Sound Devices Provides Balance And Flexibility For Veteran Mixer Darren Brisker

For the better part of the last thirty years, Darren Brisker has worked tirelessly to build a reputation as one of the industry's most respected production sound mixers. With an impressive résumé that includes three of The Twilight Saga films, Brisker brings an unwavering dedication and focus to each of his projects. In order to capture and deliver the extraordinary audio he has become known for, Brisker relies on Sound Devices for his audio mixing and recording needs.

Brisker was first introduced to Sound Devices when he purchased a 744T recorder, which remains in his kit to this day as a sound effects and field ambience recorder. Brisker has since purchased two 6-Series mixer/recorders with the 664 and the groundbreaking 688, as well as two rack-mount 970 audio recorders, running in firmware version 2.20's "insanely well implemented" group mode.

"I didn't even consider any other machine when purchasing these recorders. They simply have no competition," says Brisker. "Sound Devices' reliability and support is insurmountable. Being able to record to various media simultaneously and then easily pull that media out and hand it off to anyone that has a USB port is a key feature leading to my selection of these recorders. Add to that the screen size, good keyboard implementation, and Internal Sound Report generator, and it is easy to see why I did not consider any other machines."

"When the 688 came out, it changed the way that I approached my job," adds Brisker. "I was using another portable recorder, and while it didn't necessarily need replacing, I kept thinking about Sound Devices' MixAssist capabilities as I started doing more shows that featured multi-cast member shots. With so much ad-libbing going on, there were occasions where I was reluctant to fade anybody out.

"To this effect, I used the 688 for the first time on Fear the Walking Dead and, sure enough, I had five or six people in a vehicle largely ad-libbing. This was a perfect opportunity to see what MixAssist could do. I honestly did not know what to expect. To my amazement, it was flawless. It assisted me in balancing the levels of everybody seamlessly, with no perceptible phasing. I could not believe what it was able to accomplish; it made an instant believer out of me."

In addition to his Sound Devices and Video Devices gear, Brisker's rig includes a Lectrosonics Venue system, Sennheiser boom mics, and a selection of other microphones, including the CS-3e from Sanken.

"Sound Devices has proven themselves to be reliable," says Brisker. "Their customer service is absolutely amazing. You can't ask for anything better. The one time I did have an issue, it happened during the middle of the night and they had me up and running again immediately. The products are fantastic and they have all been well designed, well implemented and proven. I plan on using only Sound Devices on all of my future projects."

sounddevices.com

(MH)