how to operate a pre to get the mic to become very "crisp"

[Nick The Man]

well i pretty much asked my question right in the title "how to operate a pre to get the mic to become very "crisp""..... but i am specificly talking about the M-audio Tampa cause i have nothing but good things about it so my mind is kinda set on getting in the future

 

[chessrock]

I don't think that's what a mic pre is supposed to do.

You might be thinking of EQ.

 

[acorec]

well i pretty much asked my question right in the title "how to operate a pre to get the mic to become very "crisp""..... but i am specificly talking about the M-audio Tampa cause i have nothing but good things about it so my mind is kinda set on getting in the future

My first thought is extreme overvoltage. If you set the unit for 120V and plug it in to 220V, that ought to "crisp" up the pre, the mic and other equipment in the area quite nicely. Direct heat in the form of "warming" up those recordings will also do it. Over 200 deg/F will help.

 

[xfinsterx]

You can add a sense of air to the vocal sound by boosting the 14k and up regions. But be careful of sibilance. You could also do a wide q boost at around 2k or so to add presence.

A bright mic helps too.

 

[fraserhutch]

"how to operate a pre to get the mic to become very "crisp""

C'mon, is that really you, Walters????????

 

[Chris F]

Actually, when you really push the Tampa, it produces a sound that I would describe as "hot", and super present - not distorted, just "hot". One of the things I like about the pre is the fact that it can go from super clean and laid back to hot and aggressive. IMO, the "sweet spot" is in that little space of the dial just a hair on the far side of "laid back".

 

[mr.rich]

not exactly sure what u really mean with crisp, im guessing you mean a sharper more defined top end. if so agree with the boosting of freq over 114k. try recording normal and then jack up the gain on your high freq and sweep through the highs to find a sharp one that kindof jump out at you, then roll out most of the gain. you can also try a brighter mic, you could try (if your pre has an input and output control) jacking the input pretty hot and backing off the out. on some pres this will give you a sharp almost clipped sound. you could try backing a singer off a mic a little which will axe some of the lows and give you a more airy roomish sound.