Rupert Neve Designs RNDI Reviews

Can't go wrong with Rupert Neve's

Amazing DI, sound rich, full

I'm using it for live show and studio recording

quite sure that it colors your sound but In a good way

also RNDI runs off 48v phantom power, frees up a plug on my power strip

great, but expensive

I've been looking for a new DI for tracking bass and guitar. After some hefty research, I narrowed my options down to the following:

- BSS AR133 (EUR 105,-)

- Radial J48 EUR (235,-)

- Neve RNDI (EUR 299,-)

I plugged my Ibanez SR650 into each of these DI's, into my Focusrite 44. I tracked some parts in both active and passive setting. My findings:

BSS AR133: It doesn't look very slick. With its huge rubber sides, it does look indestructible. The sound is clear and transparent, with very low noise.

Radial J48: It looks good, and also definitely feels sturdy enough. The sound is noticeably warmer than the BSS, more analogue sounding. It sounds great, but definitely colored.

Neve RNDI: Looks wise, this is clearly the winner of the three. Like the BSS, it sounds very clear, even, and moderate in the lows.

The BSS and the Neve sound the most natural and clear, which is what I am looking for in a DI. I want the cleanest sound possible to feed to a pre-amp. However, the sound difference between these two is very small to my ears. So small, that it doesn't warrant the price difference.

Hence, my choice is the BSS AR133. It sounds great, is super sturdy, and very affordable. Recommended!

Excellent DI not only for bass but also for analog synths / drum machines

I bought it with the idea of using it as a complementary DI to my REDDI, to track vintage / modern analogue synths and drum machines through different preamps.

I needed something that would be rather on the "clean" side comparing to REDDI, more transparent, something that would handle fast transients much more naturally. Being a devoted user of a tube DI, I was surprised by RNDI with its very elegant sound across very wide frequency spectrum, nothing was missing from the signal, I did even a comparison between RNDI and a tubeless DI used in one of the best converters on the market, super transparent device with amazing preamps, built in UK. I configured two channels: one for connecting instruments to the converter directly using its DI and its gain control, the other one with RNDI and the converter's preamp.

Initially it was very hard to find a difference after level calibration but I found that RNDI really shines when the synth sound is quite harmonically rich, poly modes with fast envelopes. Same with analog drum machines. To me, some elements of the sound are more apparent and detectable. It definitely doesn't hide subtle details in midrange or lower. As expected, low freq. range is more than solid. Absolutely amazing.