Most preamp for the buck.

D

dchase

New member
In terms of money, what brands reflect good value in their products? I’m looking for a good basic pre, with two channels, high headroom. I’m not looking for a cheap gimmick, I want the real deal pro studio stuff. What preamps are recommend in the <1000$ budget.

Am I better off finding an old board, and getting a decent op amp, and racking the pres myself? Or is it worth it to get a single nice pre, from a good brand? My taste ranges from airy and transparent to colored and compressed, but for the sake of building my studio up to high standards on a low budget, I’d like to go as transparent as possible.

Ebay listings, reviews, statistics are all welcome, any info I can get is great. Thank you for your help.
 
I think the Hamptone HJFP2 comes assembled now for under $1,000. It's a good piece of gear. It should keep a normal person happy in a home studio setting who wants a top end pre.
 
You can get a 2-channel sebatron for a little over that amount.

Also, the two-channel Davisound TB-12 is around $900.

The Hamptone stuff is getting a lot of respect.
 
distortedrumble said:
here we go again
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Give it up, dude, it's a lost cause. No matter how much you try to point folk to use the search feature, there will always be the misguided who continue to answer the threads, thus lessening the likelihood that anyone will ever feel the need to actually attempt a search :(
 
D&R preamps at $250 a channel. Extremely clean and transparent, lots of headroom.

Sytek preamps at $200 a channel. Fairly clean, a little bit of a smooth characteristic.
 
pre's

Yea, I second the Hamptone pre's. I just finished the tube version (now I have both tube and Jfet) and they sound fabtastic. Highly recommended.
 
Thanks for your help guys. I’ve found a pretty comprehensive list of preamps in all sorts of configurations and price ranges.

Link:
http://www.barnabas.com/sound/preamps.shtml

There is an awful lot of stuff out there, now I jut have to stop searching and commit to something worthwhile. Generally speaking, is it a pretty safe bet going with a used pre? Or should I be apprehensive about a used preamps reliability?
 
You might be able to find a used Millennia HV-3B for around your price range, although it would probably be a bit more. Also take a look at the Benchmark Media MPS-400/2000. Either of these would be worth the extra money you'd spend on them.
 
fraserhutch said:
Give it up, dude, it's a lost cause. No matter how much you try to point folk to use the search feature, there will always be the misguided who continue to answer the threads, thus lessening the likelihood that anyone will ever feel the need to actually attempt a search
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People like you must know everything. Tell me then all mighty audio recording authority what should I (“the misguided”) look at. If your anything like me, and actually work for your money, and care how you spend it, your sarcasm dose nothing for anyone. Quite acting like an omnipotent audiophile who’s too good for us common folk. If you don’t have anything relevant to post regarding the stated thread topic don’t post. If you want to tell me how stupid I am, it sounds like you have some insecurities yourself.

Anyways…regarding preamps I’m leaning to toward these:

Millennia HV-3B
Earthworks 1022 ZDT
John Hardy m-1 (2ch)
Vintech dual 72
Trident Audio S20

Any favorites? Suggestions?
 
I would say first figure out what type of preamp you are after. The preamps on your list are very different from one another.
 
That’s just it; I'm not quite sure what I want. I know I'll buy more preamps down the road in different flavors for different uses, but for now I'd really like to concentrate on a getting a nice vocal/acoustic instrument pre.
 
dchase said:
That’s just it; I'm not quite sure what I want. I know I'll buy more preamps down the road in different flavors for different uses, but for now I'd really like to concentrate on a getting a nice vocal/acoustic instrument pre.
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You might want to look into the API or OSA lunchboxes where you can add different pres to fit your needs.
 
OSA doesn't really offer a preamp of the "tranpsarent" or "clean" type though. For a first preamp I would look for more of a transparent type so the preamp itself does not become a limiting factor for certain things. Millenia, Grace, D&R, Earthworks, and maybe even Hardy.
 
dchase said:
People like you must know everything. Tell me then all mighty audio recording authority what should I (“the misguided”) look at. If your anything like me, and actually work for your money, and care how you spend it, your sarcasm dose nothing for anyone. Quite acting like an omnipotent audiophile who’s too good for us common folk. If you don’t have anything relevant to post regarding the stated thread topic don’t post. If you want to tell me how stupid I am, it sounds like you have some insecurities yourself.
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No, I don't know everything, never indicated I did. HOWEVER, I do know how to read, and wouldn';t have misconstrued the post as badly as you did.

Further more, I understand how to use the search function, which is what MSHilarious and I a moaning that people don't use, instead of asking a question that gets asked about every other week here.

Get a clue, asshole.
 
would you consider keeping the $1000 budget and getting a single channel unit rather than a dual?

if so you can have many good options.

if you want 2 channels and can save more $$$ you can get into a chandler tg2 or a used mp2nv.
 
dchase said:
People like you must know everything. Tell me then all mighty audio recording authority what should I (“the misguided”) look at. If your anything like me, and actually work for your money, and care how you spend it, your sarcasm dose nothing for anyone. Quite acting like an omnipotent audiophile who’s too good for us common folk. If you don’t have anything relevant to post regarding the stated thread topic don’t post. If you want to tell me how stupid I am, it sounds like you have some insecurities yourself.

Anyways…regarding preamps I’m leaning to toward these:

Millennia HV-3B
Earthworks 1022 ZDT
John Hardy m-1 (2ch)
Vintech dual 72
Trident Audio S20

Any favorites? Suggestions?
Click to expand...

The s20 is good for drums, acoustic guitars, piano, violin, cello and cab micing from what ive tested it on.
All with full warm results. It sucks balls on vocals though.
But for drums its frikin awesome.

-Finster
 
You could get an Avalon M5, Vintech 1272 (slightly more) or a Brent Averill 312 clone. All three of those pres rock!
 
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