Customer Spotlight: ProVibe Studio, Budapest
L to R: Blanka Bolyki (Operations Manager), György Bolyki (CEO, engineer, musician), Tamás Bolyki (Studio Manager, engineer, musician)
Hello! Can you please tell us a bit about your studio?
The ProVibe studio in Budapest was built in the middle of a quiet forest in 1980. Its four recording rooms were equipped with perfect acoustics and the most cutting edge technology of the time, and thanks to continuous development it has become the best equipped studio in Middle-Europe.
Then in 2023 we took over its operation through our family business and since then we’ve been working together with excellent sound engineers from all over Europe. We’re a family of musicians, proudly representing multiple generations of professionals trained in classical music and jazz. Together our experience amounts to thousands of concerts in the concert halls and festivals of Europe, USA and Asia.
Do you specialize in any particular style of music, or any particular part of the music creation process?
Our work is divided about evenly between pop/rock, jazz and classical music. For our classical musician guests we offer a Steinway & Sons Model D grand piano which is a popular instrument for recordings. We offer all the usual formats of audio recording as well as 40 track DSD and 24 track tape recording. We usually take on mixing-mastering and producing tasks, but we are happy to provide arranging (pop/rock) and artistic management (classical) services as well on demand.
Do you get a lot of international bookings, or mostly Hungarian artists?
We receive commissions from all around the world; this year we had the opportunity to work on projects from Germany, Italy, Austria, France, Australia, Romania, Croatia, Serbia, Slovakia and Hungary. Our clientele includes Al DiMeola, Joe Zawinul Syndicate, Crippled Black Phoenix, Pete Lockett, Lionel Loueke and Alegre Correa.
How did you first hear about Rupert Neve Designs?
We built our first studio back in 1998 in order to record our first a cappella album. We spent two days testing the preamps, EQs and compressors of the biggest manufacturers, and in the end we decided on Neve. Since the foundation of RND in 2005 we’ve been closely paying attention to their products and given their high quality, we replaced almost all of our previous equipment with RND products.
What RND equipment do you currently have in the studio?
We developed our own ideal sound profile which is best achieved with RND products. Our most important equipment for recording are: Shelford Channel (8 channels), 5211 (14 channels), 5059 Satellite (2 units) and MBT (2 units). These tools allow us to record jazz and classical music efficiently and fast, both on tape and in DSD. Our mastering chain begins with MBT and ends with the Portico II MBP. Through testing and researching the currently available pool of studio technology, we found this equipment combination to be the best for our vision in the ProVibe studio.
What makes your studio unique, and why would someone want to come work there?
The ProVibe studio is located in a forest on the outskirts of Budapest, providing a quiet and inspiring environment. It doesn’t have the usual gloomy studio vibe as every room is illuminated by sunlight. The recording halls are situated in such a way that the musicians in each room can see everyone else in the other halls, which is a favourite feature of ensembles.
We also have apartments in the building of the studio where we invite our clients to stay overnight between sessions. Due to the close proximity to the Party Capital of Europe, many prefer to spend their evenings visiting a club or a restaurant.
Last but not least, our services are competitively priced in the range of studios offering world class equipment: 300 Euro for 6 hour sessions, and 600 Euro for 12 hour sessions.
We warmly invite every fellow musician who wants to be inspired and create in the ProVibe studio, Budapest!
