API/ATI 8MX2: Classic Taste, Modern Face

Automated Processes, Inc. (lovingly known as API), has been creating modular '500 series' studio gear since 1968. Their inevitable growth in popularity brought them much success, as well as the opportunity to develop more lines of gear and better circuitry. After their recent aquisition by ATI, API released the 8MX2 8 x 2 x 8 Mixer/ Mic Pre.

 
I was able to use this solidly-assembled tank of pre's in a recent session with Miranda Dawn & The Lucky Break Horns at Werd Recording Suite. The application was for a 3-piece horn ensemble (tenor sax, baritone sax, and trombone) using 3 Royer R-121's, as well as a Peluso 2247LE as a room mic. Ribbon mics are notorious for being able to round of the harshness of a blasting horn - and round, they did. Coupled with the 8MX2, I was able to not only boost my gain enough for the ribbons while adding minimal floor noise, but I was also able to soft limit the horns' raging signals.
The final product? Brilliant.   No, they're not 500 series ATI Pre's, but good-gosh - they will be an awesome addition to your rack (at a meager $170/month at Rock n Roll Rentals.)
 by Ali Ramzanali

Compress your Preamp or Pretend you're on 'Mash'...

One of the perks of working for Rock N Roll Rentals besides 'Pizza-Saturdayzz' is that we get to test all sorts of musical and recording equipment most of us otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity to experiment with...  This luxury comes especially handy when you're a poor musician and can't afford to record in a studio.  So here I am needing to track drums for my band The Sour Notes in my guitar-player's East-side warehouse apartment... Two of the pieces of gear I chose among others was the JDK R20 Dual Channel Mic Preamp and R22 Dual Channel Compressor.

Upon first look at the gear... the rugged, militaristic design and simplistic control panel immediately attracted me to the R20 & R22.  I'm a big fan of machines that don't have too-many buttons to fiddle with and when it comes to audio processing, I'd like to think things tend to sound a bit more 'natural' the less you do to it.  With the R22, you'll notice, unlike most Compressors, that it doesn't feature 'attack' or 'release' functions, but fear not... You can achieve very controlled compression on whatever you run through it, just with a few less knobs to turn.  I've used many similar types of 'rack-compressors' when recording and one thing I appreciated most about the R22 was it's ability to retain most of the original sound's dynamics even when 'hard' compressing.  I ended up running a 'top-snare' mic and kick drum through it and found that with a few flicks of a switch and minor dial adjustments, my kick drum tones varied from big ballon-type roundness to quick, punchy-pops all while retaining alot of what I started with coming out of the preamp.... Which brings me to the JDK R20 Dual Channel Preamp.  It's pretty basic!  1 gain knob really... What I'm gathering is that JDK products are really into processing your sound 'subtly'.  Simple and smooth-sounding... Less is sometimes more!

by Jared Paul Boulanger