PRODUCER/ENGINEER NIKO BOLAS FINDS A MONITOR SYSTEM HE REALLY LIKES
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - JULY 2008: Producer and engineer Niko Bolas down-to-earth sensibilities, seemingly magical recording and mixing techniques, and ability to create truly inspired performances have earned him the friendship and respect of the music industry's biggest luminaries.
He has delivered chart-topping records for everyone from Neil Young, Melissa
Etheridge, and Keith Richards to Herb Alpert, X, and P. Daddy. A rare and
blessed blend of intuition and scientific know-how, Bolas also heads a
forward-thinking Internet radio venture - iM Networks - and has long
trailblazed new virtual reality technology with a project called Fakespace
Music. He recently made a semi-permanent home at John McBride's now-famous
Blackbird Studio in Nashville.
Bolas expects as much from his equipment as he does from himself and has
long expressed displeasure in what he perceives as the terrible shortcomings
of reference monitor technology. A mix that sounded good on one set of
speakers invariably sounded terrible somewhere else; a situation that most
engineers simply assume is unavoidable. However, Bolas was recently
introduced to ATC loudspeakers and has changed his tune. The unforgiving,
unflattering, and ultimately truthful output from either his ATC SCM20ASL
pair or SCM50ASL pair guarantees that when it sounds good on the ATCs, it
will sound fantastic everywhere else.
"For me, monitors aren't something you listen to because you dig listening
to music," Bolas explained. "They're something you work on, and you have to
know what's actually there. It's a different kind of brain when you're
mixing. Sure, if you want to hit the loudness button, grab a cocktail, tip
your chair back and listen to some Miles, fine. But if you want to figure
out how loud his horn is going to be against the drums EVERYWHERE, then you
have to have something that's telling you the facts.
"I had tried every monitor that I had ever come across," he continued. "I
hated them all. They're not real. They all have a deceptive personality. I
listen to what sounded like a good mix somewhere else and didn't like it. I
don't need my monitors to make me feel happy when I'm mixing - I need them
to tell the truth so that I can feel happy about the mix when it's all said
and done!"
On a whim, Bolas borrowed a pair of ATC SCM50ASLs from Brad Lunde at Las
Vegas Pro Audio to record Los Lonely Boys in Texas. "I tried them in every
configuration, far away, up close, sideways... and I ultimately ended up
using them just the way the book says. I loved them, and so did the
producer, Steve Jordan." Niko loved the speakers so much he bought them.
A short while later, he was retouching a live studio recording of Lorrie
Morgan with a forty-piece orchestra and had the opportunity to monitor on
George Massenburg's very portable ATC SCM20ASLs. "As with the 50s, all of a
sudden I could hear everything. They made sense to me." So he bought the
SCM20ASLs too. Like the SCM50ASLs, the 20s have their own perfectly matched
amplifiers so that no matter where Bolas takes them, he gets the same
consistent sound.
At long last and with great satisfaction, Bolas retired his ancient NS-10s
and Big Reds. "The ATCs are utterly truthful and are absolutely NOT
flattering," he explained. "If it's not perfect, a mix sounds really bad on
the ATCs. But when you get it sounding good on the ATCs, it sounds great
everywhere else. Sure, they're expensive as hell, but they're worth every
penny."
Bolas has since used them on every single project he's worked on, including
Neil Young, Jack Ingram, The Atma, Randy Rogers, and J. D. Souther.
ATC's drivers are manufactured in-house to exacting tolerances and are
legendary for their many design innovations, such as the innovative SL
magnet system and the company's renowned Soft Dome mid-range driver, which
achieves exceptionally broad and even dispersion to produce a flat response
anywhere in the room. Situated in Aston Down in rural Gloucestershire,
England, ATC was established in London in 1974 by acoustics engineer and
musician, Bill Woodman.
LasVegasProAudio.com, a division of TransAudio Group, provides customers
with unique equipment, useful information and long-term support.
Las vegas pro audio (702) 307-2700 atc.gb.net
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