My preamp dilema

  • Thread starter Thread starter Slackmaster2K
  • Start date Start date
Thanks for all the input guys.

I found a couple SX202 dual pre units for an ooh so sweet price. I'm not set on the deal yet so I can't say for sure if this is what I'm going to do. I hear with the burr brown upgrade they really hold their own. If I go this route, I'll buy a little cheap NADY or Behringer mixer to solve my tracking level problem (since I don't need a mixer for *recording*, just monitoring).

Gidge, I looked at the audio buddy...and I just can't take it seriously. They've done a good job of marketing it to people who just started recording yesterday, but I can't get myself to get over the "audio buddy" name or the literature which reads something like, "now that you've got a soundcard, how do you plug your microphone into it? With the Audio Buddy of course!" Maybe it's a great product but I'll never know. Haha :)

jet-rocker, I agree completely. The reason I'm shopping for a cheap usable pre is that i can't make the music I want *at all* without a couple more pres. That's why I'm not interested in saving up just yet. I've got these idears and they need to come out soon!

jitteringjim, thanks for the suggestion, but a digital mixer won't work since I'm using a Delta44. Unless of course it has analog outputs but that's an extra conversion...unless I'm thinking it wrong?

Slackmaster 2000
 
Hey Slack, if you dont take the 202's, would you let me know how much you could pass them along for?
I dont think the require the Burr upgrade to sound good, and if so, you may need someone to put it on a scope and make sure the upgrade was appropriate... oscillation possibilities. They have a good opamp, and the problem with the 303 is they used a crappier opamp.
Let me know about those, if you dont want them.
 
Slack,

I agree Audio Buddy is a cheesy name and an equally cheesy marketing campaign..but it was the predecessor in design to the DMP2 preamps that kick Mackie VLZ pre's ass.....

I just figured 2 channels at $89 could get you through for right now until you get that Davisound pre:rolleyes:

good luck on the 202's....
 
Gidge...maybe I'll buy one and scrape off the name or something...put it in a different housing. I don't want any more buddies :)

Slackmaster 2000
 
Scrape it off and write in "Davisound"....got a green marker:rolleyes: ....or if anyone asks what it is, tell them its the rack-mountable version of the Suck Knob.......

also, if you are venturing into recording drums, dont rule out using the Art....guitars/vocals are totally different animals than drums and you just may Love the way a snare or kick sounds thru the ART.....

Audio Buddy is $79 at zzsounds....everyone can use a Buddy.....
 
On the VM 88

You could record direct from the inserts (which is what you'd have to do with the 1202 also) and mix with the 2 stereo lines if you want - I just use 2 to monitor with, and mix on the PC. It does also have stereo analog out, but yeah, if you want to mix through it, it does look like you'd have to run the mix back into the 44. I wouldn't want to do that either. But if you just want to use the pre's and monitor through it (or use the effects)...

Reqs: the optical output is selectable between ADAT and optical s/pdif.
 
I'm with Gidge here. I actually have the Audio Buddy just for extra inputs, and when I've used it I'm always surprised that it's not all that bad. For 89 bucks it's a steal. Get two and add any line mixer for the monitoring. You will even be able to afford a good marker pen to write something more desirable on the audio buddy.

Cheers
/Henrik

PS You're not going to like the package it comes in. Hehe.
 
Just joking!!! don't kill me BUTT........

I hear The Village People use "audio buddy" Exclusively.
 
Ok, I was able to score a used SX202 dual unit for about $100, which is a good price considering 6 months ago I got into a bidding war on ebay that went up to $220.

If my car hadn't needed a new alternator I would have bought all of them (looks like there were three duals total). Tubedude, check your email.

Thanks guys. I think after the new year I'll pick up a cheap little headphone amp/mixer to deal with my tracking problem.

Slackmaster 2000
 
Tubedude, couldn't find your email so check your BBS private messages.

Slackmaster 2000
 
Though It's Over And Done With

I myself would have recommended the 1202 VLZ PRO. Reason being, you get 4 decent pres (my min. recommendation) and a decent monitoring mixer (my min. recommendation).

Remember, your monitoring-end is just as important as your front-end. In fact, probably more important.

But, you're purchase of the SX202 for $100 was a good steal! Glad you snatched it up! Plus, if you ever want to upgrade it, I'd recommend the Audio Upgrades Install High Speed Mic Pre Card by Jim Williams. Then you have a VERY nice pre worth keeping in your rack NO matter what else you ever get!

I also agree with tdukex about the TB-6. In fact, for your "Saving up for a year is a possibility", I recommend you have DaviSound build you a 4-Channel (with Mic All pres; the same pres in the TB-6) mixer for your individual and specific needs.

Only my opinions...
 
Mackie 1202 VLZ PRO

I said this in another thread yesterday, so I'll keep this short.

1.) The VLZ pres don't completely suck. You can pick up a 1202 VLZ PRO (the latest one) on eBay for about $275 used, plus shipping. Look for "Buy It Now" and jump on it as soon as you see it. Don't waste your time with auctions. Get the original box. It's a drop-dead bargain.

On the 3DAudioinc.com preamp shoot-out discs, the 1604 VLZ sounded better than about 20% of the other preamps to me, most of which cost $1500-$2500 (in a blind listening test -- I had no idea which preamp was which until afterwards). So much for spending a bundle as a guarantee you're going to get quality.

The Mackie VLZ is the Shure SM57 of the mic preamp world. It isn't the most refined preamp made, but it's always musical and embarrasses many products that cost much more.

2.) Consider the possibility that you may not own your next preamp forever. Currently, you can sell a 1202 VLZ Pro on eBay (as I said above) for about $275 in one or two days. Figure $12 for shipping. If you use it for six months or a year and can resell it for close to what you paid for it, you're WAY ahead of where you'd be if you bought something that no one's heard of and no one is looking for.

By the way, I'm the guy that bought the Rane MS-1 on eBay yesterday, so I'll let you know in a couple of weeks how it compares to the VLZ.

This is a spirited and useful thread, and your questions were well thought out and highly relevant to lots of us.

Many thanks,

Mark H.

P. S. Sorry, this "is" keeping it short, for me.
 
I know you stated you dont want to spend more then what you have and that you want to record and mix now thats one option

But in doing that you may have to settle for something you are not happy with and this dont make you smile later when you go to sell the gear on ebay.

1250usd will get you this maybe cheaper in kit form and this is from australia sure you will have to say no for now but look what you get when you save the above amount some food for thought here

http://www.jlmaudio.com/products.htm

2500 aussie or 1250 usd 8 chans of quality you can live with

heres another way to look at it some nice commercial pres like a presonus mp20 and an art pro mpa and a studio projects vti =

$1227usd or $2454 aussie dollars when the aussie dollar is buying 50cents of your money for this you get 5 chans of mic pre

with the jlm you get 8 AND JUST LOOK AT THE QUALITY

so the option is rush now or save now and play later it sounds harsh but iam sure a year down the track when you have such a nice mic pre with 8 quality chans you will be much happier for it :-)


and i realise what you said you wanted to spend so before anyone wastes their time to tell me so weigh up the options then tell me im wrong if shipping is a problem and you want one of these units iam only happy to assist you :-)
 
Slackmaster,

I wondered if you had found what you're looking for yet.

Although I repeat myself constantly, I'll just say again that to me the *cost* of an item is what you pay for it, minus what you learn from it, minus the value received from using it (the qualities of recordings made), minus what you can re-sell it for in 6 months or a year when you're ready to upgrade.

For a Mackie 1202VLZ PRO, the cost will probably be about $25 (perhaps $50 if Mackie comes out with a "Pro Two" in the meantime), plus a whole lot of great mixing and recording experience. Money-wise, the cost of a two-channel Audio Buddy might be about the same -- with far less satisfactory results.

Resale value (including demand for the specific product) should be a major consideration in any purchase. The Manley Gold Reference may be a great microphone, but if you pay $5500 for it, you'll be lucky to recover half that amount for it in a couple of years (one just languished without a single bid for 2 weeks on eBay with an opening price of $2490). On the other hand, if you buy a clean used KSM44 for $575 or less ($125 off the going discount price) and take good care of it, you probably won't lose a penny when you sell it.

I hope you don't think I'm that little guy with horns sitting on your left shoulder telling you to buy a mixer when your children need school clothes. I'm just saying that cost isn't just cost -- it's cost over time. :-)

Best wishes,

Mark H.
 
I'm a Moron

I must be losing my mind... I got to the bottom of the first page of this thread, thought I was at the end, then entered my reply and posted it before realizing I had already written virtually the same reply a few days before.

Geez, ageing really sucks....

Mark H.
 
Hey slackmaster2k, I share your situation with budget restraints. I use mostly cheap stuff with a few good mics. My best advice is to find the cheapest 1202vlz pro you can fiind. Its perfect for you since you only want 4 pre's anyway. I use the 1402vlzpro and track all of the drums through its 6 mic pre's. Im not saying these are the bees nees but value for money there great. Also very versitile mixers for everything else. I use the other 8 channels to play back my cdplayer, souncard, radio, FOH etc. Very usefull desk.

If you want to hear a mix with drums tracked through these vlzpro preamps listen to this mix I did a few weeks ago. Its not brilliant but you might be surprised how good they really are.

 
Thanks guys, I was able to pick up the SX202 for $100. That'll hold me over for a while. It's an ok preamp. I have a feeling that all cheap preamps sound the same however...I mean the 202 is cleaner than the ART, and I like it better on stuff like acoustic guitar...but they both have a similar cheapo quality.

Oh well, whatever works. I'm back in business!

Slackmaster 2000
 
Man thats awsome to hear. You know I recon thats what this site is all about. Getting good recordings out of fuck all gear. Good luck and you'll learn so much more trying to get a good sound without top notch equipment.
He who gets a good sound with cheap equipment wins always.
 
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