Hughes & Kettner RED BOX 5 User Manual (English)

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The Hughes & Kettner RED BOX 5 converts line and speaker signals sourced

from guitar amps into balanced, frequency-compensated, microphone-level

signals with tonal characteristics of a 4 x 12" cabinet. It lets you feed a

guitar amp’s speaker out, line out or FX send straight into a mixing console’s

microphone input.

Note: The RED BOX 5 emulates the speaker, not the microphone. In other words,

signals provided by the RED BOX 5 sound like those of an actual cab rather than

that of a microphone picking up the sound of a cab. The benets are considerable:

You get a fatter, punchier and more direct signal with far greater presence,

bandwidth and dynamic range than signals captured with a microphone. With the

RED BOX 5, you can take the PA and playback device out of the sonic equation

and deliver the sound of a guitar cabinet straight to audiences and listeners. Best

of all, there’s no latency, spillover or crosstalk from other signal sources such as

drums, frequency cancellations caused by neighboring microphones or any danger

of feedback.

This signal is the best you can get for processing with compressors, equalizers,

reverb effects and microphone simulations on stage and in the studio.

Tip: Experimentation is very much encouraged: Make the most of both worlds

by mixing the signals from the RED BOX 5 and a microphone. The RED BOX 5

lends every microphone signal more girth and presence without detracting from its

inherent characteristics.

Connections

The RED BOX 5 provides one unbalanced ¼" (6.3 mm) jack input (IN) for line and

speaker signals and two different outputs: One unbalanced ¼" (6.3 mm) jack (THRU)

lets you patch through the unprocessed signal. One balanced XLR connected lets

you feed the processed signal to a mixing console. Note that some mixing consoles

do not provide phantom power. In that case, the RED BOX 5 is ready for an optional

power supply (see Technical Specications) and comes with a compartment

accommodating a 9 V battery (unscrew the feet to open the housing).

Version 1.0

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Hughes & Kettner RED BOX 5 Specifications

Input Specifications

unbalanced input impedance	10 kΩ
maximum input gain (+9 V battery) at 0 dB	+10 dBV
maximum input gain (+48 V phantom power) at 0 dB	+18 dBV
unbalanced input impedance at -26 dB	4.5 kΩ
maximum input gain (+9 V battery) at -26 dB	+36 dBV
maximum input gain (+48 V phantom power) at -26 dB	+44 dBV

Output Specifications

XLR out impedance balanced	880 Ω
0 dB nominal level @ 0 dBV	-22 dBV / 500 Hz
0 dB maximum level @ +10 dBV	-12 dBV / 500 Hz
-26 dB nominal level @ +26 dBV (50W/8 Ω)	-22 dBV / 500 Hz
impedance balanced at -26 dB	440 Ω
0 dB nominal level @ 0 dBV at impedance balanced	-28 dBV / 500 Hz
0 dB maximum level @ +10 dBV at impedance balanced	-18 dBV / 500 Hz
-26 dB nominal level @ +26 dBV (50W/8 Ω) at impedance balanced	-28 dBV / 500 Hz

Power Specifications

external power pack voltage range	9-15V AC or 9-24V DC
minimum phantom power	10 mA
balanced out phantom power	48 V DC
battery voltage	9 V
power consumption at 9 V	2 mA
power consumption at 48 V	3 mA

Environmental Specifications