Crap 1 vs. Crap 2

[deadleafecho]

SO im looking to upgrade a little. I dont have much to begin with, Im mostly just recording my own demos and stuff. Right now I pretty much run a mackie 1202 vlz pro for pre amps into an Maudio Audiophile 2496. Im looking to do some or all of the following (though all probably wouldnt make much sense)
1) improve my preamp, and keep the 2496
2) Replace both
3) Replace preamp with something that has an ADC or ADC option, either firewire or with spdif that I could connect to the 2496

My price range is around 500, not much I know, but that can go alot longer on ebay.
Ive been looking at an RNP and various focusrite stuff, like the trakmaster or twintrak pro , as well as different parts of the saffire line (the standup boxs and the rack mount one). I wouldnt mind have 4+ inputs in case I ever needed to recorded a drummer, but right now its not really necessary. If it helps, the style of music is a mix of stuff like Failure, Hum, Shiner, Soundgarden. I play a Les Paul Studio into a Mesa Boogie Mark III w/ marshall cab. Pretty much throw a 57 on it and go. Im more concerned with guitar sound right now than vocals, ill worry about a real vocal mic later...
I suppose my immediate concern is not seeing much of a difference in the pres, (short of going into the $700+ range). Should I forgo 2 channel pres and dump all my money into something like a grace 101?
Any actual advice would be appreciated.

[chessrock]

Wouldn't even bother, to tell the truth.

The stuff you have is fine. Maybe if you want more channels, you could get something like an Audiofire 8 ... or a Delta 1010 or whatever.

.

[Robert D]

Got milk? I mean....got monitors?

[SonicAlbert]

A preamp upgrade or a mic upgrade. You might bet better results for $500 by putting it toward a mic or two.

As far as preamps, don't buy more channels than you need. If you are using one channel, then put all the money into the one channel. If you are using two channels, then buy two channels. If you ever need more channels later you could use the Mackie for that, plus whatever preamp you buy now.

There's really no point in swapping out your current interface for another budget interface. That will make *no* difference to your sound. Again, buy only what you need now. If you later need to record drums, then look into interfaces at that point.

[Somnium7]

I'd have to agree with Chessrock. If what you have is working for you stick with it. I'm a firm believer of getting the most out of minimal equipment and I do just that. Most people laugh when I tell them what I use. then they listen to my music and call me a liar.

SonicAlbert's suggestion is a good one also. You can never put too much money into monitoring. The most expensive thing I own is my monitors and the improvements in my recordings and mixes makes me happy I dumped that cash into monitoring even if I had to endure a few "lean months".

Even though it's not what you asked about I would like to suggest another option regarding computers. Upgrade your PC/Mac. For me the most frustrating part of my recording system is the computer end. Having a dual head graphics card and an extra monitor is awesome. I have this setup at work and I don't know how I went so long without it at home. That's next on my list. Sure it doesn't do anything for my sound but making the computer less frustrating allows me to get more done.

[Bulls Hit]

I'm in a similar situation. My next purchase will be a nice preamp, like this UA unit http://www.jrrshop.com/product_info....oducts_id=5530

[battleminnow]

I have a Mackie Onyx 1220 mixer and firewire card available in the Free Ads forum. I have always loved it for it's preamps and stability, but I am moving to a bigger console and interface with more direct outs. The preamps are worlds better than the VLZ preamps, and the EQ is very nice for live use (tracks upload dry.) PM me if you are interested.

Pete

[MCI2424]

Originally Posted by deadleafecho

SO im looking to upgrade a little. I dont have much to begin with, Im mostly just recording my own demos and stuff. Right now I pretty much run a mackie 1202 vlz pro for pre amps into an Maudio Audiophile 2496. Im looking to do some or all of the following (though all probably wouldnt make much sense)
1) improve my preamp, and keep the 2496
2) Replace both
3) Replace preamp with something that has an ADC or ADC option, either firewire or with spdif that I could connect to the 2496

My price range is around 500, not much I know, but that can go alot longer on ebay.
Ive been looking at an RNP and various focusrite stuff, like the trakmaster or twintrak pro , as well as different parts of the saffire line (the standup boxs and the rack mount one). I wouldnt mind have 4+ inputs in case I ever needed to recorded a drummer, but right now its not really necessary. If it helps, the style of music is a mix of stuff like Failure, Hum, Shiner, Soundgarden. I play a Les Paul Studio into a Mesa Boogie Mark III w/ marshall cab. Pretty much throw a 57 on it and go. Im more concerned with guitar sound right now than vocals, ill worry about a real vocal mic later...
I suppose my immediate concern is not seeing much of a difference in the pres, (short of going into the $700+ range). Should I forgo 2 channel pres and dump all my money into something like a grace 101?
Any actual advice would be appreciated.

For $500 maybe you should look into a good used mic. Pre-amps never really make a significant difference unless you are mixing over 8 tracks of material, and less if it is hard rock. You can get around with the stuff you have and spend the $$$ on something like a KSM44 or AKG414 (used).

[amra]

I vote for monitors 1st. You have no idea how much more you hear with some decent quality monitors vs. PC speakers.

If you already have monitors, THEN you could start thinking about a nice quality one channel preamp...or maybe an Senheiser E609 or Audix I5 to compliment the 57 on a guitar cab.

I don't hear a huge difference on guitar between Mackie pres and $100 or even $500 per channel preamps. I just don't think it makes much a difference on guitar. Now I DO think you can hear a noticeable difference in vocals, not a WOW difference, but a definite improvement.

[pandamonk]

Originally Posted by Bulls Hit

I'm in a similar situation. My next purchase will be a nice preamp, like this UA unit http://www.jrrshop.com/product_info....oducts_id=5530

I'd upgrade other things before the preamp, if i were in that situation... The improvement you will see from a preamp upgrade will be minimal compared to many other things. And will be almost unnoticable if the rest of the setup is low quality. The main things to upgrade in my opinion are, mics, monitors, and acoustics.