Recording - July 2020 - 70

REVIEW

Radial HDI High Definition
Studio Direct Box
A sonically diverse front end for your direct recording needs

REVIEW BY PAUL VNUK JR.

S

ince the introduction of the JDI Passive Direct Box in 1996, Radial
has spent close to 25 years pushing and prodding the humble DI
box to greater heights. These tank-tough green boxes and their
blue, active JDV counterparts are found on stages and in studios the
world over. This month we look at the latest Radial design, the HDI (High
Definition Studio Direct Box) developed in collaboration with noted gear
designer W.C. "Hutch" Hutchison.

Clean or Colored: why not both?

Sonic transparency is a Radial hallmark. With 'High Definition' as part of
its name, the HDI abides-it's designed
to be the cleanest Radial direct box todate, but this time around, thanks to its
dual topology, the HDI also stands as
being the most colorful direct box Radial
has ever produced.

Classy, bold, and big!

The HDI is a half-space 2U device,
comfortable either sitting on a desktop
or racked up with the included brackets.
It has a beautiful deep blue faceplate
made of thick, etched aluminum. Top and
center is a backlit VU meter and a trio of
70 RECORDING July 2020

large chrome semi-stepped knobs labeled
Level, Color, and Presence. Alongside
the knobs is a quartet of toggle switches
labeled HI Z, Opto, HPF (highpass filter),
and (ground) Lift. Then we have a pair of
1
/4" TS in and thru jacks, and finally a
front-side power switch.
On the back are a pair of male XLR
outputs with a choice of mic or line level;
the line output has a -14dB pad switch.
There's also a 1/4" TS output option that
carries all the HDI processing; this is intended for feeding instrument rig amp
heads and devices with instrument-level inputs. If that isn't enough, there are
two additional inputs on the back panel:
another 1/4" TS, and then a 3.5mm mini

jack specifically made for modular and
mini desktop synths, drum machines, etc.
You might be tempted to plug in your
phone or laptop, which will work, but
bear in mind, it's a mono input. That's a
lot of options for a direct box! The good
news is, it's easy to use.

Direct box

The HDI is happy being a regular DI
box-plug in (front or back) your favorite
guitar, bass or keyboard, send the frontside thru out to your amp, connect the
HDI mic out (+3.7dBu) to your mixer or
microphone preamp, and boom-it's a
direct box complete with level control. The
two-position HI Z switch helps achieve
a proper signal load with passive and
piezo pickups, and there's ground lift
switch to defeat hum and buzz.

Full-featured instrument preamp

The HDI is also an instrument preamp,
but the beauty here is that it's not an
either/or type of thing; DI and preamp
features commingle freely, but they use



Recording - July 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - July 2020

Fade In
Fast Forward
TWA Effects: SIDE STEP Universal Variable State LFO Pedal
That One Virtual Amp
Gauge Precision Instruments: ECM-80 Dynamic Vocal Microphone
Soyuz: The Launcher Inline Active Preamp
Plugin Outlet: IK Multimedia AmpliTube Brian May
Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Recording Guitarist Carl Verheyen
TASCAM SERIES 8p Dyna 8 channel mic preamplifier with analog compressor
Self Made Sisters: In the studio with Larkin Poe
Eventide: Rose Pedal
Soundware Showcase: Toontrack EZbass Virtual Bass Guitar
Mackie Producer Bundle
Considering a Guitar-Based Studio
UK Sound: 1073
Inside the Box with Joe Albano: The DAW: Getting the Most Out of Your Virtual Amp
Bettermaker: Bus Compressor
Readers’ Tracks
DACS: HeadLine Guitar Switching System
Radial: HDI High Definition Studio Direct Box
Fade Out: Art vs. Science in Mixing—and Life?
Recording - July 2020 - Intro
Recording - July 2020 - Cover1
Recording - July 2020 - Cover2
Recording - July 2020 - 1
Recording - July 2020 - 2
Recording - July 2020 - 3
Recording - July 2020 - Fade In
Recording - July 2020 - 5
Recording - July 2020 - 6
Recording - July 2020 - 7
Recording - July 2020 - Fast Forward
Recording - July 2020 - 9
Recording - July 2020 - TWA Effects: SIDE STEP Universal Variable State LFO Pedal
Recording - July 2020 - 11
Recording - July 2020 - That One Virtual Amp
Recording - July 2020 - 13
Recording - July 2020 - 14
Recording - July 2020 - 15
Recording - July 2020 - 16
Recording - July 2020 - 17
Recording - July 2020 - 18
Recording - July 2020 - 19
Recording - July 2020 - Gauge Precision Instruments: ECM-80 Dynamic Vocal Microphone
Recording - July 2020 - 21
Recording - July 2020 - Soyuz: The Launcher Inline Active Preamp
Recording - July 2020 - 23
Recording - July 2020 - Plugin Outlet: IK Multimedia AmpliTube Brian May
Recording - July 2020 - 25
Recording - July 2020 - Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Recording Guitarist Carl Verheyen
Recording - July 2020 - 27
Recording - July 2020 - 28
Recording - July 2020 - 29
Recording - July 2020 - TASCAM SERIES 8p Dyna 8 channel mic preamplifier with analog compressor
Recording - July 2020 - 31
Recording - July 2020 - Self Made Sisters: In the studio with Larkin Poe
Recording - July 2020 - 33
Recording - July 2020 - 34
Recording - July 2020 - 35
Recording - July 2020 - 36
Recording - July 2020 - 37
Recording - July 2020 - 38
Recording - July 2020 - 39
Recording - July 2020 - 40
Recording - July 2020 - 41
Recording - July 2020 - Eventide: Rose Pedal
Recording - July 2020 - 43
Recording - July 2020 - Soundware Showcase: Toontrack EZbass Virtual Bass Guitar
Recording - July 2020 - 45
Recording - July 2020 - Mackie Producer Bundle
Recording - July 2020 - 47
Recording - July 2020 - Considering a Guitar-Based Studio
Recording - July 2020 - 49
Recording - July 2020 - 50
Recording - July 2020 - 51
Recording - July 2020 - UK Sound: 1073
Recording - July 2020 - 53
Recording - July 2020 - Inside the Box with Joe Albano: The DAW: Getting the Most Out of Your Virtual Amp
Recording - July 2020 - 55
Recording - July 2020 - 56
Recording - July 2020 - 57
Recording - July 2020 - Bettermaker: Bus Compressor
Recording - July 2020 - 59
Recording - July 2020 - Readers’ Tracks
Recording - July 2020 - 61
Recording - July 2020 - 62
Recording - July 2020 - 63
Recording - July 2020 - 64
Recording - July 2020 - 65
Recording - July 2020 - DACS: HeadLine Guitar Switching System
Recording - July 2020 - 67
Recording - July 2020 - 68
Recording - July 2020 - 69
Recording - July 2020 - Radial: HDI High Definition Studio Direct Box
Recording - July 2020 - 71
Recording - July 2020 - Fade Out: Art vs. Science in Mixing—and Life?
Recording - July 2020 - Cover3
Recording - July 2020 - Cover4
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