Melbourne’s Studio 52 is known for its exceptional sounding recordings and a long history of developing some of Australia’s finest young talent.

The four-studio complex is based around Logic Audio with outboard equipment from TLA, Focusrite and TC Electronic, and recently ADAM Audio S3X-H monitors were permanently installed in Studio C, the home of producer and head engineer, Trevor Carter.

Paul Wiggins, managing director of Studio 52 and Empire Records, points out, “When you’ve spent 25 years in the music business and heard just about every speaker and professional studio monitor on the market, you don’t expect to be surprised by something new. That’s why the ADAM S3X-Hs are so special. It took just 30 seconds to know that these were amazing and the gut feeling just keeps being confirmed every time I hear them.”

“The resulting mixes and mastering from studio C have shown an immediate improvement,” Higgins continues. “It’s just like an open window into the recording; every detail, every nuance; you feel you are in the music not just listening to a pair of speakers. As a midfield monitor or large nearfield, I haven’t heard anything better. If you are relying on one listening source for critical mixing and mastering they are the ones to have.”

As it turns out, Carter also liked the monitors from the very beginning and has only grown to appreciate them over time: “The ADAM S3X-H nearfield monitors are quite simply put, ‘guess free’. The simple test for any new monitor is to play a few of your favorite CDs and pretty quickly you’ll identify the ‘holes’,” Carter says. “After listening to the S3X in my own studio, I was amazed at how no matter what I referenced, everything was there.

“The top end is to die for because the X-ART tweeters are incredible. The mids are exactly what you want to hear; clean and punchy, and the bottom end is super smooth and goes all the way down. And the balance of all three is exactly right.

“My first impression was soon vindicated after doing a few mixes on them. No matter what I played those mixes on, I heard exactly what I was expecting to hear, no nasty surprises. There’s nothing to go back and compensate for. Mixing and Mastering has never been easier, I have never been so confident with a pair of monitors, virtually from day one.

“And after working with them for some time now,” Carter concludes, “I must also add how great they are on the ears. Not only guess free, but also fatigue free. They are a ridiculous 1000 watts per side (each component has its own amp) so you can crank them without any overdriven nasties for hours, which along with the simple sonic pleasure of listening to these speakers makes working with them an absolute joy.”

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