Mindfield Recording Studio

I am Andy Sartain, the owner, proprietor of, as well as engineer and head cerebral
manipulator at Mindfield Recording Studio. Mindfield had its genesis in the
recording of a band of the same name (in which I played guitar and sang) in 1992.
That was a fairly revolutionary time, in that, with the advent of the ADAT, high
fidelity digital recording was quickly becoming affordable (for the average

financially constrained musician) for the first time. It was apparent to me that recording at home was, in so many
ways, way more appealing than using a commercial studio at $50/hour. There are certainly advantages to the
commercial studio (relatively unlimited budget for equpment, bigger, better sounding rooms), but during the last 15
years I have been working tirelessly to narrow that gap in potential. Each new project is a new attempt to make the
gap imperceptible. The result of any recording/mixing/mastering session is going to depend upon the sound, the
equipment used, the room and the skill and determination of the engineer. I upgrade my equipment as often as
possible, my skills grow significantly with each project, and my determination is ferocious. Microphones include the
Flea 47, Brauner (VM1), Earthworks, AKG, Schoeps, Shure, Sennheiser. Preamps include Aurora Audio GTQ2 and
GTP8 (think Neve 1073 - these preamps were created by Neve protege Geoff Tanner), API, A-Designs MP2. I use a 16
track AD/DA made by Lynx. My Furman Headphone Distribution System allows each musican to dial in his own mix. I
have an absolutely quiet isolation/drum room. I mix through an Aurora Audio GT4-8, GTC2, Alta Moda Unicomp,
A-Designs "The Nail," Bricasti M7. The GTP8/GT4-8 combo essentially forms the essential guts (preamp/EQ) of a
truly world class console. Finally, I've recently become enamoured with the Anamod ATS-1 tape simulator. That,
together with the other devices mentioned, in tandem with modern DAW technology, allow me to combine the best of
the digital and analog worlds. I use Barefoot MM27's and Avantone Mixcubes for monitoring.