1. Favourite knob or fader or switch on a piece of gear and why?
I like the stepped input gain on the dbx 786. It’s easy to see and feels solid when I adjust it.
![dbx 786](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dbx-786-Steve-Silverstein-rotated.jpg)
2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?
The Studio Technologies AN-2 Stereo Simulator does a useful trick, but has a terrible interface. A couple of knobs both affect the level, and I rarely want to adjust stereo width (which I do on my console) or add the modulation, so it’s confusing what to adjust if the level is wrong.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Studio-Technologies-AN2-Steve-Silverstein.jpg)
3. What setup do you bring on holiday or tour or commute etc.?
So much of the work that I do involves analog gear, I don’t bring anything with me and do my work at the studio. The separation is nice… mostly.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/studio-for-question-3-Steve-Silverstein.jpg)
4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?
I wish I had a box that did denoising like Izotope RX, that I could add to a single channel after processing and before the console.
I’m happy to do as much as possible without touching a computer!
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Izotope-denoise-Steve-Silverstein.jpg)
5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?
I feel like my mixes got worse while I was monitoring primarily through the ADAM A7x’s. I’m not sure if this was related to the speakers, but the direction seemed to reverse when I got midfields at the studio. I still like the speakers and they sound good, but they ultimately didn’t tell me how to improve my mixes, and I don’t know why.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ADAM-A7X-Steve-Silverstein-rotated.jpg)
6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?
My Toft ATB-16 mix console. Being able to mix through a console with sufficient routing options that I can always have my hands on just makes life infinitely easier than any other workflow I’ve tried.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Toft-ATB16-Steve-Silverstein.jpg)
7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?
Some frame or lunchbox for API 500 gear, and a Daking MicPre 500 to fit in it. There’s a pair at my shared studio that I just find incredibly versatile, and a good preamp can be a go-to forever.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Daking-MicPre-500-Steve-Silverstein-rotated.jpg)
8. What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?
My B&B Systems AM-2B phase scope keeps losing alignment, which is annoying — maybe it needs to go back to the shop. I can’t live without it because it can show me problems in a mix more quickly than I can hear them.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/phase-scope-Steve-Silverstein-rotated.jpg)
9. Most surprising tip or trick or technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?
In mastering, a recent discovery was the utility of very-slow attack times on compressors. When I do mid-side mastering, for the mid, I often use the slowest attack time on the compressor. This tends to bring up the quiet parts without affecting the loud ones. I often use my Buzz Audio SOC-20 for this step.
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Buzz-Audio-SOC-Steve-Silverstein.jpg)
Artist or Band name?
The studio is Steveco Worldwide. I currently make music under my name, Steve Silverstein — my band Christmas Decorations has not been active for over a decade.
Genre?
I record music in all genres, including many albums in the suburbs of rock music. My own music is experimental electronic or ambient, or both, maybe neither.
Selfie?
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Steve-Silverstein-rotated.jpeg)
Where are you from?
I grew up in the suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland, a place called Pikesville.
How did you get into music?
It was on the radio in my parents’ cars, and on my older sister’s stereo and boombox. I took piano lessons as a child. Eventually, a passion developed and stuck.
What still drives you to make music?
I can’t imagine what else I can do now!
How do you most often start a new track?
Most tracks that I work on are for other artists, so they usually start. With my own music, recordings sometimes begin with an improvisation on one instrument.
How do you know when a track is finished?
It depends on which step of the process. For a mix, I usually double-check against references in similar genres, or other approved tracks by the same artist, and then check on a few pairs of speakers. Mixes and masters are both finished by cleanup at the beginning and end of the track.
Show us your current studio
![](https://martinyammoller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/SteveCo-Worldwide-Steve-Silverstein.jpeg)
Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?
A musician I work for tells the story that he used to think that a more expensive studio always led to a better result, and he’s learned that it’s more important to have a team of people he trusts for each step of his process where he wants professional help.
Promote your latest thing… Go ahead, throw us a link.
I’ve been actively promoting my studio’s new Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/steveco.worldwide/
Indeed 🙂
Gotta keep that phase scope aligned!