The new version of the preamp will be available in about a week.  Meanwhile we're going to put together some promo photos and audio samples.  I spent a good amount of time yesterday working with it in the studio, taking notes of things I would want different with the sound and then bringing it back to the shop for modifications to the circuitry.  I'm essentially working to balance the frequency response so that its as close to flat as I can possibly get it.  I never went through this effort with the previous version.  The original version sounded great to my ears, so I never spent the time tweaking each component to extreme perfection... till now.  The Rev A has some interesting sonic differences from its predecessor.  Most noticeably is the "air" in the top end that didn't exist with the original.  Also, Rev A has punch!  I can't recall ever hearing a vacuum tube mic preamp that I thought was punchy, but low and behold... the 1401 Rev A is definitely punchy.  I've been doing a lot of A/B comparisons with the original and the Rev A is significantly richer sounding and far more tonally balanced.  Just in terms of the frequency response - the original 1401 preamp had noticeably reduced highs, pronounced mids and round lows that weren't as pronounced as the mids.  Rev A is almost perfectly flat in its response.  The lows in the range of 75Hz-200hZ seem very slightly reduced... although it doesn't sound bad or off to me. I will be working to level out that range before the release, but overall I have to say this thing is a total monster.   Rev A doesn't sound overly round, wooly or dull in any way, unlike the original.  It sounds big, articulate, and punchy.  People are going to be drooling over this thing once they hear it.  Its a lot more sophisticated than its predecessor, the result of significant R&D.  The 1401 Mic Preamp Rev A will be selling for just $100 more than its predecessor.  $1899.99.    

I started work on the chassis for the EQ, but its on hold until the custom transformers and custom inductors arrive from Cinemag.  Meanwhile I decided to go through my paper in oil capacitor collection to see if I had enough variety to build the Flux Bender.  Not even close.  I spent the better part of this morning scouring the internet for my vintage cap needs, with a good deal of success. Unfortunately, I now realize I'll have to charge a hell of a lot more for this EQ.

I'm sure it will blow minds when its complete, but getting there has been the hard part due to the massive self-funded built cost.  I've been gathering parts for this endeavor for about 6 months and I have almost everything.  Its over budget because I refuse to settle for less than the best components, even if it costs a lot more than I expected.  The Flux Bender will be the most complex wiring feat I've ever attempted, so I don't want to cut any corners anywhere.

In the past week I accidentally figured out a way to cancel nearly all noise from my line/mic amps.  Using a pair of rectifier tubes wired up in an unconventional manner and combined with a pair of neon regulator tubes I was able to build an ultra low noise regulated tube power supply, which exceeds the performance of any audio gear in my studio racks.  The new power supply combined with how the preamp tubes are wired up cancels out all of the heater filament hum (which was never more than subtle in the past) and also most noise that might be on the B+, which was in the past also very subtle. This means an overall reduction of about 6dB of noise.  6dB is very significant in this game of inches.  I was considering going the more expensive route of solid state tube heaters, but that idea was thrown right out the window after testing the noiseless double rectifier double regulator power supply ("DRDR" - a Lightning Boy invention).  

I have several projects on the bench, but today I'm starting work on a new version of the 1401 Stereo Mic Amp.  I did some prototyping first and the new version will have a lot of really impressive things to offer.  First off, some changes were made to the amplifier design that allowed me to coax 5 more dB of gain out of the amp.  The only trade off is a slightly warmer sound.  Win+Win!  Also, a new feature is getting added to the preamp.  Based on user feedback, there is now going to be a mic/line input switch on both channels.  Another new feature is the treble control bypass, which is incorporated into the treble knob itself.  A switch is built into the knob... turn it down all the way and then a little more until it clicks.  Bypassing the treble control will allow for a couple more dB of gain and a gentle touch of brightness.  Finally, it of course will incorporate the new LBA noiseless DRDR tube power supply.  

New stats (based on prototype):
Noise Floor:  -86dB
Gain:  +45dB per channel or +47dB with treble bypassed.  

Actual stats will be presented on the 1401 Preamp's product page after the completion of this first production version of Revision A.