Thermionic Culture Phoenix Mastering Plus Tube Compressor

The Thermionic Culture Phoenix Mastering Plus classic, hand-built point-to-point wired soft knee tube compressor with a compression ratio from 1.2:1 to 5:1 at 15 dB. It features GE and Siemens valves and custom Sowter transformers.

Following on from the success of the previous models including the red face anniversary limited edition Phoenix Mastering Plus model features switched and stepped rotary controls for quick and easy recall. The input gain features a 24-position ELMA, an 11-position ELMA for the Threshold, 6-position ALPHA attack and release and a 31-position OMEG stepped output pot. The same side chain filter section as previous versions has been retained.

A significant difference to the previous M/C versions is the the Mastering Plus now has the same input gain structure as the standard model Phoenix, enabling the mastering Plus to cope with tracking and mixing of individual instruments and vocals that may require high amounts of compression.

Other features include a standby switch which is provided to extend valve and capacitor life. When in 'standby' the HT current through the valves is only 50% of the normal value. The meter zero level adjusters have now been brought to the front panel to avoid having to take the unit out of the rack and so making calibration easier.

FEATURES:

• All valve signal path and side chain, point-to-point hand-wired in England
• Subtle control with 'soft knee' compression more compression effects when pushed hard
• Stereo link for mix buss compression
• Side chain filters to enable compression of all frequencies except bass
• Flat frequency response over full audio range and beyond
• Very low phase shift and harmonic distortion (unless pushed hard)
• Push-pull design gives a natural warm sound with high output level
• Output trim controls for fine adjustment or lower level operation
• Balanced ins and outs with custom made Sowter transformers
• Bypass switch on each channel removes all electronics
• Elma switches for gain and threshold controls
• Alpha switches for attack and release controls
• All GE and Siemens NOS valves
• Easy recall- ability
• Zero adjustment on front
• Precise calibration
• More gain than earlier Master Phoenix
• Standby switch to prolong valve life
• Distortion effects can be created with standby on