FAQs

80 HERTZ Studios is an independent audio and video facility at The Sharp Project in Manchester, UK. It runs separate services, each with its own rooms and engineers: two ADR sound stages for film and television, one of which is also a Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 mix suite; two voice over studios; two high-end, multi-camera video podcast studios; recording studios with a 1,000 sq ft live room and 2-inch analogue tape; music mixing on a Neve Genesys Blue console; and world-class analogue mastering for music, online or attended. Audio restoration and tape-to-digital transfers are also offered.

80 HERTZ is at The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ, with free, secure on-site parking covered by CCTV. Central Park Metrolink stop is about a 10-minute walk away. By car the studio is about 10 minutes from Manchester city centre, about 15 minutes by taxi from Manchester Piccadilly station, and about 25 minutes from MediaCityUK, depending on traffic.

Email info@80hertz.com or call 0161 850 8088; podcast enquiries go to podcast@80hertz.com. Include the service, your preferred dates, session length, how many people will attend, and whether anyone will join remotely. ADR and voice over sessions are confirmed by your written confirmation with a purchase order number, podcast sessions when the 50 per cent deposit is paid, and other sessions with a Booking Confirmation signed by both sides. Mastering can be ordered and paid for online on the Online Mastering page.

Yes. Every ADR session at 80 HERTZ includes senior ADR mixer George Atkins, a Pro Tools engineer and a runner. Voice over and podcast sessions include an experienced engineer, with a runner on voice over sessions. Recording and mixing sessions include an engineer, and the live room can also be dry-hired with your own engineer. The Dolby Atmos suite can be booked with an in-house engineer or assistant, or on dry hire. All mastering is done by George Atkins.

Yes. ADR and voice over sessions at 80 HERTZ can be directed from anywhere over Source Connect Pro, SessionLink Pro, Zoom, CleanFeed, ipDTL or Source Nexus (and Microsoft Teams for voice over), with an HD video feed of the talent and a line test 24 hours beforehand. Podcast guests can join over Zoom, Teams, Riverside or ZenCast. Mixing and Dolby Atmos sessions can be attended remotely, and mastering can be ordered online with an optional live dial-in.

The 80 HERTZ office is open Monday to Friday 08:00–19:00, Saturday 10:00–17:00 and Sunday 11:00–17:00. Sessions can run 24/7 by arrangement, including evenings, weekends and overnight, which suits remote sessions with directors in North America or Asia. For ADR, voice over and mixing, time before 07:00 or after 19:00 is charged at overtime rates.

Yes. 80 HERTZ can hold a provisional booking, called a pencil, free of charge for 5 business days. Either side can release it at any time at no cost, and if another client asks for the same time, you are given 24 hours to confirm or release it.

It depends on the service. ADR and voice over: free to move or cancel with at least 2 business days’ written notice; 50 per cent of the session fee with less notice; 100 per cent with under 24 hours’ notice or for a no-show. Podcast sessions: no charge with more than 5 business days’ notice, and your deposit moves to a new date (one free reschedule) or is refunded in full if the slot is rebooked; 50 per cent of the session fee from 48 hours to 5 business days; 100 per cent under 48 hours or for a no-show. Recording, mixing and Dolby Atmos follow the same scale as podcasts, with one free reschedule per booking given at least 5 business days’ notice.

80 HERTZ is paid by BACS bank transfer or PayPal. Approved account clients pay within 30 days of invoice and receive their files at the end of the session; for other clients, any deposit and the balance are set out in the Booking Confirmation. Podcast bookings are confirmed by a 50 per cent deposit paid by BACS, with the balance due on the day before files are released. Online mastering is paid at checkout through PayPal, with a PayPal account or by card as a guest. Session rates are exclusive of VAT.

For ADR and voice over, upload picture, stems and cue sheets through your production’s own portal, such as Aspera or MediaShuttle; otherwise 80 HERTZ will send you a secure upload link from io@80hertz.com. For mastering, upload through the WeTransfer link on the mastering page after checkout. Podcast video is copied to your own SSD during the session, and audio-only podcasts are delivered by secure link. Large music sessions can be exchanged through the 80 HERTZ secure client FTP.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has full Part M disability access, a lift, accessible toilets and accessible parking on site, and the studios are wheelchair accessible throughout. Tell us about any access requirements before your session and reasonable adjustments will be made.

Tea, coffee and mineral water are complimentary throughout every session at 80 HERTZ. On weekdays The Sharp Project’s on-site café serves breakfast from 08:30 to 10:00 and lunch from 12:00 to 14:00, with coffee and cakes until 15:00, and Deliveroo delivers from many of Manchester’s city-centre restaurants. 80 HERTZ does not provide catering itself.

Yes. 80 HERTZ treats all project materials, scripts, picture files, talent details, and the fact that a session is taking place, as confidential, with confidentiality obligations lasting seven years. The studio is MediaSeal-approved for playing encrypted picture files, and makes no press release or public statement about a project without the client’s written approval.

Film and television clients include Warner Bros. Pictures, HBO, Netflix, Apple, Amazon, Sony Pictures, 20th Century Studios, Lionsgate, the BBC, Marvel Studios, The Walt Disney Studios and Amblin Entertainment. Voice over clients include Audible, Penguin Random House, NPR, M&C Saatchi, Saatchi & Saatchi, BBH, McCann and Hat Trick Productions. Podcast clients include Platform Media, for Fight Your Corner with Tony Bellew and The Good, The Bad & The Football. Music clients include The Courteeners, Anderson .Paak, GoGo Penguin, Lang Lang, Mammal Hands and Matthew Halsall. See the Clientele page.

80 HERTZ was founded in 2005 by George Atkins, a music producer and engineer who started the studio making records and designed and built the rooms himself. He is also the senior ADR mixer and mastering engineer, has more than 350 IMDb credits, received an Emmy nomination as ADR Mixer on The Last of Us Season 2 (HBO), and was part of the sound team that won the 2025 Music+Sound Award for Best Sound Design in a Series or Programme for Adolescence (Netflix).

Yes. Viewings are available by appointment; email info@80hertz.com to arrange one. Photos of the ADR stages, the Dolby Atmos suite, the podcast studios, the control rooms, the green room and reception are on the Gallery page, and every console, microphone, preamp, monitor and camera is on the Equipment page.

ADR stands for automated dialogue replacement, also called additional dialogue recording, post-sync or looping. It is the re-recording of an actor’s lines in a studio after filming, in sync with picture, when location sound is unusable because of noise or technical problems, or when the director wants a different performance. ADR is also used for off-screen lines, narration and walla (background crowd voices). 80 HERTZ records ADR on two dedicated sound stages in Manchester.

Yes. 80 HERTZ runs two dedicated ADR sound stages at The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ, built for film, television and streaming dialogue replacement; one of them is also the studio’s Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 suite. Every session includes a senior ADR mixer, a Pro Tools engineer and a runner, and directors can attend in person or direct remotely. The studio is about 10 minutes by car from Manchester city centre and about 25 minutes from MediaCityUK, depending on traffic, with free on-site parking.

Yes. 80 HERTZ in Manchester has two ADR sound stages and has recorded ADR for Warner Bros., Sony Pictures, HBO, Netflix, Apple, Amazon, Lionsgate, 20th Century Studios and the BBC. Productions book 80 HERTZ when an actor is based or filming in the north, while the director and dialogue editor stay in London, Los Angeles or elsewhere and run the session remotely over Source Connect Pro.

The session fee covers the ADR stage, senior ADR mixer George Atkins, a Pro Tools engineer and a runner who looks after the client and talent. Complimentary refreshments, Wi-Fi 6E and free secure parking are included, and sessions can run 24/7 by arrangement. Source Connect and Zoom dial-in charges are additional. Recording is at 24-bit/48 kHz WAV as standard, with deliverables sent after the session through the production’s portal or a secure link from 80 HERTZ.

The minimum ADR booking at 80 HERTZ is one hour.

George Atkins, founder and senior ADR mixer, with more than 350 IMDb credits across feature films, television and streaming. He received an Emmy nomination as ADR Mixer on The Last of Us Season 2 (HBO) and was part of the sound team that won the 2025 Music+Sound Award for Best Sound Design in a Series or Programme for Adolescence (Netflix). His credits include The BFG (Steven Spielberg), Masters of the Air (Apple TV+) and Boiling Point. Full credits are on IMDb.

ADR credits include The Last of Us Season 2 (HBO), Adolescence (Netflix), The BFG, Masters of the Air, Boiling Point, Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale, Steal, Game of Thrones Season 7, Bohemian Rhapsody, Ford v Ferrari, Men in Black: International, In the Heart of the Sea, Honey Boy, Ordinary Love, Gentleman Jack, Peaky Blinders, Black Mirror, Doctor Who, Derry Girls, Preacher, Vera and Cold Feet.

Yes. At 80 HERTZ the talent is on the ADR stage in Manchester while the director and dialogue editor can be anywhere in the world. Both stages have Source Connect Pro 3.9 X & 4 and SessionLink Pro, and Zoom, CleanFeed, ipDTL and Source Nexus are also supported. Remote attendees get an HD video feed of the talent from a dedicated iPad and a separate feed of production picture and sound on the same call, so everyone can see each other.

80 HERTZ prepares 24 hours ahead: picture, stems and cue sheets are downloaded and a free line test is run with the pairing studio. On the day, meeting links are sent out, the talent is cued in Manchester, and remote attendees see an HD feed of the talent alongside production picture and sound. Source Connect runs in stereo, with production sound, talent and talkback on channel 1 and LTC timecode on channel 2, so either studio can chase or drive the session. Takes are recorded locally at full quality and delivered after the session.

Either. 80 HERTZ can drive the session and send LTC timecode to the pairing studio so they hear takes in sync, as on Men in Black: International with the director in Los Angeles, or the remote studio can control transport over SessionLink Pro. Sync is by LTC; RTS sync is not available. A line test can be run 24 hours before the session.

Source Connect Pro 3.9 X & 4, SessionLink Pro, Zoom (with Zoom Pro accounts for each studio), CleanFeed, ipDTL and Source Nexus. The 80 HERTZ Source Connect ID is ‘80hertz’. Several simultaneous connections can run at once, for example a director on Zoom and a dialogue editor on Source Connect.

80 HERTZ cues talent with the Emmy award-winning EdiPrompt and EdiCue from Sounds In Sync: on-screen text prompts, swipes and streamers, countdown beeps and live record and playback status, shown on time-aligned, low-latency 1080p screens. Picture is projected on a 174-inch HD screen.

If you are supplying EdiPrompt cues, check EdiCue is up to date and send actor and director PDF sheets with the MIDI file for each character. If you are not using EdiCue, send a Pro Tools spotting session (.ptx) or a plain text (.txt) cue file per character. Custom cue-sheet builds may carry a small setup fee. Please also give the Pro Tools session start time and frame rate; 80 HERTZ defaults to a session start of 00:00:00:00.

Picture needs burnt-in timecode (BITC) from the first frame. 80 HERTZ prefers uncompressed DNxHD; Apple ProRes 422, DNx36, DV25 and DV50 are also accepted. H.264 is not ideal and playback will need to be checked before the session.

Either as a split audio track embedded in the picture, with guide sync sound panned fully left and combined music and effects panned fully right, or as isolated WAV stems of sync sound, temp ADR, production music and effects.

Ideally 24 hours before the session, so 80 HERTZ can load picture, stems and cue sheets and schedule the line test with the pairing studio. Upload through your production’s own portal, such as Aspera or MediaShuttle, or 80 HERTZ will send you a secure upload link from io@80hertz.com.

24-bit/48 kHz stereo WAV as standard, with the boom on the left channel and the clip or lavalier mic on the right. 96 kHz and 192 kHz are available, and two-, three- or four-microphone simultaneous records are possible.

Boom: 2× Schoeps CMIT 5U, 4× Schoeps CMC6 MK41, 8× Schoeps CMC6 MK5 (four stereo matched pairs), Sennheiser MKH 40, MKH 50, MKH 60, MKH 8050 and MKH 416, and DPA 4017B. Clip and lavalier: 2× Sanken COS-11D, 3× DPA 4060 and 2× DPA 6060. Voice: Neumann U87, U67, M49v, U47 FET and TLM 170, and Manley Reference Cardioid. Ancillary: Shure SM7, SM58 and SM57, AKG 414, Sony C48 and AEA R44. Preamps are four channels of Buzz Audio MA2.2b, into a Lynx Aurora Dante 16-channel interface with SD-card backup recording. See the Equipment page.

Usually, yes. The 80 HERTZ ADR microphone collection includes the boom and lavalier models most often used by production sound crews, including the Schoeps CMIT 5U and CMC6 MK41, Sennheiser MKH 416, MKH 50 and MKH 60, Sanken COS-11D and DPA lavaliers, so ADR can be recorded on the same models as the location dialogue, with boom and lav captured together.

Both 80 HERTZ ADR stages have an extremely low noise floor and a balanced, broadband dead acoustic, built for clean dialogue capture. The studio noise rating is NR17, and the rooms are air-conditioned.

Yes. One of the two 80 HERTZ ADR stages is also the Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 suite, calibrated on site by a Dolby engineer to Home Entertainment specification.

Promptly after the session, through the production’s own portal, such as Aspera or MediaShuttle, or by a secure link sent from io@80hertz.com.

Yes. 80 HERTZ is a MediaSeal-approved facility for playing encrypted picture where a production’s security protocols require it. All project materials, scripts, picture files, talent details and the existence of a session are treated as confidential, and critical systems keep running through power cuts.

Yes. 80 HERTZ runs group ADR and walla sessions alongside principal ADR, recorded with eight Schoeps CMC6 MK5 microphones in four stereo matched pairs.

The client. Before recording, the production must obtain all consents needed from talent and performers, including UK GDPR requirements and any Equity or other union agreements.

Yes. As well as film and television, 80 HERTZ records ADR for animation and games, and has recorded ADR for the Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds video Black Star Dancing.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ ADR technical specification, covering picture and audio formats, cueing, Source Connect setup and microphones, is sent with your Booking Confirmation and is available on request from info@80hertz.com.

Yes. 80 HERTZ runs two dedicated voice over recording studios at The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ, for commercials, voice to picture, narration, audiobooks and broadcast. The rooms have a noise rating of NR17, every session includes an engineer and a runner, and producers can direct remotely from anywhere. Free secure parking is on site.

80 HERTZ records voice over for TV, radio and online commercials, voice to picture, documentary, corporate and e-learning narration, audiobooks, animation and game character voices, radio and broadcast interviews, and PR recordings. The studios are also used for remote expert interviews for television and radio.

Every 80 HERTZ voice over session includes the studio, an experienced engineer, the microphone collection and a runner who looks after the client and talent. Complimentary tea, coffee and water and free secure parking are included. Remote connections are set up and line-tested before the day.

The voice artist records at 80 HERTZ in Manchester while the client, producer or director listens and directs from anywhere over Source Connect Pro, Zoom or Teams. A free line test with the pairing studio is run 24 hours before. Remote attendees get an HD video feed of the talent and, for voice to picture, a separate feed of the picture and sound. Audio is recorded locally at full broadcast quality, and the uncompressed WAV files are delivered by secure link after the session, replacing the down-the-line monitor audio.

Yes. 80 HERTZ connects over Source Connect Pro to any similarly equipped studio or broadcaster worldwide, and Zoom and Microsoft Teams are available for clients without Source Connect. The director talks to the talent live on talkback. For example, the voice over for an O2 TV campaign was recorded at 80 HERTZ with O2’s production team directing from London over Source Connect.

Source Connect Pro (Source Connect ID ‘80hertz’), SessionLink Pro, Zoom (with Zoom Pro accounts for each studio), Microsoft Teams, CleanFeed, ipDTL and Source Nexus. Several connections can run at once.

Voice: 4× Neumann M49v, Neumann U87, U67, U47 FET and TLM 170, and Manley Reference Cardioid. Ribbon: AEA R44 and R84, Royer R122, Coles 4038 and Extinct Audio BM9. Boom: Schoeps CMIT 5U and CMC6 MK41, Sennheiser MKH 40, 50, 60, 8050 and 416. Also Shure SM7, AKG 414, Sony C48 and Sennheiser MD441-U. The voice chain runs through Buzz Audio MA2.2b preamps, a Hazelrigg Industries VLC1 and a Hazelrigg Industries VNE compressor into a Lynx Aurora Dante 16-channel interface with SD-card backup recording. The engineer chooses the microphone to suit each voice.

Yes. 80 HERTZ records voice to picture with picture played in sync in Pro Tools. Picture needs burnt-in timecode; uncompressed DNxHD is preferred, and ProRes 422, DNx36, DV25 and DV50 are accepted (H.264 needs a playback check). Guide audio can be a split track, with the guide VO panned left and sync sound, music and effects panned right, or isolated WAV stems.

As PDFs, to avoid formatting problems, marked up with timecode for voice to picture. Please also give the picture frame rate and, if needed, the preferred Pro Tools session start time. Ideally send everything 24 hours before the session, through your production’s portal or a secure upload link from io@80hertz.com.

Yes. 80 HERTZ records audiobook narration and also edits, proofs and records pick-ups, delivering finished files to ACX and Audible specification. Publishing clients include Audible and Penguin Random House.

Yes. 80 HERTZ records animation and game character voices in its voice over studios, with multi-microphone records and voice to picture available.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ voice over studios are used for down-the-line interviews: the contributor sits in the studio in Manchester and connects to the broadcaster over Source Connect Pro, ipDTL, CleanFeed or Zoom. Broadcast clients include the BBC and NPR.

Both 80 HERTZ voice over studios are rated NR17 on the noise rating curve, treated specifically for voice with no echo or room tone, and air-conditioned.

24-bit/48 kHz broadcast WAV unless the client asks otherwise; 96 kHz and 192 kHz are available, and two-, three- or four-microphone simultaneous records are possible.

Yes. Voice artists can book an 80 HERTZ studio and engineer to record for a client who connects remotely over Source Connect Pro, Zoom, Teams, ipDTL or CleanFeed. 80 HERTZ sets up the connection and runs the line test with the client beforehand.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ voice over technical specification, covering picture and audio formats, scripts, Source Connect setup and microphones, is sent with your Booking Confirmation and is available on request from info@80hertz.com.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has two video podcast studios at The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ. Each has four Blackmagic 6K cinema cameras with matched cine lenses, a full cinema lighting rig, broadcast microphones and its own vision switcher and recorders, and every session includes an engineer. Both rooms are acoustically treated for voice, with free secure parking on site.

Every podcast session at 80 HERTZ includes a dedicated engineer, four 6K cinema cameras with matched T1.5 cine lenses, 35+ cinema-grade lights, broadcast microphones, a large-format teleprompter, air conditioning, Wi-Fi 6E, complimentary tea, coffee and water, and free secure parking. Sessions record in Ultra HD (4K) or HD (1080p).

Studio A is 1,000 sq ft (10 m × 6 m × 5 m), seats up to six contributors and has its own soundproofed control room (7 m × 5 m) for producers and clients. Studio B is 6 m × 6 m × 2.5 m, seats up to four and suits more intimate formats; it is one large room, with the engineer and any producers working in the same space as the presenters. Each studio has its own four-camera rig, UHD switcher and 4K recorders, and both can run at the same time.

Up to six people in Studio A at 80 HERTZ, with producers and clients watching from its separate control room, and up to four in Studio B, with producers in the room. Remote guests can join either studio over Zoom, Teams, Riverside or ZenCast.

Each 80 HERTZ podcast studio runs four Blackmagic Studio 6K cameras with matched Samyang XEEN T1.5 cine primes (35 mm, 50 mm and 85 mm), synced by timecode through a Blackmagic ATEM vision switcher. Rokinon T1.5 cine primes (24, 35, 50 and 85 mm), a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K and an iFootage slider are also available.

80 HERTZ records in either, to suit your budget and where the content is going. Ultra HD (4K) gives more room to crop and reframe in the edit and suits YouTube and higher-end delivery; HD (1080p) is lighter on storage. For grading and 4K or 6K finishing, 6K Blackmagic RAW capture is available on the Ultra HD tier.

It depends on the technical format agreed when the session is booked. From a video session at 80 HERTZ you leave with master files from every camera in Ultra HD (4K) or HD (1080p), isolated WAV audio (48 kHz, 24-bit), editing proxies and a DaVinci Resolve project with the live-cut timeline. Everything carries time-of-day timecode, so every camera and audio file lines up, and your editor can relink from the proxies to the masters in one click. 4K DCI finishing deliverables and 6K Blackmagic RAW are available on request.

A USB-C or Thunderbolt SSD formatted exFAT with at least 500 GB free. Four cameras generate roughly 100–125 GB per hour in Ultra HD. Copying files to your drive happens within the booked session time, and you should check the files play correctly before you leave.

No. 80 HERTZ is a recording facility, not a storage or archive service. Once your files are handed over, on your drive or by link, 80 HERTZ deletes them from its systems, so check everything plays before you leave and keep your own backups.

Yes. Audio-only podcasts at 80 HERTZ are recorded as isolated 48 kHz/24-bit WAV files and delivered by secure online link.

Yes. Remote guests join 80 HERTZ podcast sessions over Zoom, Teams, Riverside or ZenCast and appear on a large HD screen in the studio. The studio camera feeds are patched into the call so remote guests see you at your best, and meeting links are sent before the session. Source Connect Pro, CleanFeed, ipDTL, SessionLink Pro and Source Nexus are available at extra cost by prior arrangement.

80 HERTZ records podcasts like a broadcaster, with no single point of failure. Every camera records Ultra HD masters to its own hardware recorder rather than a computer; a second, independent system records the live cut and editing proxies; audio is recorded three times to three separate devices; essential equipment runs through power cuts; and the leased-line fibre has automatic failover, so remote guests stay connected.

Eight Schoeps CMC6 MK5 microphones with pop shields serve both podcast studios, with 4× Neumann U87 or 3× Shure SM7B as alternatives, through Grace Design M108 preamps with DBX 160XT compression and Neve EQ on the way in. A far wider selection can be brought in from the 80 HERTZ recording studio microphone collection.

Each 80 HERTZ podcast set is lit with 35+ cinema-grade lights under CRMX wireless control, including Aputure STORM 400x and 80x fixtures with lanterns, Fresnels and soft boxes, Aputure INFINIBAR and Amaran RGB tubes, and Godox fixtures. Colour temperature and RGB colour can be set to create the look you want, and a Sekonic light meter and X-Rite ColorChecker keep the cameras matched.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ podcast sets are customisable, with different furniture, table layouts and RGB lighting looks, and you are welcome to bring your own branding, props or furniture. See the set options on the Gallery page.

Yes. Both 80 HERTZ podcast studios have a large-format teleprompter for scripted content, presentations and interviews. Send scripts as .rtf files to print@80hertz.com at least 24 hours before the session, each with a clear title and date and ideally under three minutes long.

Yes. In Studio A, a separate soundproofed control room (7 m × 5 m) lets producers and clients watch the cameras, listen to the mix and talk to the presenters’ headphones on talkback. Studio B is a single large room, so producers sit in the room with the presenters and engineer. Producers are welcome to arrive up to 30 minutes before the session start, subject to availability.

Lighting, microphone placement and camera alignment at 80 HERTZ typically take 30–45 minutes and happen within the booked session time. Sending your running order, guest list and any scripts in advance helps the session start on time.

Yes. Make-up and changing rooms at The Sharp Project can be booked by the full day; mention them when you book. Showers, a green room and a comfortable reception area are also available, and every room is air-conditioned.

Yes. 80 HERTZ offers podcast editing, priced according to the material, and every video session also leaves with a live-cut timeline in a DaVinci Resolve project so your own editor can start straight away.

Yes. Live-streaming from the 80 HERTZ podcast studios is available, priced according to the production; mention it when you ask for a quote.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ podcast studios are used for filmed interviews, documentary scenes, presentations and branded content as well as podcasts, with the same four-camera rig, lighting and engineer.

Yes. Studio A and Studio B at 80 HERTZ can run at the same time, for parallel productions or multi-show recording days.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ podcast studios have a 4K 55-inch LG screen with AirPlay and Chromecast for presentations or YouTube clips, which can also be recorded from HDMI. iPads, wired internet or Wi-Fi 6E, and black-and-white printing are available.

Podcasts recorded at 80 HERTZ include Fight Your Corner, the weekly boxing podcast hosted by Tony Bellew and Charlie Parsons, and The Good, The Bad & The Football with Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Paddy McGuinness, both produced by Platform Media, as well as the High Performance Podcast and podcast recordings delivered for BBC Sounds. 80 HERTZ holds a 4.8★ average on Google reviews.

Yes. 80 HERTZ at The Sharp Project, Manchester, has the 1,000 sq ft Jefferson Live Room with a 24 ft (7.3 m) ceiling and a natural acoustic, plus five further isolated recording areas with a dead acoustic. The live room is paired with a custom Neve Genesys Blue console, a 2-inch 24-track Otari tape machine and an extensive microphone collection including four Neumann M49v valve mics. George Atkins designed and built the studio for music recording, and it has been running for more than twenty years.

The Jefferson Live Room at 80 HERTZ is 1,000 sq ft with a 24 ft (7.3 m) ceiling. It takes chamber string or brass ensembles of up to 25 players, big bands, choirs and bands, and is also used for video shoots and live streams.

Yes, and it is how 80 HERTZ is designed to work. The band plays together in the live room as they would on stage, with guitar and bass amps isolated in separate booths. Because the instruments stay acoustically separate, mistakes can be fixed with drop-ins and parts can be balanced in the mix without spill, so an EP or album comes together faster and for less studio time than tracking one instrument at a time. Traditional overdub-based tracking is also available.

Yes. The Jefferson Live Room at 80 HERTZ takes ensembles of up to 25 players, with a Grace Design Decca tree mount and matched microphone pairs for ensemble recording. Past sessions include a 25-piece orchestra, the score for the animated feature StarDog and TurboCat, strings for Eliza Doolittle and The Brand New Heavies, and The Courteeners with strings.

A custom Neve Genesys Blue, hand-built in the UK, with 64 inputs and outputs over Dante interfacing with Pro Tools HDX, 24 channels of Neve mic/line preamps, 16 vintage 1084 EQ circuits and 8 88RS EQ circuits, 48-channel analogue summing, Encore fader automation, Neve Total Recall and DAW control of Pro Tools Ultimate HDX and Logic Pro.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has a 2-inch 24-track Otari MX-80 lined up for ATR tape, which records to tape and to Pro Tools at the same time, giving you the sound of tape with the convenience of digital editing. A half-inch Otari MTR-12 stereo master recorder completes a full analogue path from live room to LP.

Two Pro Tools Ultimate HDX systems on Apple Mac M4 Pro computers, each with Avid MTRX Studio and Sync X, plus Logic Pro and three Avid S1 control surfaces. Conversion is a Lynx Aurora(n) 32-channel converter and four StarNet ADA16s (64 inputs and outputs) over Dante, with a Lavry Gold AD-24-200 (Savitr) for tracking and mix prints, and Blackmagic UltraStudio 4K for picture.

The full 80 HERTZ microphone collection: AEA R44, 2× R84 and 2× R88 MK2; AKG 3× C414 ULS, C414 EB, 451 and D20; Audio-Technica ATM25; 2× Audix D6; Beyerdynamic 6× M160 and M201; 4× Blue Baby Bottle; Brauner Phantom; Coles 2× 4038 (matched) and 4040; Copperphone; DPA 3× 4011, 3× 4060, 2× 6060, 4017B, 4090 and 4099 cello mic; Electro-Voice RE20; 4× Extinct Audio BM9 (matched); Manley Reference Cardioid; 3× Mojave MA-1000 (matched); Neumann 4× M49v, 4× U87, 2× U67, 2× U47 FET, 3× TLM 170 (matched), TLM 103 and USM 69i stereo; Nordic Audio Labs NU-24K; Reslo ‘Beeb’; RØDE NT-SF1 ambisonic; Royer R122; 2× Sanken COS-11D; Schoeps 2× CMIT 5U, 4× CMC6 MK41 and 8× CMC6 MK5 (four matched pairs); Sennheiser 3× MKH 40, 2× MKH 50, MKH 60, MKH 8050, 2× MKH 416, MKH 806, 2× MD441-U, MD421 and e901; Shure 3× SM7B, 2× SM58 and 6× SM57; Sony C48; and a Yamaha Subkick. Stands include Latch Lake micKing booms and a Grace Design Decca tree.

Preamps: 24 channels of Neve on the Genesys Blue console, plus 3× D.W. Fearn VT2 (six channels), 2× Hazelrigg Industries VLC1, 2× Neve 1073 (500 series), 2× AMEK Neve 9098 with EQ, 4× LaChapelle 583s valve, 5× API 512c, 2× Buzz Audio MA2.2b with transformers, 2× Chandler Germanium, 2× AEA TRP MK3 and a TRP MK1, 2× Grace Design M108 with Dante, a Focusrite ISA 828, 2× AML ez1081, an Avedis MD7 and 2× Wes Audio Supercarrier II. Outboard: D.W. Fearn VT7 compressor, VT5 EQ, a custom VT5 EQ built for 80 HERTZ and VT4, Hazelrigg Industries VNE, Manley Massive Passive EQ and Vari-Mu compressor with HP sidechain, API 2500 bus compressor and 4× 550B EQ, Neve 33609J, Universal Audio 1176LN Rev E (CineMag), Tube-Tech CL 1B, 2× Rupert Neve Designs MBT, Empirical Labs Fatso (UBK mod), Valley People Dynamite (stereo) and 3× DBX 160XT with transformers.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has a Vox AC30, an Orange Rocker 30, a Fender Blues Junior and a vintage Marshall 4×12 cabinet; a 1977 Yamaha U3 upright piano, a Wurlitzer A200 electric piano and a 1960 Ludwig three-piece drum kit, with access to a celeste and a Rhodes Mk II; Sequential Prophet-10 and Roland SH-101 synths; pedals including a Fender Blender, Z-Vex Wooly Mammoth, Malekko B:assmaster, Boss flanger, DD-6 and MT-2, a DigiTech Whammy and a working Watkins Copicat; and Little Labs, Rupert Neve and Motown DIs and re-amp boxes.

Each player can set their own mix on HearBack OCTO personal mixers (10 available), and four KLANG Quelle immersive monitoring units are available, which work with in-ear monitors or the studio’s Beyerdynamic DT headphones. Musicians’ headphones are Beyerdynamic DT 770 and DT 252.

Yes. 80 HERTZ can film sessions with Blackmagic 6K cinema cameras and live-stream them, and offers photography for social media. Past examples include a live record and video shoot with Pieces of a Man in front of an invited audience of 20, and a Courteeners video shoot with strings.

Yes. Outside producers and engineers are welcome, and the live room can be dry-hired. For example, The Courteeners’ album More. Again. Forever. was produced by Joseph Cross and engineered at 80 HERTZ by George Atkins with Karl Sveinsson.

Recording and mixing credits at 80 HERTZ include The Courteeners, Anderson .Paak, GoGo Penguin, Mammal Hands, Lang Lang, New Order, DJ Shadow, Lily Allen, Willy Mason, Frightened Rabbit, Stealing Sheep, Jane Weaver, Rae Morris, Dwight Trible, the Aquarelle Guitar Quartet and the Back to the Future musical cast.

Yes. 80 HERTZ recorded the score for Sky’s series Das Boot, a five-piece 1940s jazz band tracked in the music studio, the orchestral score for the animated feature StarDog and TurboCat, and Aminé’s vocal for Universal’s The Secret Life of Pets 2.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has recorded Lang Lang, the Aquarelle Guitar Quartet with Craig Ogden and Lisa Friend, Tim Benjamin’s opera The Fire of Olympus, and a trio of theorbo, viola da gamba and harpsichord.

Yes. Sessions at 80 HERTZ range from a single vocal to a 25-piece ensemble; Aminé, for example, recorded his vocal in the control room on a Manley Reference Cardioid.

Yes. 80 HERTZ works with awareness of the Musicians’ Union and Equity agreements and recommended rates. Where you engage musicians, you are responsible for engaging them on the applicable MU terms and clearing performers’ consents; where 80 HERTZ engages musicians on your behalf, it does so on terms consistent with the MU agreements.

Yes. At 80 HERTZ you can track in the Jefferson Live Room, mix in stereo on the Neve Genesys Blue or in Dolby Atmos, and have the record mastered by George Atkins, without moving the project between studios.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has a Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 mix suite at The Sharp Project, Manchester, calibrated on site by a Dolby engineer to Home Entertainment (HE) specification. It is used for music, film and television, doubles as one of the studio’s two ADR stages, and is available with an in-house engineer or assistant, or on dry hire. MediaCityUK is about 25 minutes away, depending on traffic.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ suite is certified to Dolby’s 7.1.4 Home Entertainment specification. Final calibration to HE reference level, including sub alignment, bass management and speaker delay compensation, was completed on site by a Dolby engineer.

A Genelec GLM-managed 7.1.4 system of Genelec ‘Ones’: three 8351 coaxial monitors for left, centre and right; four 8341s on the surrounds (Ls, Rs, Lrs, Rrs); four 8340s on the overheads (Ltf, Rtf, Ltr, Rtr); and a Genelec 7380 sub-bass module for LFE, with the full array bass managed.

The Atmos suite runs entirely on Avid: Pro Tools Ultimate HDX with an Avid MTRX Studio interface and Avid Sync X, and the Dolby Atmos Renderer.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ Atmos suite is set up for immersive music mixing, with deliverables prepared for Apple Music spatial audio and the other major immersive platforms. The room is built to the Home Entertainment specification used by Apple Music, Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and HBO Max, so mixes translate reliably to headphones, soundbars, televisions and home cinemas.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ Atmos suite mixes film and television for streaming and broadcast to Home Entertainment specification, with deliverables prepared for the major platforms including Netflix and Disney+. Long-form projects can be block-booked.

No. The 80 HERTZ suite is certified by Dolby for Home Entertainment only, which covers streaming, broadcast, music and home-video releases. Theatrical Atmos mixes for cinema release need a dubbing stage certified to Dolby’s cinema specification.

Yes. 80 HERTZ produces stereo and binaural fold-downs from the Atmos master, so one mix session covers immersive, headphone and stereo delivery.

Yes. The 80 HERTZ Atmos suite can be dry-hired by the day, the week or as a block booking for long-form television and film. Bring your own engineer, sessions and laptop, or book George Atkins as engineer, or an assistant.

Yes. 80 HERTZ mixes music in stereo on a custom Neve Genesys Blue console, hand-built in the UK, with 48-channel analogue summing, Encore fader automation and Neve Total Recall, alongside Pro Tools Ultimate HDX and a rack of analogue outboard. Mixes are made by George Atkins, and you can attend in Manchester or listen in remotely.

The 80 HERTZ Neve Genesys Blue has 24 channels of mic/line preamps plus 24 channels of DAW mixing, 48-channel analogue summing, 64 inputs and outputs over Dante interfacing with Pro Tools HDX, eight auxiliary and eight group buses, 16 Neve 1084 and 8 88RS EQ circuits, Encore fader automation and Neve Total Recall.

Yes. Mixing sessions at 80 HERTZ can be attended in person or remotely over Source Connect Pro, Zoom and other connections, and large sessions can be exchanged through the 80 HERTZ secure client FTP.

Yes. The Neve Genesys Blue’s 64 inputs and outputs run over Dante and interface with Pro Tools HDX, so you can connect your own laptop or production computer to the console over Dante, or bring your session to run on the studio’s Pro Tools HDX system.

Pro Tools is preferred, and 80 HERTZ runs Pro Tools Ultimate HDX, but Logic Pro, Cubase, Nuendo and other DAWs are supported, and sessions can be moved between them as AAF or OMF.

D.W. Fearn VT7 compressor, VT5 EQ (including a custom VT5 built for 80 HERTZ) and VT4; Hazelrigg Industries VNE; Manley Massive Passive EQ and Vari-Mu compressor; API 2500 bus compressor and 550B EQs; Neve 33609J with original Marinair transformers; Universal Audio 1176LN; Tube-Tech CL 1B; 2× Rupert Neve Designs MBT; and Empirical Labs Fatso, plus the console’s own 1084 and 88RS EQ circuits. See the Equipment page.

Yes. Mixes at 80 HERTZ can be printed through the Lavry Gold AD-24-200 (Savitr) converter or to a half-inch Otari MTR-12 stereo tape machine with ATR tape for an analogue master.

Yes. Surround mixing is available, and immersive mixes are made in the 80 HERTZ Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 suite, which also produces stereo and binaural versions from the Atmos master.

Mastering is the final technical and creative stage before release: balancing, equalising and enhancing a finished mix so it translates on every system and sits competitively alongside other releases, then preparing the delivery files for streaming, CD or vinyl. At 80 HERTZ all mastering is done by George Atkins in an acoustically flat, honest room.

Order and pay on the mastering page using the five-step form: enter each track’s title, artist and ISRC, choose options such as Apple Digital Masters or tape, and add up to three reference tracks. After payment you receive a confirmation email and upload your mixes through the 80 HERTZ WeTransfer link, adding the artist and project name. George Atkins masters every track, and you download the finished masters in the formats you ordered. You can also dial in to listen live and talk to the engineer.

Online mastering at 80 HERTZ is £110 per track including VAT, with one revision per track included; further revisions are £25 per track plus VAT. Options: Apple Digital Masters +£20 per track; mastering through analogue tape +£30 per track; additional mixes or versions of a track, such as an instrumental, £15 each; DDP image for CD manufacture £50 plus VAT; dial-in to monitor the session and contribute £40; 48-hour fast-track turnaround £50.

Three business days as standard at 80 HERTZ, or 48 hours with the fast-track option (£50).

One revision per track is included in the 80 HERTZ mastering price. Further revisions are £25 per track plus VAT.

George Atkins, founder of 80 HERTZ, masters all material personally and has 22 years’ mastering experience. Mastering credits include GoGo Penguin (v2.0, nominated for the 2014 Mercury Prize and mastered to tape at 80 HERTZ), Matthew Halsall (Into Forever), Stealing Sheep (Into The Diamond Sun), Dutch Uncles (O Shudder), NZCA Lines (Infinite Summer), Francis Lung and DBH. His discography is on Discogs.

Artists include Rae Morris, GoGo Penguin, Matthew Halsall, Wiley, Mr Scruff, NZCA Lines, Mammal Hands, Frightened Rabbit, Vessels, Alabaster dePlume, Nat Birchall, Stealing Sheep, Dutch Uncles and Nancy Elizabeth. Labels include Gondwana Records, Heavenly Records, Memphis Industries, Leaf Records, Lucky Number, Sony, Columbia, Island Records, Warner Music and Universal Music.

ATC and Amphion monitors, checked on other near-field systems so masters translate outside the studio, in an acoustically flat, honest room.

At 80 HERTZ, mastering to tape means your mix is played through the analogue chain onto a half-inch tape machine lined up for ATR or 911 tape, and recorded back from the playback head while a digital master is captured at the same time, so you receive a tape master and a digital master. Tape saturation can glue a mix and soften harsh transients, especially drums and mixes made in the computer, but it can also reduce stereo separation, so it is chosen track by track. It costs £30 per track extra. More on the Mastering to Tape page.

Yes. 80 HERTZ prepares vinyl-ready masters for the cutting engineer, taking account of what a lacquer can carry: low-end and stereo width, sibilance and side length. More on the Mastering for Vinyl page.

Apple Digital Masters (formerly Mastered for iTunes) is Apple’s programme for masters prepared from high-resolution files to sound their best after Apple’s encoding on Apple Music. 80 HERTZ is an accredited Apple Digital Masters studio, and the option costs £20 per track. More on the Apple Digital Masters page.

Yes. 80 HERTZ authors DDP image files for pressing plants, with CD Text and ISRC codes, for £50 plus VAT.

Yes. 80 HERTZ masters are prepared to translate on streaming platforms as well as CD and vinyl, and Apple Digital Masters can be added for Apple Music. Reference tracks you add to the order help match the sound you are aiming for.

Export 24- or 32-bit uncompressed WAV, BWAV or AIFF files at the sample rate of your mix session. Turn off normalisation and overload protection, bypass any limiting and stereo-width processing on the master bus, and leave the master fader at unity (0 dB), ideally with peaks around −6 dBFS. Leave 2–3 seconds before and after each song so reverb and delay tails are kept. The full Mastering Checklist has more detail.

24- or 32-bit uncompressed WAV, BWAV or AIFF, at the same sample rate as the mix session. Interleaved stereo is accepted; split mono left and right files are preferred. Please do not send MP3s or audio CDs.

No. Remove or bypass aggressive limiting on the mix bus before exporting. Limiting, normalisation, overall EQ or width processing on the stereo mix restrict what can be done in mastering, and heavily processed files may need to be remixed. Purposeful mix-bus compression that is part of your sound is fine.

For a commercial release, yes. ISRC codes identify each recording for royalties and are encoded at mastering; enter them for each track on the 80 HERTZ order form. Add the UPC or barcode and catalogue number if you have them. Codes can be added later if you obtain them after mastering.

Yes. Attended mastering sessions in Manchester are welcome by arrangement. Alternatively, add the dial-in option (£40) to listen to the session live from your own location and talk to the engineer as he works.

Yes. Additional mixes or versions of a track, such as instrumental, clean or TV mixes, are £15 each at 80 HERTZ.

Yes. Online mastering is ordered, paid for, uploaded and delivered online, so 80 HERTZ masters for artists and labels worldwide.

Securely through PayPal at checkout on the mastering page, with a PayPal account or by credit or debit card using PayPal Guest Checkout, without needing a PayPal account. Paying confirms acceptance of the 80 HERTZ terms and conditions.

Yes. 80 HERTZ restores damaged and archive recordings, reducing excessive hiss, crackle, background noise and other artefacts with specialist restoration software and careful listening. Most restoration work is archive music and interview recordings for law firms that need to be cleaned up to a usable, credible level.

Yes. Law firms use 80 HERTZ to clean up and enhance recorded interviews so that speech is clearer and the recording is restored to a credible level. 80 HERTZ does not provide forensic analysis or expert-witness reports.

80 HERTZ accepts audio CD, data CD (.wav, .mp3 or .aif), data DVD and vinyl, and half-inch stereo and 2-inch 24-track tape through the audio transfer service. If you can, bring files on a data CD or a digital storage device such as a portable hard drive or memory stick.

Restoration at 80 HERTZ is quoted per job after listening to the recording, and the quote is free. Email info@80hertz.com describing the recording, its length and the problem you want fixed.

Not always completely. Restoration is a delicate process: hiss, crackle and steady background noise can usually be reduced a great deal, while heavy distortion, clipping or speech buried under louder sounds can often be improved but not removed. 80 HERTZ listens to the source first and tells you what is realistic before quoting.

Yes. 80 HERTZ transfers 2-inch 24-track and half-inch stereo analogue tape, vinyl (12-inch, 10-inch and 7-inch) and MiniDisc to digital, through Lavry Gold and Lynx Aurora(n) converters, so full quality is kept at every stage. Noise reduction and enhancement are applied only where they benefit the recording.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has a 2-inch 24-track Otari MX-80, so multitrack masters can be transferred to uncompressed Broadcast WAV for remixing or archiving.

No. 80 HERTZ transfers half-inch stereo and 2-inch 24-track analogue tape, vinyl and MiniDisc.

Yes. 12-inch, 10-inch and 7-inch records are transferred to uncompressed Broadcast WAV or your chosen format.

Uncompressed Broadcast WAV, audio CD, data CD or DVD, hard drive or USB flash drive, or online by secure download link.

Transfers at 80 HERTZ are quoted on the format, number and length of the tapes or records, and the delivery format. Email info@80hertz.com.

Email info@80hertz.com (podcasts: podcast@80hertz.com) or call 0161 850 8088 with the service, dates, session length, number of people attending, whether anyone joins remotely and what you need delivered. For ADR, include the number of characters and cues; for music, the line-up and whether you want tape; for podcasts, the number of guests and whether you want Ultra HD or HD. Quotes are fixed for 30 days, and confirmed rates are locked for the project and for any reschedule within 12 months.

ADR and voice over sessions at 80 HERTZ are confirmed by your written confirmation with a purchase order number. Podcast sessions are confirmed when the 50 per cent deposit is paid by BACS; the deposit invoice is sent as soon as we have your billing details. Recording, mixing, Dolby Atmos and other sessions are confirmed by a Booking Confirmation signed by both sides. Scripts or media sent only for a quote do not commit you to a booking.

A provisional hold on a date. At 80 HERTZ a pencil is held free of charge for 5 business days unless agreed otherwise, and either side can release it at any time at no cost. If another client asks for the same time, you are given 24 hours to confirm or release it.

Podcast bookings are confirmed by a 50 per cent deposit paid by BACS, with the balance due on the day before files are released; approved account clients are on 30-day terms. For other services, any deposit is set out in your Booking Confirmation. Deposits can be carried forward to a rescheduled session for up to 12 months.

Approved account clients pay within 30 days of a valid invoice and receive their files at the end of the session. Podcast clients pay a 50 per cent deposit to confirm, with the balance due on the day before files are released. For other clients, deposit and balance terms are set out in the Booking Confirmation. Payment is by BACS bank transfer or PayPal, and online mastering is paid in advance at checkout through PayPal. Interest may be charged on overdue invoices under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.

Session rates at 80 HERTZ are exclusive of VAT, which is added at the prevailing UK rate. Online mastering at £110 per track includes VAT. 80 HERTZ Studios Limited is VAT-registered (GB994785932).

A confirmed ADR or voice over session at 80 HERTZ can be moved or cancelled free of charge with at least 2 business days’ written notice. With less notice, 50 per cent of the session fee is payable, rising to 100 per cent with under 24 hours’ notice or for a no-show.

Sessions that run beyond the booked time are charged at the applicable rate, rounded up to the next 30 minutes, and depend on studio availability.

Yes. 80 HERTZ treats all project materials, scripts, picture files, talent details and the existence of sessions as confidential, with confidentiality obligations lasting seven years. Encrypted picture is played through MediaSeal where productions require it, and no press release or public statement is made without the client’s written approval.

No. 80 HERTZ will not use, transfer, license or expose your recordings, voice tracks, performances, scripts or project materials for machine learning, AI model training, voice cloning or synthetic media without your express written permission, and imposes the same restriction on any subcontractor.

No. 80 HERTZ is a recording facility, not a storage or archive service. Once recordings are handed over, on your drive or uploaded where you direct, 80 HERTZ deletes them from its systems, so check everything before you leave and keep your own backups.

Yes. 80 HERTZ holds £5 million public and products liability insurance and £10 million employers’ liability insurance, underwritten by Hiscox. If your production needs higher limits or other cover, tell us before booking.

The client. Before recording, the client must obtain every consent needed from talent and performers, including under UK GDPR and any applicable Equity or other union agreement.

The 80 HERTZ Terms & Conditions for sound recording services are provided with every Booking Confirmation and are available on request from info@80hertz.com. Mastering orders are made under the terms linked at checkout, and website terms are on the Terms of Service page. All are governed by the law of England and Wales.

80 HERTZ Studios, The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ, United Kingdom. Telephone 0161 850 8088 (+44 161 850 8088 from outside the UK); email info@80hertz.com.

No. 80 HERTZ Studios is an independent company based at The Sharp Project, a production and digital media hub in north Manchester that is home to a number of separate businesses. Ask for 80 HERTZ when you arrive.

Yes. Parking at 80 HERTZ is free, secure and available 24/7, with G4S CCTV covering the car park, internal CCTV covering the exits, and accessible spaces on site.

Yes. There is EV charging on site at The Sharp Project, and the Be.EV charging hub on Reliance Street, Manchester M40 3AG, a few minutes away, has 12 charging bays open 24/7, with a Caffè Nero on site open until 17:00.

Take the Metrolink to Central Park on the Oldham and Rochdale line; the studio is about a 10-minute walk from the stop.

About 15 minutes by taxi.

About 10 minutes by car.

About 25 minutes by car, depending on traffic.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has full Part M disability access, a lift, accessible toilets and accessible parking, and is wheelchair accessible throughout. Tell us about any access requirements before your session and reasonable adjustments will be made.

Tea, coffee and mineral water are complimentary throughout sessions, and 80 HERTZ has its own kitchen. On weekdays The Sharp Project’s on-site café serves breakfast from 08:30 to 10:00 and lunch from 12:00 to 14:00, with coffee and cakes until 15:00, and Deliveroo delivers from many Manchester restaurants. 80 HERTZ does not provide catering.

Yes. 80 HERTZ has Wi-Fi 6E and wired connections on a leased-line fibre service with automatic failover.

Yes. Every studio and control room at 80 HERTZ is air-conditioned.

Critical recording systems at 80 HERTZ keep running through power cuts, and the leased-line internet fails over automatically, so sessions and remote connections continue.

A reception area, a green room, showers, the studio’s own kitchen and printing. Make-up and changing rooms at The Sharp Project can be booked by the full day.

Monday to Friday 08:00–19:00, Saturday 10:00–17:00 and Sunday 11:00–17:00. Sessions can run 24/7 by arrangement, including evenings, weekends and overnight.

Producers and team members can come into the studio up to 30 minutes before the session start, subject to availability, and are welcome to gather in The Sharp Project campus area before then.

80 HERTZ Studios is an independent audio and video facility in Manchester, UK, founded by George Atkins in 2005 and based at The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ. Its services are ADR sound stages, voice over studios, two high-end, multi-camera video podcast studios, recording studios, Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 mixing, music mixing, world-class analogue mastering for music (online or attended), audio restoration and audio transfers, each with its own rooms and engineers. Clients include Warner Bros. Pictures, HBO, Netflix, Apple, Sony Pictures and the BBC.

No. Music recording is one of several services at 80 HERTZ, alongside ADR for film and television, voice over, video podcasts, Dolby Atmos mixing, music mixing, mastering, audio restoration and audio transfers. Each service has its own dedicated rooms, equipment and booking.

George Atkins started 80 HERTZ in May 2005, and the business was incorporated as 80 HERTZ Studios Limited on 25 November 2009.

80 HERTZ Studios Limited, registered in England and Wales, company number 07086809. Registered office: The Sharp Project, Thorp Road, Manchester M40 5BJ. VAT number GB994785932. Registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office, number 00010713276.

No. 80 HERTZ Studios is an independent audio and video studio business in Manchester and has no connection with Hertz vehicle rental.

The name comes from George Atkins’ first DJ mixer, a Vestax PMC-270, whose bass boost and cut was fixed at 80 Hz, and from the 80 Hz high-pass filter found on many analogue mixing consoles.

George Atkins is the founder of 80 HERTZ. A music producer and engineer, he started the studio making records in 2005 and designed and built the rooms himself. He is also the senior ADR mixer and mastering engineer, has more than 350 IMDb credits, received an Emmy nomination as ADR Mixer on The Last of Us Season 2 (HBO), and was part of the sound team that won the 2025 Music+Sound Award for Best Sound Design in a Series or Programme for Adolescence (Netflix). His music credits include The Courteeners, GoGo Penguin, Frightened Rabbit, Stealing Sheep, Jane Weaver and Rae Morris. See IMDb and Discogs.

Founder George Atkins received an Emmy nomination as ADR Mixer on The Last of Us Season 2 (HBO), and was part of the sound team that won the 2025 Music+Sound Award for Best Sound Design in a Series or Programme for Adolescence (Netflix). GoGo Penguin’s album v2.0, mastered at 80 HERTZ, was nominated for the 2014 Mercury Prize.

The 80 HERTZ Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 suite is certified to Dolby’s Home Entertainment specification, calibrated on site by a Dolby engineer. The studio is an accredited Apple Digital Masters mastering facility and a MediaSeal-approved facility for encrypted picture playback.

80 HERTZ has a 4.8★ average rating on Google reviews. Reviewers mention the team, the versatility of the studios and the quality of the results.

Founder George Atkins is the senior ADR mixer, mastering engineer, and music producer and engineer. He works with a team of experienced engineers across the voice over and podcast studios, and runners look after clients and talent on ADR and voice over sessions.

On Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X and YouTube.