Hands Down- Best Preamp money can buy?

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chris-from-ky

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I've looked around on these forums and on sites like mercenary audio to see if there is a definitive "best" in the world of preamps. I am the kind of guy to equate quality with price. "It costs more, it must be better!" I know that's not always true so, the question remains... "If you had all the money you needed to buy ONE preamp, which one would it be?

Thanks in advance for your input,
Chris
 
The best color is blue!

chris-from-ky said:
I've looked around on these forums and on sites like mercenary audio to see if there is a definitive "best" in the world of preamps. I am the kind of guy to equate quality with price. "It costs more, it must be better!" I know that's not always true so, the question remains... "If you had all the money you needed to buy ONE preamp, which one would it be?

Thanks in advance for your input,
Chris
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gordone said:
The best color is blue!
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I agree. Blue. No, Navy Blue. Well, somewhere in between Navy blue and Blue. But not Royal Blue.
 
By Best I guess you mean most versatile i.e sound great/good on almost everything...you may wanna check out the GT VIPRE all those impedance options give you tons of flavors
 
Impossible task, my friend. I can tell you the best preamp with a certain mic on a certain voice on a certain day, the best preamp with another mic on a snare on a different day, the best room mic in a certain room with a certain type of kit... but these are all extremely localized opinions based solely on a)the gear available to me, b)the situation in which the gear is used, and c)my opinions, ears, and skills.

I'll say this, if you can afford it, and you track a lot of rock, it would be nice to have something Neve-flavored and something API-flavored.
 
It is an impossible task, but if I had "all the money in the world" I'd like to have the following:

Neve 1073
Neve 1081
Great River Mercenary Edition
Telefunken V series
API 312's
Audix 35102's

I actually own 5 API 312's, and 4 Audix 35102's.
The API's and the 35102's will run you about $700-$800 per channel.
The 35102's are pretty much sleepers. If you ever run across them, pick 'em up. You wont be dissapointed. Think API pre meets Neve EQ. Tasty!
 
Michael Jones said:
It is an impossible task, but if I had "all the money in the world" I'd like to have the following:

Neve 1073
Neve 1081
Great River Mercenary Edition
Telefunken V series
API 312's
Audix 35102's
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Hey that's cheating. And besides none of them are Dusky Mauve. :p
 
kiira said:
Hey that's cheating. And besides none of them are Dusky Mauve. :p
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:D
It MUST be Black or Neve Grey to see my rack!
(OK, maybe stainless steel too)
 
Michael Jones said:
:D
It MUST be Black or Neve Grey to see my rack!
(OK, maybe stainless steel too)
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I have to have one of each color. So far I have blue, silver, and black, and I'm looking for green and red. kiira, if you ever mass produce your tube pre, then I can have dusky mauve too :)
 
how do grace preamps compare? they seem pretty nice (and expensive too) but are they somewhere inbetween prosumer (mackie onyx) and the models that have been mentioned already.
 
What's the best vehical? Is a Lamborghini better than a Hummer? I suppose it depends on where you intend on driving. The Autobahn or Baha.
 
Track Rat said:
What's the best vehical? Is a Lamborghini better than a Hummer? I suppose it depends on where you intend on driving. The Autobahn or Baha.
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I'd want the lambo that can change wheels and raise its suspension in a pinch...or put on wings and a propellor....thats basically what the VIPRE does but musically of course it may not be that drastic BUT similar.
 
An intriguing mic pre that might be a step above most anything is the Gordon.

A mic pre that can carry the weight on anything I can dream of is the Great River MP-2NV.
 
The ART Tube MP anything that goes thru it is pure majesty!



























Or not :p
 
Henri Devill said:
The ART Tube MP anything that goes thru it is pure majesty!






























































































































































































































































































































































































Or not :p
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AND.............. It'll warm up yer kold, strare-ull, dijituhl tracks!!
 
now yall know the best general pre out there is the behringer pres....yall just dont wanna admit :D
 
distortedrumble said:
now yall know the best general pre out there is the behringer pres....yall just dont wanna admit :D
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How can I not agree, yet agree to disagree so agreeably.

:p

The A Designs stuff is top notch...my ears haven't travelled the preamp world as heavily as some.

You gotta admit though...sometimes a Mackie pre might just do the trick better than the high dollar stuff. Not that that makes it the best at anything...just maybe sometimes better than something else.

War
 
Teacher said:
By Best I guess you mean most versatile i.e sound great/good on almost everything...you may wanna check out the GT VIPRE all those impedance options give you tons of flavors
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IMHO, the Vipre is very inappropriate for quite a few applications, again my opinion only (and I sell the thing so I must be crazy right?). The slew rate settings and impedance settings do not turn it into a swiss army knife, or into a 'night and day' sonic pallette. It still has the same circuit design regardless.
 
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