all photos by Roland Muenger
History & Location | Features | Sound
HISTORY & LOCATION
Established in 1972, EastSide Sound is the longest running professional recording studio in downtown New York City. The founder Lou Holtzman opened the studio over 40 years ago, at a time in which no musician wanted to go to the Lower EastSide. Today EastSide Sound is in the middle of the action: just a couple of blocks from the East Village and Chinatown and just over the bridge from Williamsburg/Brooklyn, EastSide Sound is conveniently located in the heart of the L.E.S., just steps away from all the music venues and clubs and easily accessible from anywhere. EastSide Sound is on the ground floor, so you don't have to worry about carrying gear up the stairs or in a small elevator and it is also the only studio in Manhattan located on a street that offers free parking and that faces a green recreational park.
FEATURES
In today's fast changing pro audio landscape, versatility is key. EastSide Sound is the ONLY studio in ALL of New York City (and as far as we know in the USA) to offer 6 isolation booths plus a live room. This means that up to 7 musicians can play live and at the same time but in different rooms that have line of sight between each other. If you are looking for clean, isolated sound without leakage (which facilitates editing and punching) this is the only place that can give you that. This unique layout affords you the opportunity to retain the vibe and mood of a real live session in which the band grooves and plays together without compromising the sound with unwanted leakage muddying up your tracks and without having to use cumbersome gobos. Every musician receives a headphone mixer where they can created their own mix without affecting the headphone mix of the other musicians. Of course you can also choose to play without headphones and have your band all play in the same room. Versatility is key and the possibilities are endless.
SOUND
EastSide Sound is both ANALOG AND DIGITAL. In fact we offer the best of both worlds: you can record through a fantastic Nashville hand-made vintage 100% analog console that offers TOTAL recall and digital automation. This means your sound never gets converted inside the conside, it goes in analog and goes out analog. We record to Pro Tools HDX and 16 track 2 inch and 24 track 2 inch analog tape are an option as well. We also offer a premium collection of vintage and modern microphones, pre-amps, compressors and other outboard. Check out our Equipment page for a detailed list.