Rupert Neve Designs The Color Bundle with 2x 500 Series 542 Tape Emulator and R6 Six-Space Rack

- 542 Tape Emulator -

The ultimate "color box".
The 542 delivers a wide variety of elusive analog tones by incorporating a carefully crafted tape emulation circuit, complete with a soft-clipper that can tame the harshest sources, our unique Silk circuit with variable Texture control, and a Blend control to finalize exacting amounts of saturation.

Transformers Imitating Tape
Our analog 'tape effect' emulation circuit drives a custom interstage transformer that mimics a "record head", which is coupled to a 'replay' amplifier with the appropriate EQ curve applied. Harmonic saturation increases as more gain is applied to the "record head", and a soft clip circuit engages at higher levels, gently taming peak transients. The sound can be further modified with selectable 15 / 30 IPS modes and a pre/post-tape emulation blend control.

What is Silk?
Our exclusive Silk circuitry provides additional control over harmonic density and tonality. The Silk Red mode accentuates transformer saturation in the high and high-mid frequencies to heighten the frequency range associated with Rupert's vintage equipment, while Silk Blue accentuates saturation of the lows and low-mids to add thickness and weight to any source. Unlike traditional EQ, these Silk & Texture controls saturate the custom output transformer of the 542, adding rich, musical harmonics according to the amount of Texture applied.

Drive the 542 hard, choose your Silk flavor, and crank the Texture knob for a rich, saturated, vintage vibe - or disengage Silk entirely for a more purist, hi-fi tape effect. The choice is yours.

Features

Tape Effect In
Illuminated push-button switch that engages our 'tape' emulation circuit, which includes controls for saturation, blend and 15 / 30 IPS filter curves.

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

Saturation
Continuously variable control of the level being sent to the 'tape effect' circuit. Increasing Saturation levels drives the 'record' gain while simultaneously reducing the 'replay' gain so the overall output signal level remains consistent. The output signal level will decrease slightly as the Max setting is approached due to the extreme saturation and soft clipping.

Saturation also controls a low frequency compensation circuit that boosts low frequencies a little more at lower saturation levels and tapers off at higher levels. This function can be useful searching for a balance between a cleaner, boosted low end (low saturation) and a denser, more saturated low end (high saturation).

15/30 IPS
Push-button switch that toggles between 2 different frequency responses commonly found at 15 or 30 IPS tape machine speeds. The 15 IPS mode has a significant "head bump" in the low frequencies centered around 60Hz and a more pronounced roll off in the high frequencies. The 30 IPS mode is generally a flatter response altogether with a "head bump" around 120Hz.

Blend
Continuously variable control of the mix of pre and post tape effect signals. This allows for precise control over the amount of saturation, tone and soft clipping produced. As the signal gets more saturated, reducing the blend can be an effective way to impart the sound of 'tape' while maintaining detail and transparency.

Soft Clip
The soft clip circuit engages when the drive meter hits 5 (first yellow LED) and becomes more apparent at higher levels. The soft clip can be used to tame sharp transient material like drums and can be further controlled by using the blend control.

Silk / Texture
Illuminated push-button switch that toggles through the three available Silk modes: Off, Red, and Blue. Red enhances harmonic content in high mid and high frequencies. Blue enhances harmonic content in low and low mid frequencies.

Level / Drive Meters
Two eight segment LED meters are included for indicating output level and drive amount. The level meter displays the output level of the 542 before the Silk circuit, and the drive meter displays the level sent to the "record head" when the tape effect is engaged. The soft clip circuit is present at drive levels above 5.

- R6 Six-Space Rack -

Not all racks are created equal.
With abundant power and versatile connections, the R6 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 R6 has more than 150% the required current for a 6-space chassis to prevent the power rails from failing under a higher-than-expected load. To help monitor and troubleshoot problematic modules, the R6 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 R6 helps your modules realize their fullest potential.

To ensure many years of use, the chassis is made of solid steel with bumpers to support the unit in both horizontal and vertical configurations, and features a collapsable handle for portability. And of course, all connectors and fittings are of the very highest quality.

Connect Like Never Before
With a plethora of connections available, the R6 backpanel is practically a patchbay on its own. The R6 features 8 channels of balanced I/O options including DB-25, XLR and TRS that may be used interchangeably. This versatility is especially handy when you are taking the R6 with you to another environment where you are unsure of the cables available, or if you need to convert DB-25, XLR or TRS connections to another format using the THRU functionality on channels 7-8.

If you want to get the very best performance out of your 500 series modules, the R6 is the serious rack for the serious sound you want.

Features

Six Card Slots with Serious Power
Each card slot is designed to fit a standard 500 series module. Even with modules that overdraw the 500 Series specification, the R6 has enough reserve power to maintain proper voltage.

Link Jumper
There are three link jumpers, which can be individually set to allow linking on Channels 1-2, 3-4, and 5-6. The link function is typically used to link the gain reduction of two compressors (such as our 543 or 535 modules).

Current Meter
An LED meter monitors the R6 current usage to ensure that you never run short on power. This meter can also be useful for troubleshooting a module that is severely overdrawing its allotment.

Bulletproof +48V Phantom Supply
Provide rock-solid phantom power to your microphones with the R6's robust 48V buss.

Massive Connectivity
Interchangeable XLR, TRS, and DB-25 I/O connections are provided to ensure that you can connect wherever you go.

Channel 7-8 Thru I/O
The channel 7-8 thru connections can be used as a way to quickly and easily convert your signal from or to DB-25, XLR, and TRS connectors.

Road-Ready Frame
A solid steel enclosure, two sets of rugged rubber feet for horizontal and vertical mounting and a collapsible handle make the R6 completely portable and ready for the road.

Universal Voltage IEC Input
The IEC power input accepts 100-240VAC, 50/60Hz input with a 50 Watt draw.