Good, cheap, compact mic preamps?

C

Chuck E. Cheese

New member
What are some good cheap mic preamps? I would like something just to get a decent mic signal to my computer. The inexpensive compact ones in the $100 range from dbx, Art, and Bellari come to mind. Those any good?

I was thinking about maybe instead getting a cheap mini mixer like one of the Behringers so I would have other bells and whistles to play with, but the word on the street is that Behringer mixers suck. Would that be true even for an application like this?



Thanks...
Chuck E. Cheese
 
Yo Cheesy One:

There "ain't" no good CHEAP mic pres.

There are "adequate" mic pres that run from a couple hundred pezzutos to more pezzutos.

There is the "GRACE" Design mic pre, single channel that sells for a larger amount of pezzutos and it is a winner.

I use the ART dual channel at the moment; it is adequate but not Dom Perrione Bubbly,

You can do great stuff with "cheap" stuff if you are willing to spend mucho tiempo working on the mixes.


Green Hornet:cool: :cool: :cool: :p :p
 
I have a Line Audio DP1. It's Swedish and probably hard to find anywhere else. It costs around $300 and is a stereo mic preamp. It's very clear and transparent, and kicks my ART Tube MP's ass. :)

Since I haven't heard any great amount of amazing things about this preamp, I would think it is pretty much the value you can get for that money if you shop around, and it seems to me to be around the same quality as the Mackie VLZ Pro preamps (but I haven't made an A/B test).

It has what you need from a preamp. It amplifies the signal, has phantom power and is transparent enough to make it hard to hear the difference on a signal that has gone through it and one that hasn't.
I would consider this a good, cheap, preamp. I would be surprised if this is the only one out there. :)
 
Ahh, there you are Regebro talking about $$ = quality.

Yea, verily. The ART mic pre is nominal. I have the ART dual channel; it's nice but NOTHING LIKE THE Grace Design mic pre.

Now, I don't have a Grace mic Pre; however, I'm going to order one. And, it costs more; so, it must do more? Not necessarily true, as Blue Bear would say; however, the specs on the Grace FAR exceed any ART unit.

Try it. You'll like it.

Green Hornet:cool: :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool:
 
Thanks guys, keep those suggestions coming.

Where does the dbx MINI-PRE sit on the foodchain?
How about the M-Audio DMP2, which I assume is essentially the same as the Midiman AUDIO BUDDY?


Chuck E. Cheese
 
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the dbx sits right next to hte art tube pre......

the only "cheap" pres id recommend is

the Art Tube MP

Delta DMP2,DMP3

Audio Buddy

Joe Meek MQ1,MQ3

Studio Projects VTP-1 (havent heard this one myself yet, but some trusted ears have ok'ed it)
 
Yo Ho & Yo:

I have this cyber friend from Portugal who is a hi-fi nut. He doesn't record; he just like music and "expensive" hi-fi equipment.

One time I mentioned to him that I had a pair of Infinity Speakers coupled with my Yorkvilles.

His reply about the Infinity speakers was: "They are budget speakers."

Ha, he got me. Here I thought the Infinities were fairly good commercial speakers for general use and he just thought they were generally run of the mill speakers.

When I poked around the net for speakers, WOW. They do run many pezzutos if you are a hi-fi nut as do some of the esoteric amps to run these speakers.

I'm very sure there are MANY speakers/monitors out there that blow away the Yorkvilles; but, for the money, the Yorkies do a nice job.

Green Hornet
 
Art Tube MP

Just got one this weekend, I folded and got the "Hot Pac" which includes a cheapo Apex large diaphragm mic.

Cost 165 with tax. First off let me say that I had been using my only mic a sm67 and running it through anything i could as a preamp including my Vamp, ProCo Rat and a tube screamer to boost it up, and nothing compares to the real mic pre. I know the MP is a low low end piece of equipment but the difference in quality is astonishing compared to what I had before. On vocals especially, but also with mic my guitar amp. Having all the gain from the pre amp, (non distorted gain that is) gives me so much more flexibility in so many ways. It was a great outlay that was long overdue. If this sounds so much better i can only imagine what a good preamp and mic combo must be like. For beginning purposes I don't think there is anything more important that getting your hands on a preamp and a large diaphragm mic, i would venture to say that any is better than none!

Also I'm finding that running my jazz bass into a boss eq pedal, then into the Tube MP gives me the sweetest bass sound I've found yet, and I've been experimenting for months and months. Warm and solid. Just beautiful.
 
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