Santana de Parnaíba, Brazil (August 25, 2021)—Everest Studio in Brazil has relaunched as a commercial operation following the installation of a Solid State Logic Origin analog mixing console with integrated SSL UF8 DAW controller and a redesign by Carlos Duttweller of Pro Studios Architecture and Acoustics.
Everest Studio is in Alphaville, which is part of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, the largest municipality in Brazil. Studio owner, engineer and musician Thales Tonin says, “The main idea was to have 32 channels on the console for live recording. I also have a nice collection of external preamps and other equipment that I can expand to, so I can record and mix 64 channels.”
It was Origin’s 32-channel layout that attracted Tonin to the console: “We do a lot of live recordings here — not just overdubs. We have a big, really nicely treated live room so we get the best isolated but live feel. We can put the drummer in a booth and record the grand piano and do a live take of the vocalist. And everybody can see each other; it is the best of both worlds.”
Everest’s main tracking room is an unusual layout, comprising two offset but linked rectangular spaces. “The drum room is connected to the piano room. It’s an open-space concept. We decided to do that because mostly the center of a live room stays empty. People like to put their amplifiers and instruments against the walls. So it’s better to have this style of room, with different spaces integrated together.”
Origin is a real time-saver, according to Tonin, and has significantly changed his workflow. “One thing that we always fight is time. Budgets are getting smaller, so people want to squeeze a lot into a single day. We need to be quick with our decisions. We can’t waste time testing things, so having 32 preamps and EQs is awesome. You can set up a session really, really quickly without having to think about patching. Of course, you can explore a little, maybe for the vocal. But to begin the session you need to get things going quickly.”
Origin also fits his style of mixing, he says. “I mix hybrid, so it’s the perfect console for me. I start the mix process in Pro Tools and then put everything on the console. When you mix, especially on transient-heavy stuff like snare drum, you can really drive it harder than on a DAW mix. The SSL EQs are fantastic; I love them. And having those subgroup faders in the center section where I can do parallels or use them as master faders for whatever I want, is fantastic.”
