Hopewell Junction, NY (December 7, 2011)—Percussionist John Arrucci updated his studio with a Metric Halo ULN-8 before recording and mixing his latest album.
“I was updating my studio in preparation for Metaphors,” Arrucci said. “I needed preamps, AD converters, and a monitor controller. I was grateful for the help of three friends, each of whom is an expert engineer with a unique and strong opinion about audio.”
Arrucci resolved to purchase only equipment upon which all three engineers could agree. “Two were Mac guys and the other was a PC guy,” he continued. “But that was just the start. They each had very different feelings and criteria.” To arrive at an unbiased decision, the group gathered together the contenders and then conducted a blind shootout. “The Metric Halo ULN-8 was the clear winner and earned each of their approvals,” he proclaimed.
The first, Cirile-engineered sessions featured piano, bass and, of course, drums. After that, Arrucci took over the engineering duties for his own overdubs, which included marimba, conga, vibraphone, alto flute and a handful of other exotic instruments. “The ULN-8 was utterly solid,” he said. “I had had problems in the past with interfaces that didn’t want to play nicely with my Mac, but the ULN-8 was not only well-integrated in terms of the user-interface and stability, but there was also zero perceivable latency. It was nice to just use the box, without having to jury rig a work-around solution for latency on overdubs.”
He continued, “Everyone involved in the initial sessions commented about the strikingly beautiful sound on playback, before anything had been effected, processed or mixed. I felt gratified that my rigorous vetting process had paid off. The Metric Halo ULN-8 was really going to put the music, on which I’ve worked so hard in its best light.”
Arrucci edited in Digital Performer and then used Digital Performer together with Metric Halo MIO Console to mix.
Metric Halo
www.mhlabs.com
