AVALON 737SP VS. PEAVEY TMP-1 I can believe what im hearing!

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MAYHEM1

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I can almost not believe what I am hearing. Here is the signal chain:

Blue Blueberry --> Avalon 737sp --> delta 44 --> cubase 5, or Blue Blueberry --> Peavey tmp-1 --> delta 44 --> cubase 5. For those who dont know what a Peavey Tmp-1 is, it was made after Peavey Put out the vmp-2 as a cheaper (regarded as not even close in comparison) alternative.

I have recorded singer/rappers on both units and done comparisons and the Peavey "sparkels", with NO eq and minimal compression. When I am using the Avalon, the gain is set to "0" and the signal never reaches beyond -2db. The result is clear but kind of harsh and lacking top end, so I have been adding a bit of top end through the avalons eq(I cant rememeber the exact setting), This helps, but adds a little too much sibilance for my liking, which requires either more de-essing or manual normalization . and the end result.....the Peavey sounds better....No eq, minimal compression.

All vocals are recorded in an accoustically treated room. I also have retubed both units with better nos tubes. I tried the Avalon with the original tubes and it sounded worse.

Do I ditch the Avalon and by something else (im liking the Neve 1073), or am I not giving the Avalon a fair chance.......maybe I am doing something wrong. My aplogies if I am not giving enough info here, just let me know what else you need to know. Btw, I f'ing love this website it is so helpful.
 
you have some sound clips?

also, "Do I ditch the Avalon"...umm that is your call. If you already bought it might as well keep for a while and give it a shot. If you like the Peavey better, you like it better. There is no right answer here.

For the price difference, and what I've read about the two I cannot imagine the Peavey being a better overall preamp...but only you can tell if it is better for what you're doing.
 
Can't really speak for the peavey but I have used the Avalon Ad2022. I found it to be very harsh sounding on most of the applications I tried it on. I preferred my Api 512c and FMR Audio RNP in most cases. If the peavey sounds better, use it.
 
What you would want to consider as your next preamp then would be the - GA pre73. ;)
 
I think boutique pres are overrated and overhyped. That said, the best thing about Avalon pres are the faceplate.
 
"Harsh and lacking top end" don't sound like they should go together in the same sentence.

Send that Avalon to me and I'll evaluate it and get back to you sometime next year.
 
Supercreep said:
I think boutique pres are overrated and overhyped. That said, the best thing about Avalon pres are the faceplate.
Click to expand...

Agreed, but I hope people don't get confused...GOOD pres are worth it. I think the $2000 onese probably won't help the home recorder (like me) much more than a $300 Gap, or some of the 500 series stuff. Good pres make a big difference
 
aaronmcoleman said:
Agreed, but I hope people don't get confused...GOOD pres are worth it. I think the $2000 onese probably won't help the home recorder (like me) much more than a $300 Gap, or some of the 500 series stuff. Good pres make a big difference
Click to expand...

Mic placement and room treatment make 1000x more of a difference. I like nice pres, but it's silly to pretend they are the panacea folks make them out to be.
 
And Mic placement grows less important as the room treatment improves... so what does that tell you.

A fisher price recorder in a great room, with great talent, will beat out just about anything you can do in an untreated bedroom.
 
I've never recorded in a well treated room (other than prostudios), but that is one of my summer projects for my room.

At the same time, good pres will make a world of difference. I've been using API and Neve style stuff the last few months, and it has changed the way I mix. I no longer need to apply EQ to every track to get rid of harsh highs, or boost the low end. The pres have made a huge difference for me. If room treatment makes even more of a difference, I can't wait to get some bass traps up!
 
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