 George
Shilling reviews:
E.A.R./Yoshino
660 Compressor/Limiter
Esoteric
[es–o–ter'ik], adjective inner; secret; mysterious; taught to a
select few – This is the dictionary definition of the ‘E.’ of
E.A.R. (Esoteric Audio Research), which says much about the
philosophy behind the company and its designs. Tim de Paravicini’s
company, which employs six people, has been producing its 660 valve
compressor since 1984, yet total production totals only the low
hundreds. So this is no upstart, cashing in on the recent valve
technology boom that has mirrored the digital onslaught. de
Paravicini has long been a champion of analogue and valve
technology, his outspoken views springing forth to challenge the
motivation and wisdom of high volume manufacturers. Meanwhile, his
Cambridgeshire-based company quietly builds small quantities of EQs,
compressors, tape recorders and suchlike, which are coveted by those
‘in the know’.
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The
660 is a typical example of de Paravicini’s theory and practice.
He designs equipment to sound good, and all other aspects take a
back seat. Hence the unashamed duplication of the revered Fairchild
660’s model number and design features. de Paravicini has taken
what he feels to be the best aspects of this design, improving and
changing only where necessary.
For
a mono unit, the rack space seems excessive at 3U, and this height
makes the 10" or so depth seem shallow. Six valves are mounted
on the back in a recessed cubbyhole. This makes servicing easy and
keeps them away from other circuitry, but they are not completely
safe here, as I found when someone tried to helpfully remove a unit
from its box with their hand inside this recess! No major damage,
thankfully… Inside, there is transistor circuitry for non-audio
circuits such as power supply.
As
well as XLR audio connectors, there is a jack socket to link two
units for stereo operation, which was successfully utilised, thanks
to Mr de Paravicini’s generosity in lending me two units. This is
activated by a front panel toggle switch. As well as an IEC mains
input, there is a useful IEC mains output, thus enabling the feeding
of one unit from the other with the correct cable – a terrific
idea for keeping things tidy. Why does nobody else do this?
The
front panel sports a black anodised finish, and features a large,
conventional VU showing gain reduction. The controls are presented
in a row of odd, small switches and pots, with certainly more boffin-appeal
than sex-appeal. The pushbutton power switch illuminates. There are
locknuts on preset pots for meter balance (to adjust tubes’
current matching) and meter zero, so I didn’t touch those… In
association with these is a three-position switch for balancing each
half of the tubes – one can check all is well by making sure the
meter reads zero in all three positions. Like a Fairchild,
compression adjustment is done with the Input Attenuation pot and
the Threshold. The Input knob is perversely as tiny as the
Fairchild's is huge. There is no legending or calibration, and the
tiny knob is undamped. As a bonus compared to the Fairchild, there
are two different threshold knobs on the E.A.R. DC Threshold varies
the slope: at full anticlockwise the unit will gently compress, and
at the opposite end it will hard limit at a 10:1 ratio. However,
turning this control clockwise also has the apparent effect of
raising the threshold, so in fact turning this control alone will
give you less gain reduction as you turn it clockwise. This control
is stepped with 11 positions. There is a soft high-frequency
‘ping’ on the outputs when you change this. The AC Threshold is
a more conventional threshold control, which can be adjusted in
conjunction for the desired amount of gain reduction. Attack and
Release times are variable by a 6-position rotary switch, which will
be familiar to Fairchild fans. Four different attack and release
settings are available, while positions 5 and 6 give auto
program-dependent release times. The manual recommends position 6
for classical music, with a very fast release for short peaks, and a
very slow release for sustained high levels. Release times are
helpfully listed on the front panel.
The
manual is a fairly elementary affair, with charming hand-drawn
circuit diagrams and a few misprints.
In
use the 660 is smooth and warm, but with a clarity not associated
with Fairchild units. de Paravicini of course boasts that his units
are better than Fairchilds. They have input and output transformers
of his own design, for wide bandwidth, and PCC189 triodes which are
true vari-mu tubes that are long lasting and more easily obtainable
than those found in Fairchilds. He is right, of course. But the
grunge and magic glow of a Fairchild is yet to be convincingly
replicated, so the real thing will still be coveted. But the E.A.R.
is a very worthy performer, magically and unobtrusively smoothing
vocals, guitars, pianos etc. For drums, one sometimes desires
something faster, (in which case I would plug something else in).
But mostly, where compression is required, all the niggles and
foibles are quickly forgotten, as this is a slick and charming
performer, second to none. Okay, except perhaps a Fairchild!
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Reproduced
with kind permission from www.George.Shilling.Com. Copyright ©1997
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