8-Channel Mic Pre w/o AD conversion (but has direct outs)

I wonder if the SM PRO PR8E is any good.
Mic/line in on the front, TRS out at the rear.

Gain and phantom on the front and per channel.

There's also the SM Pro EP84 which is looks like essentially the same unit but with phantom power, low cut, -20dB pad, phase invert, and an insert point on each channel, but the in's are all on the front and there's no metering from what i can see, plus i can't help but feel that they probably are about the same quality of pre's as on most budget audio interfaces. Plus it does feel that if you buy that you're almost expected to also buy the VU800 for decent metering.

I keep seeing new SM Pro products popping up and i'm really intrigued by some of them but i can't help but feel that they're of berhinger quality. Has anyone used/tried any of their gear?
 
I'll just make it clear now before we start a myth. :p I know nothing about this gear at all.

That's the thing, neither do i! i really want to think that they're alright; perhaps not "great" but good enough. They've certainly got a couple of unique products that have caught my eye and their move into 500 series stuff makes me think that they've got something more to them than just super budget gear. Plus the Auzzie linage gives me slightly more faith in them for some reason.
 
Poor man's Neve from what I hear. :p

IDK, I heard a recommendation somewhere that made me aware of the product line.
For the price I thought about picking one up before I diyed those other pres.
Never came to anything.

EDIT: Just read a GS thread that slated the shit clean out of SMpro products.
 
EDIT: Just read a GS thread that slated the shit clean out of SMpro products.

Was it the same one that said Adam monitors suck, new Neumanns are the worst mics ever, and why do you need any other mic when you've got an SM7b? :D

Yeah, tbh i was imagining their stuff in the kind of ART/Mackie/Presonus range of gear. I'd been looking at their 1 space 500 rack, the 3 space one (although the radial one looks awesome and is about the same price) and their monitors controllers.
 
Ok, after reading the GS thread i concede :( Unfortunately it all seems based on bad build quality and cheap components. I read a couple of good reviews on other websites but the sheer amount of hate for it on GS took me aback.
 
Ok, after reading the GS thread i concede :( Unfortunately it all seems based on bad build quality and cheap components. I read a couple of good reviews on other websites but the sheer amount of hate for it on GS took me aback.

Pretty funny, huh?
It was like, one guy said they're not bad then the entire forum lined up to take shots.
Kinda like those sm7b/neumann/adam threads. :)
 
It was like, one guy said they're not bad then the entire forum lined up to take shots.

I did feel for the poor chap. He tried fighting his corner to start with saying how he really liked the pre's and how they were warm sounding etc etc and then more and more people just pilled on with their experiences which seemed like every other "why beri gear sucks" threads, although with fewer people going "yeah, but the berhinger ADA8000 is cool".

Damn you internet, ruining my perception of things since 2001. I'm gonna have a nap to recover :)
 
I have given up reading the GS site, they just bag everything.

"I have a wizzo $30,000 mic pre and I think it's great", reply, "no it's crap, you need a $35,000 mywazza mic pre" or "everything ever made in China is crap, has to be 1000 times the price and made in the good ol USA before I would put signal through it, or even listen to it" ....... DOH!

However I am not defending the SM Pro as I have not tried one so it may or may not be good.

Alan.
 
So with no Onyx 800R's in sight, I'm basically now torn between a brand new Focusrite Octopre MKII or a used Presonus M80 (w/o Jensens transformers). I like the features better on the M80, but I don't want to be sold only on features. The IDSS thing on the M80 is also quite cool (in writing anyways).

Pros of Focusrite: Said to be very clean and transparent, has hi-z inputs (which I don't actually care about, just use a DI box into an XLR jack if you don't have hi z jacks)

Cons of Focusrite: 2 jacks on the front (so if you constantly have xlr's patched in, you need to find a way to fish only two cables from your snake around to the front), not as many channel features compared to m80, looks cheap imo

Pros of M80: after reading further reviews, even the non-jensen version sounds good, tons of features per channel, looks solidly built (apparently old presonus was more serious quality than the newer stuff)

Cons of M80: no hi z jacks (not a big deal), older used unit so I'd worry if any quality has some how degraded inside the unit?, same price used as octopre brand new

See what I mean?! Torn. Without hearing them side by side, I have no idea what to think!! And I hate this stuff because there is MUCH more important things I could be focusing my energy on (aka tracking/mixing more music) rather than geeking out over gear. :facepalm:
 
Tbh, after taking what you've said in to account and looking more closely at them both, i'd personally be more tempted by the Presonus M80. My reasons would be;

Better metering with the meters being on the actual channel rather than a little screen further down, insert points per channel, features per channel especially the individual phantom power per channel, and all in's on the back so less faffing.

That's my 2 pence anyway :)
 
Yep, I'm just doing it! Goin' with ma' gut! Need to stop fretting about gear and just get on with it.

Getting the M80 used. I'm sure it will be just fine! At least better than my Mackie CR 1604 VLZ pres or the shitty digital onboard Tascam pre's I used to have on my old US-1800. Stand alone boutique pres are one thing, which I am working on accumulating very slowly over time, but when it comes to needing a large quantity of pres for things like drums, that would get real expensive. So this is what I am going for. Bam, done.

Thanks for all the replies and friendly suggestions guys! Always great to hear from ya's. :)
 
OMG this is the first time I have felt I could add something to a thread. I just went through looking intensely for exactly this kind of mixer. I'm an an analouge guy with 8 condenser mics and my problem was all the separate phontom power supplies I was dealing with. I highly recommend the SM Pro Audio SM EP84 for $339.00. It's an 8 channel direct out mic and line preamp and it has -10 and +4 outputs so it works with consumer and pro equipment. Another thing I like is that you can latter add a ADAT module to the unit and have a digital buss output, I didn't purchase that unit. For me it was also about the connectors, I wanted XLR outputs not TAS. Here's the manufacturs info. I hope I have been able to help someone.

The EP84 is the latest multichannel microphone preamplifier from SM Pro Audio. Packed with quality features and connectivity options, this sturdy 2RU rack-mountable unit is designed to provide studio users with 8 channels of clean and accurate microphone preamplification. The EP84 is an excellent front end for computer audio systems, stand-alone hard disk recorders, or just about any other analog or digital workstation.With all the functionality of a top line preamplifier, the EP84 features independent variable gain control, -20dB pad, phase reverse, low cut filters, 48v Phantom power, and insert points on each of the eight (8) channels.Each mic-pre provides some 60dB of gain with a massive 23db of maximum output.Eight (8) ADAT format channel outputs can be added to the EP84 via installation of the optional PR8IIA ADAT output module. With this simple user installed option, the EP84 integrates superbly into today's digital studio environments without a hitch. Great for connection to the latest ADAT compatible audio interfaces, the EP84 expands your recording possibilities you can even mic up the whole band!Note: The analog outputs (both +4dB XLR & -10dB TS) and the digital ADAT ouput (when fitted with the PR8IIA output module) operate simultaneously
 
Do you have any latency issues with the Audiofire 12? I used one for a long time and I occasionally had latency problems, but not all the time.

My story is kind of similar -- I wound up with 2 API 3124+ units that I bought separately used. They tended to clip the Audiofire 12, so I also got an attenuator (red cloud, I think). That left 4 inputs for other stuff, which was kind of cool. I found that the API pres are more versatile than I thought they would be - if the levels are low, they're pretty transparent (that is to say, to my tin ear, completely transparent). I've recorded jazz, singer/songwriter stuff, and loud hard rock with them and been pleased with the tracks.

Anyway, exceeds your stated budget, but you might look at something like that - I've been really happy with them.
 
OMG this is the first time I have felt I could add something to a thread. I just went through looking intensely for exactly this kind of mixer. I'm an an analouge guy with 8 condenser mics and my problem was all the separate phontom power supplies I was dealing with. I highly recommend the SM Pro Audio SM EP84 for $339.00. It's an 8 channel direct out mic and line preamp and it has -10 and +4 outputs so it works with consumer and pro equipment. Another thing I like is that you can latter add a ADAT module to the unit and have a digital buss output, I didn't purchase that unit. For me it was also about the connectors, I wanted XLR outputs not TAS. Here's the manufacturs info. I hope I have been able to help someone.

Yay, finally someone who can answer my questions about SM Pro. How do you find the unit? Sound quality, build quality? Any issues? Would you compare it to anything else in terms of sound and build? Do you own/intend to buy anymore SM Pro gear?
 
Yep, I'm just doing it! Goin' with ma' gut! Need to stop fretting about gear and just get on with it.

Getting the M80 used. I'm sure it will be just fine! At least better than my Mackie CR 1604 VLZ pres or the shitty digital onboard Tascam pre's I used to have on my old US-1800. Stand alone boutique pres are one thing, which I am working on accumulating very slowly over time, but when it comes to needing a large quantity of pres for things like drums, that would get real expensive. So this is what I am going for. Bam, done.

Thanks for all the replies and friendly suggestions guys! Always great to hear from ya's. :)

Good choice of the used Presonus M80. Silly cheap used. Fairly high quality build of a nice dual servo design. That preamp design is still used in the Presonus Eureka, IIRC. The IDSS control can be useful for certain things, particularly when you want to round off transients a bit and add some even harmonics to the signal.
 
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