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Mic Pre Amp for vocals

SteveMurraySteveMurray Posts: 66
edited October 2007 in Musicians and Gearheads
Ok i've been researching for a while now and the more i research the more confused i get as to what to steer clear of and what to look for.

Im in an acoustic duo and we are looking to record our EP at home. We seem to be able to get a great sound out of our acoustic guitars but we need a pre amp to help livin and warm up the vocals.

i know its a rather broad question and probably not the right forum for it but i know there are a fair few home recorders here so im interested to hear what their experiences have led them to like and recommend in a pre amp?

$1000 AUD is probably my budget which is roughly $800 USD i think
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Comments

  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MP20

    I've had good experiences with this one. It's a great deal for the money.

    look around at sweetwater they have a lot of good stuff that might work for you, I think they have some focusrites on sale. You might also try some simple tube preamps

    What system are you recording with? There may be plug ins that can help.
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • All Those YesterdaysAll Those Yesterdays Posts: 2,723
    Pacomc79 wrote:
    http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MP20

    I've had good experiences with this one. It's a great deal for the money.

    look around at sweetwater they have a lot of good stuff that might work for you, I think they have some focusrites on sale. You might also try some simple tube preamps

    What system are you recording with? There may be plug ins that can help.


    I'd say go with a tube pre-amp. The problem is the low end ones cost a ton, and then there is the high end ones they cost 10 tons. there is not to many middle of the road deals, even then it cost a ton!!!!
    E. Lansing-98 Columbus-00,03,10 Detroit-00,03 (1&2),06, 14 Cleveland-03,06,10 Toledo-04, Grand Rapids-04,06 London-05, Toronto-05, Indianapolis 10, East Troy (1&2) 11, Chicago 13, Detroit 14

    https://www.facebook.com/aghostwritersapology/
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    All Those Yesterdays wrote:
    I'd say go with a tube pre-amp. The problem is the low end ones cost a ton, and then there is the high end ones they cost 10 tons. there is not to many middle of the road deals, even then it cost a ton!!!!


    There is a pretty good focusrite for 650 in there and I really am intrigued by the Vintech (Neve 1073 copies essentially) but they are out of the price range.

    The UA is 800 and it does have the tube in there, I actually think if possible it might be worth it to try the Electro Harmonix stuff, they have a tube preamp I think that's in the 250 range.

    http://www.ehx.com/ehx2/Default.asp?q=f&f=%2FCatalog%2F02%5FHome%5FStudio%5FPerformance%5FProducts%2F29%5F12AY7%5FMic%5FPreamp
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • All Those YesterdaysAll Those Yesterdays Posts: 2,723
    Pacomc79 wrote:
    There is a pretty good focusrite for 650 in there and I really am intrigued by the Vintech (Neve 1073 copies essentially) but they are out of the price range.

    The UA is 800 and it does have the tube in there, I actually think if possible it might be worth it to try the Electro Harmonix stuff, they have a tube preamp I think that's in the 250 range.

    http://www.ehx.com/ehx2/Default.asp?q=f&f=%2FCatalog%2F02%5FHome%5FStudio%5FPerformance%5FProducts%2F29%5F12AY7%5FMic%5FPreamp


    I believe we are using a aphex 2 channel tube pre-amp. It's old probably 7 or 8 years minimum? Anyway it's tough to justify a higher end tube pre-amp, It would be nice to compare the one we use with a high end deal to see how much of a difference it is.

    Of course we usually are going to tape not digital, so we are getting some warm out of the tape too.

    The ones you mentioned appear to be worth checking out.
    E. Lansing-98 Columbus-00,03,10 Detroit-00,03 (1&2),06, 14 Cleveland-03,06,10 Toledo-04, Grand Rapids-04,06 London-05, Toronto-05, Indianapolis 10, East Troy (1&2) 11, Chicago 13, Detroit 14

    https://www.facebook.com/aghostwritersapology/
  • SteveMurraySteveMurray Posts: 66
    thanks for the replies guys. some good suggestions!

    Im using Cubase SX3 to record. i've tried a few VST plugins but im not really happy with what it does to the sound.

    I've heard good things about presonus in terms of bang for your buck, i think i'll start by looking at their range, there is so much choice i need to somehow narrow it down
  • mccreadyisgodmccreadyisgod Posts: 6,395
    I'll put in a vote for:

    http://www.fmraudio.com/RNP8380.htm
    ...and if you don't like it, you can suck on an egg.
  • IDgotIIDgotI Posts: 262
    mccreadyisgod wrote:
    I'll put in a vote for:

    http://www.fmraudio.com/RNP8380.htm


    +1 (x10)!
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    mccreadyisgod wrote:
    I'll put in a vote for:

    http://www.fmraudio.com/RNP8380.htm


    :D that's "really nice" and only half a rack space.
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • samquigleysamquigley Posts: 220
    I'm toying with the idea of offloading my Focusrite Platinum Voicemaster Pro. It's really is the biz, but I only used it about half a dozen times, and that was a few years ago when I was set on becoming an audio engineer. Not a good plan. I bought it for $1100 from Factory Sound here in Melbourne but I'd let it go for $750 plus postage. The zero-latency monitoring feature really set it apart from the rest at the time. They're probably all doing that now, but I'm off computer recording, so I don't really know.

    http://www.focusrite.com/product/voicemaster_pro/
  • SteveMurraySteveMurray Posts: 66
    Hey biffhardon, is the Voicemaster Pro pretty limited to just vocals or does it do a nice acoustic guitar aswell? i wouldnt mind getting a pre amp that i can use for acoustic aswell

    also has anyone heard or had any experience with these build it yourself kit pre amps? http://www.jlmaudio.com/Baby_Animal_Mic_Pre.htm
    apparantely pretty darn good
  • enharmonicenharmonic Posts: 1,917
    How much is the GT Brick in Australia? That would be my first choice on a budget. GREAT pre at any price.
    new music: http://www.myspace.com/blackbirdsymphonique

    old music: http://www.myspace.com/slowloader
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