AMS (Advanced Music Systems)

AMS was established in 1976 by Mark Crabtree and Stuart Nevison. They had been Aerospace engineers moving into the design of professional studio equipment for the manipulation and control of sound. The first product designed by the company was the DM-20 Tape Phase Simulator. This initial product was notably used by ELO, 10cc and Paul McCartney, who used it on the Wings' London Town album in 1978.

In 1978 AMS introduced the world's first microprocessor controlled, 15-bit digital delay line, the AMS DMX 15-80. One of the early users of the AMS DMX 15-80 was Manchester record producer Martin Hannett who would go on to own quite a few of the devices. Later the DMX included "loop triggering" launching the use of digital sampling. The DMX later included pitch changing and up to 32 seconds of delay.[2]

In 1981 AMS released the RMX-16 digital reverberator.[3] In addition to a range of reverb types, the RMX-16 had a program ("Non Lin 2") which digitally emulated the drum sound of a compressed and gated room microphone, copying the effect used on the Phil Collins recording In the Air Tonight.[3] (Collins' unique drum sound was created by a combination of a room microphone compressed by the "Listen Mic" compressor of an early SSL Console, in combination with cutting off the reverb sound with a noise gate.[3])

In 1984, AMS released the Audiofile, one of the first 16-bit hard disk based recording systems dedicated to Post production.[4] The Audiofile saw considerable use in television post production and was seen by dubbing mixers as a huge technological breakthrough. After decades of mixing on 16mm magnetic film stock, in which mix decisions were extremely difficult to undo, the ability to undo and make changes instantaneously provided dubbing mixers with new opportunities for experimentation in their work.[5]

In 1988, AMS released Logic 1; it was the first dynamically configurable, fully automated digital mixing console.[3] This was followed in 1990 by Logic 2, an expanded version of the Logic design in a large format console.

AMS was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1985. Siemens bought AMS in 1990 and merged the company with Neve Electronics in 1992. Crabtree acquired the combined firm in 1995, becoming the sole owner of AMS Neve.

AMS Neve continues to manufacture professional recording equipment.

The founders of AMS have been recognised with awards for their contributions to the recording and broadcast industry.

In March 2000, Crabtree was the recipient of an Oscar at the Academy Awards for the design and development of the AMS Neve Logic Digital Film Console for motion picture sound mixing.[6] Crabtree was subsequently awarded a second Oscar in 2004 for "significant contributions to the evolution of digital audio editing for motion picture post production".[7]

Nevison was awarded a Fellow of the Association of Professional Recording Services (APRS) in 2015.[8]

• AMS DMX 15-80 digital delay (mono)
• AMS DMX 15-80S digital delay (stereo)
• AMS S-DMX
• AMS RMX-16 digital reverberator
• AMS Audiofile digital audio editor
• AMS Logic series digital mixing consoles

• AMS Neve

• The AMS RMX 16 Digital Reverb
• The AMS DMX 15-80S Stereo Digital Delay
• The AMS DM2-20 Tape Phase Simulator
• The AMS DMX Series Keyboard Interface & Chorus Controller
• The New AMS/Neve AMS RMX16 Digital Reverb