Stunning DI Tone and Clarity, Expanded in Stereo
Rupert Neve Designs RNDI-S Features:
- Custom Rupert Neve Designs transformers for rich, powerful tone
- Exceptional performance with any instrument
- Rugged Solid Steel Frame
- Unrivaled clarity from discrete FET amplifiers
- Drives long lines with minimal loss
- 1/4" THRU Output in Instrument mode this can feed an amp input for reinforcement. Speaker mode, the THRU is used to feed the amp signal to the speaker
- Excellent phase coherence at all frequencies
- Powered by dual 48V phantom power
Massive Headroom and Speaker Mode
In instrument mode, the RNDI’s high input headroom of +21dBU is capable of handling not only instruments, but professional, line level sources like interfaces and drum machines – without a pad. This allows the RNDI to serve as a way to “re-preamp” any previously recorded track using your interface and a desired pre-amp. To do this, simply connect a channel output of the interface to the input of the RNDI and connect the RNDI’s output to the preamp and engage 48V. By “re-preamping” you can apply the tone of another preamp to the source and more accurately automate or control the drive level on the preamp.
In speaker mode, the RNDI can handle the screaming output of a 1000-watt solid-state power amplifier (92 Vrms or 266Vp-p) to capture the full tone of the instrument, preamplifier, EQ, inserts, and the amplifier’s output stages before it hits the speakers. This technique allows the engineer to avoid any bleed in a live environment and any unwanted tone added by the speaker cabinet or microphone.
Best of Both Worlds of Active and Passive
The RNDI-S and RNDI’s signature sound is the product both of new custom Rupert Neve-designed transformers and class-A biased, discrete FET amplifiers. The carefully orchestrated union of these two elements is key to their unique response.
The custom transformers provide superior passive isolation while adding musical harmonics and dimension to the sound. The low impedance, transformer-balanced output excels at driving long cable runs, and performance is immensely consistent regardless of the connected equipment. This is very important for both live and studio environments where the unamplified signal may travel almost 100ft before hitting an amplifier.
The class-A & discrete FET amplifier in the RNDI-S is powered by 48V phantom, and creates a very high impedance input of 2M Ohms that ensures consistent performance with a wide variety of instruments. The class-A design ensures that zero crossover distortion is added to the signal, which can add upper-order odd harmonics that are musically dissonant in nature. With the RNDI-s, the overwhelming majority of harmonic content is 2nd order (octave) with some 3rd order present (fifth above octave). These musically relevant harmonics, present in subtle amounts, actually add to the richness of the original signal.
