New Orleans, LA (November 13, 2020)—Mischa Kachkachishvili, owner of Esplanade Studios, opted to use a remote setup of 32 channels of Rupert Neve Designs’ class-A RMP-D8 Dante-connected microphone preamplifiers when tasked with recording the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra’s virtual season during the coronavirus pandemic.
Given the performance restrictions of 2020, the current season of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra is being presented virtually this year and is available to stream on demand. For the first week of sessions, Kachkachishvili initially assembled a massive rig consisting of 24 channels of Rupert Neve Designs Shelford 5052 microphone preamplifiers, which normally occupy slots in his studio’s 48-channel RND 5088 console, coupled with an Apogee Symphony mk1.
“The gain, sound and EQ of the 5052 is fantastic, but it’s a [hassle] to take modules from the console, rack and install them in remote cases. Plus, all the downtime of doing that and extra cabling — I was losing an entire work day just doing that. The week after, I switched to the RMP-D8s,” he says.
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“At first, I was a little skeptical,” he reports, “but the system is super stable, and I’m so happy with the flexibility of the RMP-D8s, and the sound difference is almost negligible between my two setups. Even better, I’m enjoying the extra clarity that the RMP-D8 converters are adding to my recordings. There’s extra air — not brightness — that the RMP-D8 converters have delivered.”
Microphones used for the sessions include four Neumann M150s for room back and front, Neumann KM84s, KM86s, U87s, and Schoeps CMC-6-Us with various capsules. The RMP-D8s are controlled by a Focusrite RedNet HD32R and clocked by an Apogee Big Ben at 96 kHz.
“The system is very stable and allows me to record eight or more hours straight to a 12-core Mac Pro via HDX card. It sounds big and open, with plenty of low end and smooth, ‘analog’ highs, and very quiet. Ideal for classical music and film scoring. I love the sound.”
Rupert Neve Designs • www.rupertneve.com
