The Channel
A Day at Chalice Recording Studio

On Good Friday, March 25, 2005 Universal Audio--along with Dangerous Music, RME, Magix, Emes Studio Monitor Systems and Synthax--co-sponsored a day of product presentations and sales training in the ultimate critical listening environment, Chalice Recording Studio in Hollywood. With much help from Fred Z, Universal Audio's Southern California product specialist, we were able to invite a select group of L.A.-area musician/producer/engineer types to join us at this world-class recording facility which opened in 2003. The owner, Ben Tao, has been a mainstay in the Los Angeles area recording industry for a number of years and was involved with every design and construction detail that became part of the facility. Chalice Recording Studio currently consists of Studio A and Studio B, along with a composing studio and office suite for long-term lease client Walter Afanasieff. Studio Manager Stacey Dodds indicated that they have plans to add three additional rooms within the next year or so. (A complete list of studio gear is available at the studio's Website.)

“Our primary focus was the new 8110 multichannel Precision mic preamp, which we used to mike up a drum kit--not just any drum kit, however. We enlisted the help and expertise of world renown drummer Vinnie Colaiuta.”

Vinnie Colaiuta and Dave Crane (UA training manager) in Chalice Studio A

The basic concept for the UA portion of the evening was to track material using Universal Audio analog hardware products and then listen to and discuss the resulting playback. Our primary focus was the new 8110 multichannel Precision mic preamp, which we used to mike up a drum kit--not just any drum kit, however. We enlisted the help and expertise of world-renown drummer Vinnie Colaiuta for this segment of the presentation. The ability to individually "shape" each channel on the 8110 made this endeavor musically and sonically possible. The "audience" at this event was composed of a number of well-known, in-demand industry professionals, many of whom were quite skeptical of a "lunch box"-style mic preamp. After Vinnie's 20-minute, nonstop exploration of the "groove," by way of his kit, any skepticism about the 8110's performance was put to rest. Vinnie had a particularly gleeful sparkle in his eyes when he listened to the playback of his drum work tracked through the 8110.

Another demonstration of the Universal Audio analog hardware was achieved with the smooth and lyrical soprano sax work of Ronnie Laws blowing some improvisation over a prerecorded piece by internationally acclaimed producer/composer/keyboardist John Barnes, who was also in attendance. Ronnie's horn part was tracked using the LA-610 as the front-end channel strip, and the results were once again met with approval all around.

You could say we were "preaching to the choir" with the group we gathered for this event, because it seemed everyone in the room was well aware of Universal Audio and our legacy. Much of the evening was spent listening to story after story of which original and which re-issue UA analog hardware piece these guys already own, and how they wouldn't work without them. The unanimous favorable response to the 8110 and the LA-610 was further testament to UA being on the right path regarding product development.

Although the evening started at 4:00 pm and we finally wrapped at around 10:30 pm, all of the busy professionals we invited stayed and listened, asked questions, discussed the information and the results, and indicated it was time well-spent.

Although the format was not an easy one to pull off, kudos to Fred Z, Dave Crane, Fab Dupont, Ben Maas and a big thanks to Stacey Dodds and the whole Chalice crew for their hospitality and help in making the evening productive, informative, and entertaining.