GC Pro Opens New Recording/Listening Space at Hollywood Location
Competition in the LA pro audio retail sector is intensifying. No sooner does Vintage King unveil a purpose-built showplace on Sunset Boulevard, then Guitar Center Professional responds with a salesroom salvo of their own.
How has GC Pro upped the ante? With a new custom recording/listening demo facility at the Hollywood Guitar Center location, also on Sunset Boulevard. The facility is open to the public, GC Pro affiliate partners, and manufacturers, and is equipped with plenty of gear, including a Neve Genesys console and custom Ocean Way monitors tuned by their creator, Allen Sides.
Also on hand are studio monitors from Genelec, ADAM, Focal and more, as well as custom-designed photo-embedded acoustic treatment from Auralex, and a large selection of vintage and new outboard gear.
According to GC Pro, the sound quality in the room is “superb,” providing a full range of options for today’s producer, engineer, artist or musician. This state-of-the-art recording/listening studio also features a signature look different from any other facility in the GC Pro organization.
Here’s some more info on the new facility, as stated by GC Pro:
“’This new facility opens up a number of opportunities for GC Pro, for both demonstrating music and recording it,” stated GC Pro Vice President Rick Plushner. “The Hollywood location also houses our custom-built live sound stage, which is used to tape our acclaimed GC Sessions video series, and with the addition of the recording room, a fully-integrated facility is emerging – bridging the worlds of live sound, recording and AV production. The patch bays have been fully customized, designed by the Malvicino Design Group (one of our GC Pro Affiliates), and we can now fully track GC Sessions performances and other events, with the full arsenal of modern studio wizardry at our fingertips, including editing, effects and overdubs. We are raising the bar for what we can accomplish production-wise, and we will be passing that content onto the audio community at large.’
Other different kinds of programs based on the room are in the works, to further expand GC Pro’s reach and offer enrichment sessions/classes for the audio community. Manufacturer/vendors will be invited to participate in demonstrations, providing expert perspective – presentations that will be taped and posted on GC Pro’s website.
Allen Sides, GRAMMY Award-winning engineer, producer and mixer who founded Ocean Way Recording, stated, ‘It’s great to have a room where you can actually hear what gear sounds like. We were excited to be involved with the acoustics and design of this great space, and to also provide a set of our new Ocean Way AS1 monitors. Critical listening is the only way to judge what gear sounds like, and in most retail environments you haven’t a clue until you get it home. This is a wonderful addition to GC Pro Hollywood.’
Horacio Malvicino of the Malvicino Design Group noted, ‘Installation of the new audio demo room at GC Pro was handled with the same approach we take with a regular studio installation. The console is fully wired to a total of four Audio Accessories TT 96 point patch bays, which allow access to all of the console features. We also added a sixteen-tie line panel in the control room to allow for quick interface of external gear, as well as a sixteen-input mic panel with Ethercon ports to interface a multi fold-back system.'”
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Wendy Vazquez
October 16, 2012 at 11:56 pm (12 years ago)Do you know who at GC Pro designed the studio?
Dora from the Valley
October 17, 2012 at 12:48 am (12 years ago)Way to go Marcin Nowak. I heard you had a hand in this project. Great Job!!
katelyn
October 17, 2012 at 3:27 am (12 years ago)awesome!
givecreditwherecreditisdue
October 17, 2012 at 3:41 am (12 years ago)I have a buddy at GC that I believe did most of the work in designing this incredible space. it’s a shame he didn’t get a mention in this article! Mazetov Marcin Nowak,
Jade
October 17, 2012 at 4:27 pm (12 years ago)Great Job Marcin Nowak for designing this awesome room. I wish this article gave you the credit you deserve. Congrats!!