Price Studios in London, a multipurpose performing arts facility owned by the Entertainment and Media Group, is employing an Solid State Logic (SSL) Nucleus to accelerate production.
The sister companies within the Entertainment and Media Group include the recently rebuilt St James Theatre, On Stage Entertainment, EMG Artist International and a number of companies involved in television production.
Price Studios complements the wider portfolio offering a suite of production spaces, including a 1,500 square-foot professional dance studio and a recording studio that splits its 572 square feet of purpose-built space evenly between a control room and live room capable of accommodating a small ensemble.
The studio handles a busy schedule of artist development, songwriting, music and voiceover recording and mixing. Recent projects include work for Charlie Simpson (ex Busted and Fightstar), X-Factor winner James Arthur, Australian rockers Tonight Alive, West End theatre star Hadley Fraser, the vocal trio Blake (winners of the Classic BRIT Awards), in addition to recording themes for TV and advertising, including ITV’s World Cup television coverage.
The addition of Nucleus to the studio was driven by a range of factors. “I needed something that gave me hands-on control of various DAWs, sounded great, and was versatile and modern,” says Sam Featherstone, Price Studio’s in-house producer/engineer and technical manager. “It had to be a product that could add something to the studio, but also integrate well with the Pro Tools | HDX system that was already in place. I looked at all sorts of options, and Nucleus ticked all the boxes: control of all the major DAWs, great mic preamps, a flexible monitoring section, and it could act as a soundcard if needed. Not to mention that it looks cool in my room.”
According to Featherstone, the Nucleus allows him to work the way he is accustomed-in-the-box, only faster. “I’ve heard some horror stories about dodgy DAW controllers,” he explains. “If I’m going to have a set of faders, they need to work flawlessly, and that’s what I get with the Nucleus. It’s a joy recording automation moves, flicking between the sends in Pro Tools, and using the user shortcut buttons. Hands on the faders, fingers on the send pots and you can get a mix together much quicker.”
