Preamps for vocals

[reverieman]

Hello Everybody,
I finally decided to join your forum.. let me start by saying I have peeked around and as I learn more, you guys have proved to be the most knowledgable and consistent. I recently began recording with my band... and it has been half nightmare half heaven thus far. We took the time to invest in the right equipment, and microphones.. and have overloaded the brain with info on micing, compression, gating, ducking, multi-bus compression, etc.. the one final component that we need.. A good preamp for vocals.??? We were looking at the Voicemaster Pro by focusrite? Is that worth investing? thanx for the help

 

[Red Dog Studios]

i've had good sounds come out of the pre-amps by ART. I have the ART TBS-dual rackmount preamp. i like it cause it has alot of diffurent settings for what ever it is your recording, vocals, drums, bass, guitars, whatever. I've never used Focusrite, but i've heard good things about them.

 

[ryanlikestorock]

What are you using presently?
Knowing what the rest of your setup is like, I'm sure people will help you take the next logical step.

I've been using an M-Audio Tampa for vocals on a few projects. I really like the compressor.

 

[Middleman]

We were looking at the Voicemaster Pro by focusrite? Is that worth investing?

With the right mic you can get a top notch sound out of the VMPro. It's a little grainy but that may be a good thing depending on your music. Stay away from most of the effects but the compressor, EQ and preamp are pretty versatile. The tube sat, expander and de-esser never worked for me.

I used one for a couple of years so if you have any more questions, let me know. One of the great features by the way is the zero latency you can have by feeding recorded tracks into the VMPro and monitoring while you record. Great feature set.

 

[The Green Hornet]

Yo Rev:

You certainly have a WIDE choice to choose from when it comes to mic preamps.

You might want to consider a dual input mic pre if you have more than one vocalist recording or you might want to boost up a solo.

I use the ART dual mic pre and the Grace 101. I use the ART for my drum box and some sounds from the synth. The Grace is very good for vocals.

When you do vocals, you might try running the mic from the mic pre into a compressor and then into the recorder--keeps clipping at a minimum.

You can review plenty of mic pres in TapeOp--free magazine. I don't think you need to spend big bucks to get a decent mic pre but I haven't had a chance to hear any of the high end pres.

I have had one of my vendors offer to send me three/four different types of mics and pres and try them out--buy what I like and return the others. I don't know how many vendors do this as this moves the returns from "new" to "B" stock, "sometimes."

Maybe Silly Hat will add his mic pre faves as he has had experience with several types?

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year
Green Hornet

 

[BigRay]

DAV BG1

680 bucks, world class

 

[Ashkins]

AKA Focusrite Voicemasher Pro.
If you're unsure what you're doing you can really destroy perfectly good vocals with one of those.
Take a look at dBx or TLAudio preamps. As people have already said the choices are wide, and it really depends on how much you want to spend, so i'll end by saying that it's my personal preference, but i always go for a tube preamp unless it's made by Behringer.
Try dBx 386 - dual channel preamp for not much more than the Focusrite, or the 376 - single channel version but has eq, comp, de-esser. Both have digtal out if you're into that sort of thing.
Also take a look at TL Audio Ivory series, i believe they do single, dual and quad channel preamps, at very reasonable prices.

Hope this helps...

 

[Blade_Jones]

Voicemaster Pro by focusrite?

Just because it says "Focusrite" doesn't mean it's "high end". I've heard some bad things about Focusrite's low end gear. Some folks (not all) don't think all that highly of the preamp on the $2,800 Focusrite (although the EQ and limiter is definitely sweet). Avalon is the top name in preamps. Like anything in this world, you get what you pay for.

 

[xstatic]

I used to own a DBX 376. I would definately NOT go that route for vocals. It always seemed mucky, and the highs and lows on it were never clear or focused.

 

[reverieman]

Sorry guys I have been away for a few days. We do a hard rock music, with more of a soft vocal... but then a loud vocal like say Jeff Buckley, or Billy Corgan (in respect to dynamic range). We are currently using the pres that are built into our Digi 02... and we are recording (demoing currently) vocals with an AKG C414B.. which is a great mic. We also have a 57.. some SM81s and a Rhode NT5... we have only tried the AKG so far. is a good vocal recording a balance of the pre, the mic, and compression? or just a good mic and pre... with compression later? This is why I asked the question before we go invest anymore.. is a stronger pre without any of the gadgets more of a focus than a pre with an EQ and compression?

 

[xstatic]

Avalon the top name in preamps? Please.... Not a chance.

As for getting a good vocal recording, that is very subjective. Obviously, you have to start with the mic. Without the right mic, no preamp will hae the right signal to do its thing to. Scond, would be the preamp. This is where the microphone will get its translation. The "better" preamps will impart a little of their own character (be it "cean" or "colored") and allow the tranlsation to occur with power, focus, clarity, depth etc... I find the preamp to be every bit as important as the mic, although there are those here that certainly disgree. Compression is rarely a necessary item to track a good vocal, neither is EQ. Vocals can be changed in tone a lot more than many other instruments can with just minor mic placement changes. This is why i find EQ to not be as important with vocals as it is on a lot of other sources. Also, get a GOOD pop screen, and not one of the cheap nylon ones. It is amazing at how different things are with a quality metal screen. If it were me, I would be looking for the best pre I could afford unless you could get into some sort of pre/EQ/comp combo unit of real quality. If not, I would focus on just the pre, or even pre/EQ instead. At least that way you get one great tool to help your mic out instead of three meiocre tools that may actually hinder it.

 

[brandondrury]

I've never used Avalon, but of all the big dogs I've spoken with, not one loved Avalon preamps (although the DI is popular). Take that for whatever it is worth.

A pop filter is essential. I like the Stedman. It seams to be much more transparent than the pantyhose style I've used in the past. If I could go back I'd take an hour and build the thing for $3 instead of paying $40.

The big boys seam to like Great River and Neve alot. I've been happy with my Vintech 1272.

I've never compressed a vocal on the way in. It's never been an issue for me. If I had to choose between a high end preamp and no compressor or a medium preamp / compressor, I'd go with the high end preamp and compress at mixing time.

Brandon