Little Labs Red Eye

Continuing in the tradition of creating unique tools for the pro audio engineer, Little Labs introduces the Red Eye. The Red Eye is a passive direct box/re-amp† box with unique expansion capabilities. The high quality passive direct box in the Red Eye features phase reverse and earth lift. At the push of a button the Red Eye converts from a direct box into a re-amp box with its own input and output connectors. The re-amp in the Red Eye features earth lift, phase reverse, and level control.

Daisy-chaining multiple rack-mountable Red Eyes (4 units fit a 1U space), with the supplied expansion in and out rear jacks and front panel expansion button, opens up the further creative potential of the Red Eye. Multiple guitar level impedance outputs can be created from a single balanced line level source, allowing you to correctly interface multiple vintage effect pedals or re-amp to multiple guitar amps. When used with any active direct box, whether it be a Little Labs Multi Z DI or other brands such as Avalon, Demeter or Evil Twin, the Red Eye creates a superb quality guitar level/impedance multiple output guitar splitter with as many outputs as Red Eyes. Other uses of the Red Eye include: Interfacing a wireless guitar receiver with a guitar amp (This will restore the tone associated with plugging your guitar directly into the amp) and, for owners of the Little Labs PCP Distro, the Red Eye can work as an extra remote-able transformer isolated output.

The heart of the Red Eye is a Little Labs custom wound transformer. This transformer was chosen for its sonic characteristics and is made with the same core material and winding technique as the legendary UTC transformers found in many classic pro audio devices.

Use it as a high quality passive direct box, flip a switch and use it for creative re-amping. Once the Red Eye saves a session, you'll never know how you got along without it.

Little Labs Red Eye Features :

Redeye front panel functions :

    * Instrument in is the passive direct box instrument input, this can be configured to disconnect the rear instrument in jack when used in a fixed rack mounted application.
    * Re-amp/di selects whether the redeye works as a passive direct box or a re-amp box.
    * Local/exp in selects whether the re-amp source is the rear female xlr or the rear expansion in trs jack (for use with other redeyes as a multi out re-amp or guitar splitter)
    * Phase invert is a simple polarity reversal as you would find on a mixing console. Out is 0 degrees, in is 180 degrees.
    * Earth lift, when the redeye is used as a passive direct box, lifts the ground (pin 1) of the output male xlr. When used as a re-amp, it lifts the ground (sleeve) of the re-amp out jack.
    * Pad is an internal push switch reachable by a thin screwdriver to select the reamp in pad for +4dB (pad in). Pad in is used when the redeye is used as an extra output for the PCP, or with any +4dB line level inputs. Pad out is for use with low level devices such as an active DI without gain.
    * Re-amp level adjusts the guitar level/impedance output level, if used as an extra output for the PCP full up is unity.
    * Re-amp out is the guitar level /impedance output jack for feeding guitar amps or vintage effects.

Redeye rear panel functions :

    * Expansion in and out are balanced TRS jacks designed to daisy chain multiple redeyes to create a multiple out re-amp, or in conjunction with an active direct, a multiple out guitar splitter. Note: The cables used for expansion in and out must be TRS balanced stereo type. Unbalanced mono guitar cables for this application do not work. It should be noted,however, if used as a standalone unit, you may plug in unbalanced ts mono plugs in here when feeding the unit from unbalanced sources.
    * Line level in XLR, this is the source jack for the re-amp when the local/exp in button on the front panel is out. The source feeding this should be balanced.
    * Mic level out XLR, this is the balanced transformer isolated output of the passive DI. The output level here is approximately 18 db less than what is plugged in the instrument in.
    * Instrument in is the passive direct box instrument input and is parallel with the front panel instrument in. This can be configured to be the main input that will be interrupted when plugging in the front instrument in jack. This comes in handy when used in a fixed rack mounted application.