Neve 1073LB 500-Series Mono Mic Preamp

The AMS Neve 1073LB is the only preamp that brings the authentic sound of recording’s most highly prized preamp, the Neve 1073, to 500-series racks everywhere.

Ask any producer or recording engineer what their desert island preamp is, and invariably, the Neve 1073 will come up just about every time. The most copied preamp on the planet, it would be more appropriate to ask what influential recordings the 1073 hasn’t been used on since its introduction in 1970 through today. Perhaps the greatest achievement of the Neve 1073 is that it gave solid-state circuits the rich euphonic sound of tubes, and the punch that put the rock into roll. It was also the first wide-bandwidth preamp designed to be linear and low-noise past the range of human hearing.* Along with the character of the preamp, thanks to its Neve-designed Marinair™ custom input and output transformers, the award-winning 1073LB boasts a staggering 80dB of ribbon mic-friendly gain, variable input impedance, input trim, and of course the signature Neve sound.

AMS Neve 1073LB—Under the Hood

Based on the limitations of the 500-series form, Neve engineers painstaking selected certain components for the 1073LB that matched the behavior of the originals, along with using the same architecture and original hand-wound transformers (which, incidentally, are more responsible for the warm sound attributed to tubes than tubes themselves actually are) to retain the unique sonics of the original 1073. (All I/O on the 1073LB is transformer-balanced and earth-free.)

The AMS Neve 1073LB also incorporates new features for the modern age, including a -10dB to + 5dB fine Trim control, which in conjunction with the main gain control gives you 85dB of gain for mics with extremely low sensitivity; a signal-presence LED, intelligent protected switching for the front-panel combi XLR/1/4″ input connector; and Neve’s Audio Processing Input design, which enables you to connect adjacent AMS Neve Lunchbox EQ and dynamics processors as in insert ahead of the 1073LB’s output. Designed and manufactured in England, the 1073LB is VPR-compliant, and as such, compatible with API Lunchbox 500-series power racks.

1073LB front-panel controls

The front-panel controls of the AMS Neve 1073LB include a stepped (5dB) Input Gain knob, which runs from -20dB to +10dB for line input, -20dB to -80dB (negative gain means the output is inverted from the input) for the mic input (with an Off position between the 50 and 55dB steps). Below the gain control are three buttons for Lo-Z input impedance selection (1200 ohm/300ohm), a phase button, and an input selector (FR I/P) for Mic or Line selection. To the right of the buttons is the -10dB/+5dB continuous fine trim control, which also acts as an on switch for phantom power when pressed in. There is also an accompanying +48V red LED indicator when phantom power is on. Additionally, when Line is selected via the FR I/P control, phantom power is automatically turned off if active, in order to protect unbalanced, line-level input devices. And finally, at the bottom of the front panel is an XLR/1/4″ combi-jack input connector.

1073LB rear panel

The rear panel has an INS LINK connector, which is used when a 1073LB Mic Pre module uses an adjacent AMS Neve module as a true audio insert across it, such as the 1073LB EQ. The cable that links the two modules together is supplied with the module you wish to use as the insert. There is also a Dip Switch Block (Issue 2 units only), that is used depending on whether the 1073LB is inserted into a non-API lunchbox.

AMS Neve 1073LB 500 Series Microphone Preamp Module Features:

• Classic Neve transformer-balanced Class A Mic/Line preamp
• Proprietary Neve Marinair transformers on input and output stages
• Both Mic and Line inputs are transformer balanced and earth free
• Gain knob with Signal Presence LED; Phase reverse (180° phase) switch
• +5/-20dB level Trim control with integrated 48V phantom power on/off switch
• Polarity reverse, Impedance, and Front Input selector switches
• Front XLR/TRS combo connector with intelligent phantom power switching
• Audio Processing Insert feature allows processing from adjacent 1073 LBEQ and/or 2264ALB modules to be inserted into the 1073LB’s pre-output stage
• Line Input: Impedance 4kΩ bridging, gain -20dB to +10dB in 5dB steps
• Microphone Input: Selectable impedance (300Ω/1200Ω), gain +20dB to +80dB in 5dB steps
• Output is transformer balanced and earth free
• Distortion: <0.07%, 50Hz to 10kHz at +20dBu output
• Frequency Response: ±0.5dB, 20Hz–20kHz, -3dB at 40kHz
• Compatible 500 Series chassis with power supply and line-level I/O connectors required, not supplied
• Designed and crafted in England by AMS Neve engineers

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