Stephen F. Austin University was hoping to create state-of-the-art studio facilities within its new Griffith Fine Arts Building. This installation would feature two large studios with separate control and tracking rooms, a machine room, a smaller editing and mixing suite, and a classroom lab. Vintage King’s Chris Bolitho, Cedric Yee, and Frank Verschuuren collaborated closely with university staff and contractors to refine the initial designs, aligning technical requirements with the school’s vision for a cutting-edge audio learning environment.

Vintage King joined the Stephen F. Austin project during the later stages of construction and quickly aligned with the evolving needs of the build. “I was able to get my hands on all of the initial studio designs and a list of equipment that the school wanted,” says Cedric Yee, who led the integration.

A preliminary site visit proved essential, allowing the team to coordinate with contractors and school staff on cable routing, speaker placement, equipment locations, and overall system planning. “Consulting with the contractors and school staff, we were able to identify some potential issues with the site construction and address various areas of concern for our installation,” Cedric explains.

A key part of the project were two Dolby Atmos rooms, for which the ceilings had already been constructed. In the first space, Vintage King’s team constructed a stage truss system to suspend active JBL speakers and complete a 7.1.4 system. In Studio B, Cedric and Frank worked around the drop ceiling by utilizing passive Focal speakers.

In total, the installation required more than 100 studio lines and dozens of Ethernet runs. Studio A was outfitted with a 64-channel Rupert Neve Designs 5088 console with Shelford Series 5052 preamps and ATC SCM 200 mains. Studio B features an SSL System T console paired with a Focal 7.1.4 Atmos system. Both rooms were calibrated using Trinnov systems for accurate monitoring.

After installation, Vintage King returned a year later for a full studio health check. “We came back to address any changes they might want after having the chance to spend a year with the setup,” Cedric says. “We always aim to tailor the workflow and equipment to each client’s evolving needs.”

Consoles / Control Surfaces

• 64-Channel Rupert Neve Designs 5088

• Solid State Logic System T
  
  

Converters / Interfaces

• Focusrite RedNet 2

• Focusrite RedNet 5

• Focusrite Red 8Line

• Avid Pro Tools Dock
  
  

Outboard Gear / Processors

• Universal Audio LA-2A

• SSL Bus+

• Maag Audio EQ4

• Chandler Limited TG2-500

• API 2500+ 

• Empirical Labs EL8X-S

• Pultec EQP-1A

• Focusrite Red 8Pre

Monitoring / Speakers

• Focal Pro Shape Twin (2x)

• Focal Shape 50 (2x)

• Focal Trio11 Be (7x)

• Barefoot Sound Footprint01 (2x)

• Barefoot Sound MicroMain Gen 2 (2x)

• Trinnov Audio MC8
  
  

Microphones

• Neumann U 87 Ai Stereo Set

• Telefunken TF47

• Universal Audio Sphere DLX

• Coles 4038 (2x)

• Manley Reference Cardioid Mic

• Lewitt LCT-440-PURE

• DPA CORE 4099 (Violin)

• DPA CORE 4099 (Trumpet)

• FLEA47

• AKG D12 VR