Rupert Neve Designs Newton Channel

The Rupert Neve Newton Channel is a robust, contemporary channel strip with an illustrious sonic lineage. Its user-friendly design grants access to classic sound on demand, boasting instantly recognisable character, exceptional musical tone-shaping capabilities, and the renowned reliability that defines all Rupert Neve Designs products. The Newton Channel is equally well-suited for implementation in project studios, large-scale commercial facilities, and live sound setups, extending an invitation to more engineers, producers, and artists than ever before to join the esteemed RND family.

Named after Rupert Neve's birthplace, Newton Abbot, England, the Rupert Neve Designs Newton Channel embodies the sonic journey encompassing his life—from Newton Abbot to Wimberley, spanning vintage to modern eras and everything in between. This versatile and world-class channel strip can breathe life into any audio source with the timeless Rupert Neve Designs sound.

The Newton Channel boasts cutting-edge features, including a fully Class-A mic preamp, a musical 3-band discrete EQ section, a fast and flexible VCA compressor, and custom transformer-coupled outputs by Rupert Neve Designs. In addition, it incorporates the revolutionary harmonic colour stage called variable Silk Red & Blue.

Tonal Richness and Versatility of the Mic Preamp and Input stage

The Newton's microphone preamplifier encompasses all the tonal richness and musicality one would expect from a Rupert Neve Designs masterpiece. In addition, this preamp enables users to achieve a tight, clean, and detailed sound effortlessly, with a robust 72dB of gain that includes 6dB of fine trim control. As a result, the Newton Channel is ideally suited for a wide variety of audio sources.

While the input stage is ideally tailored to match standard microphone source impedance, it also performs exceptionally when driven by line levels. The Newton Channel incorporates a distinctive variable high-pass filter with a comprehensive frequency range and an independent bypass switch. This empowers engineers to eliminate unwanted noise, rumble, or other low-frequency build-ups in the source signal.

Meticulously Crafted EQ

The Newton's EQ section is meticulously crafted to prioritise speed and flexibility, featuring a simplified set of controls. The low and high-frequency shelf bands offer precise control through accurate 31-detent potentiometers, allowing for up to 12dB of gain boost or cut. This enables users to dial in subtle or extreme settings according to their preferences.

The parametric mid-band provides an additional 31-detent potentiometer and a wide range of selectable mid frequencies, ranging from 220Hz to 7kHz. This exceptional versatility empowers engineers to tame low-mid muddiness, enhance mid-frequency presence, or eliminate harshness in the upper midrange. In addition, a carefully chosen fixed Q setting maintains an optimal balance between musicality and precision, offering a width that allows precise equalisation adjustments without adversely affecting neighbouring frequencies.

As with every section of the Newton Channel, the EQ section is equipped with an independent bypass button, ensuring that engineers can double-check their settings at every step of the way.

Advanced VCA Compressor

The Newton Channel incorporates the latest iteration of Rupert Neve Designs' ultra-smooth VCA compressor, delivering outstanding performance with a remarkable +20dB of make-up gain and extensive control over compression levels. This compressor effortlessly maintains the natural characteristics of the audio while providing excellent control to achieve the desired amount of compression. Furthermore, the Newton Channel includes a convenient 'pre-EQ/post-EQ push button, enabling users to position the compressor before or after the EQ section according to their workflow preferences. An independent bypass button is also provided for quick comparison and monitoring purposes.

Unleashing Vintage Tonality: The Distinctive Silk Circuit of the Newton Channel

At the end of the Newton's signal path lies the highly sought-after and distinctive variable Silk circuit. This circuit empowers engineers with the capability to enhance the harmonic richness of their audio by saturating the custom Rupert Neve Designs output transformers, yielding a vintage tonality that is both powerful and controlled.

The Newton Channel features a variable Texture knob that allows engineers to dial the desired harmonic density precisely. When engaged, the Silk Red mode accentuates harmonics in the highs and upper mid frequencies, while the Silk Blue mode enhances harmonics in the lows and low mids. By adjusting the Silk circuit and Texture knob, users can achieve a subtle transformer tonality without Silk or introduce significantly more colour and character than vintage modules when the Silk/Texture circuit is pushed to its full extent. Consequently, the Newton's output stage enriches tracks with enhanced power, brilliance, and sparkle, offering a captivating sonic experience.

Custom Transformer Outputs: Unleashing Sonic Excellence

The Newton Channel features a custom transformer output stage, exemplifying its commitment to excellence. A balanced MAIN standard line level output ensures pristine audio signal transmission while maintaining fidelity and accuracy. In addition, a separate -6dBu XLR output takes into account high levels of input and Silk harmonic saturation, empowering engineers to drive the Newton Channel to its fullest potential, harnessing the richness of transformer harmonics without compromising the integrity of subsequent devices in the signal chain. This unique functionality allows for seamless integration of the Newton Channel into any professional audio setup. Furthermore, both outputs are actively available and can be utilised concurrently, providing utmost flexibility and adaptability for achieving the desired sonic outcome."

The Rupert Neve Newton Channel is a channel strip meticulously tailored for discerning professional audio engineers and producers who demand exceptional sonic capabilities. Rooted in a legendary lineage of sound engineering prowess, this channel strip embodies a fusion of power and modernity, offering an extensive array of features and functionalities that bestow it with an instantly recognisable character, remarkable tone-shaping abilities, and a level of reliability that has become synonymous with the esteemed Rupert Neve Designs brand.

Whether you find yourself immersed in the creative confines of a project studio, navigating the intricate landscape of a large-scale commercial facility, or orchestrating the audio experience in a dynamic live sound environment, the Newton Channel extends a warm invitation to an ever-growing number of engineers, producers, and artists, enveloping them within the revered RND family. Inspired by the life journey of Rupert Neve himself, from his humble birthplace in Newton Abbot, England, to his audacious sonic explorations that transcended eras and culminated in Wimberley, the Newton Channel represents an unrivalled and infinitely versatile tool, capable of infusing every audio source it encounters with the timeless Rupert Neve Designs sound—a sound that has come to define excellence in the audio industry.

Specifications

• Mic Gain
 12-position rotary switch that controls the microphone preamp gain in 6dB steps. For line level input signals, set the Mic Gain to the “0dB” position.
•  
Push-button switch that illuminates RED when +48V Phantom Power is engaged.
• Ø (Polarity)
Push-button switch that illuminates AMBER when engaged and inverts the phase of the preamp signal.
• TRIM
 31-detent potentiometer that allows the user to adjust the preamp gain within a range of +/- 6dB.
• HPF
 Push-button switch that illuminates GREEN when the high pass filter is engaged.
• FREQ
 31-detent potentiometer that allows the user to adjust the cutoff frequency of the Sallen-Key high pass filter within a range of 20Hz to 250Hz
• EQ IN
 Push-button switch that illuminates GREEN when the EQ section is engaged.
• LF
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the amount of boost or cut for the low frequency shelf within a range of +/- 12dB.
• 60/150
 Push-button switch that selects between the two available low frequency shelf frequencies: 60Hz (OUT) and 150Hz (IN).
• MID FRE Q
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the frequency of the midband peaking EQ within a range of 220Hz to 7kHz.
• MID
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the amount of boost or cut for the
• MID FRE Q peaking EQ within a range of +/- 12dB.
• 8K/16K
 Push-button switch that selects between the two available high frequency shelf frequencies: 8kHz (OUT) and 16kHz (IN).
• HF
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the amount of boost or cut for the high frequency shelf within a range of +/- 12dB.
• COMP IN
 Push-button switch that illuminates GREEN when the compressor section is engaged.
• THRESHOLD
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the compressor threshold range from +20dBu to -30dBu. When the input signal rises above the set threshold level, compression begins with a soft-knee at a 2:1 ratio.
• RELEASE
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the compressor release time. The overall timing range available is 50mS (FAST) to 500mS (SLOW). Note: Attack time is fixed at 20mS.
• GAIN
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the compressor make-up gain within a range of -6dB to +20dB.
• PRE EQ
 Push-button switch that routes the compressor section ahead of the EQ section when engaged.
• SILK
 Illuminated push-button switch that toggles through the three available
• SILK modes: OFF, RED, and BLUE.
• TEXTURE
 31-detent potentiometer that controls the amount of SILK harmonics added within the transformer output stage when SILK is engaged.
• GR and OUT Metering
 8-segment LED meters that indicate compressor gain reduction (dB) and output level (dBu).
• POWER
LED that illuminates GREEN when the Newton Channel is powered ON.