Australian singer/songwriter Guy Sebastian’s new personal studio plays its collection of vintage recording equipment off against a new pair of Genelec’s 8341A coaxial close-field monitors – along with an established pair of Genelec 1034B main monitors.
Sebastian first came to prominence in 2003 as the first winner of Australian Idol. His career to date includes platinum records in the US and Australia, and sell-out tours around the world. This success has enabled him to create a purpose-built recording space in his new home, giving him the ability to work on new projects whenever inspiration dictates.
The architectural design for the studio was handled by acoustic designer John Sayers, with Sebastian taking responsibility for the interior. ‘This house is like a concrete bunker,’ Sebastian explains. ‘It’s concrete and black steel and really tough, so I wanted the studio to have a bit more of a modern sort of vibe. I wanted to keep it pretty monochrome, and really minimal and clean looking.’
A self-confessed gear-junkie, Sebastian’s a vintage mic collection is kept company by historic recording equipment including a fully restored Siemens Sitral console. Juxtaposing all this classic equipment, the distinctly modern white Genelec 8341As were supplied by Australian distributor, Studio Connections.
‘They are beautiful,’ says Sebastian, who also took advantage of Genelec’s GLM calibration software to help tune the speakers to the space. ‘It was great to be able to use the Genelec GLM technology to get them tuned perfectly. It didn’t do a lot to the monitors, just a few little frequency fixes, but it was good.’
In contrast, Sebastian’s 1034B main monitors were acquired a number of years ago: ‘I’ve had them for a while from Los Angeles, and they were sitting in storage while this place was getting built,’ he explains. ‘They cause me to not crank the speakers. When you are listening to big monitors, unless you’re listening loud it’s hard to get the punch. These are super-punchy and still clear, even at low levels.
‘The studio was an investment for me, but it’s sort of already paid off in the amount of time I’ve spent here and the amount I’ve used it on the road and in my recordings,’ he adds. ‘I’m the Musical Director in my band, so I’ll put all the tracks together and other elements for live. I do a lot of pre-production in the studio and I rehearse in here because everything is where you need it.’
The decision he has made with regards to his monitoring solution equally appears to be paying off: ‘You need good monitors – and it doesn’t get better than Genelec,’ he concludes.
More: www.genelec.com
