As recording consoles in the 1980s and '90s got more sophisticated, with automated everything, total recall and every conceivable bell and whistle, engineers and producers around the world found that the compromise came in the way of sonics. Through-hole, discrete components and transformers were pushed aside for tiny IC chips that could allow console designers to pack more features and I/O into a smaller amount of space, but the huge tone of the classic consoles was missing. Manley Labs gave the pros a renewed sense of faith in fidelity with the release of the all-tube VOXBOX channel strip.
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