what is a
Rupert Neve Design?
Designed by Rupert Neve
This may seem completely obvious. However, there are many modern companies who claim their equipment has the sound of Rupert’s classic gear because a portion of it involves vintage components, imitation, or reverse-engineered circuitry.
The sound of a specific piece of gear is much more than just the schematic, or the individual components used. Rupert understood this better than anyone, and spent a vast amount of time listening to his equipment – not just measuring it – to ensure that every element of the design worked in harmony to create the most lifelike sonic reproduction possible.
Rupert spent 15 years educating the team at Rupert Neve Designs on how to properly carry on his legacy of listening, and this is our mission moving forward: to continue creating new & refined Rupert Neve designs based on the same methods, techniques, and philosophies diligently taught to us by Rupert himself.
“My objective was not that they should be replicas of me, but that they should follow the principles that I laid down, and they should be able to go a step further. And that's what they do…the designs that they have come up with are in every way superior to those which I was able to produce by myself.”
Purpose-Built Custom Transformers
Since Rupert’s earliest days as a designer, audio transformers have always been a huge part of the sound of a Rupert Neve design. Some other companies will point to their replica transformers as a reason their products sound “classic” – but the sound of Rupert’s vintage equipment wasn’t just about the transformer itself. It was a holistic design approach achieving balance between the electronics and the transformer, with transformers carefully selected or designed for very specific circuits.
This is why each and every audio transformer used in a Rupert Neve Designs product is custom-designed and custom-manufactured for that specific circuit. We have Rupert’s original transformer design documentation, and we use only our own exclusive transformers.
Audio Transformers
“Transformers are the reason why my original consoles are still re-used, re-cycled and re-configured so successfully. From the earliest days, all my designs were transformer-coupled. But an audio transformer cannot be entirely successful without including the electronic circuit in the design because it works as an integrated package.
The value of a transformer, correctly used, lies in the total galvanic isolation it provides, giving freedom from ground loops and RF interference. Even microscopic levels of interfering signals cause loss of musicality and introduce unpredictable harshness and loss of definition.
Of course, transformers that are not correctly configured for a particular application can introduce astonishing results! Audio transformer design is almost as much an art as a science…which may be why many circuit designers avoid them.”
Class-A Electronics
Our custom op-amp circuits completely eliminate crossover distortion and provide the sweet, musical tonality found in Rupert’s beloved vintage recording equipment.
Ultra High Headroom
Highly accurate, robust, well-regulated power supplies provide the basis for the extended dynamic range required to reproduce music with the utmost clarity and accuracy.
Silk
The exclusive Silk & Texture circuit on much of our equipment allows you to fine-tune the amount (and type) of harmonic content in the output stage. This means your signal can be adjusted from extremely transparent to thick, rich settings that produce several times the amount of sonic color found in Rupert’s vintage modules – and in two very unique modes.
No matter what sound you’re looking for, Silk will help you get there.
When you apply SILK RED, you’re enhancing harmonic content generated by the highs and high mids of your source. This adds a sparkly sheen to the top end, and is often ideal for sources including vocals, strings, snare, guitars, pianos, and other acoustic instruments.
With SILK BLUE, you’re enhancing harmonics generated by the lows and low mids of your source. This tends to “beef up” a signal from the bottom up, making it a great choice for bass guitars, heavy electric guitars, drums, male vocals, and synthesizers.
Ultra Wide Bandwidth
Typically extends from below 10Hz to above 100kHz. Though we can only hear up to about 20kHz, the brain can perceive distortion and nonlinearities well above that.
Built to Last
Engineers deserve high quality, timeless tools that fit their modern workflow and will last for decades – without planned obsolescence or unnecessary bells & whistles.
Taken as a whole, the principles listed above are what make a piece of gear into a true Rupert Neve Design. Our mission is to continue this work into the future.
