new preamp? sub $160?

bstarstudios

bstarstudios

Useless Thoughts
Looking for another mic pre (currently own a art studio mp, the cheapie)

my budget is 160 and these are the two im looking at:

-M-Audio DMP3
or
-Studio Projects Vtb-1

other suggestions?

I've used a Vtb-1 in the past and liked it a lot, and also owned a presnous tubepre and it wasn't bad.

any advice is accepted in my quest for a new preamp

B
 
yup. dmp3 will be great. i used it for years and liked it a lot. search because this has been asked a bunch of times, and you'll find a ton of good info (i'm not saying search because i'm a jerk who just doesn't want one more thread, i'm saying search because you'll get the info you're looking for).

but just get the dmp3 and be happy. i have the presonus tub-pre also, and it just collects dust and looks pretty with it's nice VU meter.
 
the tube-pre wans't bad but it wasnt as god as the vtb-1 in the similiar price range. i like the Dmp3 because its 2 mic pres in one affordable unit. but the vtb-1 is a beast for bass line in. maybe ill get thr dmp3 then buy a vtb-1 in a bit
 
I had the DMP3 with a RNC attached and it was a great improvement from my stock onboard sound. I thought it had that wow! improvement.
The gang here got a lot of cred points for that recommendation.

I tried the little ART thing and didnt like it for some reason....partially the ergonomics of its physical build didnt sit on my desk well.

I include the RNC because a touch of compression gave the DP3 a impressive tone I thought. DMP3 by itself I dont recall have the "sound" as much.

I later went to a $400-$450 channel strip and the DMP3/RNC combo was just as good still. I been trying out a ISA One recently, and think about the DMP3/RNC Combo is still a great tone in comparison, imo.

DMP3/RNC is a dual setup, dual channels.....so really its only $80 a channel for DMP3.

I bought a used VC3 Joe Meek past weekend or so , for $125-150 and its a single channel, pre+comp+eq.... thats an option, used gear.

DMP3 great value, imo. comes with power adapter too, which is cool.
 
thanks for the advic, the rnc also looks cool. i currently run a behringer compressor/expander. which soundsn ot bad ill say. this is really making me want a dmp3
 
Rnc is the only outboard compressor I use, the rest are software. I love it, but don't honestly use it very much. It is super clean so it won't color your sound. A lot of sotware comps will do that well too. Hardware comps are more of an effect for me so I'm looking at a RNLA or PBC6A. But the RNC is great just doesn't get a lot of use from me. My two cents only.
 
whoops, I saw RNC up there in your last post. If you meant RNP, it's great for the money, and I use mine on EVERYTHING. Not a source that I don't like it for. There are other pre's I prefer for some things, but there is nothing that sounds bad through the RNP to me. Of course I don't have a ton of experience with other stuff.
 
Do yourself a favor. Save your money. Forget the incremental upgrades. The $160 you spend now would go a lot further on a good preamp in the future. Put the money away and forget about it. Add to it and when you've got $600-$1000 look into a True Systems P-Solo, UAD 610 or 710, an ISA One ore a Grace M101. There's no point spending money on a preamp that's only marginally better than what you already have in your interface. You'll just end up spending more money later. Save your money and buy a preamp that you will continue to use well into the future. Don't spend money that's gonna end up in the recycle bin. But of course, do what you see fit. I bet you could do just fine with what you have and for that matter, learning to work with what you have will make you better equipped to use better gear.

Caveat Emptor, Carpe Diem, Hakuna Matata and all that other jazz. This is just my opinion.
 
hueseph said:
Do yourself a favor. Save your money. Forget the incremental upgrades. The $160 you spend now would go a lot further on a good preamp in the future. Put the money away and forget about it. Add to it and when you've got $600-$1000 look into a True Systems P-Solo, UAD 610 or 710, an ISA One ore a Grace M101. There's no point spending money on a preamp that's only marginally better than what you already have in your interface. You'll just end up spending more money later. Save your money and buy a preamp that you will continue to use well into the future. Don't spend money that's gonna end up in the recycle bin. But of course, do what you see fit. I bet you could do just fine with what you have and for that matter, learning to work with what you have will make you better equipped to use better gear.

Caveat Emptor, Carpe Diem, Hakuna Matata and all that other jazz. This is just my opinion.
Click to expand...

This is a great answer +100000000
It's kind of like you're saying that you have cheap, uncomfortable shoes that you'd like to "Upgrade" to a pair of different cheap, uncomfortable shoes. Just save up a little more and get a pair of nice comfortable shoes and in the mean time, until you have the cash together, get creative with band aids to get the best out of those cheap uncomfortable shoes.

Don't let the buying fever trick you into buying things that will make virtually no difference. after a week the placebo effect of owning a new pre will wear off and you will realize that you blew your savings for no real improvement to your chain (or even worse you actually downgraded versus what was built in to your interface) and ultimately you will have to buy again. save for the gear that really will make a real improvement to your chain and just buy occasionally for a real upgrade.

I posted this, below in another thread a couple of months ago and it seems to fit quite nicely here too

*Start out plugging into on board sounds. Sounds awful buy an interface $200
There is an immediate improvement
*After a while start reading posts online become overwhelmed with gear lust and feel a desperate need for "better" Preamp, don't have much money so buy a DMP from m-audio $200
*After initial Euphoria of being an "Outboard" pre owner realize can't really hear any difference
*More online reading leads to realization one "must have" an FMR Audio RNP $500
*feels like recordings are sounding better but begin to second guess pre as the cause as time, effort and experience have given better recording technique
*Read gearslutz and realize one "Must have" a color pre to give analog oomph spend $650
*mixed feelings about color pre purchase, can't always tell the difference and only need color on some things anyway
*Hold off on more purchases concentrate on getting better technique, gear lust is under control.
*Buy a really good quaility "higher end" pre, hear real improvement in clarity, transients and depth of recording spend $1500

The point is to get to where you ultimately wanted to be you only really needed the Audio interface and "high end" pre costing in this example $1700
To get there, however, we spent a grand total of $3050 messing around buying bang for buck "Upgrades" that actually barely move the needle at all and so needlessly spent an additional $1350 to get no real improvement.
This is of course what the low end manufacturers want us to do as it keeps us spending money on products we don't ultimately need
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YMMV
 
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I don't think the RNP would be wasted money though. There may be others some like more for the price, but for $500 for two channels I think it's a bargain, and something buyers won't outgrow. I use it on everything, any source. Of course there are some sources I prefer other pres on, but the RNP doesn't do a bad job with anything. It may be the anomaly, but I think it is a "cheaper" piece of gear that won't be discarded when higher end stuff is collected. Otherwise I agree...

carry on with discussion...
 
hueseph's answer was THE BEST answer I have seen to any thread like this for a while. If you can wait it out, save your money and put together a decent amount toward a useful preamp in the $600.00 - $1000.00 price range. Take time to do some research and see what your needs are, and which pre amp will best serve you. Honestly, this is where I am currently. I'm getting ready to sell some gear and use that money toward a nicer pre amp and nicer condenser mic in the future.

That being said, I had my own demo music that needs to be finished so I can shop myself locally as well as a demo I'm helping a friend with. The only pre amps I have here are ART Tube MP's, which (to me) perform okay as a direct-in for electric guitar, electric bass, and keys, but not for vocals. I needed a decent pre amp NOW and didn't have much money. I bought the DMP3 and was THRILLED after recording some acoustic guitar & mandolin, and electric bass (w/flatwound strings) through it.
The mandolin is a horrible Johnson with high action that fights every note you play, and I didn't have to do any EQing on any of the acoustic tracks (LDC & SDC on acoustic guitar, LDC & SDC on acoustic mandolin, P-Bass direct in to DMP3). Can't wait to try vocals with it. Definitely a wise choice for my pre amp needs and budget.
SoundClick artist: J Moody - page with MP3 music downloads
 
I had a DMP3, but don't anymore. It is the only piece of equipment I still don't have. I don't have a ton of equipment anyway, but as soon as I upgraded to the RNP and other pres the DMP3 was never used again.

It is great for the price, but probably won't see much use after you upgrade. So, if an upgrade is in the distant future go ahead, otherwise do what others have suggested and save up. That's my opinion only - others will disagree.
 
aaronmcoleman said:
I had a DMP3, but don't anymore. It is the only piece of equipment I still don't have. I don't have a ton of equipment anyway, but as soon as I upgraded to the RNP and other pres the DMP3 was never used again.

It is great for the price, but probably won't see much use after you upgrade. So, if an upgrade is in the distant future go ahead, otherwise do what others have suggested and save up. That's my opinion only - others will disagree.
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Agreed. The DMP3 will work great but if you can just save that towards a nicer pre like the RNP or even the Black Lion Audio Auteur you get a quality preamp and it will last you even after you upgrade to nicer ones later down the road.
 
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