Mixers

Back in the pre‑computer days, manufacturers saw the need for straightforward and affordable mixers to handle the stack of electronics and bring it all down to a simple stereo pair, or even just a mono output.

In the 20 years since its introduction, AMS Neve’s 88R has proved that there is still a market for top-flight, large-format analogue consoles. In this episode, Robin Porter tells Sam Inglis how Neve built upon their design heritage to create what might be the ultimate analogue mixer.

Mark Crabtree of AMS Neve chats with Sam Inglis about how two of the biggest names in UK audio technology came together, and how they are using their unique expertise in analogue and digital audio to develop their next wave of studio products.

We follow the journey of one plucky British analogue mixing console, from its birth in a shed to the heart of a museum exhibition and a place in the history books.

Engineer Matt Wiggins has worked with everyone who's anyone — and knows that he needs to be prepared for anything!

Dave Cobb's approach to recording is simple — but as artists like Chris Stapleton, Rival Sons and Jason Isbell have found, it's very effective.

Catherine Marks trained in one of the world's most demanding professions — then gave it all up to make tea in a studio...

Prog-rock wunderkind Steven Wilson is using his studio skills to give legendary rock albums a new lease of life.

Talent and hard work have taken Marta Salogni from dive bars in Italy to working with A-list mixing and production clients in the UK in less than a decade.

There are many jobs involved in large-scale touring — and established front-of-house mixer Bryony October has pretty much done them all.

Go-to producer for Taylor Swift, Lorde and St. Vincent, Jack Antonoff has the rare ability to translate wild experimentation into record sales.

German producer Zedd has become a star by bringing musicality to electronic dance music.

Star producer Ariel Rechtshaid inhabits many different musical worlds at once. No wonder he’s busy...

The Avalanches’ debut album Since I Left You took the art of sampling to new heights — but it has taken them 16 years to finish the follow-up!

Greg Ladanyi showed up at the right time in rock history to chair sessions for Jackson Browne, Don Henley, Warren Zevon, Toto, Fleetwood Mac and the Jacksons — but while 50 percent of life may be simply showing up, the other half requires a lot of hard work.

You might not know his name, but you've definitely heard his work: Manny Marroquin is the mix engineer of choice for leading artists in both urban and rock music.

Over a 40-year career, Phil Ramone has built up perhaps the most impressive discography of any producer working today — and although he emphasises the importance of traditional engineering and people-management skills, his work is also at the limits of what cutting-edge technology makes possible.

The craze for mashing up wildly different records to create illicit bootleg mixes has moved into the mainstream, and underground producers such as Richard X and Mark Vidler now find their services in hot demand from artists and record labels.

In 1996, the Fugees came like a breath of fresh air into a world of hip-hop that was becoming stale around the edges. Now Wyclef Jean is a star in his own right, and has deployed his production talents for artists ranging from urban legends like Funkmaster Flex and Cypress Hill to Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson and even Tom Jones.

Although many of the most famous music mixing engineers have been in the business for decades, we find out how a new generation of up-and-coming stars are combining traditional and cutting-edge recording techniques to make their mark on modern production.

Last year's Love & Life album saw R&B superstar Mary J Blige reunited with Sean Combs (aka Puff Daddy, aka P Diddy) and his Bad Boy production stable. Mix specialist Tony Maserati spent two months at Miami's Circle House Studios working on the project, and recorded his experiences in this unique diary.