A Designs Pacifica Solid State Stereo Microphone Preamplifier

A Designs Pacifica Solid State Stereo Microphone Preamplifier

Consider the A-Designs Pacifica solid state stereo microphone preamplifier if you're ready for your first really good preamp--or the last one you may ever need. How often in life do you encounter someone or something that no one has anything bad to say about? We haven't met that "someone" yet, but the "something" is the A Designs Audio Pacifica solid state, dual-channel preamp. This Tec Award nominated beauty has won more praise from engineers and producers than just about any other preamp to hit the streets in a long, long time. A Designs Audio Pacifica, First Take: 2-channel, solid state preamp with 2 x front-panel Hi-Z inputs Custom-wound input and output transformers Captures the sound quality of the legendary Quad Eight console but with more presence and high end Balanced XLR I/O, phase reversal, -20dB pad, +48V phantom power The Sound of the '70s Reborn The 1970s was a time of great music and great change in pro audio--a golden age if you will. The introduction of "solid state" electronics led to an explosion in development and a very different sound than the tube gear of previous decades. The recording console in a high-end 1970s studio was likely a Neve, API, or Quad Eight. These companies set the standards for audio quality -- with a unique sound firmly imprinted on the popular recordings of the era. Even though the Quad Eight mysteriously faded from view, many engineers firmly believe that the Quad eight Ventura, Coronado, and Pacifica consoles were the very best sounding of the big three. Boston's "More Than a Feeling" and Pink Floyd's The Wall were mixed on a Quad Eight! But rather than just crank out another clone, A Designs Audio's Peter Montessi and audio designer Jon Erickson (who spent years bringing vintage gear back to life for LA studios), added their own touch to bring the preamps of the glory days to serve the present-day needs of the recording world. The result is the Pacifica, a fabulous- sounding preamp the captures the heart and soul of the California and takes the LA sound a step further. Custom Transformers, the Key to a Big Punchy Sound In solid-state preamp design, the key to a big punchy sound rests in the input and output transformers. (That's where you get what is known as the "big iron" sound of the '70s). To ensure top-quality sound, A Designs has their transformers custom-built by Tom Reichenbach of Cine-Mag, whose lineage extends back the days when his father Ed built transformers for Altec-Lansing in the '40s. (Ed Reichenbach was also one of the designers of the Quad Eight console on which the Pacifica is based.) Not only are the transformer hand-made, they're also ear-made" by Jon and Peter, who won't okay a transformer design until they get exactly the sound they're looking for. After extensive listening tests and redesign after redesign, they finally found the sound they were looking for. And herein is the most important distinction of the A Designs Pacifica. While its name, look, and inspiration was taken from the Quad Eight Pacifica, the A designs Audio Pacifica has a sound all its own, and one that top producers and engineers feel that they could make an entire record with (that's pretty rare in this business). Pacifica Performance Aside from the custom wound transformers, which, by the way, the instrument inputs are routed directly into for the fullest possible sound, the Pacifica boasts a frequency range of 9Hz-101kHz. (Another reason for its great sound. Input impedance is 600 ohm at 400Hz and the gain range is a remarkable 72dB -- so break out those ribbon mics and go to town. Since the focus of A Designs is sound quality first and foremost, you're not paying for bells and whistles and extra devices in the circuit path that can degrade sound. Features are kept to the necessary minimum, which include polarity reverse, a -20dB pad (which sounds nearly invisible, +48V phantom power with indicator LED, and balanced XLR I/O. Channel Strips of the Stars: Ted Perlman Ted Perlman, renowne