At West Valley College, Director of Commercial Music, Jeff Forehan is discovering how easy it is to teach signal flow to his music/recording students with the new ASP8024 Heritage Edition mixing console, which he refers to as “a serious upgrade.” Since the arrival of the desk, things are falling into place much more quickly for the students.
“Teaching signal flow is a dream; it’s very logically laid out”
“They love it. Although they are intimidated at first, with proper instruction they get it easily.” According to Jeff, that’s down to the console itself. “Teaching signal flow is a dream; it’s very logically laid out.”
Comprising 48 channels as well as Dual Layer Control (DLC) for easy integration with DAW, the British desk measures close to 3 metres (just under 10ft) so it’s no wonder it might be imposing at first glance.
“The creative master section and built-in bus compressor are nice touches”
Yet despite its size, it was actually the cost that was one of the driving factors in choosing Audient. “We were able to get so much more bang for our buck, not only in terms of extra features on the desk, but also to purchase the outboard gear, monitors etc. It is also way less complicated than the other high-end professional desk we were considering.”
The Audient is at the heart of the school’s surprisingly large studio space, which is blessed with high ceilings and adjustable acoustics. “It’s large enough to record a full rhythm section, small choir or jazz band – which we have done. That room is shared with the video/film program so we have a green screen, great lighting as well as a collection of state of the art cameras.” Jeff adds, “The control room needs a facelift, but it is large enough for 25-30 students to hang out in comfortably as I instruct.”
Once the ASP8024-HE was installed, Jeff’s decision to choose Audient was substantiated: it was indeed a serious upgrade. “The sound, for one, is an incredible improvement over what we had,” he confirms. “The creative master section and built-in bus compressor are nice touches as well.”
All of this aligns with West Valley College’s ongoing commitment to providing the highest quality educational experience. “We continually refine our course offerings in terms of content/projects as well as our comprehensive 24-unit Commercial Music Production certificate of achievement program, which includes my commercial music/recording programs,” he explains.
Classes incorporating use of the Audient console are Recording Arts I, II, III, Sound Design (for Foley and VO) and Music Production from which some 60-75 students will get their hands on it over the course of the year.
All in all, the future of West Valley College is bright. A new music building which will include a state-of-the-art recording studio is on the horizon, with construction due to start in a couple of years.
In the meantime, Audient wishes Jeff and his students every success with their new desk.
