Home to around 250 independent studios and businesses, TYX Studios forms the heart of the Tileyard creative business community, with the Red Studio in London and the Cotton Mill Studio in Wakefield, recently upgrading their sound systems to use Genelec’s The Ones.
It was a commercial decision that set the studio on this upgrade path, since TYX Studios places great importance on its auditory experience to attract artists.
‘To encourage people to come in and use our spaces, you want spot-on monitoring,’ says TYX Studios MD, Jack Freegard. ‘You want that auditory experience to be a level up so that whatever you’re doing, whether that’s playback sessions, mixing or mastering, you have the confidence that what you hear is what you get.’
Genelec hadn’t always been the solution of choice for TYX Studios, however, but The Ones series of coaxial point source monitors stood out. ‘I’ve worked with Genelec every now and then, and had never really been that enamoured by them until I heard The Ones series,’ explains Freegard. ‘For me, it was just a sublime monitoring experience. The phase coherency and pinpoint accuracy maintained across the whole soundfield is just another level, and I think that comes from the design. They’re absolutely phenomenal; I’ve not heard imaging quite like it.’
The TYX Studios team opted to combine a pair of 8361 three-way monitors with two W371 adaptive woofer systems in each location. This was driven by the need for a freestanding full-range stereo solution capable of delivering exceptional performance in both control rooms. Although these rooms were not small, they posed some challenges for traditional systems. By overcoming spatial limitations, the 8361 and W371 combination ensured a consistent monitoring experience, effectively addressing the distinctive acoustic characteristics of both the Red Studio and the Cotton Mill Studio.
The installation process presented several depth-related issues in the Red Studio and width challenges in the Cotton Mill Studio. Happily, the analysis offered by Genelec’s GLM calibration software allowed the monitoring systems to be set up to achieve a listening experience completely tailored to the space – and produce mixes that translate consistently. ‘The GLM calibration tools are fantastic,’ Freegard reports. ‘We lined up the monitors in these rooms as we usually would, and they just sounded great. We’re all very impressed.’
Offering three different operating modes, the W371 uses GLM to select and optimise the signal processing for the best LF radiation mode, taking into account both the monitor location and listening position. Freegard notes that in demos with various high-end monitoring systems, the consensus with Genelec was that it ‘just sounds right’. ‘It goes beyond accuracy in the stereo field and transient response,’ he adds. ‘Sometimes, it’s all about a feeling of rightness.’
TYX Studios has received overwhelmingly positive feedback across various musical styles, with specific appreciation from genres like grime and hip-hop for the LF extension of the W371s and the transient response of the system. It was the consistently positive feedback from London’s Red Studio, used for tracking and overdubbing, that prompted the decision to replicate the experience in Wakefield’s Cotton Mill Studio – for a consistent artist experience across both locations.
Exciting projects are on the horizon for TYX Studios and Genelec, including a masterclass series in the Red Studio, featuring the diverse talents of the Tileyard community. ‘We’re thrilled about the possibility of teaming up with Genelec on this venture,’ Freegard says. ‘It’s a blend of technical prowess and artistic expression, that’s both enriching and enjoyable for everyone involved.’
More: www.genelec.com
