Please Help Me With Preamp

So the mic that I use would be more important than ANY kind of preamp? Well, if that is true, I'm glad I am finally learning this...better late than never I guess.

I use a PVi4 cardioid dynamic mic, which I liked when I used it on a 4-track, but now with my digital 24-track Tascam...I'm not exactly thrilled with it. I only use that one for vocals, the one I use for drums is definitely garbage, it's not even a drum mic. Thank you guys for all the replies and suggestions. I feel extremely unsure of what to do now. When I have asked about the importance of a preamp, I was told that there was no point in recording without one. So a preamp wouldn't boost the sound and make it clearer and cleaner without a better mic?
 
Basically, yes. Oh, you might luck out and find a pre-amp bordering on harsh that makes a mic bordering on woolly sound superficially better but that would be luck of a draw.

Basically, the pre-amp's job is to take the mic signal which starts off around -50 or -60dBu and amplifies it to around 0dBu. The designers try to do this with as little added noise and as little change to frequency response as possible. However, in any electronic design nothing is absolutely perfect and there will be a bit of noise and a bit of "colouration" even on the best pre-amp. However, in any half way decent design, the effect of the pre-amp should be small compared to the "sound" of the mic itself. The big differences in sound come from the transducers, the bits that convert between actual sound and electrical signals. This is why when choosing a hifi it's the speakers that make the biggest difference. Yeah, the amplifier is part of it too but you'll hear a much larger change when you swap speakers than amps. It's the same in reverse with microphones and pre-amps.

There can be specific reasons for using an external pre-amp. For example, when I was working, we had a sound post production suite with professional acoustic treatment and some quite sexy equipment (Amek mixer, DAR soundstation system, etc.). For a major project we purchased a new Neumann microphone (can't remember which model) for the voice booth and, although it sounded great, the output was quite low. Rather than use the Amek pre amps almost flat out, we also bought a specialist mic pre that offered more "clean gain".

In other circumstances, using high end equipment, some engineers and producers will use a specific microphone and pre amp combination just for the colouration it will provide to the sound. The differences are relatively subtle--but when you're paying hundreds of dollars an hour for a studio, you're paying for subtle!

So, basically what I'm saying is that a great mic pre-amp won't fix a poor to average microphone--and, for your budget you won't get a great pre-amp anyway. There may be specific reasons to use an external pre. I recall a previous thread about a particular model of Tascam portastudio where the mic inputs turned out to be high impedance and unbalanced so they didn't work properly with standard mics. In that case, the kludge of a solution turned out to be buying a basic mic pre amp so the line inputs could be used. However, this was more by way of a "work around" than a desirable solution. I should stress that I don't know if this applies to your Portastudio model.

I guess the main thing all this waffle is trying to say is that, although external mic pre-amps have their purposes, they're not a magic bullet solution to all problems.

Bob
 
All of the advice so far has been good, including the preamp suggestions and the fixing the room suggestion. Your current recording medium has you in the corner, so-to-speak, in that it has a certain level it will achieve and at some point it will go no further. The preamps in that Tascam are okay but they have never been pres that exhibit any depth of field nor do they hold up well to higher energy sources like guitars or drums or even loud singers. They just dont have the headroom. That being said, theres other things that make a recording better quality.

Think of a recording chain as a hose. At each juncture there is a device...ie: source>mic>preamp>if digital,interface>storage. At the weakest point you will find the value in your recording capture and it will remain that way until something changes. It will only EVER be as good as the weakest link.

Embarking on recording music is also training your ear. As your skills increase, so will your ability to hear the differences in quality of capture. While we all strive to make something we can be proud of and something that captures the essence of our music (if you are recording ,you) the laws of physics and electronics will, at some point, affect our ability to do so.

Your recording rig is adequate. Probably better than you are able , at this point, to achieve things with. As with all of us in this business, the skill set will always trump the price point and the quality of the gear. And second to that is the environment. When those two things become somewhat advanced that is when the actuality of the gears' failings will be evident.

I suggest you study recording techniques. Learn the reasons things work as they do with your gear. Learn why you need to know things like gain-staging, and proper placement of mics on a source. Learn why the polar pattern of a mic is SO important and how it affects the way things sound when you play them back. Learn about flutter echoes and standing waves and how to control them. Learn your room and how its affecting your recordings. Learn about listening position and how to make your monitors work better.

Its a process. It can be daunting. But if your serious about doing this and doing it with a high degree of quality, then these things as well as many others will serve you much better than a simple swipe of the credit card at Gitarget.

You have enough gear to make decent recordings. Learn to use it.
 
justinm. said:
Would you guys please recommend a preamp. I'm not very skilled when it comes to recording and I almost always do it on my own.

I would be using the preamp for everything I guess, vocals, bass, drums and guitars. I have a RNC compressor and a Tascam digital portastudio 2488. Also, I'm not that well off so maybe something from $250 down. I've researched them online, but I still don't really feel I could estimate which one would be right for me. Actually, maybe I could go up to $400, since music is important to me.

Even though I own a compressor, would you recommend one of those preamps which is also a compressor?
Click to expand...

Single channel little VC3 Joe Meek is a great unit. $250 new, $175 used

For a dual, a DMP3 and your RNC is nice combo imo. Thats what I'd try first. Save some money and you get Dual channels.


$400 the Focusrite ISA ONE dual in, Mic and DI system is a preamp but it has some preset EQ and the Transformers act like tubes imo... (with haggling for $425)..beautful unit, I had one, took it back , ordered ANOTHER, car broke down...and its on my top 2 list.


However for $150 you can throw a dual MAudio in front of your RNC and thats a great combo, and 2 channels.

PVi4 mic ... not familiar with that one.
 
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