NBS - What's New

THE NBS UNIVERSAL TONE CONTROL

THE NBS UNIVERSAL TONE CONTROL

You normally think of a tone control in terms of crude "bass" and "treble" knobs. As a practical matter, such controls are much too coarse to accomplish anything but a gross tonal modification.

If you have a lot of recordings and use really good playback equipment, you have undoubtedly observed that many recordings are tonally deficient in some way. Maybe a little too bright, not quite enough deep bass, not enough presence and so on.

This problem arises from two facts: first, you are not listening in the exact same way as the people who produced and balanced the recording, and second, your personal preferences may differ from those of the producer. These differences of taste and preference are not susceptible to argument, they simply are what they are.

The most important determinant of tonal balance is the frequency response. Small variations in frequency response can have a very large effect on perceived tonal balance.

Hence, the NBS Universal Tone Control.

It offers adjustment of the frequency response in 6 bands which subjectively correspond to the attributes of:

Powerfulness, deep bass 40 Hz control
Body, solidity, mid-bass 150 Hz control
Warmth, lower midrange 500 Hz control
Presence, upper midrange 2500 Hz control
Brightness, sibilance, low treble 5 kHz control
Brilliance, high treble 10 kHz control

The amplitude of each band is independently adjustable, either to boost it or to reduce (attenuate) it. Very fine adjustments are possible.

Output level trim controls are provided for each channel because sometimes changing the tonal quality will affect the apparent left-right balance. This can be corrected using these controls.

A Bypass mode is also available so that the adjusted result can be easily compared to the original sound.

A distinguishing feature of the NBS UNiversal Tone Control is that it allows correction of the tonal balance without corrupting the quality of the signal. As a result it is a useful addition to even the highest performance system.

Specifications:

Inputs:	L and R, Balanced, Z = 48K Ohms L and R, Single-ended (unbalanced), Z = 30K Ohms
Outputs:	L and R, Balanced, Z = 200 Ohms L and R, Single-ended (unbalanced), Z = 600 Ohms Any load 600 Ohms or greater is permissible. The balanced and unbalanced outputs may be used simultaneously
Gain:	0dB, Bypass or all channels Flat, Gain trims at center
Trim range:	+5 to -5 dB in 1 dB steps. L and R channel are independent.
Control range:	Each of the 6 bands can be boosted or attenuated in the following increments: 0.5 dB, 1.0 dB, 1.5 dB, 2.0 dB, 2.5 dB, 3.0dB, 4.0 dB, 5.0 dB, 6.0 dB, 8.0 dB and 10 dB. The adjustment affects both L and R channels.
Power requirements:	Nominal mains: 100-240VAC, 50-60 Hz
Dimensions:	Height: 3.875" (98mm) Width: 17.000" (432mm) Depth: 16.000" (406mm) (chassis only)
Weight:	20 lb (9 Kg)
Supplied power cable:	NBS Black Label I+
Price:	$25,000.00

	Michael Shields