Which setup? Tube MP or 1202VLZ?

S

Strummer

New member
Here´s a quiestion for you guys (I know I belong in the Newbies forum, but I´ll be quick :-))

I am looking for some advice about which setup I should spend my money in.. I´ll go straight to the point. I don´t need too many channels. I don´t think I´ll ever record more than 2 tracks at a time, vocal and an acoustic or electric. AND I have a SB Live.

I was thinking, from what I´ve read, that if I got a Tube MP and a SM58/57 I would be cool, that is, I would make good sounding recordings with the SB Live. (Yes I would love a better soundcard or an A/D converter, but no $$).

But there´s also this thing.. this is not very much portable, and getting a mixer would be cool for live performances and DJing, which I sometimes do for fun. So there´s the Mackie 1202 at this great price, around $350 (I´m in Brazil and and the currency here is 2 times the dolar, so my budget is even tighter).

So, what I´m asking is, are the preamps on the Mackie as good as the Tube MP? Would it give me a good sound to go into the SB Live? (I heard that the Fostex digital mixer would do better A/D, but the preamps suck).
And also, this mixer console can be used for DJing, of couse, can´t it (I mean, just playing records, fading in & out)?

THanks for your patience and regards.
 
"I don´t think I´ll ever record more than 2 tracks at a time, " --- are you sure about this?

The Mackie pres and the Tube MP are supposed to sound quite different (never used a mackie before). The Mackies are supposed to be 'transparent' preamps meaning that they aren't meant to color the sound, while the Tube MP (I have one of these) will color the sound. The Tube MP might sound 'warmer' or 'smoother'.

The Mackie 1202 has knobs instead of faders, correct? Would that be OK for DJ-ing? You might want a mixer with faders.
 
Thx for your reply..

Since you own a Tube MP, could you helpe me with some questions? Do you think a Tube MP/SM 58 setup would be ok for recording vocals and an acoustic guitar? Maybe a keyboard also.. (I really don´t know how to use midi).

Do you have any vocal recordings or know of any that use the Tube MP? Just so that I get an idea of what you mean by "coloring" the sound.
 
Tube MP + SM58 will be OK for vocals, depending on your standards. I use a SM57. I find it to sound better on female vocals than males. It's a little muddy on the male voice. You'd probably be happier with a condenser mic, but if you don't have the budget, well what can you do?

I have been using this SM57 thru my Tube MP to record acoustic guitars and it's crap. I wish I had a condenser. But like I said above, if you don't have the budget....

You can check out one of my songs here:

http://www.idrive.com
visit 'mrlippp'
I think the file name is '26 mix2.mp3' or something like that. I used SM57 + Tube MP for the vocals. But it might not be a good example because I have lots of effects on the track that obscure the actual sound. But if you think it will help, go for it.

Teddie uses the same setup. Check his stuff out here:
http://www.mp3.com/smartapple

I used to use the preamps on my Tascam 4 track, but then I got this Tube MP and it's much warmer and smoother -- but, at the same time, it can also sound kind of muddy and distorted. I guess it just depends on which kind of sound you want.
 
I use SM-57 mics through an Alesis mixer to record electric rock guitar (loud and distorted) and am quite happy with the combination.

I don't know if Behringer mixers are available in Brazil, but they can be purchased for quite a bit less than Mackie. The Mackie VLZ mixers are supposed to have better quality preamps, but I have a small Behringer mixer and it sounds ok. A six channel (2 mic pre-amps) Behringer mixer goes for about $90 American, so you could possibly buy that AND get your mic preamp for the same money.

Just a thought...
 
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