Immensely popular for his music and intensely passionate about analogue recording, Cantopop singer and songwriter Hins Cheung has taken over operation of Hong Kong’s Avon Recording Studios – joining his purpose-built Village Studios complex in Guangzhou.
Hong Kong’s premier recording facility for many years, Avon has been refitted by Mode Engineering’s Peter Higgs on Cheung’s instruction, with classic analogue equipment supplied by Funky Junk, and cabling and wiring assemblies from VDC Trading.
‘I was introduced to Hins in 2010 via Funky Junk who have supplied equipment, provided advice and support and been instrumental in the successful outcome of Avon Studios’ refit,’ Higgs explains. ‘In 2015, Hins asked me to decommission the two studio recording rooms at Avon to clear the way in preparation for a completely new installation comprising an exciting and eclectic range of equipment.’
‘Peter Higgs spoke to me in early January asking about getting some DL looms made for a studio he was working on,’ recalls VDC Technical Manager, Adam Jafrabadi. ‘We were really busy at the time, but no one likes to say no, so we fitted it in. It turned out to be more than 20 DL looms of various channel counts and two patch panels, more than 100 hours of wiring time, which we had to fit into our already over-subscribed production schedule.
‘I got to know Peter quite well over the following week as we were in constant contact with progress reports. He even popped in at times to see how we were getting on. Needless to say we did it and there were no problems. The guys in the wiring department were fantastic throughout and can even laugh about it now... just.’
Following the completion of a complete refurbishment programme, Avon’s Studio A is now centred on a vintage 32-channel Neve 8068 mixing console. Recording is via a 48-channel Pro Tools rig using high-end converters, an ATR100 half-inch recorder, a Studer A800 2-inch multitrack machine and a vintage Studer J37 1-inch 4-track. The studio also contains an EMT 140 reverb plate, Fairchild stereo compressor, Neve 1067 and 2081 filter modules, Lexicon 224 and 480L reverbs plus an extensive range of outboard gear and microphones.
Studio B has an SSL 4040G+ console supplied by Funky Junk and refurbished by Mode Engineering Ltd – and the same line-up of recording machines as Studio A including a Studer A827 2-inch machine. It also features a Neve V 10-channel rack with mic preamps and dynamics, a Neve V 10-channel rack for EQ, Lexicon 224 and 480L reverbs and, again, a wide selection of outboard gear.
‘Over the years, I have settled on using VDC as my main supplier of pro audio installation components due to their quality, pricing and reliability,’ Higgs says. ‘Also, I have found VDC’s prefabrication work to be of a very high standard. So, after the decommissioning of Avon, I returned to London, designed all of the wiring interfacing required for both studios and then instructed VDC to prefabricate all of this to my specific wiring specifications.
The completed loom was delivered to Funky Junk, who shipped it all to Avon Studios along with the refurbished SSL 4040G and vintage Studer J37s: ‘I followed a few days later and, with the help of a colleague, carried out the installation,’ Higgs says. ‘The whole project ran very smoothly and has been a great source of satisfaction.’
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