7 minute read
Mini-Reviews
Tech // review shorts
KRK Systems KNS 8402 Headphones
KRK Systems has updated its KNS line of studio headphones with the KNS 6402 and KNS 8402, both with enhanced sound quality, isolation and durability. Both models are closed-back circumaural (over and around the ear) designs with the KNS 8402 ($149 MSRP) updated for pro studio use and the KNS 6402 ($99 MSRP) more suited for home studio production and stereo music enjoyment.
All the KNS headphones come in matte black only and are made using an impactresistant plastic material that makes them super lightweight. The cables, head and premium leatherette ear cushions are easily fieldreplaceable, including the in-line volume control that uses a ‘long life’ fader, which connects between the headphones and the supplied cable using 3.5-mm stereo plugs. You can easily remove the in-line volume control altogether.
I tried out the KNS 8402 headphones and immediately liked the self-aligning, sprung stainless steel yoke system in the headband that easily adapted to my head and retained that adjustment when I took them off.
The memory foam ear cups rotate up to 90 degrees and I found it more comfortable to not allow the center of the headband to touch the top of my head. There is a gap in the center of the headband, making them feel nearly weightless. They still hugged my head comfortably to block out sounds with up to 30dBA of isolation.
The KNS series phones use 40mm dynamic drivers with neodymium magnets; the rated impedance of 36 Ohms. They are rated at 0.1% total harmonic distortion while handling 500mW per driver. Sensitivity on the KNS 8402 is 97 dBSPL @ 1mW with maximum SPL of 124dB. Frequency response is specified as 5 Hz to 23 kHz. For all my sonic testing, I used my musicians’ cue system that uses a Simon Systems CB-4 Cue Box powered by a 100-watts/channel Hafler stereo power amp. I also tried my secondary cue system that uses a small Aphex Systems HeadPod 4 4-channel amplifier with good results. In addition to the KNS 8402s, I kept three other sets of phones plugged into the CB-4 with volumes matched, and I played different kinds of music, as well as individual tracks (drums, bass, guitars, etc.) out of Pro Tools. The KNS 8402s were definitely the lightest. Overall the KNS 8402s are neutral-sounding: not overly bright or bottom-heavy as compared to my more expensive audiophile models. They are smooth in the mid-range and not as abrasive as
some other dynamic sets. I am looking for a tight seal, which becomes extra important when five or six backing vocalists are singing around a hot mic. A studio MOST might buy a dozen of these headphones for just IMPRESSIVE FEATURE that purpose. Once the KNS 8402s were properly fitted on a singer’s head, the ear cushions did a good job of sealing against leakage. Comfy Fit, Neutral Sound I was initially a little suspect of an in-line volume control on studio headphones. It could be “another point of failure,” but that little fader stays wherever it is set and the teardrop shape doesn’t catch on clothing. If all headphones are fed from the same line, the in-line volume control becomes a necessity. Some backing singers like it louder than others in the same group. When the mini-fader is full up, it is the same volume as with the control removed—there is no difference in sound quality with or without the in-line module in play. I liked the KNS 8402’s wide frequency response, dynamic range, stereo imaging and consistent voicing. These would be a smart buy for a new studio looking to stock their headphone collection with well-made, sturdy and good-sounding units.
—Barry Rudolph
OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dual-Drive RAID
MOST IMPRESSIVE FEATURE I’m always looking to reduce the number of things that clutter up my studio, yet at the same time
Many Options, Simple Operation increase my capabilities and efficiencies. Other World Computing fills this order with the Mercury Elite Pro Dual-Drive Hardware RAID Storage Solution with a built-in 3-Port Powered USB Hub.
Two universal drive bays within one enclosure will handle two drives—SSDs or spinning hard drives, or any combination, for up to 36 TB of total storage. You can decide to run the twin drives either in a Redundant Array of
Independent Disks or as completely separate drives. A RAID offers a higher level of security by making two copies of everything across the two drives or SSDs. This is useful for highly precious data—song audio files, financial tax records, family archives—things that you cannot lose!
The OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dual works with any USB-equipped Mac, PC, mobile or tablet device, gaming console—any device that supports external storage. The front panel has activity LEDs, while the rear panel has two 10Gb/sec USB 3.2 Type C and two 10Gb/sec USB 3.2 Type A connectors; all act as a hub. Besides gaining more storage, I was able to get rid of an extra USB hub.
Meant to stay online all the time, the OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dual comes in a nice-looking, heat-dissipating aluminum case (matching my Mac Pro) with a quiet and high-efficiency cooling fan. It is powered from an included 12VDC power supply.
You may select three different RAID modes when first formatting the system. You can choose: Raid 0, RAID 1, JBOD (Just A Bunch Of Drives) or Span. Mine came with two 1TB hard drives, so I have it formatted as 1TB RAID 1, which uses disk mirroring and is fault-tolerant.
I connected it to my Mac Pro Tower to archive a copy of all my interim Pro Tools session files and audio—it powers up whenever I turn on the studio for a session and I love it for its simple operation.
Important to know: It comes with a threeyear OWC limited warranty, including a oneyear Level 1 data recovery and lifetime expert support. A system with a pair of 2TB 7200 RPM drives, 64MB cache and transfer speeds of up to 576 MB/sec costs $249. The 1TB SSD model with speeds of up to 1026 MB/sec sells for $349 MSRP. Awesome!
—Barry Rudolph
Audio Design Desk 1.7
I first encountered Audio Design Desk in April, 2020, when the Mac-only audiofor-picture application was in its early stages. Already it offered unique and potent functionality for adding sound effects and music to video productions; now it is even more powerful.
The program’s interface has a DAW-like feel, with a timeline bordered by various editor or browser windows to go with a video display. After opening a video, you find sounds you want from ADD’s searchable library. When you find what you’re looking for, simply insert into the timeline or use one of ADD’s many Trigger options to place and replace sounds using keystrokes.
Depending on your subscription tier (ADD is subscription-only), the number of included sound effects, Foley sounds and production
music varies. Tier 1 subscriptions ($14.99/month) get 20,000 sounds. Tier 2 ($29.99/month) and above get 30,000; they’re available in both M4a and WAV formats. A major, albeit non-technical change is that the developer is now called SoundOn and the product is Audio Design Desk. Previously, they were both named the latter. More importantly, though, the software has added plenty of new capabilities, with several related to how you integrate ADD with your DAW or NLE video software. In the early versions, you could export audio or audio and video for import into another program. ADD has now augmented that with several options. You can export using AAX and XML (Tier 2 and 3 subscriptions only). All levels get the new Spot Mode, which lets you drag and drop audio from ADD’s browser window into the timeline MOST IMPRESSIVE of your DAW or NLE. You can also sync ADD to another application using MIDI Time Code and configure it so that ADD follows the other app’s
FEATURE transport or controls it. Spot Mode, Many of ADD’s libraries (which can be MTC Sync supplemented with your own sounds) now include full mixes and stems of music tracks. Using key commands or the new Trigger Pad, you can easily combine sections to make custom, loop-based music. You can mix directly from ADD or export the loops to your DAW. Another key new feature is the ability to record audio directly into ADD. For voiceovers, in particular, this will save a lot of time. In addition to its expanded functionality, it looks better, is better organized and feels like a more mature application. I was impressed by it before, and I’m even more so now. My one complaint is that the manual is not up to date. For example, I couldn’t find anything about the Trigger Pads or MTC control; for an application of this depth and power, a comprehensive manual is a must. That aside, if you’re doing anything involving sound for picture, whether it’s your own YouTube videos or professional post-production, once you start using ADD, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it.
—Mike Levine
