Located in Branson, Missouri, Mansion Sound is a multimillion-dollar custom designed studio complex created specifically for audio production in music, film, television and postproduction. Both of its studios feature Solid State Logic mixing systems and all-Genelec 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos immersive monitoring.

Studio A has the most powerful Genelec Dolby Atmos system in the United States to date, and the largest and most powerful Solid State Logic Duality Fuse 96-channel SuperAnalogue mixing console yet built – the first of its kind to be installed anywhere in the world.

Studio A’s Dolby Atmos systemincludes a horizontal array consisting of seven soffit-mounted 1234A Smart Active Monitors for LCR and surrounds, four 8351B monitors above the mix position acting as the overhead array, and two 7382A subwoofers handling bass management as well as the LFE, along with two Genelec 9301A AES/EBU Multichannel Interfaces.

Studio B employs Genelec’s The Ones monitoring, and features seven 8351B monitors for the LCR and surrounds, four 8341A monitors for the overhead array, and two 7380A subwoofers handling bass management and the LFE, along with two Genelec 9301A AES/EBU Multichannel Interfaces. Studio B also has a Solid State Logic System T S500 48-fader/256-channel immersive mixing console.

The systems were specified by Mansion Sound Chief Engineer Danny Stone, and sourced through Danny Watson at Ozark Pro Audio Video

Part of The Mansion Entertainment Group, Mansion Sound is accompanied by Mansion Animation, Mansion Film & Television and Mansion Studios, on an industry-defining film and television production and postproduction campus now in full development and pre-construction. At the heart of the group is the Mansion Theatre for the Performing Arts, a 3,000-seat multi-purpose venue that is currently celebrating its thirtieth anniversary and is considered the premier centre for the performing arts in the Midwest.

‘The first time I heard the Genelec 1031A, I just couldn’t believe the imaging and the detail,’ says Stone. ‘I heard things in mixes that I’d never heard before – not only in my own work but in other people’s work as well.’

It took a little over a year for Mansion Sound to move from concept to completion when re-designing the studios to embrace the immersive Dolby Atmos format. When it came time to decide on what monitors to employ for their new world-class immersive rooms, Stone said the decision was easy. ‘I have been a major Genelec fan since I first heard the 1031As, and I’ve heard all the competitors. And there’s some good boxes out there. But for me, nothing translates as well as Genelec. It’s not just about highs and lows; it’s the imaging, the detail, the depth of it. I always felt like I could see into the music in a way that I never was able to before, so choosing Genelecs for our immersive rooms was the obvious choice.’

When the construction was completed, Stone and fellow engineer Josh West installed and calibrated the monitors in each room. Genelec GLM software was employed for the system calibration, taking care of in-room frequency response compensation, distance delay and level alignment.

‘GLM makes it a lot simpler to calibrate the room because all you do is connect all your cables, download the software, open it up, tell GLM what your speakers are and what kind of system you’re running, and basically let it do its thing. You hit start and it does its tone sweeps and you just sit back and look at the results and say “wow”.’

The integration of the Duality Fuse and System T represents the continuation of a long relationship between SSL and Mansion Sound, which has previously owned SL4000 E/G and SL9000 J analogue consoles and equipped its remote truck with a C100 digital desk. ‘I’ve been using SSL consoles for years,’ says Stone. ‘For me there’s no other console that can perform at the highest level sonically, yet integrate effortlessly with DAWs.’

Duality Fuse is a new flagship console model from SSL, offering a fully integrated Fusion analogue processor in the centre section. ‘This latest version of Duality, the Duality Fuse, does things no other console can do,’ Stone says.

‘For the B room, we wanted a console and controller that could provide everything we were used to, like SSL EQs and compressors, but with the added flexibility of a high channel count, multi-format busing and tight DAW integration. Once we saw the System T S500 we knew it could do everything that we wanted. The onboard processing and the power and flexibility to tackle recording and mixing duties across stereo and immersive formats put the S500 way ahead of the competition. The training the SSL engineers gave us really empowered us to get the best out of this fantastic console. They can even provide us with support by driving the console remotely from their LA and New York offices using TeamViewer.’

Studios A and B – using an SSL SB32.24 stagebox controlled by the System T – can both access 128 lines from the stage of the Mansion Theatre, which is in the same building. Both control rooms can also source 128 inputs from a spacious adjacent tracking room that features three iso booths, the largest accommodating the studio’s Yamaha C7 grand piano. A Dante network enables content sharing between the two rooms, which are each equipped with a maxed-out 34-core Apple Macintosh computer running Pro Tools with access to two Avid 100TB servers, connected via a 10Gb switch, and individual Avid MTRX conversion, routing and monitoring systems.

Two processing racks that float between the A and the B room are loaded with Chandler, GML, Manley and Shadow Hills units. Six Bricasti reverbs may be shared in any combination between the two rooms. A credenza in the A room additionally houses a large selection of classic and modern preamps, effects and processing devices, including LA-2A and Sta-Level units. The System T in Studio B has access to two 500 series racks with modules from API, Chandler, Focusrite, Millennia Media, Maag, Neve, Pultec, Shadow Hills and others, including a Solid State Logic UltraViolet EQ.

On top of the immersive sound-systems in Studios A and B, Mansion Sound also has other Genelec speakers in the complex. ‘We have a pair of 1039As and two pairs of 8050As,’ Stone says. ‘I personally have two pairs of 1030As, and we still have three 1031As. You can’t go anywhere in the Mansion and not see a Genelec speaker.’

The inaugural project at Mansion Sound was An Ozark Mountain Symphony: A Musical Celebration, an hour-long special featuring The Springfield Symphony Orchestra and a galaxy of Disney, Broadway, gospel and country music stars. Filmed live in concert at the Mansion Theatre For The Performing Arts, it was recorded and mixed at Mansion Sound by Dave Reitzas.

‘It was an amazing feeling to be working in a studio in Branson, Missouri that rivals some of the best studios I work at in LA,’ Reitzas says. ‘The staff and the equipment are outstanding! And to be in a room surrounded with Genelec speakers makes me feel right at home as I have been a long-time user for the past 28 years.’