RECORDING November 2022 - 62

REVIEW
Thermionic Culture The Fat Bustard II
Give your mixes some attitude with this big bird from Britain
REVIEW BY PAUL VNUK JR.
he Fat Bustard II is a valve-based, 12-channel
summing mixer from Thermionic Culture. This
mighty tube mixer sports dual auxiliary (AUX)
channels, onboard EQ, stereo width, mono control,
monitoring options, and a healthy dose of attitude,
handmade in Harlow, England.
T
A Mighty Bird
As we have seen in our previous reviews of The Culture
Vulture 20A (June 2018), The Kite (December 2019), The
Snow Petrel and The Robin (February 2020), Thermionic
Culture loves its ornithological-inspired appellations. The Fat
Bustard II is a second-generation update of the original Fat
Bustard released in 2007. The 4U tall Fat Bustard II is one of
the most extensive summing mixers on the market, offering:
* 4 Stereo Inputs
* 4 Mono Inputs with Panning Capability
* 2 AUX Inputs-Switchable Between Dual Mono or
Fixed Stereo
* Low and High Varislope Shelving EQ
* Low and High Cut Filters
* Frequency Selectable Stereo Width Control
* Frequency Selectable Low-Frequency to Mono Control
* Thermionic Attitude Control
* A Monitoring Section-Stereo VU Metering, Main and
Monitor Output Control, Master Balance and External
Input Selection
62 RECORDING November 2022
Birdwatching
The all-black Fat Bustard II starts with eight semi-stepped
chicken head knobs, each with a red on/mute switch.
The first four knobs control channels 1-8 in stereo pairs.
for mono channels 9-12, each with
The second row is
an additional semi-stepped pan pot. These can also be
switched to mono, bypassing the pan control. Doing so
adds about +3dB of gain to the signal. Finally, a pair of
AUX inputs can be switched in and out of the signal path
and in dual mono or stereo.
On the rear are corresponding XLR connectors for each
channel/AUX input.
Passive
The summing and EQ sections of The Fat Bustard II are
entirely passive. I found it around -6dB quieter than my active
summing box, but this headroom comes in handy with the
Attitude circuit.
Attitude
We first met the 6-stage, Attitude feature in our review of The
Kite. Attitude is a harmonic saturation circuit that makes the
high-frequency reaction less linear and adds 0.01% to 5% of
second order harmonic distortion.
It increases the harmonic richness and tonal excitement, with
the net effect of boosting the signal from unity at 1 to +14dB
on setting 6. In earlier Thermionic models, setting 1 was about
-2 to -3dB below unity gain with a max output of +12dB at 6.
The sound of Attitude is akin to pushing a classic recording
console or the input stage of a tape machine gently " into the
red. " Attitude maintains a subtlety that never evolves into full
overdrive or distortion. Yet, it offers a classic circuit compression
of sorts that can help gel a mix together.

RECORDING November 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of RECORDING November 2022

Fade In
Fast Forward
Focal Sub6, Focal Sub One and Focal Sub12
Neumann NDH 30
A Family of Amphion Monitors Compared
Plugin Outlet: BABY Audio IHNY-2
KRK S10.4 Studio Subwoofer
A Space for Creative Inclinations: An Interview with David Crowder
Plugin Outlet: KIT Plugins Blackbird Mo-Q
Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Paragon Studios 2.0
IK Multimedia iLoud Precision MTM, Precision 5 & Precision 6
Inside the Box with Joe Albano: Virtual Studio Modeling
ddrum NIO Percussion Pad
Yorkville Sound YSM5 Series II
Session Log with Marc Urselli: A Brief History of EastSide Sound
GIK Acoustics Sound Blocks
State of Acoustics 2022
Thermionic Culture The Fat Bustard II
Readers' Tracks
Fade Out: Studio Thoughts from Allen Sides
RECORDING November 2022 - Intro
RECORDING November 2022 - Cover1
RECORDING November 2022 - Cover2
RECORDING November 2022 - 1
RECORDING November 2022 - 2
RECORDING November 2022 - 3
RECORDING November 2022 - Fade In
RECORDING November 2022 - 5
RECORDING November 2022 - 6
RECORDING November 2022 - 7
RECORDING November 2022 - Fast Forward
RECORDING November 2022 - 9
RECORDING November 2022 - Focal Sub6, Focal Sub One and Focal Sub12
RECORDING November 2022 - 11
RECORDING November 2022 - 12
RECORDING November 2022 - 13
RECORDING November 2022 - Neumann NDH 30
RECORDING November 2022 - 15
RECORDING November 2022 - A Family of Amphion Monitors Compared
RECORDING November 2022 - 17
RECORDING November 2022 - 18
RECORDING November 2022 - 19
RECORDING November 2022 - 20
RECORDING November 2022 - 21
RECORDING November 2022 - 22
RECORDING November 2022 - 23
RECORDING November 2022 - Plugin Outlet: BABY Audio IHNY-2
RECORDING November 2022 - 25
RECORDING November 2022 - KRK S10.4 Studio Subwoofer
RECORDING November 2022 - 27
RECORDING November 2022 - A Space for Creative Inclinations: An Interview with David Crowder
RECORDING November 2022 - 29
RECORDING November 2022 - 30
RECORDING November 2022 - 31
RECORDING November 2022 - 32
RECORDING November 2022 - 33
RECORDING November 2022 - 34
RECORDING November 2022 - 35
RECORDING November 2022 - Plugin Outlet: KIT Plugins Blackbird Mo-Q
RECORDING November 2022 - 37
RECORDING November 2022 - Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Paragon Studios 2.0
RECORDING November 2022 - 39
RECORDING November 2022 - 40
RECORDING November 2022 - 41
RECORDING November 2022 - IK Multimedia iLoud Precision MTM, Precision 5 & Precision 6
RECORDING November 2022 - 43
RECORDING November 2022 - 44
RECORDING November 2022 - 45
RECORDING November 2022 - Inside the Box with Joe Albano: Virtual Studio Modeling
RECORDING November 2022 - 47
RECORDING November 2022 - 48
RECORDING November 2022 - 49
RECORDING November 2022 - ddrum NIO Percussion Pad
RECORDING November 2022 - 51
RECORDING November 2022 - Yorkville Sound YSM5 Series II
RECORDING November 2022 - 53
RECORDING November 2022 - Session Log with Marc Urselli: A Brief History of EastSide Sound
RECORDING November 2022 - 55
RECORDING November 2022 - 56
RECORDING November 2022 - 57
RECORDING November 2022 - GIK Acoustics Sound Blocks
RECORDING November 2022 - 59
RECORDING November 2022 - State of Acoustics 2022
RECORDING November 2022 - 61
RECORDING November 2022 - Thermionic Culture The Fat Bustard II
RECORDING November 2022 - 63
RECORDING November 2022 - Readers' Tracks
RECORDING November 2022 - 65
RECORDING November 2022 - 66
RECORDING November 2022 - 67
RECORDING November 2022 - 68
RECORDING November 2022 - 69
RECORDING November 2022 - 70
RECORDING November 2022 - 71
RECORDING November 2022 - Fade Out: Studio Thoughts from Allen Sides
RECORDING November 2022 - Cover3
RECORDING November 2022 - Cover4
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