Preamp for a beginner.

S

saul84aguilar

New member
I am in the process of building a project studio and have recorded a few songs. I did all the vocals and instruments without a preamp and it sounded decent. From the looks of it it is a pretty necessary piece of equipment for any studio. And from my experience, and I'm pretty sure everybody will agree, I need to use one to really understand and appreciate what they do. My question here is what kind of preamp I could get with a budget of around 300-500 bucks. I record mostly mexican regional music. Instruments include saxophone, accordion, keys, bass, some guitar, and drums of course. I have no idea what I would need in details of a transparent or one that adds color to my mixes.
In all reality just something that can help me understand what these things do.

Thanks All
Saul
 

Im working with an MAUDIO TAMPA...gets the job done.

BUUUUUUUUUT...

once I save enough, I think Im scooping up a UNIVERSAL AUDIO 610 simply b/c of that rich warm phat sound ...



 
I have looked at the RNP they appear to be a straight to the point preamp without all the pretty chassis. And others have also suggested the m audio dmp3. Any ideas????
 
I don't know the RNP but if Fletcher at Mercenary sells it then it means it's not a toy. I wouldn't consider anything made by companies like M-Audio or Art, they are econo companies that make some usable stuff but if you want pro quality I'd avoid those companies.
 
Another vote for the RNP.

I have also had an M-Audio DMP3 for years and it rocks. Perhaps the best bang for the buck out there. Still, the RNP may be a better preamp.

Hard to go wrong with either. The DMP3 does not have XLR outs, though - only 1/4" balanced. So if you've got this in an XLR chain, its an inconvenience. Otherwise its a fantastic, moderately clean and reliable box.
 
How many simultaneous channels do you need? The RNP and the DMP3 both have two. I'm reading your budget to be the total amount you want to spend, rather than the total amount per channel.

Also, what will you be plugging the preamp into? What mic(s) do you plan to use with it?

Another thing - is buying used an option? If so, that increases your options a bit.

saul84aguilar said:
In all reality just something that can help me understand what these things do.
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ultimately, they really are just volume knobs :D - a bad one can screw things up, but a good won't dramatically improve things (but still, you'll find plenty of people, including me, who've spent $ chasing a good sound from them)
 
saul84aguilar said:
I did all the vocals and instruments without a preamp and it sounded decent.
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Well, no, you didn't. You did them without an external preamp, and the question is, will the improvement in sound quality you get by buying an external preamp in the price range you're looking at be worth spending that much?

So, yeah, what are you recording with now, and what do people who've heard it's internal preamps think of them as compared to the apparently widely agreed upon RNP?
 
saul84aguilar said:
I have looked at the RNP they appear to be a straight to the point preamp without all the pretty chassis. And others have also suggested the m audio dmp3. Any ideas????
Click to expand...

I did an A/B with the m audio dmp3 and FMR RNP and i along with the two people that were with me preferred the RNP without question.

IMO at that price range clarity will be much more important than one that adds color. Usually if you can find one in that range that adds color, it may work well for one specific application, but not all the ones that you listed. For what you plan to do and the budget you have, the RNP would be my first choice.

Also keep in mind that for drum recording, you're going to need more than two channels.
 
So said:
I am using a Mackie Onyx 1620 with firewire card. I use 9 channels for recording drums with the Audix DP7 Mic kit. I focus on a good sounding drumbeat and overdub the remaining instruments (sax, keys, accordion, vocals). Do I "need" a preamp on every drum mic?

Right now I am using a cheap MXL condenser I plan on upgrading to the Baby Bottle, for vocals, sax, and instruments. I figured using the preamp initially on the snare and kick, and patching it for the overdubs.

And yes the mackie does have preamps so I suppose I am using a preamp just not an external.

And lastly buying used is what I have been doing. Looking for a reputable seller and with a return policy has saved me tons of cash.
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I don't know that unit, but I *think* you'll have to spend some $$ to notice a real improvement over it. If drums are your main instrument, then you're maybe in the most demanding subset of us folks when it comes to the signal chain :D

I'm new to recording drums (and generally don't know what I'm doing, so keep that in mind) - so far, I like cleaner sounding preamps for the overhead mics - (I think I'd be satisfied with the Onyx ones) and other ones for the close mics.

When you compare your drum tracks to others, is there anything you wish were different about yours? Assuming your drums and cymbals sound the way you want them to in the room (well tuned, heads in good shape, etc.) It may be that the better place to spend money would be on mics, for instance. I'm not familiar with that drum mic kit, but I suppose you're using the I5 for the snare, and a specialized kick mic for the kick, but what are the overheads? F something? That might be what I'd look to replace first, if anything. edit: -- looked it up ADX51? I admit I've never even seen one of those, so I'll just be quiet now :)

Anyway, the preamp I've been using for most of my close mics is the API 3124+ - used, and on a per channel basis, it's in your price range :) - I attenuate the outputs and then I crank the gain, and it sounds way better than is appropriate for my level of playing. I'm thinking about getting another one so I'll have 8 channels. For my overheads, I've been using a Great River MP-2NV, but I try to run it as clean as I can, so I don't really use the "character" of it. For my kick and sometimes my snare, I've been using these ACMP preamps we got here in a group buy a while back - they're chinese Neve "inspired", and I think the closest commercially available preamp would be the Golden Age Project 73 (GAP 73). For mics, I'm using Oktava MC-012s for the overheads, Sennheiser MD421s for toms, and MD441 (or sometimes Audix I5, or modified Shure SM57) for snare top, Shure SM81 for snare bottom, and AKG D112 for kick. Not that I'm recommending these (except the MC-012s for overheads - I recommend those, and I'm definitely happy with the others), just disclosing.
 
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What I am looking for in my drum mixes is definition. I believe my drum tracks lack definition once it is all mixed. A lot of it i am sure has to do with my room(cinder block walls). I have some OC703 on order to address that issue. Once I do the wall treatments I will record some more tracks and hear the difference. IMO if you can get some pretty good sounding tracks with decent equipment once I do upgrade any part of the signal chain, I will really appreciate that piece of equipment.

Has anyone had any luck with Digi 003 Rack?
I have thought of selling my Mackie and getting an 003, just not sure it is worth spending the money for the 003 or just save and get something more worthwhile.

Any ideas?
 
I'd recommend the Golden Age Projects PRE-73.

I've owned the ART MPA Gold (with NOS tubes), M-Audio Tampa and DMP3.

The GAP PRE-73 was easily my favorite out of these and is an exceptional bargain at $299!!!
 
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