Rupert Neve Designs Introduces the 535 Diode Bridge Compressor for the 500-Series Format
Rupert Neve Designs has announced the 535: 500-Series Diode Bridge Compressor. Based on the
dynamics circuit of the company’s acclaimed Shelford Channel, the punchy and versatile
535 captures the soul of Rupert Neve’s original 2254 compressor while providing modern
updates including advanced timing control, significantly lower noise, fully stepped controls
throughout, and internal parallel processing capabilities.
The 535, which is now shipping worldwide, is also outfitted with custom transformers and
class-A output amplifiers, all tailor-made for the 500-Series format.
According to Rupert Neve Designs, “By understanding the limitations of the original 2254
topology, painstaking effort was taken to reproduce its unique tone while improving the
noise floor, expanding inflexible time constants, adding full wave sidechain detection for
improved dynamic response, widening the range of threshold and ratio controls, and raising
the headroom of the diode bridge itself.”
Almost 50 years after Mr. Rupert Neve created his first diode bridge compressor designs, the
535 reimagines the larger-than-life personality of these classic circuits with new levels of
precision and adaptability, helping virtually any track shine through a mix.
The Diode Bridge
Where the VCA compressor found in the 543 and Master Buss Processor provides unmatched clarity,
the weighty, harmonically rich tonality of diode bridge compression can be essential in pushing
key sources like vocals, electric guitars, bass and drums to the forefront of a mix. Mr. Rupert
Neve’s original diode bridge compressors like the 2254 served as an inspiration for the design
of the 535. By understanding the limitations of the original 2254 topology, painstaking effort
was taken to reproduce the unique tone of the 2254 while improving the noise floor, expanding
inflexible time constants, adding full wave sidechain detection for improved dynamic response,
widening the range of threshold and ratio controls, and raising the headroom of the diode
bridge itself. Delivering the powerful sound of these classic designs with enhanced
flexibility for the modern age, the 535 is a dynamic tool equipped to make a statement on
virtually any track.