Warm Audio WA12 MKII Half-Rack Discrete Microphone Preamp in Black
FREE UK Delivery
Earn 385 Loyalty Points
Want to Click and Collect or try items at our Guildford Store?
The store is open 10am - 6pm Monday to Saturday and 11am - 5pm Sunday and bank holidays.
The stock information shows the quantity of units that are available to purchase at the Guildford store and the quantity of units that are available at our off-site Guildford warehouse. These stock levels are updated in real time.
Our Click and Collect service is available at our Guildford store from 10am - 6pm Monday to Saturday, and 11am - 5pm on Sunday. You can either choose click and collect as your delivery option online or, during store opening hours, call our sales team at 01483 456777 to place a 10% deposit.
If you have placed your order online, you will receive a confirmation email of your order and a separate follow-up text or email to confirm when your item is ready for collection.
Please do not come to the store before you have received the follow-up message, as your order may not yet be ready at the store.
If the only available stock is in our off-site warehouse it can be brought to the store location for you to try - you just need to contact the store within opening hours. Please note any requests received after 3.30pm will not arrive at the store until the following morning.
Please be aware that, unless you have paid a deposit to reserve the item, it will continue to be free, both online and in-store, for another customer to buy. Therefore we would advise you to place a 10% deposit by either using the on-line click and collect service or calling us 01483 456777.
SKU: WA12MK2BLACK
You might also need
Get your 5 year warrenty through Warm Audio with your proof of purchase from Andertons Music Co. You can do that via this link.
Product Description
Here's What Warm Audio Say About the WA12 MKII
Raising The Volume
A lot of preamps on the market do a good job of raising the volume of microphones and instruments, but many pres today are doing only that: raising the volume. These “super clean” designs often leave the signal exiting the preamp sounding much the same as it did entering it, which ends up requiring a lot of work in post-production to get instruments to wake up and sound big in a mix.
If you’re looking for a preamp to actually improve and shape your signal instead, you will most definitely love the WA12 MKII Black. This preamp is designed to transform the tone of plain instruments and vocals into exciting sounds that can stand on their own - so if your mixes lack depth, struggle to sound alive, or are just missing that professional touch you’ve always wanted, the the WA12 MKII Black is the affordable answer.
Packed With Performance
The WA12 MKII Black is a completely discrete, high voltage, dual-transformer microphone preamplifier design with high gain (+71dB), high headroom, low noise, and exciting sonic performance – which makes it an ideal choice for all types of recording applications. A high-quality mic preamp is one of the most critical pieces needed to achieve that elusive ‘larger than life’ sound, and the WA12 MKII Black delivers on that promise every single time.
Premium Components
The WA12 MKII Black is based around the X731 discrete op-amp, which is our own reproduction of the classic Melcor 1731 - considered by some to be the warmer predecessor to the modern 2520-style op-amp. The X731 can achieve vibrant, clean and lifelike tones, but it can also be driven into mild saturation at much higher gain levels. While the effects of that saturation can range from subtle to obvious, they always remain very pleasing to the ear, and because it was designed around the X731 the WA12 MKII Black can accept any discrete op-amp on the market that conforms to the +/-16v, 2520 pinout standard.
Our ears played a big part in the process of designing the WA12 MKII Black, and we didn’t stop tweaking until anything we ran through it sounded better. Using CineMag USA transformers and an all-discrete signal path, we ensured that this preamp would have the building blocks to compete with the best-sounding preamps on the market, and we’re very proud to offer such a robust and professional design in a small and affordable package.
Specifications
- Utilizes premium grade input and output USA CineMag transformers.
- Fully discrete design with a robust 71dB of gain.
- Utilizes a discrete 6-pin socketed 1731-style opamp, which can be swapped with other designs that conform to the 6-pin, 2520 footprint +/- 16VDC standard for varying tone and flavor.
- 20dB pad.
- Tone button - swithces the input impedance from 150 ohms to 600 ohms and changes the tone of both the mic and hi-z inputs.
- Mic level balanced input: XLR.
- 2 megohm true hi-z input on the front panel which sends the signal through the entire circuit, including both CineMag transformers and the X731 opamp - great for guitars, bass, keys, keyboards and any instrument with a 1/4" output jack.
- Balanced outputs: XLR and 1/4"/TRS
- 48 volt phantom power.
- LED meter gain indication.
- Output attenuation control (positioned after the CineMag output transformer) allows for driving the preamp and transformers into saturation.
- Switchable 115/230 volt IEC power inlet.