External mic preamp use with presnous firestudio

davecg321

New member
I'm thinking of buying a golden age pre 73 Jr. The present on my firestudio project are way too clean for my liking.

I have tested out a external preamp before using the line inserts on the combi inputs of the interface but noticed the the gain knob still affected the signal. Should this not be completely bypassed if using a line signal?

Would it be ideal to leave the gain knob at zero and the signal from the mic preamp alone?
 
I'm thinking of buying a golden age pre 73 Jr. The present on my firestudio project are way too clean for my liking.

I have tested out a external preamp before using the line inserts on the combi inputs of the interface but noticed the the gain knob still affected the signal. Should this not be completely bypassed if using a line signal?

Would it be ideal to leave the gain knob at zero and the signal from the mic preamp alone?

You'll want to use a standard 1/4" TS cable out from the preamp into one of your line inputs (channels 3-8 in your case)...I believe these channels will not be affected by the gain knob when using the 1/4" input.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
 
Ya, many people choose to bypass the extra analog stage of the level knob. If your pre has digital out, you can, also, bypass one more analog stage. If my line-in are all full, I don't loose a lot of sleep over going into a combi jack - not all interfaces are equal in that regard, though.

Have fun with your new toy !
 
You'll want to use a standard 1/4" TS cable out from the preamp into one of your line inputs (channels 3-8 in your case)...I believe these channels will not be affected by the gain knob when using the 1/4" input.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
Curious why not to use a 1/4" TRS cable since the Pre73 Jr and Firestudio Project both are capable of a balanced connection?

The gain knobs on the front panel appear to affect the Line ins which would be the 1/4" of the combo jack...
 

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Curious why not to use a 1/4" TRS cable since the Pre73 Jr and Firestudio Project both are capable of a balanced connection?

The gain knobs on the front panel appear to affect the Line ins which would be the 1/4" of the combo jack...

You're probably right, actually :) ...that's why I said to correct me.
 
Found this block diagram image for a Presonus Studiolive and it seems to suggest the Line inputs are after the mic pres. Perhaps the Firestudio would be the same(?)
block.jpg
 
The specs look good on their website. Drive the gain until you get the sound you want then adjust the output on both pre and interface to keep things from peaking. And yes use a 1/4 " TRS cable.
 
The gain knob on the interface does indeed affect the signal further. If these inputs are true line then surely the adjusting the gain shouldn't have any effect.

I've read (forums etc) to leave the interface gain at 0 when using an external as it distorts the signal too much.

:/
 
The gain knob on the interface does indeed affect the signal further. If these inputs are true line then surely the adjusting the gain shouldn't have any effect.

I've read (forums etc) to leave the interface gain at 0 when using an external as it distorts the signal too much.

:/

I suspect the manufacturer retained the gain control in the path as all instrument line levels might be slightly different.
My pre runs about mid-way volume wise in itself, then the line out to my interface.
SM57 mic on my interface - gain at 2 o'clock. Mic through pre-amp is at 10 o'clock on the interface.
Both end up at -18 on my DAW.
Everything would depend on how loud you set the output on the pre.
The only way to know is sit down for a few hours and do some tests.
 
.." suggest the Line inputs are after the mic pres".

That's just normal electronics. What might be abnormal is what you can find in pro gear : ) Like with mixer routing. If a interface has the multiple MIC pre, that's normally just on the XLR MIC input and a level knob wouldn't affect the line in, but only the shadow knows for sure.

"If these inputs are true line then surely the adjusting the gain shouldn't have any effect".

Any additional component can affect the signal, but it's not a big deal for me to go into a mixer, or, combi jack. Maybe, with a Stereo source & pre, I'd want straight line, or digital.
 
Mark is on the money. That diagram shows the line signal going into a downstream IC. The gain control might still affect the signal but it is probably a dual gang pot and Presonus use a clever gain sharing arrangement to minimize noise and maximize headroom? The company are anyway known for excellent pre amps.

However, this question of "will an attenuated mic pre as a line stage bugger my pre amp sound?" comes up regularly. IMHO not likely. Given a decent mic amp design (and Pres' are such as we know!) the addition of a few resistors is hardly going to change things much, in any case the stage will likely be at minimum gain and hence contribute even less noise etc to the signal. The question is even more marginal if the intended pre amp is one of "colour".

But, all my waffle is probably needless? The FS Project has inserts so the whole mic/line stage can be completely bypassed.

Dave.
 
looks like you could use the insert return as a line in too, and bypass the front end even more.
 
How comes I can use this? And how would I set up that input in vst connections. I only have 1-8 inputs available here (the ones on the front of the unit assumingly) if these apply to channels 1-2 then the manual states these are not for line inputs (not sure about those returns though)

Tah
 
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