Specializing in preparing students for careers in communications and the arts, Emerson College in Boston recently added a 32-channel API 1608 analog console with full automation to its studio facilities to provide high-end sonics and a transitional work-flow between its other studio facilities.
The new API 1608 will be used to teach courses in advanced recording and introduction to sound design. “We are a school of communications, not music or music engineering,” states Bruno Caruso, audio technical supervisor with Emerson College. “We use our studio facilities to teach sound design, mix to picture, ADR, Foley, sound for gaming, and voice-over.”
Emerson’s studio facility already contains an entry-level room, with a budget analog console, and a high-end post-production suite with a menu-driven Avid Icon system. The post-production suite already uses a collection of API 512c mic preamps and an API Channel Strip to handle any source recording.
“We were certainly very happy with that sound,” says Caruso. “That was a factor that moved us in the direction of API for our console purchase.”
The goal was to add a studio space that bridged the technological gap between the entry-level room and the post-production suite. “Of course the API sound was an important part of our decision to add a 1608, but there was more to it than that,” notes Caruso. “It’s an analog board with a great sound and a very teachable workflow. The students can stand around the board while the instructor demonstrates techniques. Moreover, including automation gave us a pedagogical bridge between the entry-level room and the post-production suite.”
Emerson College purchased its 32-channel API 1608 through nearby Parsons Audio (Wellesley, MA). “Everyone at Parsons was great,” said Caruso. “They gave us demos of everything we were considering and lots of other support besides. They were instrumental in pointing us in the right direction for our needs.”
