Cambridge, UK (May 29, 2024)—Metropolis Studios in London has upgraded the conversion in Studio C, replacing five of its existing Prism Sound ADA-8XRs with a single Dream ADA-128 multichannel audio converter.
The upgrade has reportedly resulted in more space in the machine room, less money spent on electricity, less fan noise and improved audio quality. Metropolis previously had 25 Prism Sound ADA-8XR multichannel converters in use across its five studios.
“It is clearly an improvement in terms of functionality because just one unit can deliver up to 128 channels of 32-bit A/D and D/A conversion from a single box, which only takes up 2U of rack space,” says Richard Bellingham, head of the facility’s technical department. “This technology not only future-proofs Metropolis, but also allows us to be greener by significantly reducing our electricity consumption because it is less power-hungry than a rack of five ADA-8XR converters. In addition, because it runs a lot cooler, we have less fan noise and have been able to reduce the air conditioning in the machine room, which is another valuable power saving.”
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Established more than 30 years ago, Metropolis Studios has long been a creative hub for musicians and producers such as Amy Winehouse, Adele, Queen, Kendrick Lamar, The Rolling Stones, George Michael, Elton John, John Kelly, Tim Palmer, P2J, Chris Kimsey and Travis Scott. Over the years, many records have been recorded, mixed and mastered at Metropolis, which has five main studios including a Doby Atmos mix room, and a host of production rooms.
“We are already saving a significant amount a year on our electricity bill, and that’s just by replacing the ADA-8XRs in one studio,” Bellingham adds. “There are so many good reasons for this upgrade—not just power savings. Dream ADA-128 is much easier to use as it can be controlled via a very simple web interface, and once we have all studios running with this Dante-enabled, networkable conversion system it will be much easier to move projects around and share resources between studios.”
