Best Mic Pre under $300 Poll..

[Jae Little]

Me, I'd rather save money and get a better preamp than those. Me, I'd go with either the Grace 101 or Roland MMP-2.

 

[Joel Hamilton]

I have owned or operated almost every pre available, certainly all the standards like Neve(1073/1272/1066/31114 family... all of em even the VR and capricorn series),API,Manley, helios, focusrite,auditronics,calrec,vintech,OSA,7th circle,ampex,.... blah bklah....

Aside from some of the really expensive pre's I have, I use a vintech X72 all the time, a brent averill pair of 1272's, a sytek 4 channel pre, an ART tube MP, and an electro harmonix 12Ay7 pre.

The ART I usually use at line level as a sort of distortion box for mixing. I dont consider it really a viable option 99.9 percent of the time as a mic pre. I work on a lot of stuff, and I really DO consider the EH mic pre a viable option for certain overdubs. When I am at avatar on monday, in the A room, with anything I want, and I am back at my studio on wednesday, with all the stuff i have collected: I am glad I have the EH. When I say I like it for vocals and AC gtr, I mean regardless of price or name on it or anything. I am not a label snob by any means, I just need stuff that works all the time and makes me look like i know what i am doing..

I sound like a broken record about this pre I realize, but I really simply know the sonic benefits of s REAL tube mic pre and a really clean, simple signal path on the way in. That thing has that! It is stupid cheap for what it is. If that mic pre went for 500 dollars or 750 I would still say the same thing: it rocks. Forget what you know about the "pedal company" called EH.... That pre is a really nice choice that is totally a "real" mic pre!

Enjoy.; You wont believe how good your tracks all sit together, and how much more 3D the mixes are when everything goes through a real pre.

 

[thehook]

help a brotha

hello mr. you commned the Eh preamp...I have heard a few good things, originally I was pointed to the dmp3 because of its clean response. I am going to be recording roots music and blues with overdubs of things including guitar, harmonica and banjo...Usually I will track vocals and guitar together at the same time through one mic. I want a warm sound, full bodied and alive... I am hoping to achieve this with the v67g mic from marshal and maybe a green bullet for some dirty blues vocals and harmonica. Do you think the EH preamp would be more suited for what I am trying to do than the dmp3?? ps...I will be recording directaly into the input on my stock soundcard
thanks
matt

 

[Joel Hamilton]

hello mr. you commned the Eh preamp...I have heard a few good things, originally I was pointed to the dmp3 because of its clean response. I am going to be recording roots music and blues with overdubs of things including guitar, harmonica and banjo...Usually I will track vocals and guitar together at the same time through one mic. I want a warm sound, full bodied and alive... I am hoping to achieve this with the v67g mic from marshal and maybe a green bullet for some dirty blues vocals and harmonica. Do you think the EH preamp would be more suited for what I am trying to do than the dmp3?? ps...I will be recording directaly into the input on my stock soundcard
thanks
matt

The EH is the only pre under 300 dollars that doesnt use IC's. It really is a wonderful circuit. It actually has a couple of IC's in it but ONLY for the 1/4" out which is not the output to use! So many people have plugged in to that output and said, yeah... its okay.... That is like plugging out of the headphone jack of an amazing hifi amp, and saying... yeah... this macintosh 75 watt tube power amp sounds "okay."

Used properly, the EH is an amazing pre. Forget about the usual cliche "tube myth" stuff. A good circuit using a tube is quite hifi.

 

[MISTERQCUE]

Used properly, the EH is an amazing pre. Forget about the usual cliche "tube myth" stuff. A good circuit using a tube is quite hifi.

What do you mean by "used properly"?

 

[XLR]

The EH is the only pre under 300 dollars that doesnt use IC's. It really is a wonderful circuit. It actually has a couple of IC's in it but ONLY for the 1/4" out which is not the output to use! So many people have plugged in to that output and said, yeah... its okay.... That is like plugging out of the headphone jack of an amazing hifi amp, and saying... yeah... this macintosh 75 watt tube power amp sounds "okay."

Used properly, the EH is an amazing pre. Forget about the usual cliche "tube myth" stuff. A good circuit using a tube is quite hifi.

Joel, you've got my curiosity piqued.

I'd been thinking about getting a pre with a character in contrast to the solid state pre's I use currently... was hesitating though because I didn't need it enough to spring for another high cost pre, heh-heh. Don't usually buy gear without hearing it but $184 isn't much of a risk (hell, that's just dinner for two in Manhattan ) so...

I just bought one online. I'll drop back in the thread when I've tried it out and let you guys know how it's working for me. And yeah, I'll make sure to use the XLR out. Thanks for the tip.

Tim

 

[thehook]

thanks for the response, but for what I am going for as I described what do you think espically compared to the dmp3...also I didn't quite understand the whole use thing, where should I plug it it into to use it correctally? How can it be powered well and into the computer?

 

[diogo]

hey hook,

the electr harmonix pre has a 1/4 out and a xlr out. you should use the later to get the better performance out of it. all you have to do is get a XLR to 1/4 TRS cable and that should do it. with that said, the emu and m-audio lower audio soundcards are cheap as hell and should give you a lot more quality (that is if youre using the stock soundcard on your computer).

regarding the dmp3, i have it, and ill get the electro harmonix pre as soon as i can. I own 4 stomps from them and its a company i trully love. anyway, the dmp3 is a very clean pre, with a stupid (for the good) amount of gain very very hot little thing - very useful for quiet stuff but as with most pres with a lot of gain, the more u dial in, the noisier it gest. in my opinion its a great pre that will give you a decent sound over most mixer's pres out there, even soundcraft. if you want the sound to translate exactly as you hear it, the dmp3 is a cool pre. if you want the sound to be interesting and have a caracther, then go for the electro harmonix preamp. ill have both, and ill keep both...the electro harmonix supposedly doesnt perform very well with guitar amps and loud sources, so i need the dmp3 for that, but i dont think it can be beat (not at this price level) for acoustic guitars and vocals.

 

[boomtap]

Isn't the AKG C 3000 B $299.00. I think that is a killer mic for under $300.

 

[Walter Tore]

The EH is the only pre under 300 dollars that doesnt use IC's. It really is a wonderful circuit. It actually has a couple of IC's in it but ONLY for the 1/4" out which is not the output to use! So many people have plugged in to that output and said, yeah... its okay.... That is like plugging out of the headphone jack of an amazing hifi amp, and saying... yeah... this macintosh 75 watt tube power amp sounds "okay."

Used properly, the EH is an amazing pre. Forget about the usual cliche "tube myth" stuff. A good circuit using a tube is quite hifi.

Joel: Help me out here please. I have 3 EH pre amps, and am using a 1/4" guitar cable from the output, to the 1/4" input of my delta 66 soundcard. I have a delta 1010 due any day, to replace the 66. Anyway, will plugging an xlr to the EH output, with a 1/4" plug on the other end, open this up like you are saying? Or will it need the xlr on both ends. Sorry for my ignorance. I am a player, learning how to be a recorder. THanks! Walter

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pageartist.cfm?bandID=157137

 

[pohaku]

Symetrix SX202. 2 channels, real 48v phantom, pads on both channels, polarity reverse switch. @$100-150 on E-Bay. Modifiable. On the other hand, I did once see a Brick for $299 as a Buy It Now on E-Bay.

 

[snatchman]

You know, I had a similiar experience awhile back ,trying to decide whether to by a HD24 based on the 24 bit converters. I'm using Adat Xts.. One day a guy came to my studio and ask if I could mix some songs he had tracked at another studio (out of state). The songs had been tracked to Adats. So I put the tapes in hit play. My God..! .... I asked what the studio had used to track with. He kindly showed me the track sheets..." Manley, GML. API,etc.! Man, I've never heard Adats sound so......humm..Pro!
So immediately my priority shifted from converters to "front-end pres". Made all the difference in the world. So yes, I think better pre-amps goes a long ways in obtaining a good recording! (YMMV) ..

 

[Joel Hamilton]

I think, in general, that saying that a better preamp will give you better recordings is like saying a les paul will make you a better guitar player, or a better camera will make you take better pictures....

A better guitar is CAPABLE of sounding better in the right hands. A better preamp is capable of (being a part of) making "better" recordings......

Concentrate hard on outgrowing your present setup before looking for a box to "make" better recordings. None of these devices makes a sound on their own, YOU are the most important part of the recording chain. By far.

 

[mjau]

PAIA Tube Mic Preamp Model 9407 - Modified

A pre of a thousand voices. I love this thing! Warm, versatile and pleasing to the ear.
-Tim

I just got one of these, modded w/ Burr Browns. I'm eager to do some more modding to it, but even now it is a very nice piece that I know I'll use often.

 

[lapieuvre]

I got a mackie cfx16 as a preamp and is very clean. to warmup my tracks i use antares microphone modeler. For my Home recording needs it is far enough.

 

[XLR]

Got an Electro Harmonix tube pre last week and am very impressed. Had planned to get one just for occasional use as color variety compared to my main pre's (Great River). It sounds so good I'm getting a second (it's just a single channel) so I can use them for stereo mic'ing. ...A rich sound that tends to smooth out transient levels the more you drive it. But its smoothness isn't muddy like the Presonus Bluetube's tube circuit... it's clear and detailed.

Tim

 

[fenderlady]

I have an SP B3, awesome mic. My husband used to work for Shure and he is blown away by the B3. I want a C1 and a C3 also. So far for the price, you can beat the Studio Project mics.

 

[XLR]

fenderlady, what preamp are you using with your B3?

Tim

 

[XLR]

I mentioned the Presonus Bluetube pre earlier in the thread and I think it shines as an acoustic gtr piezo transducer buffer/preamp. Just posted this Beatles cover in the mp3 Clinic... Come Together using 5 nylon and steel string gtrs with a Dean Markley Artist transducer and the Bluetube.

Tim

 

[audiogenic]

Behringer's VX2496 is a nice pre amp / compressor for $99 USD.