Geoff Tanner and Alan Dickson

THE STORY OF AURORA AUDIO

 

Geoff Tanner was born in 1946 in Watford, Hertfordshire. His career, spanning five decades, includes
15 years with Rupert Neve & Co. Ltd., designing and developing custom broadcast and recording consoles. After leaving Neve in 1986, Tanner independently continued his work with Neve consoles, with design, upkeep, repair, and maintenance for clients worldwide, including CBS Records in Aylesbury and Audio Productions in Croydon. In 1994, Geoff designed and built the huge 56-channel 24-track recording console at Great Linford Manor in Great Linford, Milton Keynes. The console now resides at Steakhouse Recording Studios in North Hollywood, California.

 

In 1996, Tanner teamed up with David Langford, a colleague from his days at Neve, to solve a problem for Alan Dickson, who owned Grandmaster Recorders Ltd. in Hollywood. Dickson was having problems with a classic Neve console. The new Neve corporation had no interest in fixing vintage gear. Langford suggested that Dickson bring in his friend Geoff Tanner.

 

After a great success with Dickson’s classic Neve, Tanner, Langford, and Dickson decided to form a company, Phoenix Audio, dedicated to creating recording consoles with the iconic Class-A sound that had made the vintage Neve consoles famous. When Langford retired, Dickson and Tanner continued their partnership, focusing on designing and manufacturing pro audio gear. They renamed the company Aurora Audio. Sadly, Alan Dickson passed away in 2016, but Geoff Tanner continued Aurora Audio, now located in North Hollywood, California.