Recording - April 2014 - 16

Lewitt (lewitt-audio.com): The new LCT 550 ($699)
is claimed to be the world's quietest microphone, with
a 0 dBA self-noise in its electronics and 3 dBA selfnoise in all. It offers a 140 dBA dynamic range and
a maximum SPL of 143 dBA, giving it the ability to
capture both extremely weak and extremely strong
signals with detail and clarity. It comes with a 3-position pad, 3-position highpass filter, transformerless
electronics, and features Lewitt's on-mic noiseless
pushbutton controls. The DGT 650 ($399) offers a
complete computer recording solution within a single
mic and interface box. It has ASIO and
Core Audio drivers for USB connection
to a PC or Mac, and offers cardioid
mono, stereo XY, mono vocal+instrument, and stereo line input modes, all
of which include MIDI I/O. The mic
itself has a 3-position pad and 3-position highpass filter as well.
Little Labs (littlelabs.com) showed the
Pepper (price TBA), a very flexible routing device first hinted at in our AES
report. It allows the user to feed in a dry
instrument signal such as a guitar,
blend it in parallel with effects pedals or
pro effects, feeding an amp and a
direct output as well. The unit has
reamping capability built in with both
transformer based and transformerless
active DIs), and you can set the instrument load to work best with particular
pickups (10 Megohms to 100 kilohms),
link to other gear, and much more.
M-Audio (m-audio.com): The BX
Carbon reference monitors come in three
sizes: BX5 Carbon ($149.99 each) with a 5" woofer;
BX6 Carbon ($199.99 each) with 6" woofer; and BX8
Carbon ($249.99 each) with 8" woofer. All three models are biamplified with silk dome tweeters, newly
designed waveguides, Acoustic Space Control for
tweaking response to fit the room, and frequency
response of 57, 45, or 40 Hz up to 22 kHz. Also new:
The M3-6 3-way monitor ($249.99 each) with 6"
woofer plus coaxial 5" mid and 1" tweeter, and the
HDH50 studio headphones ($199.99).
Mackie (mackie.com) has updated and expanded
its lines of monitors and compact mixers. The MRmk3
monitors now include models with 5", 6.5", and 8"
woofers (MR5mk3 $199.99 each, MR6mk3
$259.99 each, MR8mk3 $329.99 each) and the
MR10Smk3 subwoofer ($449.99). The new speakers feature redesigned waveguides for smoother
transition from lows to highs and a wider sweet spot,
better integrated amplifiers, and rear-ported enclosures packed with acoustic absorption material for a
16

RECORDING April 2014

tighter sound. The VLZ4 compact mixers ($129.99-$1699.99 depending
on channel count) now include Mackie's high-end Onyx preamps and offer
high-contrast knobs for easier use in dark venues.
Manley Labs (manleylabs.com) reached out to a new
audience with the CORE ($2250), a rackmount channel
strip designed to present elements of famous Manley audio
products in a self-contained and easy-to-use form. The
CORE includes a Class A tube mic preamp with handwound Manley transformer, a DI similar to that in the SLAM!
with 10 Megohm input impedance, an ELOP compressor
with 3:1 ratio and variable attack, release, and threshold
controls, a 3-band EQ with Baxandall low and high shelves
and a sweepable mid bell band, and a FET brickwall limiter. The unit features 3-way metering and balanced I/O
with an insert point between the compressor and the EQ.
MOTU (motu.com): The new 828x ($849) is a 1U rackmount audio/MIDI interface with two mic preamps, 8 balanced TRS analog inputs and outputs, XLR main outputs,
two headphone jacks, S/PDIF, and two banks of optical
ADAT I/O, plus MIDI, time code, and word clock I/O. It
offers the same feature set as the hybrid FireWire/USB
828mk3, but replaces FireWire with Thunderbolt for higher bandwidth and hot-swappable plug and play operation. The interface includes CueMix FX DSP mixing and
effects with reverb, EQ, and LA-2A compression, and can
be operated in standalone mode from the front panel.
MXL (mxlmics.com): The CR77 (price TBA) is a new dynamic supercardioid
vocal mic for live use on stage as well as in the studio. Its vintage-style grille covers an integrated foam windscreen, and a built-in shockmount reduces floor
vibrations. MXL also announced the forthcoming Sound Runner line of affordable, high-quality mic and instrument cables with 95% coverage copper braid
shielding and lifetime warranties. MXL's new Mobile Media line brings high-quality audio to field recording with mobile devices such as smart phones. Of particular interest: the MM-140 ($199.95), a tripod-mounted large-diaphragm condenser mic that runs on a 9V battery in place of phantom power.

From top: PreSonus Temblor T10 subwoofer and Eris 4.5 monitors;
Manley Labs CORE; MXL CR77; Prism Sound Atlas

http://www.lewitt-audio.com http://www.manleylabs.com http://www.littlelabs.com http://www.motu.com http://www.m-audio.com http://www.mxlmics.com http://www.mackie.com

Recording - April 2014

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