Professional Sound - February 2017 | Page 36

Rack # 1
Rack # 2
Machine Room
Console
Live Room
Patch A
Lounge
PLANET STUDIOS STUDIO # 2
Patch B
Iso Booth # 1
Storage Room
72-sq . ft . booth is at the rear of the live room . The piano can be placed in either the live room or the larger iso booth .
Speaking to the studio ’ s acoustic treatments , Cinelli says : “ In the control room , we focused on bass traps , reorganized all the racking , backed the console up about 8 ft . from where it was , and completely redesigned the front wall .” They kept some existing absorptive and diffusion panels on the ceiling , he adds .
Many of the treatments were designed and custom built on site , though most are integrated into the walls , also including a lot of Owens Corning 703 rigid fiberglass insulation . Separating each space within Studio 2 is double glass , double doors , or double or triple walls .
In the live room , they started with the same principle but different materials . “ We started with a wood ceiling and floor and actually raised the ceiling by a couple of feet , literally lifting the beams that are holding up the roof ,” Cinelli explains . “ Then , we made the walls fully absorbent and found beautiful cedar panels to cover it all .
“ We did the front wall , which is quite long and fully live and reflective , so we then focused on the other three walls and went for a combination of absorption and diffusion until we got a nice room sound and a good natural reverb time . So you walk in the room and it instantly sounds great for so many instruments . And when we do vocals , we have portable panels and gobos we can move around to get it a little dryer .”
The iso booths also have wood floors . “ The medium booth has a live surface , which is countered by another surface to offset that . Additionally , there are ceiling panels that are a combination of Roxul and the 703 panels as clouds on the ceiling .”
HVAC was also a concern , Cinelli says , explaining that the original system was both efficient and quiet . “ That ’ s something I ’ m adamant about here ; I don ’ t want ventilation to be an issue . I want people to be comfortable at all times , so I ’ m always pushing the AC guys to get it as quiet as possible and to get as much air circulation as possible .” With multiple rooms , that meant having the ducts twist and turn to slow down the air speed .
Offering more natural light was also a focus . “ When we did the demolition and opened up to the structural walls , there were windows that we ’ d blocked previously , so we opened up two more windows for a total of three in the live room , all either double or triple pane glass .”
Amenities weren ’ t forgotten either . The
Iso Booth # 2
Patch C
Patio
Live Room second floor now boasts two outdoor decks and a dedicated kitchen , lounge , and washroom for clients using Studio 2 . The space can also be accessed from the outside of the building for complete client privacy .
As far as gear placement , Cinelli says : “ The only thing that ’ s really new is that , in the past , we had the racks in the table behind the console and a rack to the left of the room , which was just a pile of gear that was never completely organized . Since we pushed the control room back , we punched a hole in the wall to the right of the control room and put the racks and gear into the wall , so that ’ s become our secondary rack . That houses the our 16 Neve 33105 mic preamps and eight Neve 32264a compressors that were meticulously restored and racked by our house tech , and they sound phenomenal .”
Behind that is a corridor that leads to the pre-existing repair shop and is used to access the gear for cabling . “ There ’ s also still a table behind the console with additional gear in it , so it ’ s similar to Studio 1 downstairs ,” Cinelli adds , “ and the machine room is to the left of the console , which is actually an extension to the building we built years ago .”
Studio 2 still has the SSL 4064 G + with Ultimation and Total Recall with black E 242 EQs plus an impressive assortment of vintage and state-of-the-art outboard gear . Recording options also include a Studer A80 1 / 2-in . master recorder and a Pro Tools HDX workstation with 32 inputs and 56 outputs using Apogee Converters .
Of course , the SOTA CF 750 main monitors are new and bolstered by a pair of consolemounted ProAc Studio 100s and Yamaha NS- 10Ms all powered by Bryston 4B amplifiers . There ’ s also a Genelec 1092 A self-powered sub behind the console , with three Bryston 3B amps available to power secondary speakers , including the studio ’ s Auratone and Avantone Cube loudspeakers and pairs of Dynaudio BM-15as , KRK E8s , and Genelec 1030as , 1031s , and 1029as .
“ We did meticulous testing with different amps and once the speakers were in , we spent four days really going through the speakers ,” Cinelli continues . “ That ’ s another one of my obsessions . Besides making everything sound great , I love when things are quiet . Recording studios are tough for that because there ’ s so much gear and wiring . The electrical installation is such a big part of it .”
Connectivity throughout the space is substantial – ample XLR , ethernet lines , speaker cable , and headphone systems make the studio very versatile and capable of catering to virtually any configuration of instruments , amps , and people .
Unsurprisingly , Cinelli is already considering further renovations . “ My next plan is to look at Studio 1 ,” he shares . “ We started it in 2003 and the actual studio itself hasn ’ t gone through any redesign or reconstruction since . It ’ s probably been our busiest room . We ’ ve made the lounge and kitchen areas better , but now that we have Studio 2 , if I shut down Studio 1 for a couple of weeks to rebuild it , I ’ ll be much
36 • PROFESSIONAL SOUND