After a two-year spell away from the limelight, UK DJ and producer Roni Size is back in his Bristol studio making music with a newly installed PMC BB6 XBD-A monitor system.
‘I had this room with these incredible speakers, and I couldn’t just leave them there,’ he says. ‘My whole studio was built around them because they were the monitors I’ve always wanted, ever since I first heard them at Metropolis Studios in London. Having a pair of my own was my life goal and now I’ve got them my life goal has changed to making great music with them.’
As a musician, producer and DJ, Size has helped define the sound of British music over the past 30 years. His life has been about building something new from whatever is around him – from Bristol youth club parties, through rave and the founding moments of jungle and drum and bass, to transforming underground electronic music into something that could be played by a live band on the biggest arenas and stages. Always in demand on the festival circuit, Size has performed at major events such as Glastonbury, Boomtown, Secret Garden Party, Blissfields and Outlook, as well as touring worldwide.
The studio, which occupies the top storey of Size’s house, was transformed earlier this year with the help of engineer Dave Amso, to accommodate the PMC monitors. ‘I wanted to recapture the vibe of the studio I used to have at Barton Hill, which had an SSL console and was a fabulous room with great energy,’ he explains. ‘I now have two rooms – the main studio and a separate writing room, which gives me all the space I need to put out all the equipment I’ve accumulated over the years.
‘I’ve got 60 analogue outputs, a summing mixer, a Rupert Neve A/D converter and lots of cool outboard gear including SSL compressors, Pure Path EQ and Tube-tech, all of which are routed through a patchbay. I have no desire to install a big desk because it would take up too much space and in any case I like the set up I have – it works really well.’
The BB6-XBD-A monitors deliver all the muscle any drum and bass aficionado could want. Size, though, is quick to point out that his choice of monitors wasn’t just about volume. ‘It’s got much more to do with quality and precision,’ he says. ‘With these monitors I can hear everything on the track with exceptional clarity.
‘When PMC brought them into the studio for a demo, we all knew very quickly that they were never going out again – and not just because it had taken such a lot of effort to carry them up the stairs! Initially I just had the top monitors on a stand, but I quickly added the XBD subs so that I had the whole stack. I don’t think there are many people in Bristol – or anywhere else for that matter – who have a pair of these PMCs in their home.’
To get the best out of his monitors – and ensure a peaceful relationship with his neighbours – there is extensive of acoustic treatment and isoltation throughout the studio.
‘Initially, I just enjoyed listening to the PMCs and figuring out what they were capable of, but I knew the room wasn’t quite right,’ Size says. ‘I did a couple of mixes that didn’t translate in the car, so I knew it was time to fix the acoustics, get more soft furnishings and install Trinnov digital room correction. Once I did that, the room was perfect, and I am now so happy with the sound. Everything I do in this rooms is just awesome, thanks to these speakers. I just have to remember not to fire them up too late at night because they really are loud.’
With a schedule of live gigs lined up over the summer, Size is currently dividing his time between touring and studio work, which currently includes a collaboration with DJ Danny ‘WheelUP’ Wheeler.
