What piece of equipment do you have to show us today?
My favourite piece of equipment to use in the studio is the Soundtracs IL 3632 recording console.
How did you come across this particular item?
I came across this particular item due to many hours of researching consoles and weighing up the pros and cons of vintage vs modern, which lead me to the Soundtracs. I purchased the console from Rick Turk, who is a talented composer based in the central coast of New South Wales.
What is it that you like about it so much?
The desk has a fully featured patch bay inbuilt which allows me to place outboard gear to any part of the desk. I like the freedom of having multiple synthesisers or microphones patched in and being able to pull faders up and down to compare how one microphone can affect another. I normally have a fair few faders to burn so I can throw a lot of instruments into different busses and either crush or EQ them in creative ways. It’s no Neve – probably not even a poor man’s Neve – but Neve-r the less, I like it.
How do you use it and how has it shaped the way you write music?
I use it the same way I use any instrument; I like to use my hands and touch and feel things. The whole process of being physical and problem solving stimulates my creative juices.
Tell us a little about what you have coming up.
The studio will be on a hiatus for the next three months as The Rubens will be on tour with Pink. Once everything settles down, I will create the greatest album of all time that will never be released to the public.
The Rubens’ third studio album LO LA RU is out now via Ivy League Records.
Image via Ali Lander-Shindler.