The control room at Hillroad Records is built on precision, not coincidence. Designed according to the LEDE principle (Live End – Dead End), the space combines musicality with maximum control. Here, you don’t hear what you think you hear; you hear what is actually there.
The acoustics have been calculated down to the smallest detail. We use walls with Helmholtz absorption, QRD diffusion on the back wall, and full traps in the corners. Even the studio furniture was custom designed and built to prevent unwanted reflections at the listening position. Everything is measurable, repeatable, and reliable. A good mix here doesn’t sound good by accident; it sounds good because everything is right.
The setup is hybrid, featuring analog preamps and compressors at the front end combined with a modern digital workflow. Control is handled via Avid S1s and an Avid Dock with iPads. In total, there are 94 channels in and out, patched both analog and digital through a high quality Ghielmetti matrix.
Monitoring is handled through three reference sets to ensure your music translates perfectly to the outside world: Main Monitors: Neumann KH420 Alternative: Adam P22 Refference: Avantone Mix Cubes
This keeps the image honest, from large to small and from studio to smartphone. If it works here, it stands up wherever you play it.
The sightlines to the recording areas are wide, with glass that sounds like silence. Communication runs through two way talkback so that contact remains natural and direct. This room is the result of years of measuring, listening, and refining. It is professional, precise, and built to let you hear the truth.
Tech Talk
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500+ Plugin Licences (UAD, Waves, SSL, FabFilter, Izotope, Native Instruments, Slate Digital, and more)
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Main Preamps: SSL (Solid State Logic)
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Routing: Ghielmetti Patching
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Bekabeling: Mogami
- Channel Count: (94 In / 94 Out)
Dynamics
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Elysia Xpressor (Stereo Hardware Compressor)
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TL Audio C1 (Dual Valve Compressor)
Channel Strip
Tape
- Akai Analog 2-track Tape
- Design: LEDE-principle with broadband absorption
- Diffusion: QRD-diffusers & Helmholtz resonators
- Bass Control: Full-range corner traps