Radial Engineering has announced the new Stage Bug SB-1, an ultra-compact direct box designed to fit inside the string pocket of a guitar case.
Designed primarily for acoustic guitars, the Stage Bug SB-1 measures less than 2 inches wide, by 3.85 inches long and only 1.3 inches high. (5.1 cm x 9.8 cm x 3.3 cm). It’s powered using standard 48-volt phantom power.
The Stage Bug SB-1 has a standard 1/4-inch hi-Z instrument input, a low-Z balanced output to feed a PA system, plus a tuner output that works double duty as a thru connection to feed the artist’s on-stage amp.
All connectors feature glass-filled nylon construction and nickel-silver contacts for long life without failure.
Through-hole parts are employed throughout for optimal signal transfer. This is combined with a full ground plane to reduce noise.
Response is flat from 20 Hz to 20 kHz while being able to handle extreme dynamics.
The SB-1 is also equipped with a -15 dB pad to handle high-output active instruments and a 180-degree polarity reverse to help tame hot-spots on stage and eliminate resonant feedback.
Radial sales manager Roc Bubel explains: “Radial already makes more types of direct boxes than any other manufacturer, so adding another model to our line up is not something we would do unless we had good reason. In this case, it really came down to getting inside the case.
“Today, more and more musicians are traveling light in order to keep costs down. This is particularly important since airlines are now charging for extra baggage.
“The other reality is that most venues or clubs tend to have low-end DI boxes that do not sound very good, so more and more musicians are now equipping themselves with their own DI to ensure they can deliver as good a quality signal as possible to the PA system. We combined these two ‘needs’ to create the Stage Bug SB-1… the most compact yet high performance Radial DI ever.”
