We are now offering a new dimension to the services we offer at Manifold Recording: remote recording!
Actually, we did our first remote recording gig last year at Ruggero Piano:
But that was really just a trial run. We have recently invested in a phenomenal professional tool, the SoundDevices 970. With interfaces for 8 analog inputs and 8 AES inputs, we can easily handle 8- or 16 channel recording sessions (using Apogee converters). But it also has both MADI ports and DANTE support, meaning it (and we) can handle 32 channels of MADI at 96KHz, or 64 channels of MADI or DANTE at 48K. And it can sample-rate convert 96K audio to 48K via MADI, making it a snap to collect audio for video on the fly when recording within our own facility. But, we can also motivate a 32-channel MADI IO box with Harrison converters if we really need to for a large remote session.
The 970 can act as a master video reference, offering both genlock sync and SMPTE timecode, simplifying multi-camera operations and synchronization. That, plus a range of remote-ready microphones and preamps makes for an amazing value. Let’s look at the numbers:
Our newly published base rate is $1200/day for up to 8 channels. A recent remote session included:
- 2x AKG 414 B-ULS microphones
- 1x AKG 414 TL-II microphone
- 3x Schoeps CMC-6 with capsules
- 2x Sennheiser MKH 70 Long Shotgun microphones
- Millennia Media HV3D-8 Preamp
- The aforementioned SoundDevices 970 Recorder
- A 16-channel analog mixer for monitoring
- Stands and mic cables
Looking at competitive rental house rates and shipping policies (which require a minimum two-day rental for shipped items), the rental cost of the equipment itself comes to $800 for the microphones alone, $300 for the preamp, $400 for the recorder, and another $100 for the monitoring, stands, and cables, a $1600 sub-total. Even if we admit that the 970 is overkill for 8 channels and we drop down to an 8-channel Zoom recording device, and we imagine that there are stands, cables, and a monitoring solution lying around, the total rental cost, plus shipping, exceeds our $1200/day rate. And that does not include the cost of an engineer!
So, if you have an ensemble that doesn’t fit our studio (for one reason or another), we can bring the best microphones, preamps, converters, recording devices, and, most importantly, audio engineering knowledge, to you for less cost than hiring the gear and doing it yourself.