Recording and Production in the News

Leading remixers Freemasons invest in Orpheus

Cambridge, UK: Top dance band/remixers Freemasons, who have produced high-profile remixes for the likes of Beyonce, Kelly Rowland, Kylie Minogue and Shakira, as well as their own successful material, have bought two Prism Sound Orpheus FireWire recording interfaces for their Brighton studio.

"We wanted to up our game," comments James Wiltshire, who along with Russell Small, makes up the band. "And with Prism you have one of the best reputations for sound quality in the industry."

Wiltshire says that the first time he and Small played audio through the Orpheus they noticed an immediate difference. "We do a lot of club mixes and having a really tight and powerful bottom end is really important," he says. "I now never have to worry about our converters. There is a feeling of absolute security within our studio setup even whilst looping out to our analogue hardware."

Freemasons bought their Orpheus from DV247 and have already used it to produce an alternative radio mix for Shakira's latest single 'Gypsy'. Wiltshire says he is delighted with the results. He's not the only one either. "The Masters we delivered were good enough to negate the need for a New York mix," he says. "What we completed here in our small studio in Brighton rivalled what could be achieved in NYC, and that was according to Shakira's A+R"

Wiltshire is also very happy with the service he's received from Prism Sound. "From the moment I started contacting Prism about the Orpheus they've been a breath of fresh air," he says. "It's great to be able to speak to someone at a manufacturer whose name you know and who diligently sends you emails about exactly how to set their kit up to meet your own specific needs.

"Having the Orpheus means I never have to worry. You just turn it on and then you don't have to think about it all day. Apart from enjoying the front panel lightshow!"

Orpheus provides Prism Sound's renowned performance, sound quality and state-of-the-art clock technology in a dedicated FireWire unit compatible with both Windows (XP, Vista & 7, ASIO & WDM) as well as MAC OS X 10.4.11 and later (Intel & PPC). Once configured with a computer, Orpheus can also operate stand-alone using its S/PDIF or AES3 I/O. It features line, microphone and instrument inputs, selectable RIAA Equalization for turntables, a built-in premium-quality monitoring mixer for each output providing for performer foldback and surround monitoring, and concurrent ADAT and switchable S/PDIF or AES3 digital I/O plus support for outboard MIDI devices. Dual headphone outputs are provided each with its own volume control, both monitoring the same headphone feed.