Malaco Studios

Malaco Studios opened its doors in Jackson in 1967, and was for 44 years a hotbed of Blues, Soul, and Soul Gospel And then in 2011....an intimate visit from a Mississippi Tornado in April re-shuffled our plans. On the footprint of the 1940's structures that housed our original studios on West Northside Drive now stands the Steven Durr designed 2013 reincarnation of Malaco Studios.

With few exceptions, for over 30 years Malaco Studios were used exclusively for recording our own artist roster. Malaco Records Blues and Soul standouts Dorothy Moore, Z. Z. Hill, Denise LsSalle, Little Milton, Johnnie Taylor, and Bobby "Blue" Bland, along with the largest collection of Soul Gospel greats in the US, kept our facilities operating virtually non-stop, with constant representation on Billboard's R&B and Gospel charts. In order to open our studios for rental, the resurrected Malaco Studio facility now resides in its own separate building apart from our executive offices, allowing for complete privacy.

Our comfortable and accurate control room houses a discrete-circuitry API Legacy console. Behind the recording desk sits an elevated credenza with 14 x 3 feet of granite desk area for production tasks, with convenient AC outlets and inputs for direct instrument recording. Its front bays house outboard racks within easy reach of engineers, featuring an extensive array of vintage tube and solid-state gear, along with choice modern pieces. We list several excellent near-field monitor choices along with a pair of soffit-mounted, bi-amped, Bryston-powered mains, each with 2 TAD 15 inch woofers and a TAD 4001 driving through a JBL Smith Diffraction horn, tuned (sparingly) with White Instruments 4400 EQs. And, a pair of 18-inch floor subs stand at the ready.

We offer Studer analog tape machines in all configurations, 2-inch 16 & 24-track, 1-inch 8-track, half-inch 2 & 4-track and ¼-inch two track, all completely refurbished by the top Studer Factory-trained tech remaining in the US. You want a really hot analog mix before going digital? Try our Studer A827 1-inch two track.

We offer ProTools HD and Nuendo systems for digital recording and A to D transfers. We have a fully equipped Sadie digital mastering room for CD or digital delivery upload. A pair of Brown & Wilkins 802 monitors are our standard, with several alternate choices available.

Our 30 x 35 studio floor can accommodate live band performances while maintaining excellent mic separation due to meticulous attention to detail in wall and ceiling design. Three isolation rooms can be utilized for vocals, acoustic instruments or amplifiers, while offering direct sight lines to the studio floor and control room. The smaller iso room doubles as a vocal or acoustic booth as well as an auxiliary control room, allowing recording from the studio floor or the other two iso booths should the main control room be unavailable.

Our vintage microphone selection includes a sequential serial numbered pair of Neumann U-67's, a valve U-47, and an RCA 77DX, along with various other dynamic and condenser classics. Our mic locker includes Neumann, AKG, Sennheiser, Audio Technica, Audix, Shure, Electrovoice, PML, and many other choices adequate for any mic setup.

Located at the end of the hall is our fully equipped kitchen area with a full-size stove, microwave, refrigerator, Crock pots, deep fryers, and assorted culinary necessities. Seating is available for 24. If you would rather dine in we can have meals catered, order delivery, or prepare them for you as desired.