As a writer, I try to be as transparent as I can when reviewing a piece of gear. I also feel compelled to include a bit of a backstory that shares what initially lead me to doing the review. Many...
Avantone began making microphones close to 20 years ago, and has recently updated their BV-1 large-diaphragm tube condenser microphone to the BV-1 mkII. First off, this upgrade comes as a significant...
I have a polarizing position regarding monitors. Either I really dig them (when my mixes sound good across many sources post-mix), or I simply don’t have time for them. I also think we can all...
I’m gonna come clean right out of the gate: I’m a big believer in Empirical Labs [Tape Op #33]. I have owned at least one EL8 Distressor [#32] in my personal studio since 2009, and it...
Introduced in the mid-1960s, the Neumann U 87 was a gift to engineers and producers because a separate power supply was no longer needed due to its tube-replacing FET (field effect transistor)...
I was first introduced to Vanguard Audio Labs before they even brought a microphone to market. The gentleman who tipped me off about this company was a trusted friend in pro audio. He told me...
I love microphones. When used – or abused – in the right situation, I’m a firm believer that nothing will give you an interesting tone or character like a unique microphone. Whether...
I vividly remember the first time I was exposed to moving fader automation. I was 12 years old, and the medium-sized recording facility was centered around two seminal Yamaha DMP7 [Tape Op #122]...
I was an early adopter of Universal Audio’s UAD plug-in platform. My 2003 Power Macintosh G5 may have housed only a single UAD-1 DSP Card [Tape Op #41], but at the time, I thought the world of...
Let's come clean right from the beginning: I'm a gear snob. I like gear that feels robust and solid. I like gear that sounds beautiful and inspiring. I like it when the gear I use gives me the...
I was first introduced to Vanguard Audio several years ago by an industry veteran who would periodically tell me about "a microphone that was still in development..." and that "...I would not only be...
