Topic: Reference Audio Designs MS2 portable preamp

[goodcooker]

I picked up this preamp in the YS from stirinthesauce a while back and can't find a word about it or the company online. All I know is that it was made in Milwaukie OR

Reference Audio Designs MS2. Mine is serial number 251. The DC converter label says Aug1994.

Features:
2 channel microphone battery (or AC) powered preamplifier
+48 phantom power on XLR inputs
runs on 4-16 V on 4 pin XLR or M tip barrel plug (or AC adapter)
pad switches on each channel
M/S decoder with adjustable width
balanced outputs on TRS and unbalanced on single TS output sum

Analog Devices SSM2017p opamps
Analog Devices SSM2142 Balanced Line Drivers
Nichicon caps (the blue barrels)
Proprietary DC/DC converter

I'm guessing this thing was targeting the film industry (from the feature set and lightweight battery operated design) and they just never got the company off the ground.

Pics of the front and back in this for sale thread here - http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=115317.msg1541777#msg1541777

Care to comment on the design or sound? Feel free. Several shows recorded with it on my LMA bookmarks page. The UM show from 3/09 sounds particularly good IMO. I ran frtowers mk41s for that one but it also pairs well with Neumann KM100s and Peluso CMC6. It's clean sound compliments darker sounding mics but sounded way too punchy in the lowend with AKG 460/ck1.

[kirk97132]

Milwaukee Oregon is not far from where i live and I don't recognize the name of the company.  I'd guess it's like you said.  new company that didn't make it.  Wish I could be more help.    Milwaukee is not a very big town and not much going on there as far as audio gear manufacturing. 

[sunjan]

Milwaukee Oregon is not far from where i live and I don't recognize the name of the company.  I'd guess it's like you said.  new company that didn't make it. 

One often forget that Usenet still contains a huge wealth of information from the early years, before the web kicked off.

First mention on DAT-heads Sep. 1993:
http://www.solorb.com/dat-heads/digests/V1.600/D644
Contact Person: Mike Burns (one-man business?)
Initial price: $750
The phone number mentioned is still working, goes to one Sandra Nelson in Milwaukie:
http://www.google.com/search?q=1-503-653-3441&hl=en&safe=off&pb=r&ei=fMyxS9CjK4L7_Aa4xr38Aw&sa=X&oi=rwp&ct=title&ved=0CAYQ_wI

In 1996-1997, R.A.D was marketed by a retailer called Klay Andersson, both on usenet and DAT-heads:
http://www.solorb.com/dat-heads/digests/V3.800/D865#Msg8
Price dropped to $475

Late 1997, a taper called Jeffrey Silberman figured that R.A.D. had gone belly-up:
http://www.solorb.com/dat-heads//digests/V3.800/D870#Msg10

Another retailer, Richard Kuschel, confirms this on Usenet:
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.production.sound/browse_thread/thread/394ee782ea5a3562/155ac65f62cb6a9d?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=utf-8&q=%22Reference+Audio+Design%22#155ac65f62cb6a9d
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.production.sound/browse_thread/thread/a55f6ae96de8451f/a850d7da57b2c7c2?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=utf-8&q=%22Reference+Audio+Design%22#a850d7da57b2c7c2
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.production.sound/browse_thread/thread/2f1a9d20657e0338/e49472023c1ae308?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=utf-8&q=%22Reference+Audio+Design%22#e49472023c1ae308

Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.production.sound
From: "Glen Trew" <g...@trewaudio.com>
Date: Tue, 30 Jan 2001 00:50:03 GMT
Subject: Re: Does anybody remember a company named Reference Audio Design....
They've been out of bussiness for several years now. I believe the owner's
name was Mike Burns. We have received some of these items for repair, but, I
don't recall case when the cost was worthwhile, partially because of the
absense of schematics. We've tried to contact the previous owner with no
success.

Glen Trew

Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.production.sound
From: rickpv8...@aol.com (Richard Kuschel)
Date: 31 Jan 2001 15:18:46 GMT

I remember them and was a dealer.
No experience with the compressor , but the preamp was not so well designed.
The MS was screwed up and phase polarity was incorrect. Very little gain.
The company went belly up a few years ago. 

Richard H. Kuschel

Maybe the names here ring a bell for some of the oldtimers?