5000$ for Mic Pres....

A

AudioVault

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At the oment i am using the Soundcraft Ghost pres and the focusrites in my digi 002. Ive got 5 grand im looking to spend for 8 channels of mic pres. i want to get a diverse selection of different pres..
heres what im thinkin
2 - UA 6176 - about 3600 used...keep in mind i put aside compressor money too so im only counting half that money (1800)
API 3124+ - 2000$
Great River 2 channel - 2000$

that puts me a little over budget for 8 great pres... what would you do with your money?
 
I'd save a grand or two for a nice 8ch A/D/A converter with ADAT lightpipe I/O to use with your Digi002. Otherwise your top of the line are still going through the run of the mill converters (4 channels would still go through the pre's too, which aren't focusrites btw, just with a pad to attenuate the line level inputs)
 
reshp1 said:
I'd save a grand or two for a nice 8ch A/D/A converter with ADAT lightpipe I/O to use with your Digi002. Otherwise your top of the line are still going through the run of the mill converters
Click to expand...

i concur... i dream of getting a really nice ADA converter. For now, i can afford the Behringer ADA8000 (which is not so bad, good enough for an amateur like me) but i would like a Presonus Digimax 96k, about $1350, or something like that.
 
What kind of music are you doing? You would have the Neve and API thing covered with the GR and 3124. Do you really want a tube pre or would something clean like a John Hardy, DAV or Millennia be useful? If you shop used, you can probably get the GR for more like $1700. Sebatron, A-Designs, Pendulum and Summit all make good tube pres. Shopping used, you should be able to get any of those for less than the $1800 you are planning on and then have a choice of comps as well. For example, I purchased a Pendulum MDP-1 for $1600 (arguably a better pre than the UA) and a Drawmer 1968 for $1600 (not better or worse than the 1176, but different). With your budget, you have a lot of options and there's lots of good stuff out there.
 
I would stop with those API's and buy some killer mics with the rest.

And as suggested above, treat your room!
 
Here's my wish list:
Great River MP-2NV :)
Chandler TG2 :)
A couple BG 1s :p :p
A couple Vintech X73s :D :D
Api lunchbox FULL! :p :p :p :p
I'm saving up for that "Neve haze"!!!!
 
For $5K, I'd get 2 Great River MP2-NV's and spend the extra $700 on a mic or two or maybe some acoustic treatment. OR I'd just spend it on 2 API 3124+'s and be done. Either way, I'd be a winner.
 
It's really tough to make a list like this without knowing what you will be recording and the kind of tone you are going for. That's what will determine which preamps you buy. Without that, it's just a list of good preamps without a focus on your particular musical goals, as there are so many good preamps to choose from. It *all* depends on the sound you want and your ears.

That said, I like pohaku's advice and suggestions. The Pendulum is one to consider seriously. I personally would also take a strong look at the Neve Portico. That's about $3,500 right there, so you'll need to go a bit more budget on the other four preamps.

I'd suggest something like a couple DAV BG-1 (two channel) or a BG-2 (four channel) to fill out your collection. That will get you your eight channels for $5,000, plus a good variety and quality of sounds.

But again, it all depends on what music you are recording and how you want it to sound.
 
I haven't heard much about the new Neve, but maybe b/c he's the only one selling them? but i'd like to try one....
 
There's a lot of new stuff out (Neve Portico, A-Designs Pacifica and rack units, Chandler Germanium, Shadow Hills pres, forthcoming 500 scale rack units by Buzz Audio, etc.) that would be interesting (and that I covet), but, as SonicAlbert noted, it's hard to know what would make the most sense for the OP without knowing what kind of music he records.
 
eh; for 5 grand I would try to get 4 channels; not 8. if I HAD to get 8 with 5 grand I might go for a pair of vintech 1272s; then some nice stuff like maybe a pair of dakings and a pair of v72s or some calrecs. either way I would want at least 4 of the 8 channels to have an eq on it to use during mixing.
 
I'd save a grand or two for a nice 8ch A/D/A converter with ADAT lightpipe I/O to use with your Digi002. Otherwise your top of the line are still going through the run of the mill converters (4 channels would still go through the pre's too, which aren't focusrites btw, just with a pad to attenuate the line level inputs)

Hi,

Just wanted to make sure I am understanding this. I have the 002 rack and a Focusrite TT for a mic pre. I am only using it for vocals and no more than one mic/vocalist at a time.It's just a project studio and I don't see myself recording anything but vocals over the mic. Are you suggesting the A/D/A coverters only because of the expesive preamp about to be purchased?

J.P.
 
sweetpeee said:
I'd save a grand or two for a nice 8ch A/D/A converter with ADAT lightpipe I/O to use with your Digi002. Otherwise your top of the line are still going through the run of the mill converters (4 channels would still go through the pre's too, which aren't focusrites btw, just with a pad to attenuate the line level inputs)

Hi,

Just wanted to make sure I am understanding this. I have the 002 rack and a Focusrite TT for a mic pre. I am only using it for vocals and no more than one mic/vocalist at a time.It's just a project studio and I don't see myself recording anything but vocals over the mic. Are you suggesting the A/D/A coverters only because of the expesive preamp about to be purchased?

J.P.
Click to expand...

The popular response to a lot of queries anymore seems to be:

1. Improve your room;
2. Upgrade converters.

For a normal home studio the Digi 002R is an excellent choice. If you want to make recordings that may see broad release then I'd suggest trying an external clock source.

To the original poster... My suggestion is... You got the Soundcraft Ghost. Those pres should be good enough for a lot of applications. Rather than blowing $5,000 on mic pres only I think there are other things you might look at. First, I do think you should get you one "ear candy" "gold channel" mic pre. I'd recommend the Phoenix DRS-2. This mic pre is ear candy to the max. It'd be a great choice for vocals and feature tracks. I'd also look at the mic cabinet. Do you have any ribbon mics? How are you set for dynamics? Here's an entry from my blog on cheap dynamics... http://mojopie.ipbhost.com/index.php?automodule=blog&blogid=1&cmd=showentry&eid=156

Do you have any high end mics at all such as maybe a Gefell or a Brauner?

You might possibly consider getting an external word clock. Apogee, Lucid and a couple others make decent word clocks.

You might consider getting the UAD-1. With a Digi 002 and the UAD-1, you can make and mix some decent recordings. Good luck.
 
I've got the A-Designs lunchbox P-1 and the EMRed. They are definitley very nice. Don't have a clue whether they meet the needs of the OP however. He may really want the UA610 or Millennia sound. Certainly one approach is to get an OSA rack (least expensive rack) and buy whichever 500 form cards trip your trigger. If you really want 4 API pres though, the 3124 is still likely the most cost effective way of getting those - particularly if you buy used.
 
Mic Pres: 5K / I'd be going for 4channels:

Popular choices:

2CH - Chandler TG2 - $1980
2CH - Phoenix Audio DRS2 - $2150
2CH - Great River MP-2 NV - $2150
4CH - Daking IV - $1895
4CH - DAV BG2 - $ unsure, i think around the 1400 mark. correct me on that.

6 slot lunchbox $424
2xAPI 512c ($1352), 2xOSA MP1-A ($1000),
Purple Biz ($675), A-Designs P1 ($795)
Total = $4246

Goodluck. I'd buy em all if i had the cash. :p
 
yea well ive looked at lunchboxes and thought about going the seventh circle route but id really lke to be able to sell pres if i needed or wanted to, another reason i DONT BUY PLUGINS... i know that i want a neve type pre and for sure the 4 channels of API. but the 6176 channel strip is amazing if you ask me. i love acoustic stuff with a couple db of compression during tracking... plus who wouldnt want a pair of 1176s during mixing... i think a pair of 610's, 4 API's and a pair of rivers, and the souncraft pres should cover anything i do in the studio... i do a lot of hard rock/metal, but i do hip hop production, post production and chill jack johnson type shit too
 
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