preamp for VO: which one of these?

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tokyofan

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I do VO in Tokyo and am currently using a Grace 101 and U87ai, but want something with a little more color and character that won't pick up the room as much. Living here I can't really audition gear...

Narrowed it down to three:

Summit Audio 2BA-221 (with a different tube)

Great River ME-1NV

Phoenix DRS-1

I do a lot of news recording from home, but also want to do my own demos: corporate; video game, etc.
Any thoughts?
 
Great river makes good stuff...and if you want...Ill trade you an SM7 straight up for the U87 so you can solve that pesky room problem...and to make sure I am honest Ill let you send first...so you can feel better about it.:)
 
tokyofan said:
I do VO in Tokyo and am currently using a Grace 101 and U87ai, but want something with a little more color and character that won't pick up the room as much.
Click to expand...

Hey, Chris! Nice to see you here in addition to Deirdre's board.

I agree with MoFo... the preamp can give you some new color, but the issue of how much room sound is introduced is determined more by your mic than the preamp. I think the Great River is a great preamp (used one in a local studio not too far back), but I don't have experience with the other two.

Just curious, did you record the demos on your website with the 101 and the Neumann? They sound pretty darn good to me, and I didn't notice any notable ambient sounds...
 
darrin_h2000 said:
Great river makes good stuff...and if you want...Ill trade you an SM7 straight up for the U87 so you can solve that pesky room problem...and to make sure I am honest Ill let you send first...so you can feel better about it.:)
Click to expand...

I'd think twice about this offer. Darrin's mics tend to get too close to his prostate apparently. :D

Frank
 
re:

Good to see you here, David! Some of my demos were done in a friend's home studio, others in my studio, and some are actual work. Yeah, I think I have an adequate recording space so getting a new preamp is one part 'gear-itus', one part 'fun and inspiration', and one part gaining a slight quality bump. I'm now leaning toward the GR. Just got some comments from Doug at Pure Sound:

Great River ME1NV
Fantastic "all around" preamp, and with the U87 I think you will find this
to be rather warm, but controlled. The GR has the ability to "dial in" your
color by using the input and output transformers.

Phoenix DRS1
Not as warm or as smooth as the great river, but in the "neve" family of
preamps

He also recommends the VintechX73i.
 
tokyofan said:
I'm now leaning toward the GR. Just got some comments from Doug at Pure Sound:

Great River ME1NV
Fantastic "all around" preamp, and with the U87 I think you will find this
to be rather warm, but controlled. The GR has the ability to "dial in" your
color by using the input and output transformers.
Click to expand...

I think you have your answer, then. ;)

OT: Well done on the demo reels. I really like how you show a good deal of range in your abilities, and the demos are well-produced. Great voice, too!
 
I'm with (a previous post)... U87 for VO work...?

It's a decent mic - It's not for everything. It's certainly not for most vocal applications and it's utter crap for voiceover. Far too sensitive.

There's a good reason why there are more RE20's and SM7b's picking up more VO than all other mics on the planet combined... Two of the greatest vocal mics ever at any price (my personal preference being the 7b). Amazing for everyday studio vocal applications, quintessential for VO work. Pair it up with a solid preamp (GR is very nice, API if you're looking for a little more "glue," True or Langevin if more transparency) and you have a vocal/VO chain that can compete with almost any other.
 
re:

Well, the U87 is certainly not as forgiving as other mics but it is considered the 'gold' standard in many VO studios all over the world. Most studios in Tokyo use them, anyway...which is why I choose to use one at home.
 
We might have to move this to the Mic forum the way it's going... :D

John, with all due respect (and you certainly know your business), I think your comment is too broad. As Chris correctly points out, the U87 is a staple among pro voice artists. Anyone who has listened to a Simpsons plug, watched Deal or No Deal, Fox advertisements, or half of the promos on NBC is listening to the U87. Agreed, it would be misplaced in radio broadcast, but that's not what Chris (or myself) typically does.

I also know from previous discussions, Chris, that you have several VO mics. A couple of Neumann's and some SP's, if I remember correctly?

In either case, the original topic was the best-of-three mic preamp choices. To that point, there was another plug for the GR in amidst the follow-up post.
 
re:

From Alan at FrontEnd Audio:

Both are really nice units, though I think that the Phoenix provides more of the authentic Neve character while the Great River is a little more contained sounding. Both are in my TOP 5 FAVORITE preamps, and are probably more in the top 3 slots fighting it out with the LaChapell 992EG.
 
re:

And from Warren at ZenPro Audio:

The Phoenix unit has a transformerless input section, and a transformer output. The result is a nice balance of detailed sound but his transformer output section seems to be what adds what I can only describe as "sweetened" sound. There is this sugar coating that goes on, and I gotta say I've never heard it sound "bad" on anything. Definite character, there is a depth and richness and smoothness there that is very unique.

The Great River is transformer in and out, and I know he's using Sowter transformers (which have a very big low end response and a driven, gravel-y kind of sound when pushed). The Great River preamp sounds big first of all, very deep and extended / accented low end response. It has likely the largest RANGE of tone of just about any preamp on the market. You can turn the output down and crank the input harder for pushed / driven sorts of tones that can go from gentle distortion to all out madness (in a pretty controlled way though). The Great River sounds to sound a bit tougher when pushed.

Between those two, I'd choose the Phoenix for more of a sugar coated vibe, and the Great River for a more aggressive and huge sound (those are generalizations of course).
 
re:

How about the Daking One?
Anyone have any experience with this for VO?

How might it compare to the GR, Grace 101, or DRS-1?
 
Massive Master said:
I'm with (a previous post)... U87 for VO work...?

It's a decent mic - It's not for everything. It's certainly not for most vocal applications and it's utter crap for voiceover. Far too sensitive.

There's a good reason why there are more RE20's and SM7b's picking up more VO than all other mics on the planet combined... Two of the greatest vocal mics ever at any price (my personal preference being the 7b). Amazing for everyday studio vocal applications, quintessential for VO work. Pair it up with a solid preamp (GR is very nice, API if you're looking for a little more "glue," True or Langevin if more transparency) and you have a vocal/VO chain that can compete with almost any other.
Click to expand...

tokyofan said:
Well, the U87 is certainly not as forgiving as other mics but it is considered the 'gold' standard in many VO studios all over the world. Most studios in Tokyo use them, anyway...which is why I choose to use one at home.
Click to expand...

In my years of work in the VO industry in L.A., the two mics that I see used most often are the U87 and the Sennheiser 416. I often see the SM7 and the RE20 recommended here and elsewhere, and they do seem to be the industry standard for radio stations, but I seldom see them in regular VO studios that regularly do commercials, promo, animation, narration, movie trailers, etc.
The U87 and 416 seem to be the industry standard here for any pro VO actor or studio - for better or worse. (An great animation actor named Corey Burton has an infamous diatribe against the 416, but he's sadly in the minority).

I've often wanted to to do a real shootout between all of these mics to characterize the differences, but never had the chance.....yet.....
 
re:

The ME-1NV doesn't have a built-in HPF. Could this be an issue? I heard it has an extended/accentuated low-end and don't want to things to be too boomy.
 
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