Rafael Anton Irisarri

" A few months ago, I had the opportunity to buy a pair of Barefoot MM27 monitors from Taylor Deupree. They are amazingly transparent monitors, and I love working on them. That said, I probably wouldn’t have gotten those had Taylor not been selling them, given me a really good “friend’s deal” and accommodate me to pay for them in a very relaxed way. "

" My very first piece of gear is how I got involved composing music in the first place. I bought a Boss DR-5 when I was a teen and a really crappy 4-track Tascam portastudio cassette recorder. The DR-5 was a drum machine that also included a sequencer and few sounds like piano, synths, etc. All very terrible, but it was all I could afford and a fun way to start composing my own music. "

" Lastly, the best piece of gear I’ve ever bought is my SSL summing mixer. I can’t really put to words all it does for my sound, but it’s a huge part of it. "

" I love listening in different systems: my old trusty Genelec’s, my home stereo JBL’s, a shitty BOSE boombox, three different pairs of headphones (from high-end AKG 701’s to Sennheiser classic HD280 & HD-25). I also listen on my wife’s car sometimes. Mostly, when I’m listening I’m trying to get a similar-sounding mix across that multitude of systems. It obviously varies depending on the music, but overall, is a good thing to listen and compare on different systems and circumstances. Elements that for example are very present on headphones may not be so much in the living room, and even less on a car stereo. My goal is to find a good balance, even before I get to the mastering stage. Just the same way you cannot really fix a bad sound at the mix stage, mastering cannot fix a bad mix. "

" I’m also in love with this little box made by a small company out of Baltimore called KNAS. It’s called a “moisturizer” and it’s essentially a spring reverb with an LFO, Filter and CV added to it. So much fun! "

" For more “serious” production gear, I never mix these days without my FATSO. Love the saturation and compressor for different applications. "

appears on 2nd picture here -->https://www.instagram.com/p/B-wqrp0BhLr/

You can clearly see the "Twin Topology" and knobs of the Millennia NSEQ at the bottom of the image.

Rafael Anton Irisarri uses the Chandler Limited EMI TG12345 Curve Bender Equalizer in his New York studio, as shown in the second image of a post celebrating the 5th anniversary of Black Knoll Studio on Instagram by user blackknoll.

" I’m using Ableton Live almost exclusively, aside from third-party Universal Audio plug-ins. They are incredible at emulating high-end pieces of classic gear, though very expensive. I’ve probably spent more money on UAD plug-ins than I’ve spent on buying vinyl these past 10 years, it’s pretty mental! "

" I love listening in different systems: my old trusty Genelec’s, my home stereo JBL’s, a shitty BOSE boombox, three different pairs of headphones (from high-end AKG 701’s to Sennheiser classic HD280 & HD-25). I also listen on my wife’s car sometimes. Mostly, when I’m listening I’m trying to get a similar-sounding mix across that multitude of systems. It obviously varies depending on the music, but overall, is a good thing to listen and compare on different systems and circumstances. Elements that for example are very present on headphones may not be so much in the living room, and even less on a car stereo. My goal is to find a good balance, even before I get to the mastering stage. Just the same way you cannot really fix a bad sound at the mix stage, mastering cannot fix a bad mix. "

" I love listening in different systems: my old trusty Genelec’s, my home stereo JBL’s, a shitty BOSE boombox, three different pairs of headphones (from high-end AKG 701’s to Sennheiser classic HD280 & HD-25). I also listen on my wife’s car sometimes. Mostly, when I’m listening I’m trying to get a similar-sounding mix across that multitude of systems. It obviously varies depending on the music, but overall, is a good thing to listen and compare on different systems and circumstances. Elements that for example are very present on headphones may not be so much in the living room, and even less on a car stereo. My goal is to find a good balance, even before I get to the mastering stage. Just the same way you cannot really fix a bad sound at the mix stage, mastering cannot fix a bad mix. "

In an interview with Headphone Commute, Rafael Anton Irisarri discusses his studio setup, which includes the Samson S-Patch Plus 48-Point Patchbay.

In the second image of Rafael Anton Irisarri's Instagram post, the Kush Audio UBK Clariphonic Parallel Equalizer is visible in his New York studio, highlighting its role in his extensive work on over 300 albums.