Up for sale is my Focusrite ISA 828. If you’re looking at this, you probably already know the deal: eight channels of that classic, punchy, Lundahl transformer-coupled goodness that has defined professional recordings for decades.

Most ISA units on the used market have been sitting in racks for 10+ years. This unit just came back from a full professional refurbishment at Fretronics Ltd (authorised Focusrite service centre - see pic). They’ve gone through it with a fine-toothed comb to ensure it’s meeting original factory specs. In short: the power supply is rock solid, the signal path is clean, and it’s ready to go straight into your rack and work hard for another decade.

This is the pure, unadulterated ISA sound. It’s built around the legendary Lundahl LL1538 input transformers—the same ones used in the iconic ISA 110 modules. It provides a "weight" and "authority" to the low-mids that you just don't get from standard interface preamps.

The secret weapon here is the Variable Impedance. Instead of a "one-size-fits-all" approach, you can switch between four different settings to perfectly match (or intentionally mismatch) your mics. It’s a game-changer for ribbon and vintage dynamic mics, allowing you to "tune" the preamp to the mic’s character for different tonal colors before you even touch an EQ.

Condition:

• Functional: 10/10. Freshly serviced and fully tested.

• Cosmetic: minor rack rash as you’d expect from a used unit, but very good overall.

I’m only letting this go because I’ve closed down my studio and will no longer use it. It’s a beast of a preamp and deserves to be in a room where it’s getting used every day.

If you’re local to south west London, feel free to reach out for a local pickup!

Serious offers welcome.