Clean, uncoloured preamp question ?

siog

New member
I'm spending some money on a preamp and I have some basic questions about the different features which are confusing me. I'm looking for a clean sound with little or no colour - just boost. The mics will do the work (and the singers!).

There's tube or solid-state. There's with and without A/D conversion (is this the same as ADAT?). There's with and without compression and other extras.

I'm only going to spend less than 1,000 euro (probably less as I want to invest in some more microphones). Any advice for me in the lower price range?

P.S: Neumann 103, Rode NT1 mics.
 
If you just need a preamp....then there's no need to get some all-in-one combi box that has several fucntions...preamp/comp/converters/etc...

AFA clean & transparent....there's enough brands/models out there that you can score for $1,000 Euro.
Are you looking for a single or dual channel preamp?

I see you're in Ireland...so maybe you should first narrow it down to what available in your area (unless you're willing to buy stuff outside of the country).
I mean....if you pick a brand/model that's available to you....just Google it, and you'll get all kinds of info, specs and reviews.
 
There's tube or solid-state. There's with and without A/D conversion (is this the same as ADAT?).

Not necessarily.
You usually see adat/lightpipe/toslink where there are 8 channels to carry.
S/Pdif is more common for 2 channel digital.
 
most interfaces have clean preamps.
save your money, get a mic you like, use your interface and use some plug's.

theres a gazillion shootouts around to help you decide.
 
Thanks alot guys - I really just need a few more clean preamps for the odd occasion when I need 3/4 mics. Just two inputs on my interface.

Cheers. :)
 
I wouldn't bother with tube preamps. with your budget, you are getting into the low end of real tube preamps, but you are well into high end for solid state preamps.

Any tube preamps under $800/ channel or so will be starved plate designs that will not be just clean gain.
 
People banged on about the gap pre73 when I was preamp shopping. Anyone got any experience there?

I ended up racking modules from old (very clean) consoles instead and never regretted it.
Each has in/out, gain, pad, and phantom. That's all I need from a good preamp. :)
 
That's just exactly what I want too. Quality, with no frills. I'll check out the GAP.

---------- Update ----------

That's just what I need. Thanks, I'll check out the GAP.
 
Avalon V5, Great River ME1-MV, Hell, if you would have asked the question last week, I would have sold you my Amek 9098 dual preamp for about $1000. I just got rid of it Monday,
 
That's just exactly what I want too. Quality, with no frills. I'll check out the GAP.

---------- Update ----------

That's just what I need. Thanks, I'll check out the GAP.

Get a few user reviews. I've never used one. It was just recommended to me a few times. :)
 
I am lusting for a Daking Mic Pre for quite some now.
I did not use them myself yet (big disclaimer), but I got the recommendation from people I really trust,
and I have read advice from William Wittman or Ola Sonmark who really like this pre,
so I guess it is up to par with the great stuff.
Fits your budget.
I'll get one as soon as my budget allows for it...
 
The Avalon V5 mentioned above kicks arse, but is $1200 USA, and sure to be a lot more in Eire, given that it's made across the pond. Probably out of your price range.

Do a search on Grace Design m101. That should fit the bill, and the budget.

ADAT is a format for the transfer of digital audio data. An AD converter is what turns an analog signal into digital data. So- if a preamp has ADAT (or for that matter, S/PDIF) out, it has to also have a built in AD converter. Here's the rub- Not all AD converters (or preamps) are created equal. A Behringer ADA8000 converts 8 channels of Analog into digital output, and costs about $100 US. The best AD converters can run over $1000 US per channel. If it was as simple as 1's and 2's, we'd all buy that Behringer. Like everything else, you get what you pay for. But- because something is cheap, it doesn't make it useless. Conversely, because something is dear, that doesn't make it the best choice for any given function. I own AD converters in the $800 per channel range, *and* I own that Behringer. I use them both, usually for different functions. I can't afford 8 channels of Lucid to record drums. Every good project studio is an unholy alliance of cheap kit that works, and a few pieces of truly top shelf stuff that has to be versatile enough to perform multiple functions. Best of luck. Just get the best preamps and AD converters you can afford, and learn to use them well. As in auto racing, 90% of the money is spent on the last 10% of performance. You can do a lot with the other 90%, and it's the only way you'll find out why the other 10% is worth paying for.
 
AT that budget, all of your choices will be good quality, personal preference is the only thing that will determine good vs. bad
 
About the GAP: if you really want clean and uncoloured, stay away from them. I like them very much but they are not really uncoloured and that is because the transformers inside.(they will make your signal richer-warmer because of the added distortion that you don't really hear as distortion but as previously mentioned things.) If you want a great preamp for little buck, this is a great picking, but it isn't uncoloured.
I was also planning on going the uncoloured way but using a digital medium made me want something else because digital uses a low pass filter to do the AD conversion and it makes your signal smaller and colder (thats the way I hear it, ever made a comparison between your monitoring and the things you have recorded?, they differ). so now i want some colour and bigness to make it as big as the original...if that makes sense. I only use my ultra clean preamp with a ribbon mic with Lundahl transformers....

If you use a typical,modern (I am not going to say Chinese, damn I did..) condensor with the HF peaks, a neutral preamp might not the best choice. With dynamics it could be the other way around.

In the TV medium, uncoloured is the way to go these days, and thats why there are no more transformers in the preamps. Just like in the modern Neumanns...and I am not saying they are bad, just different.

Each time after buying a new preamp I wonder myself if it was really worth all that money. Yes you can hear the difference if you focus on it but in a musical context it doesn't really matter (mic placement anyone? I know it has been told a lot but it makes a greater difference than the mike or the preamp). If you are doing voiceovers, thats something different.

Maybe this is not what you wanted to hear but it is just a little food for thought.

good luck
 
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