Studio

Mixing & mastering

5: briefs
9:02: average
45 min: in total
5: makers

All briefs5

Fairchild 660

Fairchild

The Fairchild 660 is a mono tube compressor introduced in 1959. It was the first intelligent automatic volume control limiter. Designed by Rein Narma, the first ten units were built by him. The first unit went to Rudy Van Gelder, who used it to cut lacquer masters for Blue Note Records and Vox Records. It functions as a compressor (2:1, threshold 5 dB below normal) or peak limiter (30:1, threshold 10 dB above normal), with fixed 1/10,000-second attack and variable release. Its push-pull amplification and high control voltage yield low distortion, low noise, and no audible thumps.

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9:00

Neve 80 Series

Neve

The Neve 80 Series is a hand-wired analogue mixing console built from 1968 to 1979. It uses custom preamps, line amps, and compressor/limiters wired point-to-point by hand. The 8048 model features the 1081 preamp and 4-band EQ across 24 or 32 channels. In 1976, Neve launched the in-line-monitor 8058 and 8068. Late-’70s units offered NECAM, the world’s first successful moving-fader automation system. Production was limited; manufacturing ceased in 1979.

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9:46

Pultec EQP-1

Pultec

The Pultec EQP-1 is a passive, tube-amplified equalizer introduced in 1956 in a 3U 19-inch rack chassis, designed specifically for professional recording studios to overcome noise issues in existing film-industry equalizers. It features a low-frequency shelving filter with three bands (30, 60, 100 Hz) and a parametric high-frequency section with boost frequencies at 3, 5, 8, 10, and 12 kHz plus adjustable bandwidth. Its design enabled simultaneous boost and attenuation of adjacent low frequencies — a technique later adopted despite being discouraged in the original manual.

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9:03

EMI TG12345

EMI

The TG12345 was Abbey Road’s first solid-state console, installed in late 1968 to enable 8-track recording. It had 24 mic inputs, 8 tape outputs, and per-channel compression and EQ — a leap from the tube-based REDD .51 and the four-track Studer J37. It did one thing decisively: expand track count while integrating dynamics and tone shaping into every channel. It offered no automation, no recall, and no adaptability beyond that fixed architecture. It belongs in a working historical studio, not a modern hybrid setup.

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8:32

Trident A Range

Trident

The Trident A Range is a rare, studio-built analog mixing console — not an instrument — with only 13 units ever made. It was built by and for Trident Studios, adopted by Cherokee Studios after outperforming Neve, Helios, and Cadac in a drum-miking test, and prized for its distinct, 'musical' EQ and saturated tonal character. It offers no automation, no digital features, no portability, and no relevance outside high-end analog studio contexts.