Sta Level

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 →

Retro Instruments has always been known for producing high-quality reproductions of vintage pieces of gear, including the Sta-Level compressor. This morning at AES 2019 in New York, owner Phil Moore introduced his latest release, the 500PRE, which brings a classic design to the 500 Series world. Equipped with three powerful 12AT7 tubes, the 500PRE oozes analog vibe. The new 500 Series module features class-leading frequency response, noise, and distortion, which deliver the same musical performance and pristine sound that Retro Instruments gear has always produced. Keep reading to discover what makes the new Retro Instruments 500PRE 500 Series microphone preamplifier a must-have for modern recording and mixing engineers. Continue reading →