Sweetwater Studios Spotlight – Yesterday and Today

Sweetwater’s studio and recording roots are imperative to the Sweetwater Studios story. Yet, as with any seed you plant, growth is unpredictably beautiful, and the fruits that blossom can exceed your wildest expectations. That’s what Sweetwater Studios does best: inspire musicians to forge new paths and summit daring artistic heights.

Sweetwater Studios – Past and Present

Before Sweetwater founder Chuck Surack opened his doors to the world of retail, he’d outfitted a Volkswagen bus to serve as a mobile recording studio. While traveling from place to place and meeting musicians of countless creeds, a surprisingly simple thought occurred: why not help these people hone their craft? Why start at the end of a musical journey when you can support it in its entirety? This dedication to creative enrichment is essential to the DNA of Sweetwater Studios, tapping into a wealth of industry-leading expertise from all over the map.

When entering any studio, artists often ask, “Can you do this? Is it possible to do that?” Even the most renowned recording spaces can come up short, but the answer at Sweetwater Studios is always yes. Need a special cable? They almost certainly have it, but in the rare instance they don’t, one of their many highly skilled repair shop craftspeople can make it for you. What if something’s up with your guitar, or maybe you want it Plek’d? Sweetwater’s luthiers will take care of anything you need, from basic setups to complete repairs and specialized modifications. In fact, guitar virtuoso Aaron Marshall made a one-day emergency pit stop at Sweetwater during his 2023 national tour for exclusive work on his armada of axes.

Aaron Marshall in Sweetwater Studio A Photo Credit: Mike DeMellia

But this expertise isn’t a one-way street — an all-too-common reality with most studios. Chief Engineer, Producer, and Mixer Shawn Dealey’s illustrious pre–Sweetwater Studios career saw him touring the world with international acts like Avril Lavigne, the Goo Goo Dolls, and Counting Crows, taking on multiple engineering and mixing roles, in addition to his robust experience running a studio of his own. Now, he regularly hosts Workshops that are open to everyone, covering basic mixing to his boundary-pushing work with Dolby Atmos. In the same vein, Sweetwater Studios hosts their Masterclass series of events that put you in the room with the industry’s leading studio heavyweights. Interactivity is a core tenet of the Sweetwater Studios experience, getting hands-on with sound and supplying musicians with the gear, knowledge, and opportunities to pursue any idea, no matter how grand, working at the speed of your creativity.

It All Began in a VW Bus

Spending part of the 1970s running a mobile studio out of his Volkswagen bus showed Chuck Surack the importance of connection. As a musician himself, Chuck understood that creating and recording music were two distinct processes that, while not mutually exclusive, faced different environmental requirements. So, why not bring the studio to the musician and support them where they’re most creatively at home? Today, Sweetwater Studios does exactly that: supply artists with all the resources they could ever need to realize their vision. And this isn’t limited to gear or recording rooms, as the nearby full-service diner, comprehensive fitness facilities, on-site repair shop, music store, and vendor representatives give musicians direct access to anything they need to support their craft, allowing them to focus on what matters most: the music.

Cutting-edge Gear

Sweetwater Studio A featuring Rupert Neve Designs 5088 analog console Photo Credit: Colt Capperune

Putting knowledge and expertise into practice makes the difference between a mediocre record and one that soars far above its sonic peers. Sweetwater Studios’ diverse staff operates from a standpoint that puts sound and concept first, supplying the tools needed to bring an idea to life from a versatile array of world-class gear and three impeccably outfitted recording rooms. A Rupert Neve Designs 5088 32-channel analog mixing console serves as the central nervous system of Studio A — the flagship space and ultimate creative sandbox — with Solid State Logic, Universal Audio, and API being just a handful of names that power the arsenal of outboard gear. Vintage Fender, Hammond, Yamaha, and Wurlitzer keys are among the studio’s lauded classics, serving as a stark and intriguing contrast to the state-of-the-art appointments found in Studios B and C — powerful spaces purpose-built for mixing in Dolby Atmos, impressing Dolby themselves with their groundbreaking, detailed designs.

Sweetwater Studio B, Dolby Atmos Suite featuring PMC monitors Photo Credit: Lynn Fuston

Sweetwater Studio C, Dolby Atmos Suite featuring Focal monitors Photo Credit: Lynn Fuston

Workshops and Masterclasses

Though similar, these two unique services continue to enrich the Sweetwater Studios spirit of inspiring and educating through inclusive, hands-on collaboration with masters of their craft, and they are open to anyone. With the Masterclasses, industry titans provide an intimate inside look at their respective artistic processes, lifting the veil to inform and excite the next generation of music makers. Engineers like Michael Brauer and Chris Lord-Alge spare no effort in fostering an atmosphere that’s personally and creatively invigorating: the former memorized over 30 names and faces for a recent class, and the latter requested attendees submit tracks for him to mix in real time as part of the experience. Sweetwater Studios engineers Shawn Dealey and Jason Peets learn from these masters as well, integrating new techniques and ideas when working with artists in the studio. Shawn himself takes the helm of the Workshops, offering in-depth insights and direct experience with a host of studio and recording processes. All you need is a basic working knowledge of recording, and this invaluable information becomes applicable to virtually any workflow.

Mix engineer Chris Lord-Alge conducts a Recording Masterclass at Sweetwater. Photo Credit: Lynn Fuston

Recording Artists

No matter your style or genre, Sweetwater Studios is equipped and eager to empower artists to deliver their best performances; recently, Shawn mixed the Dolby Atmos tracks for Aja Monet’s when the poems do what they do (Grammy Award nominated for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album). Shawn has also forged a relationship with Ghostly International, a record label specializing in ambient, experimental, electronic, and avant-pop works. Label-mates Helios and Lusine were given the same caliber of Dolby Atmos–mixing treatment for their Espera and Long Light albums, respectively. Broadening the scope further, Animals as Leaders, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Mr. Big, Anthrax, Intervals, Jessica Lynn, and Gene Simmons comprise merely a few of the names who’ve utilized the near-limitless potential of the Sweetwater Studios sonic sandbox to explore their projects. Where Sweetwater Studios differentiates themselves from their peers is simple: an active desire to build up artists by supplementing them with what’s needed to strengthen themselves. Shawn’s work in the field and penchant for networking have generated an unorthodox yet awe-inducing landscape that gives musicians the comfort and support to branch out, try new things, and grow together, unwavering in their quest for the best.

The Future of Sweetwater Studios

As the multimode landscape of creating, recording, mixing, mastering, and consuming music continues its inevitable evolution, so does Sweetwater Studios. Their trailblazing work in developing their Dolby Atmos studios is anything but finished. Eyeing the future of multidimensional sound, the studio is diligently working to craft new avenues for efficiently getting music into the Dolby Atmos format, whether that’s through inventive technological decisions or demystifying the system through educational videos to get musicians up to speed. Critical to the studio’s expanding foray into diversified cultural and artistic spaces is studio general manager Samantha Hunter, whose second of many hats bears the title of Senior Manager of Artist Relations & Campus Productions. Weaving these roles together, she can forge, build, and nurture music-industry relationships to fuel creative expansion for both Sweetwater Studios and the broader company, resulting in a mutually beneficial pattern of growth that reinforces both fronts as new vectors of inspiration are formed and discovered.

L to R: Senior Manager of Artist Relations & Campus Productions Samantha Hunter, Producer/Engineer/Mixer Jason Peets, Producer/Chief Engineer/Mixer Shawn Dealey, and Studio Operations Manager Julie Doust in the spacious environment of Sweetwater’s Studio A Photo Credit: Tom Edwards

Sweet Gear? We Have Lots!

Backing from the larger Sweetwater enterprise means the latest and greatest gear is available at nearly any time, but nobody there is “keeping up with the Joneses.” The symbiotic relationship between Sweetwater Studios and the Sweetwater Music Store allows Shawn to interface with vendor reps to help each other more fully understand what’s happening in studio environments, how gear gets used, identify pain points, and improve everyone’s relationship with their sound. Vendors can then take this information to Sweetwater’s Sales Engineers, writing staff, and content creators to produce a holistic understanding of gear in motion, supplying artists with a comprehensive understanding of their gear and its capabilities, empowering themselves and the studio to take creativity to its furthest reaches. To provide such uncompromising support is in their DNA. It always has been. And as the future unfolds, so do the branches of infinite potential continue to grow.

Canuck in Chief – Shawn Dealey Talks Recording, Touring, and Gear

Shawn Dealey’s passionate approach to audio surfaced at an early age, starting his career in the music industry at 16. Preceding this revelation as a young Manitoba lad, Shawn attempted to engage with activities like hockey, but, as he puts it, “team sports just weren’t for [him].” Don’t misunderstand: Shawn’s unbridled perseverance as a team player has been imperative to his multidimensional growth. It’s something he’s worn proudly on his sleeve since first learning the fundamentals in a high school music production class. Destined for music, Shawn built his first commercial studio in 2005, opening Prairie Recording Company to national acclaim and recognition throughout the Canadian music industry. This paved the way for a life on the road, touring with international artists across more than 49 countries before turning 20 years old. In absorbing every ounce of expertise from world-class artists, engineers, and industry pros throughout his globe-trotting career, Shawn excelled in his dual capacities as both a backline technician and playback engineer. By 2009, he’d shifted to mixing front of house, with an ear for detail and a reputation that preceded him, leading to extensive work with Counting Crows, mixing and engineering on the road, and co-producing 2012’s Underwater Sunshine. Sweetwater Studios now serves as Shawn’s home base, located in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he provides an enduring stream of uncompromising quality to engineering, mixing, and recording, redefining the boundaries of Dolby Atmos through relentless innovation and an unwavering dedication to his craft.

Reach Out to Sweetwater Studios

No matter where you want to go in your recording and performing career — making records or making videos or releasing your music in immersive formats — the Sweetwater Studios team is ready to help make your dreams come true. Reach out and let us help you achieve your goals.

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