Zero. Distortion.
Are you looking for a two-channel microphone preamp that conforms to the highest pro audio standards? Sweetwater has an excellent suggestion. The Earthworks 1022 exudes a professional, no-nonsense esthetic — this is your first clue to the no-compromise components, build quality, and performance that lies within. There are no bells and whistles — and no hum or distortion either. The sum of noise plus all types of distortion is one part per million — so minuscule, it's a non-issue. In the real world, the one you hear with your ears, the 1022 captures vocal and instrumental performances with audiophile-grade purity.
Everything you need, nothing you don't
With its spartan feature set, minimalist signal path, and top-drawer components, there's nothing frivolous about the Earthworks 1022. This preamp means business — if your business is capturing sound with the highest possible quality. There are XLR inputs, and you can apply 48-volt phantom power via front-panel switches. Polarity can be reversed and the signal muted by additional front-panel switches. For easy settings recall, gain is switchable from 5dB to 60dB in 5dB steps. And that 60dB of gain will come in handy when you want to use your low-output dynamic or passive ribbon mics on quiet sources.
Additional variable balanced output
The 1022's stringent design brief nevertheless included an "extra" that will come in handy: rear-panel 1/4" TRS outputs with front-panel level controls that will drive either balanced or unbalanced inputs. This allows you to interface with a wide range of studio equipment that would not be possible if you only had the full-differential XLR balanced outputs to work with. It also gives you instant parallel processing capabilities; letting you route, for instance, the preamp signal through two different processing chains. The inclusion of this smart feature is proof positive that, although firmly rooted in the audio purist camp, Earthworks keeps a finger on the pulse of pro audio and understands what's needed to get the job done.
Redefining the state-of-the-art
Earthworks' ZDT Zero Distortion preamplifier series is based on discrete circuitry designed by David Blackmer. Redefining the state-of-the-art for sonic excellence in electronics design, ZDT technology delivers a frequency response from 1Hz to 200kHz (+0.5dB), a rise time of 0.27 microseconds, and distortion of less than 0.0001% to eliminate all possible sources of sonic degradation. The 1022 is so fast, so clean, and so transparent that you won’t even know it's in the signal chain. It's like plugging your mic into the proverbial "straight wire with gain." You will re-discover your microphones, revealing astonishing clarity and detail you didn't know they were capable of.
Earthworks 1022 2-channel Mic Preamplifier Features:
- Zero Distortion – less than 1 part per million
- High output level: +30dBu
- Frequency response: 1Hz to 200kHz (±0.5dB)
- Distortion: XLR out: <1ppm (0.0001%); 1/4” out: 0.001%
- Very-low-output impedance drives long lines without interference or signal loss
- True 48V phantom power, polarity reverse, and clip indicator
- XLR and 1/4" TRS (variable) outputs with gain/level controls
- Gain switchable from 5dB to 60dB in 5dB steps
- 1/4" TRS outputs will drive balanced or unbalanced inputs
- Full-differential (balanced) circuit from XLR in to XLR out (no internal conversion to single-ended)
- All discrete components; Class A amplification (no ICs in the signal path)
- Greater transparency with minimum signal path and minimum features
