Are preamps on cheap gear getting better?

  • Thread starter Thread starter wheelema
  • Start date Start date

Are cheap gear preamps getting better?

  • Yes

    Votes: 2 28.6%

  • No

    Votes: 3 42.9%

  • I blame George W Bush

    Votes: 2 28.6%
  • Total voters
    7
wheelema

wheelema

Boner-obo
Mackie has their Onyx pres, Presonus has their XMAX pres, Roland has their VS pres... it seems as if everyone is boasting about their new, better, transparent preamps. Are they seriously getting better or is this just gear pimp marketing?
 
Market Pimping Wheelema. It's what makes cheap gear cheap ..... their preamps.

There is a reason that, for instance, a Midas console of the same number of preamps cost 3, 4 times as much as a mackie or others with in that price range.
 
The published specs would indicate so. I think (of course it is subjective and subject to defective memory) that the pre amps on my Alesis equipment are every bit as good as any other pre I have ever heard. Of course, there are those who wouldn't use anything other than a vacuum tube preamp because they have 'good' distortion. .
 
There are just so many different types of and flavors of preamps that yeah everyone will prefer something different.
But there is a reason that once you get around the block a few times why most people will gravitate towards the best of the best of preamps.
 
I will be the first to admit that equipment specifications can be used to overstate good qualities and hide flaws, but how about these for my Alesis IO2?

SNR: 95dB (A-weighted) minimum - 97dB Typical
THD+N: 0.007% max - 0.005% Typical
Frequency Response (range not specified): +- 0.35dB Typical

If anyone is making a preamp that has materially better specifications (audible with normal human hearing) than this at any price I would be supprised. Add to that the 24-bit depth giving tons of overhead to push the noise down and I don't think that there was anything available at any price ten years ago that could do any better than this (as far as specifications go).

Yes, I believe cheap preamps are getting better all the time. There are other issues beyond specs such as manufacturing quality, dependability, and integration that also have to be factored in, but if it is cheap enough - buy two and have a hot backup.
 
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