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“We do get all
sorts,” says Rob on the studio’s nature of clientele, “though the
studio is very well situated for rock. I was mixing down something
the other day, trying to work out what style it was, we concluded
it was pure folk. There’s a new Fuzz album out, which was mostly
recorded and mixed here. I am currently working on a new album for
the M16’s. Over the years a lot of bands have been through, DM3,
Kim Salmon, The Surrealists, Matt Taylor, Jeff Martin, even had
Lenny Kravitz down here one night. That’s going back a ways. We’ve
had Jebediah and The Panics.” Rob contends that bands come to
Poons Head for ‘Results’. “The monitoring is second to none, and
the signal path . . . the outboard gear, we have got the largest
collection of tube recording equipment in WA, superb sounding
classic outboard, spanning over six decades.”
At the core of
Rob’s studio is his Automated Soundcraft 6000 48x16 mixing console
and Sequoia 8 software. Rob uses three racks of Neve pre-amps and
EQs alongside the desk, preferring to bypass the console’s
electronics and utilise the console as an effects send and summing
device. His racks of outboard gear are almost as impressive to
look at as they are to listen to. Taking in all the classic
compressors and limiters, Rob has 1176s, LA2s, LA3s and LA4s, a
Fairchild 666 (of Hendrix fame), AWA G58s, Manley Variable-Mu and
compression from Neve, Tube-Tech, Joe Meek, Drawmer, etc. He also
has over twenty ‘Class A’ vintage and modern tube mic pre-amps and
equalisers on top of the Neve ‘Class A’ racks. There are also
around two dozen vintage tube, ribbon, and solid-state microphones
on hand to cater for every flavour of recording. A rack of
outboard effects by Eventide, Lexicon, BEL and even an original
60’s stereo tube EMT Plate Reverb. On the digital side there is a
huge collection of plugins, the latest edition being the Universal
Audio’s Powered Plugins, offering 192 khz simulations of all the
classic Compressors, EQs, and Reverbs, most of which Rob has the
real version in the racks. There is even a great selection of
guitar heads on hand, from Marshall JTM and JMP heads to Ampeg SVT,
Orange and Vox amps from the sixties.
“The new stuff
is pretty exciting. We’ve upgraded our D/A and A/D’s to the new
Apogee converters, the AD16x and DA16x’s. We now have 24 channels
of Apogee converters in and out, offering up to 192 khz sampling
rates. Coupled with the 2” Studer and all the vintage tube front
end, it’s shit hot. As testament to how ‘Analog’ these converters
can sound, Brian Wilson’s latest release ‘Smile’ was all done with
Apogee converters. I have also just installed some new power amps,
which fully complement the Duntech Sovereign speakers. They are
‘Super Amps’, 1200 watts per side and a hefty 70 kilos each,
designed by the famous Nelson Pass from Pass Labs. Our other
previous Pass designed amps were pretty damned good but these are
amazing, arguably the best sound system in WA, if not the most
accurate. It’s hands down the best studio monitoring in Western
Australia if not Australia. The amps retail for about $40,000 in
Australia. Something that we’ve promoted lately is the mastering
service because it offers simply the best bang for your buck. I
believe we offer the best mastering service in WA, I say that with
confidence because of the equipment utilised coupled with the
great monitoring. We use both analog and digital processing, the
best mastering facilities in the world master with both analog and
digital processing. Most of the time the initial compression and
EQ processing itself is analog, after this stage there will be
digital EQ and limiters applied. Essentially 95% of all
international mastering is performed utilising both an analog and
digital signal path. Digital is getting better all the time but it
still hasn’t replaced the magic that analog can provide!”
Poons Head
has all the old gear one could want to colour and tone a
recording, with all the right digital gear for speed, convenience
and price. Rob has decades of experience in the studio, which is
invaluable for any band spending time getting their tunes down on
wax with his help. “I think,” says Rob, trying to sum up the feel
of Poons Head studio in a single statement, “the vibe for this
place is a very healthy blend between the modern and the old.” |
