SOS Technical Editor gets an exclusive first look
Hardware > Mixer
Just before Christmas Bruno Wynants of Interphase Audio, drove his car from Belgium all the way to the Sound On Sound headquarters near Cambridge. Squeezed into the back was an eight-channels-plus-masters prototype of his company's new large-format mixing console, and we were fortunate enough to enjoy an exclusive first hands-on look at this impressive and imposing new design, called the Ark.
Although the name is carried over from an earlier joint venture with Malcolm Toft of Ocean Audio (who has now retired from the audio industry), everything else about the Ark is brand new and designed from the ground up by Bruno together with the highly regarded British pro-audio designer, Allan Bradford (who also came along to discuss the design with us). Although better known for his countless outboard equipment designs, Allan has been toying with innovative ideas for a full console for many years, and his partnership with Bruno to build the Ark has finally allowed these to come to fruition. Work started on the console design in 2016 and it has taken around 18-months to develop the architecture and detailed circuit designs to the point of a fully working production console - and it's all hand-built in the EU.
The Ark is a fully modular and configurable in-line multitrack recording console, optimised for modern workflows and production requirements and, although it is a serious investment, the cost is actually considerably lower than might normally be expected of a console with this build quality, styling, feature set, flexibility, technical performance, and sound quality.
Discrete Class-A circuitry is used throughout, running on 48V supply rails to maximise headroom, and with symmetrically balanced mix-buses capable of accommodating up to 128 audio channels. The construction is based on separate mechanical buckets holding either eight input channels, eight sub-groups, or the master section, and a console can be expanded at any time if required. There are also options for a double-wide producer desk and an integral patch-bay.
Each bay accommodates five separate module sections, angled with increasing slopes from the faders to the meters. The middle two of these sections can be specified to accommodate built-in 500-series racks (with compatibility for the 51x format, too), if required, each section accommodating 16 modules. Although physically housed in line with the channel strips, the audio I/O for these modules is kept separate from the console channel strip's dual signal paths, and terminated on D-sub connectors on the rear panel for patching as required.
The console's meter-bridge carries illuminated VU meters for the channels and main outputs, and below these are slots for three variations of input module. The standard IP111 module accepts a mic-line input and a separate DAW return, each feeding the two in-line signal paths through the channel strip (Small Fader and Large Fader). This module also includes direct output controls and bus-routing facilities (with routing to eight sub-groups and two stereo main outputs).
Alternatively, the IP115 input module replaces the mic preamp with a second line or group input allowing it to serves as a group master channel, if required, while the IP125 input module option is configured for stereo line sources and may be used for stereo FX returns, for example.
The middle section of the console can either house dual 500-series slots, or the IP211 four-band inductive EQ section. This module is equipped with four short faders to change the amount of boost/cut in each band - reminiscent of the classic Trident A-series consoles - and also includes adjustable high- and low-pass filters plus a swing' or tilt' EQ, with each separate section being switchable into the Small or Large Fader paths as required.
Moving down to the lower section, two more modules options are available. The standard IP311 module provides controls for four mono and two stereo aux sends, with individual pre/post switching. Expanding the console's versatility considerably, these aux sends can also be switched in pairs to between either signal path and to access the console's full complement of eight mono and four stereo aux busses. The various pan, mute, and solo facilities are also included for both signal paths, as well as the Small Fader. The alternative IP321 module complements the IP125 stereo input module in providing the appropriate aux bus sends and stereo balance/pan controls.
Bringing up the bottom of the channel strip are the fader modules, with either eight mono (IP401) or eight stereo (IP421) manual faders. However, equivalent modules with fully motorised and automated faders are currently under development.
Moving on to the master section, the lower part of the bay accommodates a very comprehensive monitoring system with support for stereo, 2.1, 5.1, and 7.1 monitoring arrays, plus two artist cue systems, plentiful external monitoring inputs, and talkback facilities. There are also two large master faders and a control to adjust the level of illumination for all of the console's buttons and indicators to suit different working environments and preferences, which is a very nice touch! An optional DAW transport control panel can also be installed below the monitoring panel if required.
As with the input channel bays, the centre of the master section bay can accommodate 16 more 500-series modules, if required, while the upper section contains the bus master controls for the eight sub-groups and the 16 aux sends while six VU meters are provided for the two main stereo outputs, plus the (stereo) solo monitoring bus.
An external rack-mounting power supply is connected at the rear of the console, along with a second separate supply to power any bays fitted with 500-series
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
06/12/2025
In a live broadcast from the Reagan National Defense Forum, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher Kubasik joined Morgan Brennan on CNBCs Closing Bell: Overtime. Ku...
06/12/2025
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. A new survey from Pixitmedia by Datacore revealed a major shift in the Media & Entertainment industry in media archiving, with 85% of resp...
06/12/2025
HACKENSACK, N.J. LiveU has announced that the national public broadcaster Czech Television has completed one of the largest LiveU live production deployments fo...
06/12/2025
NEW YORK The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) presented the Excellence in Production Technology Emmy Award to NASA+ and Dr. Tom Leight...
05/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nati...
05/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Veritone's Sean King on the Power of Mining Video, Audio DataThe company's Data Refinery offers users total control and governance over da...
05/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Inside the Nashville Predators' Unified, Flexible, Sca...
05/12/2025
Netflix Reaches Agreement To Acquire Warner Bros. Following Planned WBD SplitThe deal does not include WBDs sports assets like TNT Sports (US, UK, LatAm), Euros...
05/12/2025
FOX Sports Returns to Indianapolis for Primetime Broadcast of Big Ten Championsh...
05/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Digital Engagement & Monetization Workshop Tackles the ...
05/12/2025
Atlanta United Lights Up New Emory Healthcare Studio With First Live Broadcast f...
05/12/2025
As Messi Takes the Pitch, MLS, Apple, NEP Roll Out Largest MLS Cup Production Ev...
05/12/2025
ESPN Enters College Football's Most Intense Month With Elevated Workflows fo...
05/12/2025
It's about that time! Awards season is in full swing, and the Film Independe...
05/12/2025
Every year, Spotify Wrapped offers a personalized look back at the audio that defined your year. It's a snapshot of your listening habits, designed to tell ...
05/12/2025
In 2025, Spotify's EQUAL, GLOW, and RADAR programs celebrated women, LGBTQIA , and emerging artists who turned moments into milestones. From breaking record...
05/12/2025
In our latest blog, we explain how Wi-Fi 7 rollouts can drive consumer loyalty with value-add services such as consumer cybersecurity. We also explore how this ...
05/12/2025
LOS ANGELES Netflix announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsens Gracenote has launched Gracenote Content Connect, a new ad platform that provides agencies, brands, supply-side platforms (SSPs) and demand-si...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK In an most important update to the workings of deal-based programmatic advertising, IAB Tech Lab has released version 1.0 of its Deals API for public c...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Pass the turkey. Pass the stuffing. Pass the cranberry sauce. All are common requests of Americans celebrating Thanksgiving Day with family and f...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. Netflix announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has approved AT&T's $1.02 billion acquisition of spectrum from UScellular in a decision that was issued sho...
05/12/2025
The Best Coldplay Songs: 21 Tracks That Shoot for the Stars From Yellow to Viva La Vida, Fix You to Paradise, this playlist goes back to the start.
December ...
05/12/2025
Zafris Lecture Series Brings Nabil Ayers to Berklee The 32nd annual James G. Zafris Distinguished Lecture series was held on Thursday, November 13, with guest...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the First Look for Land of Sin' - Premier...
05/12/2025
Introducing New Perks to Help You Get Even More from LinkedIn Premium Published on Dec 5, 2025 Categories: Company News, Product News
LinkedIn Corporate Co...
05/12/2025
Friday 5 December 2025
A new Game of Thrones Tale: Official trailer for Sky Exc...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Don Lee, Lee Jin-uk, and Lalisa Manobal to Star in Netflix Act...
05/12/2025
Tis the season of giving once again and this year we've taken our Give Back Fridays' concept and turned it on its head.
In the autumn we were approach...
05/12/2025
Brayden Gogis doesn't remember a time when he wasn't completely fixated on games in all forms. In preschool, when they asked us to dress up as what we ...
05/12/2025
The Grinch steals the spotlight as the theme for The Late Late Toy Show 2025
Tune in tonight at 9:35pm on RT One and worldwide on RT Player
#LateLateToyShow...
05/12/2025
RT Announces New Presenters of Flagship News Programmes
New RT Six One News co-presenter Tommy Meskill
Sarah McInerney & Justin McCarthy join Morning Ir...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & ...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir AJA Ki Pro Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & just:in linux
More Details:Starting with version 5.5, both just:in mac pro and just:in linux sol...
04/12/2025
Wangu Kanuri from Kenya and Godwin Asediba from Ghana are two of this years finalists for Thomsons Young Journalist of the Year Award. The pair are runners-up i...
04/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: ProximaVision's Claudio Lisman on Why Tethered Drones Could Be...
04/12/2025
SVG Campus Shot Callers: Imry Halevi, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Co...
04/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: LiveU Lightweight Sports Production: A Step Change in Spor...
04/12/2025
London to Riyadh: DAZN brings the boxing glamour to new production levels for Be...
04/12/2025
Analysis: Paramount bets on the battering ram' with Champions League play By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 10:12
Print ...
04/12/2025
Space City Home Network Launches SCHN DTC App for Astros and RocketsThe Rockets and Astros were previously the lone NBA and MLB teams without a DTC appBy Jason...
04/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Content Workflows Workshop Spotlights Evolution of Spor...
04/12/2025
New Sponsor Spotlight: Geotech's Patrick Wambold On the Unreal Engine Revolu...
04/12/2025
Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nationally and RegionallyBy Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Thursday, December 4, 2025 - 1:52 pm
Print This Sto...
04/12/2025
(L-R) Rebecca Lichtenfeld, Mohammadreza Eyni, Sara Khaki, and Judith Helfand att...
SOS Technical Editor gets an exclusive first look
