Calling him the God of sound manipulation and capture would be more appropriate. My hero since about 1975, and his gear stands the test of time, people pay good money for a 40 year old console and are extremely happy with the sound...not the electric bill, but it will pay for itself.
As an electronic engineer, I love to hear the creator of the company talk electronics. You know when he talks opamps, slew rates etc he is not just some business man but an engineer. Is that something we miss these days?
10/10! Thanks again Sound On Sound! I would be blessed to have even a fraction of the intelligence and clarity of thought that Rupert possesses when Im older!
Do you guys not check the mixes of your audio in these documentaries? The music is way too loud the VO is way too quiet. And if you are interviewing a subject , perhaps it would be wise to make his voice loud enough to hear it. I wouldn't care , but I've watched a couple of your other docs and they were mixed similarly.
I could listen to this revered English gentleman speak for hours and hours. His intelligence and commitment to excellence and quality is a true reflection of his integrity. Bravo Mr. Neve, bravo!!
Is it just me or does mr Neve speaking reminds you too of Steve Albini? I mean, their (a tiny bit unnecesserily) technical way of talking about simple things, their pauses, their talking speed and overall calm and "problem fixer" character. Watching those talk just puts a smile on my face
Simply genius, not because i have no idea what he’s really talking about, but because his knowledge is channeled and focused by an honest search for beauty and musicality. That’s what genius is.
I guess that few people have the necessary persistence that Mr. Rupert Neve has to reach so many sides with such effective results. Today's world has perhaps a little different goals. Immediacy is paid at a price that today's public finds natural, even if the studies that led to a product to appear on the market obviously were not seriously considered. What is a shame.
I love the Neve sound. You just can't beat his EQ and even his compressors are sensational. Beautiful rich warmth and the sparkly high end is amazing. A true legend.
A true genius. It's a pleasure to listen to him when he talks about electronics, the physics behind sound and the passion he has for music. Thanks for everything... for sharing your knowledge that goes much beyond ours.
Noooot quite. :-) Zappa had a Harrison desk in his studio. Abba, Micheal Jackson (Thriller and bad) ,Sade, Paul Simon...Led Zeppelin, Genesis, Ramones, The Cure, Gary Moore, Thin Lizzy, Motorhead, Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, Killdozer, Nirvana oso...All Harrison consoles
@@Funkywallot A lot of those large format consoles aren't being used for recording anymore. Walk into any Pro commercial studio you will see a ton of outboard. The Neve 1073 and ISA pre amps were used on nearly every hit record. Nowadays everything moving more in the box and Hybrid Digital/Analog setups. You see a lot of Argosy Console desks in control rooms these days.
A living legend! I had no idea how much I owed to this man but it turns out that I use his philosophies every day. Can't wait for the day my music actually gets put through some of his hardware.
Just typical that there is a cell phone interference audible at around 23:01. Those kind of noises shouldn't be in an interview with an audio engineer! 😳
I had occasion to talk with Rupert a number of times over the years, usually at AES or NAB, NAMM, etc. He was always very soft-spoken and reserved. His knowledge was quite unparalleled. I've never known anyone who knew as much about the electronics of audio as he did.
A true gentleman, passionate about his craft, a soft-spoken genius. A TRUE engineer... Makes me want to reconsider how I've been referring to myself professionally for the past 30 years. Am I truly an audio engineer? Not if Sir Rupert is in the same room... or even on the same planet.
So sad to hear that Rupert had passed. A total audio legend. Its funny to think that all the famous rock stars and musicians of the 70s/80s owe a huge dept to Rupert, there work was greatly enhanced by Neve circuitry. He differed from other clinical engineers in the sense that he used his ears to what he thought was a good sound, so in a way he was a great musician himself. Shame he never wrote a book describing his circuits for amateurs to make them self. RIP Rupert.
This guy basically designed what everyone uses today for audio recording (especially the concept of the modern sound chain: opamp->EQ->AUX->BUS, etc). However, I thought that it was sort of funny that when they asked him about modern, digital technology, an what he'll do next; that there were digital artifacts in the audio in the interview (as if someone was nearby with a cell phone on during the recording: a HUGE no-no when recording audio). Hopefully, what he does next is make it impossible for those artifacts to happen! I can build most of his designs, but they never quite sound as good as a real NEVE EQ or opamp. Strangely enough, it comes down to the quality of the transformers (you simply cannot get a transformer on the market like a NEVE transformer; trust me, I've tried). Transformers--as he mentioned in this interview--are his specialty and were his primary concern when designing his circuits.
Wonderful interview. -- What's with all the background noise? It's a real shame this wasn't recorded cleaner. -- EDIT: As I listen further I hear someone opening a drink off camera and phone interference?! This is also mixed really poorly, the voiceover is blasting compared to the interview. I'm shocked. Such an important interview with one of the greatest pioneers in sound and little to no care was taken with the sound.
Arthur Rupert Neve (31 July 1926 - 12 February 2021) was a British-American electronics engineer and entrepreneur, who was a pioneering designer of professional audio recording equipment. He designed analog recording and audio mixing equipment that was sought after by professional musicians and recording technicians. Some of his customers were music groups The Beatles, Aerosmith and Nirvana, and recording studios Sound City Studios and Abbey Road Studios. Companies that he was associated with included Neve Electronics, Focusrite, AMS Neve, and Rupert Neve Designs. He received a Technical Grammy Award for lifetime achievement in 1997. -Wikipedia.
He was a great audio engineer and many people have copied his ideas over the decades but, I did some work for his original Focusrite company, lost GB2,000 (in the early 1990's) when he went bust. Other studios lost up to GB£400,000 in total which I found out at the Creditors meeting when he acted as though he was above it all. There is some hiding finance stuff behind the scenes which I won't mention publicly but I have no respect for this person apart from what he did for audio advances over the decades.
Interesting summarization at 7:33 If the cue is too steep (Hi-Q) it will spoil other instruments with similar frequencies within that bell. If the cue is too wide (Lo-Q) it won't be very effective. That right there is an interesting note that could carry a lot of effect on it's own.
R.I.P. Rupert Neve. My ears have a tendency of Analogue sound. Tube, tube sound is back and most desired. Difference in string insturments I can hear the vibrations of the horse hairs to a viola and the wood, using SS you hear the string.
I'm just a noodler of knobs. Like an animal grubbing about trying to bend sound into a point that I want it to go. This man. I cannot comprehend how he gave us such tools. It's as though he was the electron riding through the circuits themselves.
first time i came to this video i have no idea what he was talking about. the more i learn and occasionally return to what he was talking about the more i understand
Genius! Very Nice! Sou amante da arte musical, com alguma formação em áudio, eletrônica e softwares. Estou a vida inteira perseguido o "perfect sound" e a "perfect music". É revigorante poder estar na presença, mesmo que virtualmente de um mestre maravilhoso do áudio de primeira qualidade. Muito Grato a Rupert Neve por seu esforços de vida nos universos do áudio profissional e música. Parabéns a Sound and Sound por mais um ótimo conteúdo. The best regards Cheers from São Paulo- Brasil :)
Rest in Peace Mr. Neve. Talking one to one with you about circuit design was a high point in my life. You gave me your card. I didn’t call you back. It would have seriously changed my life. But I had solemn commitments that I just couldn’t break. Best wishes forever Rupert. Your dedication to audio will always be part of musical history.
Not a great secret, transformers are 100% passive a perfect for impeadance matching. The down side is they are really expensive, bulky and heavy. Put for input and output matching of circuits they can’t be beat if they are properly designed.
he makes a good point. cheaper and smaller tech is one thing, but this is sound and music we're talking about. Why sacrifice the potential for it to be as beautiful as it can be?
Amassing man and designer.. he was smart to see that Pultec was the way to go.. with Neve transformers very nice combination. I like the 80 console the way it broadens the fq span and changes curves if you now the tricks to move other fq knobs and cut filter.
