Markus Heinzel of Liquidstudio is the proud owner of the first Audient ASP8024 Heritage desk to be installed in Germany. Based in Freiburg, he has recently upgraded his professional recording and music production studio, wanting to “rely on my technology, so I can get on with making music.”

 

“ I wanted to record using the excellent analogue EQs and shape the incoming signals directly”

 

It was last year that his finances finally allowed for the improvements to his space, for which the biggest investment was the Audient. It took him the best part of a year to find the right desk which also suited his budget. “The combination of a well processed and proven, big analogue desk with DAW integration is perfect for me,” says Markus. “I use the DLC module mostly to make automations, it’s great to play with that.

 

“After working with a digital console for 10 years, I wanted to come back to analogue. I wanted to record using the excellent analogue EQs and shape the incoming signals directly,” he continues. “When I mix, I create stems and sum through the desk which gives me the option to fine tune things with the Audient channel EQs. I then love to use the Retro Iron and the Low Bump/High Lift EQs on the mix bus when printing a mix, as they lift everything up a bit and add power and clarity to the mix. Another great feature is the mix bus compressor which adds a nice glue to the final mix.”

 

“I have to say the change in my studio has definitely been worth it!”

 

In the evenings, Liquidstudio doubles up as a non-commercial live club: The Slow Club. Markus has designed the whole space cleverly to flip between its two distinct roles, whilst managing to utilise every inch of space. When he’s not running the live shows, of which there are 10 to 12 a month, the function room is the recording room. “I work with a couple of sonic walls – diffusors, damping elements, bass traps and so on – and the stage also turns into the vocal chamber when you close the ‘sonic curtain’,” explains Markus. He even built some frames for the portable acoustic elements out of the wooden crate that the Audient desk arrived in, continuing to ensure that nothing goes to waste.

When asked, he suggests that it’s his latest work that he’s most proud of. “It’s not been released yet, but it was all produced using my new setup. I have to say the change in my studio has definitely been worth it!” he says. Audient thinks so too.