Hi Tony! It was a real treat watching you go to work on that beautiful vintage API. I am very grateful for all the knowledge and anecdotes you so willingly share!
I have a few questions about the actual console workflow of the past, and the role analog gear plays, if at all, on the records you work on today:
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Is it normal procedure to record through the console’s full audio path, and then have the recorded tracks again pass through the console for mixing? If so, is this double-trip through the various amplification stages on each channel what mostly imparts the coveted “console sound?”
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Approximately at what dBu level would you say is ideal to come out of the “box” and into the console, in order to get your sound imbued with the desired harmonic distortion / character. I realize this will vary depending on the hardware, so you can use the API of your most recent masterclass as an example.
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When veteran mixers talk about driving a console hard, is this mostly done at the output stage, or rather at the beginning of the audio path on each channel?
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Do you still use analog gear when mixing, or do you find that the analog character already imprinted in the recordings you work with is enough?
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When working completely ITB, are you often concerned about aliasing from plugins, especially some of the emulations that are meant to be driven quite hard? If so, how do you address the resulting harshness?
I realize these are quite a few questions, so feel free to answer just whatever you can; I’ll be equally thrilled to have had this little exchange! Thank you 
Hey Francisco…
I’ll try to answer each item as best I can:
#1: Yes, it’s normal to record thru a console and then mix again thru the console. It’s fair to say millions of songs have been made this way. As far as that method being the magic sauce, it’s hard to say. There are many great sounding records done this way and many done this way that don’t sound good. There’s probably more to it than the console but what I will say is that consoles do have a ‘sound’ (for better or worse!) which hopefully is right for the type of music you’re working on. They sort of give the music a shape or sonic profile whereas ‘In The Box’ is very neutral and you need to bend things to the shape you want with compression, distortion, EQ, etc.
#2: It will vary from console to console. I usually will listen to the sounds and if I feel they could benefit by having a little console saturation then I’ll push the level on the individual channels harder, often to the point where the needles are pinned on the channel. For the video, I’m pretty sure nothing was saturating and most likely everything was hitting the console somewhat clean. Keep in mind the video was done quickly and there wasn’t much time to experiment with that sort of thing. In a normal situation I would take some time to see what different channels sound like driven harder or not.
#3: They’re talking about driving the individual channels and/or the stereo buss. Some consoles react very well to being driven hard and some definitely not.
#4: Yes, I still use analog gear when I mix. If I do it’s usually an unusual effects processor I have that can’t be replicated with plugins or I’ll use pedals which happens quite a lot.
#5: No, it’s not something I focus on.
-Tony
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Oh wow Tony, great answers! Thanks for taking the time 