Rupert Neve Designs has announced the first and only equaliser for the 500-Series actually designed by Rupert Neve – the 551 Inductor EQ.
The design offers three bands of EQ drawn from vintage designs, including switched frequencies and a high-pass filter, custom-wound inductors and transformers, and class-A gain blocks.
The low-frequency band is designed to produce a resonant bass response, however the LF band on the 551 can be used as either a shelf or a peak filter. The inductor midrange band is optimised for sweetening vocals and instruments, and its proportional Q response is suited to minimising problematic frequencies. The high-frequency band is a hybrid vintage/modern design, blending inductor circuitry with capacitor-based topologies to achieve ‘vintage tones’ with enhanced control. The high-pass filter is a 12dB/octave design with a fixed 80Hz frequency, and can be used in tandem with the low frequency EQ to add low-end presence.
Each EQ section uses low-feedback, class-A discrete electronics to prevent low-level artifacts and harshness from detracting from the tonal shaping. However, the updated EQ circuit of the 551 uses techniques and components that were unavailable 35 at the time, and it should not be considered a ‘clone’.
Both the high and low band can be switched from shelf to peak curves, and offer 15 dB of boost or cut. The high band can be switched from 8kHz to 16kHz, and the low band can be selected at 35Hz, 60Hz, 100Hz and 220Hz. The inductor-based mid band offers six centre frequencies – 200Hz, 350Hz, 700Hz, 1.5kHz, 3kHz and 6kHz. The mid band also has a Mid Hi Q switch to narrow the bandwidth (increase the Q) of the filter.
‘While creating functional 500-series modules is relatively simple, designing those modules to equal their non-500-series counterparts with the current, voltage and space restraints is quite challenging,’ the company says. ‘In creating our own 500-Series modules, we experimented with a number of different transformer and circuit designs to achieve the same presence and sweetness found in the Portico Series of modules. The result of these efforts is that outside of the slightly lowered headroom, our 500-Series modules are nearly indistinguishable from standard Portico Series modules, and are perfectly suited for studios of the highest calibre.’
The 551 Inductor EQ ships in late January 2014 with a list price of US$950.
More: www.rupertneve.com
