Gear Update: Rupert Neve Designs 5088 Analogue Mixer

It is often challenging within a review period to fully explore a piece of gear and integrate it into the daily workflow. It's not that reviewers won't use the feature set and put it to task in at least a few applications, but to truly get to know a piece of recording equipment and have a relationship with it takes time. After extended use you may find some pieces, regardless of how awesome they are, less useful in the way you work and others to be indispensable.

In this update, Larry Crane revisits his original review of the Rupert Neve Designs 5088 Analogue Mixer:

Nine years later I am still in awe of this console. It makes mixing easier, and beats mixing in the box by a mile. Having a "name brand" and high quality analog board has helped me get work, cemented my reputation as a mixer, and probably changed the course of my career. I still think it is the best analog console currently made.

What anyone thinking about buying this beast should know: It gets hot, and the control room will be warmer. It also has cooling fans, and they are slightly audible. I am okay with both of these points, but they are good to know about. We did also go through an extensive switch replacement process, as the little white capped switches all blew out on us. Turns out the supplier pulled a bait and switch on RND and I was the one client who got the raw end of that. But RND set me up with loaners, and we went through banks of 8 getting parts replaced, on their dime, many years into ownership. Consoles like this are not plug and play, nor are they sold at Guitar Center, and the best manufactures act like RND do; they are always available for help, they fix it, and they listened when I had complaints. I don't think I will ever swap this console out for anything else, and I think that says a lot. -LC

Original Review:

http://tapeop.com/reviews/gear/73/5088-analogue-mixer/