In celebration of its tenth anniversary, Cotton Hill Studios (Albany, N.Y.) completed an overall system upgrade with the help of Professional Audio Design, which provided a Pro Tools|HD3 Accel system, a Trident 80C analog console and an Aviom Pro16 Monitor Mixing System. The console features numerous custom PAD modifications
“We decided that the best scenario for us was to have some type of a large-format analog console, along with a digital recording system,” said Ray Rettig, president and owner of Cotton Hill Studios. “Among other modifications, PAD created a card that is inserted into the back of the console to take the audio signal from the Trident 80C and output it to the Aviom gear and the other digital equipment.”
The card, created by PAD senior technician Coleman Rogers, turns four channels of unbalanced audio into balanced audio, and four channels of balanced audio into unbalanced. Six of these level-adjustable cards were installed as fully balanced pre-fader inserts in the monitor section. The first 16 channels of these tape monitor insert sends are normaled directly into the Aviom headphone system. One of these conversion cards is also installed in the master section, balancing the mix and control room outputs, and unbalancing the stereo tape returns. In addition, PAD director of technical services, Brandon McHale, designed and installed a 4-output, silent-switching speaker selector.
