Is RNP regarded as a clean pre?

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frist44

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IS the RNP as clean as the sytek? I'm looking to buy either the sytek or the RNP. The fact that the sytek has 4 channels doesn't really matter. Is there instruments that one would be better at and vice versa and what would those instruments be.

Brandon
 
Well....hmmmmmmmmm...

My impression of the Sytek's was that they had a good amount of "color" to the sound. I wouldn't consider them "clean" really. Not like a Focusrite Red, Oram, or even say a Millenium Media. Those are pretty "clean" pre's, but they all have their own "sound" to them.

While this didn't per se answer your question, it should at least call to attention to the fact that every pre has a "sound". You either like the sound or you don't. No pre sounds "good" on everything. I have ditched Neve's in favor of Mackies and ART's for certain applications.

The RNP is probably clean enough for most applications.

Ed
 
Does anyone know if they'll be making a faceplate like they did for the RNC to rack them?

I would love to hear any other opinions on sytek vs. RNP
 
Id look for Funk Logic to come out with something soon, I read An artical in EQ that said that the RNP is rather noisy, Mind you it was a good review, but any product has its flaws.
 
Noisy, geez... maybe if some idiot was trying to record the sounds an ant makes when its crawling in a dead quiet room with a Behringer omni with a 500 foot cable. C'mon, everyone knows without asking that McQ put an insane amount of design into this thing and that fidelity was the most important design aspect out of everything. All the way down to the excellent pots and switches. If you read the whats cool/what sucks info he put up about it (very commendable), you'll see its not the quietest preamp on the planet, but it wasnt meant to be and doesnt need to be. Its still quieter than a Mackie at full gain, and has a clarity and top end that Mackie doesnt allow.
The DI function on the thing is worth the cost of admittance so far. Sounds as good, but in a different way, as using a Mesa dual as a bass DI, which is really really good.
The sound is very clean, yes. It may have some charachter that I havent totally recognized yet as I only have an hour behind it, but it did give all my Mackie tracked projects a whole new lease on sound quality. It doesnt have that thick 1272 sound to it or anything, but it has a very open top. I like hifi-clarity, and this has it.
Peace.
 
interesting

at the time when the RNP was still in hype mode, it was supposedly going to be a very colored vintagey RCA kinda sound.

heh, kinda wish it was.
 
I dont think its any different from what it was hyped as, I like charictar in my mic pres, It never was ment to be a wire with gain, and when you want to make vocals sound good that charicter is a good thing.
 
i meant i wish it had more "character" vs. what people are saying about it being a clean pre.
 
Trouble is that they are compareing them cheaper pres mostly, and up against those the rnp is clean.
 
I cant understand how I see threads saying... "RNP or Joe Meek or BlueTube as next mic pre"
Craziness, it goes without asking. Yet, everyone asks. I mean, duh. $240 a channel. "would I be better off with 2 dbx 266 preamps" NO! Geez, no.
My plan is to have a "console" of about 8 channels RNP, 8 channels RNP, and 8 channels Speck EQ... I'll need a good line mixer to actually mix, which will probably end up being a Speck also.
ANyway, the RNP is exactly what it claims to be. A really nice preamp and DI.
Peace.
 
Maybe I should just put it this way from now on when people ask...
Its a great fucking preamp. Its the best preamp for under $1000. No firther questions are neccesary. Just buy it and shut up and record something. :)
 
tubedude said:
Maybe I should just put it this way from now on when people ask...
Its a great fucking preamp. Its the best preamp for under $1000. No firther questions are neccesary. Just buy it and shut up and record something. :)
Click to expand...

Best pre under $1000? :rolleyes: Come now. What you are saying is that it will sound better than ANY other preamp that is less than $1000 on ANYTHING? :eek: :confused:

I will not argue whether it is a decent preamp or not, but to say it is the "best" is just plain wrong. Nothing is the "best" for everything.

I think I should stop getting hooked into these preamp threads! It becomes obvious that people don't really understand how mic's and preamp's work together.

My favorite combo right now for micing a guitar cabinet is a SM57 to the ART Pro MP, and the Drawmer 1960 pre next. Now, that same mic to a Focusrite, Oram, Neve just doesn't sound as good.

But my favorite combo for male vocal is a ADK TC 51 to an Oram with the Drawmer 1960 compressor behind it. That mic just doesn't sound the same on the other pre's.

So, the preamp is only HALF the equasion!!! What mic you use, and how the pre weights the mic have a lot to do with the sound too!!! When the same mic doesn't sound as good through different preamp's, that right there tells you that NO preamp will sound good for every application, just like NO mic will sound good with every preamp for every application.

Variety is the key. I am not saying that the RNP is not a decent preamp. I am sure it is. But it is no more the "best" for any application than any other preamp, some more expensive, some less expensive would be.

I know somebody is going to try to play the "it works better on more things" card. That is not true either.

Another part of the equasion is the type of sound SOUGHT for the production. Also, some pre's lend themselves better to analog recording than digital on most things (the Focusrite Red comes to mind...sounds outstanding on a lot of thing when going to analog tape...sounds way too harsh when going to digital on most things....)

When it comes to preamps, it pays to be realistic. NO ONE PREAMP WILL WORK WELL IN EVERY SITUATION, AND NONE OF THEM ARE THE BEST FOR EVERYTHING OR THE BEST FOR MOST THINGS!!! Each has it's own sound, and will work well and not so well with different mics and on different sources that are being miced. Then throw in the production sound you want, well, you have a big mix of stuff that effects what is "best".

Ed
 
under $950 but not a grand.

You forgot the Great River MP1NV. but its a good deal at two channels and $450.
 
Maybe I need to be more specific then.
No other preamp I have ever heard, including the ART MP, has that overall clarity that I like, in the under $400 channel range. I like the API stuff, but its not under $500 once you add on a PS and rack. The Grace kinda has it. The Neve 1073 shines at it as does the Great River.
SO, for what its worth, if you are looking for the clarity and sense of biggness that I like (like on "big time" albums), yes, it is the best preamp in the price range and no others that I know of get close until around $1000 and up.
I am starting to recognize some of its character now, its not totally clean, but it is. If that makes sense.
Peace!
 
tubedude said:
if you are looking for the clarity and sense of biggness that I like (like on "big time" albums)
Click to expand...

Cool. Where can I get some "Big Time" albums? :D I'm a big, big, fan of biggness, but I've never heard of the band "Big Time," or any of their albums. I'm going to have to check out the used Record Exchange. Thanks for the tip, TD!
 
tubedude said:
No other preamp I have ever heard, including the ART MP, has that overall clarity that I like, in the under $400 channel range.
Click to expand...


I have. DaviSound "Mic-All" preamps in the DaviSound TB-6 (also used in the TB-3, TB-5, & TB-10) will kick my ass with overall clarity (well, I should say as much clarity as the mic being used is giving) any day of the week for $237.50 a channel! AND, it's transformerless and IC op-amp based!
 
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