DACS Clarity MicAmp 500

DACS Clarity MicAmp 500 is a pre-amp for the 500 series.

Official description
If a microphone pre-amp adds anything other than clean gain to the audio signal being sent to the recording medium, whatever that extra might be will then become an integral part of the recorded signal. And as actually embedded in the signal, any undesirable addition will be extremely difficult to remove at a later stage. Likewise, if anything is subtracted from the audio signal along the same path, it will be irretrievably lost. If the preamp loses it, it is lost to everything downstream. This is why the microphone pre-amp is critical for the quality of the recorded sound – because no amount of post-production knob-twiddling can ever re-create the detail obliterated, or restore the dynamics flattened by, an inadequate mic pre.

So the ideal microphone amplifier should be designed to eliminate both of these types of signal degradation. It should be:


 * as low noise as possible, at whatever level of gain
 * grain-free and allow the transmission of a literally high-fidelity signal, which is faithful to both the frequency and dynamic ranges of the source.

This ideal is very hard to achieve – but DACS talked to recording engineers; they said it’s what they wanted, so rather than try to make a feature out of a failing (“it’s not muddy, it’s warm” etc) the lab boffins got to work and developed a unique amplifier topology to provide it.

In addition to those necessary sonic features, it is also highly desirable for the mic preamp to have switched gain controls for easy recall of settings, easy to read metering so that level decisions can be made instantly, and an input which can easily be switched between phantom powered for 48V mics and non-powered input for ribbon mics, valve mics with their own power supply, and dynamics.

The DACS Clarity MicAmp 500 provides for all of this, and more, in an extremely cost-effective `lunchbox’ format. There is simply nothing as good as this at this price.


 * Single channel discrete-component-based microphone amplifier closely based on the award winning 2-channel Clarity MicAmp 2
 * Ultra-low noise, ultra-low distortion circuitry
 * Unmatched sonic realism: entirely true to the original source
 * Switched gain settings from +20dB to +64dB (plenty to use with low-output ribbon mics) in 4dB steps, with a 0dB to +8dB trim control
 * An input that can be phantom powered but which can also be switched to bypass the input capacitors and be coupled directly to the gain stage, for ribbon, valve and dynamic mics
 * Flat frequency response from below 20Hz to above 45kHz
 * Three-segment LED display with PPM ballistics and a bright overload LED for clear metering

The Clarity MicAmp 500 produces an extraordinarily clear, detailed, and dynamic sound for recording everything from naturalistic voice and acoustic instruments to high-energy percussion (when utilising the robust input stage and optional in line pad).