ART Tube MP Studio Mic Preamp

KyleAtGalaxy

KyleAtGalaxy

Dedicated newb
Does anyone have any experience with the ART Tube MP Studio Mic Preamp? Musician's Friend has them on sale. Just wondering if they were worth a hoot:)
 
I have one of those - it may be an earlier model, but it looks very similar. Mine makes things sound bad, even with a good tube in it, and it makes a hissing noise. I don't use it. (not to be confused with the ART Digital MPA, which costs more, but sounds very good to me, and I do use it whenever I can)
 
For only $30, and if that's all you can afford, then it is a good deal. It will get you started.
 
I have one. It's alright. Nothing to write home about. It works, mine isn't too noisy, but doesn't really give much gain. Not that I need a lot of gain with a phantom powered LDC on a Trombone. It's a bit colored sound wise relative to my DMP3. But hey, $30 for a new working mic pre, that's a lot cheaper than paying to repair a non-working one. Some people like it as a DI for electric guitar. It'd probably be alright for live performances, and educational purposes.
 
craigmorris74 said:
They sound exactly like $30 mic pres on all sources.
Click to expand...

I figure it is probably closer to a $1 pre once you subtract all the fixed costs. :D

Case: $10.00
Wall wart:$3.00
Knobs: $2.00
PCB cost: $1.00
Pots and jacks: $2.50
Tube socket: $1.50
Distributor cut: $5.00
Dealer cut: $3.00
Manufacturer profit: $1.15
Preamp electronics cost: $0.85
 
I picked up a couple of these the last time MF had them at $30 because I'd pay $30 for the case, connectors, meter and power supply to use for DIY. I've been using one for a bass DI and it works great if you set it up to just kiss the limiter a bit. If you hit the limiter too hard it's not a good thing.
 
I've got the tube mp project series ($99.00), and it's quiet, and it "sounds" better then the built-in pres on my Behringer Xenyx, though that ain't saying much. Noticeably more expansive and airier, I guess you could say. After reading the above posts, I'm glad I got the more expensive one.
 
I bought my Tube MP Studio when they first came out at $129.00 :( as I needed to have a pre with my "new" RODE NT2 way back then. Both from Musicians Friend.

It really does make a nice inexpensive bass guitar pre/direct box. I've used it live through my JBL equipped Crate BX-160 and it sounds very nice!
I've also gotten some nice guitar sounds from it, not surprisingly however, as the stock Sovtek 7025/12AX7WA is a standard tube for a lot of guitar amp pres, Fenders and so on.
For $30, it could be fun! Change out the stock 12AX7WA to a 12AT7 then to a 6072 then to a (you get the point) to see what kind of different colorations you get as well as see what tube gains sound better etc. A learning experience for really cheap!

I'm not sure how or where they are made nowadays but mine is built like a tank and is heavy as a brick.
Although there is nothing to show where it was built, it has a ton of Rubycon (Japan) capacitors etc in it as well as a couple of Nichicons (Japan), so I am guessing it was made in Japan.
It still has the original stock Sovtek 7025/12AX7WA tube (which could be changed out for a tube with more character. Hmmmmmmm. Santa brought me 4 12AX7 Tung-Sols........ ;) ).
 
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For live use, it's also a great inexpensive way to fattening up the output signal from a digital guitar modeler/mfx (POD, V-AMP, GNX, etc.) or, used between a guitar and a modeler's (or other SS preamp) input, to add distortion that's controlled by turning up the volume pot on the guitar.

Paj
8^)
 
Still have mine from way back. You'll outgrow it as a mic pre in short order, but it will always be a usefull thing to have around, assuming you get a good one. Mine has no noise issues as long as you don't expect to use it with a ribbon or one of the large diaphram dynamics where extra gain is required.
 
I love these things...I'm on my second one in 6 years! It does fatten up everything that I put through it. No noise to be found on either of my units.
 
I am going to be buying one soon and build some mods I have heard about into it. From what I hear, it can turn a mediocre preamp into something very useful.
 
+1 to the bass DI. I use it all the time: bass --> ART pre --> Firebox. I've also used it behind an SM 58 to mic a kick drum once in a pinch and it definitely helped the sound.
 
I've heard audio samples of the modded (not just the tube!) and they sounded like a simple, cleanish circuit. If you're REALLY on a budget, this might not be a bad option, but I'll stress again, that there are problems with the stock units in the gain section, which has little to do with the tube.

Stock, my experience with two MP's before I knew any better, was that they were unusably noisy and poorly built. These unit were purchased new about seven years ago. A couple years late I bought a rackmount ART "tube" pre and while it was more solidly build and quieter than the MP's I used, they weren't in the same league as a JoeMeek 3Q and the pres on my M-Audio Delta. They exhibited a lack of detail and muddiness in the lower mids.

It's odd that the reason a lot of people consider buying the ART preamps is because of the tube, but with the exception of the MPA (which still has solid state input and output buffers) the tubes are implemented in ways that have little to do with real tube circuits. I wanted these things to impart tube magic to my stuff and fell for this logic (3 times!), but learned my lesson. Seriously, if you've got to have a TUBE pre, save your money for a few months and buy a Brick or a used Solo610.

That said, I'm not a hater of all ART products. The stereo compressor mentioned earlier is pretty useful, and the vari-mu compressor in the Pro Channel is a fun effect.

Craig
 
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