Best 2+ Input Mic Pre for $200?

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powderfinger

powderfinger

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There are several options for two or more inputs at around $200. M-audio has one, Pre Sonus, and several others........any experiences with pres at this price range would be great. i'm looking for something pretty transparent and something that might be a step up from the behringer mixer i'm currently using.
 
DMP3 isn't half bad, esp. on acoustic guitars (for that price).
 
Thanks Participant........
Do you think it is a step up from the Behringer Pres though?
 
That's a tough question, since I've never used Behringer mixers. I've heard people I respect say the pre's aren't very good, but then I hear Crawdad's stuff and it blows me away... (he uses a Behringer)... I would guess that the reason people don't like Behringer for tracking is that the tracks will build up noise from harmonic distortion, when there are a lot of them mixed.

Maybe you should make sure you're using mics that "like" the Behringer, IOW... there are some mics that sound better than others, using it. Ask Crawdad what mics he uses with his B. It could be the mics you're using are improperly loaded by the pre.

If you plan on simple arrangements with about 8-10 tracks only, you might be able to get by with your mixer right now... what you might want to do, instead, is buy a couple better mics.

OTOH, I've had good success with Oktava mc012's & DMP3 recording acoustic guitar... but I've also sound-treated a room for recording/mixing. You may want to look into doing some of that, too.

HTH.


Chad
 
participant,

my problem isn't that i dislike the berhinger, it's that i need more inputs in addition to the behringer.............i need 4 pres to go into my Delta 44, and the behringer mixer only effectively gives me two (not including the mixdown capabilities)............i would like to get something better than the behringer though, so that the next thing I replace is the behringer...not the behringer and the stuff i just bought..........

also, I'm actually getting a pair of Oktava m012s for Christmas.....I can't wait........that's why I aslo need more pres.......to stereo mic and sing all at once rather than tracking.........that and for better tracking drums..........
 
I will be happy to badmouth the Behringer pres. And, let me just say that I don't have the pickiest ear in the world, and I'm pretty forgiving - I listen to those preamp comparison test cds and sometimes end up being equally happy with $300 preamps as I am with $2500 preamps.

Those Behringers, though, I can clearly hear the crumminess. WAY too noisy. Nearly everything sounds better, including the PreSonus Blue Tube (with the "drive" turned all the way down) - but only just barely. I love my PreSonus MP20, but that Blue Tube thing is amazingly lousy by comparison.

In that price range, you've got that ART TPS thing, and everybody else's cheap "tube" stuff. None of which sounds particularly transparent... Yeah, at that price range, the M-Audio stuff would seem to be your best bet. Haven't used them myself, but I've only heard good things...
 
Just for the record, the Behringer pre I use is not from one of their mixers. It is the VX 2000, which is a stand alone preamp. From what I am told, it is a copy of a Focusrite pre--way different than a Behringer mixer.

Is it the best? Probably not, but it is a step above the Tube MP's and the Mackie pre's in my opinion. My next pre will probably be the RNP. That will give me something else to compare it to. I'd probably put the VX 2000 in the project studio category. It has a bunch of good features, like a low cut filter and an optical compressor, as well as a pretty usable expander. It is not noisy and it has plenty of usable gain for my purposes. Its only one channel though, so a pair would cost you around $300. An RNP, which is 2 channels, for about $175 more, would be worth shooting for, from what I have read. You'd have a pro grade preamp you would use for years.

At $200, the consensus is that the DMP3 is pretty good. The VTB1, a single channel pre for around $175, is supposed to be better--I haven't heard it. Still, its only one channel, so a pair would cost you around $350. If you are sticking to the $200 budget, I would go with the DMP3 if I were in your shoes. Though I have not heard it, thats the choice I would make based on your budget.
 
Yes, I should have mentioned that I was speaking strictly of the Behringer pres in their mixers. It's my understanding that all of the Behringer rackmount mic pres are an entirely different animal, and are better than the mixer pres (I could be mistaken, though).

I haven't heard it, but isn't the $99 Behringer rackmount Ultragain Pro supposed to be pretty decent?
 
Your best 2-channel option would be the dmp3 (pretty much a no-brainer there).

If you need more, then save up an extra $50 or so and try and score a used Mackie 1202 VLZ Pro off ebay. That'll give you 4 decent channels.

Or if you're really tight on cash, you could probably score a used Symetrix (ebay again) for around $50-70 or so. Not bad at all, and a steal for the money if you can find 'em.
 
yeah... I think my mic-pre-thread-that-will-not-die pretty much covered this one... :p (but please don't resurrect it.. :rolleyes: )

I had the same exact thing as you. Behringer mixer running into Delta 44. I stepped up to the DMP3 and it was a better sound. I also tried the VTB-1 and JoeMeek MQ3 and didn't find either of those to be noticeably "better" than the DMP3. (actually, I thought the meek sucked,.. but I guess that's just my "taste" :p )


For a "real world" (I guess) example of the improvement in quality that you would get when going from a Behringer to an DMP3, you can check oat my NWR site.

The song "Tell Her This" was recorded using the following chain:

C-1 & MC012 > Behringer > Delta 44 > n-Track...

and the song "Better" was recorded using my new (at that time) chain:

C-1 & MC012 > DMP3 > Delta 44 > n-Track.

So, in other words, the only difference between the two songs is that one used the behringer mixer pres and the other used the DMP3. The C-1 was used on vocals and the MC12 was used on gits. I noticed that you're getting the MC12's for Christmas... so you can hear how they sound through the DMP3.

The song "Oh Holy Night" was done using my new pro tools rig (same mics though) and you can detect a quality improvement there too... (not that I'm suggesting you switch to Alsihad. :p )

WATYF
 
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symetrix

symterix sx202 is an awesome, clean, fast preamp for around 170-180 used. You can also find a mod on RAP to upgrade the output opamps and coupling caps to make it even better-er.
 
Since part of the issue is the need for more inputs I think Chessrock's
advice makes the most sense. You could sell your Behringer, and between
that along with $200, you should have enough to get a Mackie 1202 VLZ Pro.

Chris

P.S. If you want to keep your present mixer, however, the Aphex 107
dual mic pre is also nice. No 1/4" inputs though, only XLR.
 
chessrock and chessparaov........

i'm confused......will the makie give me 4 input's into my 4 channel delta 44......or will it only be able to mix the 4 down into the stereo pair............i have 4 pres on my current mixer, but i can only use 2 of them because of the stereo thing.......is this wrong?
 
I can answer that for you Powderfinger. The Mackie 1202 has direct outs on the 4 mic channels, so you can have four separate sends to you soundcard. It is one feature that many of the small Behringer boards lack.

The inserts (direct outs) are cool because you can put the 1/4 plug in halfway and it sends a signal to your card while leaving the channel audible. If you plug the cable in all the way, it sends the signal but mutes the channel.
 
crawdad,
is it guaranteed that the behringers can't do this?? how can you tell?
 
It depends on the model. 1202 only have 2 outs. 1202-pro and above have the four outs.
 
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