Let's Discuss the Knif Soma Mastering Equalizer
Readers of our Vari Mu II discussion will already be familiar with our mild obsession with Knif Audio and with Jonte Knif, who has been designing and hand-building audio equipment in Helsinki since 2005. We briefly mentioned two of his designs, Soma and Eksa, as two of the most transparent, accurate, and musical equalizers ever conceived. Soma, Jonte says, is designed with careful consideration for "the beauty of sound." I can confirm that this is not marketing language.
Etymological note: "soma" in Finnish can mean something like "pretty". In Ancient Greek "soma" means "body". In Vedic Sanskrit, "soma" can refer to a psychedelic cocktail made from psychoactive botanicals.
Master & Commander: Q&A with Mike Kalajian
In an effort to learn more about the people who finish your favorite artists’ records, we got in touch with a few mastering heavyweights, the first being Mike Kalajian, chief engineer at Rogue Planet Mastering. Given his impressive portfolio featuring artists like A Day to Remember, Circa Survive, Saosin, and Drug Church, it’s safe to say that you’ve heard his work. We had the opportunity to chat with Mike via Zoom, where he answered some of our questions.
Too Much Bass. Not Enough Space.
Consumers have responded to marketing that emphasizes bass response for years, so why would a mix that’s weighted heavily towards low frequencies be of any concern? The answer is headroom, put simply.
Bass eats up headroom, causing the other elements of a track to be stifled under the weight of low-frequency waves. This means that a track that has an overcompensation in the bass is going to sound quieter than a track with a well-balanced bass response. In addition, in regard to bass eating up valuable headroom, there are issues created that go beyond perceived loudness.
Let’s Discuss the D.A.V. Broadhurst Gardens No.3 (BG-3) Mastering Equalizer
One might wonder why such history is relevant to a discussion about a mastering equalizer. Put simply, the time that Hinton spent at Decca Studios is apparent in his products’ design and sonic footprint. For example, Hinton worked for Decca during the inception of stereo audio. Most of his coworkers at the time were ex-Royal Air Force Radio Operators. This was the beginning of audio production becoming an art form as opposed to the science as which it was then regarded. Hinton’s designs fall into a strange place in that regard -- they’re scientifically musical. Or are they musically scientific?
The Broadhurst Gardens No.3, or BG-3, is a low-distortion, electronically balanced parametric mastering equalizer. Physically, the unit is 2U high and fairly lightweight. On the faceplate, the unit sports 18 Grayhill rotary switches for frequency selection, band gain, and output gain. In addition, one will find switches for a high pass filter at -3dB at 28Hz with a slope of 18dB per octave. Frequency band gain is +/- 2.5dB in 0.5 dB steps while output gain is -5dB/+6dB in 1dB steps.
Let's Discuss the Knif Vari Mu II Mastering Compressor
Upon racking the unit, which is no easy task as the box is 4 units high and quite heavy, it is evident that Knif Audio gives the structure surrounding their monstrous electronics the care and attention that it deserves. The metalwork in particular stands out; NASA may be interested in the companyʼs manufacturing methods, as the Vari Mu II most likely could survive re-entry into Earthʼs atmosphere.
Inside the box, the Knif Vari Mu II sports 10 tubes: 4 ECC189 compression tubes, 2 ECC88 and 2 6H30Pi output amplifier tubes, and 2 6AL5 sidechain rectifier tubes. Aiding further to the Vari Mu II’s quest to reach critical mass are Lundahl’s oversized transformers. Together, they provide transparent, musical saturation to program content when the unit is suitably driven.