Help Me Spend!

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onmoris

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I'm posting here cause this is where a lot of the smart guys seem to hang out.
Don't ask me how, but I've come into 500 dollars to spend at Guitar Center.

I do desktop work with a lot MIDI, and some audio recording - vocals, acoustic/electric guitars.

I have a Blue Baby Bottle, an MBOX, Cubase SX, and a bunch of quality VST's. Plus I have all the waves plug-ins and othereffects. Is my next best bet a high quality pre-amp? Or should I get another mic or more instrument software? What would you guys do?
 
$500 will get you a decent preamp...if....GC carries one. The Salt Lake store where I live SUCKS on selection of pre's. Hopefully your store will have better selection.
 
Not to be rude or anything, but before you go spending that money you would do well to research stuff to the point where you don't really have to ask this kind of question. Then you'll know that you're ready to spend it. Sure, it's great to get other people's opinions on stuff, but if you don't already have an idea of what you might need, then it's not time to get anything yet. Just my $0.02...take it or leave it but don't throw a fit because I said it.
 
hey man,
you shouldn't just assume i'm not doing any research on my own. also, when you say not to be rude, generally you mean "i'm going to be rude but i'm going to tell you something anyway." unfortunately, you didn't really say anything after establishing that you were going to be rude.

that being said, i'm looking at some preamps, i'm thinking of getting a presonus - have you guys used the eureka?
 
i'm guessing you're using your Mbox as the sound card and running Cubase with it? the pres on the Mbox are Focusrites and nice sounding ones IMO. I'd say go with microphones if you think you need them. Maybe something that will work well on your acousitc guitar and can work well on Vocals at the same time. There's a lot of large condensers that would do this. Or, since you work with MIDI a lot, maybe some new soft synths or something...plugins maybe? good luck
 
Jeez...did the line "Just my $0.02...take it or leave it but don't throw a fit because I said it" completely slip past you? I'm just saying that you should already have a damn good idea of what you're looking for before money even comes into the equation. That way, you don't end up with something you don't need or that isn't the best for your situation. Lighten up...

Anyway, what the REAL reviewers (i.e. the ones who aren't on PreSonus's payroll) say about the Eureka bears out in practice. It's not absolutely horrible, but you can do a lot better for the money. It's got a lot of knobs to adjust everything under the sun, but the basic sound is subpar for the price. On any given source, it seems to sound either harsh and sterile, or very muddy, especially when compared to other things in its price range. A Sytek MPX-4Aii will run you maybe two hundred more or so, but the clarity AND warmth blow the doors off the Eureka...and you get 4 channels to boot, not just one.

The Eureka's compressor actually isn't that bad, but their "tube/tape warmth emulation" thing will completely destroy any clarity that was in the signal. The EQ works well enough, but isn't anything stunning.
 
If I were going to spend $500 I'd get a PreSonus FirePod.

Or some more RODE.
 
As far as Mic Pre's, I've heard some great things about Groove Tubes The Brick. I would suggest a Great River ME-1NV, but those are about a grand. I have one and it really has added a pros touch to my mixes.

If I had $500 to spend on my studio right now, I would invest it into a Kurzweil Rumour. Outboard reverb beats any plug-in verb IMO. I have tried all the verb plug-ins and nothing comes close to a good outboard verb.
 
You could always spend it on a hooker. Get yerself a little nookie for 15 minutes or so.
 
Damn, I've stayed up too late.

That just seems like much more of a suitable option than it should be...

But, chessrock, I think I've found a good argument against hookers...

Sex, one can get for free if they're charming enough.

But free music gear is a lot harder to come by.

Music gear is better than women because:

-It doesn't complain when getting a 1/4" diameter shaft.
-It has an off button and doesn't mind me using it
-It has a volume control
-You can sometimes turn the "Attack" knob down
-More flashing lights
-Women only have a couple usable "inserts", and none are balanced.


Haha, I just made those up.... I'm sure they've been made up before, of course... I like the insert one.


Anyway, I should get to bed so I can get up and ROCK.

I have a hot date tomorrow with a super nintendo!
 
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