Whether it’s noisy preamps, a less than ideal tracking space, or bumpy inaccurate monitoring, there is usually a weak link somewhere along the line getting between you and the perfect recording. Until now...
It could be said that we are living through a golden age when it comes to accessible, high quality audio gear. If that’s true, it follows that all we should need to do is take a great source in a great room, and record and mix through that gear back out into an accurate monitoring environment.
Front End
As ever, having access to all those elements at once comes at a cost, so we must look to the most cost effective way to achieve as many, if not all of those aims as possible. Accessing a great sounding tracking space is possible when we will think creatively and take our front end to it. If that front end is a very high quality interface that only leaves the final mix environment to deal with.
Mix Environment
Finding this final piece of the puzzle is a highly specialist area in its own right. More recently, software tools have become available that allow us to compensate our monitors’ response to counter the negative effects of their placement and/or existing room dimensions. Of these, Sonarworks SoundID Reference is one of the best known.
SoundID Reference And Merging Technologies Anubis
In a recent announcement, Sonarworks and Merging Technologies confirmed that they have developed a version of Sonarworks’ popular calibration software which will now be included in the MERGING+ANUBIS interface and monitor controller, making it the first hardware to enable SoundID Reference correction outside of computer plugins or apps.
This is significant because as well as taking the processing cost away from a host application, Anubis lets you run any control room source (not just signal from your DAW) through SoundID Reference running on the interface’s own DSP. This could include OS system sounds, any other application, or hardware media connected to your Anubis using virtual, network, or analogue connectivity.
Once set up, switching SoundID Reference correction is as simple as pressing a button on the Anubis screen. In the video we show you how to set this up on a Windows system. Setup for Mac uses the same workflow.
The Perfect Signal Path?
MERGING+ANUBIS is a totally professional tool whose specs and transparency do the talking. Using SoundID Reference on Anubis brings absolute quality and accuracy to your signal path from end to end, while remaining totally invisible in use. As a latecomer to the Sonarworks party, all I can say is that the SoundID Reference experience is a revelation. Try it if you haven’t already. Speaking for myself, running it on MERGING+ANUBIS is the most perfect signal path yet.
To find out more, head over to Sonarworks and Merging Technologies