In early 1970s, there was an increasingly creative industry within the audio world.  With emerging companies like Neve, API, and Quad Eight it was, without question, a golden age.  Although it’s been decades, the benchmarks they set are still held as industry standards today.  Little is known about Quad Eight, though many feel that they were the best in their field.  While debating is usually best left to the history books, A-Designs took up the challenge to take a closer look into the past and decide for itself.

With Quad Eight Ventura, Coronado and Pacifica console preamplifiers for reference, they closely examined the design and composition at the heart and soul of the consoles of these great designers.  After much research, interviews, listening, A/B-ing, and beta testing, they came up with a product that they feel needs to see the light of day again.  The result is a solid state, single space, rack mounted, microphone pre amplifier from the “glory days.”

Cloning being what it is (same old same old), they also decided to head outside the box and make the tribute something other than the legacy.  They added thier own touch to better suit it to present day applications in the recording world.

With a phenomenal frequency range of 9Hz-101kHz, the Pacifica far exceeds the capabilities of the original Quad Eight consoles.  Its extended top end is especially noticeable with sources such as piano and acoustic guitar. The frequency response is a significant benefit for those whose recordings are destined for DVD, SACD, DSD or the new Blu-Ray et al formats, which extend up to 100kHz.

And so the new A-Designs PACIFICA was born.

For some history on Quad Eight - Electrodyne, follow this link.

Pacifica Reviews

"I say this quite seriously: the Pacifica went immediately to the top of my list for recording electric guitar, not on the grounds that if it can make me sound good it must be brilliant, but on the grounds that what it delivered to tape was just what the PRS/Mesa should sound like, and does sound like live, but in my experience rarely does so on record."
Eric James, Sound On Sound, September 2009

Ronan Chris Murphy Enlists Terry Bozzio and A-Designs for Solo Outing

LOS ANGELES - May 2006 -- For more than 15 years, Ronan Chris Murphy has proved himself to be one of the most sought after producer/mixers of hard jazz, progressive rock and experimental music.  Lending his engineering talents to respected virtuosos like Robert Fripp, Tony Levin, Mike Keneally and Steve Morse, Murphy is especially highly regarded for his work with a "who's who" of spectacular drummers, including Terry Bozzio, Bill Brufford, Greg Bissonette, Pat Mastelotto and Lewis Pragasam.

Over the past five years, Murphy has spent much of his time working from his own Culver City-based Veneto West Studio, which continually attracts an eclectic spectrum of "musicians' musicians" from both L.A. and around the world.

Having engineered and produced over 200 albums for others--including some 15 records for King Crimson and various offshoots--Murphy, an accomplished guitarist and composer, is now turning his attention to his own solo project, which benefits from an all-star backup band of Levin on bass and Chapman Stick, Keneally on keys, and both Mastelotto and Bozzio on drums.

Seeing that Bozzio's percussion setup spans 16 feet and includes literally dozens of drums and cymbals, Murphy and co-engineer Dan Richards chose to run the drummer's entire kit through 15 channels of A-Designs Audio microphone preamplifiers comprised of four two-channel Pacifica solid-state units, six EM Series modules (two EM-Red, two EM-Silver and two EM-Blue) and a tube-equipped MP-1A. An additional Pacifica was also called upon to mic Murphy's own guitar amp.

According to the engineer, the results were nothing short of stunning. "I have become a huge fan of A-Designs gear, especially the Pacifica," he says. "I find that if I run it conservatively, it provides a beautiful representation of what I'm recording and makes everything sound just a little bit bigger and more glamorous. And if I want to drive it harder to make tracks more aggressive or bring out extra harmonics, I simply push in the pad switch and it opens up a whole new palette of sounds. For me, that switch is a huge creative tool."

To be certain that the A-Designs preamps were the right tools for his project, Murphy A/B-ed the products against a number of other competitive units on the market. "We set up shootouts between the Pacificas and some very well-known clean, neutral-sounding mic pres widely regarded as staples for classical and jazz use. Surprisingly, we actually found the Pacifica to be more accurate in terms of capturing the spectral content of the sound source.

"But the main reason that I've become such a die-hard fan is because I have been absolutely stunned at what a wide range of things the Pacifica invariably becomes my first choice on. I'll put it on a guitar amp, push the fader up and it just sounds like a record, for lack of a more scientific term. Or I'll put it on a lead vocalist and it totally delivers the body and tone I was looking for. There are certainly other great products out there--including many of which I own and have really enjoyed using over the years--but I've never had another mic pre like this that is so good across the board and so consistently the winner when it comes to A/B testing."

Aside from tracking and mixing in his own Westside L.A. studio, Murphy also often gets called upon to work in other studios around the globe. In fact, later this year he will be recording projects in both Iceland and Italy. When asked if he planned to take his A-Designs gear with him, he responds, "Absolutely. I can't imagine making records without them now. So when I pack for a trip these days, it's the toothbrush, deodorant, shaving cream and Pacifica. As long as I have that in my rack, there's not much I can't handle."

Looking to the future, the producer/mixer/musician predicts, "My guess is that within the next five years A-Designs will be widely considered one of the major players. I say that because I have never read anything even remotely disparaging about their products online; the comments are always glowing, which is truly remarkable. In the 15 years that I've been a part of the online recording community, I have never known another product that has received universal praise like the Pacifica. So I think we're going to be hearing a lot more about A-Designs down the road."

What are the engineers saying about the A Designs Pacifica?

 After hearing so many good reports about the Pacifica I had to try one out for  myself.  Frankly I was stunned.  Everything I have tracked with it has a  beautiful  air and sheen around it that just sit beautifully in the mix.  It has brought my mic collection to life - both the expensive and the inexpensive. I am currently trying to offload as much gear as I can, and my soul if necessary, to get a bunch of them!
Ed Lewis, Chief Engineer, Giant Wafer Studios, Llandrindod Wells, U.K. (giantwafer@btinternet.com) 4th Jan 2007

“The Pacifica has the depth of the Neve, the top end of a GML and the punch of the API-all rolled into one great mic pre.”   Tony Shepperd-Producer/Engineer/Mix/ Studio Owner: Back Street Boys, Lionel Richie, Kenny Loggins, Melissa Etheridge, Elton John, Indie

I’ve put the Pacifica to work on absolutely everything imaginable over the last three months and I have yet to be disappointed. Russ Long, Pro Audio Review, 31/10/2006.

“In a room filled with a very wide selection of pres such as 550's, 1073's and many more, the Pacifica instantly became the most frequently used preamp.”   Yoni Gileadi-films and music: IMAX Mysteries of Egypt, IMAX Texas: The Big Picture, IMAX Mystic India; Recordings/Remix: Kaskade, Backside, David Bowie mash-up remix, Love Digit, Sunfall, Sofina.

 "Finally a mic pre and D.I. for those of us tired of squinting with our ears.  Its the past-but the way I WANT to remember it."   Dylan Dresdow-Engineer/Grammy Award Nominee/ Tec Award Nominee/ Studio Owner: Black Eyed Peas, Ricky Martin, Tweet, Christina Aguilera, Indie

“If I had to start over, the Pacifica would be the first preamp I would buy.  I've never heard a preamp with a 70's character that has such an open top end. It’s the most versatile preamp in our collection of 11 types of preamps.” Jason Buntz-Engineer/ Studio Owner/ Indie

"My overall impression is that it sits in there like a nice cross between Neve-ish and API-ish tones but with better transient response and more high end detail...overall very musical.  I swear it went another octave above the API and Great River.   I can see it being an extremely versatile preamp that would get a lot of use on everything. Perfect for a small studio like mine that can't afford to have 20 different specialty preamps."   Brad McGowan-Little Red Wagon Studios/ Engineer/ Indie

 “Definitely a color that I could ‘paint’ the whole album with.  I thought I was done buying preamps until this one arrived&ldots; it was like the last piece in the jigsaw puzzle that made the picture complete. [Now, what am I going to tell my wife?]”   Barrett Nichols-Engineer/ Producer: Alpha Jerk Studio, Indie

“With thousands of dollars in vintage microphones at hand, only the Pacifica makes them sound the way I expect every time, now that I have heard it, no other mic pre will do.”   Jeff Sheridan-Engineer/ Producer/ Studio Owner: Disney Voice Over, Disney’s 50th Anniversary Edition, Soundworks Studio, Indie

“If you are thinking something along the lines of an API pre, you really owe it to yourself to play around with the new A Designs Pacifica preamp.  It has a similar feel/sound in the lows and mids (huge low end with slightly forward, but not obnoxious mids) but a top end that is extended and beautiful. On orchestral recording, it makes you sit up and take notice of the orchestra on the loud stuff, but yet has the subtlety needed for chamber music.”   Benjamin Mass Engineer/Mix/Studio Owner: Fifth Circle Audio, Mancini Institute, Billy Childs, Bill Cunliffe, Randy Brecker, Bill Watrous, John Clayton, Christian McBride, Elmer Bernstein, Dave Grusin, Jerry Goldsmith, Eddie Daniels, Richard Stoltzman, Ernie Watts and Mark O'Connor, Indie

“A Designs Audio’s Pacifica is a perfect “10” Brains and Beauty!”   Ted Perlman-Producer/Engineer/Composer/Musician/Studio Owner: Burt Bacharach, Bob Dylan, Neil Sedaka, Elton John, Carole King, Dolly Parton, Indie

“Now, my dilemma is that I want to keep the Pacifica even though I already own enough damn preamps.  Should I sell one of the other ones? Damn.”   Larry Crane, Engineer/Producer/Studio Owner/Tape Op Magazine: Indie

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