Portable single-channel tube microphone amplifier with DI based on the RCA OP-6
Portable Microphone Amplifier
The Retro Instruments OP-6 has been the behind-the-scenes 'Holy Grail' tube preamplifier for ribbon microphones for well over 60 years. Its almost endless headroom and gain are legendary, as is the extremely thick, rich tone imparted by its unique design. The OP-6 was used on some of the greatest recordings of the past, and many of these coveted units are still in use today. Unfortunately, these days originals are hard to find, very expensive, and mostly don't perform to the technical specification they once did.
The vintage unit's feature set is also somewhat limited when compared to modern standards. While the preamp sounds just amazing on ribbon mics -or any other microphone type for that matter - with each pairing an adjustment to the input transformer (inside the unit) is required to adapt it to the optimum impedance. Further, some mics require 48 volts, which wasn't an option on a vintage RCA OP-6, and it's often hard for a purist to mod an amazing vintage '50s preamp beyond itsoriginal designto accommodate modern convenience.
