True to the Music
2
J33 User Guide
Radial Engineering
INTRODUCTION
Since the advent of the compact disc, the use of long-playing
records has become so sparse that it has become difficult to
find a hi-fi receiver that is equipped with a phono input. With
literally millions of albums floating around the world, a need
has emerged to capture these recordings and transfer them to
today’s digital formats.
The Radial J33 provides a solution with a simple device that is
‘plug & play’ easy-to-use and built to Radial’s professional stan-
dards for sound quality and durability. Equipped with an RIAA
preamp and choice of -10dB consumer line-level and pro 600-
Ohm mic-level outputs, the J33 is right at home in the studio, on
the stage and in the DJ booth.
For the enterprising studio, this opens the door to a new busi-
ness opportunity: a phono to CD transfer service that will allow
families to enjoy their favorite CD’s in their cars and on their
new surround sound systems. The Radial J33 also boasts other
advantages: for the broadcast station and museum, old record
collections can now be easily archived by transferring old phono
recordings to digital media. With the plethora of digital ‘noise-
eliminating’ software, less than ideal recordings can now be
updated to approach today’s signal-to-noise expectations.
For the recording studio, the emergence of ‘scratching’ in hip-
hop, rap and pop music opens the door to better recordings and
more creativity by allowing a turntable to connect through high-
end processing, opening up opportunities for re-recording and
greater artistic freedom.
RIAA PREAMP
The Radial J33 is a combination RIAA phono preamp and active
direct box that allows you to connect a conventional turntable
with magnetic cartridge to a recording system, hi-fi or PA sys-
tem.
An RIAA phono preamp is a device that boosts the signal from
a turntable and applies a pre-defined equalization curve. The
RIAA equalization curve is applied as pre-emphasis EQ during
the cutting of the metal master, and as a de-emphasis EQ on
playback. In other words, a record is cut with the low frequen-
cies reduced and the high frequencies boosted (pre-emphasis),
and on playback the opposite occurs (de-emphasis). The RIAA
preamp in the J33 provides this required de-emphasis EQ.
The result is a flat frequency response, but with noise such
as hiss and clicks arising from the surface of the record itself
reduced (or “attenuated”). The other main benefit of the RIAA
system is longer playback times. The RIAA equalization curve
has operated as a global industry standard for the recording and
playback of vinyl records since 1954.
