AEA RPQ REVIEW
Fans of ribbon mics know that generally while tracking there might be 2 adjustments to be made: low end CUT or top end BOOST. AEA recognized the need and coupled a fantastic pair of preamps with these features. However, the RPQ is a serious preamp for any microphone, and has phantom power available (in a separate input path, keeping the non-phantom mics away from capacitors!) for condenser mics as well. Designed by Fred Forsell, the master of the high gain / uber-detailed sound without being boring or overly hard, this is one serious pre that is not just a ribbon preamp.
With +80dB of available gain, this JFET design is ultra quiet and natural and fast with the transients, which gives a superb realistic image and no compromise sound reproduction. Its not one of those I only use on acoustic sources type of preamps either, it delivers a 3D image on everything you record. With its very high input impedence it doesnt load down the mic either, allowing any mic you use with the RPQ to shine. Its one of the few preamps you would want around for location recording to pick up every last detail say in a classical orchestra in a hallyet you would love to use it on rock guitars with any of your favorite ribbon (or non-ribbon!) mics too.
Conclusion: Fantastic piece of gear, a serious gotta have for those who want pleasing 3D sound in the studio, and do remote recording where detail, high gain and low noise matter. Dont forget the perfect curve shaping EQ on board.
CARTEC AUDIO PRE-Q5 REVIEW
If you ever wished for a present and detailed preamp married to a Pultec style equalizer, and then pushed the boundaries of your wish for it to all fit and work well in the 500 API form...the Pre-Q5 would be that wish come true. You can either use as a line level input or microphone preamp with up to +72dB of gain. There is a 2 band boost only Pultec style EQ that can be bypassed or selected, either band. The high boost selection is 8k, 12k or 16k, the low boost selection is 30, 60 or 100hZ, each band can bring up to +10dB of variable gain. There is an output attenuator pad, switchable from -5 down to -30, to allow you to drive things hard in the amplifier section for some more character. Phantom power, phase reverse, pad (for line level) and EQ are all independently switched.
We found the preamp to be bright, not annoying or harsh, but quite present compared to most any model on the market. This can of course help individual tracks stand out more in a mix, which is generally a good thing. The tone is punchy and full with a cleanish character that delivers top to bottom. On things like drums, guitars and vocals it's a very nice reach for presence. Having an onboard Pultec style EQ (that yes, delivers that vibe too) is an incredible feature that would always net you more just adding a small amount vs sitting around switching between different preamps all day. That bottom end has that big, round delivery that is extra wide, and the top end brings a smooth presence that even just a touch of can bring a lot to your game. We liked being able to turn down the output to prevent overloading the next piece in the chain, a huge plus in a preamp.
Conclusion: So you're telling me for this price I can have a UK built preamp / Pultec EQ in one little slot and it sounds great? Sign us all up please! Stellar sound and ease of use bring this dark green beast into a category of its own, once again Cartec delivers more in one rack space than most any we've seen.
CHAMELEON LABS 7602 MKII REVIEW
This 1073 clone mono channel strip offers your choice of mic, line or instrument level input, features phase reverse, selectable mic pre input impedence (300 or 1200), phantom power and limited LED input metering (better than nothing!). There is also an output volume control, which gives you more choices in gain staging (driving the input if desired). The mic pre offers an astounding +80dB of available gain so its one of the few that would never leave you high and dry wishing you could push a little more. There is a switchable hi-pass filter, as well as 3 band (2 shelving, one peaking mid) EQ on board which takes the unit over the top for usefulness.
The 7602 MKII is one of the better values on the market in mic pre and EQ. The discrete design is all hand soldered (read also can be easily repaired if needed) using discrete components. Every part on board is sourced in China where it is built, except for the gold ELMA switch used in the mic / line gain position. The switches all feel good and pots are pretty darn smooth in action too. The staging for the input gains takes a little bit of getting used to, discerning between line and then mic / DI stages, but is not difficult to grasp. Concerning the mic pre, it delivers an overall smooth sound (transformer i/o helps) and tames the extreme transients of things like snare drums nicely. It has a full range response with detailed midrange, and the stock unit is slightly soft up top. It has decent depth to it overall too. The DI on bass I really like, its not one of these big boomy sounding DIs (where you have to roll off all that low end in the mix anyhow) but rather it has a tight midrange sound to it which lets face it, is what brings definition to bass and keys in a mix.
The EQ section is simple and straight forward, offering classic frequency bands to choose from plus a few updated ones. For kick drum I regularly enjoy the pre by filtering the low end at 50hZ, boosting 60hZ, scooping 360hZ and adding a little slap at 3.4k. Very big and controlled sound can be had with these settings on just about any kick drum. For snare, filtering 80hZ and boosting 220hZ (sometimes 110hZ depending) and adding some 7k if needed, or some 12k shelf (if it doesnt bring up the hat bleed too much!). These pre / EQ units are first reaches for me on kick and snare, controlled and big sounding stuff (kick and snare are the pulse of your music, make it rock).
The top end shelf is one of those a little dab will do ya deals: rarely do I find myself using more than a small turn of the dial. It can be pretty brutal if you just start cranking it, but hey sometimes brutal is called for in rock and pop production! The low end can just get downright huge with this unit, a big round bottom and thickens up nicely. I do like that filter so I can tame the subsonic stuff easily (click, done!). The midrange is an obviously EQd sound but its a good obviously EQd sound, smooth enough for electric guitar EQing while tracking or mixing too.
ZenPro Mod: It brings a new depth and richness to the sound by starting with the Carnhill transformer upgrade on the mic in and line out. Bottom end gets deeper, mids are more detailed and rich. Next the tantalum capacitors bring a subtle upper midrange edge that gives definition to the source, without being annoying. The Motorola output transistor (new old stock) offers more clarity and brings a bit more transparency to the sound. Overall the mod brings a high-end sound, and its all based on original Neve values. We find it to be a fantastic upgrade, been doing this a long time too. The other upside of the mod is the extra step of testing and Quality Control each unit goes through.
Conclusion: Stock units are excellent, I mean they really excel in their price range. The fully modified unit is where its at though: there is a whole new life to be had by taking the standard mod into a deeper territory of sound enhancement and certainly brings it where you want it to be.
DAKING MIC PRE EQ REVIEW
Built in the USA by Geoff Daking and Company, this Trident A Range recreation gives you not only a great high end preamp but also a full range 4 band EQ section (as well as high and low filters!) that really delivers on most sources. 5 points available per band (20 total) and variable gain mean a lot of control.
The tone of these EQs is subtle, but it has a definite flavor to it that sort of creeps into your mixes (in a good way!). You can really twist stuff up no problem, as there seems to be so much headroom on them that they can take the extremes. There is a small amount of overlap between the bands, but they are in pretty good spots. The only wish list I would add to this EQ would be some kind of control between 250 and 500hZ for kick drums (Im a 350hZ to 400hZ guy like most). Certainly not a huge drawback for most.
Conclusion: Tons of control from top to bottom, with switchable points so repeatability is easier with these as well. No Ive never put them side by side with an A Range but they sound fantastic with a subtle character that makes them useful on almost any source.
DRAWMER MXPRO60 REVIEW
This unit has been around for quite some time, formerly as the “MX60” although the only change is in appearance and name. Drawmer is one of those tried and true audio companies that have been making great gear for decades and have earned a stellar rep for their gates, compressor / limiters, preamps and equalizers. It's even still made in England! The MXPRO60 is a solid state channel strip featuring an all discrete mic pre / DI with +60dB of gain (an additional +/-15dB of gain is available on the output fader pot), a one knob gate with fast and slow release, a De-Esser with male / female select, an auto mode VCA compressor, a 3 band equalizer (100hZ shelving low, 4.25kHZ shelving high, and a fully parametric midrange band ranging from freq 150hZ to 16kHZ, Q width of .3 to 3 full octaves, and +/- 18dB of gain per band) as well as a tube emulation / 3 band equalizer that brings low / mid / hi boosts as well as simulated tube harmonics, and a separate soft / hard limiter stage (always in line) to protect from overload. Wow...that was a long sentence, but it's only because it's got everything but the kitchen sink.
The preamp section is low noise with plenty of punch and smooth clarity, an all discrete design (not an IC based pre!) that delivers a healthy signal on all sources. Phase reverse, hi-pass (100hZ), a DI input with a bright mode (as well as +20dB mode) round off the input section. We simply liked everything we heard through it.
The dynamics section is very simple, the gate is quite smooth and it never chattered on us, a great thing to have to kill background noise for voice (it was not quite as fast as you'd want for most drum use, but was still useful to a degree there). The compressor is an AUTO style except you can choose the ratio (1:1 to infinity:1) and threshold and while it is somewhat hit and miss on its own, seems to couple nicely with the soft / hard limiter circuit which is always in line. At first the compressor seems a bit unruly until you find that balance. Pushing a compressed signal into the limiter using the makeup gain gives you two levels of control to maximize average volume and stop peaks. It worked well with voice and instruments, the compressor is definitely a bit slow for things like drums but the limiter is very fast and can be exploited easily if needed. The limiter is always in line before the output fader, it cannot be disabled or bypassed (not a bad thing when setting it to protect your digital converter input).
The equalizer section actually had us looking at one another a bit stunned, in a good way! That midrange control is simply one of the most versatile and smooth in combination with excellent SOUND one could hope for. Sure it has a fixed low and high band, but the critical midrange is handed to you on a silver platter here with huge control available. It works very fast also, and can do incredible amounts of gutting or cranking, as thin or super wide as you want. We get to hear a ton of gear around here, and we were expecting this EQ to be a bit of an afterthought by Drawmer. Very pleasantly surprised here, it's got what you want for most jobs from voice to instruments to drums.
The “Tube Sound” circuit is an emulation of tube harmonics, as well as 3 boosting eq circuits for low, mid and high. I would definitely consider this something worth using sparsely to make a change, but not push too hard. It's kind of a fuzzy EQ in most ways, used a little at a time and it can bring a little hair to sources. The output gain section seems clean and quiet, allowing another nice boost of volume.
Conclusion: It's been around a long time, pleasing users for many years for voice recording (including you voice artists) with its many features tailored for it. However, the MXPRO60 sports so many incredible features that it makes it useful as a channel strip in general to track pretty much anything. Easy to use, sounds great, and protects your digital recordings from clipping? Winner.
FINK AUDIO CS2-FA REVIEW
Dennis Fink, owner of Fink Audio, has been designing gear all the way from the old Urei days to Universal Audio and beyond. Eventually it seems he got the idea to wrap up some very cool designs into one do-all box and start his own company...which he did. This USA built stereo all tube preamp / DI / line level / equalizer / compressor is a stunning achievement in sound (and quality) based on the time I've spent with this unit. You've got an original Bill Putnam based tube preamp / input section, a tube 1176 style compressor limiter, and a Pultec style EQ (with all the same controls) so what more could you ask for? Well, all three of those things are holy grail status items so I think the only fair answer is "not much more" in one box anyhow.
Overall I find the preamp / input section to be a quintessential tube sound but not of the dirty type found in some lower cost units. It's a high quality open sound that is very dimensional and full, with that very slightly compressed sort of sound you expect from a good tube amp section. It still delivers nice detail and space, along with subtle character. The 1176 based FET comp / limiter rocks as you would expect! Dennis even tossed a SOFT ratio in there for gentle use on sources such as 2 buss, so yes this box can carry you start to finish from tracking to final mixdown. It has that great grab and energy of an 1176, capable of medium fast to VERY fast action of course, but that energetic hold it puts on things is unmistakable. The Pultec style EQ is perfect for simple "garnish" but can also do broad and deep strokes very nicely, and deliver a FAT sound that brings drive, that slight electric sounding "splatter", and a bottom end that you can really widen up a lot by pushing the boost and cut at the same time. Of course it doesn't really "sculpt" as no Pultec really does, but man can it add some balls to anything you got.
Conclusion: From kick drums to vocals to 2 buss, the Fink Audio CS2-FA is a great single reach when vibe and depth and old school are what it's all about. It's nice to have designs based on classics designed and built by a guy who was actually around designing with those folks too! The price might seem high but go price out 2 channels of tube preamp, Pultec style EQ and 1176 compression and you'll be begging to drop the cash on this USA tone monster.
PHOENIX AUDIO DRSQ4 REVIEW
This review is for the Phoenix Audio DRSQ4 (stereo) and DRSQ4M (mono)
The DRSQ4 (available in stereo or the mono DRSQ4M) is one of those pieces of gear that can fulfill many needs of the studio owner all in one spot. Its an excellent DRS series preamp featuring the transformer-less input Class A circuit they are famous for, it has a very high input impedence DI input (10M ohm) and also accepts line level sources with ease (by padding the mic pre input, trust me its not a negative!). Now, add in a hi-pass filter + a full 4 band 11 point gyrator EQ (dont ask me what that means! ok its a simulated inductor type of EQ) with possibly the most well thought out and chosen points you could ever need. OK if thats not enough, route it all to the famous DSOP-2 transformer balanced output section (aka the sweetener) and youve got yourself one heck of a high end front end for tracking, submixing of groups, and 2 buss sweetening + EQ.
You can see my DRS preamp mini-review here: Phoenix Audio DRS-2
Now, onto this EQ!
Really take a look at the available points, all 11 of them, and youll realize that these are HOT reaches on most anything. Shaun and David have really done their homework here it seems. There is no overlap of course, except when dealing with engaging the hi-pass as well as the lower frequencies. So you have the hi-pass filter and a high and low shelf EQ, as well as hi-mid and lo-mid peaks. The available points are:
Hi-Pass: 120hZ @ 12dB per slope
Low EQ: 40hZ, 80hZ, 130hZ
Low-Mid EQ: 200hZ, 400hZ, 800hZ
Hi-Mid EQ: 1.6kHz, 3kHz, 6kHz
High EQ: 10kHz, 15kHz
Overall the tone of these EQs is pretty smooth and natural, with a slightly excited sound though. There is a vibe and a character to them, but in typical Phoenix style its not over the top but just right on most sources. Boosting to the extremes brings no noticeable noise, they are very quiet. Even though the manual references all 4 EQ bands frequency points as centers, Robin (USA rep) is telling me the top and bottom bands are shelf types (shelving EQs dont have centers, the figure represents where the shelf begins to rise or fall). They dont seem to act as shelf-y to me as other EQs, more like a wider peaking curve. The bottom end doesnt bloat into the sub-bass region as quickly, and the top end doesnt open up super high airy like most shelves Ive used anyhow. They have a more controlled type of sound that really must be pushed to reach the extremes.
The 2 mid peaking bands are fairly wide at first, but seem to tighten the closer you get to max cut or boost. For gentle sculpting this makes them very useful to make subtle balance changes without obvious peak-y stuff happening. However, you can push them pretty hard on drums and guitars to get a more pointed and cutting sound. Voice benefits from gentle sculpting, you dont have to hit the top end real hard for it to open up very nicely without getting harsh or too air-y. Boosting 10k on the snare drum doesnt necessarily grab all the hat and cymbals to the extreme, and what it does grab certainly is pleasant.
The bottom end is unique in that it seems to stay very controlled, but there is a cool trick I like to use with the Phoenix EQ: engaging the hi-pass and boosting the low shelf at the same time. Doing this sort of creates your own curve, with a moderate 12db per octave slope starting at 120hZ with the hi-pass. Now you are pushing up at say 80hZ on kick drum, and you end up with this nice WIDE low end response that doesnt allow the sub-bass rumble to take over! Also, I think it goes without saying that the center frequency at this point isnt 80hZ but more of a moving target: push it around and try other low end frequencies too. This makes the Phoenix very handy on bass and kick drum by allowing you to dial in the right boom without having to deal with subsonic stuff.
A lot of people ask for favorite starting points on EQ, so Id like to break this down into the four food groups of pop music production:
Drums / Bass / Guitar / Vocals
Drums:
Kick Drum: HI-PASS, Boost 80hZ, Cut 400hZ, Boost 6kHz, Cut 10kHz
Snare Drum: HI-PASS, Cut 80hZ, Boost 200hZ, Cut 1kHz, Boost 10kHz
Rack Tom: HI-PASS, Boost 130hZ, Cut 400hZ, Boost 6kHz, Cut 10kHz
Floor Tom: Boost 80hZ, Cut 800hZ, Boost 6kHz, Cut 10kHz
Bass: HI-PASS, Boost 80hZ, Boost 800hZ, Boost 3kHz, Cut 15kHz
Electric Guitar: HI-PASS, Cut 130hZ, Boost 200hZ, Boost 6kHz, Cut 10kHz
Vocals: HI-PASS, Cut 130hZ, Boost 400hZ, Cut 3kHz, Boost 15kHz
Those are just some favorite reaches of mine, and typically great places to start for me. Some of this stuff ends up being pretty gentle as far as suggesting a boost or cut, all of this stuff varies anyhow.
Conclusion: A very versatile channel strip, youd love to have just one for processing voice or bass and guitar. Having a pair though opens you up to having a very useful 2 buss EQ for final mixdown, as well as being able to process drum submixes and other groups along the way. The DSOP-2 output section is enough reason to own at least 2 channels of something from Phoenix, if anything just to run the mix through.
SAFE SOUND AUDIO P1 REVIEW
The P1 is literally the first piece of gear I ever refused to review, only because instead I opted to start importing it exclusively. My relationship with Robert is many years now, and the P1 continues to be used daily in my studio. Having a clean and robust mic pre, a single knob expander, a 3 stage compressor that is almost impossible to make sound bad and a limiter that absolutely will prevent your converters from ever clippingputs the P1 in the gotta have category for tracking voice, bass and other acoustic sources. The built in monitoring section might seem kind of eh to some, but think about it; the ability to blend a vocalist within a stereo feed from the DAW in absolute real time with no latency has a LOT of value in todays computer recording environment.
Ive always felt the P1 strong suit was in tracking vocals in particular, singing / speaking / screaming it can handle it all and the multi stage compressor delivers it soooo naturally and still with nice size to it. I can set my P1 up with a 3 or 4:1 ratio, attack time of 15ms, and I am just varying the threshold at that point to cover any vocal duties that walk through the door. Dont believe me? Ask any P1 owner, this thing flat out delivers on voice. The expander is super easy to dial in, does great at removing background noise from fans and HVAC systems. The set and forget limiter, I normally leave about 2dB of space between where it turns on and the input of my analog converter hitting 0, and Im done for life. A small screwdriver and a 1k test tone and you no longer worry about overloads. Oh, and the limiter can be full on engaged and simply does not square wave like other designs. Its a look ahead style design but completely analog; it detects hot signals and momentarily turns the volume down rather than a hard clip.
Conclusion: Voice, bass, acoustic guitar, drums, you name it the P1 will handle it and control the dynamic range without giving you a small, pinched sound like other compressors. Its so easy to dial in too, it keeps you working. One man engineer / songwriters will love the fact that you can dial it up so nicely with little effort. A must for any studio doing voice work.
SSL ALPHA CHANNEL REVIEW
The Alpha Channel is another well priced product built in Oxford by the folks at SSL that excels beyond its asking price. It features a single preamp / DI / line level input, variable distortion circuit (VHD), switchable hi-pass filter, 3 band EQ with choice of bell or shelf on the low end, variable bell EQ midrange and hi-shelf, as well as a limiter to protect converters. Speaking of converters, the Alpha Channel has its own A/D conversion built in and outputs via SPDIF (you can run a separate line input to the rear to use as a stereo converter).
The preamp itself is mainly a clean and reliable sort of preamp, reproducing deep lows and airy highs and doesnt seem to bumpy in the frequency response. The VHD circuit I find to be a hit and miss feature in that while tracking a source I find it too finicky and unpredictable to be very useful. For things like drum machines or bass its easier to use, but overall something like a vocal is either not going to hit it at all or its going to hit it too hard and not sound very nice when pushed. The VHD circuit is always in the signal path, you can avoid it pretty easily by not pushing the preamp up real hot. So it has versatility with the distortion circuit but its hard to say you could dial it in on many things and know how it will react. The choice of 2nd and 3rd harmonic distortion is nice when you do find a use for it.
The high pass filter can be very useful for tracking things like guitar and vocals that bass response tends to get in the way during mixdown. The EQ section I really liked, for a 3 band EQ SSL really milked it for usefulness with the switchable bell / shelf on the low end band and completely variable midband Q selector. The high shelf is nice and can be pushed fairly hard and remains smooth, very wellSSL like. The available bands are great for drums / guitars / voice, you name it I dig it for a simple tracking EQ.
The limiter in my opinion is more of an oops style limiter, you can exploit it though with things like drums. It can provide a very obvious smack when pushed, and push hard I did and enjoyed it. For voice it would be better suited to just protect the converter in your chain, you can crunch guitars and bass with it nicely though, maybe better suited for mixdown time if you want to hear that sound. Its a very effective limiter too though, it stops stuff nicely but does have an obvious sound (verywellSSL like!).
The conversion I never really compared anything to, but it seems quite nice on its own. The fact that you can run a second line into the rear of the unit to take advantage of 2 channels of AD conversion is a nice touch.
Conclusion: The Alpha Link is a nice addition to a home studio using things like Digidesigns MBOX series and can accept SPDIF inputs. This way you can not only experience a decent converter but all of the trimmings on the way to building your song. The Alpha Link has a lot of tools, not all of them useful all the time, but kind of a no brainer in this price range.