Audient ASP8024 – a Capital Investment for Music Technology Students
Ohio's Capital University has taken delivery of an Audient ASP8024 mixing console for its Music Technology department. Chad Loughrige, Head of the Music Technology Area and specifier of the desk talks us through the decision, and explains why the Audient will be a great teaching aid for freshmen through to advanced students.
Audient ASP8024
What research did you do in the process of deciding on the ASP8024?
Much of our research was through online resources. The Audient website was extremely valuable in referencing current users of Audient products. Inclusion of all of the reference materials on Audient’s website were very helpful in the decision making process. With these resources, we were able to pre-determine how the desk could be integrated into our current facility.
Since we didn’t have access to evaluate the desk personally, we used a multitude of online video tutorials to help in the decision process.
What features of the desk do you particularly like?
Since the ASP8024 will be used in a teaching environment, ease of use is of the utmost importance. The layout and labeling of the components are very intuitive, and after our in-depth discussions of signal flow, our students will be able to easily transfer that knowledge to the console without feeling confused or overwhelmed.
Other features of the console that were particularly valuable are:
- The use of DB25 connectors for easier and cleaner installation
- The new integrated “Dual Layer Control Surface”
- The multitrack recorder for this system is a Pro Tools HD 2 system. The control surface allows the students to understand how an analog and digital system can be tightly integrated.
- The integration of a TT patchbay
- The stereo bus compressor
- This feature is one often only found on very high-end analog desks. The addition of this component provides a great teaching opportunity.
What is the studio mostly to be used for?
The studio is mainly used for upper-level courses in the Music Technology curriculum. In these courses, we continue to discuss analog signal flow and how that signal flow carries over to DAW’s (Pro Tools). The students in these courses are required to do recording sessions as assignments for their recording related classes. As the recording studios are located in a Conservatory of Music, these recording sessions could include nearly any genre of music, from a rock band to a blue-grass group, or a 4-piece trumpet ensemble to a 100-piece orchestra.
How are you using the console?
We are using the Audient ASP8024 as a recording and mixing desk tightly integrated with a Pro Tools HD 2 system. For tracking, Pro Tools acts only as a multitrack recorder, with inputs and outputs routed to their corresponding channels on the desk. In mixing, students can choose to either continue using the console as a mixing desk, or switch over to the Dual Layer Control surface for mixdown. They also have the option of combining both methods (mix per individual channel and use Pro Tools automation features for advanced mixes).
What other equipment is employed in the studio?
Currently we have a Universal Audio 2-610S Pre Amp, two DBX 160 compressors, two DBX 266 compressors, three outboard effects units from Lexicon, Yamaha, and Alesis, and a Yamaha Graphic EQ. Our Pro Tools HD system has an expansive set of professional plugins from manufacturers such as Waves, McDSP, Anteres, Bombfactory, UA, BIAS, and Aphex.
What do you feel makes the Audient ASP8024 so good for teaching?
Finding an excellent teaching desk that also introduced our students to large-format analog consoles was the main goal when searching for a new system. The audio production curriculum in the Music Technology program begins in the analog domain, and focuses on “generic signal flow”. We felt that the Audient ASP8024 followed this standardized signal flow accurately, which seamlessly aids our students in the transition from lecture discussions to hand-on use. As beginning audio production students, they are able to easily visualize how the audio signal flows through the various components because of the well-labeled screen-printing, color-coding, and metering options.
During their intermediate years at Capital, our students transition into the use of DAW’s: mainly Pro Tools. We were looking for a system that could then be re-introduced in their junior and senior year that would offer advanced features of a hybrid analog/digital system. Many of these systems are found in high-end recording studios, and we want to prepare our students for all that they may encounter in the industry. The Audient ASP8024 can be easy to use, but it also has the ability to perform complex routing options that are not found on low and mid-level consoles.
The integrated Tiny Telephone patchbay acts as great support in teaching these complex routing options. Lessons in signal flow patch points, aux sends and returns, and foldback routing can be completed as either in-class projects or outside assignments.
The philosophy of the Music Technology faculty at Capital is that as a student masters the concepts of analog signal flow, they will obtain a greater understanding of digital technology (i.e. the signal flow of DAW systems).
What made the Audient console stand out from the competition?
As our program continues to grow, we want to offer our students learning opportunities on a variety of recording platforms. This includes small portable systems for recording on-location audio, mid-level digital systems, and high-level analog/digital hybrids. Before our Audient console was purchased, we were able to offer the preceding two system types. Now, we can provide our students with the necessary audio production education to search for internships and job opportunities in large markets like New York, L.A., Nashville, and others. This would not have been possible without the affordability of the Audient ASP8024. The feature set is comparable to these high-end systems, but the price of the other consoles did not match our budget. The Audient console gave us the best of both worlds: features and affordability.
Audient at the University
We will incorporate the new Audient console starting in the Fall of 2011. The first class that will focus on this console is our Intermediate Recording Techniques course. In previous courses, students have studied the basic components of recording systems and signal flow on other smaller desks. During this course, we will use the Audient to refresh their knowledge of signal flow, and introduce them to more advanced subjects. This will also be their first introduction to how digital and analog systems can be integrated together.
As students progress through the Music Technology program, their class sizes become smaller. Upper-level classes often have twelve students or less, and are broken down even further for recording sessions (groups of three or six). In courses such as “Group Recording” and “Advanced Recording Techniques”, students will use the Audient console for tracking and mixing sessions. The Audient console is housed in a studio that offers great flexibility in recording spaces. All the main performance spaces located in the Conservatory of Music are interfaced into this studio. This includes our large ensemble rehearsal space, a 200-seat recital hall, and a 950-seat auditorium. These facilities afford students the ability to record a variety of genres in many distinct sonic spaces.
The curriculum for these courses has not changed tremendously with the addition of the console, but the focus of the room has changed. Before the installation of the board, the room served many purposes for music production and media production (audio for video, film, and other multimedia). Its sole curriculum responsibility will now be in music production, and our “Music for Media” course will now move to another room.
Are the studios at Capital University going through an upgrade at the moment?
We are in the constant process of upgrading our equipment 
in order to keep it current with industry trends and standards. We currently have 170 students in the Music Technology area at Capital, and space is at a premium. Our philosophy is that of a “hands-on” nature of learning, so it’s important to us to give students their own personal studio hours each week for their course work. With this in mind, we have just begun renovation of another area in the Conservatory of Music that will house a 750 square foot control room and live room with an isolation booth.
Capital University
The Music Technology Area at Capital University has seen great success in the past five years. One of the main reasons for this is the option we give prospective students in our degree offerings. We offer a Bachelor of Music in Music Technology, where after an audition and acceptance to the Conservatory of Music, students not only study in the Music Technology area, they also go through a rigorous Music curriculum. These students continue to perform on their respective instruments, and also learn music theory, arranging, piano, conducting, and music history.
The alternate degree option is a Bachelor of Science in Professional Studies with a Music Technology emphasis. This degree does not require an audition into the Conservatory, yet includes all of the same Music Technology courses. Students in this degree then pursue a Minor in an outside field, which often includes the University’s Business Administration, Computer Science, or Electronic, Media and Film degrees. This degree gives prospective students an opportunity to study Audio Production, but does not require performance on an instrument or in-depth study in music. This is a popular option, and has produced some outstanding students that have been extremely successful in the music industry.
Over the past five years, we have seen a great increase in our admittance. Each year we have accepted an average of 50 students into the program, and now are at 170 students. We have done virtually no national advertising, and have found that much of our promotion is through word-of-mouth. Students are excited to study at Capital. We offer small class sizes, have a beautiful campus, and opportunities in the music industry in Columbus, Ohio are vast. With small efforts is PR and marketing, we’re certain that our numbers will continue to grow.
The new desk was supplied by US Audient dealer and music technology retailer Sweetwater.
Photos: Matt Disbrow
