Focusrite Consoles and Where they are Today (well, in 2014)

[ScuzzyEye]

I don't know why this video from almost 8 yeas ago was just shared on Twitter, but I hadn't seen it, so it was an interesting bit of history to see.

In the mid-80s Focusrite built just 10 of their big studio mixing consoles. This is a concise documentary covering their origin, design, and where most of them were at the time of filming. It's always been a bit of a fantasy that if I had unlimited money, I'd get one of them and put it upstairs in my house, but that would be silly right?

[crimsonwarlock]

Great little documentary. Saw it a few years back. I also recommend the Sound City documentary, about how Dave Grohl bought the Sound City Neve desk after that studio went belly-up. I have it on DVD, but I found it online:

https://www.documentarytube.com/videos/ ... ty-studios

[selig]

There was one in Nashville at Music Mill, which was a thing of beauty though i never got tx work on it - however, I used the modules a LOT when tracking!

[PhillipOrdonez]

I love the emulation ‍♂️

[ScuzzyEye]

There was one in Nashville at Music Mill, which was a thing of beauty though i never got tx work on it - however, I used the modules a LOT when tracking!

Funny, that's the one that ended up in Turtle Studio, which is some guy's parent's house, and the control room is upstairs.

[ScuzzyEye]

I love the emulation ‍♂️

That was the first thing I ever bought from Plugin Alliance. Focusrite Pro still gives it away with any of their Red/ISA hardware. They must think it's a good enough emulation to have their name on it.

[PhillipOrdonez]

I love the emulation ‍♂️

That was the first thing I ever bought from Plugin Alliance. Focusrite Pro still gives it away with any of their Red/ISA hardware. They must think it's a good enough emulation to have their name on it.

First thing I bought from plugin alliance too!

[selig]

This is the module I have the most experience with, some of the cleanest signal paths available at the time - not sure I'd want an emulation except for maybe the EQ although the EQ is not quite as flexible as the SSL IMO. I used this module mostly for vocals and acoustic guitar when needing the cleanest path possible, with the GML mic pre as the other 'clean' contender at the time. Would have loved a chance to mix on the console if just for reference…

[Goriila Texas]

I don't know how true it is but some claim and swear by Focusrite because some of the designs were created by Mr. Neve himself.

This is the module I have the most experience with, some of the cleanest signal paths available at the time - not sure I'd want an emulation except for maybe the EQ although the EQ is not quite as flexible as the SSL IMO. I used this module mostly for vocals and acoustic guitar when needing the cleanest path possible, with the GML mic pre as the other 'clean' contender at the time. Would have loved a chance to mix on the console if just for reference…

[selig]

I don't know how true it is but some claim and swear by Focusrite because some of the designs were created by Mr. Neve himself.

Yes, exactly - these were the first modules he built after leaving Neve IIRC. But these don't have the color the old Neve 1073/1081 did, as a lot had changed in the over 10 years of development that had passed since the 1073 was designed and built. After Focusrite there is Amek and Portico, all designed by the amazing Mr Neve!
All the gear of that era was striving for the cleanest and clearest signal path possible. It was only years later folks returned to the 'classics' for the color they offered - but the were never designed with 'color' in mind the way some gear is designed today. They were, however, designed to saturate gracefully if pushed, but it wasn't exactly encouraged to do so - tape was going to color the sound enough so you wanted as clean a signal as possible to hit tape with (at least that's how the folks I learned from were doing it).

[Goriila Texas]

10-4

I don't know how true it is but some claim and swear by Focusrite because some of the designs were created by Mr. Neve himself.

Yes, exactly - these were the first modules he built after leaving Neve IIRC. But these don't have the color the old Neve 1073/1081 did, as a lot had changed in the over 10 years of development that had passed since the 1073 was designed and built. After Focusrite there is Amek and Portico, all designed by the amazing Mr Neve!
All the gear of that era was striving for the cleanest and clearest signal path possible. It was only years later folks returned to the 'classics' for the color they offered - but the were never designed with 'color' in mind the way some gear is designed today. They were, however, designed to saturate gracefully if pushed, but it wasn't exactly encouraged to do so - tape was going to color the sound enough so you wanted as clean a signal as possible to hit tape with (at least that's how the folks I learned from were doing it).