What should I have gotten instead of a Nady TMP-3? All I need to do is limit peaks for recording vocals with a condenser mic, use it as a bass guitar direct in, and to provide only phantom power to the condenser for recording amp'ed guitar with compression bypassed. Whatever this unit does not do is stuff that I usually do after things are recorded. Everything on it works like it's supposed to. I've only had it for a couple of weeks, so I don't know how long its lifespan is. Is the life expectancy the main worry about Nady stuff? What would have been the better way to go considering it would have been stupid to spend over $500 to do the three jobs mentioned above?
My compressor question rephrased
- Thread starter jdavidb
- Start date
SonicAlbert
Super-Sonic "Herb" Albert
It's all relative. Many people would not consider it stupid to spend over $500 on the front end. In fact, there are many that would consider it stupid to spend that little on something so important.
As far as the lifespan of the gear, that question is almost irrelevant at this point and no one can answer it with any certainty. Presumably, you just bought a brand new piece of gear in perfect working order that should give you years and years of use. It will probably still be working long after you've lost interest in it (which seems to have already happened after a couple weeks).
Also, why are you asking these questions -after- having bought the gear? mixsit could have given you that excellent suggestion before you spent your money, if you'd checked in here first! There are a lot of knowledgeable people here that are ready and willing to help out, so always ask first.
If you are really unhappy with the Nady, you might want to try and see if you can send it back for a refund. But if it is doing what it says it is supposed to do, then what is the issue?
As far as the lifespan of the gear, that question is almost irrelevant at this point and no one can answer it with any certainty. Presumably, you just bought a brand new piece of gear in perfect working order that should give you years and years of use. It will probably still be working long after you've lost interest in it (which seems to have already happened after a couple weeks).
Also, why are you asking these questions -after- having bought the gear? mixsit could have given you that excellent suggestion before you spent your money, if you'd checked in here first! There are a lot of knowledgeable people here that are ready and willing to help out, so always ask first.
If you are really unhappy with the Nady, you might want to try and see if you can send it back for a refund. But if it is doing what it says it is supposed to do, then what is the issue?
I've only been reading here for a few days, and just last night started finding all the anti-Nady sentiments. The order for this preamp/compressor was actually placed a month ago.
I think the TMP-3 will be fine for marking/sketching or whatever songwriters call it (as long as it keeps working). I was even wanting to get a > $100 mic for that purpose instead of using a condenser for everything. I'll have high end stuff when the time comes to really do release-quality recording. That's when I'll buy the sort of things I see recommended here.
I think the TMP-3 will be fine for marking/sketching or whatever songwriters call it (as long as it keeps working). I was even wanting to get a > $100 mic for that purpose instead of using a condenser for everything. I'll have high end stuff when the time comes to really do release-quality recording. That's when I'll buy the sort of things I see recommended here.
SonicAlbert
Super-Sonic "Herb" Albert
Well, you might want to see if you bought it recently enough to send it back and put the money toward the P1 that mixsit recommended. That is, assuming you are unhappy with it. If it is doing the job for you, there's no need to be too concerned if a bunch of people here don't like Nady gear. It is a bit of a shame you didn't find this site a bit sooner, as you probably would have ended up with something better.
I'm not unhappy with it. I'm open-minded though, in the sense that I'll listen to anyone who wants to state whatever might be negative about it. My imagination is taxed because this Nady just isn't making me feel like anything's lacking. Sure, I can dial in a very obvious un-transparent squash with it, but I can also dial it out and have clear, level readings topping off at -6 (or wherever I target) in the multitrack. I didn't expect much out of its parametric 3-band eq, but even there I can make a close replica of my real world bass amp minus a couple of bells & whistles specific to that amp. For vocals, I can go ahead and get rid of a lot of the thud with the preamp that comes from my personal nasaltone voice. I know that could all be done with expensive ones, of course. This one just does it too, and I bought it without expecting that much from it.
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I threw in the Safe Sound simply because of the comp/limiter combo aspect. But bottom line if the Nady is doing its part, and you're just getting started in this, you may not even need compression for tracking. Do it after in software (if that's an option). There's a few real good reasons to go that way at this stage anyway.
wayne
wayne
SonicAlbert
Super-Sonic "Herb" Albert
If the TMP-3 is doing what you want it to then don't worry about it and enjoy using it. The thing is, it really doesn't matter what you get, there will be somebody that thinks there's something better (usually whatever it is that *they've* bought).
That said, these days I usually do a message board search before I buy much of anything. It can be helpful, as long as you can mentally filter out some of the noise.
That said, these days I usually do a message board search before I buy much of anything. It can be helpful, as long as you can mentally filter out some of the noise.
Richard Monroe
Well-known member
Yo JDave! A compressor is not a preamp. It does not provide phantom power. You cannot plug a bass, or any other instrument into it. You cannot plug mics into it. It accepts a line level signal. However, there are mic preamps that have a compressor and EQ built into them. They are called "channel strips". If you have 2 of all of the above, it is called a dual channel strip. For one channel, the M-Audio Tampa does all of what you ask, and more, for $400. For 2 channels, I like the Joemeek twinQ, about $800. Either box will serve you well. I believe that any channel worth having is worth having 2 of, basically because I like stereo recording.-Richie
SonicAlbert said:
True enough. When I am looking for a piece of equipment, my reason)s) are because I have tested it out and know what I am buying. The search on user forums allows me to look for serious quality problems and other "definite" problems people have had with the unit. I mostly disreguard opinions of the sound as an opinion is limited to the person posting and all those rave reviews only make me suspicious. Experience recording is one indicator of the worth of a person's opinion. It is by no means and answer, but you usually can get useable information from an experienced user because they have used tons of equipment and know what catagory a given unit is in. I have learned over the years that there is no pre-amp, compressor, or mic that is going to dramatically change the sound of all your signal chain instantly. Many would love it to be true, but it is not. In looking to buy, always try at a store to see if you can live with it. Ordering based on opinions is a hit or miss affair at best. There are more than enough options at any given big name music store, so try them and choose what YOU have listened to unless you just have to have something and are ready to be either blown away, or disappointed.
SonicAlbert
Super-Sonic "Herb" Albert
Good post by Quantagee.
One reason it is hard to judge by posts to message groups is that in a lot of cases you don't know the person who is making the reccomendation or complaint about the gear. You don't know their experience level. You see people raving about certain gear being great or "the best" when in fact it is just the the best that they personally have used up to that point.
Very few people that can say they've had extensive experience with a wide variety of gear. Usually it's just the professional engineer's that have extensively used more than 20 different compressors, or 20 different eq's, etc.
However, I do find message board searches very useful for the same reasons Quantagee does, which is to find out if there are consistent quality control problems with gear, or any other kind of problem or complaint. If you find too many people saying the same thing, then it is something to make a note of. Although even then it is not necessarily the final word.
Message boards are also incredibly helpful when you have a very specific problem that needs solving.
But if you are happy with your new channel strip but then read somebody saying "it sucks" on a message board, that's not something I would worry about. However, in the future, do be sure to check about gear here *first*!!
One reason it is hard to judge by posts to message groups is that in a lot of cases you don't know the person who is making the reccomendation or complaint about the gear. You don't know their experience level. You see people raving about certain gear being great or "the best" when in fact it is just the the best that they personally have used up to that point.
Very few people that can say they've had extensive experience with a wide variety of gear. Usually it's just the professional engineer's that have extensively used more than 20 different compressors, or 20 different eq's, etc.
However, I do find message board searches very useful for the same reasons Quantagee does, which is to find out if there are consistent quality control problems with gear, or any other kind of problem or complaint. If you find too many people saying the same thing, then it is something to make a note of. Although even then it is not necessarily the final word.
Message boards are also incredibly helpful when you have a very specific problem that needs solving.
But if you are happy with your new channel strip but then read somebody saying "it sucks" on a message board, that's not something I would worry about. However, in the future, do be sure to check about gear here *first*!!
SonicAlbert said:Good post by Quantagee.
One reason it is hard to judge by posts to message groups is that in a lot of cases you don't know the person who is making the reccomendation or complaint about the gear. You don't know their experience level. You see people raving about certain gear being great or "the best" when in fact it is just the the best that they personally have used up to that point.
Very few people that can say they've had extensive experience with a wide variety of gear. Usually it's just the professional engineer's that have extensively used more than 20 different compressors, or 20 different eq's, etc.
However, I do find message board searches very useful for the same reasons Quantagee does, which is to find out if there are consistent quality control problems with gear, or any other kind of problem or complaint. If you find too many people saying the same thing, then it is something to make a note of. Although even then it is not necessarily the final word.
Message boards are also incredibly helpful when you have a very specific problem that needs solving.
But if you are happy with your new channel strip but then read somebody saying "it sucks" on a message board, that's not something I would worry about. However, in the future, do be sure to check about gear here *first*!!
A quick story:
My wife wanted a Maytag washer and dryer. They are the best hands down (we hear).
So, we bought. The dryer digital screen froze and died about 8 months into ownership. So, Maytag fixed it under warranty.
Good. I did a search on newsgroups for Maytag ( I should have done this before I bought) and found this problem with plenty of users (as well as a few others that I had to fix).
So, the BBSs are a good tool for finding quality issues and problems with equipment.
And unfortunately, Nady is one of those companies that has sketchy quality control at best.
The flip side is that -- at least with their mics -- their gear that I know of tends to be just fine in terms of quality and functionality. So if you happened to get something from them, and it sounds good and hasn't broken down on you (yet), then you probably did just fine.
Every now and then, though, there are pieces of gear that come out at a given price point that just obviously stand out as being special / different in a good way. The RNC by FMR Audio is one of them. And the Safesound P-1 is another.
When pieces of rack gear come out and sort of revolutionize and challenge what your previous beliefs once were regarding quality at a given price point ... it's worth it to consider it above other options. Regardless of a message board's tendcency to hype certain things -- sometimes there are good reasons why people talk something up.
The flip side is that -- at least with their mics -- their gear that I know of tends to be just fine in terms of quality and functionality. So if you happened to get something from them, and it sounds good and hasn't broken down on you (yet), then you probably did just fine.
Every now and then, though, there are pieces of gear that come out at a given price point that just obviously stand out as being special / different in a good way. The RNC by FMR Audio is one of them. And the Safesound P-1 is another.
When pieces of rack gear come out and sort of revolutionize and challenge what your previous beliefs once were regarding quality at a given price point ... it's worth it to consider it above other options. Regardless of a message board's tendcency to hype certain things -- sometimes there are good reasons why people talk something up.