8/28/2023 0 Comments Hidden camera amp![]() Another well-regarded design uses a transformer to buffer (balanced to unbalanced), potentiometer with buffer, then a driver stage. ![]() "The Rupert Neve RNHP, for example, uses a classic-style, three-stage design - basically a buffer at the front end (balanced to unbalanced), a potentiometer with another buffer, and then a driver stage. I asked Little to describe the philosophy behind Monotor's design, which he calls "Zen circuit topology." He answered by way of a comparison to more common headphone amp designs: Bigger reserve capacitors allow the power supply to deliver more peak power to drive anything plugged into the amp with less distortion. The manual explains that one of the several capacitors in the power supply is larger and weighs more than a typical USB dongle DAC/headphone amp. The external power supply is about twice as big and more than twice as heavy as the Monotor box itself. In a true mono recording that was mastered in true mono (for instance, The Beatles In Mono CD box set), you will hear almost no sound in the L−R position, because there is no out-of-phase material in a true mono source.īack to the Monotor details - as with all products from Little Labs, the Monotor is a small box built out of heavy-duty materials so it can handle life in a working studio or on the road. That "digi-hash" you'll hear is made up of artifacts caused by lossy data compression. If you want an ear-opening experience, use this setting and listen to some originally-mono material via Spotify or other lossy sources. This last option is immediately useful in the 2016 recording world. The mode selector has six discrete positions: reverse stereo (R/L), regular stereo (L/R), summed mono (L+R), left-channel to both ears (L), right-channel to both ears (R), and difference to both ears (L−R). Furthermore, the recessed switches should prevent you from accidentally pushing the buttons and subjecting your ears to a full-volume signal, if you've got an unattenuated source feeding the Monotor.Īnd then there is the monitor-mode selector, controlled by a larger knob next to the volume control. ![]() For example, feed a mono DAW mix to the left channel, bypass the left side of the volume pot, and control its level from the DAW then feed the singer's mic to the right channel, and leave the volume pot enabled for that side, so that the singer can change that level as desired. ![]() You can also utilize these switches with the Monotor in mono mode for a "more me" cue mix. As the well-written manual explains, this feature is for people using a DAW or DAC with its own high-quality volume control. The little hole on the right leads to a switch that does the same for the right channel. Stick a paper clip in the left hole, and there's a switch to bypass the left side of the volume potentiometer. He also added an unbalanced stereo 1/8'' aux input on the back, alongside the balanced XLR/TRS Combo jacks that make up the main input, and a loop-through capability on separate TRS jacks, which allows the Monotor to bridge out the balanced inputs to the studio's monitoring system (or other destination).īut wait, there's more! On both sides of the volume knob are little holes in the front panel. With this new Monotor, Little has built in the kind of monitoring flexibility often found only in a mastering room, and strapped it to a superb-sounding, high-power headphone amplification system, with one dual-mono amplifier driving a set of paralleled 1/4'' and 1/8'' headphone jacks, and a second dual-mono amp driving another set of 1/4'' and 1/8'' jacks. Each of his Little Labs products boasts a unique feature set - and a humorous name. Boutique equipment maker and former studio technician Jonathan Little has built a business around making useful (and small) boxes that solve specific problems in the recording world.
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