PYE VU Meter

PYE VU METER

This meter has been constructed and reimagined using vintage Pye parts as a stereo VU meter.  High quality electronic buffer circuitry has been added to drive the Pye branded Sifam VU meters which has been calibrated to the Pro Audio Standard of 0VU = +4dBu, with 0VU being the start of the red section. On the front panel a on/off rotary switch has been added with vintage style knob. A vintage style power on lamp has also been added. Input and thru, balanced XLR connections are positioned on the rear of the unit. The meter is powered by an external 12v international power supply (supplied) and a socket has been added to the rear or the box. Non slip neoprene pads have been added to the base of the meter.
This vintage style VU Meter is a one off using original PYE parts dating from the late1940's.

History:

PYE started out as a technical instruments manufacturer in Cambridge, England, and eventually got into making television receivers and cameras for broadcast. After developing the earliest British transistors in the 50s, they developed one of the first Class A solid-state compressor/limiters in the 1960s. Their PYE Limiter was an essential part of the ‘British sound’ of the classic rock era.

The PYE compressor saw extensive use at London’s famed Olympic Studios during the golden era of rock recording in the late 60s, when the Rolling Stones (Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed) and Led Zeppelin (debut album) were among the many artists recording there. Eddie Kramer had a stint at Olympic, and made regular use of the PYE comp on the classic early recordings of Jimi Hendrix.