Studio 38 Music and TV studio Auckland

The Architectural Lineage and Heritage Context

Located at 38 Airedale Street in the heart of Auckland, this building carries an exceptional mid-century pedigree. Originally designed by the pioneering Group Architects between 1955 and 1957 as a textile factory, the structure later transitioned through several identities, serving as a welfare center and community shelter.

When the current owners acquired the property, it required a complex resource consent process and a complete spatial overhaul. The brief called for taking the building right back to its raw concrete shell to deliver a dual-purpose urban sanctuary: a premium private apartment on the upper level, and a world-class, multi-use Music and TV studio on the ground floor.

Acoustic Engineering and Spatial Performance

Converting a raw 1950s concrete industrial envelope into a highly sensitive audio-visual environment required meticulous technical intervention. Designed in close consultation with Marshall Day Acoustics, the ground floor was engineered to meet extreme sound isolation and internal acoustic performance metrics. The studio spaces serve as a high-fidelity recording hub for Wilde Records and a live broadcast set for the Cath Vincent Show.

To achieve this level of acoustic flexibility, we introduced custom faceted sound linings across the walls and ceilings. These geometric timber panels manage sound reflections within the space, turning a hard concrete shell into an acoustically neutral, highly praised production and event venue. Upstairs, new curtain walls, high-performance thermal linings, and large skylights drop natural light deep into the industrial floor plate, transforming the factory upper level into a refined, calm inner-city residence.

Client Perspective and Process

The successful execution of this complex mixed-use project relied on a highly collaborative relationship between design, structural logic, and acoustic science. Below, clients Cath Vincent and Jesse Wilde discuss the realities of the transformation process, the performance of the acoustics, and what it is like to live and create within a piece of resurrected Auckland mid-century history.

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