Lake People MC100
The MC100 opens a new territory of studio devices for Lake People: monitor contollers. The manufacture from Lake Constance is renowned for headphones amplifiers and converters – this expertise now culminates in a new studio central for discerning professionals.
The Lake People MC100 combines everything required of a modern monitor controller: comprehensive connectivity for analogue and digital signal sources, multiple selectable monitor outputs with subwoofer option, monitoring functionalities for technical checks, and a headphone amplifier with X-Feed. The established Lake People sound quality thus benefits a studio’s entire fleet of speakers – with as little noise and distortion as technically possible.
Studios often comprise a whole host of sources that need to be integrated into the monitoring system. The Lake People MC100 enables connection of very different devices and their choice via the front panel. Two analogue stereo signals can be plugged into the balanced XLR sockets, one more analogue input can be hooked up to the unbalanced RCA connectors. For the quick and easy integration of mobile devices, the front panel offers a 3.5-mm (1/8 inch) jack input. The fifth source option is a USB-C input with a DA converter that works with PCM up to 384 kHz and 32 bit as well as with DSD 256 in outstanding Lake People quality. The users can opt to have the input selectors releasing each other, or allow for multiple inputs to be selected at the same time, summing the signals.
The output stage of the Lake People MC100 is equally well equipped. Three balanced XLR outs allow for switching between three different sets of speakers. Each output can be attenuated by up to 12 dB. Like the inputs, the outputs can mutually deactivate, or select multiple outs at the same time, as per user choice. The subwoofer output can be activated independently to enhance the selected output – its status is saved with the respective activated speaker out, so the subwoofer automatically activates or deactivates with the output selection. In addition to these speaker outs, the MC100 also features two slave outputs as balanced XLR. These carry the selected input signal with no influence from the level knob, so they can feed measuring devices like level meters or analyzers.
The renowned Lake People headphone amplifiers have also found their way into the MC100. A powerful amp drives even more challenging sets of headphones via the 6.3-mm (1/4 inch) or the 3.5-mm (1/8 inch) jack outputs on the front. A switch activates the headphone output, a separate volume knob defines its level. An additional switch and knob control the X-Feed circuit that regulates the crosstalk between left and right cans to simulate speaker playback and counteract localization problems that often occur in headphone playback. The result is a very natural listening experience that allows for extended sessions with very little ear fatigue.
The Lake People MC100 offers all the features required of a monitor controller: mute and dim switches to immediately reduce the listening levels, a mono switch to check for mono compatibility. Left and right channel can be swapped and monitored separately. The left channel can be phase reversed to check the side signal or investigate phase alignment issues. The level is controlled with a proven Alps RK27 potentiometer with 41 steps and a solid 50-mm knob. The optional MC100 PRO variant replaces the Alps potentiometer with a 256-step reed relay control, adding advantages in terms of both sound and longevity.
The Lake People MC100 is available from late May 2023 through retail and via the website below. The MSRP for the MC100 is 1,799.90 EUR, for the MC100 PRO with reed relay volume control 2,399.90 EUR.