Opinion: Best (vocal) pre-amp for under $100.

[pandamonk]

But that's part of how that better equipment makes it easier to sound good. It shows up mistakes more clearly, calling attention to them and making it more apparent to the novice that a fix is required. The fix is also easier to achieve because you can hear better.

If lower end gear masks mistakes, it is only for the person in the room using it. For any listener with a better stereo system the mistake will be glaringly obvious. The masking of mistakes is like a fool's gold that only tricks those that don't know better.

I meant things like mics, preamps etc, not just monitors and mixing environment. I good preamp can show up a bad mic that a cheap preamp wouldn't.

I read somewhere that someone had used a studio projects B1 for a while, then upgraded their preamp, and couldn't understand why it didn't sound great. It was suggested that the upgrade of preamp showed up the downfalls of the SP B1.

Also using a dynamic mic in a bad room can help to hide the room, unlike the top of the range LDC.