Recording - July 2014 - 29

a spin in our March 2009 issue. Both boxes
are cut from the same cloth, but it's still not
an easy comparison since the ISA One features a dual, push-pull gain structure and
impedance switching. Plus, while it uses the
same input transformer, the ISA One has no
output transformer. Perhaps for that reason,
it was noticeable to me that the Red 1 500
had a little bit of a tighter low-mid "thrust" to
its sound.
Classic sound
The Red 1 500 falls into the category
of a classic console sound. In essence it
sits in the middle, nicely between "vibe
and heavily colored" on one side and
"clinically clean" on the other. Overall it
is a clear and neutral preamp with just a
hint of top-end rounding, along with its
tight forward low mids which give it
weight.
What I like about console-style preamps is that they stack well and their
sonic signature gels tracks together nicely
in the finished mix. I know it's a cliché to
say it's a sound that sounds like an
album, but yeah... it's definitely like that!
This is not a preamp that will just be
your kick drum pre, or your guitar cab
pre. Instead, once you plug in a mic and
start recording, you simply find that
you're no longer concerned with preamp
choice vs. source choice.

You may have noticed in the past few
issues that I have been tracking a Celtic
Folk Album that includes everything from
bodhrán, Scottish war-pipes, Uilleann
pipes, penny whistles and more, to more
modern fare like a cajon, drum set,
acoustic guitars, banjo, acoustic bass, and
a trio of vocalists. Since I rarely needed
more than two microphone preamps at one
time, I decided to track half of the songs for
the album entirely through the pair of Red 1
500 preamps I was sent, and I was never
disappointed. Moving on to other styles,
like a simple indie-rock trio and a folky classic rock session, my feeling was the same.
Comparison taste tests
I also did some quick side-by-sides with
other preamps in my collection for a bit of
comparison, including a Chandler TG-2,
a Chandler Little Devil, a Great River, and
my trusty Millennia Media HV-3D.
Overall the Red 1 500 has a touch more
of a subdued top end compared to the
TG-2 and Great River, but it was not as
edgy or vibey as the Chandlers can get
when driven hard. (Actually the Red 1
500 is pretty hard to overdrive at all,
unless your input source is really loud!)
Lastly, while it is nowhere near as transparent as my transformerless Millennia
HV-3D, I was surprised to find that it was
just as clean with regard to noise floor.

Just as with source and style, the Red 1
500 plays no favorites when it comes to
microphones. It worked great with everything from a dynamic Shure SM7 to 47,
6,7 and 251-flavored tube mics, to the
modern Neumann TLM 107, to ribbon mics
like the new AEA N22 as well as the venerable Coles 4038 and newer 4030L. And
if you're keeping track, yes, pretty much
every microphone I've reviewed in the past
several issues of this magazine was used in
tandem with the Red 1 500.
Wrapping it up
While the Red 1 500 falls into the middleof-the-road console pre category, don't write
that off as boring or vanilla! The Red 1
500's magic is that it offers a a great classic sound that is not too vintage and yet not
too modern. It has a nice weighted low end
with just a hint of smoothness and warmth
on the top, making it useful in most if not all
recording situations. If ever there was a setit-and-forget-it microphone preamp that just
brings the magic with no fuss, this is it.
I will close with a bit of warning-if you
do watch the Focusrite Console movie, you
will be craving the sound that the Red 1 500
has to offer before the credits even roll!
Price: $999.99
More from: Focusrite, www.focusrite.com
http://www.focusrite.com http://www.isoacoustics.com http://www.isoacoustics.com
Recording - July 2014

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