API VISION MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITYS DEPARTMENT OF RECORDING INDUSTRY
MURFREESBORO, TENNESSEE - OCTOBER 2008: In an age when music technology schools and programs seem to be proliferating without bound, Middle Tennessee State University's Department of Recording Industry is distinguished by its reputation, age and size. Many of the industry's leading figures launched their careers in the department, which has been producing philosophically-grounded and technologically-savvy graduates since
the late 1970s.
Aligned with the School of Mass Communication, the
Department of Recording Industry is home to some 1,500 students seeking both
bachelors and masters degrees with sequences in music business, production &
technology, and commercial songwriting.
MTSU is currently in the process of updating many of the major pieces of
equipment in their expansive studio facilities. They recently ordered an
all-discrete 48-channel API Vision surround sound console to replace a
large-frame digital console in one of their two flagship music recording
studios.
"We're replacing outdated equipment with the state-of-the-industry gear,"
said Dan Pfeifer, who chaired the committee of technical faculty who decided
on the Vision. "The large format digital consoles still play a valuable role
in broadcast, post-production, and, surprisingly, live sound, but very few
people are still using them for music recording. The industry has moved back
to analog consoles, and our decision reflects that fact."
The API Vision features three stereo mix busses, a dedicated five-channel
surround mix buss, and ten auxiliary busses. Panning is achieved with three
pots: a mode-switchable LR/LCR pan, a front-rear fader pan, and a rear
channel pan. Since all the busses are active, students can simultaneously
mix in stereo and surround, and an intuitively-designed monitoring section
allows for easy A/Bing of multiple formats. API's Instant Reset Switch
System preserves mixes and makes it easy for a class or a student to pick up
a mix where it was left off.
In addition to its unique surround-sound capabilities, Pfeifer said the
committee was pleased with the Vision's sound quality and reliability. "The
choice of the API Vision compliments our other technologies and will support
our curriculum while meeting the needs of the professional industry," he
explained. "Our students will learn critical listening skills, the mechanics
of operating an in-line console, fader automation, and a collection of
nuanced techniques required to generate effective surround sound mixes."
The Vision will join a Studer 24-track analog tape machine, a full-blown Pro
Tools HD rig and collection of high-end outboard gear, including
compressors, EQs and effects. In addition to projects, graduate students and
advanced undergraduate students will use the room for engineering and
production classes that focus on music recording and mixing.
Automated Processes, Inc. remains the leader in analog recording gear, with
the Vision surround production and Legacy Series recording consoles, the DSM
Series rack-mounted mixers, and the classic line of modular signal
processing equipment. api audio
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