Remote Possibilities Approved Portable Gear People List!

[dynamo]

Hi everybody,
following Steve's thread " Remote Approved truck list" i was thinking it may be interesting to have also a list of remote facilities that operate in the field without using a truck. Basically small/medium size companies that are doing on location recordings.
After a few years i’m finally ready to get on the road with my own gig and i’ve just started some marketing around. I’m still working on it and a recent addiction has been a RAMSA WZ AD96, still to ship, and i’m considering the small Yamaha 01/V96,..will never end ?, but i’m operative.
Please check my web site.Your feedback is welcome. So there you have it.
If Steve and you guys think is a good idea keep it coming. Add your URL and talk about your work. Thanks to Steve for such a great forum and for being such a nice host. Jo

[Remoteness]

Excellent! Now we got a "Remoteable" forum.

Thank you for your kind words.

Go for it...

Let's see how many PGPs (portable gear people) we got out there.

Jo, insert your URL - Start the List!

[dynamo]

oops...here it is :
http://www.littlewingrecording.net/
thanks . Jo

[fifthcircle]

My business, Fifth Circle Audio, specializes in remote gigs in Los Angeles.

My setup varies from gig to gig, but I've got some good stuff:

AKG 426 stereo mic, B&K 4006s, Neumann KM 184's and TLM 103s, Gefell 930s, Sennheiser 441s, Beyer M88s and 160s... My best pres are a set of Boulder/Jensen twin servo pres. I also have access to 80 channels of tube (vac rac) pres at just about any time.

Currently, my main recorder is a DA-78 with a HHB 850 CD burner. I have DAT and when the gig calls for it, I also use a Tascam 2424 as well... My post rig at home includes a full out Sequoia rig, Lexicon 300, and a Digi001 for PT and Digital Performer.

Being LA, anything is obtainable depending on the gig

My specialty is acoustic music, mostly classical and jazz, but I'll do just about anything.

Find me at: http://www.fifthcircle.com

--Ben

[cmcneil]

OK, I'll play as long as you don't have to ante up a semi filled with incredible gear to play

Been doing location tracking for different folks in my area for a while, starting to get some cold calls via word of mouth and also some interest in live gig recording (which is new to me).

I just picked up one of those Ramsa AD96s too (bet we got 'em the same place!) and I'm looking forward to checking it out, I remember when they first came out drooling over them.

I'd love to get into recording some of the local jazz scene (what I listen to for fun) but so far my paying gigs have been on the indie rock side.

My rig is a Crest XR-24 mixer (another new addition), Fostex D1624 HDR (great machine) and the AD96. Bunch of the typical mics and a few API Pre & Eq modules, a couple Distressors, and some other misc stuff.

Looking to pick up at least a couple of channels of "audiophile approved" pres, but that will have to wait on a few more projects.

My first attempt at a website is up at: www.databurn.com

and in closing let me say that as a long time lurker on these boards and this forum since the inception, thanks to all the pros for sharing so generously.

[dynamo]

Happy recordings to you guys and congrats for your sites !!
Charlie, how do you feed the Fostex from the WZ-AD96 ?
The one i've got has just 4 AES outs and the TDIF card
is not anymore available..i work with DA-78's.
I may have to get an interface. Damn...
Thanks. Jo

[cmcneil]

Originally posted by dynamo
Happy recordings to you guys and congrats for your sites !!
Charlie, how do you feed the Fostex from the WZ-AD96 ?
The one i've got has just 4 AES outs and the TDIF card
is not anymore available..i work with DA-78's.
I may have to get an interface. Damn...
Thanks. Jo

Hey Jo-
The Fostex has 16 channels worth of ADAT litepipe IO as standard, and the AD96 has ADAT out as standard, so they are a good match. The Fostex I use (D1624) also has an optional balanced IO card installed and has 8 channels of AD as standard. It will record from the built in AD on 8 channels and an outboard AD feeding 8 channels of ADAT at the same time as long as they are synched via WC.

The Fostex ADs aren't bad but I needed to add another 8 channels of AD to be able to record 16 tracks at once, so when they started blowing out the AD96s it seemed like a good time to pick that up.

I'll tell you what these Fostex machines are like the unknowns of location recording, they don't seem to get the press that the Tascam or Mackie HDRs get, but they have been making this type of machine longer than anybody... they really got a lot of things right with them.

[dynamo]

Good..
I still haven't got the AD96 and i've had totally forgotten about the standard ADAT i/o. Well, i'm in business since i can use the MOTU MKIII in stand alone
mode to route from ADAT i/o to TDIF i/o...yeah man...thanks for pointing that out. You are right about the AD96. At the current prices has been a "no brainer". I'm very excited about it. Happy that the Fostex works for you i pretty much had to go Tascam since compatibilty issues with the company i'm collaborating. Thanks again for help. Jo

[Remoteness]

When I originally discussed this thread idea with Dynamo, I was hoping for a nice long list of PGPs.

Come on people, let's see and read about your set ups!

I'll keep the Sticky going as long as there are Portable Gear People listings.

Now, back to the show....

[hollywood_steve]

I'm probably not the first guy to end up a "PGP" kinda by accident. I moved my home studio into commercial space last year so that I would have a place to record live bands. But the fuzzy-walled closet of a "live room" sounded so bad that I started working outside of the studio whenever possible. Now its reached the point where I want to give up my 1/3 share of the studio and just rent a small room that I can use as my post production control room. I've been having so much fun recording "live to 2 track" that I don't think I'll ever turn back.

The only problem so far is that none of my gear was purchased with portability in mind. But almost anything can be stuffed into a rack and humped to the gig. More suitable equipment will slowly replace or add onto my existing pile of stuff:
http://home.pacbell.net/sjp/gear.htm

For the acoustic stuff and even most semi-electric jazz, the 2 track thing has worked out fine. But I'm even getting loud rock bands that are tired of recording one track at a time and want to record "live" either in the studio or in some cool room.

(FYI, read the blurb on this link about a loud indie rock band that has become a 2 track believer - http://www.spinartrecords.com/bands_frankblack.html
Gee, I hope it doesn't become trendy all of a sudden.......)

But the rock bands are convincing me that having access to a high quality 8 track could come in really handy. Recording vocals live with the band sounds like a good idea until you find out that the vocalist is also the guitar player and he will only record through his double stack Marshall rig. So having the ability to overdub vocals would be helpful. If I'm really lucky, I will be able to announce my new "hi-end" portable multi-track in a week or so.

PGP and proud of it!

steve
lex125@pacbell.net

[gregrw]

All right, Steve Remote said I should post here, so...

But first I had to comment on this statement by dynamo: "and a recent addiction has been a RAMSA WZ AD96"

I have a feeling you meant to say "addition" but it reads soooo much better this way! :-)

Anyway, you can get the whole gear list on my site. To sum up, though, most of it is fairly basic (not a Neumann in the bunch!) and road-worthy. It's gotta take the horrors of the road while sounding good, and there is actually a fairly good amount of stuff that will do just that.

You'd find most of the mics in a live company's cases. The console, an Allen and Heath, is a live board, which has been a slight annoyance during mixdown every now and then...but I love the sound of it! The '78s, along with their older cousins the, '88s, seem to be pretty common on the road. The have stood up pretty well so far, and now I'm nicer to them, since they're in a shock case!

What clearly marks me as insane is the fact that I will bring analog machines on the road. (What's that saying? You don't have to be crazy to do this...but it doesn't hurt!) The MSR came with me on several occasions a few years ago, and since I sold it to a friend who said I could use it, it will again soon. The TSR is going out next week for the first time. The MS-16s will be available once they get tweaked.

Analog is cool. I love the digital decks, but analog is fun to work with, and there is very often a very noticable difference in the tonality. It depends on the band. I guess I like analog the way some people like working on old cars: they're a pain to use, parts can be hard to get, they're high maintenance, and there is newer stuff that can do the same job better...but I wouldn't give up my reel to reels for anything.

Hollywood Steve: I also prefer to record "live" (everyone plays at once) but I go multi-track rather than 2-track. The reason for "live" is as you said: the "feel" is better. The reason for multitrack is that I can mix the "live" performance as needed. The problem with 2-track is that if the mix isn't good, the band has to repeat their performance. With multi-track, we get many chance to get the mix right. My $0.02...

As for history: in '94 or '95 I was starting to put some gear together. A roomate, who I had recorded before, suggested that I do the on-site thing. I while later, another friend came up with the name "N.O.M.A.D." I did a bunch of recordings from '94 to '99 while working a regular job and freelancing for a local live company (ATS.) I wasn't doing a project every day (or even every month) but looking back I did manage a descent number. I gave it all up in '99 due to finances and the fact that I was kinda sick of audio. From '99 to '01 I did other stuff but always planned to do it again. Those plans were sped up due to a certain event that happened in New York, Washington and PA in the fall of '01. It was made pretty clear that life's too short to not do something you love. So, early in '02 I started buying stuff, reconnecting with old clients and all that. My first recording with Nomad part II was done in May as I was acquiring gear. I started it with 2 '78s and ended it with 4. I didn't even have the A&H during tracking! What the hell, they were good friends I had recorded before and they were willing to be be guinea pigs. I've since done a few other projects on-site and a whole bunch of stuff live. (Meaning a live show :-) I hadn't intended to do a lot of live recording, but that's how in goes.

And here I am now, edging ever closer to quitting my 9 to 5 job! It will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine!!! :-)

-GRW

[ClickTrackAudio]

Hey, All...

I've been invited here by Jo from Little Wing Recording. (Thanks, Jo!) I run Click Track Audio (www.clicktrackaudio.ca, www.clicktrackaudio.com) here in Ontario Canada.

I started the business as an answer to some musician friends requests to find someone to record their shows without the pains associated with getting the gear, learning it, figuring out how to record and perform...yada, yada yada. I spent a long time as a house tech for a bunch of professional venues in the Toronto area - this background served well in planning out what needs to get done in this type of situation. I've seen how to and how not to run a gig!

As a result, the company (and the mobile rig!) was formed. Based on 3 DA-78HRs, and the DM-24, the rig has served well in terms of portability and flexibility. I do love working on analog boards, but the ease of the DM-24 made it too easy to get going...I couldn't look back. As well, it gives the ability to record raw to tape. Perfect for the groups who are working on a CD and prefer doing the mix in the studio with the rest of the album.

I've considered switching to hard disk recording, but I'm holding out for a bit. Although it would reduce the gear to hump, it adds a step in my process...many of my clients like walking away with their masters to go work on them in the studio as they produce a CD with a combination of studio and live tracks. A hard disk recorder means that I would need to transfer to ADAT or DTRS after the gig.

Back in the control room, I use the MOTU 2408 MKIII to transfer to computer for fine mixing....makes sync a snap.

Anyways, I won't bore all'y'all with the gory details of life or the company. Take a look at the site, and feel free to contact Click Track if you are doing anything in the Ottawa or Toronto area.

Cheers!

[Rich Mays]

Sonare Recordings specializes in location recording of any acoustic music up to and including full orchestra with chorus, from Philly to Florida. Clients include Milwaukee and Savannah Symphonies, NPR, Crystal Records, Savannah Music Festival, Erskine College, and many others.

Our mic selection includes DPA 4003 & 4006, Schoeps CMC 5 & 6, with MK 4 & 6 caps, Neumann KM-140, KM-184, and Royer SF-12 stereo ribbon (fabulous for choral). Other gear includes Studer 169 mixer, True Systems Precision 8 micpres, Troisi 24bit A/D, Alesis Masterlink, Dorrough loudness meters, Tannoy 800A active monitors.

Several decades of musical experience in major orchestras, commercial music, and church music enables us to produce as well as engineer. In-house editing and mastering if desired.

Please visit our website for more info and lots of links to great sites!

Rich Mays
<www.sonarerecordings.com>

[Rick Sutton]

Hi, Most of my work is in the studio but remote recording seems to be on the upswing. I do mainly choirs on remotes and currently putting the finishing touches on my new remote system that includes the following:
Midas Venice 160
Fostex d824 hard drive recorder
4 Neumann km84's
2 Schoeps with omni and cardiod capsules
2 shure sm81
I record a live mix to dat and simultaneous 8 track and do post at my studio that usually includes some Aphex compellor and Lex 960L.
Over the years (close to 35 years in this business) i've hauled just about every type of gear on remotes, but now trying to get it down to a more compact system. Recently put everything into road cases and trying to get it into a system that can be ready to go without having to take anything out of the studio racks.
I appreciate the info and comradery that these forums have made possible. thanks, Rick

[flatrockmobile]

http://www.geocities.com/flatrockrecording/

Best viewed with Internet Explorer

Here's a link on John Sayer's site that has pics with some of my home made stuff.

http://johnlsayers.com/Studio/Pages/Flatrock.htm

[Remoteness]

So, what have the portable folks been up too?

Got any pictures to show or stories to tell...

[Gerax]

Ok

So I think I'll have to post here as well...

After being a studio rat for several years I have now started my own company, L'Acquario Recording & Post (sorry, site still under construction...) and since I don't have a whole tracking room, but a small booth for ODs and small rcordings I'm specializing in remote gigs (you guessed it...) of classical, jazz, folk and acoustic music in general, but I get several calls from rock and blues bands as well to record their live gigs.
My mobile rig (still to be finished) is actually composed of a Mackie SDR2496 24 track HD recorder (many folks joke about it but I find it to be incredibly reliable and good sounding for a unit that economic), Sony PCM R-300 DAT deck, Focusrite ISA482 and Octopre preamps with AD cards, rackmountable Ashly line mixer (arriving from the US, thanx guys for the tip ), mics are at the moment 2X Audio technica 4040, 2X 3035 , 2X Rode NT5, 2X AKG 414 B-ULS, Blue Baby Bottle, 4X Shure Sm57, and as of now I have ordered a few more since some bigger orchestral gigs are on the horizon, I also have acces to DA 78 or 98HR if required and Neumann Mics (that I plan to get soon ).

Back in the studio I'm offering editing, mxing and premastering services of the recordings made on the field, working with Pro Tools LE (on Digi 002Rack), Genelec 1030A and Tannoy Reveal+Audiogram monitoring, Lexicon Mpx-1 and Eventide Eclipse reverbs.

Being in Italy, the scene is a little scaled down from those big gigs you guys are landing in the US, but my clients so far are top classical and jazz musicians playng in the biggest Italy's orchestras like La Scala of Milan, Academy of Santa Cecilia in Rome and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence, plus several local well known jazz and folk/acoustic ensambles, and recently I've been involved in several productions destined to the Japanese market (via a classical label I work with, NBB Records.com )
Recently I've been doing some production sound and post work for DV features for the local satellite broadcasting TV, so now my time splits between music and location/post work for video.

Still moving and expanding, as I'm writing this I'm taking a break from putting the finishing touches (paints, doors...) to my new and expanded control room...

Cheers and happy recording!!

L.G.

[dynamo]

Hi Gerax, great stuff..looks like big time people you are dealing with !!
Hope to see some pics of new control room soon.

Steve, not a lot going on here at least for recordings. I've been just relaxing with my family for the first time in a few years. My brother got here from Italy for a week during the holiday..Of course has been a big " mangia, mangia" since he brought some goodies from Tuscany like cheese, salami, prosciutto and red wine....the wine of course is all gone at this time.. (((
this is more of a foodslut post..i guess.
Hope the others will chime in with more "related " news. cheers !!

[Gerax]

Hey Dynamo!!

Looks like we Italians (Tuscany in particular) all have good habits about food and wine , you know very well what I mean...I'm just recovering from the Christmas and New Year's Eve parties with my family and frieds, and you know that when we talk about family mettings the alcoholic content goes way up...

Ok, back to topic...

Yes, my clients are really great players, and even though I'm dealing with them in their side projects I hope that with time I'll arrive to land gigs with those famed orchestras they play in; one in particular (the one that owns and runs the small classical label I work with, see the link above in my previous post) is currently playing in Maggio Musicale fiorentino, but has landed an incredible gig with the London Symphony Orchestra as the first double bassist!!! SO I really hope this will expand things even more and give me the opportunity to meet new players and cool people in the business.

I hope I'll be prepared...

I'll be posting some pics of my control room as soon as I'm done with it, butI'm layng down some cabling and since I'm in the middle of some projects it will take more time than usual.

Cheers and don't get too hungover with all of that good food and wine

L.G.

[Plush]

http://groups.msn.com/cottageofsound

Classical specialists in Chicago