Sear Sound

Sear Sound is a recording studio at 353 West 48th Street in Manhattan’s Theater District. It was founded by Walter Sear in 1964 and blends a large collection of vintage tube and analog equipment with modern digital recording. The studio has two live rooms, Studio A and Studio C, and says it has a reputation for being fanatical about good sound.

Studios

• Studio A: on the sixth floor, a live room of roughly 37 by 29 feet with two booths and an airlock, run from a Neve 8038 console with Flying Faders automation. It has a Steinway C grand, a Studer A827 two-inch 24-track, an Ampex ATR-102 half-inch machine, Fairchild 660 and 670 compressors and an EMT 140 plate.
• Studio C: the larger room, about 48 by 46 feet, with two large isolation booths and two smaller ones. Its custom 60-input Sear-Avalon console uses Avalon Class A preamps and EQ, alongside a Steinway D concert grand, Studer A827 and C37 tape machines and quadraphonic EMT 140 plates.

Microphones and gear

According to Sear Sound, it offers a selection of more than 275 microphones, many of them vintage or vacuum-tube models and some built exclusively for the studio. Outboard racks mix modern equipment with pieces decades old, and clients can record to analog tape or Pro Tools HDX. Equipment, microphone and instrument lists and floor plans for each room are published on the website.

Booking

Dates are booked by calling the studio manager, either as firm bookings or as holds. Clients may bring their own engineer or use a house engineer, and an assistant engineer is provided on sessions. The studio can arrange piano tuning and food orders ahead of a session.