Solid State Logic XL-Desk – Loaded

XL-Desk is designed for tracking or mixing engineers who require an analogue console within a DAW centric studio, but don’t want or need the integrated DAW control and analogue level automation other SSL console products have made the new hybrid studio standard.

XL-Desk is in many ways a traditional 24 into 8 analogue console but it packs in an incredible collection of features. It has 20 channel strips: 16 dual input mono (switchable between main input or DAW return) and 4 stereo channels. The first eight channels have VHD mic pre’s. There is an 18 slot 500 format rack built in that can be used for processing or mic pre’s. XL-Desk ships with a legendary SSL Stereo Bus Compressor module in slots 17 & 18 (hard wired to Mix A). The rack has its own dedicated high spec’ power supply. There are four main Mix Busses (A, B, C, D) with buses B, C and D able to be summed into Mix A. The Busses and channels can access the 500 rack and each have a separate insert point for processing. There are two mono aux sends and two stereo return inputs. Direct outputs on every channel, stereo return and mix bus enable convenient stem printing. Each channel has a Cue Stereo Bus section (with Pan and Volume) used to provide one of the headphone mixes while tracking. At mixdown the mono channel DAW return signals can be routed to the CUE ST bus and then summed into Mix A, so there are 16 main faders + 16 Cue ST inputs + 4 Stereo channels providing 40 summing inputs (using the stereo returns and insert Sum functions you can squeeze in over 50 summing inputs). There is also a fully-featured monitoring section with bass management (3 sets of speakers + subwoofer), Foldback A and B with individual talkbacks for headphone mixes and a built in Listen Mic input + classic compressor circuit, with its own direct output.

XL-Desk features 8 of SSL’s patented Variable Harmonic Drive (VHD) microphone preamps, built-in to the first 8 channels of the console. The VHD pre can deliver clean SSL grade recordings but also features the VHD circuit used in our acclaimed Duality console* which can be switched into the signal path. The Variable Harmonic Drive circuit uses a 100% analogue signal path to generate rich harmonic distortion. As you increase the input gain, the Variable Harmonic Drive circuit introduces either 2nd or 3rd harmonic distortion or a blend of the two to your source material. At lower gain settings it adds gentle valve-style warmth or a touch of transistor edge. As the gain is increased the more extreme the distortion becomes until at high gain settings it delivers fierce trashy transistoresque grunge. VHD pre’s give the user the ultimate versatility from a studio grade preamp. Whether it’s ultra-clean traditional SSL, subtle warming or totally trashy transistor distortion, VHD will change your expectations of what a preamplifier should deliver.

Each of the mono channels of the XL-Desk (1-16) has access to its own corresponding slot in the rack and the channel strips access them via a ‘500’ Insert button. The four Stereo channels cannot access the 500 rack. Slots 17-18 are hard wired to Mix A to accommodate a stereo mix bus compressor and XL-Desk ships with these slots pre-loaded with 500 format module version of the legendary SSL G Series Bus Compressor. The console will ship with a new version of this module which features a sidechain HPF. The four Mix Busses can also access rack slots 9-16 (in stereo pairs) although the Mix Busses and mono channels 9-16 cannot use the rack slots simultaneously. The inputs and outputs of module slots 1-16 are accessible via standard DB25 connectors on the rear panel. This does mean that the modules are not hard wired into the mono channel strips 500 Insert send/return, but the console does ship with a set of external DB25 jumper cables to facilitate this approach if required. The advantage of our opting not to hard wire the rack into the channel signal flow is of course that if desired (and we do recommend this), the rack can be connected to a patchbay for ultimate flexibility and creating chains of patching between 500 modules. Furthermore, this means that the 500 rack can be used ‘standalone’. The 500 rack can also accommodate stereo modules that comply with the pin 6 link specification – the switch to assign an odd/even pair of slots to stereo operation is internal so must be set before the module is fitted.