 WILLIE WILCOX: DOWN ON THE FARM WITH HIS FURMAN SOUND HDS-6/HR-6 HEADPHONE DISTRIBUTION AND MIXING SYSTEMFurmanPosted 2003-10-17 Somewhere in the New Jersey Countryside – Throughout his career, composer, producer, and drummer Willie Wilcox has constantly pursued innovation in music and technology. That’s why when it came time to upgrade his home recording facility “The Fatback Farm,” located in the beautiful countryside of rural New Jersey, Willie chose the Furman Sound HDS-6/HR-6 headphone distribution and mixing system.
As the drummer of Todd Rundgren’s band Utopia from 1974 to 1986, to his current role as Senior Composer and Sound Designer at the Universal Television USA Network and the Sci-Fi Channel, Willie has remained at the forefront of creative and technological trends. His career has taken various paths, from working on recordings with the likes of Mick Jagger, Bette Midler, and Hall and Oates, to creating award-winning soundtracks and commercials for such clients as MTV, VH-1, Pizza Hut, Dominos Pizza, Coca Cola, Pantene, Target, Toyota, Ford, and Sears.
Willie sees the addition of the Furman Sound HDS-6/HR-6 headphone distribution and mixing system as a key component to his work down on the “Farm.” Willies states, “Being a drummer I put high demands on headphones and headphone systems. Drummers have high, self-generated acoustic volume levels to overcome and the rack-mountable Furman Sound HDS-6 delivers crystalline audio with clarity and punch, without distortion.”
Installation and set-up was a breeze. “It was just plug and play,” Willie says. “And in under thirty minutes the Furman Sound HDS-6/HR-6 headphone distribution and mixing system was up and running.”
The Furman Sound HR-6 mixing stations also offer musicians a unique way to monitor their playing while recording, allowing them to set their headphone sound for their individual comfort level and taste. Willie says that came in handy recently when he and his partner, legendary session drummer Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, were working on a project for their ‘Give Da Drumma Sum’ production company.
During one of their sessions, Willie was required to provide three different cue mixes: one mix for Purdie with click, bass and guitar; one for the bassist without click but different bass, drum and guitar levels; and the same for the guitarist but with different levels. Willie says, “The Furman Sound HR-6 personal mixing system gives each musician the ability to adjust any one of the four mono sub-mixes and/or one stereo mix. I used the stereo mix for studio playback so the musicians didn’t have to run into the control room to hear back their takes.”
Willie concludes, “The cost effective Furman Sound HDS-6/HR-6 headphone distribution and mixing system is a powerful and versatile headphone system I highly recommend!”
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