Music facilities

District 9

New, state of the art studio with 48 inputs / 48 outputs. Stereo and surround mixing capabilities with a 48 Channel Solid State Logic Duality desk, with built-in EQs and Compressors for each channel.

The room is fully Equipped for high quality recording, mixing and mastering. Hi-end PMC monitoring system, Prism Sound AD/DA convertors and Analogue Outboard gear for mixing and mastering.

The control room has two immediate live rooms to each side allowing students to record multiple musicians at the same time whilst maintaining full sound isolation between instruments. The versatile patchbay system allows for three further rooms to be patched into the mixer. Plus a 32 Channel link with Area 51 (our performance stage).

Equipment list

• Solid State Logic Duality, 48 Channel desk
• Pro Tools HDX
• Prism Sound ADA-8XR multi-channel modular AD/DA converter x 6
• PMC QB1A. Large Scale, High Resolution Monitors
• PMC TwoTwo 8. 5.1 Monitoring system
• Tube-Tech SMC2B Stereo Multi-Band Valve Compressor
• Tube-Tech CL-1b Compressor
• AnaMod ATS1 – Tape Simulator
• Kush Audio Clariphonic. Dual Channel Parallel EQ.
• Empirical Labs EL8-x (Distressor) X2
• Bricasti M7 Reverb + Remote Control
• Hearback Pro Headphone system
• Apple Cinema Display 27’’
• Sony 50’’ TV
• Mac Pro with 16GB RAM OS 10.9.5 running the software listed below

Software

• Pro Tools HD 10 / 11
• Logic Pro 9 / X
• Ableton Suite 9 (inc. Max for Live)
• Waves Diamond TDM
• McDSP Emerald and Retro TDM Pack
• UAD Satellite Ultimate Quad

Live room

• PMC TwoTwo 8. 5.1 Monitoring System
• DB Technology PA System
• Allen and Heat QU16 mixing desk
• iMac 8GB Ram
• Sony 50’’ TV
• SPL Surround Monitor Controller

Control Room 2

Control Room 2 is a 24 input / 24 output recording studio with both stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixing capabilities. The Control room has two immediate live rooms to each side allowing students to record multiple musicians at the same time whilst maintaining full sound isolation between instruments. The versatile patchbay system allows for two further live rooms to be patched into the mixer, creating a total of four separate live rooms.

CR2 is fully equipped for high quality professional mastering, with accurate Dynaudio monitoring, Prism AD/DA Convertors, Tube-Tech SMC2B multi-band compressor, Manley Labs Mini Massive EQ, Maselec MLA-2 Compressor, Maselec MEA-2 EQ.

Equipment list

• TL Audio M4, 24 Channel Mixing Console
• Pro Tools HDX
• Prism Sound ADA-8XR multi-channel modular AD/DA converter x 3
• Focusrite Liquid Channel Mic Pre
• Manley Labs Langevin Mini Massive Passive
• Tube-Tech SMC2B Stereo Multi-Band Valve Compressor
• Maselec MLA-2 Compressor
• Maselec MEA-2 EQ
• Marantz CDR-630 CD Recorder
• SPL Surround Monitor Controller
• 2 x Rane HC6 Headphone Amplifier
• Dynaudio M1 Monitoring System with Subwoofer
• Dynaudio DCA Amplifier
• Akai MPK249 Midi Controller
• Genelec 8020 5.1 Monitoring System
• Mac Pro with 16GB RAM OS 10.9.5 running the software listed below

Software

• Pro Tools HD 10 / 11
• Logic Pro 9 / X
• Native Instruments Komplete 8
• FXpansion Synth Squad
• Waves Diamond TDM
• McDSP Emerald and Retro TDM Pack
• Eventide Anthology II
• Antares Autotune Evo
• Ableton Suite 9 (inc. Max for Live)
• UAD Satellite Ultimate Quad

Control Room 3

Control Room 3 is a 24 Input / 24 Output recording studio based around the large format Inline Sountracs Jade Console with 24 channel Apogee AD/DA convertors. This studio offers a large range of analogue outboard equipment to add colour and character to your recordings.

The Control room has two immediate live rooms to each side allowing students to record multiple musicians at the same time whilst maintaining full sound isolation between instruments. The versatile patchbay system allows for two further live rooms to be patched into the mixer creating a total of four separate live rooms.

Equipment list

• Soundtracs JADE – 32 Channel Inline Mixing Console
• Protools HDX
• Apogee AD-16X and DA-16X and Rosetta 200 AD/DA converters
• Focusrite ISA
• Drawmer Dynamics and Gate (DS201/LX20)
• Aphex Aural Exciter
• TL Audio C-1, 2-Channel Tube Compressor
• Lexicon PCM 80 Reverb Unit
• EAR 822Q EQ
• Roland SRV330 Space Reverb
• EMU Vintage Keys
• Alesis Quadraverb
• Tascam DA-30 MKII
• 2 x Rane HC6 Headphone Amplifier
• Motu Midi Express
• Novation 49SL Midi Controller
•  Focal Twins / Focal Solo 6BE Sub and Yamaha NS-10M / Focal CMS Sub Monitoring
• Mac Pro with 16GB RAM OS 10.9.5 running the software below

Software

• Protools 10/11
• Logic Pro 9/x
• Native Instruments Komplete 8
• FXpansion Synth Squad
• Waves Diamond TDM
• McDSP Emerald and Retro TDM Pack
• Eventide Anthology II
• Antares Autone Evo
• Ableton Suite 9 (inc. Max for Live)
• UAD Satellite Ultimate Quad

Control Room 12

Control Room 12 is a 24 Input / 24 output recording studio based around the SSL AWS 924 Console. This hybrid console features SSL’s flagship SuperAnalogue sound with the benefit of full hands on control of your chosen Digital Audio Workstation. The SSL Alpha/Delta Link units provide 24 channels of pristine AD/DA conversion. The M&K monitoring system allows for both stereo and full 5.1 surround sound mixing.

Control Room 12 also has a dedicated live room with an excellent controlled sound. There is also a second screen, keyboard and mouse in the live room which allows students working alone to operate their session remotely, ideal for Automated Dialogue Replacement.

Equipment list

• SSL AWS 924
• SSL Alphalink/SSL DeltaLink – 24 channels of I/O
• M&K Sound MPS-2510P-b 5.1 Studio Monitoring
• Denon DVD 1920
• Roland RD-300nx
• Emagic Unitor MIDI Interface
• Focal CMS40 and CMS Sub
• Mac Pro with 16GB RAM OSX 10.9.5 running the software below

Software

• Protools 10/11
• Logic Pro 9/X
• Native Instruments Komplete 8
• FXpansion Synth Squad
• Waves Diamond TDM
• McDSP Emerald and Retro TDM Pack
• Eventide Anthology II
• Ableton Suite 9 (inc. Max for Live)
• UAD Satellite Ultimate Quad

Project Studios – 9 Control Rooms (CR1, CR4-11)

All small CR rooms are based around a TL Audio M4 16 channel analogue valve console with Digidesign 002 AD/DA interfaces. Rooms are set up for stereo mixing with Dynaudio BM6A monitoring. Each project studio has a live room adjacent with line of sight for tracking and overdubbing your musicians.

Equipment list

• TL Audio M4 16 Channel Mixing Console
• UAD Apollo Interface
• Emagic Unitor MIDI Interface
• Behringer Composer Dynamics Processor
• Novation Remote 49 SL MKII 49 Note Controller Keyboard
• Roland JV1080
• RANE HC 6S Headphone Amplifier
• Dynaudio BM5A Active Monitors

Software

• Protools 10/11
• Logic Pro 9/X
• Ableton Live 9 (incl. Max for Live)
• Melodyne Editor
• Native Instruments Komplete 8
• McDSP Emerald and Retro Pack
• FXpansion Synth Squad
• Waves Diamond Native
• Avid 003 Interface *CR10 Only
• Lexicon Alex *CR1 Only
• Native Instruments Ivory *CR4 Only
• Yamaha Motif 6 Synthesiser *CR11 Only
• Vienna Symphonic library chamber strings (CR11 only)

Live Room 5 – M Block

• Mackie Onyx 12 Mixer
• Denon DVD/SACA
• Genelec 1029 active monitors with matched sub-woofer
• 50" Samsung LED TV
• Yamaha Custom Recording drum kit
• Mesa Boogie Single Rectifer Amp w/ “1960” 4x10” Cab
• Trace Elliot AH500 Bass amp w/ 4x10” + 1x15” Cabs
• Broadwood Grand Piano

Live Room 2

• Yamaha Baby Grand Piano
• Gretsch Catalina Drum Kit

Live Rooms 1, 3 and 4

• Gretsch Catalina Maple Drum Kit

C Block Studios:

All studios have been fitted with an IMac a pair of Mackie 450s(p.a) and a Mackie Onyx 1640i mixer with firewire capabilities allowing students to record to logic. Each studio has a back-line consisting of :

• Full Drum kit (incl. Hardware)
• 1 bass amp
• 2/3 guitar amps (combo)
• Roland keyboard amp
• Roland Keyboard

MR 1

• Gretsch Catalina maple custom
• Ashdown EVO 3 500
• Orange Rocker 30
• Mesa Boogie Express
• Line 6 flextone 3
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

MR 2

• Gretsch Catalina maple custom
• Trace Elliot 715X
• Orange Rocker 30
• Marshall JCM 2000 DSL 400
• Roland KC350
• RD700

MR 3

• Gretsch Catalina maple custom
• Ampeg BA115HP
• Orange Rocker 30
• Line 6 flextone 3
• Line 6 Spider
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

MR 4

• Gretsch Catalina maple custom
• Ampeg BA115HP
• Orange Rocker 30
• Vox Vt150
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

MR 5

• Gretsch Catalina maple custom
• Ashdown EVO 3 500
• Orange Rocker 30
• Vox vt150
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

MR 6

• Gretsch Catalina maple custom
• Trace Elliot 715X
• Orange Rocker 30
• Vox Vt150
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

MR 7

• Irmler Upright Piano

MR 8

• Gretsch Catalina jazz
• Vox VT150
• Quantum Bass amp
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD300

MR 9

• Gretsch Catalina jazz

MR10

• Gretsch Catalina jazz
• Quantum Bass amp
• Line 6 spider 2
• Marshall JCM2000 DSL 400
• Roland KC150
• Roland RD300

MR 11

• Irmler upright piano

DR 1

• Yamaha maple custom
• Trace elliot 715X
• Vox VT150
• Fender Mustang
• KC350
• RD700
• Bechstein mini grand piano

DR 2

• Yamaha stage custom
• Trace elliot 715X
• Orange Rocker 30
• Orange TH03
• Vox VT150
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

DR 3

• Mapex Pro m
• Ampeg BA115HP
• Orange Rocker 30
• Line 6 Flextone 3
• Roland KC350
• Roland RD700

Microphones

• 30x SM58
• 7x SM57
• 2x Rode NT1000
• 1x Shure Beta 52
• 2x AKG C430
• 2x AT 2020

PR Rooms

Basic PR equipment (*room specific differences listed below)

• Full Range PA system - 2 x Mackie SRM450 v2
• Mackie CFX 16 Mixing Desk
• Tama Silver Star Drum Kit
• Roland RD-300 NX Stage Piano
• Roland KC350 Keyboard Amp
• Ampeg BA115 HP Bass Combo
• Vox VT120+
• Orange TH30 Guitar Combo
• Yamaha CDX-497 Professional CD Player

Performance Room (PR) 1

• LG 50” Plasma
• Samsung DVD-HD950
• VHS playback
• Cassette playback
• NAD 314 Amplifier
• Spirit Absolute 2 monitors
• Bechstein Grand Piano
• Mackie CFX16 Live Sound Mixer
• Mackie Full-Range PA - 2 x SRM450, 2 x SRM1801 Sub
• Roland KC 550 Keyboard Amp
• Line 6 Flextone III Guitar Combo

PR2

• Mapex M Fusion Drum Kit

PR4

• Welmar overstrung piano

PR5

• Welmar overstrung piano
• Yamaha Stage Custom

Sound Gallery (M Block)

The sound gallery is available to students for mixing in both stereo and 5.1 surround sound. The room is connected to the main TV studio, which allows students to record musicians or actors straight into Pro-Tools HD software. There are also 5 split screens in the sound gallery for monitoring the TV Studio performance remotely or live vision mixing.

Equipment list:

• Avid C24
• Avid HD Omni
• Yamaha LS9
• Stereo Monitoring – PMC / Yamaha NS10
• Surround Monitoring – PMC
• Studer A807 2-Track reel-to-reel tape recorder
• Behringer Tube Composer
• Behringer Virtualizer Pro
• Alesis Microverb III
• Alesis Quadraverb
• TV Studio – 17m x 11m (16 Input Tie Lines, 8 Output Tie Lines)

Informatics Lab

The Informatics lab is a 22 seat iMac ICT suite used for lectures in specific software or techniques i.e. Pro-Tools/Logic, sampling and synthesis. The lab is a popular open access space for music students to continue working on their assignments outside their lectures.

• 22 x Intel iMac with M-Audio Ozonic (3 Octave) Midi Keyboard/Audio Interface
• Pro-Tools 10
• Logic 9
• FXpansion DCAM:Synth Squad (4 Plug-in Analogue Synth Modeller)
• McDSP Emerald Plug-in bundle
• Adobe CS6
• Soundcraft – Absolute 2 Stereo Monitoring
• Ableton Suite 9 (inc. Max for Live)

Further equipment

• Universal Audio UA 6176 (Channel Strip)
• Avalon VT -737 SP (Channel Strip)
• Genelec 8040A/7060B 5.1 Monitor Setup
• 4 x Tapco Notepad Mixer
• Audient interface - ASP008 Preamps
• RME Fireface
• Focusrite Saphire
• Metric Halo
• 2 x M-Box mini 2
• 2 x Marantz - PMD661 Location Recorder
• 2 x Fostex FR-2LE
• 2 x Beyerdynamic Headzone Kit (Surround Mixing Setup)
• Moog Voyager
• Akai MCP2500
• Latin Percussion Congas, Djembe & Hand-held percussion
• CME Bitstream USB controller
• Novation SL USB controller
• 2 x Fender Twin Reverb
• 2 x Vox AC30c
• Line 6 Delay Pedal
• Line 6 Pod XT Pro
• Line 6 Bass Pod XT
• Mesa Boogie Engineering Express 550
• Peavey Classic 50 Head / Peavey Classic 410 E
• 20 x Music stands
• EMO DI Boxes
• Radial X-Amp
• Radial Workhorse
• Rupert Neve Portico 543 Compressor
• API 550A 3-Band EQ
• Korg MS20
• Akai MPC Renaissance
• TLAudio C-1 Dual Valve Compressor
• 4 x Focusrite Saphire Pro-14
• Radial MC3 Monitor Controller
• Presonus Monitor Station
• Novation Launch Pad
• 2 x Roland SPD-SX
• 3 x Alesis Sample Pad
• 2 x Korg Kaoss Pad Quad
• Boss ME-50

Microphones

• 2 x Neumann U87
• 2 x Neumann TLM 103
• Neumann M149
• Neumann KM184 Pair
• Gefel UM92.1S
• 2 x Rode NT1000
• 2 x Rode NT2000
• 2 x Rode NTG2
• Earthworks TC30MP Pair
• Coles STC 4033-A
• 4 x Coles 4038
• Shure SM7
• Shure SM57 (Multiple)
• Shure SM58 (Multiple)
• 5 x AKG 414 ULS
• 2 x AKG C451B
• 3 x AKG C214
• 3 x AKG C460
• 2 x AKG SE300
• 2 x AKG C3000
• 4 x AKG C1000
• 4 x AKG D112
• AKG Drum Pack
• AKG Solid Tube
• Audio Technica AT4033
• 3 x Audio Technica ATM25
• 5 x Oktavia MK-319
• 6 x Sennheiser MD421 II
• 2 x Sennheiser e906
• 2 x Sennheiser MKH 416 P48 U-3
• Sennheiser e912
• Sennheiser Drum Pack
• 2 x Beyer Dynamic M201
• 4 x ElectroVoice RE20
• Audix DP7 Drum Microphone Set

Other equipment

• 9x Pro Cymbal pack
• 2x Fender twin
• 1x Fender deluxe
• 1x Nord Stage
• 1x Moog Voyager
• 1x Axiom
• 1x Dave Smith mopho
• 2x Korg Kaoss pad
• 2x N.I Maschine Mikro
• 2x Boss RC-50
• 1x Apogee Gio
• 4 x TC Helicon VoiceLive Touch (V1 & V2)
• 4 x Ableton Push Controller
• Dave Smith Prophet 12
• Korg MS-20

Area 51 runs two industry standard Avid SC48 Consoles (Front Of House/Monitors) giving 48 input channels on stage and 32 channels of multi-track recording directly into Pro-Tools software. The PA is a flown L’Acoustics ARCS Focus system with L’Acoustics 12XT stage monitors. Lighting is controlled by an Avolites Tiger Touch Pro console with over 20 moving LED fixtures from top industry brands including Robe and Martin.

There are two High Definition projectors to stage left and stage right which can be used to display any external digital input source or a direct feed from our HD camera mounted in the lighting rig. Camera footage of performances/workshops can be captured at full HD quality (1080p) via the fixed camera.

Area 51 Venue Spec:

• 2 x Avid Venue SC48 (1 Monitors / 1 FOH)
• Avolites Tiger Touch Lighting Console - Robe & Martin Lighting Fixtures, LeMaitre Hazers
• 6 x Flown L'Acoustics ARCS Focus
• 6 x L'acoustics SB18i Subs
• 2 x L'acoustics LA8 Amps, 4 x 1800W
• Yamaha DME24N System Controller
• 8 x L'acoustics 12XT Enclosure, Monitors
• 1 x L'acoustics SB15M Drum Fill Sub
• 2 x L'acoustics LA4X Amplifier
• 1 x Panasonic AW-HE2 Static HD Camera (Wide shot of stage)
• 2 x Digital Projection E-Vision 7000 Lumen Projector
• 2 x 1.8m 16:9 Electric Screen, Viewing Area 1.7m x .95m

Additional Dressing Room & Bar within venue space.