Is this thing any good? I stumbled upon one for 10 dollars so I picked it up, but is it really worth anything or would it actually be a better quality pre-amp than the XMAXs in my Presonus Firepod?
I can't imagine it would be any better than the pres in your Firepod, if even as good. The AudioBuddy does have an issue with not providing a full 48 volts to the mic when you use phantom power. I have one and I use it when I am recording our band when I run out of other mic preamps in. It does what it is supposed to do.
For $10, you got a good little backup preamp. I'd hang onto it.