Little Devil EQ distortion

[angryzen]

I'm not sure if I'm doing this right. I just bought 2 Little Devil EQ's off of eBay and put them in my BAE 6 space rack. These are my first outboard EQ's. I've been plugging in a mic to my Electrodyne 501, recording a guitar amp, and then in the patchbay I'm sending the 501 to the Devil In, Devil Out back in to the Rosetta 800. I can hear the sound, and hear it's being effected by the EQ, but if the level get's too high it's distorting. If I unpatch the EQ I'm around -2 db and when the EQ is patched back in the level drops to -6 db and is distorting. Are they broken, am I patching it in wrong? How hot are the levels you send to the EQ's and what db are you generally recording back at? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Kronos147]

Are they both the same?

[angryzen]

Yup, sequential serials.

[RedWallStudio]

Do you get any distortion if you go straight from the 501 into your Rosetta?

Just so I have it straight...

If - Guitar > Mic > Electrodyne > Little Devil > DAW = Distortion
and Guitar > Mic > Electrodyne > DAW = No distortion

Then you either have a problem with the Little Devil.. or possibly they are not seated correctly in your lunchbox.. or possibly not being powered fully by the lunchbox... although I've never read that the Little Devils require more power than any other 500 series unit. Check all connections first...

[jpupo74]

I think it's just a matter of gain structure...
Maybe going out too hot on the Electrodyne?
And going in to hot on the L Devil?
Cheers,
Pupo

[Raw-Tracks]

Originally Posted by angryzen

If I unpatch the EQ I'm around -2 db and when the EQ is patched back in the level drops to -6 db and is distorting.

-2dB on what scale? If you're DAW input meter is reading -2dB, that's an awfully hot level in the analog world. Try backing the preamp down. Does the distortion go away?

[deft_bonz]

Also try different cables, meaning patch them directly with working cables.

[KT1]

Originally Posted by jpupo74

I think it's just a matter of gain structure...
Maybe going out too hot on the Electrodyne?
And going in to hot on the L Devil?
Cheers,
Pupo

I have had this exact problem with Analogue EQ - 1071..it was resolved as per the above comment. I generally am around -18db in the box.

[angryzen]

Going straight from the electrodyne is no problem. I guess I'm just used to running everything hotter. It just seems so quiet. I'm used to being able to clearly see the waveform when I'm zoomed out of a project, and now I can barely see anything cause I'm so much quieter now. What level are your guys guitar tracks usually at? Maybe I've been too hit this whole time.

[Thumper]

Depending on your cal settings, -18 dbfs with your daw equals 0 dbu +4 in the hardware world. This means that traditional vu meters would be pegged all the time if you're running at -2 dbfs in your daw. That too hot to me, but whatever works for you, well, works for you.

Try letting your rig breathe a bit in the digital world bud.

[ionian]

If I added some hardware and it started distorting, the first thing I would think is that something before it in the chain is hitting it too hot. Try backing off the 501 pre a bit.

Not all hardware is created equal (which isn't a criticism) so you can't just assume that you can add something in your current chain and it just keeps sending the signal down.

All hardware reacts in a certain way to the signal coming into it. Pres, Comps, EQs... some distort easier than others. The longer you use your gear the more you learn the idiosyncrasies of each and what adjustments you have to make when you add it to the chain.

Regards,
Frank

[riffmachine]

In my experience with the Little Devil EQ's just turning on the mid bands bumps the level up a couple of dB's. You definitely have to take this into account when setting up your gain structure. I find it more of an issue when inserting it on a track while mixing and not really during tracking since you can just turn your preamps gain down. - paul

[angryzen]

Cool. Thanks for all the advice guys! I guess I've been recording things way too hot for a while then. I just always thought it needed to be higher to use all the bits. But I've been backing it off for the recent sessions and everything's been cool!