Radial Engineering Twin-Servo 500 Series Preamplifier
Recreation of Deane Jensen's legendary 990 microphone preamp circuit in 500-series format with Jensen transformers. Studio-grade transparency and headroom for tracking vocals and orchestral instruments, not guitar amps.
Critics
Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Two cascaded 990 op-amps provide 60dB of ultra-clean gain with less than -120dBu noise
- +DC servo design eliminates signal-degrading capacitors from audio path for exceptional transparency
- +Almost unlimited bandwidth and tremendous headroom handles highly dynamic sources
- +Exceptionally natural sound with detailed highs and extended low end - audiophile-grade specs
- +Faithful recreation of Deane Jensen's iconic 1988 circuit design
Cons
- −EJ Score of 10/100 based solely on two 1-star community reviews with no context
- −This is a microphone preamp for studio recording - has zero relevance for guitar players
- −500-series format requires compatible rack chassis to function
- −$778 price point is high-end studio gear, not guitar effects
The Verdict
This is a microphone preamp. For recording vocals, orchestral instruments, and high-fidelity studio work. It’s not guitar gear. The 1-star reviews driving the EJ Score are likely either mistakes, wrong product expectations, or data errors – nothing in the search results suggests this is a bad preamp. Radial Engineering makes bulletproof studio gear, and the Twin-Servo’s Jensen transformer design is aimed at engineers who track classical music and jazz vocalists. If you’re reading ELECTRIKJAM looking for distortion pedals and tube amps, this isn’t for you. If you’re building a 500-series rack for your studio and need pristine mic pres, Radial has you covered. Wrong category, wrong audience, wrong score.
