"It has provided a centralised input rig and return buss matrix, which has made my mostly single-handed recording and production work here much easier in terms of flow," he says.
"I have set up my most-used inputs (my drum kit mics, four mic'ed guitar amps in booths, an M/S mic pair for acoustic guitars, a direct-patched bass, etc) on a semi-permanent basis, and I have built a rolling mobile remote control rig for the DAW, and a set of satellite headphone 'pods', so most of the time, I can just move into position, arm some tracks and let 'er rip, when inspiration strikes, without any serious setup time.
When asked about what most impresses him about his desk, Dewar can't pick just one thing. "The very quiet preamps and busses, a very warm, natural and alive sonic image, smooth EQs, top-drawer routing features... and yes, Audient's promo was right. I have a bunch of very nice boutique’ mic pres that seldom hear a signal, anymore, because in most cases, the Audient inputs are equivalent, or even superior. I use the console short faders for most of my inputs. You hear a lot of Audient in my work now, and I and my listeners love it."
As a big fan of British analogue audio circuits since audio school back in the early 80s, he looked to Audient when it came to finding the right console. "The ASP8024 provides incredible value for a very reasonable cost, with world-class functionality and sonics, reassuring build quality and great structural integrity, at a surprisingly low investment,"” he explains. "By all measures, it has met very well with that assessment"”
Since this landmark sale, numbers have continued to grow, and Audient's co-founder Gareth Davies comments, "Although the design has evolved over the years, the fact that sales of ASP8024 and its variants continue to show year on year growth stands testament to just how right David Dearden and the Audient team got the original design. We'd like to thank all of the users worldwide who have contributed to establishing ASP8024 as such an iconic product."
(Jim Evans)
