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Philadelphia native Jim Salamone is an accomplished producer, engineer, session drummer, and the owner of Cambridge Sound Studios, a two-room studio in downtown Philly that’s always buzzing with activity.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Salamone and his wife spent three years remodeling a more than one-hundred-year-old barn, converting the lower level into a pub-inspired rec room and the upper level into a boutique one-room studio.
The barn has since become Salamone’s primary mixing space, although it’s well-equipped for recording, too. To facilitate both, Salamone installed a BURL B80 Mothership configured with BAD8 and BDA8 cards for a total of 24 transformer-flavored inputs and 24 pristine outputs.
After several sessions and mixes with the new system, we caught up with Salamone to hear about his history in the music industry, the process of building out his barn studio, and why he prefers the “weight” that BURL converters bring to his recordings.
How did you get started in the industry and ultimately become a studio owner?
I've been doing this professionally since 1983. I was there at the beginning of MIDI, sampling, and FM synthesis, and I worked as a Philadelphia studio musician. I worked primarily in R&B music, with everyone from Gamble and Huff to Teddy Pendergrass to Bon Jovi over the years.
I scored a number one hit with “Written All Over Your Face” by the Rude Boys on Atlantic Records and had a Grammy-nominated RnB instrumental with Grover Washinton Jr. as well. The eighties and nineties were my main years working for major labels, doing all of the work of a studio musician, songwriter, programmer, and producer.
Becoming a studio owner was something I sort of grew into. I was buying a lot of gear—I was the first in the area to have a Linn Drum and a Fairlight—and then I had kids, so I needed a place to go with all my gear.
People started saying, “Instead of you coming over to Sigma Sound or wherever, why don't you just buy a two-inch machine and we'll come to you?” So I bought a two-inch machine and a console, and it got to the point where the record companies and artists that were flying me around the country realized that they could save a lot of money if they just let me record in my own studio.
In the beginning, you would get calls because of the gear you had; but eventually, once you were well-known, people would just call you up. I'm in a position now where I've been doing this long enough that I have a large list of friends and clients. Nowadays, it's mostly regional rock, folk, and Americana acts coming in, as well as a few bigger artists like Camila Cabello and Bishop Briggs.
My main studio is Cambridge Sound Studio in South Philadelphia. It’s got two rooms and I have three engineers working for me there. But a few years ago, I purchased a barn and built my home facility where I do most of my work now.
As the owner of a successful studio, what made you want to build a second studio in your barn?
That's easy—I didn't want to drive into town. I live in Bucks County, about 45 to 50 minutes away from South Philadelphia on a good day, so this allows me to save all that driving time. Since I prefer mixing and mastering, and the client generally isn't there, I decided to set up a nice room at home. This is where I do all of my mixing now.
The barn was built in the late 1800s, and it was really a dump. My wife had a vision for the first floor: we made it like an Irish pub slash family room with a bar, wheelbarrow tables, a big-screen TV, and my turntable and records. We call it The Hare and the Hound because we have a family of rabbits who live here and we had a dog who unfortunately passed away recently. We had coasters and mats made with the name on them, as if you were in England going to the Pub.
The upstairs was my vision. That was a nightmare because I sort of acted as a general contractor and brought in an army of people to deal with every aspect from demoing the room out to reconstructing it. The equipment I've got here is at least as good as what I have downtown, but instead of a dedicated control room and live room, this is one open room.
If I have to record a band, I'll usually go downtown, but I have drums and amps and an incredible selection of microphones here as well. I use stackable gobos to separate things when I’m recording. The fact of the matter is that people come here even if they live much closer to downtown, because they like the vibe here. Even if I try to talk them out of it, they want to come here.
What led you to choose BURL converters for the barn?
I've been doing this for many years, and over those years, I've had many converters. Because I'm a Pro Tools user, I was using the AVID HD I/O 16x16 converters, but I’ve also had Apogees: the AD-16X, Rosetta 800, and Rosetta 200. I still like the sound of those.
As I was setting up my room up here, I had been looking at converters for a long time, downloading samples and listening. I've always liked the BURLs, but the B2 Bomber was too small, so first I got a B16 and loaded it up with eight ins and eight outs. I loved it, but I knew I was going to need more than eight inputs to record drums, so I moved up to the B80 and I'm currently sitting at 16 by 16. I still have the B16 chassis too, which might go downtown.
What attracted me to BURL was the weight that they have, and “weight” is the best way I can put it. There are transformers on the input cards, which allows you to drive the input a bit. It’s a very warm-sounding converter. It's smooth and round; certainly warmer than the Avid. It treats harsh vocals a lot better. The tone of the toms on my drum set sound better through these when I compare it to the Avid.
These are subtle differences, but we're entering an era where we're looking at converters much the way we looked at mic pres years ago, with all the different characters available. People have their tracking converters and then they have their mixing and mastering converters. They're not always the same. I was looking for something to add that weight on the input, but with a transparent output.
What’s your favorite feature of the BURL system?
I certainly appreciate the fact that it's modular. Right now I have two of the BAD8 cards and two of the BDA8 cards, so it's 16 in and 16 out, and I've got a BMB1 DigiLink module in there that's connecting to my HD ports.
But I've already been on the phone with Sam at BURL discussing AES connections because I have the Quantec Yardstick with AES digital ins and outs. Getting the AES card may very well be my next move, and I may add a few more channels to allow more hardware inserts because I have a lot of analog gear here in the barn. I have some of it hooked up now, but I'd like to hook up a lot more.
And I still have that B16 with the BMB1 card, so if I wanted to, I could load that up with more channels and bring it down to the studio. If I want to be on the move or if I go on vacation and want a smaller setup for some light mixing or editing, I can take the B16. I don't think I'm going to sell the B16; I'm committed to this setup and I feel there's a way that I could use both chassis to my advantage.
How has your experience working with Vintage King been?
I used to deal directly with [Vintage King Co-Founder] Mike Nehra years ago when he was first getting started. Today, David Fisk is my guy over there. I've purchased several things lately from David and he’s been incredibly accommodating and quick to respond to any issues or questions I've had.
About a year ago, I purchased some monitors from Vintage King through David. I used them almost a year to the day, and then one of the speakers dropped dead. David was like, “Send it back. We'll just send you a replacement.” So I sent it back and I had a replacement immediately. Shortly after that, my right speaker dropped dead, too. Apparently, there was a problem with the DSP cards, and a lot of people were having that issue.
Long story short, I have two brand-new monitors. David and [Customer Service and Support Representative] Kristen Gielecki were both on top of it. There was no discussion; they just had new ones ready to go. That's the kind of support you want when you're dealing with expensive items like these.
Are there any exciting projects you can tell us about?
I just mastered a mix that Sylvia Massy did for another artist I'm working with by the name of R.P. Mixon, which was just reviewed on Americana Highway. Lots of other established and new artists coming through: Chris Kasper, Hezekiah Jones, Beaucoup Blue, and many more.
The last studio album by Teddy Pendergrass (a Christmas album recorded in 1997) was re-released this past Christmas. Never a dull moment. There are always about seven or eight projects going on at once. I love doing what I’ve been doing since my college days.
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