Like many businesses, recording studios have suffered under the restrictions resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. Among them, West London’s Blue Box Studios took the opportunity to upgrade in order to accommodate the increasing demand for Dolby Atmos – a move underscored by Apple Music’s announcement that it is bringing spatial audio to the platform using Dolby Atmos.
Having closed its doors for months and, when able to reopen, being bound by restrictions on the number of people allowed in each room has put mixing sessions to the fore, as the majority of work can be done with only an engineer present. Now, with its ability to mix in Atmos in Studio 2, Blue Box Studios is one of only five music studios in the UK to have a Dolby accredited studio for Dolby Atmos Music and has chosen to use Genelec loudspeakers for monitoring, provided by HHB Communications.
Dolby Atmos mixing requires 11 or more monitors, including overhead loudspeakers for height information. This can prove difficult to retrofit into existing studios –however, with the right mounting solutions, it can be achieved without too much additional equipment.
‘Genelec was an easy choice for us,’ says Studio Manager, Alex Reid. ‘Our engineers have used them before, they pack a punch for their size, and they allow for really flexible mounting – which is exactly what we needed for overhead speakers.’
‘We were delighted to work with the guys at Blue Box on this project,’ says HHB Communications Account Manager and Genelec Product Specialist, Sean Evans. ‘We love the versatility of Genelec’s 8000 series speakers, whatever the room size, shape, or other technical aspects to overcome, there’s always a speaker and a mounting solution that can deliver for an immersive system.’
Based in West London, Blue Box Studios is a boutique studio complex offering a creative, cutting-edge environment with tracking and writing sessions in Studio 1 and Dolby Atmos mixing in Studio 2. Atmos engineers include Tom Hough, Graeme Baldwin, and Kurt Martinez.
More: www.hhb.co.uk
