Opened in the early 1960s as Moonglow Records, The Sound Factory’s name was coined by David Hassinger, who purchased the LA facility in 1969. A decade later, the facilty was sold to Sunset Sound Recorders owners Paul and Tutti Camarata, who ran it until it changed hands again in 2017.
To reflect changing technology and musical styles, the current leaders recently upgrade the space, contacting George Augspurger to create new main monitors.
After 60 years, The Sound Factory has seen some of the world’s greatest artists pass through its doors, including Marvin Gaye, the Jackson 5 and Linda Ronstadt in the 60s and 70s; Sheryl Crow and Red Hot Chili Peppers at the turn of the century; Doja Cat, SZA, and Mark Ronson, as well as artists currently working with Sound Factory’s own record label.
Legendary acoustician and loudspeaker designer Augspurger had previously designed aspects of the facility during its expansion in the 1970s, and his experience in the studio was a perfect complement to the upgrade. After designing the new custom main monitors, Augspurger worked with Craig Hockenberry, Gibson Director of Product Development for Pro Audio, to have them built. Augspurger’s expansive knowledge, coupled with Hockenberry’s expertise in designing and building Gibson’s KRK monitors, proved ideal for this project.
‘After they had run the studio for about a year, [the present owners] asked me what would be involved in designing custom monitors for Studio A, the original room,’ Augspurger recalls.
‘The room itself was one that I had designed, but it [now] had standard commercial monitors in it. So, using the components of the so-called “Augspurger monitor”, we created a design for the room.
Then, more recently, they wanted to upgrade the monitors in Studio B. The same design was physically able to be accommodated [in both rooms,] so we went ahead and designed the retrofit in Studio B as well.’
While the process was straightforward, designing, creating and deploying Sound Factory’s new mains was a labour of love that evolved over three years. ‘The main thing [to consider] in designing a custom monitor is that you have the freedom to make the cabinet dimensions fit the space available,’ Augspurger says of the unique soffits from the original monitors.
‘I know how to design speaker cabinets, so that part was easy. The choice of components is done in cooperation with the owner, the people who will be using the speakers. This is the first installation I’ve done with KRK – and all I can tell you is there were absolutely no glitches, no problems. They delivered what I asked for.’
For Gibson/KRK’s role in the project, Hockenberry and his team set to work building the monitors to Augspurger’s specifications: ‘We worked with George on the monitors from the beginning, which was a real pleasure,’ says Hockenberry. ‘We had the designs worked out by the second call with him, and we built both pairs in our prototype shop here in Nashville. Once we had George’s seal of approval on everything, we coordinated with Sound Factory Studio Manager Cameell Hanna to get the speakers sent to their new home in Hollywood, where George helped oversee the final installation.’
Like nearly all of Augspurger’s prior speaker designs, the custom pairs of KRK mains at Sound Factory feature a wooden horn. ‘The actual speaker components, such as the high-frequency drivers and woofers, are standard commercial products,’ he explains. ‘The woofers are made by TAD, the professional products division of Pioneer, which I have used in most of my custom installations for the past 20 years. The high-frequency driver, which is comprised of beryllium, is made in the US by Radian.’
The connection between Augspurger and Gibson/KRK was not one of happenstance, it was the result of many conversations Hanna had with his friend and colleague Rae Vinton, who leads Entertainment Relations for Gibson LA. ‘I told Rae about the upgrade and working with George, and she immediately asked if we wanted to do something with KRK,’ says Hanna. ‘We already collaborate a lot together, so I thought it would be perfect.’
For Hockenberry, it was a symbiotic relationship that evolved to become an incredible project: ‘Sound Factory is an amazing space that has produced innumerable legendary hits from countless icons. That, combined with George’s status in the industry, really solidified our decision to move forward with this project,’ he says. ‘KRK represents premium sonic quality, and these custom mains emphasise the capabilities of our engineering team to create solutions that compete with other high-end manufacturers. We are humbled that KRK is now a part of the Sound Factory legacy and the many creative masterpieces that will be coming out of those rooms.’
‘The funny thing about this place – for better or worse, I’m still not sure which it is – is that everything here is completely custom, even the general ‘living’ spaces,’ Hanna says. ‘Every aspect of this place is unique, nothing is a standard size, including the speaker system, so it’s difficult when we want to change something. But we wanted to honour the custom nature of the facility with our upgrades, and working with George, Craig, Rae and the entire Gibson/KRK team, we’ve been able to accomplish that.’
More: www.krkmusic.com
