— Genelec 8260A’s with AutoCal™ automated calibration system and Genelec Loudspeaker Manager (GLM™) control network give Katz a transparent sound that he describes as “the best Genelecs ever” —
NATICK, MA, August 3, 2010 — Audio mastering engineer, author, teacher, inventor and audiophile Bob Katz’s resume reads like a who’s-who of the music industry. Over the course of his career, Katz has worked with a multitude of artists in literally every genre of music, including country artists Marley's Ghost, jazz clarinetists Eddie Daniels and Allan Vaché, Latin Jazz performers Paquito D'Rivera and Tito Puente, heavy metal bands Necrophagist and Motorpsycho, progressive rock performers Sean Malone and Triggering Myth, indie rock performer Susanna, world music artists The Bombay Dub Orchestra and Sinéad O'Connor, big band Mexican composer Armando Manzanero, salsa performers Rubén Blades and Héctor Lavoe and more. Katz has also recorded and/or mastered three GRAMMY®-winning albums and several other GRAMMY-nominated recordings. When it came time for Katz to re-evaluate his monitors in his Digital Domain studios mix room, as he needed a higher degree of accuracy compared to the “audiophile” speakers he was using, Katz found exactly what he was looking for in the award-winning Genelec 8260A Tri-Amplified DSP Monitoring System.
“Since this particular mix room was not completely purpose-built from the ground up, I was looking for a better solution to my previous loudspeakers, which were non-DSP models,” stated Bob Katz. “This is a small mix room, which is treated — it has trapping and has specular reflections corrected — but simply by means of its size, it’s going to have some severe modes that could not possibly be adequately trapped with acoustical corrections. We installed the 8260’s, and after some automatic adjustments using Genelec’s AutoCal™ automated calibration system and Loudspeaker Manager (GLM™) control network, and then some manual adjustments by me, I was totally blown away by the sound of these speakers. They are amazingly transparent, and I think that these are the best-sounding Genelecs that have ever been made. They extend down to 29 Hz at -1 dB, and in the room their response is within, after DSP correction, a couple of dB at the listening position – maybe 3 at the most. And the result is extremely accurate with tight, clear, well-defined bass. It’s now possible to mix in here, and those mixes translate to the real world without having to do mental gymnastics, which is the case with the prior loudspeakers that I had in this room.”
Katz continued, “The 8260's have the lowest distortion, remarkable headroom and significantly higher SPL capability than any of the other 8000-series Genelecs, which lets them play cleanly at any level without listening fatigue. This makes them very desirable for rock and allows us to mix anything from classical to hip-hop without guessing at how the material will sound at the listener's preferred volume. All this without needing a subwoofer!”
One of Digital Domain’s mix engineers, Jarrett Pritchard, echoes Katz’s sentiments. “These speakers throw an amazing center image,” stated Pritchard. “It’s a game changer for me. It’s as if there were another loudspeaker right in the center between these two. The center image is so tight and clearly defined. And the tonality is excellent. I’m sold.”
Both Katz and Pritchard attribute the sonic imaging to the 8260’s breakthrough in coaxial driver design that provides more accurate imaging and improved sound quality both on the acoustical axis as well as off-axis. “It throws such a good center image because of the newly designed coaxial mid-range tweeter combination, together with an excellent diffraction control and the unique cabinet,” stated Katz. “It’s not just a sales point; it really works.”
But the bottom line for Bob Katz is in the mastering process and how those mixes done in the new mix room transfer to the mastering room. “The mixes we are listening to in this room, when I take them down to the mastering room, sound absolutely right,” commented Katz. “I no longer have to send corrections to the mix engineer for anomalies in the bass response, which ultimately makes my life easier and results in better sounding tracks for me to master. I am very happy.”
The compact and powerful 8260A breaks new ground in electro-acoustic design, as mechanical, acoustical and signal-processing designs are linked closely together. The 8260A features major advances in audio driver technology, integrated with a sophisticated enclosure design, and Genelec’s proprietary Minimum Diffraction Coaxial (MDC™) Mid/High driver technology. The 8260A system represents Genelec’s cutting-edge innovations in all technology domains. The sophisticated acoustical design of the 8260A is complemented by Genelec’s DSP Technology and GLM software, providing powerful and practical tools such as AutoCal for accurate alignment, calibration and control of the monitoring system in all situations. The MDC coaxial technology is a real breakthrough solution that makes the 8260A unique in the market.
For more information, please visit www.genelecusa.com.