Pulsar Mixing Console?

Hey people.

I purchased a mixing console from this local music shop in town on a whim (and for the right price). It's 32 channel with 8 buses, 4-band EQ, 8 one-knob compressors, and goes by the name Pulsar. Now, I have heard rumors of Saul Walker having some involvement with the design but cannot place him near it's place of origin. Additionally, Ohio (Akron) has been stated as the place of origin but a plate on the back of my console says 'made in California.' So my question is:

Does anyone have any information about this Pulsar Mixing Console?

I will supply pictures once I get some responses and time!

Thanks,

Daniel

 

Seems all paths lead to Saul on this one. Maybe Remy will have a notion as Saul Walker was one of the founders of API. The 550 EQ can be linked directly to him. Recording consoles of the 20th century has one picture of a Pulsar board. It almost looks homemade. Its certainly not an API or anything Westrex/Otari looking.

 

The long road does indeed show wear and tear from Mr. Walker. I have been pulling out the channel strips trying to locate something that could point me towards some evidence. It is a strange feeling when google doesn't provide the answer! Sadly the EQ is a fixed 4-band but they do have some character to them. Minus the components used for the controls and the plastic surface paneling the build is pretty solid.
Plus 8 buses can go a long way with 32 channels diddlydoo
Perhaps I'll drag it into the studio and see what this board can do.

Thanks for the response!

 

Could be inducters in there. Makes a big difference and you wont even miss the Q adjustment.

 

Just a thought, but you could ask Saul Walker directly, his contact info (I think this is him) is on this page: Faculty and Staff - People - Music Technology - NYU Steinhardt

 

I've considered sending him an email. Perhaps he'll respond back with good news! Anyone know if he is prone to answering questions? And I'll check for inductors. It would be fab if I had some of that sweet sweet coil love.

 

Hola. After taking out one of the monitor/FX channels I discovered this little gem. Walker Audio Visual Engineering. I do not think this is a Saul Walker but who knows. I've got a name though!

Thoughts?

 

Walker Audio Visual Engineering, San Bernadino Cali. Still in business...or so the wikibusiness says. 28 years old. Just about the right age for your gear.

Look at all the nice little yellow cans in there........

 

Hello,
Are you still interested in information on the Pulsar console. I used to work for Pulsar as a production engineer.. What would you like to know about them?

sky

 

Hello,
Are you still interested about information on the Pulsar console.. I used to work for them as an engineer. It sounds like you have an 8000 series console..

Sky,

 

Hello,
You are somewhat correct on your assumptions.. Pulsar Consoles where built in California in San Bernardino, but the Head Office was in Mogadore Ohio, a suburb of Akron. I used to work for Pulsar Laboratories Inc, in Mogadore beginning in 1985 for theee years, but frequently traveled to CA factory.. it sounds like you have a 8000 series console.. Saul Walker had nothing to do with the design or manufacture of the consoles. The Walker name referred to was Dan Walker, who now lives in OR.. The factory was a large 4 car garage in the back of the residence of the other partner Larry.. On his property was also a number of smaller sheds for storage and parts inventory location.. console beds, frames and channel strips.. and also power supplies which we had build by a local company and then were housed in 3U frame., some in a 4U for the larger frame beds and packed consoles. The marketing arm of the company was in the head office in Mogadore ..Greg Carr.. President, a real fuckwitt, who was the senior manager of the company, by way of his friend who put up 2M capital. In those days 2M was a good start up capital.. who also owned the space and offices we were housed in.. Carr was eventually the downfall of the company after he upset too many people in the industry with his BS.. The guy was a know it all used car salesman type person who thought he could run the professional audio industry. Anyway both Dan and Larry were (are) great guys who are great to work with and know the industry and are good audio specialty engineers. I hope that is some help for you. I am sure either of those guys can help you with parts availability and maybe even a schematic copy. The plastic top referred to is actually Lexan, and was used instead of silk screen paint which rubbed off on other consoles easily, e.g. Soundcaft 400B and 800B which was often the major complaint after a season of touring, so we went one step better at a greater expense after many of the touring companies told us of their problem.. Lexan was chosen after great concern within the industry about screen painting the tops of channels rubbing off during tours.. Anyway, hope that is some help to you.. Good luck!!

Sky (Aus)

 

This caught my eye ...LOL... being from Akron myself ( hometown, I now live in Cleveland) I'm very familiar with Mogadore - although I didn't think anyone else in the world was.
It's a very small town to be sure ( don't blink) and I had no idea that there was an audio company's HQ there. Besides General Tire's original HQ, there was never all that much happening there. Most of Mogadore is residential; blue collar working class, where a lot of people who worked the rubber mills lived, ( though there are sections that are pretty industrial ( and rural, too,) hosting little machine shops and automotive servicing ( and back in the day when Akron was THE rubber manufacturing center of the world, there were many little machine and fabrication shops built upon that industry). Lots of nurseries out in the rural areas, and, for those who enjoy fishing, Mogadore Reservoir, where there are some seriously big bass and crappie...
Ya just never know what is being designed where. Sometimes in the smallest of places... sometimes in your own backyard, and sometimes right under your nose.

Not far from Mogadore ( about 20 minutes ) is the HQ for Audio Technica, located in Stow, Ohio, another place you'd never think would be home to audio related businesses. I don't know that they fabricate gear there anymore - but I know that's where a lot of their products were designed.
Back in the 50's and 60's, in the Kenmore section of Akron ( near west side), was Battles Electronics, where the first prototype to what ultimately became the Echoplex was designed and built.

Small world.

 

Wow Donny , I used to live up Stow Road in a small backwoods area on a small private lake up towards Streetsboro, and used to go past AT everyday.. down to Tallmadge on the Mogadore Road on the way to Pulsar Labs, which was located in that big industrial storage area.. on Randolph Road ..reputed to be at the time the largest single storage space in the world...It had its offices in the that complex..
OK the road AT was on Darrow Road (91).. further up from there past Twinsburg.. past Hudson on the way to Solon is Streetsboro Road to Streetsboro and further up (Chillicothe Road) from there is small town called Aurora. This was the place where CircuitDesignTechnogies was started.. before its moved to Garrettsville.. and was bought out by Paranamics Inc ( who I used to work for after, Pulsar).. which was later bought out by a company in Conneuat, who changed their name to CDT.. ConneuntDesignTechnologies.. who became now what is know as CAD microphones..
You may or may not remember the great 1U octo compressors and gates CDT, (pre Conneuat) and the multi channel 8 bus small footprint mixing console, amongst many other products.. before it went to Conneuat..

Some history of the past (1985-91)

Sky..

 

Lol. I know where all those places are. Graduated from Hudson High School ( 125 years ago lol).
Born and raised in North Hill til I was 13 or so, and then the parents moved us out of the city when my pop got a promotion at the Union. Ended up living in the housing development at Wyoga Lake. I know all those roads and towns you mentioned like the back of my hand.
Hudson Springs Park on Stow Road was one of our make-out spots when we were teenagers.
From around '82 on I was with The Easy Street Band, and later into the 80's, toured the US and Canada with several different bands from Ak-Cleve. The late 80's I built my first commercial studio in Canton on Whipple Ave.
I'm well aware of CDT (later it became Conneaut Audio Devices - or as we know them to be now: CAD).
I remember mixing on their consoles ( yes, there was a time when CAD made large format consoles, hand made in Ohio ..and using their processing gear (such as their Octo GR ) at the various regional studios I worked at as a freelance cooker. They made really nice stuff, too.
Great meeting you, Sky. Always cool to have someone from my area here on RO. Don't get me wrong - I absolutely love our Canadian and U.K. contingency...as I have a history in Canada as well... but it's nice to reminisce with someone who is familiar with the same things, places and people that I am.
I'm sure if we dug deeper we'd find out that we were acquainted with many of the same people.

-donny

 

Actually, AT was at the corner of Hudson Drive and Commerce Rd, but yes, within a stone's throw of Darrow Rd/Rt 91.
I don't know if they make mics there anymore or not. Maybe there's still some R&D going on.
There was a time when they made portable studios, too, back in the 80's... 4 Track cassette units similar to Tascam, Yamaha and Fostex... but what I recall about the AT porta-studios being different from the others, was that AT was one of the first -if not the first - to use XLR ins, and to provide Phantom Power. Also, a sweep-able mid band on the EQ. Those AT 4 track cassette studios were built REALLY solid, too. They were heavy. They didn't have that "plastic" feel to them that other decks did.

 

I remember Easy Street Band.. you had a great bass player.,,(Clinton or Carltson ?? sorry.. even though we were good friends at the time.. after he left Akron for MA, I lost contact with him), he went on to work for bass guitar manufacturer Padulla.. ?? if remember correctly..
I am pretty sure we must have met before.. I remember a studio on Whipple Ave that we put some gates and compressors in.. Do you remember a guy by the name of Fred Norris.. He also had a little project audio off E Market St, Ellet, Akron.. He got the first production 24/channel I/O console.. Great sounding console.. blow many professionals I. The industry at the away with its functionality and clarity of sound..
$*^t.. this is all 30 years ago and can still remember most of it.. wow.. I guess I don't have dementia then..Still have the scars from the head on car crash I had their on 43. Do you remember that fat ^#$% Greg Carr.. bald head, big mouth.. I used to have go around after him and repair relationships with customers after he visited them.. There used be a country music bar south of Akron I think over near Uniontown somewhere (pink and purple. Missie's I think it was called). big place 5M$ setup.. He really pissed off the manager and the owner there one day.. Two guys heaved him out of there on his ass.. even after we put a whole bunch of gear in there.. I would be called back in to check things after he had ^#$%ed around changing settings..
There used to be a music store on Market Street.. I visited there allot.. Hey, after CDT/Paranamics, I used to drive up to Tallmadge on S Tallmadge Ave, at TurnKey.. writing software, for Frank and John (everyone knew those brothers.. great guys), I lived in Ellet on Hillbush at that time. right opposite the Goodyear drome.. got married (worst mistake) .. moved to Medina then to Streetsboro worked for an engineering company doing PCB design.. then got divorced.. got a job as an applications engineer in MA with Viewlogic.. an Analog Specialist, doing simulation of electronics circuits..and with them traveled all over the place... lost track of Akron..
I actually came to the site to find a 24 or hopefully one of the few 32 frame I/O consoles we made.. to purchase, if some one wanted part with one..

Sky..

 

The country bar was "Jackie lees". I bought the 32 channel Pulsar console from them when they closed (via gattusos music) Great board 32x8 with an 8x8 matrix. I was recording the ex- lead singer of Cleveland's Dazz Band in Akron in a house we turned into a recording space. Did about 25 songs on that board for him and we loved it for mixing. 5 band fixed freqs on each channel. Super musical. Not really a studio piece but it did that job real well. A Cleveland band, Kidd Wicked, ran a live sound company and did sound for akron band "77 south and interstate horns" regularly, bought it.
They loved it but it was a two man tote from the truck. Saw a Craigslist ad 5 years ago from Cleveland where someone was selling one exactly like mine, but it was sitting in a barn for 5 years and was pretty dirty.... I hope that isn't how my old console ended up. It was pretty special.