Projects > Mnats FET/500 Compressor/Limiter Kits
The FET/500 series of kits are 500-series adaptation of the famous 1176 compressions. The kits are the result of a six-year design effort by Mako Natsume in collaboration with Hairball Audio. Full and partial kits are available from Hairball Audio.
Features:
- 3 kit variations
- Rev. A: “Blue stripe” version, noted for possessing more pronounced distortion characteristics
- Rev. D: “Blackface” version; uses “low noise” circuitry and makes minor changes to the compression and line stages
- Rev. F: “Silverface” version; substitutes 1109 Class A/B output stage for the 1108 Class A stage used in previous revisions, resulting in more gain and a more transparent sound
- Ed Anderson reproduction input and output transformers
- Hand-matched FETs
- Complete faithfulness to the original circuits, with the exception of power supply
- Power supply uses a low-noise method of generating the 1176 +30V/-10V rails not previously seen on 500-series units
- Features two bypass modes, “GR off” (signal still runs through the circuitry) and true bypass
- Simultaneous gain-reduction and output metering
Price:
- $425 for full kit
- $40 for basic PCB kit
More Information:
- Available from Hairball Audio
- FET/500 design notes and assembly guide from Mnats.net
Category: FET Compressor