Rupert Neve Designs Portico 542 500-Series Tape Emulator Module

Description

The Rupert Neve Designs Portico 542 500-Series Tape Emulator Module is ultimate “colour box”. As a 500-series follow-up to the Portico 5042, the 542 delivers the same thick, musical simulation of tape while drastically enhancing creative control via a number of new features. In addition to the the “true tape” circuitry – great for bringing out 3rd-order harmonics – the 542 incorporates a soft-clip circuit that tames the harshest sources and enhances 2nd-order harmonics, a variable and versatile Silk/Texture circuit for three transformer tones in one, and a wet/dry control to blend in the perfect amount of saturation.

Unlike digital emulations, the “True Tape” drive circuit works by feeding a custom-designed transformer acting as a “record head”, which in turn is coupled to a correctly equalized replay amplifier. As the voltage rises on the “record head”, saturation increases, and a soft clip circuit engages at higher levels to round off peak transients. The sound of the tape circuit can be further modified with selectable 15 / 30 IPS modes and a pre/post-tape blend control. In addition to the tape circuit, the 542 also has the variable Silk & Texture circuitry found in the Portico II series of modules, which allows the engineer to fine-tune the harmonic ratio and tonality on the output transformer.

While in the olden days, tape’s non-linearity was generally looked upon as more of a curse than a “feature”, the advent of digital systems that operate in a completely linear fashion has made many appreciate the quirks of non-linear audio processing. Unlike linear designs, non-linear devices require the user to actively experiment with gain staging to find the “sweet spot” of the circuit. Although this requires a small amount of effort on part of the engineer, if used properly, the effect can add a dynamic aspect to performances that can enhance the impact of a song.

The main features of the Rupert Neve Designs Portico 542 500-Series Tape Emulator Module include:

• Add the rich, musical sound of tape to your digital tracks
• True Tape circuitry uses real tape heads to emulate the characteristics of tape recording
• Versatile Silk/Texture circuit gives you additional sonic-sculpting potential
• Wet/dry control lets you fine-tune the amount of tape saturation
• Soft-clip circuit helps you tame the sound of harsh, transient signals

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