TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
Sign up for your digital AM at
www.audiomedia.com
Radial Engineering Gold Digger and Cherry Picker
SIGNAL SWITCHING SOLUTIONS
Radial’s new dual component system provides high-quality signal selection in a durable package, writes Rob Tavaglione.
CHOOSINGBETWEEN multiple signal-capturing options is often our favourite job responsibility, though sometimes our bane, too. Trying to decipher the intricacies of mic and mic preamp choices with fidgety musicians, nosy (and often noisy) onlookers, and slightly-too-opinionated novices can be challenging. Two years ago, I reviewed the Manley MicMAID, a four- mic by four-preamp switching matrix that I found to be indispensable in making detailed signal path decisions with ease. Too bad the £2,350 (ex-VAT) price prohibited me from buying what I considered a ‘luxury turned necessity’. Meanwhile, Radial Engineering has stepped up with a dual component system – the Gold Digger and Cherry Picker – to help with my signal selection dilemmas. In Radial’s characteristic well-built, properly featured, and affordable fashion, both units get the job done as promised.
FEATURES The Gold Digger is a sturdy, steel, four-input/one-output mic switcher with a passive, relay switched but not straight wire signal path. It features XLR I/O with radio-button style component selection (selecting one mic switches off the previous selection), output level trims, ‘on’ LEDs per channel, a recessed phantom power switch per channel, and an external 15 VDC power supply. The specs: 20Hz to 20kHz bandwidth, 0.0003%
46 October 2013
THD + N, -140dBu dynamic range, -92dB crosstalk, and 600-ohm input impedance. The Cherry Picker is a
similarly sturdy one-input/four- output, relay switched passive audio path, mic preamp selector; one mic input feeds any of four XLR-M outputs for routing to four mic preamps. Each channel also features radio-button selection, an ‘on’ LED, and ground lift. Switched phantom power is provided. A global mute switch is wisely provided, too. The Picker’s specs are equally impressive: DC to 80MHz bandwidth, - 115dB dynamic range, -97dB crosstalk, and 10K-ohms input impedance.
IN USE
The advantage of using this Radial Engineering system becomes apparent even before the client arrives. For example, when setting up for a session with a new vocalist, users can eliminate the stress of guesswork by putting up four different mics to audition. Soundchecks become easy, too – follow the singer, switching as they move from mic to mic. If one mic is louder than another, set the trim for the quietest mic to full level and then attenuate the louder mics until all are equal. This step is crucial, as matching levels is mandatory for comparing any audio gear. However, you might be stuck with a high noise floor from your preamp during the comparison if one mic has much lower output (like a vintage ribbon).
Impedance is a more
important factor. Your mics will ‘see’ the Gold Digger’s 600- ohm input impedance (a byproduct of the passive level control) and perform differently than when patched directly to your preamp. This can make a huge difference with passive ribbons, seemingly no difference with active ones, and barely significant with most condensers. This means you must keep the Gold Digger patched in-line during tracking and accept any character it may lend, or un-patch it to possibly find your mics sound different than they did when comparing them through the Gold Digger, which sort of defeats the purpose.
The Gold Digger does not
add noise (it is passive, after all); I checked at high levels and couldn’t discern any. One other drawback to all this convenience: there is a brief buzz, a signal dropout, and click when switching between mics – not speaker damaging or ‘annoy the client’ loud, but it is a momentary distraction. With the Cherry Picker, operation and results are comparable to the Gold Digger. Now with four mic amps patched, users can take the selected mic, route it to any of the mic pres and not worry about phantom power or pops when switching. There is only a quick and quiet tick when switching. Again, I must stress that setting equal levels is crucial; there aren’t level trims on the Cherry Picker’s channels, so you’ll have to
“Both units get the job done as promised.”
Rob Tavaglione
match levels at the preamp which can be tricky with preamps offering only coarse adjustments (5dB steps): your gain matching will have to be accomplished elsewhere. I also tried connecting a mic to the Cherry Picker (using its phantom), patching it out to four mic amps and then returning those four outputs to the GD used in reverse (now routing the selected preamp output to the DAW/recorder, much like the return loops and ‘mon/recorder’ output features found on Manley’s MicMAID). A good idea, though the 600-ohm impedance of the Gold Digger loaded the signal too much, resulting in a dark sound. Perhaps a third unit for switching four preamp returns to a single out, featuring higher impedance, should join this Radial signal-switching matrix party?
INFORMATION Feature Set
SUMMARY Oh, how I wish the Gold Digger had perfectly silent mic switching, precise numerical values on the trims, and programmable repeatability. And I wish the Cherry Picker had four return loops and a ‘record out’. Yes, those features and more are available on the Manley MicMAID, but at a cost of nearly £2,400. If the Gold Digger and Cherry Picker incorporated all those features, they wouldn’t be £289 street, each. Radial’s Gold Digger is a very useful and illuminating tool, one that must be used carefully with some restrictions – due to the complications of impedance loading, levels, and microphones – to gain its full benefit. The Cherry Picker does a superlative job of highlighting the oft- overlooked minute differences between mic preamps – or even compressors, for that matter – that professionals will find revelatory.
THE REVIEWER Rob Tavaglione
is Charlotte’s best-known independent music engineer and mixer, and the owner of Catalyst Recording.
catalystrecording.com
• Four-input/one-output mic switcher paired with a one-input/four-output mic preamp selector
• 20Hz to 20kHz bandwidth and 600-ohm input impedance (Gold Digger)
• DC to 80MHz bandwidth with -115dB dynamic range (Cherry Picker)
• Prices: £289 list, each
www.radialeng.com
www.audiomedia.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52