PreSonus Eureka.. worth it?

J

Jackrip

New member
My current set up is working great for the money I paid, but I cant help but wanna get best stuff lol. What I got now is a VTB-1 preamp, Tascam US-122, DBX 266 compressor.. working with a Groove Tubes GT 55 mic.

My question is, would I be getting a significate upgrade if I traded all that(besides the mic) in for the Eureka? It would run me $500. When altogether I paid $450 for what I would be trading in. Also, would the eureka be my soundcard as well, it says in the description "optional 24bit/292k digital output card." If so, and it would make my mic sound better, I might have to trade up.

Anyone have experience with it?
 
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I'd save a little more and get one of these:

True P-Solo
DAV BG1
Sebatron Vmp1000
Speck 5.0
UA Solo
Grace 101
Safesound P1
 
You'd have to buy the Digital I/O card extra, which adds another $180 or so if I remember right. I have a eureka and used a VTB-1 for a while. The eureka IS a step up in sound, because it has a full channel strip which allows you a alot more flexibility in sound. Just don't expect to go "WOW" when you hear it compared, compared to a VTB-1. If you want to go "WOW" you are probably going to have to spend upwards of $1000
(unless you "wow" easily, I guess...)
 
Dot said:
Nope. Not worth it. In that class of gear I'd recommend an M-Audio Tampa for $328.
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+1 for the tampa. i love mine.

as for the eureka.....they got it right with putting "reek" in the name. ick, what a POS.


cheers,
wade
 
I never understood the rave reviews for the Eureka. The Joemeek line will blow it away on all counts!

War
 
I agree on both the P-Solo and the Tampa. I have a Tampa, and it's a keeper. Un-like the Tampa with it's channel strip features, the P-Solo just does gain, but it does it really well and sounds warm and full.
 
the digital out of the eureka is just an adat port, it won't work as a soundcard.
i would most certainly suggest not upgrading right now. if i were you i'd save up for something like an apogee minime usb version, and in the meantime just try to get the best out of what you have right now.
 
I would have to agree with the people on both sides of the eureka on this one. Mine was a big step up from the on-board pre's on my interface (Tascam FW-1804), but it wasn't what I expected after reading the reviews. It goes really well with my NT1-A, but that seems to be about it.

As others have said, look at other options before believing the reviews. Also, no, it doesn't act as a soundcard/interface. If you insist upon getting one of these in the future, go get a used one. I got mine for around $225.00 used, and it doesn't hurt as much when you don't get all that you expected... ;)
 
I had a Eureka and it wasn't all that, in fact the joe meek 3Q kicked it's ass and took it's lunch money.
 
amra said:
... If you want to go "WOW" you are probably going to have to spend upwards of $1000
(unless you "wow" easily, I guess...)
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IMO, all of the preamps I mentioned will go WOW, and none of them cost $1,000. I've heard the Sebatron, both UA Solo pres, and the True Solo in person. I've only heard clips of the DAV, Speck, and Grace--but even those MP3s impressed me. These are all very good preamps. The Safesound is a channel strip that is held in very high regards and costs around $600.
 
I have a Eureka and a Tampa.

Eureka = Win.

They are different, but I prefer the Eureka
 
I have the Eureka, it works very well in my chain...I have a Ghost24 and the Eureka is a different sounding pre, not any better/worse and certainly not worthy of the bashing it gets....for some reason. I've used it foh and recording, I eq it through board and dont use the channel fx's, works for me and sounds good on vocals. If ya want better save up a couple grand.

Rack gear is very bias.
 
I use the Eureka at work and have a VTB at home.

I like both. The Eureka has a lot more to offer - and it is clean. We've had no technical problems with it, and it is very consistent (from day to day and from pre to pre).
 
I just did a shootout the other day involving a Eureka and a VTB. The Eureka sounds noticeably clearer on any source that I tried. Mind you, it doesn't sound five times better ($100 for the VTB vs. $500 for the Eureka), but you will never be able to get as good a sound from the VTB as from the Eureka.
 
Whoopysnorp said:
I just did a shootout the other day involving a Eureka and a VTB. The Eureka sounds noticeably clearer on any source that I tried. Mind you, it doesn't sound five times better ($100 for the VTB vs. $500 for the Eureka), but you will never be able to get as good a sound from the VTB as from the Eureka.
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My main outboard pres for remote recording are two GRs and two Eurekas. I couldn't afford to add two more channels of GR, yet I haven't been dissapointed with the Eureka, which also exhibit a lot of warmt. It also has a decent compressor section that is transparent.

My only criticism with the Eureka is that the knobs are too small and hard to get to under poor lighting situations. Obviously, the GR is my main go to pre, but the Eureka definately holds it's own and I haven't had any problems with any of the units in over 4 years of rigorous use, knock on wood. It also uses a detachable AC cord, unlike many of the budget pres using wall warts.

Before that, I was using Grace 101s, which were a little too clinical for my tastes. I'm glad I changed over.
 
I've had my Eureka for 7 or 8 months now. I've got to say, at first I wasn't particularly impressed with it for anything but Bass DI (which it REALLY sounds good at). In fact, the only reason I really kept it around was because it sounded so good as a Bass DI. Plus, it had a pretty nice transparent compressor and EQ.

But....

After using it on everything from vocals to kick drums, I have really come to appreciate what it can do. The adjustable mic impedance gives it a TON of flexibility. That one thing is the key to Eureka sounding really good, or really average. On a dynamic like a 57 for vocals, the more you crank up the impedence the "glassier" the vocals get. Turn it down, and you get a deep "movie announcer guy" kind of sound. But the key is, you need to test different impedence settings whenever you switch mics (dynamics at least) because you can get vastly different sounds on vocals and even electric guitar.

I kept it around for bass DI, but I have come to really like it. Believe me, I don't get attached to gear. If I don't like it after I have given myself time to REALLY test it, I will chunk it. I have bought and sold lots of preamps, even focusrites in a similar price range that weren't keeping around. To me, the Eureka is better than just anything I have tried in that range, when you consider sound AND features. If I find something better, I will chunk it. But for now, it is working out for me pretty well...

Here is a track I recorded with the Eureka on vocals:
 
The other thing about the Eureka is that the 'saturate' feature basically sucks. I suppose maybe somebody somewhere could find it useful for something, but I did some comparisons between it all the way up versus all the way down, and cranking it seems to remove detail and make the sound less open. I think it's best left in the off position.
 
Whoopysnorp said:
The other thing about the Eureka is that the 'saturate' feature basically sucks. I suppose maybe somebody somewhere could find it useful for something, but I did some comparisons between it all the way up versus all the way down, and cranking it seems to remove detail and make the sound less open. I think it's best left in the off position.
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Try cranking the saturate up when using it as a bass DI. That is the only time I use it......
 
Using the Eureka for a DI is a definite plus for the unit, and the saturate, o'well it does a tape saturation injustice, but is useful when experimenting as a DI and not just wide open or off...plus guitars sound pretty darn good through it, compress or eq to taste.

The Eureka is one pre that I have that sounds good for female vocalists and if you've ever recorded a lady singing you know what I mean.

...I think its worth it, but get a deal!
 
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