VERY CLEAN UA Universal Audio Model LA-610 Tube Mic Preamplifier/Compessor USA

VERY CLEAN UA Universal Audio Model LA-610 Tube Mic Preamplifier/Compessor USA. Unit is in excellent condition! Very well kept and cared for with little signs of use!

Unit was properly rack mounted in a smoke free studio. It has been fully tested and will include a power cable. The listing is for the Pre-amp only and no other accessories are included with this listing. All knobs, buttons and switch work perfectly. The only visible scratch is near the left side rack mount (see picture 3).

This does not hinder the performance of the unit in any way. There are some faint scuffs and scratches on the body from normal use. Two classic designs the 610 preamp and LA2A compressor are combined for the first time in this attractive new reissue. The interest in, and demand for,'vintage' audio preamps and compressors remains constantly high, although whether that is because vintage analogue units do what they do better than more modern designs is a debate best saved for the pub!

The subject of this review is a modern conjugation of those two classic vintage units into one box, called the LA610. The LA610 combines a three-input preamp with an optical compressor, all mounted in a large 2U rackmounting case with vintage-style control knobs and switches, kept nicely warm by a trio of valves, and weighted down by some high-quality audio transformers.

In concept, it is very similar to the company's own 6176 recording channel, which combines the same 610 valve preamp with the classic 1176LN solid-state compressor. However, the new LA610 is roughly two thirds of the price of the 6176, which makes it even more attractive! My engineering genes always force me to take a peek at the back panel of a new product first, and in the case of the LA610 I discovered a lot of empty space.

There are just three XLR connectors: a microphone input, a line input and a line output. There are no options to access the compressor side-chain either to insert an equaliser or to link a second unit for stereo operations and no pre-compressor outputs either. The only other facility is an IEC mains inlet to the internal linear power supply. The fuse holder can be inverted to allow operation on either 115V or 230V supplies.

The front panel looks fantastic, and is divided into three separate areas. The preamp controls are to the left, enclosed in a raised black panel, while the compressor controls are to the right, gathered within another raised black panel.

To the right of both is a small VU meter and the power switch and associated indicator. The black-panel sections make it look like the LA610 houses separate modules, which is a nice styling feature. The controls comprise three large knobs and six smaller ones, plus five miniature toggle switches and a very chunky power switch. The only nod towards modern styling is the blue-ish lamp which comes on when the unit is powered although rather than the ubiquitous blue LED, I was pleased to find this is actually an incandescent bulb behind a purple-blue jewelled cover. The preamp section is dominated by a large rotary level control. This has a very light action indeed which doesn't seem right somehow but it works well enough. To the left are the input conditioning facilities.

Two rotary switches select the input and coarse gain, while three toggle switches provide an input pad, phantom power, and polarity reverse. The coarse gain can be switched in 5dB steps over a range of ±10dB, which is translated to span -25dB to -5dB when the 15dB input pad is switched in. The unit has three inputs altogether.

I've mentioned the rear-panel mic and line inputs, but there is also an unbalanced high-impedance input via a quarter-inch socket on the front panel for guitars and the like. The rotary input selector switch has five positions, though. The central position selects the rear-panel line input, while the two on the right select the front-panel DI input with either 47k or 2.2M input impedances designed to provide ideal loads to active outputs and pickups respectively. The two left-hand switch positions select the microphone input with either 500 or 2k impedances. The first option is intended to match vintage dynamic mics while the latter conforms closely to the modern standard.

To the right of the large level-control knob are facilities for a two-band passive equalizer. Each band has a rotary switch to set the gain in 1.5dB steps to ±6dB, plus a further 3dB step out to ±9dB. Both bands also have selectable turnover points determined by toggle switches. The high band has options for 4.5kHz, 7kHz, and 10kHz, while the low band is provided with 70Hz, 100Hz, and 200Hz.

The item "VERY CLEAN UA Universal Audio Model LA-610 Tube Mic Preamplifier/Compessor USA" is in sale since Friday, October 5, 2018. This item is in the category "Musical Instruments & Gear\Pro Audio Equipment\Preamps & Channel Strips". The seller is "changeinthejar" and is located in Simi Valley, California. This item can be shipped to United States.

• Model: LA-610
• Modified Item: No
• Custom Bundle: No
• Features: Phantom Power
• Brand: Universal Audio
• Non-Domestic Product: No
• MPN: LA-610