April 22nd 2024: The South London-based composer who has created music for numerous high profile projects says the audio quality he is now achieving is ‘mind blowing’.
Composer Rafael Krux has added a Prism Sound Dream ADA-128 modular conversion system to his production studio where he creates music for commercials, trailers, video games, TV shows and dozens of other indie projects around the world.
Based in South London, Rafael’s studio is also equipped with PMC 6-2 monitors, Cubase and a vast selection of analogue synths and outboard equipment.
“Audio quality is very important to me, and this is the main reason why I have invested in a Prism Sound Dream ADA-128 converter,” Rafael says. “It is an exceptional unit that has given me all the inputs I need to incorporate my large collection of analogue equipment into my workflow.”
Designed to suit the needs of a wide range of audio professionals, Prism Sound’s Dream ADA-128 is a modular audio conversion system offering up to 128 channels of 32-bit A/D and D/A conversion. It is both a conversion system and a high-performance, networkable audio distribution and processing system, with a flexible 2RU mainframe that can be fitted with up to 16 analogue and digital IO modules (each of which nominally provides eight input or output ports, or both). Up to four host modules provide bidirectional multi-channel connections to host computers, workstations, networks etc, with the ADA-128 providing free routing between all of these inputs and outputs under detailed user control, as well as a wide range of processing functions.
Since 2016, Rafael has headed up Dual Horns Studio Ltd, which he established prior moving to the UK from Croatia so that he could be nearer to his client base. His music has been used for numerous projects and brands, including the Leah Remini show, America’s Next Top Model, Mercedes-Benz AMG, World of Tanks, VICE, MIT, BMW, MARS Inc., Samsung, Swarovski, Huawei, United Nations, and many more. He also has a boutique sample shop – Krux Audio, that aims to produce simple, yet high quality samples and tools to help producers worldwide.
“My main goal is to inspire and motivate music producers and composers in the creation of new and exciting music,” he says. “My previous converter was part of my studio for two or three years and I recorded over 200 tracks with it. However, I always had a Prism Sound on my wish list because I was aware of the company’s reputation for audio quality. When I heard that the Dream ADA-128 was about to be launched, I knew it was time to upgrade.”
I can hear everything clearly – it’s amazing. Everything sounded so clean and organic. It was a much higher level of converter than I had been used to and I was just blown away.
With the unit installed in his studio, Rafael says he began listening to some of the tracks he had created with his previous converter and was surprised at the difference in sound quality.
“I couldn’t believe how everything I’d recorded sounded so muddy. It hadn’t appeared that way at the time but when I put my music through the Prism Sound unit, it really was noticeable. With the ADA-128 I have a much bigger stage to work with. It makes mixing and mastering so easy that I feel as though I have a cheat sheet. I can hear everything clearly – it’s amazing. I did a test run with the mics and pre-amps that I usually use, and everything sounded so clean and organic. It was a much higher level of converter than I had been used to and I was just blown away.”
As Rafael’s studio is compact, having a converter that only takes up 2U of rack space was also an advantage. The option to network it may also come in useful eventually, too, because Rafael’s wife, Andrea Krux, is a professional singer and has a studio next to his.
“At present she has inherited my old converter and she’s happy with that because she just wants to sing, but she might eventually change her mind,” he says.
Rafael is currently working on projects for Orchestralis, the music production brand he and his wife run, plus a few high-profile NDA projects, and creating more samples for Krux Audio.
“It gives me great peace of mind to know that I am getting the best audio conversion possible,” he says. “There is absolutely no distortion, no matter how many different pieces of equipment I use. The combination of great monitors and a great converter is a game changer – I feel like I have an orchestra playing in front of me. The only think I can’t get over is how many years I’ve spent recording and not realising what really great audio really sounds like!”
