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How It Was Recorded

Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen · Album, 2012

The Midsummer Station Kiss

13 sourced items across 3 sectionsVerified5Reported1Inferred7

This is an album-level record: the sources describe how the album as a whole was recorded, not one song. Where a detail belongs to a single song, the row says so.

Songs this record stands for: Good Time. We found nothing specific to this song, so this album record is the closest account we have.

What the sources do and do not say

The Sound On Sound piece (October 2012, read in full) covers The Midsummer Station and has a passage on 'Good Times' covering the telephone vocal, the children's choir and the mix by Robert Orton. Only the Green Bullet microphone, the Massenburg EQ and the Waves 1176 on vocals are tied to this song; the bass Moog and most tracking gear are habits or album-level. The three Mix pages are press releases about Ocean Eyes, Korg and a studio build, and were not used.

Lead vocals

9 items

Adam Young and Carly Rae Jepsen

Microphone

  • The real chain

    Shure Green Bullet

    VerifiedOne song

    Used to record Young's vocals for the telephone-style vocal effect heard on this song.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    No plugin suggested. Microphone-modelling plugins only work with their own matched hardware microphone, so there is no plugin to link. Placement and the room matter more than the model.

  • The real chain

    Blue Bottle

    InferredUsual practice

    Young's usual vocal microphone, in a very dead room, for his own recordings.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young describes how he usually records and mixes his vocals for the record, not this song specifically.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    No plugin suggested. Microphone-modelling plugins only work with their own matched hardware microphone, so there is no plugin to link. Placement and the room matter more than the model.

Input chain

  • The real chain

    Universal Audio 620 MkII

    InferredUsual practice

    Preamp following the microphone in Young's usual vocal recording chain.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young describes how he usually records and mixes his vocals for the record, not this song specifically.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    Covers this kind of unit

    Universal Audio LA-6176 Signature Channel Strip

    channel strip

    Pairs a 610 valve preamp with an optical compressor, the layout of Universal Audio's valve channel strips. The source's model name matches no Universal Audio product, so it is not a model of this unit.

  • The real chain

    Tube-Tech CL 1B

    InferredUsual practice

    Hardware compressor in Young's usual vocal chain, after the preamp.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young describes how he usually records and mixes his vocals for the record, not this song specifically.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    Emulation of this unit

    Softube Tube-Tech CL 1B Mk II

    compressor

    Made with Tube-Tech as a model of the CL 1B.

  • The real chain

    Teletronix LA-2A

    InferredUsual practice

    Second hardware compressor in Young's usual vocal chain, before Pro Tools.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young describes how he usually records and mixes his vocals for the record, not this song specifically.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    Emulation of this unit

    Universal Audio Teletronix LA-2A Leveler Collection

    compressor

    Universal Audio owns the Teletronix name; this is its own model of the LA-2A.

    Also worth a look 1

Mix effects

  • The real chain

    Massenburg DesignWorks EQ

    VerifiedOne song

    Smooth EQ used to brighten both lead vocals so they sound less harsh in the mix.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

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    The plugin used on the record

    Massenburg DesignWorks MDW Parametric EQ

    equaliser

    The plugin named in the source.

  • The real chain

    Waves Chris Lord-Alge 1176 model

    VerifiedOne song

    Compressor on the vocals in the mix, which Orton praises for pushing a vocal forward with character even when compressed hard.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    No plugin suggested. This is already software, so the stand-in is the thing itself. No product link has been added for it yet.

  • The real chain

    Sony Oxford EQ

    InferredUsual practice

    Usual practice, not stated for this record: Plug-in Young uses in Pro Tools to EQ his vocals to taste.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young describes how he usually records and mixes his vocals for the record, not this song specifically.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    The plugin used on the record

    Sonnox Oxford EQ

    equaliser

    The same EQ: Sony's Oxford plugins are now made by Sonnox.

  • The real chain

    Waves Renaissance DeEsser

    InferredUsual practice

    Plug-in Young usually uses to de-ess his vocals and lighten sibilance.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young describes how he usually records and mixes his vocals for the record, not this song specifically.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    No plugin suggested. This is already software, so the stand-in is the thing itself. No product link has been added for it yet.

Synths

2 items

Adam Young

Instrument

Mix bus

2 items

Mix effects

  • The real chain

    Manley Variable-Mu

    Verified

    Stereo compressor inserted on the mix bus of every mix on the album to round off some peaks.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    Emulation of this unit

    Universal Audio Manley Variable Mu Limiter Compressor

    compressor

    Made with Manley as a model of the Variable Mu.

  • The real chain

    Dangerous Music 2-Bus

    InferredUsual practice

    Usual practice, not stated for this record: Summing unit Young says he uses when mixing.

    A suggestion, not a documented fact: Young says he uses it for summing as a general statement; no song is named.

    Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

    Get the sound · our suggestion

    No plugin suggested. An analogue summing mixer designed to be transparent. Mixing inside the DAW is the equivalent; no plugin is needed.

Sources

  1. Adam Young & Robert Orton: Producing & Mixing The Midsummer Station, Sound On Sound, 2012-10. Accessed 15 Nov 2026.

What the ratings mean

Verified

Stated by the engineer, producer or artist, or by the manufacturer.

Reported

Stated by a reputable secondary source.

Inferred

An educated suggestion, not a documented fact.

Disclosure: plugin links currently go straight to the maker and earn us nothing. If that changes, affiliate links will be marked here. Suggestions are chosen on fit, never on commission, and are kept separate from the recording facts. More.