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From Live Tours to Mastering Studios: The RMP-D8 in Action Across the Music World
Aug
🎚 From Live Tours to Mastering Studios: 🎛 The RMP-D8 in Action Across the Music World 🌎
The RMP-D8: On Stage with Legends
The Rupert Neve Designs RMP-D8 8-Channel Dante Mic Preamp is proving itself on tours with artists ranging from Paul Simon to Kendrick Lamar – it’s becoming a fixture of the live sound world and redefining front-of-house rigs. Touring FOH engineers for Wet Leg, Burna Boy, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and more are relying on its analogue warmth and networked flexibility by putting it through its paces night after night.
“When we started using the RMP preamps in rehearsals… the band literally played half a song… everybody… went ‘What’s different?’” — Toby Francis (FOH Engineer – Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kendrick Lamar, Katy Perry)
Paul Simon
Roxette
Goose
The Technical Heart of the RMP-D8
At its core are eight Class-A mic preamp modules, each using proprietary Rupert Neve transformer designs – delivering the rich harmonic character of vintage preamps, now enhanced for modern live setups.
Beyond tone, the RMP-D8 features mastering-grade 24-bit/192 kHz converters, precision-clocked with jitter reduction – ensuring no weak link in the signal chain
On Tour with Beck
Jacob Feinberg, FOH engineer for Beck’s summer shows, gives an exclusive tour of his RMP-D8 setup, showcasing how he harnesses Rupert Neve’s legendary tone while managing modern digital workflows.
Hear how the Rupert Neve tone elevates his digital workflow, and how he routes and manages audio with agility…
🎥 Watch the video walkthrough:
Featured Gear:
Mastering Magic: Greg Calbi x MBC
Turning to the studio, legendary mastering engineer Greg Calbi – having worked with John Lennon, Bon Iver, Paul Simon, Lil Yachty, Blondie, Taylor Swift, R.E.M., MGMT, and more – discusses his workflow with the Master Bus Converter (MBC).
A/D Converters
Dive into why he sometimes prefers converters over EQs and how the MBC elevates his mastering chain.
🎥 Watch the video:
Master Bus Converter:
Handling Vogue with Lana Del Rey
FOH engineer Dani Muñoz opens up about mixing Lana Del Rey’s stadium tour, detailing his RND gear choices and creative strategies to balance her iconic vocals with stadium acoustics.
🎥 Watch the video:
Featured Gear:
Master Bus Transformer Made Easy
New to the MBT (Master Bus Transformer)? This “Quick Start” tutorial demonstrates how to integrate and configure the unit for fast signal flow and sonic clarity – ideal for getting up and running fast.
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Customer Spotlight: The OctEpus
Emerging artist The OctEpus has built a uniquely modular setup that he describes as a “poor man’s 5088” – a hybrid system that lets him write, mix, and even semi-master an entire track with or without the DAW engaged. His creative setup, featuring stacks of Newtons and Rupert Neve Designs, highlights how RND gear shapes his unique tone and sonic identity in the field.
At the heart of the rig are two Satellite 5059s and a 5060 Centerpiece, wired as a flexible analog mixer rather than a traditional summing setup. All gear is permanently connected to the 5059s, with Apollo x16 converters tied to the inserts. Because the 5059 always outputs to its sends – even with the unit off – this allows seamless routing of hardware EQs and effects without latency, while the DAW and x16 act more like a “digital tape machine” for live recording.
One 5059 is dedicated to analog synths, fed by two SSL Puredrive Octos, while the second 5059 handles drums via a Motu interface and M4 Mac Mini running Superior Drummer 3 and ODIN3 at ultra-low latency. For drums, RNDI / Newton pairs are hardwired to kick, snare, hi-hat, and ride – running in speaker mode to handle hot line-level signals from the Motu.
The two 5059s are summed to four stereo pairs, which then feed the 5060. Instead of using the standard returns, sends from channels 1–8 are patched back into inputs 9–16 to create parallel processing options across all four stereo buses. For example, his drum bus on 1–2 always hits a UBK Fatso with extreme settings, blended back in with the 9–10 fader.
On the master bus, the chain includes an MBT, two Shelford Channels, and an MBC, providing tonal shaping, SILK drive, and precision conversion.
This workflow supports The OctEpus’s live “one-man band” performances, where he plays three instruments at once. With dedicated knobs, faders, EQs, and compressors under his hands, he can dial in the mix in real time while practicing, so by the time he masters the performance, the mix is already largely finished. When it’s time to record, he simply tracks individual channels via the Apollo x16 and the 5059 sends, with the two-channel MBC output handling the final mix. The insert system even allows him to instantly A/B live vs recorded versions through the exact same signal path.
As he puts it:
“Having multiple tiers of SILK removes the need for EQ in many situations, and the -6 dB outputs are pure genius. I love RNDs… One day I hope to have a real 5088, but until then – this setup is a killer workflow.”
On Tour with Pierce The Veil
FOH engineer JP Huff opens up about the mixing homework for Pierce The Veil – revealing how adding Shelford Channels and the MBC helped enhance their tonal range, with the RMP-D8 anchoring the signal chain and delivering both clarity and colour.
JP’s rig relies on the Master Buss Converter (MBC) to translate analog to AES on the band’s master bus. He rarely pushes the limiter beyond 1–2dB, keeping dynamics intact while adding Red Silk for warmth and presence across the mix. He highlights how the MBC’s conversion back to digital delivers exceptional clarity.
For instruments, JP uses a pair of 542s to shape guitar tone – softening the edges while applying Blue Silk for extended low-end harmonics. The saturation blend adds depth and richness to the guitar bus.
Vocals are handled through Shelford Channels, which have become a tour staple:
“The first thing the guys ask on tour is, ‘We’re still using the Shelfords, right?’”
At FOH, JP sculpts vocals with V7 microphones, blending in Red Silk while letting the smooth compressor handle transitions from screams to clean singing. He also relies on the 5045 Primary Source Enhancer (PSE), which he describes as an industry standard:
“Everyone is using some sort of PSE, but the 5045 just works best in nearly every situation I face.”
For Monitor engineer Allan Bates, the 5045 and Shelford Channels are non-negotiable parts of his vocal chain.
The 5045 eliminates unwanted stage bleed – what he calls “keeping the nonsense out of the mic” – while the Shelfords provide weight, control, and musical EQ shaping.
He favors light gain reduction for sung parts, heavier compression for screams, and Red Silk across the board for added character:
“They just make vocals feel done.”
Artist Insight – Jaime (Bass Player)
Jaime keeps it short and sweet, summing up the band’s love for the gear:
“You guys make some really cool sh*t.”
Featured Gear:
RMP-D8: Reference-Grade Tone Meets Dante
This centerpiece hardware blends Rupert Neve’s analog preamp warmth – featuring Class-A circuits and custom transformers – with high-end 24-bit/192 kHz converters and Dante audio networking, delivering legendary tone with modern network flexibility.
Here’s why this mic preamp is making waves across stages and studios:
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Eight Mic/Line Inputs with phantom power, polarity switch, -10 dB pad, and 80 Hz high-pass filter per channel.
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1 dB-stepped Class-A Gain up to 60 dB, remote controllable via Dante or web app.
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Custom Rupert Neve Transformers for each channel, preserving analog depth and richness.
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24-bit / 192 kHz Mastering-Grade Converters with controlled clocking and jitter reduction.
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Full Dante Integration with dual RJ-45 ports, AES outputs, and DDM compatibility.
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Robust Build: reinforced steel chassis, redundant power supplies, OLED display, and local or networked control.
A Sound On Sound review confirms its ultra-low noise, stellar frequency response, and near-zero distortion – ranking it alongside top-tier preamps in both live and studio test metrics.
Final Thoughts
From live tours with Beck, Kendrick Lamar, and Lana Del Rey to high-definition mastering workflows with Greg Calbi, the RMP-D8 stands as a versatile workhorse that fuses analogue warmth with digital flexibility. Networks have never sounded this analog.
👉 Make sure to check out the entire range of stellar Rupert Neve Designs gear. ⤵️
Headphone Amps
Analog Consoles
Rupert Neve 5088 16-Channel Analog Mixing Console Base Configuration – Shelford Finish
500 Series
Mic Preamps
Mic Preamps
Effects Processing
Analog Consoles
Rupert Neve Designs 5060 Centerpiece- Shelford Blue Faceplate
Analog Consoles
Analog Consoles
Analog Consoles
500 Series
Mic Preamps
ACCESSORIES
ACCESSORIES
500 Series
Effects Processing
500 Series
A/D Converters
Mic Preamps
