Mic Roussos is an engineer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and piano tuner. As an producer/engineer, he’s had his hand in numerous projects from the Cyprus area and beyond, working with everyone from pop stars to metal bands. Since 1999, he has been the owner and operator of Mic R. Studios LTD. In 2012, he decided to move to a new studio and this time build from the ground up.
Mic Roussos and Mic R. Studios in Cyprus
Hailing from the beautiful island of Cyprus situated in east of the Mediterranean Sea, Mic Roussos is one of a kind. He’s a man of many hats, finding work as a producer, an engineer, a multi-instrumentalist, a composer and a piano tuner. And he’s one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet.
Mic Rouss
os is an engineer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and piano tuner. As an producer/engineer, he’s had his hand in numerous projects from the Cyprus area and beyond, working with everyone from pop stars to metal bands. Since 1999, he has been the owner and operator of Mic R. Studios LTD. In 2012, he decided to move to a new studio and this time build from the ground up.
That’s where we came in.
“When I found ASC, I was really impressed about the way that ASC products work. You can make so many combinations…”
Mic R. Studios is a testament to the quality of both ASC’s products and designs. Our IsoWall system enforces all the walls and ceilings in Mic R. Studios, both to isolate the sound from the world outside and improve the quality of the sound within. IsoWalls are mechanically damped, allowing them to move with and absorb very low frequency sound pressure and making them into membrane bass traps for frequencies between 20Hz to 50Hz. Reducing the rumble from the walls lowers the ambient gain of the room, make for a cleaner quieter environment for the mics to work within. According to Mic, “I own the building of my new studio. So this time, I didn’t have to build something temporary.”
The walls of Mic’s live room are lined with SoundPlanks in vertical stripes. This gives it a finely grained lateral diffusion and absorption for the mid range and treble frequencies. The SoundPlanks are designed to give the live room a smooth ambience. He has six 16×4 Standard TubeTraps and two SubTraps in his control room to create a cool and responsive listening environment.
When asked about the construction of his studio, Mic says: “The priority for my studio was to be able to hear exactly what I’m recording or mixing. That’s more important than studio gear for me. And, of course, then there’s the sound of the tracking room. What turns a building into a recording studio is the sound. A studio must have a sound!”
“When I’m mixing in the AttackWall, it’s very easy to make decisions. What you hear is the real thing.”
But Mic’s favorite part about his studio are his TubeTraps. He has thirty StudioTraps in total; these make up the AttackWall in his control room and the Quick Sound Field in his live room. His formidable AttackWall surrounding his SSL Matrix console is comprised of eighteen StudioTraps and two monitor stands, all in deep burgundy.
Check out Mic’s recording of Maria Elena Kyriakou’s “Without You”
He adds, “[There’s] no room [sound], no static waves or anything to make your life hard! No need to make any correction on the monitors with any EQ, because of the AttackWall.”
With his remaining twelve StudioTraps, Mic creates Quick Sound Fields to best serve his recordings. He most frequently uses the QSF when tracking vocals or drums. When asked why he likes using the QSF to record vocals, he replied, “The sound on a condenser mic within the Quick Sound Field is solid and rich. It’s tight and transparent. The sound is natural, natural meaning “not boxy, not moody”, and you record the sound with the right frequencies! When I mix, I use less EQ than ever before. [And I only use it] just to finalize the sound.”
I have very good source material on my recordings. That’s the thing that makes me concentrate on my music. Because at the end of the day, we are making music!
Like any great engineer, Mic lives by the tenant that you have to have good source material to make a good record. And that philosophy is rooted in having a good acoustical environment to work in. Mic R. Studios were designed to allow him to concentrate more on the music than struggling to get the “right sound” to the music. Thus he finds himself able to work more freely, more creatively, to do what he loves, making music.
