Late last week, an especially exciting listing hit the pro-audio pages of Reverb: a 1975 API 3224 recording console. It's not just any vintage API recording console, however—this one comes from A&M Records, is finished in seafoam green, and was previously owned by Herb Alpert.
According to the listing, this special console was made for A&M and was custom powder coated and screen printed in the still bright and eye-catching seafoam green. It started its life in A&M's Studio B before being moved upstairs to Herb Alpert's private studio.
The board was later decommissioned in 1994 and then stored at Alpert's foundation before it was sold to its current owner in 2007. The new owner made some upgrades, and in 2010, its VCA system was bypassed in favor of newly installed analog faders—a circuit designed by Steve Firlotte of Inward Connections and implemented by Kevin Leonard. As the owner says, "Now this console is nearly silent with all 32 faders up! Makes for some magical summing!"
The seller assures that everything is in working order and that no parts are missing from the console. Some of the API 3224's features include:
- 32 - Input Channels
- 24 - Monitor Channels
- 4 - Mono Echo Return Modules
- 4 - Monitor Busses
- 16 - SubMasters
- Quad Panning on all channels
- 26 - 550A EQ modules
- 6 - 550 EQ modules
- 28 - 912B Mic Pre Amps
- 4 - 912C Mic Pre Amps
- 4 - 525 Compressors
- 1 - 575 Oscillator Unit
The Herb Alpert-owned API console is currently listed for $100,000 and requires a local pickup from West Hills, California. Check out the full listing here.