Preamp Selection

V

vintagetobes

New member
Hi, i am going to buy some or a separate preamp for use on just about everything. I generally record bands and some solo stuff. Anyway i have just been using the preamps in my below par behringer mixer. I use the inserts which then go into an edirol fa-101. I sometimes use the built in preamps if i need that many but i dont like the way the gain remains low along the dial until the last bit where it shoots up.

So, to my question. Should i buy a half decent single pre amp, use that, then buy more later. Or buy a lower quality strip of preamp channels?
Budget is £200 but i really dont want to spend all that on a single channel so thats really just for the strip option.

For a single one, i was thinking a trackmaster pro or something.
The thing is, my mics are generally chinese budget ones. I have a couple of 57s and a 58 which is why i am considering just getting a single or double channel preamp, make the most of those mics, then upgrade my other mics and preamps in the future.

Cheers for any help.
 
What is it about your Behringer that is limiting your recordings at the moment?

Make sure this isn't a gear lust buy ...

I think the Joemeek threeQ is a very cool channel strip for about £115 (www.dv247.com) ... never been that impressed with the Focusrite when I've tried it out in shops. M-Audio DMP-3 remains two decent clean pres with DI inputs for not a lot of money either.

Depends what you want really, I wanted a row of decent preamps and usable EQ and ended up getting a Soundcraft M12. Hardly a compact 1u thing like a Behringer ADA8000 or a Studio Projects SP828, but a hell of a lot more flexible. Look into a second-hand M8 and you might just get what you need.

HTH,

Nik
 
I'm sure the E12 would be fine, but the pres and EQ are different in the M12 with which I've had really good results for live and recording stuff. That's the upgrade I made from a Behringer UB series to the Soundcraft M, with a pit stop to put a Yamaha MG in my monitoring chain.

It's all about the cheap mixers! :eek: :)
 
ok cheers. What about an older, 2nd hand mixer on ebay? does noise increase with age expanentially? If i went down the ebay route i could get 16 channels meaning i can have all my ins and out of the edirol hooked up to it. Cheers
 
Just depends on what it is mate, and you have to also consider the possibilities of it needing maintenance at some point in the future. You don't want to get lumbered with some old monolithic desk only for it to crap out on you.

Noise doesn't increase with age, but I guess faulty components might? I dunno, I bought my Soundcraft 2nd-hand anyway, for £280 delivered. A bargain if you can score it at that price!
 
reading your post, I liked the Single Strip route. "golden channel" some call it.

but this has everything to do with your application.

Are you going for a studio with customers/bands and multi-tracking drums with numerous mic's
or
a songwriter solo-tracking, one at a time, type recording application?

I do the songwriter type and the channel strip is pretty cool. Vox strip, acoustic.

the chances of me ever having (or needing) a large hi-quality multi-
36 channel Sony or Neve Mixing board or whatever is pretty low.
 
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I generally record bands requiring up to 6 mics on drums, and also do some live recording and live sound. Therefore im pretty sure about the mixer route. The SOS magazine forum seems pretty good for UK 2nd hand adverts, particularly for mixers.
Cheers for the help.
 
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