Opened to coincide with the start of the new term, SSR has a new Audient room at its headquarters in Manchester. Centred on a 36-channel ASP8024 console with integrated patchbay and producer’s desk replaces Ra 20-year-old Amek Einstein Super-E.
Needing for something ‘more modern and reliable’, SSR Technical Director Tom Aston says that the choice as simple: ‘There really aren’t any other new consoles that provide these features and options at this price point. Students have been overwhelmingly positive about the ASP8024 – they find it well laid out, spacious and logical.’
In 2015, some 120 students – including those studying for Music Production and Sound Engineering degrees – will get their hands on the console, giving it ample opportunity to prove its reputation for reliability and longevity. ‘Having a producer’s desk to the left of the master section has allowed us to locate the computer keyboard, mouse and DAW control surface in the centre of the stereo image, producing a much more ergonomic environment than before,’ Aston explains. ‘The ability for us to configure the layout and being able to install a producer’s desk next to the master section was important to us.’
The SSR teaching staff identify different advantages of having the desk. Audio Engineering Tutor, Alan Wrench uses the console on a daily basis: ‘I personally like the insert bypass and the clear indication of the channel signal present,’ he says.
‘The Audient Studio is one of three of our intermediate level studios. The others comprise of a digital console and a control surface, so the Audient helps us to provide a great balance of console formats to students at this level. Teaching the analogue signal path is very important and helps students understand other formats, such as digital. We use the desk to demonstrate all aspects of a typical recording project.’ It’s not just about the formal lectures though, as Wrench explains: ‘Not only is it used in lessons but it is available for students to use in their own sessions and projects, where they put their knowledge into practice.’
SSR began life in Manchester as the School of Sound Recording and has expanded over the intervening 30 years to provide all manner of courses in creative exploits, and according to its website is ‘creating music, film and games professionals all over the world.
‘SSR never stands still, and that is one of the great strengths of our institution,’ says Events & Marketing Manager, Matt Talbot. ‘We are constantly evolving in many different ways; updating our facilities, forging new partnerships and links within the creative industries, organising student and public events and exploring new course areas.
‘Everything we do is centred around our philosophy of providing the very best learning opportunities for our students and our proudest moments are when we see SSR graduates entering the workplace and securing jobs they are not only very capable of doing, but jobs they love waking up for every morning. The future of SSR will reflect the needs of the creative industries and be driven by advances in technology, so who knows what direction that will take.’
With campuses in London, Jakarta and Singapore, the future of SSR is, according to Talbot, ‘in one word, exciting’.
