Issue No. 55

Mic Preamps, Signal Processors

Nice Pair mic preamp

by No Toasters  |  reviewed by Pete Weiss

The fledgling No Toasters company, headed by Boston-based tech-whiz Bo Dixon (who says he's willing to repair anything except toasters), has combined clever Class A, J-FET circuitry with a quirky...

Accessories, Monitoring, Tools

HDS-16 & HRM-16 Headphone/Audio Distribution System

by Furman Sound  |  reviewed by Larry Crane

I've been searching for the perfect headphone amplification system for tracking live bands in the studio for years. Realizing that sending a single mix out to more than one musician would not do, I...

Plug-Ins, Signal Processors

Anthology II plug-in bundle

by Eventide  |  reviewed by Adam Kagan

I've had a lot of fun with this bundle! I think this may be the first time that I found a plug-in bundle to beat out the physical processor that it models, not only in versatility, but also in sound...

Consoles/Summing, Control Surfaces, Dynamics, Monitoring

8816 summing amplifier

by Neve  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

To be honest, I never really thought I'd be in the market for a summing mixer. When Dangerous Music pretty much invented the category with their 2-BUS a few years back, I thought about it but decided...

Consoles/Summing, Control Surfaces, Monitoring

PRO16 Series personal mix system

by Aviom  |  reviewed by Andy Hong, Ian Lawrence

While designing The Lodge's music production facility in NYC, I originally spec'ed a Furman HDS/HRM-6 system (Tape Op #38). I showed the studio design to producer Jason Carmer, and he insisted that...

Acoustics, Monitoring

Avantone Mixcubes

by Avant Electronics  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

First off, let me state that I am a huge fan of using the original Auratone 5C Sound Cubes for mixing. My usual methodology when mixing is to get tones on my ADAMs while switching my Event subwoofer...

Accessories, Media

Everything I?m Cracked Up To Be: A Rock & Roll Fairy Tale

by Jen Trynin  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

This book is sadly hilarious. Jen Trynin was a rock singer/songwriter from Boston whose 1994 self-released debut CD set off a huge bidding war between all the major labels. She ultimately signed with...

Computers, EQs, Software

Neon HR linear-phase EQ plug-in

by PSP  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

PSP recently released a truly mastering-grade linear-phase EQ plug-in called Neon. Two versions are on the market, Neon and Neon HR (high resolution). The HR version offers the following enhancements...

Accessories, Tools

LO-2B quick-release

by Atlas Sound  |  reviewed by Allen Farmelo

The Atlas LO-2B is a quick-release mic clip adapter that basically eliminates forever the need to thread another mic clip onto a stand. One piece threads into the mic clip and stays there. The other...

Dynamics, Mic Preamps

Biz mic preamp

by Purple Audio  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

I've run out of room in my 11-space 500-series chassis to hold all the mic preamps I'd like to put into it. And my rack isn't big enough for a second chassis, so I end up powering down my chassis and...

Dynamics, Signal Processors

STA-LEVEL Gold Edition compressor

by Retro Instruments  |  reviewed by Craig Schumacher

The vintage craze is far from over. The more we try to make audio perfect, the more we realize that imperfection makes more interesting recordings. In many ways, tubes are far less superior to...

Accessories, Media

Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of The Beatles

by Geoff Emerick & Howard Massey  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi, Larry Crane

Geoff Emerick is a legend among engineers and producers. He was the young "balance engineer" for The Beatles on Revolver through Abbey Road, with a spell off for later White Album and Let It Be...

Monitoring

S8R studio monitor

by SLS Audio  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

I love attending sessions at Peerless Mastering with Jeff Lipton (Tape Op #34). His "A Room" is the most accurate listening environment I've ever experienced. The room is so well designed and treated...

Dynamics, Mic Preamps

ADL 600 tube preamp

by PreSonus  |  reviewed by Larry Crane

Before we move my studio to its new location this winter, I've been scouring the control room looking for gear that doesn't get much use and making plans to sell or put the units aside for rental use....

Dynamics, Mic Preamps

P-1, EM-Silver, EM-Red & EM-Blue preamps

by A-Designs Audio  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

Wow, am I in preamp heaven or what? For the past few months, I've had a bunch of awesome mic preamps in my studio from Seventh Circle Audio (Tape Op #54), Purple Audio (see review in this issue), and...

Microphones

MA-200 condenser mic

by Mojave Audio  |  reviewed by Craig Schumacher

David Royer and his company Royer Labs have a great reputation for their fine line of ribbon mics. When the time came to manufacture David's designs for non-ribbon mics, Mojave Audio was formed to...

Dynamics, Mic Preamps

Silverbox 4 tube preamp

by Hamptone  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

Here's a funny story. Some years ago, the only outboard mic preamps I owned were Brent Averill-refurbished Neves and APIs. I recorded direct to a TASCAM MS-16 1'' 16-track and mixed on a Panasonic DA7...

Microphones

Fat Head ribbon mic

by Cascade Mics  |  reviewed by John Huebner

Like many readers, when I receive Tape Op, I thoroughly take in every page. One item I came across recently was a very small ad for Cascade Microphones. For a while now, I've wanted a ribbon mic to...

Microphones, Recorders

PCM-D1 portable recorder

by Sony  |  reviewed by Andy Hong

I saw this sucker for the first time over a year ago at one of the annual gear conventions. I was immediately impressed with its utilitarian but attractive design. It seemed to have all the right...

Accessories, Dynamics, Effects

CoolSprings passive spring reverb

by Zerotronics  |  reviewed by Pete Weiss

Playing the much-appreciated role of "poor man's plate reverb", spring reverb units have been enjoying a renaissance as of late. Thankfully, they've taken their place among a growing set of tools that...

Dynamics, EQs

FeQ-50 parametric EQ

by Summit Audio  |  reviewed by Raymond Richards

I use all outboard preamps in my studio, and none of them has an EQ section. I really didn't know what I was missing until I borrowed a friend's 1073 module and discovered what a difference a little...

LDCs, Microphones

K35 FET condenser mic

by Karma Audio  |  reviewed by Garrett Haines

Karma is a new microphone brand based out of Cupertino, CA. The units are produced in China according to Karma's specifications. But let's make something clear right away: this is not another line of...

Duplication, Software

PreMaster CD 1.1

by Sonic Studio  |  reviewed by Larry DeVivo

PreMaster CD is Sonic Studio's entry-level, host-based software for creating DDP masters and standard Red Book Audio CDs. I was anxious to try PreMaster CD for a number of reasons. I've owned a...

Consoles/Summing, Mic Preamps, Monitoring

Equinox mic preamp, summing buss & master section

by Shadow Hills Industries  |  reviewed by Jim Roll

The Equinox represents all that is right about Peter Reardon and his Shadow Hills Industries products. It's beautiful, it's functional, it's innovative, it's a throwback to another time that...

Accessories, Health

Airfoil

by Rain Recording  |  reviewed by John Baccigaluppi

This is one of those fairly affordable, simple products that falls under the "how did I get by without this" category. Elegantly simple, the Airfoil is an anodized aluminum tray that holds your laptop...

Accessories, Media

Guide to Home Recording on a Computer (DVD)

by Roger McGuinn  |  reviewed by Mark Weissburg

Home recording can be a lonely endeavor. There are great websites, books, and of course magazines to give you ideas and encouragement, but there will always be times when you end up staring at the...