Rupert Neve Designs 500 Series - The Color XL Bundle (2 x 542 + 2 x 535 + R10 Chassis)

With abundant power and versatile connections, the R10 delivers peace of mind for engineers who demand a higher degree of confidence in their 500 series racks.

Power You Can Trust
Power-wise, the R10 has more than 150% the required current for a 10-space chassis to prevent the power rails from failing under a higher-than-expected load. To help monitor and troubleshoot problematic modules, the R10 is equipped with LED current metering to show how much power is being used. The internal power supply itself has been carefully designed and double-shielded to avoid significant magnetic induction in any of the channel positions. With such attention to providing and monitoring power, the R10 helps your modules realize their fullest potential.

Solid Steel Construction
The chassis is comprised of solid steel with sliding nuts to accommodate various manufacturers modules. All connectors and fittings are of the highest quality to ensure that the R10 will hold up to many years of use.

A New Level of Confidence in the 500 Series
Because the R10 is built to 500 series specifications, it will work flawlessly with any properly-designed 500 series module you wish to include in it. To help accommodate modules that are slightly out of spec, the R10 has variable-position screw holes to help make the installation process as smooth as possible. The 500 series VCA buss link function can be enabled in pairs on the R6 using the link jumpers on Channels 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8 or 9-10. Enabling link allows compatible compressor modules like the 543 to share VCA control when their links are enabled. Matching blank panels are also available to cover any empty slots.

If you want to get the very best performance out of your 500 series modules, the Rupert Neve Designs R10 is the serious rack for the serious sound you want.

The ultimate “color box”. As a 500-series follow-up to the Portico 5042, the 542 delivers the same thick, musical simulation of tape while drastically enhancing creative control via a number of new features. In addition to the the “true tape” circuitry – great for bringing out 3rd-order harmonics – the 542 incorporates a soft-clip circuit that tames the harshest sources and enhances 2nd-order harmonics, a variable and versatile Silk/Texture circuit for three transformer tones in one, and a wet/dry control to blend in the perfect amount of saturation.

Unlike digital emulations, the “True Tape” drive circuit works by feeding a custom-designed transformer acting as a “record head”, which in turn is coupled to a correctly equalized replay amplifier. As the voltage rises on the “record head”, saturation increases, and a soft clip circuit engages at higher levels to round off peak transients. The sound of the tape circuit can be further modified with selectable 15 / 30 IPS modes and a pre/post-tape blend control. In addition to the tape circuit, the 542 also has the variable Silk & Texture circuitry found in the Portico II series of modules, which allows the engineer to fine-tune the harmonic ratio and tonality on the output transformer.

Features

TAPE In
Sends the signal through the “True Tape” circuitry, which is affected by the saturation, blend and 15 / 30 IPS controls.

TRIM
Provides +/– 12dB adjustment of level on incoming signal levels, prior to the tape circuit.

SATURATION
Controls the signal level being sent to the “tape head” circuit. As the saturation level increases, the level on the “record” head rises, and the replay gain is reduced so that the overall output signal level remains more or less constant. In a real tape recorder, you would adjust the record and replay gain controls separately – however, in the 542 the record and replay gain controls are coupled so that the overall signal level only varies as the “Tape” saturation level changes. As you approach maximum saturation setting, the output signal level will drop due to the effect of extreme saturation and soft clip.

Additionally, to compensate for low frequency loss at low “record head” levels, the saturation knob also controls a low frequency compensation circuit that boosts low frequencies more at low saturation levels, and tapers off at higher levels. This function can be useful on many sources like bass and kick drum to find the balance between a clean, boosted low end (low saturation) and a denser, more saturated low end (high-saturation).

15/30 IPS
Selects the pre-emphasis / de-emphasis, record / replay tape characteristic. The 15IPS mode has a significant “head bump” in the low frequencies centered around 60Hz, as well as a more pronounced roll of in the high frequencies. The 30 IPS mode is generally a flatter response through the high-end with a “head bump” around 120Hz. See the frequency plots on pages 10 & 11.

BLEND
Controls the mix of pre and post tape signals. This allows the engineer to dial in a subtle amount of the tape effect, to better control the amount of saturation, tone and soft clipping in the post blend signal. As the signal gets more saturated, dialing back the blend can be a great way to impart the feel of tape, while maintaining a similar level of detail and transparency. NOTE: The blend control does not affect the Silk and Texture controls, as that circuitry is located at the physical output of the unit.

SOFT CLIP
A soft clip engages in the “True Tape” circuitry when the drive meter hits 5 (first yellow LED), and becomes more apparent at higher levels. The soft clip can be used as a way to tame overly transient material like drums, and can be controlled further by using the blend control.

SILK / TEXTURE
Pushing the Silk button engages the Silk Red circuit, and pushing it a second time introduces Silk Blue circuitry. Silk reduces the negative feedback on the output transformer, adding harmonic content as the texture is increased. Silk Blue mode features more saturation in the lows and low mids, whereas Silk Red accentuates the saturation in the high mids and highs.

LEVEL / DRIVE METERS
Two eight segment LED bar-graph meters are fitted to the 542 for output level and drive metering. The level meter shows the output level of the 542 before the Silk circuit, and the drive meter reflects the level on the “record head” when the tape effect is engaged. The soft clip circuit is present at Drive levels above 5.

Rupert Neve Designs 535 500 Series Diode Bridge Compressor

Punchy, thick and versatile, the 535 Diode Bridge Compressor captures the soul of Rupert Neve’s original 2254 compressor while providing modern updates including advanced timing control, significantly lower noise, fully stepped controls throughout, and internal parallel processing capabilities. Originally developed for the dynamics circuit of the acclaimed Shelford Channel, the 535 is outfitted with Rupert Neve Designs’ custom transformers and class-A output amplifiers, all tailor-made for the popular 500-series format. 

Almost 50 years after Mr. Rupert Neve created his first diode bridge compressor designs, the 535 reimagines the larger-than-life personality of these classic circuits with new levels of precision and adaptability, helping virtually any track shine through a mix.

The Diode Bridge

Where the VCA compressor found in the 543 and Master Buss Processor provides unmatched clarity, the weighty, harmonically rich tonality of diode bridge compression can be essential in pushing key sources like vocals, electric guitars, bass and drums to the forefront of a mix. Mr. Rupert Neve’s original diode bridge compressors like the 2254 served as an inspiration for the design of the 535. By understanding the limitations of the original 2254 topology, painstaking effort was taken to reproduce the unique tone of the 2254 while improving the noise floor, expanding inflexible time constants, adding full wave sidechain detection for improved dynamic response, widening the range of threshold and ratio controls, and raising the headroom of the diode bridge itself. Delivering the powerful sound of these classic designs with enhanced flexibility for the modern age, the 535 is a dynamic tool equipped to make a statement on virtually any track. 

Threshold
A 31-position detented pot that sets the level at which compression begins, from -25dB to +20dB. Turning this control counter-clockwise will increase the amount of compression; turning it clockwise will decrease the amount of compression.

Ratio
The RATIO control has six selectable positions on a rotary switch, allowing the user to set the slope of the compressor curve with pre-selected ratios of 1.5:1 through 8:1 for levels above the determined THRESHOLD. This range of compression ratios allows the user to compress as moderately or heavily as desired.

Timing
The TIMING control is a six-position rotary switch that sets the compressor attack and release times. The timing can be further modified by the FAST button.

FAST – Fast Attack (750us), Fast Release (130ms)
MF – Medium Attack (2.25ms), Fast Release (130ms)
MED – Medium Attack (2.25ms), Medium Release (400ms)
MS – Medium Attack (4ms), Slow Release (725ms)
SLOW – Slow Attack (10ms), Slow Release (1S)
AUTO – Medium Attack (5ms), Dual Decay Release (T1 500ms, T2 1s)

Fast
The FAST switch divides the attack and release times available on the TIMING control in half, effectively doubling the number of TIMING presets available to the user.

Blend
The BLEND control has 31 detents and allows the user to mix the uncompressed (dry) signal with compressed (wet) signal. Turning the control towards 0% will shift the mix to fully uncompressed dry signal, whereas turning the control towards 100% will shift the mix to the fully compressed signal. This feature allows for parallel compression, enabling a wider range of compression subtlety.

Gain
The GAIN control has 31 detents and allows the user to add make-up gain to the compressed signal in order to bring its level back up to unity with the uncompressed input signal. It is much easier to evaluate the tonal effect of the compressor (via the COMP IN switch) when the compressed output level is matched to the uncompressed input level, thereby eliminating potentially misleading level differences.

Comp In
The COMP IN switch allows the user to audition the compression. By disengaging the COMP IN switch, the compressor is bypassed and the user can quickly compare the compressed sound to the dry input signal for an objective evaluation of the compressor’s sonic effect on the audio signal. COMP IN can be used in combination with the GAIN control to match the perceived level of the compressed audio signal with the level of the uncompressed input signal.

Link
The LINK switch allows the compressor to be linked to another 535 compressor module via a sidechain control voltage. In link mode, the compressor generating the greater sidechain voltage (resulting in higher amounts of compression) will control the compression of both audio signal paths to maintain proper stereo center image while compressing. Note: it is advisable to always audition the unlinked sound as well, to decide if the benefit of a constant stereo center image is worth the potential trade-off of reduced left / right independence in the stereo field.

Sidechain HPF
The S/C HPF switch allows the user to insert a 12dB/octave 150Hz high-pass filter in the compressor sidechain. When this filter is engaged, the compressor will be considerably less responsive to information below 150Hz. For example: if used on a drum kit, the low end of the kick drum would have less proportional effect on the compression than a snare drum or cymbals, since a significant portion of the kick drum’s dynamic energy is focused below 150Hz.

Level and Gain Reduction Metering
These two LED meters provide accurate representations of both the output level of the compressor and the amount of gain reduction being applied to the input signal.