- Overview
- Details
- Gallery
- Reviews
- Downloads
Every studio needs a PAL
-
The original PAL (Preamp And Limiter),introduced in 1998, was based on a combination of our original Y7 microphone preamplifier and our L1 optical limiter. Within a year, the PAL was outselling all four versions of the Y7 and L1 combined.
For us, this established the PAL as a permanent platform for continued development and refinement. Components and construction are the highest quality seen in the audio industry today.
Each unit is point-to-point hand-wired to solid Teflon terminal strips and oxygen free copper post. All audio transformers are based on classic designs, upgraded wherever appropriate, and made to our specifications. -
High-grade polypropylene capacitors are used exclusively in the signal path. Polypropylene caps are also used for B+ filtering, making the PAL Plus MkIII the only pro audio product that does not use electrolytic caps for filtering.
Allen-Bradley carbon composition resistors, gold switches, gold and ceramic tube sockets and special solid-core audio wire are all selected for their tonal character and reliability.
This design approach has yielded characteristics that include wide bandwidth, low noise, low distortion, reliability and truly high fidelity performance making the PAL Plus MkIII a “must have” for any professional recordist.
Technical Details
- Mic/DI - Line Select
- Mic/DI Gain - Continuosly Variable
- Hi-Pass Filter
- Mic/DI Feedback - Continuosly Variable
- -20dB Pad
- Output Level - Continuosly Variable
- +48V Phantom Power
- VU Meter (upper meter)
- VU Meter Adjust
- Hi-Z Input
- Limiter Response - Continuosly Variable
- Mic Link
- Limiter Feedback - Continuosly Variable
- Limiter Link
- Peak Reduction - Continuosly Variable
- Ratio 10:1 & 3:1
- GR Trk - Gain Reduction Tracking Calibration
- Peak Reduction Meter (lower meter)
- VU Meters
Front
- Ground Connector - Chassis and/or Circuit Ground
- Power Supply Inlet (choice of Tube or Solid-State Supply)
- Transformer Balanced XLR Output (pin 2 HI)
- Limiter Link - 1/4" Jack for linking additional PAL Limiter (not included)
- Tube Channel - Protective Structure for easy Tube replacement and Ventilation
- Transformer Balanced XLR Mic Input (pin 2 HI)
- Transformer Balanced XLR Line Input (pin 2 HI)
Rear
- Solid-Core Copper/Silver Wire with Teflon Dielectric
- Handwired, Point-To-Point Throughout (only Meter/Phantom on PCB)
- Custom Input and Output Transformers
- Overbuilt - using highly rated, quality components
Internal




Rave Reviews
Just wanted to tell you how knocked out I am by your PAL pre/compressor. It's freaking stunning! Great work.
My main gig is mastering, here in NYC, and based on the quality of the PAL, I may be interested in your mastering compressor in the near future, if it performs even close to the level of the PAL I'm sure it must be amazing as well.
Keep up the great work!
Michael Perez-Cisneros
I finally got my PALs and use them on almost everything! At this point a day without them would be a tragedy. Love'em
Just wanted to say that in my latest project, I used an M149 into the PAL with a female vocalist...I love using eq when I mix a vocal BUT...I don't have to! Everytime I tried to improve the sound, things got worse...25% of feedback control and the sound was as lush as it could be...maybe I should just sell all of my eq's now ;)
Ok...enough joy...back to work. Thanks again!
AA
I have access to some of the finest mic pre's in my studio snd when it came time to track my guitars and vocals for my new CD "Meniketti", I consistently was drawn to the Requisite gear.
Getting the correct sound from my guitar rig to a DAW can be a challenge, but my Requisite Y7s preamps were up to the task beautifully. All my rhythm guitars were tracked through the Y7 & my lead & background vocals were tracked through my Requisite PAL
There is a "real" texture & open sound through the Requisite gear that just wasn't there with many of my other pre's. And everyone in the room gasped when I ran my Larivee acoustic into the direct input of the PAL! It took that acoustic's direct sound to a place I'd never heard coming from that, or any other acoustic direct sound. The presence, body & clean in-your-face sound that this direct input gave my guitar was so good that we chose that sound, over the elaborate mic/pre combo for the mix. And wait 'til you run your background vox through the PAL. Magic!
Great stuff, from a designer & that really cares about getting things right. There's a huge difference between the cheap tube pre wannabee company's gear & Requisite - this is the real stuff. Highly recommended!"
Dave MenikettiRecording Artist
"I tracked a Fender Jazz Deluxe Bass through the PAL Plus for a boogie woogie/blues piano artist and on playback everyone took notice of how big, warm & round the bass sounded. I then tracked male vocal through the PAL Plus with an AKG C12VR. The C12VR has never really "wowed" me (sometimes it's nice but never stellar). I like the C12VR a whole lot now - The PAL really seemed to open it up with much greater detail and a big, fat bottom end without any of that tube woolliness - This week I'll be tracking my 1961 Gibson ES-330 through it - Can't wait to hear that!
Anyway, I'm very pleased and believe I have "a new favorite."
Marcus Steinman
Discovery Productions - St. Louis, MO
"The new kid in town is a giant-killer, haven't touched my v---m- (famous limiter) since. The PAL keeps it's open, natural, sweet sound even when you're knocking back peaks well over 10 dB. It's my vocal chain of choice. Now I'm wishing I had 2 to mix drums through. Gorgeous box."
Rob LauferRecording Artist, Producer - Los Angeles, CA
Danny!
After being convinced from our telephone conversations, I decided to pick up the PAL Plus. WOW! Was it worth it! This baby is probably the best pre amp that I have ever come in contact with. Not only is the pre amp superb, but the limiter also is truly a master piece! Thanks for the great unit. I look forward to picking up a matching pair for stereo mix down!
Anthony Cosmo - New York
"I just bought a PAL and thought I'd drop you a line to let you know how fantastic I've found it! I've put distorted electric guitars, clean electric guitars, and my vocals through it, and it always gets an excellent sound, full bodied and rich. The PAL has helped me make muscular sounds more beefy and more delicate sounds shimmer. I couldn't ask for more!
The sound is the most important thing, of course, but I also wanted to say that I think it just *looks* very clean and professional as well. The knobs all feel very sturdy, the switches rugged. I have no complaints at all." Thanks for your handiwork.
Orren
I wanted to express how happy I am with my Requisite PAL. For straight tracking, it's better than anything I have used (API, John Hardy, Jensen Twin Servo, Tube Tech, Manley), I've rented just about everything I could get my hands on. My goal was to buy a mic pre/comp-limiter that could do several things well and the PAL has certainly fulfilled that. It is a very revealing piece of equipment, the likes I had not been exposed to before.
Apart from your excellent equipment, I wanted to thank you for your willingness to give advice and the modifications you made to my unit at no additional cost. You have also been extremely indulgent of all my questions and numerous phone calls. I can't thank you enough for that."
Danny R. Gork
Chattanooga, TN
"You were right! The Requisite PAL is a wonderful compliment to the Manley and Focusrite. Soon after I got the PAL I A/B'd it with the V--B-- (famous combo unit) and was very surprised at the increased detail in the high end and low end. Wonderful piece!"
Steve C.
PDI Music/ PDI Ministries
"When we signed our deal with Dreamworks Records, the pro audio shops here in Los Angeles sent every brand of high-end studio equipment you could imagine for us to evaluate. At the time, we had never heard of Requisite, but there it was among the best available. Not only did Requisite give us the warmth and life that we needed when going to our Pro Tools 24-bit Mix Plus system, they also captured detail and brilliance that until we heard Requisite, we never knew was there.
Since our evaluation, we now have 14 pieces of Requisite gear and we record everything through them. Our Requisite PAL's, Y7's and D4's have been the best investment we've made in our recording studio."
Nick Young
Artificial Intelligence - Santa Monica, CA
"We sent a two channel final mix of a song through linked Requisite PALs to hear how they compared to some of our favorite stereo compressors (a Manley Vari Mu and a Focusrite Red 3). The overall sound of the PALs was extremely clean at the initial un-compressed stage. Over the course of an hour, we tried various settings in an attempt to make the unit distort. Only by slamming the gain at a very high compression output in a 10:1 ratio did the PALs start to sound remotely unnatural. In comparison to the Manley and Focusrite, it affects program material in a much more natural sounding way, while at the same time adding a bit of body to the low end. Very musical and pleasing.
If you're looking for a clean, natural sounding pre-amp/compressor combo, the PAL is a good choice for your rack. As a mic pre-amp, the all-tube design is impeccably built to add depth and clarity with dynamic control that is very natural sounding. As a line level amplifier and buss compressor, two linked PALs provide an option for ultra-clean compression on two channel material. With this in mind, it would be hard to buy just one. In fact, I thought these sounded so good that I had to buy two for myself..."
Walt Szalva
Mix Magazine Review - January 2000
Special Features
-
Mic/DI Feedback
Left to run freely, vacuum tubes tend to exhibit a considerable amount of harmonic generation and other forms of distortion. For over half a century, negative feedback has been engineered into circuits to “improve” the linearity of vacuum tubes when used in audio gain stages. However, best readings on a meter don’t always equate to the ideal sound (whatever that happens to be). By making MIC/DI FEEDBACK an adjustable feature, harmonic content and texture are in the creative hands of the audio engineer and not the guy with the THD meter.
-
Dual Meters
The Pal Plus MkIII features a full-time VU Meter and Gain Reduction Meter. This allows the user to monitor both actions simutaniously whitout needed to switch between the two functions.
-
Mic Link
Unique to the PAL Plus MkIII, the Mic Link switch allows for inter-connection between two PAL microphone preamplifiers (a second PAL and inter-connect cable is required). Because of where (within the circuit) the connection is made, the microphone only “sees” one preamp and is loaded as it would normally be, using just one preamp. Having one mic drive two mic-pres offers many sonic and creative possibilities, especially when one considers the broad range of tonal variation of the PALs variable gain structure, variable feedback circuitry and limiter functions. Layering from a pair of PALs is encouraged.
Select a Power Supply
-
RTS-4A Vacuum Tube
The RTS-4A is built on classic, no compromise design and techniques. It is tube regulated, tube rectified and capable of powering any Requisite Audio vacuum tube audio processor in current production. It is expandable from one to four channels. Filtering is accomplished using custom made poly/oil capacitors and a heavy duty audio frequency choke.
Rectifiers
Standard with the RTS-4A is the GZ34 (5AR4) tube rectifier. DC filtering is via custom AF Choke input & custom made oil & polyprophylene capacitors.
Voltages
Power Supplied: B+, Heater, Meter Driver, Lamps. Power Required: The RTS-4A can operate on 115V or 230V mains.
- Single channel RTS-1A $2,300
- Dual Channel RTS-2A $2,600
- Three Channel RTS-3A $2,900
- Four Channel RTS-4A $3,200
-
OPS-2D Solid State
The OPS-2D is a single or dual-channel solid-state power supply designed to power all current production Requisite Audio vacuum tube audio processors: L2M MkIII, PAL Plus MkIII, OS1, SM 162 Summing Mixer and the SMX 1748 Summing Mixer Expander. The OPS-2D can be configured for single or dual-channel operation.
Rectifiers
Standard with the OPS-2D are ultra-fast, soft-recovery diodes with balancing resistors and polypropylene bypass caps. DC filtering is via Nichicon audio capacitors with polypropylene bypass caps. Power Supply coupling is via AF Chokes.
Voltages
Power Supplied: B+, Heater, Meter Driver, Lamps. Power Required: The OPS-2D can operate on 115V or 230V mains.
- Single channel $680
- Dual Channel $880
Super-Fi
Upgrade to the absolute best PAL components
- Standard Components $0
- Super FI Components $2,600
Cables
Recommended • for the PAL
- M8 - XLR Silver/Copper (8ft/2.43m) $313
- M8S - XLR Pure Silver (8ft/2.43m) $375