pan60
09-08-2008, 05:59 AM
EQSM1
Company: S&M
Interview with Jeff
Click images to enlarge
Pan60 Jeff, let me start by saying thank you for taking the time for the interview. And a double-thanks for allowing the 'Pan60's Top Secret Mad Lab' the chance to check this EQ out! This thing looks righteous!
Before we get into the EQ, please tell me a bit about yourself. As always, I want to know what got you interested in the audio industry.
Jeff I started out as a musician, playing drums and guitar. I never thought about engineering until the band I was playing in, at that time, recorded its first record. I decided to go to college to become a recording engineer and that's where I met my partner in S&M Audio, Jake Swanson. I got hired at the college after I graduated, and Jake worked there, too.
I started to engineer more and more records and was getting frustrated that I couldn't afford the gear that I wanted...go figure.
One day, I was talking with Jake, and he felt the same frustration. So, we decided to build a simple, but great sounding EQ, just for us.
I didn't exactly have an electronics background, like Jake did, so I started building different pre amp and compressor kits. Things snowballed from there. We didn't think about selling the EQ until our friends started asking to buy them.
pan60 What other hobbies do you have outside the industry?
Jeff As far as hobbies (other jobs) go, I own a recording studio in Minneapolis called the Sound Gallery and I try to engineer as many records as my schedule allows. I play drums in two bands and guitar in another. Basically, my life is music, music, music. I also enjoy camping and snow boarding.
pan60 Basically music, music, music. : )~ It sounds like me. It is so awesome to know that so many of the engineers I get a chance to chat with, happen to be musicians.
So, as a studio owner, and engineer, you obviously have your likes and dislikes regarding the modern DAW, assuming you prefer (at least to some degree), outboard gear. Tell us, are you a console mixing engineer, an ITB DAW engineer, or a mixture of both?
Jeff I do enjoy outboard gear! Having a good and versatile front-end to your DAW is really important. I like to color things on the way into Pro Tools...and in the mix as well, if needed. I use a mixture of both. I prefer to mix on a console, but I don't think it will make or break every record. With that said, even if I am mixing in Pro Tools. I usually mix stems and sum them through a console.
pan60 Aside from guitar and drums, do you play any other instruments?
Jeff Sometimes I think I can play the piano, but I really want to play pedal steel.
pan60 As a musician, do you find it more or less difficult to be an engineer?
Jeff I think being a musician is vital to being a good engineer, or at least understanding music theory. Music is a language you need to be able to communicate with your clients.
pan60 I agree. Being a musician helps, but, man, there are times when I really have to bite my tongue: )~
Do you have a favorite style of music?
Jeff I know it's vague, but I listen to all styles of music.
pan60 I have a passion for swing jazz, blues, funk rock... Yeah, I guess I just love music, as well. It's hard not to: )~
Tell us about the EQ.
Jeff With all the pre amps in the 500 series market, we thought that an obvious first piece for us would be an EQ. Basically, we wanted it to be a very straightforward, great sounding and functional piece that met a certain price point. We wanted it to be more of the "musical" or "colorful" variety, as there are plenty of "surgical" or "precise" EQ's included in almost any DAW. Within the restrictions of the 500 series format, mostly with face plate real estate, it was difficult to make a fully parametric EQ work. Because of that, there were a few sacrifices we had to make such as Q control and sweepable highs and lows. It was the only way to get it all in one slot and still make it easy to manipulate efficiently in the studio.
What we ended up with is the EQSM1. It's a four band EQ with selectable hi and low shelves and sweepable/semi parametric mid bands. We feel that this combination was the most useful, universally. For some, it might seem limited, but it's not meant to be an all-in-one (full-featured) equalizer.
Company: S&M
Interview with Jeff
Click images to enlarge
Pan60 Jeff, let me start by saying thank you for taking the time for the interview. And a double-thanks for allowing the 'Pan60's Top Secret Mad Lab' the chance to check this EQ out! This thing looks righteous!
Before we get into the EQ, please tell me a bit about yourself. As always, I want to know what got you interested in the audio industry.
Jeff I started out as a musician, playing drums and guitar. I never thought about engineering until the band I was playing in, at that time, recorded its first record. I decided to go to college to become a recording engineer and that's where I met my partner in S&M Audio, Jake Swanson. I got hired at the college after I graduated, and Jake worked there, too.
I started to engineer more and more records and was getting frustrated that I couldn't afford the gear that I wanted...go figure.
One day, I was talking with Jake, and he felt the same frustration. So, we decided to build a simple, but great sounding EQ, just for us.
I didn't exactly have an electronics background, like Jake did, so I started building different pre amp and compressor kits. Things snowballed from there. We didn't think about selling the EQ until our friends started asking to buy them.
pan60 What other hobbies do you have outside the industry?
Jeff As far as hobbies (other jobs) go, I own a recording studio in Minneapolis called the Sound Gallery and I try to engineer as many records as my schedule allows. I play drums in two bands and guitar in another. Basically, my life is music, music, music. I also enjoy camping and snow boarding.
pan60 Basically music, music, music. : )~ It sounds like me. It is so awesome to know that so many of the engineers I get a chance to chat with, happen to be musicians.
So, as a studio owner, and engineer, you obviously have your likes and dislikes regarding the modern DAW, assuming you prefer (at least to some degree), outboard gear. Tell us, are you a console mixing engineer, an ITB DAW engineer, or a mixture of both?
Jeff I do enjoy outboard gear! Having a good and versatile front-end to your DAW is really important. I like to color things on the way into Pro Tools...and in the mix as well, if needed. I use a mixture of both. I prefer to mix on a console, but I don't think it will make or break every record. With that said, even if I am mixing in Pro Tools. I usually mix stems and sum them through a console.
pan60 Aside from guitar and drums, do you play any other instruments?
Jeff Sometimes I think I can play the piano, but I really want to play pedal steel.
pan60 As a musician, do you find it more or less difficult to be an engineer?
Jeff I think being a musician is vital to being a good engineer, or at least understanding music theory. Music is a language you need to be able to communicate with your clients.
pan60 I agree. Being a musician helps, but, man, there are times when I really have to bite my tongue: )~
Do you have a favorite style of music?
Jeff I know it's vague, but I listen to all styles of music.
pan60 I have a passion for swing jazz, blues, funk rock... Yeah, I guess I just love music, as well. It's hard not to: )~
Tell us about the EQ.
Jeff With all the pre amps in the 500 series market, we thought that an obvious first piece for us would be an EQ. Basically, we wanted it to be a very straightforward, great sounding and functional piece that met a certain price point. We wanted it to be more of the "musical" or "colorful" variety, as there are plenty of "surgical" or "precise" EQ's included in almost any DAW. Within the restrictions of the 500 series format, mostly with face plate real estate, it was difficult to make a fully parametric EQ work. Because of that, there were a few sacrifices we had to make such as Q control and sweepable highs and lows. It was the only way to get it all in one slot and still make it easy to manipulate efficiently in the studio.
What we ended up with is the EQSM1. It's a four band EQ with selectable hi and low shelves and sweepable/semi parametric mid bands. We feel that this combination was the most useful, universally. For some, it might seem limited, but it's not meant to be an all-in-one (full-featured) equalizer.