Regular DJ producer and Pete Tong collabrator and remixer of artists as diverse as Gorillaz, Daft Punk & NERD, U2 and Bryan Ferry, Paul Rogers has installed a Solid State Logic X-Desk and X-Rack in his London-based studio.
‘For years, I’ve never made the kind of records where a big desk is needed,’ he says. ‘I’ve been really happy with the sound I get for the music I make, and haven’t felt the need for a big desk in our world.
But with film scores – including Michael Caine-led revenge flick Harry Brown – his expaectations are changing: ‘I had begun to think, now I’m doing bigger and more varied projects, it could be very useful. I think most people would love to own a big SSL desk but, apart from the obvious cost, where the hell would I put it?
‘Then SSL launch X-Desk, which makes total sense for the sort of music I’m producing. I think with the shift in record sales these days, and the budgets slashed, the X-Desk gives you the best of both worlds, and the best thing about it is, it’s portable.
‘So we decided we were going to get some SSL gear in – an X-Rack that’s loaded with the infamous Bus Compressor alongside E-Series EQ and a Stereo EQ. And for summing and the like we use X-Desk. Everything’s patched, which is useful as we’re starting to get an addiction for analogue synths.’
Rogers in no doubt that his investment in the SSL gear has paid sound in dividends: ‘The Bus Compressor, for example – it gives that “glue” on a record that I’ve always missed. Without the Bus Compressor I always felt like you had to work that much harder to make things sit comfortably in a mix, but now it’s like having a magic button that just sorts your track out. We love the warmth of it, and also how you can just tickle it lightly or crank it if you really want to round off the edges.
‘And we really love putting our analogue synths through those EQ modules. Putting the [Korg] MS20 through the E Series is a particular favourite. Just when you think you can’t get any more bass you put it through that EQ, dial up the bottom end and the pictures start falling off the walls.
‘The SSL gear has changed the way I approach things in the studio. I think the main benefit that I’ve really noticed – apart from the nice, warm analogue SSL sound that I’ve always loved – is that the gear really helps you mix as you’re writing as it provides that natural gel in the record that makes all of the difference. Which, in turn, keeps things moving creatively as you really don’t have to work as hard to make things sound right.
‘So I imagine I’ll be pressing the SSL gear into service on all manner of upcoming projects, including some new singles of my own for release early 2012 and a new film project on the horizon. Exciting times ahead…’
More: www.solidstatelogic.com
