Red Sound XS-FX review

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catnap

Major Label Whore
i just got a new Red Sound XS-FX effects processor from Pssl.com's outlet store, for just $50!!!

it arrived yesterday and i put it through its paces. while i haven't really got to run it through the wringer yet, i gotta say that this little box has the cleanest and sweetest sound i've ever heard. as far as my ears can tell, there's NO added gain at all!!! no static, no hiss, nothing but thick rich sound.

it comes equipped with a joystick as well as two small faders (the size of the cue faders on a Vestax 05) which have impressed me a lot. i'm fluent with Electrix, Pioneer, and Art FX units, and i think that the Red Sound's joystick and faders give the best control over the sound ever!!! you can tweak the parameters of the various effects for impressive results, yet it almost never causes too much chaos. there's also a "hold" button which will hold the position of the joystick so you can wind up a phat effect and then hold it out hands-free, so you can concentrate on your mixing!

overall construction is rock-solid, all brushed steel and aluminum. like the other Red Sound product i use (the Voyager 1) this thing is built to take abuse. i think the only other company that builds their gear to this level of sturdyness would be Electrix.

i'm not going to list all the features of the XS-FX - go to www.redsound.com to read more. what i came on here to say is that it's sound is unparalelled in my opinion. FX can be cool, but they often degrade the audio quality and can ruin a mix if you fiddle with the controls too much. the XS-FX solves all of these problems and sticks it in a box that would fit in your pocket and would probably stop a 9mm bullet ;)

peace,
sim*n
 
xsfx.gif


FEATURES
AUDIO
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20Hz to 20kHz (+/-0.5dB)
S/N RATIO: 85dB
THD: 0.015%
INPUT LEVELS: Phono - 55dBV / 47k ohms
Line -14dBV / 22k ohms
Mic - 55dBV / 3 k ohms
OUTPUT LEVELS: Balanced 4 dBm [1.20V] / 600 ohms
Unbalanced 0dBV [1V] / 1 k ohm

BPM ENGINE
RANGES: Low (60 -120BPM), Mid (90 -180BPM), Hi (115 - 230BPM)
LOCK-IN TIME: Typically 1 - 4 sec's (from introduction of readable beat information)
DISPLAY ACCURACY: 0.1 BPM
INTERNAL ACCURACY: 3-millisecond sample rate

EFFECTS

FILTER
TYPE: Virtual analog modelled 12dB per octave, Low pass
FX MIXER JOYSTICK: Frequency [X], Resonance [Y]
Z PLANE FADER: Envelope Mod [press & hold FILTER button sets LFO shape]
LFO SHAPES: Triangle, rising, falling, pulse

DELAY
TYPE: Modelled vintage tape delay
FX MIXER JOYSTICK: Reproduction [X], Repeats [Y]
Z PLANE FADER: Level

SPS PANNER
TYPE: Multi pan of low, mid & high frequencies
FX MIXER JOYSTICK: Direction [X], SPS [Y]
Z PLANE FADER: 2-Way Split

CUTTER
TYPE: Variable Ramp Gate
FX MIXER JOYSTICK: Attack [X], Decay [Y]
Z PLANE FADER: Gate Duration

FLANGER
TYPE: Modelled Tape Flanging
FX MIXER JOYSTICK: Frequency [X], Feedback [Y]
Z PLANE FADER: Depth [press & hold FLANGER button sets LFO shape]
LFO SHAPES: Triangle, Rising, Falling, Pulse

OTHER CONTROLS
MASTER ON/OFF: Activates selected effects
MIX FADER: Sets the wet/dry output balance
HOLD [JOYSTICK]: Memorises FX setting as set by joystick in any off-centre positions
FREQUENCY SELECTORS: Low, Mid, High switches select frequency bands for FX processing
FX MODE BUTTONS: Select the main operating mode - single or multi
INPUT SELECTOR: Mic/Line/Phono switch
INPUT LEVEL [CLIP]: Input gain control with bi-colour level indicator

MONITOR LEVEL: Headphone level control
MIC TRIM: Microphone level control

TRIGGER/SPEED [SINGLE MODE]
SETTINGS: Beats [buttons/LEDs] 1/4 -1/3 - 1/2 - 2/3 - 3/4 - 1/1 - 2/1
Bars [rotary encoder/display] 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 6 - 8 - 12 - 16

MULTI FX PRESETS [MULTI MODE] 50 x factory presets featuring multiple effect combinations

NUDGE 4 x button keypad for BPM / Synchronisation adjustments

INPUT CONNECTIONS
MIC: 1 x ¡¦Jack socket [front panel]
LINE: 2 x ¡¦Jack socket [rear panel]
PHONO: RCA phono sockets [rear panel] + earthing terminal

OUTPUT CONNECTIONS
BALANCED: 2 x ¡¦Jack socket [rear panel]
UNBALANCED: 2 x RCA phono socket [rear panel]
MONITOR: 1 x ¡¦Jack socket [front panel]

POWER SUPPLY External (16VDC 750mA)

DIMENSIONS/WEIGHT 202[H] x174[W] x30mm[D] 1.25kg

ACCESSORIES [INCLUDED] Mounting kit for attaching to 19" fittings on mixing desk

wow.... that thing looks like a lotta fun for 50 bones....

so many toys so little cash
 
hot purchases i've made on PSSL.com's pro outlet:

Vestax PCV-175A dj mixer - $99

Behringer MX1604 pa mixer - $80

Red Sound XS-FX - $50

SKB 4-space roto-rack - $25

Red Sound Voyager 1 - $25

all of these items were NEW and all have arrived in good condition. Pssl.com's pro outlet fukking RULES!!!!!!

heheheheh

peace,
sim*n
 
i've been playing with this thing all night and i LOOOOOVE it!!!! i have a 3-day gig coming up at the end of the month (an extreme sports competition in Knoxville TN) and i'm going to bring this gadget with me to see how it performs on a big system - 4 18" subs and 4 15" horns, 5000 watts!!!

peace,
sim*n
 
AHH I WANT ONE!

Question...how do you run this..do you run turntable line in and then go through the unit to a line out, or do I need a whole seperate channel?
 
Cool man! How many fx processors are you running now? :D If you can, it'd be great if you posted an mp3 of the unit in action.

BTW: Didn't you already have that Vestax?

-Gene
 
dj /-/2o said:
AHH I WANT ONE!

Question...how do you run this..do you run turntable line in and then go through the unit to a line out, or do I need a whole seperate channel?
Click to expand...

Well, this is the part where you start wanting an Empath... :D
 
h20 - actually i'm just running the master output of my UMX-5 straight into the XS-FX. normally that would be a BAD idea but the XS-FX has such a clean sound that it's working great. in other words you don't need ANY extra channels, FX loops, etc. to use this thing.

gene - right now i'm using the XS-FX alone, but if i wanted to i could daisy-chain it to my Electrix MO-FX, Art FX-1, and Alesis Wedge. however, one thing i've learned the hard way is that most units don't have such a lovely transparent sound as the XS-FX, and thus daisy-chaining FX boxes usually makes a mess of the sound after 2 boxes... also i use the Mo-FX mostly for dirtying up my samples in production, and the Wedge really shines in vocals and post-production. the FX-1... uhhh the FX-1 gathers dust... :rolleyes:
and oh yeah, i got the Vestax from pssl too, but that was last year.

peace,
sim*n
 
Is PSSL's outlet store online? How do I get to it?

PSSL wants $119 from PSSL.com... id like to pay less :cool:
 
catnap said:
SKB 4-space roto-rack - $25
peace,
sim*n
Click to expand...

Did you get the last one? I just looked and couldn't find this anymore. I need a small rack. How deep is it? I'm trying to find a rack for my Electrix Repeater. Only needs to be about 6 inches deep or less. Every rack case I find is too deep.
 
drc24 said:
oh, and Catnap, what do you think about this thread from a while back that bashes the XS-FX?

https://www.futureproducers.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18394&highlight=xsfx
Click to expand...

i read through that thread and pretty much disagree with Tricky on all of his points. the gain and overall sound, as i said in the opening thread, are the BEST i've ever heard, and i've owned a Roland DJ-1000 myself. true the Roland has a much more complex filter effect, but then again that is the trademark feature of it's DSP section.

i have noticed that my XS-FX doesn't work as well with my Vestax as my Gemini mixer, which leads me to beleive the overall sound quality is affected a lot by how your mixer routs its effects loop. On the Vestax i routed the XS-FX through the loop Send/Return, while on the Gemini (which has no loop) i simply send the main output though the XS-FX and then straight to amp.

as for heat and clicking issues, i've never had either complaints. maybe he got a bad box?

peace,
sim*n
 
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