$1800 mic preamp burden

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CyanJaguar

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I was settled in my mind on getting a Joemeek vciq, and real soon too, and then I saw an ad in the newspaper, in Arkansas, O my goodness, in ARKANSAS.

A dude is wanting to sell a dbx for $750 that he paid $1800 for one and a half years ago. I think its the 786.

Now I absolutely love the coloration you get from the joemeek and the fact that it has 24/9k rates and also a compressor and an enhancer, BUT and a very big BUT, is it not logical that an 1800 dollar dbx should be better and more professional than a 600 dollar joemeek?

The only thing going for the 786 that I have been able to read is that it has NO measurable distortion in the d/a side, which is a good thing.

What do you guys think?

Should I "get meek" or would the dbx 786 be a better investment do you think.
 
Hi
You may want to check this page.

http://www.dbxpro.com/786.htm

The unit lists out at well over 2500..

It will probably sound different then the Joe Meek.
It will. IT's solid state. That doesn't mean it isn't warm though.

I would grab one if I saw it for 7.
The Joe Meek seems cool too, but it's a sound. Not always versatile. My opinion.

What are you feeding from the pre. Tape, digital tape, HD..
 
thanks ears,

I am going from my mic to the pre to my delta 1010 into, hopefully, logic audio.

Is there a way to fatten up a sound without the preamp, for example using some kind of millisecond delay on the stereo channels?
 
Meek or dbx.....It all comes down to what you want to record. If you want to D.I. bass guitar, keyboards, need lots of compression for drums, guitar I would choose the VC1Q. In fact I am lusting for one....about $600. The dbx is two channels, high quality components, probably very good. They say the Joe Meek stuff colors the sound and gives a very 'up front' kind of effect. Too bad you can't take them both home for a few days and really evaluate them first.
 
CyanJaguar said:
Is there a way to fatten up a sound without the preamp, for example using some kind of millisecond delay on the stereo channels?
Click to expand...

There are several ways.
1. Using 2 mics one close to source and one far.With no phase problems that is
2. Play a second track together or more with your first track (doubling)
3. Using a compressor-limiter
4. EQ
5.Use an arranging technique and contrast your track against a thin sound.
 
Thanks a lot Shailat,

That was the exact information that I needed, now I have to go look into all those aspects.

Please can you slightly go more into how I can use eq to achieve the fatness.

thanks
 
It would depend a lot on your specific instrument and recording.

In general lines you can add warmth around the 200-500Hz. However you can add muddyness here as well as a negetive point. You can try a gentle 3dB boost but if your sound is a bit muddy you would need to cut here.
 
Well, I have decided!

I used some simple logic and came to the conclusion that since I am not planning to track classical music, I don't need a transparent pre. I am planning to track POP so I need fat, and Phat and round and robust et cetera et cetera et cetera.

I hope to be getting the vc1q in next week. Tell ya how it sounds.
 
what would you all choose between the Meek and the DBX386??
I'm looking at both at the moment - comments please
 
Reading about the 786 I would pick it any day over the Joe Meek.

The DBX is a high end pro unit that has a good air EQ and doesn't have a distinct sound. The Joe Meek is cool too but not on everything. I like to use different pres and mics on different instruments.

Say, tubes on vocal, not on acoustic, but electric guitars. I don't want them all to sound like they are in a tube.

MY OPINION ONLY.
 
meek or 386

hi John Sayers,

THe joemeek vc1q has a compressor, eq, an enhancer/deesser, but it has only one channel and cost $150 more than the 386.

Sospubs says that the 386 does not have any cons though, so, for its price it will be a good buy. It also has digital output.

But it's all about the sound.
 
My bad,

Sospubs is just the online name for a british magazine on recording equipment.

It is called Sound on Sound publishing, i think

The website is http://www.sospubs.co.uk.

They don't give flattering reviews, but they don't give bad reviews. They say something like: If you arleady like this sound, then it should be on your list, Or something like:
the manufacturer says this, and we think it is good(notice they say good, but they don't support the manufacturers claim.
anyway
 
Thanks for that CyanJaguar - it was the tube front end and the digital out that attracted me to it - also I trust DBX and have used their stuff for years but I haven't used Joe Meeks.
Cheers
 
Keep in mind that the Meek VC1Q also has digital out 24/96.
Also keep in mind that not only is the pre amazing but the compressor is phenominal! and there is a ton of control over all the features including the EQ.

Shakes,

Have you hugged your JoeMeek today?!
 
Don't cry over spilt Meek

I got my vc6q british channel today.(not the one q, ran out of money). I plugged it in and shut it on. silence. no lights. I was sweating like a pig.

I scan the manual and find that you have to check the voltage fuse, and that the wrong voltage would damage the machine. Silence. Tears

Luckily, it was just the power cord that wanted a very tight connection. I guess that Ted Fletcher thinks that if you charge so little for the product, you might as well skimp on the power cord. I finally got it to work though.

After all said and done, I think that this pre was made specially for my voice. It is rich and fat and if I want, I can throw the eq any which way. I also love the way that compressor sounds and really warms up the sound

I think it works well with the c414 too, it reduces some of the brightness of the c414 and both together have a wonderful sound.

I just thought that I would let you know
 
Good to hear your happy.

The only thing that I say is a negative is that kyou can't bypass the tube if you want to go clean. I'm not crazy about the same mic - pre combo on everything I record. That's why I have a few. I know ....money. Then you did the right thing in getting what you want.
 
Yo Catman=Jaguar:

If you're going to spend those kinds of bucks, you might as well get a MartinSound pre-amp; they are supposed to be the best. I've researched the unit and it sounds wonderful.

However, for the time being, I'm going to stick with my ART dual channel; it's a good unit but I'd love to hear the MartinSound Pres; anyone out there ever used one?

Green Hornet
 
Martin sound are supposed to be the best,
so is Joe Meek,
so is DBX386,
So is ART...... Get the drift.
You have to try one out yourself on the voices and instrumentation that you are recording. Everyonw has an opinion. I tried all of these above and even own one of them. I love the Mindprint too for certain things. I own one of these as well. I still say it was a good investment for me to buy the 3DAudio mic pre CD. Some of the above units were on there and some of them sound like crap next to others. MY OPINION. That's why it's so important to try them yourself. I dreamed of a unit that was $3500.00 US. When I did the comparison test before revealing the manufacturer, I gave this one lousy marks.
Anyway , what I wanted was transparent(all details and frequencies) and EQ and tube warmth. The bnus with the Envoice was the dial in how much tube. I am happy with it. No it's not a big bruiser ballsy warm blanket sound, it's transparent and warm. That's what I want. My mic (CAD E200) sounds good enough that it doesn't need effect, just needs to be heard...

[Edited by Ears on 10-01-2000 at 22:36]
 
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