Grace Design m201

m201 - two channel microphone preamplifier During its 12 years in production, the model 201 mic preamplifier found its way into countless recording facilities around the world, gathering a considerable amount of critical acclaim along the way. Now our classic two channel mic preamplifier has been completely redesigned and transformed into the m201.

Like the rest of our line, the new m201 delivers unmatched audio performance, with massive headroom, ultra-wide bandwidth and a very open, musical character. The signal path has been hot-rodded to be fully balanced from start to finish, resulting in a wider dynamic range, while new high-current output drivers enable even longer cable runs without signal loss. This means the m201 can translate a sonic picture of astonishing clarity and detail, which serves to capture the essential character of the music being recorded.

We offer the m201 with our state of the art 24-bit/192kHz A/D converter option, from the factory or as a retrofit to existing units. With the A/D converter module installed, the microphone preamplifier section or the M+S matrix can be routed to the A/D converter input directly for standard recording applications. Or, with the additional analog line inputs on the A/D converter module, the mic preamplifier and A/D converter sections can be used separately, which allows for external processing to be inserted between the mic amp and the A/D converter. External synchronization to word clock or Digidesign LoopSync is available, and features our proprietary dual stage PPL with s-Lock for extremely low jitter and rock solid digital stability without the use of sample rate conversion.

Our exclusive ribbon mic mode is standard, which shifts the gain range up 10dB while deactivating 48V phantom power, bypassing the decoupling capacitors and optimizing the input impedance. Each channel has an ‘input mode’ rotary switch which selects between a standard 48V phantom input, ribbon mic mode or the front panel DI input.

Included is our newly designed M+S (mid side) decoder circuitry with a built-in width control. The front panel width control is wired with a precision 12 position rotary switch which provides a ratio range from 100% mid (mono) to 30% mid / 70% side. The ultra-precision summing and difference amplifiers feed a set of dedicated outputs, allowing simultaneous recording of discrete mid+side signals as well as the stereo matrix.

The new front panel mounted HI-Z inputs are designed to accommodate a wide variety of high impedance input sources, making the m201 an excellent choice as a DI box which will flawlessly preserve the sound of any plugged-in instrument. Imagine the same resolution and detail as our microphone preamplifiers available for DI recording situations.

Whatever the application, the remarkable sonic performance and functionality of the new m201 will help you make the finest recordings of your career.