Avenson Audio: IsoGtr DI, re-amp, and splitter

Brad Avenson is great at packing a lot of hi-fi functionality into the smallest possible, heavy-duty aluminum cases. His latest product aimed at guitarists and studios is a "remix" of his IsoDi.  At 3.3'' × 5.25'' × 1.4'', it's about the size of most standard direct boxes, but it does much more. There is an XLR line input so you can use the box to re-amp line-level signals. The other input is a standard hi-Z guitar/instrument input. The instrument input is simultaneously sent to five separate outputs: a unity-gain FET Buffered DI output (XLR), a buffered instrument thru (1/4''), and three separate transformer-isolated instrument- level outputs (1/4'') with individual attenuators. The XLR output has a ground lift for troubleshooting hum and buzz. You can easily see the possibilities here. Send one instrument signal to four different amps, while simultaneously pulling a direct to re- amp later. When you're ready to re-amp, you can send that signal to four separate amps. Frequency response is 10 Hz — 100 kHz and hi-Z input impedance is optimized at 10 MΩ, so this box is not going to mess with your signal. Sure, there are other boxes that do similar things to this box, but from both a price and size standpoint, IsoGtr is extremely competitive. We used this box around The Dock and Panoramic House, testing it with different amp and guitar combos, and it does exactly what it says it will do — split the hi-Z guitar signal into multiple outputs with no discernible signal degradation. The guitar/amp sound with IsoGtr in the chain is the same as the sound without it in the chain. IsoGtr is a great, affordable addition to any studio or guitarist's rig. -JB