Hawaii-based Middle School Inspires Underprivileged Students with Multi-Million Dollar Recording Studio, Featuring Solid State Logic AWS 948 Console

Fong was attracted to the SSL brand, but also to the idea of an analogue console. “I came up in the early ‘80s, mixing on analogue consoles. It's beautiful when you get a chance to work on an analogue console.” That said, he was one of the first on the island to install a digital console, back in the day. “We really wanted this studio to be analogue, combined with the most current digital technology. Digital technology is really convenient, and a console like the AWS 948 delta basically combines the consoles of the ‘80s with modern workflows. Press a button and it becomes a comprehensive DAW controller. Then press a button and boom, you are back to a classic SSL console with all that glue and punch, with SSL’s famous Bus Compressor, with fully analogue preamps, E or G Series analogue EQs and analogue faders,” he says. Beyond highly integrated DAW control, the AWS range of consoles features SSL’s δelta-Control, where users can automate the channels and mix bus of the console as if it were a DAW plug-in. In addition to this, EQ, Cue, and FX switches for every channel can also be automated.

The architectural and acoustic design of Line Studio at WMS, a 1,600-square-foot space previously occupied by a computer classroom, was provided by WSDG, who also collaborated with Fong and Harano on the pro audio and video equipment complement and technical design. PK Pandey and AVN provided equipment and integration.

The audio gear in the outboard racks is comparable to any world-class recording studio, from vintage-style compressors to a pair of high-end reverbs and a collection of mic preamp alternatives. Main in-wall stereo monitors are from Symphonics Acoustics with an ATC 7.1.4 speaker system supporting Dolby Atmos work.   

 Fong attended the NAMM Show 2016 to research equipment choices and find a studio designer. The project was given the go-ahead at the end of 2018 then was delayed by the pandemic. Line Studio at WMS will have its grand opening later this year, or early 2025, Fong says, although he has already run sessions, including with a group of local musicians, to test the equipment. “When you have the right gear and the right environment it's shocking how fast you can get great results – the sound and workflow is amazing” he says.  

One of the only schools in Hawaii providing students with both pro audio and pro video production training, Line Studio at WMS also needs to help pay for itself, Fong reports, so he is looking to partner with other institutions and non-profit organizations. One project that has recently been announced will be a collaboration with the Hawaii State Archives.   

“We really want to support our culture and our young people and artists by providing things that most people just can't afford to access and to give them access to this acoustical space. We haven’t given people this access before in Hawaii and this will open doors for them. Opportunities for our young people are limited by being on an island, and we tend to limit our dreams to the parameters that we're given. We aim to teach our young people that there's no beginning or end point for exploration. You start at any point, and you don't stop until you decide to stop — and you don't have to stop,” Fong says. “Boy, I wish I had such opportunities when I was a teenager.”