Lawrence, KS (January 18, 2022)—The University of Kansas has added two 8-channel Neve dynamics cards to the Neve Genesys Black G32 console in its Film & Media Studies Department, where the Sound Design 477 course teaches students how to create, record and mix sound for film.
According to John McCluskey, director of operations for the University’s Film & Media Studies Department, “The Genesys Black is such an incredibly well thought out piece of equipment and we are even more pleased with it, now we have added the new cards. The compressors sound and feel like they should and even the gates sound phenomenal. Having 88RS style EQs and 16 channels of 1073 mic pres at your disposal makes every recording and mixing session an absolute dream to work on.”
The University of Kansas, with its main campus in Lawrence, KS, is a public research institution and one of only 66 invited members of the Association of American Universities (AAU).
“Our studio was designed to be a functional classroom and control room with enough space and seating to accommodate 20 students, as well as a large live room with enough space to record whatever type of material is needed,” McCluskey says. “It opened in 2017 when the film department moved to our Lawrence campus. Previously, the Department was housed off campus in what used to be Centron Studios, a film studio built in the early 1950s for the Centron Corporation.”
As the manager of facilities and operations for the department — and the person responsible for all equipment purchases, system designs and installation — McCluskey wanted to recreate the production spaces that had been available at Centron, while also ensuring that the new facility delivered functional instructional spaces as well.
“We were relocating to Summerfield Hall, an older building on the Lawrence campus where we faced some space issues,” he explains. “The Neve Genesys Black fitted well into our design for the recording studio in terms of space, cost, as well as function and quality of build and components. The connectivity and routing options were also major factors in choosing the Genesys Black G32. Alongside the console we also installed a Pro Tools HDX system and a wide range of high-end microphones.”
