Studio Brain upgrades its facilities with Genelec

Located in Kagurazaka district, in Tokyo, Studio Brain Carry out a renewal of studio monitors Genelec with an upgrade kit next to the GLM calibration system.

The MA1 control room, of 66 square meters, has counted from 1991 with two main monitors Genelec 1035 Embedded. They needed some attention, but instead of switching to a different solution, Studio Brain decided to give them a whole new life with the upgrade kit 1235 Retrofit by Genelec, thus creating a modern intelligent active monitoring system.

“the 1035 They had been in use for decades and there were parts that needed maintenance”, Explains Toshiyuki Ootaki, from the Brain study department. “There was talk of renewing the entire system of the first MA room (Multiaudio) and, Thinking about the future, We decided to upgrade the monitors”.

At the beginning of the upgrade process, The study set out to change the 1035 by Near Field Monitors, but instead decided on the Retrofit upgrade kit to transform the 1035 Legacy in Smart Active Monitors 1235. This update preserves the boxes of the 1035 and upgrades them with the latest Class D amplifiers, DSP hardware and drivers.

When they were launched on the market in 1989, Monitors 1035 of Genelec quickly became the favorites of the best studios around the world that demanded full-range monitors that combined high SPL with true reference quality..

The Substitute 1235 launched in 2020, Offering the technology Smart Active Monitoring by Genelec, with processing of 96 kHz and tight integration with GLM calibration software.

At the same time, the Retrofit upgrade kit allowed the installation of the new amplifier module RAM-XL, New transducers and complete system calibration, No structural changes and little downtime, which allowed users of the 1035 benefit from the improved performance and increased flexibility of the 1235, providing many more years of reliable service of your monitors.

In well-established listening rooms with theatre levels, like Brain's MA1, This is a real advantage for two reasons. First of all, Monitors 1235 can be calibrated by GLM to allow even greater flexibility in adapting them to room acoustics and, In addition, can be optimized for various listening positions.

“When we install the monitors, we try to listen to the sound without calibrating and without using GLM. Unsurprisingly, The sound was very similar to that of the 1035”, says Mitsuhide Takamura, who sits on the board of Studio Brain and is also involved in the production. “For us, It would be a big deal if the reference sound changed significantly. GLM calibration improves sound, but also allows you to fine-tune the features, So I was able to create a balance between the sound characteristics of the 1235 and the sound I'm used to with our 1035 originals».

'In addition,, Customers are often concerned, in spacious rooms like this, that if they can listen comfortably in the mixer seat, the sound from the back is not so good.", continues Takamura. "With GLM we can measure and store settings for the customer's position in addition to the mixing position., and switch between settings quickly. This is vital when sharing the same sound with the customer., So this feature is definitely a must-have for us.".

Savings and sustainability

Retrofit upgrade kit saves Studio Brain money by consuming less energy, which supports Genelec's long-standing commitment to sustainability. However, Application is still key.

“I've been mixing with the big Genelec monitors since I started in this business., And I think it's really special.”, says Takamura. “The sound is ingrained in my body and I can easily imagine how things will sound on TV., For example”.

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