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“There
isn't a session I do that doesn't involve
the Summit MPC-100A. It's a great unit
(especially for synthesizers and vocals)
and a band I produced last year ended
up buying one for them as well. I'll
be sure to let everyone know about the
great support that you provide for your
products.” ......Patrick Lee |
The MPC-1OOA is a single channel tube preamplifier
and tube compressor/limiter all in one unit,
accepting line, microphone, and Hi-Z input signals.
The preamplifier provides a warm yet crisp vacuum
tube tone. The compressor/limiter section has
very fast attack times, making it ideal for
optimizing signal prior to entering the digital
domain. In addition to having superb sound and
a user friendly interface, the MPC-100A has
the robust build quality consistent with the
Summit Audio family of products.
Vocals and bass really shine with the MPC-100A,
the Jensen mic transformer and tubes working
in synch to lend a detailed sound with harmonically
complex overtones. The ultra-fast compressor
makes it ideal for drums, especially kick and
snare, to tame those transients yet keep the
body rich and full. The MPC-100A features variable
impedance (loading) on the Hi-Z input so passive
guitars and bass pickups have a whole new level
of tone control. Increase the loading for a
minimum of resistance and the open, airy sound
of your pickups working unimpeded. Turn the
impedance control down and listen to the high
frequencies start to attenuate in a musical
way and the low frequencies get tighter and
more focused as the pickups are loaded. And
with three separate gain controls, two driving
vacuum tubes with a master output level, you
have endless tonal variations for whatever sound
you need.
| Key
Features: |
• |
"Clean" to "Saturated"
valve sounds |
• |
Soft Clipping LED indicators |
• |
HI-Z
instrument input with impedance matching
control |
• |
Two
stages of vacuum tube gain controls |
• |
3
Position attack and release presets |
• |
High
quality VU meter for output and gain reduction
metering |
• |
Continuously
variable output level control |
• |
+4
dB balanced and -10 dB unbalanced output
|
• |
Stereo
linkable with a second MPC-100A |
• |
Jensen
mic transformer |
MPC-100A
Mic Preamp Operating Instructions
Recording and compressing a stereo mix:
Insert a 1/4" patch cord into the stereo
link jack on the back of two MPC-100A's (or
a TLA-100A). Set both MPC-100A's to Link mode
and to line input. Whichever one is set for
more compression will act as the master (slope
and threshold are the only controls affected).
Insert the MPC-100A into the main inserts
on the console, with the send from the console
to the line level input, and the return from
the -10 dB output of the MPC-100A.
Getting
tube guitar distortion: Plug the
output of the guitar into the Hi-Z input on
the front of the MPC-100A. Set the impedance
loading high (try 0.5M ohms). Turn the output
low. Turn the preamp gain up to +60 or more
and play the guitar. The Tube Drive light
should be blinking or steady yellow. Turn
the compressor gain up to 6 or more, and the
associated Tube Drive light should also be
yellow. Set the compressor to your favorite
settings (try Threshold -5dB and Slope 5 with
a fast attack and release time), then slowly
turn up the output until you reach the desired
recording/ monitoring level.
Getting
a clean microphone signal: Plug the
microphone into the mic input on the back
of the MPC-100A and set the input switch to
mic (or 48 for condenser mics needing 48 volt
phantom power). Make sure both the preamp
and compressor gains are turned all the way
down. Turn the output gain up very high, then
slowly turn up the preamp gain and compressor
gain to the desired recording/ monitoring
level. Set the compressor to your desired
settings (try threshold 0 dB, slope 5.5 with
fast attack and medium release times).
Getting
a warm bass tone: Plug the bass directly
into the Hi-Z input. Turn the Output knob
very low. Set the Loading to about .1M ohm
and turn the preamp gain up until the Tube
Drive light just starts to flash while the
bass is being played (the flashing light indicates
soft clipping). Increase the compressor gain
until that Tube Drive just starts to flash
occasionally, and set the compressor to your
desired settings (try -10 dB threshold, a
slope of 5, with fast attack and medium release).
Turn the output knob until you get the desired
recording/ monitoring level. This can also
be done if the bass is plugged into a DI box.
Just take the XLR out of the DI into the Mic
input on the MPC-100A, and set the input switch
to Mic.
De-essing:
Plug a TRS insert cable into the
side chain jack on the back of the MPC-100A.
Plug the send (tip) of the insert cable to
the input of an EQ, and the return (ring)
of the cable to the EQ output. Boost the frequencies
on the EQ that you want to compress (de-ess).
Ducking:
Send the output of the "lead" program
material into the side chain input after inserting
the MPC-100A on the "background"
program material. Example: Send the output
of the lead guitar mic into the side chain,
with the MPC-100A inserted on the rhythm guitar
track. As the lead guitar player plays, the
rhythm guitar will decrease in amplitude.
This is perfect for broadcast use when the
DJ needs to speak over music, live use when
the lead singer needs to be heard over the
lead guitar, or film sound when an actor's
voice has to overcome a noisy background tone. |
