Ricky the III, aka Ricky Havansek III, is a student of sound. A musician at heart, he’s played in a band, and still has jam sessions with friends on the regular. Drums are Ricky’s instrument of choice; percussion speaks to his soul. Polyrhythms over chords, all day, in Ricky’s world. He’s been a drummer for fifteen years, although he started his adventure into the musical realm by playing trumpet in his earliest years. However, drumming is what captured his heart, pushing him forth on the path he now strides. This passion led him to spend time in several recording studios where he noticed the pros and cons of various setups. The information he gained from these experiences became integral in the formation of his own mixing, mastering, and recording studio.  

The III is the owner and operator of The III (Third) studios, named after his own namesake and honoring his grandfather. He dove headfirst into music and audio deciding he wanted his life to revolve around these passions. As he built his studio, he reflected on time spent with his band in recording spaces. There were some tremendous experiences, and some that were lacking in certain aspects. This reflection fueled his driving force to build a studio where all the musicians can play their parts together simultaneously. In his mind, this leads to greater cohesion and synergy, not to mention a more authentic recording. Capture sound as it was written to be played. It might be easier to have one instrumentalist play at a time, mixing the parts together later, but there’s a loss of magic.  

The III Studios mission statement is to form, and support, a community for those who love art and sound. It’s all about empowering members of the community to elevate themselves. In Ricky’s mind, none are merely just consumers. Everyone has their part to play and there’s room for all to grow into greater roles, should they want to ascend.  

Ricky is truly an audiophile, and after he discovered Funktion-One’s at Infrasound in 2017, he was hooked. Whenever he saw that Funktion-One logo on a concert flyer, he made plans to be in attendance. It’s one of the reasons he fell in love with Sub Valley Sound, befriended their engineers during the days of Cairo, and learned everything they were willing to teach. Synergistic, and when they needed an extra hand for an event, he was one of the first to receive a call. 

Ricky is patient when it comes to the process of building his assets. He has plans to add a full vocal booth to his studio which will isolate singers while still allowing them to hear the band playing their parts. Furthermore, he also refurbishes and redesigns speakers. He’ll take an aged stadium speaker, tear it apart, and rebuild it with his own set of drivers. He saves those thirty-year old drivers, and they become part of guitar amplifiers respecting that vintage distortion and grit, which is a desirable characteristic to many a musician.  

One of Ricky’s goals is to build a top-tier speaker rig that can square off against the big boys, at a fraction of the cost. It’s a lot of trial and error, but dreams and goals are never to be rushed. He’s constantly checking out forums, videos, and researching tech specs in his free time staying current on the various technologies that are prevalent throughout the music industry. Gaining mastery through diligent investment of time and outfitting new and unique speaker build outs, is a signature of his personality. They say it takes about 10,000 hours to become a master, and Ricky is well on his way.  

If you’d like to learn more about Ricky the III and The III Studios, you can follow them on Facebook, or log onto his website at theiiistudios.com for more information and use the contact form to explore the gamut of services he capably offers. 

--Electro Scribe--