CEDAR Audio opened the world's first commercial audio restoration studio in February 1989. Initially operated out of offices in Botolph Lane owned by Cambridge University, the Cambridge Sound Restoration studio (CSR) shared space with the research & development and the sales departments within CEDAR Audio. Nevertheless, CSR immediately proceeded to restore important recordings such as PRT's re-issue of Holst's "The Planets", a 20 CD box set celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Denon Columbia, and numerous jazz and blues series for Columbia Records (now Sony Music).

In January 1991, the whole company moved to larger premises in Glisson Road and expanded its restoration and pre-mastering facilities. Further projects were undertaken for the likes of A&M Records, Trojan Records, CBS, EMI and BMG, and the company extended its "bureau service" operations into the worlds of TV and radio broadcasting.

By this time, all the processing modules within the CEDAR system were operating in real-time so CSR was able to process as much work using two systems as had previously been possible using the five installed at Botolph House. Furthermore, the synergy with CEDAR's DSP engineers and system developers ensured that CEDAR was always optimised for real audio requirements, retaining the look and feel of an audio system rather than a piece of complex computer engineering. Evidence of the interaction between the audio world and CEDAR's R&D can be found in one of CEDAR's most important processes: the Phase/Time Corrector. This module was a direct spin-off of the development work required to restore the Genesis "Three Sides Live" video for BMG Video, and it later led to the AZ-1 Azimuth Corrector and the Phase Corrector module in CEDAR for Windows. Other important video restorations carried out during this period included the soundtrack to the Elton John "Two Rooms" video, The Who's "The Kids Are All Right", plus the videodisc and CD of Lionel Richie's "Back to Front". These were milestones in CSR's development - proving once and for all that the uses for CEDAR far exceeded the bounds of the classics, blues and jazz recordings of the first half of the 20th century.

Meanwhile, CEDAR Audio was expanding its range of hardware and software products, and the company's customers were winning awards and commendations for their audio restoration work. Numerous Gramophone awards and Grammies were won by the likes of Mike Dutton and Andrew Walter at Abbey Road Studios and by Bill Lacey's "Digital Sound and Picture" company working for BMG Studios.

In January 1996 CEDAR Audio moved to premises in Clifton Court, Cambridge. Occupying more than ten times the area of the original offices in Botolph Lane, the company expanded its range of services still further. In particular, Cambridge Sound Restoration added sophisticated editing capabilities using the latest SADiE workstations, and started offering its customers CD-R reference copies. In 1996 the studio also became more involved with the world of audio forensics, assisting a number of police forces and legal agencies with their investigations. One particularly high profile restoration required the cleaning of recordings relating to the O J Simpson affair.

In May 1997 the studio undertook what has since proved to be one of its most significant jobs to date: that of de-noising the live ITN broadcast of the British General Election. This allowed the news service to broadcast direct from the atrium of its London headquarters, but without the attendant traffic noise, air conditioning, and general background rumble often associated with transmissions of this type. The project led to an increased awareness of CEDAR in the worlds of TV and audio post, and CSR was soon offered a wide range of post-production jobs, including a number to remove video camera noise from recordings. These requests have led to another dedicated CEDAR module: Debuzz. The first CEDAR product designed specifically for film, TV and post, this has demonstrated yet again the benefits of operating an audio studio alongside a research and development facility.

Cambridge Sound Restoration proved invaluable once more when, in 2000, CEDAR Audio undertook the development of the DNS1000 Dynamic Noise Suppressor. Again, a direct consequence of the bureau's customers' needs, this is quickly becoming a common sight in post and dubbing studios worldwide.

CEDAR Audio moved from Clifton Court in December 2000, and now operates from its newly purchased premises in Fulbourn, a small village just outside Cambridge. With improved access from all directions (the main A11 trunk road is just one mile from us) we are now more accessible, so using Cambridge Sound Restoration is now more convenient for many of our customers, for whom we continue to restore recordings for CD mastering, DVD, audio forensic investigation, film, TV, and radio.

Rental

CEDAR also operates a rental service, offering the full range of CEDAR rackmount units and computer-based systems by the day, week and month. You can view or download the Company's Rental Price List here.

Please contact us for details of these and other services.