Warm Audio was not received tepidly when the company released its ’76 and Pultec clones—no, no, no. On the contrary, reviewers praised and forums fawned all over these rackmount units. Just in time for NAMM 2018, Warm Audio is seeking to strike while the iron is still plugged in, by issuing preamps and preamp/EQ combo pieces fashioned in the classic, British ’73 style.
Long considered the stuff of pro-audio legend, the original ’73-style preamps exhibited a unique flavor that contributed mightily to the scene, first to the sound of classic rock ’n’ roll, then again in recent epochs, as pop records made use of their sweetly forgiving signal paths. High-end hardware companies did a bang-up job recreating the pres but, unfortunately, they modelled the units all-too-faithfully—right down to their price tags.
Indeed, if the common mortal wanted a ’73-style unit, concessions had to be made: Either you got something taking you part of the way there in the analog world, or often, you switched between various software emulations available throughout the universe of audio, riding waves of differently modeled ’73 timbres as you worked your way through your slate of ITB mixes.
Now, all that changes with Warm Audio’s ’73 series. Hand-wired and hand assembled, these units all come with Carnhill signal transformers, custom-designed to reproduce the original units. This contributes to a sweet sound, one that saturates smoothly the more you push the pre. The capacitors and output transistors have also been selected and implemented in a way to give you a creamy, yet smooth timbre at high gain settings.
In this series, you’ll find single-channel and dual-channel preamps featuring input trim, output gain, a high-pass filter, and more. Polarity and 48V phantom-power switches are on hand, as is a Tone button that changes the input transformer’s impedance, resulting in selectable tonal varieties. Mic-level XLR and line-level TRS inputs are at hand, as are unbalanced 1/4" jacks for using outboard gear as inserts. Oh, and you can plug your guitar or bass straight into the dedicated DI jack.
The combination preamp/EQs, also available in single- and dual-channel variants, provide all of the pre’s features, plus a three-band EQ. The Blore Edwards switch pots offer not only the classic feel of the ’73’s dual-concentric EQ system, but a reliability often reserved for much more expensive units.
Indeed, these are relatively wallet-friendly pieces, going for a price their plug-in equivalents used to sell for not even five years ago. So, if you’re looking for a faithful ’73 sound on a 2018 budget, definitely check out these pieces, now available at B&H!
