Channel Strip

The Sound of the Legendary Neve 88R Console in a Rack

The 8801 Channel Strip is like having a complete channel from the legendary Neve 88R console - widely considered among the best-sounding analogue music consoles ever developed. Contained in a single rackmount unit, the 8801 combines a classic Neve mic preamplifier and equalisation circuitry with an incredible 88R-style dynamics processor. Completely hand-built and hand-wired by Neve, this ground breaking Channel Strip delivers a front-end with all the quality and versatility that has become synonymous with the Neve name.

The 8801’s signal path consists of our extremely high-quality Neve mic preamp, high and low pass filters, four bands of highly musical equalisation, a compressor, gate, dynamics side chain and an insert point. The order of the signal path can be easily modified as the producer requires.

The filter section and/or the equalisation section can even be routed to the dynamics side chain to tailor the dynamics response of any input signal. An optional Neve-designed analogue-to-digital converter accommodates all standard sample rates up to 192kHz, as well as direct-to-DSD conversion. In listening tests, many engineers and producers preferred the sound of these Neve-designed converters to standalone converters costing more than the entire 8801 unit.

Neve's proprietary Recall software (Mac- and PC-compatible) allows the 8801 to be seamlessly integrated with workstations, providing instantaneous recall of all external device settings. An essential tool for creativity, Recall combines the flexibility of a computer-based system with the power and sound quality of genuine Neve design. Quite simply, the 8801 is the most convenient way to give any serious studio the ultimate Neve analogue sound.

See the EQ Magazine review of the Neve 8801 Channel Strip

Highlights