User manual PRESONUS VXP (BACK)

[. . . ] STRING OF TOOLS With its thick cool blue aluminum front panel and brushed aluminum knobs, the VXP (BACK) (BACK) matches the look of the company's MP20 stereo mic preamp. The front panel is divided into six segments according to function and has a big glowing "red eye" pushbutton power switch on the far right. From left, first up is the mic preamp section, which provides a continuously variable gain knob with 0 to 60 dB of gain marked in 10 dB steps. Next is the proprietary IDSS control, which ranges from 0 to 100 percent. [. . . ] CARD-CARRYING MEMBER I tested two VXP (BACK) (BACK)s: one with the digital card packaged separately and one with the card already in place. The output card is a stereo converter, meaning that you need to buy only one card to record digitally from a pair of VXP (BACK) (BACK)s. Just the same, I wanted to try my hand at installing the VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496 in the stock unit. The module was in place in less than ten minutes, and the only difficulty I had was getting some screws out, thanks to the VXP (BACK) (BACK)'s solid construction. VXP (BACK) (BACK) Specifications Inputs (1) balanced XLR (mic); (2) balanced/unbalanced 1/4" TRS (send and receive) Outputs (1) balanced XLR; (1) balanced/unbalanced 1/4" TRS Power Supply internal Dimensions 1U 5 7" (D) Weight 8 lbs. PreSonus Audio Electronics | 7257 Florida Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70806 T 225. 216. 7887 F 225. 926. 8347 | www. presonus. com Product Reviews MIC PREAMP Frequency Response 10 Hz-50 kHz THD + Noise (0% IDSS) <0. 003% THD + Noise (100% IDSS) >0. 5% Noise Floor -97. 2 dBu (@ +12 dB gain) Dynamic Range >115 dB Headroom +24 dBu Maximum Gain 36 dB (+12 to + 48 dB) Attenuation Pad 20 dB (switchable) Phantom Power 48V COMPRESSOR Input Attenuation/Gain -12 to +18 dB Output Attenuation/Gain -20 to +20 dB Presets 16 EXPANDER Threshold Range -70 to +20 dBu Ratio Range 1:1 to ·:1 DE-ESSER Threshold Range -40 to +20 dBu Frequency Range 800 Hz to 8 kHz EQUALIZER Rumble Filter Cutoff Frequency 80 Hz (-6 dB per octave) Low Shelving 100 Hz (±12 dB) Low Midrange 90 Hz-700 Hz (±12 dB) Low-Mid Q (Bandwidth) 0. 5/2. 0 octave (switchable) High Midrange 450 Hz-5. 8 kHz (±12 dB) High-Mid Q (Bandwidth) 0. 5/2. 0 octave (switchable) High Shelving 12 kHz (±12 dB) MASTER Peak Limit Range 0 to +24 dBu Output Fader -70 to +10 dB The VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496 is truly a marvel of miniaturization. It provides AES/EBU and S/PDIF output jacks, BNC word-clock In and Out, a _-inch TRS right-channel analog in, an internal/external sync LED, and separate bit-rate and sampling-frequency selector switches. Green LEDs indicate selected bit rates of 16, 18, 20, and 24, in addition to all common sampling frequencies (44. 1, 48, 88. 2, and 96 kHz). All that, two PC boards, and a Crystal Semiconductor 5396 converter chip are mounted on a 1_-by-4_-inch panel that attaches to the VXP (BACK) (BACK) chassis with two Phillips screws. The PreSonus Audio Electronics | 7257 Florida Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70806 T 225. 216. 7887 F 225. 926. 8347 | www. presonus. com Product Reviews VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496 comes with a three-page manual, which includes installation instructions, brief operating notes, and specifications. When using two VXP (BACK) (BACK)s in tandem, the unit housing the VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496 module is automatically assigned to the left digital channel and the other VXP (BACK) (BACK) (or any other preamp, for that matter) must be connected to the TRS right-channel analog input on the converter card. The converter could also be used on a line-level stereo mix by applying the left and right mix-bus outputs to the insert-return jacks of two VXP (BACK) (BACK)s. But at -6 dB in the Heavy settings, the VXP (BACK) (BACK) compressor started to pump audibly and it imparted a sibilant edge to a full-spectrum music mix. The relatively simple de-esser and expander functions are useful and perform on par with the best-available modules found in other multi-effects dynamics processors. The de-esser is easy to fine-tune, but the lack of a bypass switch makes A/B comparisons awkward. Considerable finesse is required to twist the outer ring, which controls threshold, to the off position without accidentally moving the inner knob, which selects the de-ess frequency. Furthermore, that dial's only intermediate numerical value is a zero marking at about two o'clock, which again complicates repeatability. Similarly, the expander controls have no intermediate marks except for a 2:1 ratio designation. FULL STEAM AHEAD The VXP (BACK) (BACK)'s 4-band equalizer - a first on any PreSonus product - is also quite effective and remarkably lavish, especially considering the unit's price. Although there was no special magic in the high-shelf range, the low-shelving control let me make beefy bass boosts without adding unwanted flab to a mix. In addition, the high Q option provided enough surgical precision to reveal previously unheard mixing and mastering flaws in some of my older recordings. I also compared the inexpensive VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496 to the A/D on the Apogee PSX-100, a much higher-end converter. For that test, I recorded music samples to DAT through the VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496, followed by the same samples with identical preamp settings through the PSX-100. [. . . ] That result suggests potential resolution problems in the onboard VXP (BACK) (BACK) converter. The higher bit rates in the VXP (BACK) (BACK)D2496 will improve the unit's resolution, but based on my comparison tests, I would be wary of using the PreSonus converter for professional classical recording and other critical stereo-recording applications that require accurate room-sound reproduction and subtle ambient details. MANUAL OVERDRIVE PreSonus Audio Electronics | 7257 Florida Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70806 T 225. 216. 7887 F 225. 926. 8347 | www. presonus. com Product Reviews The VXP (BACK) (BACK) manual, though adequate and well intentioned, unfortunately suffers from omissions and errors. Aside from the lack of specifics about the compression presets and use of the compressor input-gain control, the manual mistakenly groups condenser and ribbon mics, stating that "condenser and some ribbon microphones require external power to preamplify the microphone acoustic pickup. [. . . ]