Warm Audio
Introduction
Established by Bryce Young in 2011, Warm Audio has become a household name in the world of professional music recording. The company makes a wide array of products for the world of professional music recording, including: microphones, microphone preamps, compressors, equalization units and even cables and supplies. The equipment made by the company are some of the most faithful recreations of vintage gear that can be found in the marketplace today, plus, despite their tremendous quality and excellent engineering, these products remain incredibly affordable and easy to purchase from either their website or authorized dealers. Warm Audio makes faithful recreations of such notable microphones as the AKG C-12 and the Telefunken ELAM 251 and such classic pieces of gear as the Pultec EQP-1A and the UREI 1176.
Which products from Warm Audio that were used by the great engineers and recording studio facilities of the past would be a great fit for the educational space?
The microphones and gear made by Warm Audio are excellent choices for the educational space and will give your students access to recreations of truly classic microphones and equipment. For example, the WA CX-12 and WA-251 microphones are faithful recreations of a pair of classic microphones, both of which were made by AKG, even though the (ELAM 251) was marketed by and thus, carried the label of Telefunken. The original AKG C-12 was produced from 1953-1963, while the company produced the 251 for Telefunken from 1959-1962. Both of these legendary microphones found their homes in fine recording studios around the world and made tremendous contributions to the development of popular music throughout the 1960s and beyond. However, it wasn’t just the microphones that were classics, which made tremendous contributions to the development of popular music during its Golden Era of the 1960s, it was also the equipment— including the Pultec EQP-1A and the UREI 1176. Developed in 1961, the Pultec EQP-1A is one of the greatest tube-based equalization units in the history of music recording. The UREI 1176 was developed in 1967 and is perhaps not just one of the most iconic compressor/limiters to ever be produced for the purpose of recording great music, but it also might just be the most recognizable piece of gear that can be found in the rack of any legendary recording studio. With their EQP-WA and WA76, Warm Audio also makes faithful recreations of both of these classic pieces of gear, at prices that any educational institution or budding commercial facility can afford.
Image: The WA-CX12 Microphone System
Image courtesy-- Warm Audio
WA-CX12—
The WA-CX12 is a faithful reproduction of the classic AKG C-12, a microphone that has few peers in the world of professional music recording. It is an extremely versatile microphone that can be used to great effect on a wide variety of sources. I have seen engineers use it on vocals, drum overheads, piano, acoustic guitar, strings and as a room mic. In the educational setting, it would be an excellent microphone (if used in an array) for recording a full band, orchestra or choir program and thanks to Warm Audio, this version is extremely affordable. The microphone features an astounding 9-polar patterns— which, in effect, means that it can be used in a variety of recording situations. This microphone could easily be a workhorse in an educational setting and therefore, a perfect fit for one, too.
Image: The WA-251 Microphone System
Image courtesy-- Warm Audio
WA-251—
However, let’s say that you may not need all of the programs in the Producer Bundle, but you do not want to purchase each of these amazing plugins separately. The Focus Elements Bundle would be a great fit for an educational space in that it would contain each of the programs that could jumpstart your students into working with three of their amazing tools while mixing their project work. The Focus Elements Bundle contains the following three amazing tools: Stereoizer (a stereo widening tool), Monofilter (for low frequency control) and Stereoplacer (an amazing stereo-positioning or balancing tool). Each of these software plugins would make excellent teaching tools.
Image: The EQP-WA Equalization Unit
Image courtesy-- Warm Audio
EQP-WA—
The EQP-WA is a faithful reproduction of one of the greatest equalization units in the history of professional music recording, the Pultec EQP-1A. The engineers that I worked with would have used them on, well, just about everything! This unit sounds great on vocals, guitars, piano, drums, strings and used as a stereo pair— even on a mix bus. If there is a unit in a rack of gear that imparts the term, “smooth,” it is the EQP-WA. It also goes without saying that this unit is not just versatile and sounds fantastic, but it is also incredibly easy to use, too. The EQP-WA would be an excellent fit for a studio in the educational space and would make an excellent teaching tool, as well.
Image: The WA76 Compressor/Limiter Unit
Image courtesy-- Warm Audio
WA76—
The WA76 is a faithful recreation of perhaps the most iconic piece of gear that can be found in the rack of any legendary recording studio facility and perhaps the most recognizable unit, too— the UREI 1176. The engineers that I worked with would have used this unit on vocals, electric guitars and individual drum tracks, but it can be used to great effect on just about any source. The WA76 is an extremely versatile piece of gear. It sounds fantastic on just about any source that you run through the unit. The WA76 is also an incredibly easy unit to learn to use and would make an excellent tool for teaching the art and science of compression—a great skill for any aspiring engineer to acquire. The WA76 would be an excellent tool for the educational space.
Why should an educational institution invest in products from Warm Audio?
At the studio that I had the opportunity to work in as an assistant engineer, we had each of these microphones and original pieces of gear. Let’s be honest, each of the aforementioned microphones and pieces of gear are not just classics, but instrumental to the creation of great music. What Warm Audio is providing the educational space in faithfully recreating these vintage classics is astonishing. For starters, the price for a vintage unit of either the microphones or the units of gear could easily run into the thousands— in the case of the microphones, perhaps $30,000 or more. There are amazing engineers working today who have never had the opportunity to work with an original C-12, 251, EQP-1A or 1176. But, now Warm Audio has made them available to everyone at a price that anyone can afford. Plus, keep in mind that the company has excellent customer service, always stands in the forefront of producing exciting new vintage recreations and has made a tremendous commitment to the educational space. The company even has a state-of-the-art recording studio facility at its headquarters near Austin, Texas, where you can see and of course, listen to their products while they are in action. It goes without saying that while these four magnificent products which are highlighted in this space would be excellent for the educational space, the company makes a wide array of excellent products that are extremely affordable which would be great fits for any educational institution.
If you would like more information about Warm Audio and the amazing products that were discussed in this article, please use the following links which are listed below.
The following link will take you to the Warm Audio website where you can learn more about this legendary corporation and also, find an authorized dealer for their fabulous products in your area.
Special Note: Each of the images in this article appear through the courtesy and generosity of the wonderful people at Warm Audio.
Special Thanks— At The Recording Session Vault Educational Website Project, we would like to take a moment to express our thanks and appreciation to Ben Thompkins with Warm Audio for his time and assistance with this article.