Manley SLAM Stereo Limiter and Mic Pre Mastering
The Manley SLAM! stands for “stereo limiter and microphone preamplifier” – and it gets loud fast. Starting with the two tube microphone preamplifiers, the Manley SLAM! gives you 48V phantom power, phase reverse, and up to 60dB of gain and 20dB more gain in the limiter – plenty to accommodate virtually any microphone and singer. On the limiter side, Manley combined the electro-optical circuit from the ELOP with a fast FET-based brick-wall limiter and added a handy sidechain. From clean to crunchy to punchy, you can have it with the Manley SLAM!
Manley SLAM! at a Glance:
- Dual-channel tube microphone preamplifier
- Electro-optical and FET-based brick-wall limiter
- Excellent VU metering
- Flexible I/O
Dual-channel tube microphone preamplifier
On both channels of the Manley SLAM! you have tube microphone preamplifiers with switchable phantom power and phase reverse. Plus, the new tube circuit features up to 60dB of gain – and there’s 20dB more gain available in the limiter, so you’ve got plenty of juice to handle low output ribbon microphones and soft singers. The input attenuator is on the front and there’s also a variable pad. Apart from XLR microphones, you can give your line-level instruments a warm-up using the front-panel DI inputs.
Electro-optical and FET-based brick-wall limiter
The Manley SLAM! boasts two different and distinct limiters – available simultaneously or separately on each channel. Manley’s famous electro-optical circuit, found on their ELOP, is onboard – plus it features a convenient sidechain highpass filter. Offering two knobs, the ELOP is easy to use and “just works.” There’s also a fast FET-based “brick wall” limiter onboard as well that delivers everything from ultra-clean to gravelly – just as you’d expected from an FET limiter. The Release control lets you dial in a host of colors, and a Clip setting allows for an extremely round shape. Use both limiters at the same time to get as much of each effect as you like.
Excellent VU metering
With Manley’s SLAM! you can meter raw input levels, the final output levels, and ELOP Limiter gain reduction, so you can keep an eye on what’s going on. Plus, there’s a switchable pad on the VUs at 0, -3dB and -6dB so you can keep the needles from going in the red when you’re mastering. In addition, there are fast and accurate multi-color LED ladder peak meters that let you know the input and output levels as well as the FET gain reduction. The LED meters do Peak, Peak Hold timed, and Peak Hold until reset. You can also manually set where the bars change colors, to match up the SLAM! with your other gear.
Flexible I/O
On the back panel of the Manley SLAM! you have plenty of I/O to work with. Transformer-balanced I/O and 1/4″ phone jacks are onboard. In addition, four TRS jacks allow you to insert external equalizers into the sidechains. Another input allows linking multiple units for surround purposes.
Features:
- Input Tubes: 2 x 12AT7A NOS GE specially selected by Manley Labs for low noise and stable bias
- Output Tubes: 2 x 6414W NOS USA dual triodes
- I/O: Manley transformer-coupled, balanced inputs and outputs
- Microphon epreamplifier: selectable 48V phantom power and phase reverse
- Gain: 60dB max microphone preamplifier, 43dB max DI, 20dB max limiter gain
- Input Impedance: 2000 ohms micpre, 1meg ohms DI
- FET Limiter: Attack: approx. 100S; release: 10mS to 2Sec; ratio: better than 20:1
- ELOP Limiter: attack: approx. 10mS for 6dB GR; release: 2.5 Sec; ratio: 10:1
- Frequency response: 5Hz to 60KHz
- Maximum output: +32dBm, +30dBm (into 1Kohm load)
- THD+N: <.05% @ 1KHz
- Dynamic range: 115dB typical
- Output impedance: 200 ohms
- Power consumption slam!: 0.480 Amps (480 milliamps = 480mA) @ 120V = 57.6 Watts, 0.240 Amps (240 milliamps = 240mA) @ 240V = 57.6 Watts
- Mains voltage frequency: 50~ 60Hz
- Size: 19″ X 12″ X 3.5″ (occupies 2 RU)
- Shipping weight: 25 lbs.