Recording - July 2016 - 30

BY ALEX HAWLEY

Also on the front panel is the Phazer
tool. This phase adjustment setting can
create 360 degrees of analog phase
shift, giving plenty of flexibility to phasealign any miked cabinet with the internal
JDX output. Combining a miked cab
with the JDX output can create huge
tones... the built-in Phazer really sets the
Headload apart in this respect.

Radial Engineering Headload
Way more than just a load box, it's a guitar amp recording tool box
Radial Engineering is known for nearly
bulletproof durability, overall reliability,
and a unique line of products that cover
just about any I/O setup imaginable.
Based in Vancouver, Radial features
products such as recording interfaces,
500 Series modules, reamping tools,
rugged DI boxes, guitar amp attenuators,
and much more. Today, we'll be checking out the Radial Headload, which is a
combination direct box, load box, and
phase alignment tool.
Overview
I've been eager to try out the
Headload for a number of reasons. I
love the idea of using an attenuator with
high-wattage amps at home, or even on
stage to help manage stage volume during performances. The Headload can go
well beyond simple attenuation, taking
on the entire load from an amp for silent
recording. For use without a speaker
cabinet, the Headload features a JDX
Reactor output, loaded with a number of
cab simulations to stand in for any missing sonic elements that result from playing silently. Its flexible I/O allows you to
capture the best of both worlds at
once-the built-in Phazer tool is
designed to fine-tune any slight phase
adjustments that are needed between a
miked cab and a simulated cab going
into the PA or recording interface.
The Headload lives in a 14 gauge steel
chassis and weighs about 8 pounds. It has
optional rack ears or a grab-and-go handle
for transport to a gig. From a construction
standpoint, this thing is rock solid. It can
safely handle up to 130 Watts RMS and
peaks at 180 Watts. The durability starts
30

RECORDING JULY 2016

with a series of cement-encrusted copper
resistor coils, controlled with a fixed 6position rotary switch to set the power
reduction. The settings range from 100%
(full volume) down to 20%, with a Trim knob
for fine adjustments from 20% down to
zero. The Off setting is used when there is
no cab connected, to prevent damage to
the amp or the Headload. Next to the attenuation controls there are two different Hi
and Lo Resonance toggles. The Resonance
switches enhance the EQ curve on the stage
amp, in order to compensate for a reduced
speaker level; they compensate for the
Equal Loudness Contours in a manner similar to a Loudness switch on a hi-fi system.
The JDX controls allow you to toggle
between six different cab emulations that
cover a wide range of sonic characters. The
first voicing is based on Radial's popular
JDX Reactor box, which emulates the sound
of a 4x12 Marshall cabinet. The other voices cover a range of amps based on open
back, closed back, different drivers, and so
on. Audition each voicing and see what
works best with your amp. The emulation is
analog, so end results are directly related to
the amp in use. The 2-band EQ on the front
panel fine-tunes any of these cab voicings.

In use
The Headload is available in 16, 8, and
4Ω versions. Give this some thought if you
plan on running multiple cabs with the
Headload, as the outputs run in parallel.
This means both of your cabs would need
to be rated at 16Ω in order to use the 8Ω
Headload, or if both cabs were 8Ω, then
you'd need to purchase the 4Ω version.
The I/O on the back panel is pretty
flexible, and allows for a lot of applications. There are pre and post EQ XLR outputs, plus two unbalanced outputs (one
pre-JDX, one post-JDX and EQ), an input
from the guitar amp, and two outputs to
feed speaker cabinets, all on 1/4". Both
of the XLR outputs capture the sound of
the JDX, but the pre-EQ output is intended for the PA, and the post-EQ output is
intended for use with stage monitors or
in-ear monitors. There is also a 1/4" headphone input on the front panel.
The amp attenuation sounds accurate at
all of the various settings, especially when
implementing the resonance switches for
the lower settings. The playability of the
amp and tone stays intact, while maintaining a practical stage volume or practice
volume, even with powerful tube amps.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - July 2016