Comments on the Focusrite Red product line

balkanboy · 19th January 2006

Hi guys!

Does any of you have any comments on the Focusrite Red production line?
Have you got it/ used it/ compare it/...?
What do you think?
Has anyone compared it with isa 430?!

Thanks!

Radiance · 19th January 2006

The Sfernice/Vishay potentiometers used in those units break down after some time. Keep that in mind when buying a second hand unit.

I own a RED3 compressor. It's an okay sounding unit but nothing spectacular. It looks great though.

Half of the actual costs of the unit wil probabely go to the solid steel housing and custom made knobs.

T_R_S · 19th January 2006

I own a Focusrite Red 7. Nice pre & compressor.
Very quiet, one thing I have noticed having used it for live recording and it takes an SM58 to a new level. I use the comp inserted on guitars for mixing ...very nice!

Being made in the UK and wired by hand as I understand it. It makes them very expensive to make.

Darius van H · 19th January 2006

I've got a Red 3 (with in/out trannies) and it's my favorite comp' for some styles / situations. More fully featured then many comps (sidechain, auto-release)

balkanboy · 21st January 2006

Has anyone compared it with isa 430?!
What is the difference in sound quality - you think?!
I'm not even shure wich line is considered for "top line" from them?!

Thanks!

drundall · 21st January 2006

If you do rock, the Red 3 rules. You have to learn how to set it up.
I also have the Red 2.

You can pry them from my cold dead hands.

PS, never had a problem with the pots and I've had mine for nearly a decade (maybe it's been that long by now).

Darius van H · 21st January 2006

Should also mention the Red 3 can do "clean" pretty good.......as well as create some very nice distortion sounds when pushing the levels (drum bus? etc)......

swankdoc · 21st January 2006

I have the Red mic pre quad. Just for comparison I have great River, Avalon, API among others.

The red mic pre series is extremely useful. Although somewhere in the middle between color and clear (ie little distinguishing descriptors or signature), they are a great value. They're a very "swiss army knife" kind of mic pre. Can use it on about anything and like it.

s-boogie · 21st January 2006

a little overprized IMO,but i love my red 2 eq.
if you find a good used one...buy it.
cannot compare it to isa 430...but i have a isa 220.
people talk a lot about the red series here....
many of them do not like the red series.

balkanboy · 22nd January 2006

Quote:

a little overprized IMO,but i love my red 2 eq.
if you find a good used one...buy it.
cannot compare it to isa 430...but i have a isa 220.
people talk a lot about the red series here....
many of them do not like the red series.

In comparison with isa what do you think of it?!
IS THE RED SERIES TOP FOCUSRITE LINE OR IS THAT ISA LINE ??!
Anyone knows?!

Thanks!

s-boogie · 22nd January 2006

comparison is difficult because i use my isa 220 as a preamp
for instruments and voices (mostly without special eq settings),
afterwards i use the red2 as a channel/bus eq in the mix.
so its two different tools to me.

in straight comparison between the eq of both isa and red series, i ´d say
that the red series leaves a certain colour on the signal whereas the
isa is clean and discreet.
the compressor of the isa is also very soft and i can imagine the red series
compressors to be more "aromatic" as a similarity to the red eq...

my 2 cents

balkanboy · 22nd January 2006

Thanks boogie!

I ment more of comparison between let's say red 7 - preamp, compressor, lo cut, de-esser and isa 430. Red 7 is basically mono red 3, red 8,...

So any straight comparison?!
Anyone had the chance?!

Thanks!

And once more: IS THE RED SERIES TOP LINE FROM THE FOCUSRITE??!!

dave-G · 22nd January 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by balkanboy

And once more: IS THE RED SERIES TOP LINE FROM THE FOCUSRITE??!!

Yeesh .. .calm down, man!

The Red series was originally introduced 'underneath' the ISA and Blue/mastering series. However, since the Blue series has been discontinued, and the ISA series has been retargeted towards channel strips and budget preamps, they're probably about the same, if not leaving the Red series as their 'premiere' stuff.

I think.

-dave

hociman · 22nd January 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by swankdoc

I have the Red mic pre quad. Just for comparison I have great River, Avalon, API among others.

The red mic pre series is extremely useful. Although somewhere in the middle between color and clear (ie little distinguishing descriptors or signature), they are a great value. They're a very "swiss army knife" kind of mic pre. Can use it on about anything and like it.

Except for voice. It's 6dB increments are too coarse, and if you even threaten to hit it near 0 (on its built-in meters) it sounds like digital clipping. This is just my opinion based on use, others may obviously disagree.

balkanboy · 22nd January 2006

dave!

Thanks!

I was on the same conclusion. Comparing the prices, RED 7 is expensier than isa 430 mkII so there's got to be an answer in the price tag too.
+ isa 430 mkII has a lot more features! The answer? Better quality preamps, compressor in RED 7??!
Don't get it! They consider isa 430 mk II as their flag ship model, but then you can find a unit wich has half of everything isa's got and at higher price!

So...

blackcatdigi · 22nd January 2006

I was a Focusrite rep a few years ago and this is how it was explained to me: I make no claims as to the validity of this info.

George Martin commissions Rupert Neve to build a new console for Air Studios, which is branded as Focusrite (as 'Neve' was owned by Amek).

Company grows to manufacture Focusrite outboard known as the 'Original' Neve designed ISA series.

Company introduces Blue Mastering components (I'm unsure as to whether these were Neve designed or just 'inspired').

Company introduces lower cost Red Series (based on Neve designs; Note the "based on"...)

Focusrite introduces even lower cost Green, then Platinum series, discontinues Blue, introduces new ISA and reissues several ISA models.

You probably know the rest.

Personally, I quite like the Red series, even if it is NOT a Neve design, per se.

balkanboy · 22nd January 2006

Quote:

Company introduces lower cost Red Series (based on Neve designs; Note the "based on"...)

I see.. Thanks blackcatdigi!
But! Red 7 has a higher price than isa 430 mkII wich has a lot more features!
You perhaps know the answer on that?

Mark Vain · 22nd January 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by balkanboy

I see.. Thanks blackcatdigi!
But! Red 7 has a higher price than isa 430 mkII wich has a lot more features!
You perhaps know the answer on that?

The higher price of the Reds is simply due to the very expensive casing. That's why they are discontinuing them one by one. It's just too expensive to manufacture and sell that kind of quality nowadays when you have most of the other stuff made of plastic in china.

Mark

TornadoTed · 23rd January 2006

I've got a Red 1, 2 and 7 and really like them, hard to make them sound bad. Then again I think the Green's are pretty good compared to most budget equipment and they get a right slating!

zarembo · 23rd January 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by TornadoTed

I've got a Red 1, 2 and 7 and really like them, hard to make them sound bad. Then again I think the Green's are pretty good compared to most budget equipment and they get a right slating!

hey Ed, glad to hear you are enjoying the reds.

big hole in my racks now.....

hope you're well.

w

monobeat · 23rd January 2006

remember that the mk1 isa 430 used to cost about a grand more...before they started production in china with the mk2.

the compressor in the isa430 mk1 is amazing. very versitile...smooth and almost unnoticible - if you set it up that way - and downright mean and gritty if you drive it hard enough.

cheers, warner

**James Lugo** · 23rd January 2006

We just shotout about 12 pre's: Chandler, BAE, Trident, Avalon, Demeter, Summit, A Designs and a Focusrite Red 6 (mono pre with EQ). Honestly, the Red was most everybody's least favorite. It seemed bright and cold. Maybe it was just the one we had.

zetterstroem · 23rd January 2006

as i wrote elsewhere the red 7 was the worst pre we had in the studio i worked in....

only used it for radio commercials.... as it gave some dirt to the speaks....

used an old blue series lunchbox..... it sounded cold and harsh....

used the green series when it first came out..... useless....

compared the pre's in a mackie 1202 vlz to an isa 220 (i think).... liked the mackie better...

use my mbox sometimes..... won't comment due to foul language....

i absolutely HATE focurite pre's!!!

TornadoTed · 23rd January 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by zarembo

hey Ed, glad to hear you are enjoying the reds.

big hole in my racks now.....

hope you're well.

w

Hi Walt. Didn't realise you were lurking around on here! I'm good, hope you are well yourself.

Ed

WunderBro Flo · 23rd January 2006

Same experience as James Lugo. I did a comparison on vocals once between a Red and an ISA preamp, the Red sounded weaker. The ISA was everybody´s favourite in this comparison, more alive, better audible harmonic content.

Rock on!
Pat

DAWgEAR · 23rd January 2006

http://www.focusrite.com/support/ans...cle.php?id=038

http://www.focusrite.com/support/ans...cle.php?id=032

http://www.focusrite.com/support/ans...cle.php?id=141

jerkrecords · 23rd January 2006

we have a Red 2.
it can kill at 10 paces if paired with the wrong mic and sibilant female vocal.
otherwise i like it - despite it's brightness - i use it a lot.
not that that means anything.

-pete

Crash · 23rd January 2006

Quote:

it can kill at 10 paces if paired with the wrong mic and sibilant female vocal.

Amen to that! I tend to mate ours (Red8) to darker sounding mics otherwise, you will be ducking brain darts with this thing.

23rd January 2006

I have a Red 1 and have always thought of it as the "what I wish a 1272 sounded like" mic pre. So much that I have sold every 1272 that has ever come through my studio.

It is a super match for an 87!

I have always though of it as very musical w/o the overly thickish-ness(?) you get from say a 1272. Bright? I don't hear. Maybe I don't define "Bright" correctly. Compared to my M5 or Grace....it is not bright by my definition.

I guess this just goes back to "use your own ears" and "don't believe what you read".

I think they are just currently out of fashion like Tube-tech and Summit.
Not quite vintage enough OR boutique enough for the in crowd.
This is cool, as it makes the stuff cheap on the used market.

D

balkanboy · 24th January 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by WildCowboys

Same experience as James Lugo. I did a comparison on vocals once between a Red and an ISA preamp, the Red sounded weaker. The ISA was everybody´s favourite in this comparison, more alive, better audible harmonic content.

Rock on!
Pat

In the links that DAWgEAR posted (i think it's an official Focusrite database) they claim that the pcb layout is the same in the isa and the red serries.

19th January 2006	#1
balkanboy Gear Head Joined: Apr 2005 Posts: 56 Thread Starter	Comments on the Focusrite Red product line Hi guys! Does any of you have any comments on the Focusrite Red production line? Have you got it/ used it/ compare it/...? What do you think? Has anyone compared it with isa 430?! Thanks!

19th January 2006	#3
T_R_S Lives for gear Joined: Sep 2004 Location: Canuk Posts: 5,278	I own a Focusrite Red 7. Nice pre & compressor. Very quiet, one thing I have noticed having used it for live recording and it takes an SM58 to a new level. I use the comp inserted on guitars for mixing ...very nice! Being made in the UK and wired by hand as I understand it. It makes them very expensive to make. __________________ FB Page ========== Surplus Sale

19th January 2006	#4
Darius van H Lives for gear Joined: Feb 2005 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 1,735	I've got a Red 3 (with in/out trannies) and it's my favorite comp' for some styles / situations. More fully featured then many comps (sidechain, auto-release) __________________ www.amsterdammastering.com

21st January 2006	#6
drundall Lives for gear Joined: Jun 2002 Location: Torrance, CA Posts: 885	If you do rock, the Red 3 rules. You have to learn how to set it up. I also have the Red 2. You can pry them from my cold dead hands. PS, never had a problem with the pots and I've had mine for nearly a decade (maybe it's been that long by now). __________________ "I know of several comparisons [right here on this board] where no one could tell the difference between a Martech pre-amp and a Behringer." - Fletcher Darian Rundall

21st January 2006	#9
s-boogie Gear maniac Joined: Oct 2005 Location: germany Posts: 195	a little overprized IMO,but i love my red 2 eq. if you find a good used one...buy it. cannot compare it to isa 430...but i have a isa 220. people talk a lot about the red series here.... many of them do not like the red series. __________________ _______________________________________ "...work through a room's gear — I'd sit there with the gear for hours. I think that helped me become a mixer, and to be able to come up with things that were creative and new." -maserati thumbsup _______________________________________ http://www.myspace.com/sashliq

19th January 2006	#2
Radiance Lives for gear Joined: Feb 2004 Location: France (before in the Netherlands). My French is not really good but try me. It's good for me to practice some French gearslutz talk. Posts: 1,109	The Sfernice/Vishay potentiometers used in those units break down after some time. Keep that in mind when buying a second hand unit. I own a RED3 compressor. It's an okay sounding unit but nothing spectacular. It looks great though. Half of the actual costs of the unit wil probabely go to the solid steel housing and custom made knobs.

21st January 2006	#8
swankdoc Lives for gear Joined: Jun 2005 Posts: 2,135	I have the Red mic pre quad. Just for comparison I have great River, Avalon, API among others. The red mic pre series is extremely useful. Although somewhere in the middle between color and clear (ie little distinguishing descriptors or signature), they are a great value. They're a very "swiss army knife" kind of mic pre. Can use it on about anything and like it.

22nd January 2006	#11
s-boogie Gear maniac Joined: Oct 2005 Location: germany Posts: 195	comparison is difficult because i use my isa 220 as a preamp for instruments and voices (mostly without special eq settings), afterwards i use the red2 as a channel/bus eq in the mix. so its two different tools to me. in straight comparison between the eq of both isa and red series, i ´d say that the red series leaves a certain colour on the signal whereas the isa is clean and discreet. the compressor of the isa is also very soft and i can imagine the red series compressors to be more "aromatic" as a similarity to the red eq... my 2 cents

22nd January 2006	#15
balkanboy Gear Head Joined: Apr 2005 Posts: 56 Thread Starter	dave! Thanks! I was on the same conclusion. Comparing the prices, RED 7 is expensier than isa 430 mkII so there's got to be an answer in the price tag too. + isa 430 mkII has a lot more features! The answer? Better quality preamps, compressor in RED 7??! Don't get it! They consider isa 430 mk II as their flag ship model, but then you can find a unit wich has half of everything isa's got and at higher price! So...

22nd January 2006	#16
blackcatdigi Lives for gear Joined: Jun 2002 Location: upstate, sc Posts: 1,739	I was a Focusrite rep a few years ago and this is how it was explained to me: I make no claims as to the validity of this info. George Martin commissions Rupert Neve to build a new console for Air Studios, which is branded as Focusrite (as 'Neve' was owned by Amek). Company grows to manufacture Focusrite outboard known as the 'Original' Neve designed ISA series. Company introduces Blue Mastering components (I'm unsure as to whether these were Neve designed or just 'inspired'). Company introduces lower cost Red Series (based on Neve designs; Note the "based on"...) Focusrite introduces even lower cost Green, then Platinum series, discontinues Blue, introduces new ISA and reissues several ISA models. You probably know the rest. Personally, I quite like the Red series, even if it is NOT a Neve design, per se. __________________ Sincerely, Casey SC Digital Services Bob Olhsson wrote on 17th September 2002, 12:56 PM: "Music is being used to sort consumers rather than to entertain people."

23rd January 2006	#19
TornadoTed Lives for gear Joined: Nov 2005 Location: Wales Posts: 1,445	I've got a Red 1, 2 and 7 and really like them, hard to make them sound bad. Then again I think the Green's are pretty good compared to most budget equipment and they get a right slating! __________________ Ed Lewis Giant Wafer Studios, UK www.giantwafer.com

23rd January 2006	#21
monobeat Gear maniac Joined: Nov 2004 Location: berlin, germany Posts: 150	remember that the mk1 isa 430 used to cost about a grand more...before they started production in china with the mk2. the compressor in the isa430 mk1 is amazing. very versitile...smooth and almost unnoticible - if you set it up that way - and downright mean and gritty if you drive it hard enough. cheers, warner __________________ www.monobeat.com www.myspace.com/monobeatmusic

23rd January 2006	#22
James Lugo Moderator Joined: May 2004 Location: Raleigh, NC Posts: 6,997	We just shotout about 12 pre's: Chandler, BAE, Trident, Avalon, Demeter, Summit, A Designs and a Focusrite Red 6 (mono pre with EQ). Honestly, the Red was most everybody's least favorite. It seemed bright and cold. Maybe it was just the one we had. __________________ Vocal Asylum & Hemispheres Recording - http://www.sslmixingonline.com/ http://www.HemispheresRecording.com - http://www.youtube.com/user/jameslugo Now affiliated with Sound Pure Pro Audio & Guitars / Boutique Amps Check out my first video tutorial release on Groove3: http://www.groove3.com/str/vocal-asylum.html

23rd January 2006	#23
zetterstroem Gear nut Joined: Oct 2005 Location: Denmark Posts: 98	as i wrote elsewhere the red 7 was the worst pre we had in the studio i worked in.... only used it for radio commercials.... as it gave some dirt to the speaks.... used an old blue series lunchbox..... it sounded cold and harsh.... used the green series when it first came out..... useless.... compared the pre's in a mackie 1202 vlz to an isa 220 (i think).... liked the mackie better... use my mbox sometimes..... won't comment due to foul language.... i absolutely HATE focurite pre's!!!

23rd January 2006	#25
WunderBro Flo Lives for gear Joined: Nov 2003 Location: VIE Posts: 2,634 2 Reviews written	Same experience as James Lugo. I did a comparison on vocals once between a Red and an ISA preamp, the Red sounded weaker. The ISA was everybody´s favourite in this comparison, more alive, better audible harmonic content. Rock on! Pat

23rd January 2006	#26
DAWgEAR Lives for gear Joined: Jul 2004 Location: Southern California Posts: 1,174	http://www.focusrite.com/support/ans...cle.php?id=038 http://www.focusrite.com/support/ans...cle.php?id=032 http://www.focusrite.com/support/ans...cle.php?id=141 __________________ " the wrist of the listener will always turn up the volume for you more effectively than any brick wall compression ever could." -- Stav from Mixing With Your Mind

23rd January 2006	#27
jerkrecords Gear maniac Joined: Jun 2005 Posts: 159	we have a Red 2. it can kill at 10 paces if paired with the wrong mic and sibilant female vocal. otherwise i like it - despite it's brightness - i use it a lot. not that that means anything. -pete __________________ http://www.submergentmusic.com

23rd January 2006	#29
Guest Guest Posts: n/a	I have a Red 1 and have always thought of it as the "what I wish a 1272 sounded like" mic pre. So much that I have sold every 1272 that has ever come through my studio. It is a super match for an 87! I have always though of it as very musical w/o the overly thickish-ness(?) you get from say a 1272. Bright? I don't hear. Maybe I don't define "Bright" correctly. Compared to my M5 or Grace....it is not bright by my definition. I guess this just goes back to "use your own ears" and "don't believe what you read". I think they are just currently out of fashion like Tube-tech and Summit. Not quite vintage enough OR boutique enough for the in crowd. This is cool, as it makes the stuff cheap on the used market. D

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