Product Reviews

Known for recreating classic studio gear at affordable prices, the folks at Warm Audio have just announced the new WA-MPX and WA-2MPX preamps, inspired by the legendary 351-style tube preamplifier found in American tape machines during the golden era of recording. This preamp was instrumental in shaping the sound of rock ‘n’ roll and was used on countless hits by artists like Elvis Presley, Les Paul, and Bing Crosby. Continue reading →

Close your eyes and picture a Strymon pedal. Chances are, you’re envisioning a double, perhaps triple-wide hunk of aluminum sporting two or three footswitches and an array of knobs, lights, and toggles covering its face. From their size and complexity, you can almost feel how much glorious sound is packed into Strymon’s pedals, but their latest release bucks that trend. Continue reading →

Even after successfully creating the ribbon microphone (and ribbon loudspeaker) in 1924, we're guessing Dr. Walter H. Schottky and Dr. Erwin Gerlach would not list the innovations in their top ten lifetime achievements. But, such is the life of a 20th Century physicist and inventor! Continue reading →

Before Meris began making some of the most cutting edge pedals in the industry, the brand actually got its start with a handful of 500 Series releases. The latest creation from Meris sees them returning to form with the Hedra 500 Series. For those who are wondering, this is the same 3-voice intelligent pitch shifter that was released in pedal form and made my list of the hottest releases of 2019. The new 500 Series version accels with pro audio grade components and is ideal for both tracking and mixing during your next session. Continue reading →

Days before the start of the 2020 NAMM Show, Solid State Logic rocked the pro audio world with the announcement of two new interfaces. Just like the best selling SiX desktop mixer, the SSL2 and SSL2+ interfaces have brought the brand's technology down to a more affordable range for a whole new generation of audio creators.The all-new SSL2 and SSL2+ are USB audio interfaces that draw from over four decades of SSL innovation. Each interface features two impressive analog mic pres, in addition to 24-bit / 192 kHz converters, and a "Legacy 4K" mode. The newly designed "Legacy 4K" mode is based on the SL4000 series console and adds classic analog color and character to your recordings for a dash of extra vintage vibe. Continue reading →

What happens when you bring together a team of designers who were raised on the strong tradition of German tube mics? Microphone magic! Created in collaboration by noted U47 tech Andreas Grosser, design engineer Eckehard Dux, and engineer/producer Andrew Myburgh, the new Myburgh M1 microphone is certainly a beauty. Previewed at Musikmesse in 2018, and now available exclusively through Vintage King, the Myburgh M1 microphone offers the build quality of Germany's legendary microphones. Despite being inspired by the classics, the M1 is a microphone with its own design. This isn't just another replica of the U47, U67, or 251. Continue reading →

The Equinox from Shadow Hills Industries has been around for a number of years, but often gets overlooked in terms of the sheer amount of tools it can bring to a session. The 2U rackmount unit can be looked at as a complete small-scale recording console with mic pres, summing buss, and monitoring section. The mic pre portion of The Equinox features two of Shadow Hill's signature GAMA mic pres, which offer 60dB of gain, 24 position stepped attenuators, phantom power, and 1/4" DI input. Where these mic pres truly shine though is the switchable output transformers in the amplifier section. Continue reading →

When Retro Instruments first announced the brand's new 500PRE ($799), we knew we were in love before we ever even heard it. After all, what's not to love about bringing the Sta-Level design to the 500 Series world and packing three tubes into that compact module. Little did we know, we had something to do with the inspiration for it. "It was inspired by the Vintage King April Fools’ Day post on the 500 Series Fairchild 670," says Retro Instruments Owner/Designer Phil Moore. "“The performance of the 500PRE exceeded my expectations. It’s based on professional tube console program amplifiers from the era of the Sta-Level and 176. It’s got 75 dB of gain and no compromises." Continue reading →

Over the past decade or so, musicians have increasingly looked to cab sims, impulse responses and DIs to lighten their load in terms of weight and volume. The new Strymon Iridium ($399) offers a different take on these options for guitarists by giving them a fully-featured cab sim/IR loader that lives on their pedalboard. Have you ever plugged your guitar directly into a full-range monitor with your favorite overdrive engaged? It sounds like a coffee can filled with hornets angrily buzzing around. With the Iridium placed after your overdrive and before the monitor, this transforms the can of bees into your favorite tube amp with the flick of a switch. Continue reading →

When Universal Audio announced the release of the Apollo X recording interface series, audio creators around the world wondered what would be next for the Apollo Twin. The brand has just unveiled the next generation of its award-winning desktop interfaces, the Apollo Twin X (DUO and QUAD) and Apollo x4 and they are in stock at Vintage King Audio. The Apollo Twin X is a 10 x 6 desktop interface, which features two Unison mic preamps and one Hi-Z instrument input. This upgraded version of the Apollo Twin features the same stunning conversion as the Apollo X rackmount series. Universal Audio is offering the Apollo Twin X with DUO ($899) and QUAD ($1399) realtime UAD plug-in processing and both versions of the interface now feature Thunderbolt 3 connectivity. Continue reading →