The Madrid based manufacturer Tierra Audio presents with the Tierra Audio Model Pepper an interesting series of 7 preamps in pocket size. The devices have their own tone and are used with common phantom power in front of a microphone preamplifier as a booster of dynamic moving coils or ribbons like a SM7-B, a RE20 or Royer R-10. All Tierra Audio products are developed and handmade in a small factory in the Spanish capital. Only selected components are used and the manufacturer stands out from the sea of clone forges with its own eco-guideline.
The Flavour model Pepper is a confident but very balanced sounding tone enhancer that thickens the sound without changing it too much or making the bass too heavy. The signal remains essentially as is, but gets about 33dB of level boost and simply becomes more present: Peaks are compressed away, subtle harmonics improve locatability, and at the same time the quality of the recording is fully preserved. Perfect as an all-purpose tool in the recording studio to spice up boring snare drums (no pun intended) or to tame too dynamic slap parts without robbing them of their power. The Pepper also shows its qualities on stage and is excellently suited to bring the singer sonically to the front.