NEW TOOLS, CLASSIC SOUNDS: AHERN MIXES WITH YAMAHA DM2000

—Legendary Country Music Producer Uses Legendary Audio Console—

BUENA PARK, CA (February 7, 2003)—Regarded as one of the top production minds of Country & County Rock music, Nova Scotia-born Brian Ahern first made his mark in the music industry by discovering and guiding the early career of fellow Canadian Anne Murray, producing 10 of her albums. While residing in Los Angeles, Ahern met and began a professional relationship with singer-songwriter Emmylou Harris. Ahern produced her first 11 albums, among them Pieces of the Sky, Elite Hotel and Roses in the Snow. The majority of fans and critics consider the Ahern-produced albums the best—and most adventuresome—of Harris’ inspiring career. Ahern has since been the guiding hand for classic albums from country legends Johnny Cash, George Jones, Jesse Winchester and Ricky Skaggs, among others.

Brian Ahern in his studio with the DM2000

Working from his Easter Island Surround facility in Nashville, Ahern has taken on recent projects such as The Horse Whisperer soundtrack and The Producer’s Cut (a collection of Ahern-chosen songs remixed in surround sound for DVD-Audio). The upcoming re-releases of Harris’ timeless 1980 album, Roses in the Snow, and the Johnny Cash album Silver (released on SACD in February) were both mixed on the Yamaha DM2000 Digital Production Console—the first in Nashville—to create a 5.1 Surround Sound mix.

“What I like about the DM2000 is Yamaha’s acknowledgement of ADAT technology,” says Ahern. “This soon-to-be obsolete recording device was made fresh again by Yamaha’s Double Channel technology. So all these people who had ADATs on the shelf are now dusting them off and hooking them up to Yamaha consoles and mastering on them at 24/96k. I’ve been mixing 5.1 Surround Sound records to my old ADATs—and whatever’s in that DM2000, the mastering engineers are very impressed with it.”

The DM2000 includes a comprehensive range of 96kHz-compatible stereo effects, many that are specifically designed for surround mixing. Users can manipulate up to eight internal multi-effects processors [32-bit/96kHz] simultaneously, which can be assigned to an auxiliary buss for sends, or inserted directly into any input channel. Surround features include panning, joystick, monitoring, bass management, and downmix matrix, which enables L-C-R-S and stereo mix monitoring ideal for 5.1 surround mixing to DVD. Multiple 5.1 stem mixes can easily be handled.

“I’ve always tried to mix surround sound in four sound stages—the normal stereo, the back sound stage in the rear speakers, and the right and left sides. Most people mix the front and back but ignore the sides. I’m experimenting on some reverb tweaks that will simulate a corridor on each side.

“On some records, I put a bass right in the middle of the room, so all four speakers share in the reproduction of that low-end instrument,” continues Ahern. “If you keep the bass all in the front—which are many people’s instinct—then you’ve wasted all of the energy available from the other speakers. I discovered that while mixing Johnny Cash—there was more room front and center for his thunderous chest tones!”

The Yamaha DM2000 uses balanced XLR and TRS connectors for all 24 inputs. Balanced and unbalanced analog two-track inputs as well as two-track digital inputs featuring both AES/EBU and coaxial connectors are also provided. Onboard sample rate conversion with a wide range of synchronization and control options, and standard word clock inputs and outputs are available.

“When I first started mastering surround sound, engineers kept bringing in more and more expensive clocks, and the tapes that I’d made with the DM2000 kept improving,” says Ahern. “The engineers even brought in a clock they’d paid $20,000 for—and the Yamaha DM2000 kept up with it.

For monitor routing, SOLO CONTRAST separates multiple source selectors for studio and control room sends, for solo control and level control for surround monitoring. MONO, DIMMER, and TALKBACK capabilities are also provided.

“Another thing I like about the DM2000 is the Solo Contrast,” notes Ahern. “On other consoles, when you pressed a solo button, it’s either/or. Sometimes you want to evaluate one track against the band, but you want it to stand out and be featured a bit—not necessarily by itself. So, having that Solo Contrast is an amazing tool, as it cuts way down on mental fatigue. Fatigue is a big thing when working in surround sound because there’s so much to keep track of.”

The Yamaha DM2000 is designed to integrate with leading digital audio workstations and computer automated recording systems. The unit provides extensive support for ProTools®, among others. The console comes equipped with Yamaha Studio Manager Software, compatible for both Macintosh and Windows platforms, enabling total control of all DM2000 parameters via a comprehensive graphic interface.

“The DM2000 has minimal screen scrolling, so instead of scrolling through as many as 8 screens, you have prominent diamond-shaped buttons to take you directly to what you’re looking for. You can display the entire console on one computer screen.”

After completion of the Roses In The Snow remix, Ahern’s next project is stereo reissues of the first six Emmylou Harris albums, “I’m adding bonus tracks, things that I’ve kept in the basement or Warner Brother’s vault,” says Ahern. “I affectionately like to call it Pack Rat Payoff.”

For more information, contact Yamaha Corporation of America, Commercial Audio Systems Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622, telephone 714-522-9011, email infostation@yamaha.com or visit www.yamaha.com/proaudio.