2014 Addendum- PLEASE NOTE- As of 2013, the DaviSound work facility and studios were closed ...
and a gradual moving/vacating process begun in preparation for an eventual sale of the property.
Please keep this in mind with any references below to "currently", "today", "in the future" etc.
ALSO PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT DAVISOUND WAS NOT CEASING OPERATION, ONLY MOVING!
With all that in mind, we retain this nostalgic look at our previous, longtime, facilty of 44 years and the "aura" surrounding it! -photos circa 2002.
Copyright © 1998-2014 by DaviSound
Maybe it would have been best to omit the "virtual photo tour" ...
and leave some of the "mystery" and "myth" surrounding DaviSound ...
to the imagination of the visitors to our website.
Because, once we offer a photo tour ...
some of the "mystique" we have enjoyed will inherently be lost as a result!
( at least a partial photo tour ... we still leave quite a few of our "secrets" hidden from view! )
"Ahaaaa ... they don't show you the ... good ... stuff!"
Actually, in all honesty, most of our operation here truly is ...
very "plain" and very "DaviSimple"!
In "walk-you-through" fashion, we are simply presenting current, unstaged, random still shots of areas of our building along with, in some cases very detailed, captions which usually document some of the "trivia of interest" regarding our facility.
Some say we have included TOO MUCH! ... some say NOT ENOUGH!
So, since you can never please everyone, we suggest that you just scroll through glancing to find what you would like to see / read and skip over anything else!
And if you are wondering why none of our small crew is pictured in the surroundings ...
(aside from "mascot" Dolly Dog Davis) the reason is, once again, "DaviSimple" ...
there are STILL some things that are best left to the imagination!
BY REQUEST OF SOME OF OUR MOST FAITHFUL LONGTIME CLIENTS ...
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE INTERESTED IN THIS KIND OF THING ...
WELCOME TO DAVISOUND ... DAVISCENES!
YIKES! How many outfits do you know of that publish their facility's Floorplan on the Internet?!?
Always the "do-it-yourselfer" ... Hayne Davis, along with his father, the late John Will Davis, built the DaviSound facility with very little outside assistance whatsoever.
There is also an adjacent, small, building made from handmade bricks (by John Davis) which is used as a shop area and paint building.
Area "HD" in the above floor plan boasts a beautifully crafted, working brick fireplace, also built by Hayne's father - his last such project.
This room was used for storage until recently when, in the summer of 2002,
it was finally finished as another workroom and office for use by Hayne.
We open the door and step inside ....
The Kustom Bass Amp in the foreground is an original purchased by Hayne in 1966.
If you think there is "secret alien technology" lurking behind this door ...
"At Home ... DOWN HOME ... at DaviSound"!
Back to ...
This is entering the building from the southwest rear entrance and looking down the hallway toward the front entrance.
Hayne's new office / workroom entrance is located just to the right (off view) . If you look closely you'll see Dolly Davis (mixed terrier) curled on the couch.
Beside the couch is a restored, classic Telefunken console stereo - circa 1966 - which was given to Hayne by a longtime client when she retired to Miami.
The display case located to the front-right holds many classic "museum pieces" including an old Cinema Fader (seen on top of case)...
originally from an old console once used at RCA Nashville (Studio A), to record Elvis and many other artists.
This is looking up the same hallway from the opposite end, standing in the front entrance foyer.
This time we are greeted by Dolly "Devil Dog" ( Cujo eyes )!
Backing up a few steps and turning to the right ...
This is the entrance to the "DaviStudios" side of the building ...
still mantained as a working studio ...
the area is used mostly for test sessions and occasional voiceover work for media.
The "Stop In Session" sign over the door has been located there since "Day 1" !
And so ...
Hmmm ... untypically harsh "saturated flash" view (no atmosphere lighting!)
None of the shots for this page were "staged" just taken on the fly ...
But, you can see an old DS-1950 prototype mic on a boom as well as a classic Fender amp.
Stepping to the right from here and moving toward the rear wall we come to ...
The old "Drum Cage"!
The frames on the table hold old trade magazine articles / interviews
with Hayne on ...
"how to get that drum sound".
The Genuine Calfskin Bass Drum Head ...
seen hanging on the wall, in the upper right corner ...
Is the actual head used on the front of the bass drum in Hayne's first band, The Citations, in 1963!
Note the ubiquitous "drum mics" resting on the ledge ...
a Shure SM47 (snare), an EV 666 (Kick) and a several Sennheiser 421s (Toms).
When high-hat and overhead mics were used they were always DaviSound hand-made condensers.
Stepping back a few steps ...
Turning around and facing the other opposite studio corner ...
We next find ourselves looking at ...
"Keyboard Corner"!
Here we can almost discern a variety of instruments clustered around the old "tack spinet" ...
There is a Recorder (wood flute) , Oboe, Flute, Melodica, three classic electric keyboards and other odds & ends.
Resting on top of the piano is another "museum piece" ...
This was the original console (built by Hayne of course) utilized in the radio production room during the
"worldwide glory days" of the mid-late seventies /early eighties.
It was later replaced by another, more modern styled console which was regretably sold (an offer we couldn't refuse!) and no longer in our possession.
While seldom used on sessions, It was used on stage when he played bass with
Lee Atwater in Little Harvey And The Expressions as well as with Cimarrons.
An about face ...
And then a few steps forward and we are peering in the window of ...
The Vocal Isolation Booth.
The adjacent Radio Production Room
can be partially seen to the interior left.
Then inside the booth ... looking toward the Radio Studio.
And a 180 degree view from the radio room ....
The console partially pictured here ( a tight fit!) is the one built for Mix-106 FM downtown
which later found its way back here ...donated out of nostalgic appreciation by the last station owner ...
(MIX 106 was ultimately sold and moved to Charlotte.)
is the fourth DaviSound console to occupy this room.
The Radio Room Desk Area and a few of the master / work tapes of radio productions done over the years
( there is a "wall of tape" to the left ...and also three, complete "tape vault" closets elsewhere in the building).
Here is a shot borrowed from our "ORIGINS" page ...
which is an old snapshot of the main control room and a view of the studio
looking in from the control room.
As mentioned on the Origins page ... this photo is circa 1984.
Now head back the way we came in ...
Sorry about the un-natural "stark flash" ...
our digital camera just wouldn't allow natural light!
And as we open the door to the hallway / foyer ...
"Wall Of Fame?"
Just a few of our "recording friends" from years gone by !
Right turn ... and back up the hall to ... the "DaviSound" side of the building ...
And to the locked door of ...
"The Examining Room" !
"AREA 52 ? "
you just might be closer to the truth than you know!
The "Examining Room" sign was donated by a friend from the old
Newberry County Memorial Hospital after it was closed.
The door leads to the main DaviSound equipment fabrication room.
Shall we take a few rare peeks inside?
(Just around the edges!)
Above Top Secret -
Magic Eyes Only !
Wow ... is this secret stuff ...or what? And SO ORGANIZED too!
Actually, this is just the wood fab table area in transition between projects.
The dart board is actually a BULLETIN BOARD for memos (yeah ...rightttt)!
Panel Fabrication Area ... after a rough day looks like!
"Template Alley"
( Look closely and you'll see the "mama" of all TB-6 Tool Boxes -
The metal drill pattern template! )
And some classic old hand tools to boot ...
One of several similar workstations ...
Where it all comes together!
One small section of the Test / Proof / Repair Bench along one wall.
Custom Mixer Package Undergoing Final Audio Proof
Then we move back up the hallway to the new office / work area ...
Hayne's Desk ... one of the lesser utilized areas of the building!
The wooden paperweight is a section of Maple trimming left from
the construction of one of the side sections of our first DaviSound console cabinet.
Then across the room ...
HD's "humble" PC Corner ,,, fireplace to the right.
Hopefully this has served its purpose ... to help you feel ...
a little more ...