Me in my studio: Fairmont
Intro
"I move around a lot, so my studio is a collection of gear rather than a particular location. In the past three years it has been in Amsterdam, Antwerp, Barcelona, Berlin, Rotterdam and Toronto.
"I use a Mac to run Cubase. For getting sounds in and out of the computer I use an RME Fireface. It sounds OK, but like all the other interfaces I have come across it tries to please everyone but probably pleases few with its layout. I'm forced to use a monitor controller, which I find ridiculous."
Monitoring
"For monitoring I use Dynaudio BM12As and Sennheiser HD650 headphones. I love both for the same reason: they're transparent to my ears and I haven't had to question what they do since I bought them."
Preamp and synths
"I've had this UA 610 preamp for several years and will probably never switch it out for anything else. The sound and the design fit perfectly into how I work.
"Beside that you can see my Prophet 08. I used to have a 600 which I prefer, but I move around too much for something that size. Up front we have an Oberheim SEM and a DSI Evolver. Two very different synths that are useful to me in very different ways."
More synths and drum machines
"In the back is my Swejman S1, my favourite synth ever. It's very well thought out and I very seldom feel limited by the fact that it's only semi-modular because almost everything I could hope to patch is there.
"In the middle is my Yamaha DX100 which I use a lot for percussive sounds. In front there are my DR-110 and TR-606 drum machines. I modified the 110 with controls for its filters and envelopes as well as ins and outs for the noise sources. The 606 is awaiting to be modded. I used to have one that I had covered in knobs, but I sold it for some reason or other 10 years ago."
Plug-ins
"I bought a UAD Satellite last year and have been quite happy with it. Some of my favourites from them are the Harrison EQ, the PrecisionBuss Compressor, the Studer 800 and the EMT reverbs.
"Also pictured here is the Four FM editor for my DX100. The DX is a great synth, but without this editor I doubt that I would bother with it."
The rig
"This is what I fly around with for gigs. I have no interest in bringing a computer on to the road - it's a relief to have some time away from the screen. The MPC-1000 is the main sequencer and provides most of the drum sounds.
"My synth needs are taken care of by a DSI Evolver, Prophet 08 and Moog Minitaur. Pictured here is my Swejman S1 which I was just using for a special occasion. My vocals are processed with a Digitech Vocalist Live 4. I also Have a Jomox Xbase09 which I use for improvised drum programming. Everything is mixed through a crappy Alesis mixer. Don't even get me started about portable mixers: I've never found one that I've been happy with."
Pedals
"I have always been a fan of pedals. I used to collect and modify rare and vintage ones, but now I just have the ones I play guitar with in my band Bishop Morocco.
"For Fairmont productions I don't use them that often, but real bucket brigade chorus and delays are always pleasing on the ears and fun to use."
Fender Precision bass
"This is my friend James's bass. I'm not sure of the exact year, but I guess it's almost as old as me. It weighs a ton, but it sounds great. It's the one I played on Last Dance and also Bercy."
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