Fun Generation RTA-31

This S.A. is a major time saver. Rings my PA mics right, the first time, every time, in next to no time.

Visually ID problem frequencies and kill feedback very quickly and efficiently. No more guessing, no need for a complex/esoteric digital EQ/speaker management units riddled with firmware bugs and noisy circuitry.

I do have digital stage gear, used mostly for bigger events and recording jobs, but for smaller gigs, I love, and still use, old school rack of analog gear. This SA adds the ability to ring out mics just as easily as one does on digital gear, without the mouse and keyboard BS killing my workflow.

I whole heartedly recommend this device to everyone using an all analog setup. No more embarrassing mic ringing miscalculations and ensuing feedback disasters.

Firstly, I want to say that this piece of equipment is certainly impressive and snappy. It’s a nice light show. Now, when I unpackaged the contents everything seemed in order. However, I was disappointed to see that the screen was slightly peeling off on the right side. I fear that over time more of it will continue to come off. When that happens I’ll have to apply a little adhesive to seal it on there but for the time being I’ll leave it as is. That being said, I shouldn’t have to deal with that as the consumer.

Also, I had to figure out myself where to add this component in the audio chain. There’s no information in the manual to indicate where it should go. I ultimately put it between my preamp and amplifier, with all my sources going into the preamp.

I also had the problem of getting a visual signal to actually appear on the screen. This is ultimately because the signal entering the RTA-31 needs to be pretty strong to appear. I had to significantly lower the gain on my amplifier so I can turn the preamp up. Even then, the sensitivity knob on the RTA-31 has to be turned up all the way to 10. This kind’ve problem and solution should really be addressed in the manual.

Furthermore, what this all means is that you need to have a separate preamp and amp to get use out of this (i.e being able to increase the signal at the beginning of the audio chain without playing music so loud it shakes your foundation). That, or the sensitivity knob needs to be able to adjust to a much higher value then what we can do currently.

I WANT to give this device 5 stars, as it’s exactly everything I want in a spectrum analyzer, but I think it needs to go back to the R&D and QC department for a while. I’m still gonna probably buy a second one and hope it doesn’t have a peeling screen.

Overall 3.8 out of 5

The RTA-31 provides a large clear and pleasant display of the audio spectrum in real time.
Both channels are combined into the single display.
I have checked the findings of another reviewer and there is a direct connection between the audio input and the output on XLR and on RCA, but these are not combined internally.
I have found the display useful in "Reminding" me of the frequencies of different instruments and harmonics. Very few of my mixes have much sub below 31.5 Hz and nothing other than my own recordings have anything above 12.5 kHz.

Pros:
Simple to set up and use with standard connectors and specifications.

Cons:
Sensitivity and brightness controls need to be kept full up at all times!