Radial Engineering

R
adial fi rst caught our
eye in 2017 with the
Key-Largo, a mixer
designed specifi cally
for keyboardists. It
assembled a whole
host of features that
gigging musicians need in a portable,
yet pro-level device – stereo
analogue-input channels; balanced
Main and Monitor outputs with
ground-lifts; a USB audio/MIDI
interface with 24-bit, 192kHz
resolution for incorporating virtual
instruments and tracking into a DAW;
standard MIDI I/O; and a switchable
Aux bus with individual Send controls
on each channel. Best of all, Radial
put it all into a rugged case small
enough to sit on a desktop, in a
pedalboard, or on the corner of a
large keyboard.
The KL-8 takes the Key-Largo
concept further with features that
handle a wider range of pro needs
while remaining portable as a 1U
rack-mountable device. Like other
Radial products, the KL-8 is housed
in a steel enclosure and feels
reassuringly road-worthy. For example,
the external power supply locks to the
rack to avoid disconnection.
The four-channel mixer accepts
stereo and mono analogue input and
easily integrates digital audio over
USB on Channel 4 (more on this
later). Each analogue-input channel
has a pair of unbalanced 1/4” jacks
and its own input-level control.
The mixer’s Main and Monitor
outputs are on XLR jacks, include
ground switches, and have front-panel
buttons for summing the output pairs
to mono. Furthermore, the Main and
Monitor outs, as well as the input
channels, have individual On buttons
so you can use them selectively.
A major difference between the
KL-8 and its predecessor is the
inclusion of a third output option:
a softsynth and a hardware synth
controlled by the same MIDI data.
Standard MIDI I/O is on the rear
panel and can be used with a
keyboard controller for playing
softsynths and for playing a hardware
synth or drum machine using MIDI
data from your DAW.
In Recording mode, the USB
interface sends a two-channel mix
over USB to your DAW while
simultaneously routing the computer
output to the KL-8’s Main and
Monitor sections.
Although separate On buttons are
on the front for the analogue and
USB input of Channel 4, selecting
Live or Record mode is done from the
rear – inconvenient when in a rack.
Similarly, the Aux Return Assign
button on the top panel is hard to
access in a racked setup.
Overall, the KL-8 delivers far more
than expected from a hybrid
rack-mixer. It’s easy to set up
(compared to fully digital units) and
the interface is plug-and-play with
Mac OS (Windows users just need a
driver.) Once you set the levels
properly, the switching is silent, the
audio quality excellent, and it simply
does its job. The price tag is high, but
add up the features and you’ll wonder
how you did without it.
dual 1/4” headphone jacks. With a
Cue switch on each input channel,
it’s really easy to audition the
individual channels over headphones
without sending their signals to either
of the speaker outputs.
The KL-8 also includes a stereo
Aux channel with individual
Send-level controls for each input.
While external effects are the obvious
use of the Aux, the KL-8’s Return
inputs can, instead, be used as a fi fth
stereo input for line-level sources,
with the front-panel Return knob
setting the input level. The Aux
section can be deactivated remotely
using the Radial JR1-L footswitch.
An additional switch, located on
the top panel, is used to route the
Aux Return to either all analogue
outputs, or to only the headphones
and Monitor outputs. The latter
confi guration is useful when working
with audio that should be kept out of
the Mains, such as a click track.
A stereo Insert is included for
sending the input channels through
an external processor or volume
pedal. And for players who need
additional analogue inputs, multiple
KL-8s can be linked together using
1/4” TRS cables.
The KL-8 further expands on the
Key-Largo’s ability to act as a USB
audio/MIDI interface by including two
USB ports. This enables you to
instantly access a second computer
– typically a redundant, backup
system – from the front panel or with
a JR1-L footswitch.
The KL-8’s USB interface can be
used in Live or Recording mode. In
Live mode, you can play virtual
instruments from the selected
computer and bring the audio via
USB into Channel 4 of the mixer with
24-bit, 192kHz resolution. Channel 4
has separate level controls for USB
and analogue input, allowing you to
submix the two signals: for example,
THE PROS & CONS
+
SB audio/MIDI
interface with
redundant port
Standard MIDI I/O
Aux and Insert I/O
-
Live/Recording
button on rear panel
Aux Return Assign
switch on top panel
Aux Send is
post-input
FM VERDICT
8.7
Expensive, but given the
build quality, once you have
it, the KL-8 may end up
sitting at the core of your
keyboard rig for the longhaul
Radial Engineering KL-8 | Reviews
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FMU348.rev_radial.indd 103 8/7/19 1:15 PM