Tired of the flat, narrow sound of your Digital Audio Workstation? Do individual tracks sound full and deep while whole mixes sound lifeless and thin? Can you go analogue without sacrificing the recall ability of the DAW or parting with space and money required for a large automated console? Break out of the box and let your mixes breathe again.

The Roll Music RMS216 FOLCROM is a high-quality passive mixer intended for analogue summing of multichannel digital mixes. The sound is up to you and your preamps.

Each of the Folcrom's sixteen input channels features a balanced analogue connection on standard 8-channel DB25 connectors and a pair of pushbutton switches to assign that channel to the Left or Right output, neither, or both. It uses no active circuitry and provides no gain or level controls. By controlling all aspects of the mix from within the DAW, automation and recall ability are perfectly preserved. Up to 16 different tracks or submixes can then be routed to the Folcrom for summing in the analogue domain.

The absence of faders, EQ, aux sends, pan knobs, or any other superfluous features not only preserves your software automation, it also allows for an elegant passive circuit using no amplifiers, ICs, transistors, capacitors, or transformers whatsoever. The simplicity of the fully balanced, symmetrical signal path allows the use of no-compromise passive components for an absolutely transparent signal path. The unit passes signals "from DC to daylight" without colouration.

The output of the Folcrom is a stereo pair of balanced, 150-ohm signals on XLR connectors and requires approximately 30-40dB of make-up gain (program dependent). This signal is ideally suited for feeding into an outboard microphone preamplifier of your choosing. The mix bus is, therefore, able to assume the tonal character of the amplifier, providing a wide range of sonic flavours. Chances are your mike preamps just sit there unused at mixdown time anyway. Plug into your DAV BG or Crane Song Flamingo when you need pristine clarity, or put those Neve or API preamps to work when you want warmth.

By excluding the make-up gain amplifier from the Folcrom, we are able to provide a unique opportunity for wide tonal control by allowing you to choose your flavour of make-up gain. At the same time, it enables us to produce an ultimate quality summing buss without compromise for well under a thousand dollars. What other analogue console can give you so many options, in single rack space, and at such a reasonable price?