Rupert Neve Portico 5211 2-Channel Mic Pre

About: Rupert Neve Portico 5211 2-Channel Mic Pre

Simple and elegant, the 5211 is the natural evolution of what is arguably the most famous gear in audio recording history: Rupert Neve’s microphone preamps. With two channels of the classic tone you know and love, 72dB of gain, sweepable high-pass filters for precise control, and the power of Mr. Rupert Neve’s dual-tap transformers with variable Silk saturation, the 5211 delivers a versatile, flattering, and uncompromising front end for any signal path. In short, it’s everything a mic preamp should be.

Preamplifier Details

The microphone input is balanced but not floating, using a Transformer-Like-Amplifier (T.L.A.) configuration to capture the microphone’s signal in as pure a manner as possible. With the +48V phantom voltage switched off, this input serves as an extremely high quality line input with an impedance of 10K Ohms. Each channel features 72dB of extraordinarily low-distortion, low-noise gain using a stepped switch in 6dB increments with a continuously variable +/-6dB trim. Individually selectable polarity, +48V phantom power, and a swept high-pass filter from 20-250Hz are available to further control the input, with Silk control available for the outputs.

Silk

What is Silk? In brief, Silk is a tonal option applied within the unit’s output stage that manipulates the signal’s harmonic content to create the sonic character associated with Rupert Neve’s vintage modules. By reducing negative feedback and saturating the output transformer while adjusting the frequency spectrum, Silk provides a sweet, musical enhancement of the input signal – and when the level is driven to the edge of its headroom, the Silk’s effect is multiplied.

Features:

• MIC GAIN: A 12-way precision rotary switch controls gain from 0 to 66 dB in 6 dB steps.
• TRIM: Continuously variable +/-6 dB level control.
• SILK / TEXTURE: Pushing the Silk button engages the red Silk circuit, which reduces the negative feedback on the output transformer, adding harmonic content as the texture is increased. Red Silk accentuates the saturation in the mid and high frequencies, similar to that of the red silk mode on the Shelford Channel. By manipulating the Texture control, the amount of Silk can be changed from essentially absent, to roughly 10 times the amount of coloration / distortion found in Silk from the original Portico Series. With Silk / Texture engaged, the distortion characteristic and harmonic content of the unit are very reminiscent of many of Rupert’s vintage class-A designs.
• Level Meter: An eight-segment LED bar-graph meter displays output level (pre-Silk). from -30 dBu to +22 dBu.
• Polarity: Reverses the polarity of the input signal.
• High Pass Filter: Continuously variable from 20Hz to 250 Hz, and engaged with the HPF button.
• Phantom Power: Provides 48V phantom power to microphones.
• -6dB Output: A secondary split off the output transformer with a lower headroom, designed to allow engineers to fully drive the output of the 5211 without clipping converters and other devices.