He says certain elements of his new ORIGIN remind him of his old SSL 4000E: "Everything is laid out very similarly to the 4000, except the equalization section on ORIGIN is exactly where it should be — on the lower portion on the channel strip. This is important because you can change equalization settings while you are sitting in the sweet spot. When you need to use the sends, they are right there just above the EQ section. Ergonomically, ORIGIN was immediately comfortable, and it sounds great!"
For Lord-Alge, one of the highlights of ORIGIN is the center section of the console, which features the classic SSL Bus Compressor along with a host of routing and monitoring controls and 12U of configurable rack space. "The Bus Compressor on the ORIGIN is the best version I have ever heard," he says.
In one of the side desks that straddles the console, Lord-Alge also integrated several SSL 500 series units including VHD mic pres, LMC+ compressors and SSL E Series Dynamics modules. "Because I am a mixer, I make sure that I always have an external chain available for an overdub if I need it — just in case I am using up the whole console during a mix," he explains. When he had two extra spaces in his 500 series rack, he also chose to include the new SSL Ultraviolet EQ 500 series unit: "I love that one knob controls stereo left and right," he says.