BROADCAST NEWS
Jul 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By Dominic Umile
MAGNIFICENT DJ
The Return isn't without Jeff's staggeringly masterful cuts. Although he didn't offer any of the transformer scratches he's been credited with developing, the producer is practically married to the Pioneer DJM-909 mixer and inserts air-light scratches where needed on The Return's batch of tracks. The DJM-909 was sandwiched between his decks (“Technics 1200s 'til the end…I feel comfortable with them,” he says) during a recent European tour, and he says he probably couldn't do without the device's effects banks. While he gripes about the crossfader, wishing that it was branded with Rane's good name, he has no problem manipulating what appear to be rather complex enhancements. Jeff's scratch-fests on The Return are nothing short of what he has delivered for 20 years; he bookends “Supa Jean” with some quick deck-work, and slips in restrained cuts on the way out of “All I Know.” And he dresses the cuts before Kel Spencer drops in on “The Definition” with a little echo, courtesy of his beloved mixer.
“I have a bank of two effects,” says Jeff. “I don't use all three banks. I have two banks, which is pretty much six effects that I use, and I know the settings. When I do a whole delay, I'll take the bottom off; if you delay, you don't really want to delay a kick drum because that sounds nasty going through the system, so I take the bottom off and leave the mids and highs. You get your flanger and your chorus, and you know how you have them set. A lot of times, I'll travel with my mixer, and if they have a mixer there, I can set it in about two minutes, and once I do that, I'm set.”
Jazzy Jeff's The Return of the Magnificent plays like another great summer record, with smooth afternoon soul vibes complemented by party-rockin' backward-peering hip-hop tracks. To his surprise, the involvement of a home studio plays noticeably into this recording. Throughout the less hectic moments of building a new studio and album, Jeff was able to communicate the comfortable relationship he maintains with production in all of the album's musical backdrops, exercising the kind of restraint that can only come from years of practice.
“I look at the start of my album as me walking into this basement with nothing but four walls of concrete and just building the studio from scratch, getting it how I want it all the way down the colors and the decor,” Jeff says. “I don't think I really paid attention to what I was doing until after I was done. Then I was like, ‘Did you actually move, build a studio and finish a record, all in one?’ I'm glad I didn't really think about it while I was doing it, because I probably would've scared myself. I got really lucky that everything fell into place.”
JAZZY JEFF'S PORTSIDE STUDIO
Computer, DAW, recording hardware
(2) Alesis Masterlink Master Disk Recorder
Apogee Rosetta A/D converter
Apple Power Mac G5 Dual 2.7 GHz computer with 30-inch Cinema Display, Logic Pro software
Digidesign Digi 002 interface/mixer, Pro Tools software
(2) MOTU HD192 interfaces
Otari MTR-90 24-track tape machine
Tascam DA-302 DAT recorder, CD-RW900 CD recorder
Synths, modules
E-mu Vintage Keys module
Ensoniq MR Rack module
Korg MicroKorg synth, Triton-Rack module
Novation BassStation synth
Roland Fantom-X6 synth
Yamaha Motif synth
Software, plug-ins
GMedia GForce ImpOSCar, Minimonsta, Oddity soft synths
Native Instruments Battery 3, FM8, Guitar Rig 2, Kontakt 2, Massive, Pro-53 soft synths
Rane/Serato Scratch Live DJ hardware/software
Spectrasonics Atmosphere, Stylus RMX, Trilogy virtual instrument plug-ins
Synthogy Ivory virtual piano plug-in
Universal Audio UAD-1 DSP card and powered plug-ins
Waves Diamond Bundle, SSL 4000 Collection plug-ins
Consoles/mixers, control surface
Digidesign Command 8 control surface
Neve vintage board
Yamaha 02R digital mixer
Samplers, turntables, DJ mixer, drum machines
Akai MPC2000XL, 2500, 3000 sampling workstations, S950 sampler
E-mu SP-1200 sampler
Pioneer DJM-909 DJ mixer
Roland MV-8000 Production Studio, (2) VP-9000 VariPhrase processors
Sequential Circuits Studio 440 drum machine
(3) Technics SL-1200 turntables
Monitors
Dynaudio Acoustics BM15As
Tannoy System 15s
Mics, mic preamp, EQ, compressors, effects
(2) AKG C12 mics
(2) Avalon Vt-737sp mic preamp/compressor/EQs
Groove Tubes GT60 mic
(2) Neumann U 87 mics
(2) Sony C800G mics
TC Electronic Finalizer Studio Mastering Processor
(2) Tube-Tech CL 1A compressor/limiters
(2) Urei 1176 compressors
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