standard wiring configuration, with a multi-way connector. Inputs are transformer-balanced on both line and mic and large VU meters (4) are provided with the possibility of metering groups out or PFL. The master send controls are fitted with overload LEDs.

Available as an optional extra is an 18/6 Stage Box, fitted with multiway connectors. These interface with Macinnes own multicore cable (which is supplied in 50m standard lengths) and with the multiway on the desk. The cable is very interesting, being very light and highly flexible. Apart from PA use, this facility would also be ideal for instant wiring of a small or temporary studio installation; it's just a matter of stuffing the cable in a duct or behind the wall. Here, too, the flexibility of the cable would prove its worth: there can be few cables of this type which can be bent through 90 degrees within zero radius! Other options include balanced outputs, insert facilities and additional jack-socket line inputs. Macinnes also state that they will consider any requests for special mods to the gear for individual clients.

Macinnes Labs also market the Amcron range of power amps. The two at the top of this range, the D150A and DC300A, are now fitted with LED distortion indicators which illuminate with the onset of "any and all forms of amplifier non-linerity" (sic). At the heart of this system is a comparator which monitors, and indicates, any deviation between the input and output signals. All the new amps have an improved s/n ratio of 115dB at full output.

All good stuff. The Amcron range has gone from strength to strength over the last few years, particularly recently with the introduction of the 'A' series, a vast improvement on the original line. They are now perhaps the most respected studio monitoring amps in the world, if you like the type of sound they produce. Very good of Mr. Amcron, however, to admit that even his amps are liable to distort if you do certain naughty things to them (like run them into poor little 35W Tannoys, for example?). Still, the thought crosses our minds that, if you find yourself seated one day at the console and the lights come on, what do you do? Turn 'em down, I suppose.

Stop Press Macinnes offering 10% discount on Amcron amps during April and May

Teac Stars

Star Wars may be a bit passe by now, what with Close Encounters, et al., but there are some aspects of a multi-million-dollar production like this that nobody thinks about. Do you know, for example, on what tape machines they recorded the special effects sound and dialogue? A Studer 24-track? MCI 96-track? No way. Ben Burtt, the sound effects specialist responsible for the cosmic zaps of Star Wars, prepared the zillions of effects (visible, if not audible, for half the movie's running time) in his Hollywood studio on humble Teac gear. Mainstay of his facility is the A-2340 4-channel machine and Tascam Model 5 desk (see review elsewhere in this issue), backed up with A-7300 and 2300 stereo machines.

Burtt was responsible for the strange voices, weapons and battles that make the movie such a mind-blowing experience. The final soundtrack was mixed at Sam Goldwyn Studios in LA with good ol' Dolby noise reduction, saviour of the film soundtrack industry.

Amazing what you can do with a bit of hi-technology.

TAPCO Power Amps

TAPCO have produced a new range of power amps to complement their line of professional mixers and eq units. There are two basic power amp units, both dual-channel, designated the CP120 (61W per channel) and CP500 (255W per channel). Model CP500M is the same basic amp as the 500, but has added a pair of peak-reading meters, plus blown-fuse and thermal protection indicators.

Both basic amps are designed for 4-ohm operation and feature PowerLock, a sensing circuit that senses any large input signals that could cause clipping and distortion and holds the amp output down for the duration of the potential overload, so distortion does not occur. Fast transients (less than 1mS duration), however, are left unaffected, thus avoiding any likelihood of subjective changes in audio balance. Well, that's the idea, anyway. The result is a claimed absence of distortion and greater average power output, plus the added advantage of complete speaker protection if someone drops a microphone or you have the gain on a channel up too high. LEDs are provided on the front panel to indicate the activation of the PowerLock circuit, and the system can be set up to limit at one-quarter, half, and full-power, with a front-panel control.

All the amps have comprehensive protection circuitry to take care of any potential nasties, and various options are offered including XLR balanced inputs, instead of ¼in jacks.

DJM The Eastlake Way

James House is the new London base for the Dick James organisation, and includes a prestigious, recently completed Eastlake-designed studio amongst its facilities. Equipment droolers will warm to the existence of MCI 500 Series computerised desks in both studios 1 and 2, whilst visiting musicians are assured a comfortable session with surroundings chosen "on both their acoustic and aesthetic merits", as DJM would have it. More information is available from (Contact Details).