Studio Focus: 90° Studio Training Facility
17 November 2014
Any musician or studio-type in the Hunter Valley will know about Musos Corner in Newcastle. It’s one of the highest profile and largest music retailers around. Seeing how musicians are now expected to have production chops, Musos Corner has responded:
“Nowadays, anyone can record and produce their own music. You can even record with your smartphone or tablet”, says Allon Silove. “But professional studios still exist and with good reason. It takes a lot of time and effort, knowledge and experience to become a good sound engineer. Even longer to become a great producer. We are here to try and help bridge that gap between having the technology and actually knowing how to use it!”
Allon Silove is talking about the new 90º Studio Training Facility (of which he is the Director), a multi-room facility where it’s possible to get hands-on with the latest gear (from names such as SSL, Neve, Universal Audio, AKG, Neumann, API, Empirical Labs and Yamaha) and get some studio training while you’re at it. There is also a fully functioning Recording Studio Showroom where you can listen to and compare studio equipment brands just as you would a guitar or amplifier. This is a highly-equipped recording studio that delivers commercial audio training for all levels of skill and interest.
True to its name, 90°’s two main control rooms are square, which required plenty of acoustic work. Amber Technology’s Daniel Sievert was called in to consult and a brought a swag of Primacoustic solutions with him.
Sievert produced a 3D room model for the acoustic treatment plan: “The design of all the rooms had to incorporate a substantial amount of infrastructure including cabling, TV/computer screens, air-conditioning, ceiling/wall mounts, windows and doors. I offered suggestions of treatment that would work harmoniously with the planned infrastructure while being flexible enough to re-arrange if layouts and infrastructure changed during the setup process.”
Silove reports on the result of the treatment plan, stating that the tracking room: “is now a relatively ‘flat’ acoustic space, able to facilitate an entire band-at-once session while still maintaining a comfortable SPL for working and performing.”
Sievert also offers his opinion on the spaces after treatment: “It was definitely clarity of the sound in the rooms that I was most impressed with. The rooms still have a pleasant ‘space’ to their sound but the treatment seems to be removing any ring or echo.”
Musos Corner has a history of providing education — conducting professional development programs for secondary teachers — so the 90° move was a natural progression. Allon Silove explains some more: “This is a facility offering full-term and short courses catering to everyone interested in music making and music production; at all levels. You might be a beginner wanting to learn how to record or mix your own music, or perhaps you want to develop your knowledge and practice of audio engineering and producing. Maybe you just want to know how to use the technology you already have. Our courses are designed to be highly practical, giving you the knowledge and experience you need to advance. We are even planning Master Classes for professionals, with some of the biggest names in music production in the Australian Music Industry. Music Teachers are also welcome to expand their Professional Development with one of our approved education courses.”
90º Studio Training Facility: 0421 490473 or [email protected]
RESPONSES