Steve Remote's setup! (a tour with no pictures.)

[freestyle tromb]

Hey cats! I recently had the privilege of touring Steve Remote's Batcave (the place where his trucks reside). It was pretty excellent. If you want to visit some time, it's in a garage somewhere near the border of Brooklyn and Queens. Good luck!

Anyway, he's got 3 trucks, 2 of which are fully operational and 1 of which is on it's way to being the coolest recording studio ever to hit I-95. And he's got more amazing gear than you can shake a stick at (most of which can be viewed at his website). But the really cool thing is how he's got it all organized. Nearly all the gear is in movable racks, so each truck or rig is completely scalable. You can go on the road with any (and any number of) preamps, mixers, monitors, compressors, outboard gear, or recorders you want or need.

Another cool thing about his trucks, especially the newest one, is the power setup. He's got all the AC and DC one might need in every area of the truck. You can run all the gear on local power or on the battery, depending on your needs. Every little detail about what you might need, power-wise, has been attended to. There are even voltage meters on the breaker boxes. It's pretty sweet. (Hey, I guess he's been doing this sort of thing for over 30 years!)

The shop itself is even a testament to Steve's organizational skills. Each area is painted a different color and contains a different type of thing- one area and one color for automotive supplies, another area/color for extra audio components, yet another for the bathroom, etc. "What's that you need? Oh, just go to the blue section." Very easy, very logical.

Anyway, it's a very cool place. I can see how he's managed to do so well over the years. And it looks like there are lots more cool things in the works (lots more video!), so that should be good.

[Musiclab]

Steve's organizational skills are amazing, which you better be with the equipment inventory he has

[Larrysings]

It is an amazing place and he is a logistical genius. Lets get him on that Bin Laden case quick!

Originally Posted by freestyle tromb

Hey cats! I recently had the privilege of touring Steve Remote's Batcave (the place where his trucks reside). It was pretty excellent. If you want to visit some time, it's in a garage somewhere near the border of Brooklyn and Queens. Good luck!

Anyway, he's got 3 trucks, 2 of which are fully operational and 1 of which is on it's way to being the coolest recording studio ever to hit I-95. And he's got more amazing gear than you can shake a stick at (most of which can be viewed at his website). But the really cool thing is how he's got it all organized. Nearly all the gear is in movable racks, so each truck or rig is completely scalable. You can go on the road with any (and any number of) preamps, mixers, monitors, compressors, outboard gear, or recorders you want or need.

Another cool thing about his trucks, especially the newest one, is the power setup. He's got all the AC and DC one might need in every area of the truck. You can run all the gear on local power or on the battery, depending on your needs. Every little detail about what you might need, power-wise, has been attended to. There are even voltage meters on the breaker boxes. It's pretty sweet. (Hey, I guess he's been doing this sort of thing for over 30 years!)

The shop itself is even a testament to Steve's organizational skills. Each area is painted a different color and contains a different type of thing- one area and one color for automotive supplies, another area/color for extra audio components, yet another for the bathroom, etc. "What's that you need? Oh, just go to the blue section." Very easy, very logical.

Anyway, it's a very cool place. I can see how he's managed to do so well over the years. And it looks like there are lots more cool things in the works (lots more video!), so that should be good.

[TMI]

Yes it is a cavernous space and it's getting pretty tight. It's like the warehouse of a touring PA company except filled with recording gear. Stuff you might actually want to use in scary numbers of channels, with all the cables, adapters, racks and accessories to put the gear to work (instead of putting you to work, trying to get setup).

Originally Posted by Musiclab

Steve's organizational skills are amazing, which you better be with the equipment inventory he has

[RobAnderson]

Steve does have an amazing capacity for organization, but it's his attention to detail while still being able to see the big picture that really blows my mind. Sure the place is packed, but everything has its place and every space is utilized with maximum efficiency; and even though everything is packed away, it is still accessible at nearly a moment's notice. Even the trucks have their own "parking lanes" (for lack of a better term) so that there is no guesswork in how to position them.

I have to say that Steve's special brand of vision is an inspiration to me - I am constantly reminded of how much I still need to "remove my blinders."

[Jim vanBergen]

It is simply amazing, every time I have been to Steve's shop- the amount of gear he has stored in rows and rows of well organized, maintained inventory, PLUS the three MU's, PLUS the workbenches. It's great use of the space, and I have major gearslut envy when I see at least three of everything. Check out Steve's gear pics- the racks are all real, not photoshopped. Got Great Gear? Steve does!

[justintime]

The 'Remote' in Steve's last name says it all. These trucks can provide the gear you want, where you want it, when you want it, with a great staff of engineers to record the gig. The first time I saw the field shop I couldn't believe my eyes. The amount of gear (and gear that you would really want/need) is amazing. Go Steve, go!

!!The fact that Elroy is large enough to track in is astounding!! The verdict is in, , Steve's trucks rock (and swing too).

[Remoteness]

Eric,

First of all I want to thank you for posting this thread.
I also want the thank you and everyone else for the very kind words about me and my facility.

Ah yes, the bat cave, believe it or not, I really look at it that way.
Maybe one day I’ll have enough bread to build a real bat cave deep inside a mountain or beneath something out of the ordinary.

Organization has always been my method of operation. I look at it this way; chaos shall always creep into our lives during work and/or play – I say, why not approach our work and everyday duties as efficient as possible?

Eric hit it right on the nose. Our modular rack system keeps each and every truck or rig completely scalable… Well, almost; Jethro came from an “old school” design process, so not everything in that truck is scalable. Once Elroy is completed and on the road, Jethro shall be decommissioned and redesigned to fit the modular model and concept.

I came up with the different color areas many years before I moved to this location.
I wanted to make it easier for new folks to get around the shop. IMO, it’s much easier to tell someone for an example, "go to the grey shelves in the grey area and get me a ¼” bolt from the grey parts bin" or "grab one of the Klark Teknik DN780 reverbs from the black shelves in the purple area".

Well, if I was put on that “Bin Laden case” (when the trail was still hot) the first location I would have looked for him would have been the ranch in Texas… or, maybe not.

We are now approaching seven years at that location, but I’ll tell you what...

My field shop is pretty tight quarters and we out grew the place within the first year we moved in there.

In any event, it’s really all about the details and how you delegate all the various elements of a production or task at hand.

Nevertheless, I’m only as good as the friends, associates and engineers I surround myself with.
Without them I have nothing.

[bishopthomas]

Only Steve Remote can get that many tons of awesome gear and tools into a 5 pound bag. Racks and shelves of gear in every cranny, a wall of workbenches and workshop-type paraphenalia, a club house for the kid in Le Remote, oh and three trucks over 26' each. And it's all super organized and easy to navigate.

Each truck has its own "specialty," but can all be fitted to accomodate any style of tracking, mixing, or just lounging imaginable. The Bread Mobile is the most frequently used. It's a white Grumann bread truck and is small enough to go anywhere but large enough to house currently 48 channels of preamps, a rack of X48's, M7CL console, video wall, patch bay and outboard gear, power isolation transformer, and all the other peripheral gear needed to make a gig happen (including hundreds of feet of feeder and multicore as well as 40 feet of Yellow Jacket cable ramps). And just like his shop, even though the truck is packed with gear there's still plenty of room for personnel in the control room. I've been on gigs with 4 or 5 people working in it.

The new truck, Elroy, is still under construction but should be done soon. I know Steve is ready to see it on the streets, but his perfectionism and complete attention to every detail will not let him do anything but the best. Elroy is truly amazing and, once completed, will definitely be the most functional, best sounding, and most enjoyable remote truck out there.

[Remoteness]

Thanks Thomas.

Keep in mind that the field shop is even tighter than you imagined, since The Bread Mobile is 25' long bumper to bumper.

Jethro is 30' feet from front to back and another 4 feet longer when the lift-gate is in use as the rear platform.

Elroy is 33' bumper to bumper and another 5 feet longer when the lift-gate is in use. When you add the fact that Elroy's dual expanding walls make it 14 feet wide when expanded.

It's a tight fit, but somehow it all falls into place with room to get around.

[studjo]

It seems like I have to see this one day - sounds great

Jo

[Tritone87]

I got the chance to intern with Steve over the summer and see how he operates, and his shop is certainly a reflection of his philosophy to be prepared in every way to do the job right the first time and then to think up 5 different ways to deal with things when they inevitably don't go as planned.

His "modular approach" allows for great efficiency and customization of his trucks for specific gigs. Each truck can have its contents adjusted drastically from day to day to fit its specific task most effectively. In order to keep track of what needs to be on a truck for a specific gig, and just as importantly what comes back, Steve creates a project file for each job. It includes all the gear to be brought (down to the exact number of XLR cables and extension chords), information about the venue, the contact info of everyone involved... even the band bio and a description of their musical style. This attention to preparation and detail can be stressful when your up until 2 am the night before a 6 am call prepping a truck, but ultimately saves a great deal of effort and stress during the actual gig when it matters most.

[Remoteness]

Hey David,

Thanks for chiming in.

How's your music project coming along?
Come by the field shop one day after the holidays and I'll help you mix those tunes we recorded in Elroy.

Some folks don't like to prepare and prep as much as we do, but I look at it this way...
I'd rather be dealing with things in the shop then on location.
Since anything can happen, I don't need our gear or lack of gear on sight hinder the capture or operation of the production.

You said "...just as importantly what comes back, Steve creates a project file for each job...." Well, as you remember since you help me start the project, to help facilitate the "Location File" (aka project file) the trucks and portable gear are now all color coded. This way, if we borrow from one rig to use on another, we'll know where to return the item.

The color coding project we started in the summer is nearly done.
The Bread Mobile is 95 percent done.
Jethro is about 90 percent done.
The Portable gear is nearing 85 percent completion.
Elroy is on hold for the moment.

You're going to dig the progress when you see it next time you're around.

I just ordered 6 new ATA work boxes (road-cases) with removable drawers to help the cause and affect of the operation. I cannot wait to get them in the shop so we can load them up with our accoutrements and such.

Luckily for us we usually don't have long all night preps before early morning crew calls.
That happens once in a blue moon.

Thanks again David, especially for all the work you have done for me and the company.

Stay well.

[bove]

I also recently visited the Aura-Sonic shop, and was able to witness first hand Steve's amazing organizational skills... I can only imagine that in anyone else's less-organized hands, this place would turn into a large tangled pile of fancy gear in about two seconds!

Speaking of large piles of gear, the day I was there they were unpacking some fancy new Klein + Hummel PA speakers... wireless, and battery powered. Pretty cool. You'd suspect that someone might buy a pair of PA speakers for their business, or perhaps 4... over at Steve's place, they were unpacking 7 of them. It was the same story with everything else in the shop- neatly stored gear for every situation, and a lot of it.

When you walk in the front door, the first thing you notice are the three trucks impossibly parked inside. I was immediately impressed with the parking job... this was obviously thought out well ahead of time. The trucks are definitely in your field of view the whole time, but it's totally comfortable to walk around in there, and feels spacious.

The Elroy truck is amazing, with a control room larger than most people's homes here in NYC. (and with more AV input channels and nicer LCD screens than most people's homes as well!)

Thanks to Steve for being a gracious host/tour guide!

[mastermix]

Add me to the list of people who went after visiting the Aura-Sonic shop!

I went with a few slutz in the BMW rocketship post-GS AES hang a couple years ago... couldn't wipe the grin off of my face. Elroy was in some form of tweaking, got to see DA GUTZ!!!

If I was back in my more flexible days I would definitely be glad to spend every waking minute either in that shop or on the road in one of those trucks.

[d1rtynyc]

That picture gallery was amazing!
Much respect to Steve & his set-up. World Class!