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Harrison Audio may not get as much buzz as some of the other classic console brands, but they’ve been a major player in the industry for about half a century. By developing innovative technologies, adapting to industry changes, and diversifying the brand's product line; Dave Harrison and company have established themselves as a top choice for music and post-production studios while maintaining a presence in the live and broadcast sectors and even breaking into the software market with the brand's Mixbus DAW and plug-ins.
Explore Harrison Audio’s history, starting from its beginnings in the golden age of analog recording, through the rapid evolution of digital audio, and into the present day.
Founder Dave Harrison started off as a saxophonist and recording engineer in the Cincinnati, Ohio area before working his way up to Manager at King Records, an iconic Cincinnati studio used by A-list entertainers including James Brown, John Lee Hooker, and The Platters. Eventually, Harrison moved to Nashville, Tennessee and started Studio Supply, a recording studio building and outfitting company.
Studio Supply was a reseller for MCI, one of the most prominent manufacturers of cutting-edge multitrack recorders at the time. In the early 1970s, Harrison approached MCI founder Jeep Harned with an idea for a new “in-line” console design that would seamlessly integrate the recording and mixing workflows.
This collaboration resulted in the MCI JH-400, the first commercially produced in-line console. Harrison also had ideas for remote-controlled gain and switching systems, but MCI was not interested at the time, so he founded his own company to bring his products to market.
Over the years to come, Harrison consoles would be used to make some of the most iconic records ever made, from Michael Jackson's Thriller to Nirvana's Nevermind and beyond.
Harrison Audio makes its debut with 32-Series in-line consoles
Dave Harrison’s first original console, the Harrison 3232, perfected his version of the in-line design, which combined the previously separate recording and monitoring signal paths into each channel strip. Compared to existing consoles that required twice the amount of channels to record and monitor simultaneously, the 3232 streamlined the mixing process while saving precious space in the control room.
After the smashing success of the Harrison 32-Series, other manufacturers followed suit and the in-line design became the de facto standard for multitrack recording consoles.
Deep Purple release Come Taste The Band, produced by Reinhold Mack on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany
The Rolling Stones release Black and Blue, produced by Reinhold Mack on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany
Led Zeppelin release Presence, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at ABBA's Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden
Kansas release Leftoverture, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Studio in the Country in Bogalusa, Louisiana
Steely Dan release Aja, on which Roger 'The Immortal' Nichols used a Harrison Console 3232 for overdubs
Iggy Pop releases The Idiot, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany
Harrison Audio branches out with the PP-1 film console
Not content just to revolutionize studio console design, Harrison broke into the post-production industry at the end of the 1970s with the innovative PP-1 console. The PP-1 featured some of the earliest computer-driven automation and other features catered to post-production workflows, making it popular with film studios.
Donna Summer releases Bad Girls, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Rusk Sound Studios in Hollywood, California
Elton John releases Victim of Love, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany, and Rusk Sound Studios in Hollywood, California
Led Zeppelin release In Through The Out Door, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at ABBA's Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden
Harrison Audio expands and diversifies its product line
Unlike other well-known brands that specialize in consoles for studio, live, broadcast, or post-production applications, Harrison has a long history of success in all of these areas. Throughout the 1980s, Harrison produced several ranges of specialized consoles including the MR-Series and Raven music consoles, TV- and Air-Series broadcast consoles, and the HM- and SM-Series live consoles.
Queen release The Game, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany
Electric Light Orchestra release Xanadu, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany
ABBA release Super Trouper, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at the band’s Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden
Genesis release Duke, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at ABBA’s Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden
Michael Jackson releases Thriller, recorded and mixed by Bruce Swedien on a Harrison 32C Console at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, CA.
Harrison SeriesTen becomes the world’s first fully automated console
Harrison’s next groundbreaking design, the SeriesTen, utilized hundreds of digitally controlled attenuators to govern each channel’s level, EQ, panning, and dynamics processing without failure-prone analog knobs and faders. The user could access all of the console’s functions using only five digital encoders per channel, and complex mix sessions could be easily saved and recalled, dramatically speeding up workflows for busy studios.
Harrison SM5 consoles used at Live Aid
Harrison consoles saw widespread use in the live sound sector, including a high-profile gig mixing front of house and monitors for the U.S. portion of Live Aid. During the event, the sounds of A-list acts like Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, Joan Baez, and Run-D.M.C. (as well as audio feeds from the White House and the Space Shuttle) flowed through a Harrison SM5 console before reaching the crowd of nearly 90,000 and countless viewers around the world.
Sade releases Promise, recorded on a Harrison Console at Power Plant Studios in London
Michael Jackson releases Bad, recorded and mixed by Bruce Swedien on a Harrison 32C Console at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, CA.
Iron Maiden release Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, recorded on a Harrison 32-Series console at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany
Harrison Audio introduces SeriesTenB console
While the Harrison SeriesTen represented a substantial step forward in console technology, the novel and complex digital system wasn’t without issues. The SeriesTenB worked out those kinks to create a much more stable platform with a new and improved automation system and groundbreaking interactive video graphics.
Janet Jackson releases Rhythm Nation, mixed by Steve Hodge on a Harrison Harrison SeriesTen Console at Flyte Tyme Studios
As digital audio advanced by leaps and bounds, the 1990s and early 2000s brought significant changes to the music and post-production industries. Analog audio formats moved toward obsolescence, home recording technology became more and more affordable, and the bottom fell out of the music industry, causing many studios and record labels to fold. But Harrison Audio continued to thrive, releasing some of the brand's most celebrated consoles during this time, winning prestigious industry awards for the brand's innovation, and eventually stepping into the software market with a custom DAW.
Harrison SeriesTenB wins TEC Award
In 1991, Harrison Audio was honored with the Mix Foundation’s Technical Excellence & Creativity (TEC) Award for Outstanding Technical Achievement in Console Technology. Around this time, company President Gary Thielman began consulting with prominent SeriesTenB users as part of the research and development process for the SeriesTwelve.
The Smashing Pumpkins release Gish, recorded and mixed by Butch Vig on a Harrison 3232 Console at Smart Studios in Maddison, Wisconson
Nirvana release Nevermind, recorded by Butch Vig on a Harrison 3232 Console at Smart Studios in Maddison, Wisconson
First Harrison Motion Picture Console installed at Sony Pictures
On Valentine’s Day 1992, Sony Pictures installed the first Harrison Motion Picture Console (MPC), kicking off a legacy that continues to this day with the Harrison MPC5. Designed in close collaboration with post-production experts including Sony Pictures Chief Engineer Jeff Taylor, the massive MPC was built for multi-user mixing workflows and featured motorized joysticks for automated surround panning.
Harrison introduces SeriesTwelve console
Five years after the SeriesTenB became a studio favorite, Harrison followed up with the next-generation SeriesTwelve. This model completely separated the all-digital control surface from the analog processing racks, drastically reducing the console’s footprint.
The modular control surface allowed up to four “layers” of channels to be assigned across the desk, making it endlessly reconfigurable for complex music, film, or broadcast workflows. Powered by an Apple NuBus computer system, the SeriesTwelve featured a touchscreen interface and shared central panel that allowed the user to process any channel without moving out of the “sweet spot.”
Harrison Live Performance Console honored with TEC award
Harrison capped off the millennium with another TEC Award, this time recognizing the brand's Outstanding Technical Achievement in Sound Reinforcement Console Technology with the Live Performance Console (LPC). Jointly developed with tour sound company ShowCo, The LPC brought Harrison’s digitally-controlled analog technology to the live sound market in 1998.
The console featured stage-mounted audio processing racks that drastically reduced cable runs and a new IKIS automation system with instantly recallable “scenes.” ShowCo continued to use LPC consoles for the next two decades, including tours with high-profile acts such as Madonna and U2.
Harrison Audio develops new Xrange audio processing system
Over a three-year research and development period, Harrison engineers created Xrange: a Linux-based, 64-bit audio processing system to power the brand's new generation of consoles and provide a futureproof platform for future upgrades. Xrange technology was first deployed in the Harrison Air24 broadcast console.
Universal Studios installs Harrison MPC4-D film console
As post-production demands for major studio films grew increasingly complex, Harrison adapted with the MPC4-D: a massive, 30-foot console designed for three simultaneous users (typically a dialogue mixer, a sound effects mixer, and a music mixer). The Xrange-powered system featured a total of 384 channels—each with two inputs, an eight-band EQ, dynamics processing, and Harrison Digital Tools DSP effects.
Harrison Audio introduces Trion digital console
The Harrison Trion followed in the footsteps of the reconfigurable SeriesTwelve consoles, taking advantage of modern manufacturing techniques to offer maximum flexibility at a reduced cost. The Trion’s hardware and software could be reconfigured to suit the needs of recording and mixing studios, live and broadcast applications, post-production studios, and more.
Harrison Audio launches Mixbus DAW
As digital recording technology flourished in the new millennium, Harrison seized the opportunity to enter the market with a custom digital audio workstation (DAW) software. Based on the open-source Ardour DAW, Mixbus provides all of the standard recording, editing, and mixing features with a Harrison-style mixer interface featuring the brand's signature EQ, compressors, limiters, analog saturation characteristics, and even meters based on real Harrison consoles.
After successfully navigating the most tumultuous period in the music industry, Harrison continued to remain relevant throughout the 2010s by releasing the brand's most advanced film console to date and ramping up plug-in development.
The 2020s brought change to all corners of the audio industry, including major disruptions from a global pandemic, supply chain complications, and economic instability. To remain competitive, Harrison joined forces with Solid State Logic (SSL) under the Audiotonix Group in 2023, allowing the brand to release its first new console in a decade and launch a line of 500 Series modules.
Harrison Audio introduces MPC5 film console and Sony Pictures becomes an early adopter
The latest Harrison Motion Picture Console introduced object-based mixing capabilities compatible with cutting-edge immersive audio formats such as Dolby Atmos and Auro3D. The MPC5 also featured a new Trion-based control surface with touch-sensitive knobs and improved motorized joysticks for surround panning.
Harrison Audio introduces AVA plug-ins
Branching further into the software market, Harrison created the AVA plug-in range to make its most popular audio processing tools available to engineers working in any DAW. The first offering was the AVA LegacyQ (now Legacy EQ), which emulated Harrison’s famous digitally-controlled analog console EQs. Today, AVA is just one of Harrison’s four plug-in collections, including the Studio, Post, and XT lines.
Harrison Audio introduces MPC Channel Strip plug-in
With channel strip plug-ins becoming a popular all-purpose tool for in-the-box mixing, Harrison decided to recreate the beloved Motion Picture Console in plug-in form. The MPC Channel Strip combines six essential processors for post-production work in a reconfigurable window with custom layouts for popular control surfaces.
Solid State Logic acquires Harrison Audio
Legendary British console brand Solid State Logic (SSL) formally acquired Harrison Audio in 2022, bringing the company under the umbrella of the Audiotonix Group alongside Allen & Heath, CalRec, DiGiCo, KLANG Technologies, Sound Devices, and Slate Digital. The merger provided Harrison with increased resources for product development and made select Harrison plug-ins available as part of the SSL Complete subscription service.
Harrison Audio introduces 32Classic console
With the backing of SSL and Audiotonix, Harrison Audio launched its first new console in a decade: the Harrison 32Classic. A spiritual successor to the legendary 1970s 32-Series consoles, the 32Classic emphasizes analog character while providing hybrid flexibility and DAW control for modern workflows.
Harrison introduces 500 Series modules
Making a bold debut in the crowded 500 Series market, Harrison simultaneously announced three modules at the 2024 Winter NAMM Show. The 32Cpre+ microphone preamp features a Jensen transformer and signature Harrison filters, the MR3eq is a flexible three-band parametric equalizer, and Comp is a classic feed-forward VCA compressor with program-dependent attack.
iCon Pro Audio and Harrison introduce 32Ci audio interface
Also in 2024, iCon Pro Audio released the Harrison/iCon 32Ci, a 12-in/12-out USB-C audio interface with premium preamps and analog filters derived from Harrison’s legendary 32-Series consoles.
Between the success of the 32Classic console, the new 500 Series modules, and the latest Mixbus 10 DAW, Harrison Audio continues to remain relevant in the ever-changing pro audio industry. And the Harrison legacy certainly hasn’t been forgotten—in fact, the classic Harrison SeriesTen console was recently inducted into the NAMM TEC Awards TECnology Hall of Fame.
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