Focusrite Red 1 Quad Microphone Preamp

The Red 1 has garnered legendary status with top-flight studios worldwide. 4 acclaimed Focusrite transformer-based mic pres in the sexiest chassis ever created. Internal engineering insures maximum RF rejection and sonic integrity. This is an industry standard!

Using the same circuit topology as the original ISA mic pre designs, the Red 1 offers four channels of ultra-high quality Focusrite microphone amplification. Used with high quality ribbon, valve and condensor mics, the Red 1 obtains outstanding results with any sound source, especially voice, piano and string instruments.

With four mic pre-amps in a single unit, the Red 1 is ideal for those looking for improved audio performance, as a compact interface to digital recording systems, or for location multi-mic recordings. Each channel offers custom-wound Focusrite input transformers, switchable phantom power, phase reverse, an easily-read illuminated VU meter, and a handy scribble disc for denoting channels. Mic gain is switched in 6dB steps over a 66dB range, for accurate, precise channel matching and recall.

The many benefits of the unique Focusrite mic amp topology include superb commonmode rejection, a good overload margin and, with its shared gain structure, (20dB from transformer and up to 40dB from the amplifier) a very low noise floor with the signature wide bandwidth (10Hz to 200KHz). It also maintains this level of performance with a very wide range of impedance across the inputs. In practice, this makes it what one reviewer called "perhaps the most revealing, yet forgiving mic pre-amp in history."

The output stages of the Red 1 with its custom transformers will easily drive very long cable runs - up to several yards - without significant loss of quality, making them ideal for remote recordings.

Technical Info

Mic input gain: -6dB to +60dB in 6dB steps

Mic Input Impedance: 1200 Ohm +/- 15%, balanced and floating

Frequency Response: 10Hz to 140kHz (-3dB points), Ohm +/- 0.1dB within passband

Noise (EIN): -127dBu (input loaded 200 Ohm) @ 60dB gain

Distortion:
0.15% (-20dBu @ 20Hz)

0.06% (-20dBu @ 40Hz)

0.003% (-20dBu @ 1kHz)

0.005% (-20dBu @ 10kHz)

Output: +24dBm into 600 Ohm, +26dBm into 10k Ohm, balanced and floating