Which preamp for Acoustic?

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BulldogsMusic

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I'm a student running a project studio for my college campus, recording primarily acoustic eps/covers.

I'm looking for the most versatile preamp for acoustic sets. I'm currently running a Blue Baby Bottle, a Blue Bluebird, (2) Sm81's, and (2) Sennheiser MD421's through a single Art Prochannel - which I think has NOS tubes.

I was thinking about buying a second Pro Channel and matching tubes so I could record stereo, but really I'm more concerned with getting a clean, natural, organic sound from both guitars and vocals.

My price ceiling is around $600. I'd really appreciate some advice.
 
The JM-130 sounds great on acoustic Gtr, piano, vocals, kick, snare, OH's...tons of headroom
Its more than $600.00..
 
DAV BG-1

This too is a little over $600 (but not by a factor of three)
 
Woah. Anything around $600?

So I really have to buy something elitist in order to get a clean natural sound? I'm a college kid and I'll work my a** off to fund the money if necessary but isn't there anything budget friendly? I guess I'm asking too much for it to be natural and versatile at the same time...

I'm running everything into an m-audio fast track ultra interface and the built in pres sound horrid, so I'm just looking for a decent quality mid level preamp. Any recommendations?
 
BulldogsMusic said:
So I really have to buy something elitist in order to get a clean natural sound?
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Of course not, that dude just sells those. Arguably can't get cleaner than a Grace, but y'know there is a lot to be said for a stereo pair, so your idea isn't bad. Question is do you need a channel strip or just a preamp? Because you could also look at something like the RNP in your price range.
 
mshilarious said:
$1,872 :laughings:
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He mentioned a single channel...
I had a demo single channel on ebay a while back for $650.00 with supply..That's a very good deal..IMHO..
To be frank truly higher end gear makes big jumps in $$ compared to lower end gear..
But if it was me I would prefer two channels of the same pre for stereo..
 
mshilarious said:
Of course not, that dude just sells those. Arguably can't get cleaner than a Grace, but y'know there is a lot to be said for a stereo pair, so your idea isn't bad. Question is do you need a channel strip or just a preamp? Because you could also look at something like the RNP in your price range.
Click to expand...

That is the ONLY pre I build at the moment, I have sold as a dealer many different pres over the years, API, Bryston, Drawmer ect...
Have racked many others, Neve, SSL ect ...
All depends on the sound, level of gear, versatility ect someone wants..
 
BulldogsMusic said:
So I really have to buy something elitist in order to get a clean natural sound? I'm a college kid and I'll work my a** off to fund the money if necessary but isn't there anything budget friendly? I guess I'm asking too much for it to be natural and versatile at the same time...

I'm running everything into an m-audio fast track ultra interface and the built in pres sound horrid, so I'm just looking for a decent quality mid level preamp. Any recommendations?
Click to expand...

I understand 100%.. Money is NOT easy to come by..
If you want versatile then what does that mean to you??
I would demo different pres to narrow it down..

To many the Grace is too transparent for some things..that statement is based on what I have read/heard from many over the years..
 
I'll vouch for the JM 130, and the guy who "just sells them." The 130 is extremely good. It's the only thing I'll use for AC GTR.

It defines versatility really. You can go and spend $225 3 individual times on gradually better pres, or you can get a good one up front. Your call.

I don't use Grace's but I also don't use anything else since I got my JM130 if that tells you anything. I don't spend time wondering what's better than my pre, because Frankly, I'd put it against anything on any source with any mic.
 
If it were me, I'd be way more interested in two decent pres for a stereo recording of acoustic than one stellar pre for a mono recording.

The difference between a mono and stereo recording of an acoustic guitar is far greater than the difference between a decent and elite pre on a mono recording.
 
WhiteStrat said:
If it were me, I'd be way more interested in two decent pres for a stereo recording of acoustic than one stellar pre for a mono recording.

The difference between a mono and stereo recording of an acoustic guitar is far greater than the difference between a decent and elite pre on a mono recording.
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This is true. But TWO elite pres.... mmmmmmm.... warmer than a freshly wet bed.:)
 
You could buy two M101s plus two Jensen output transformers for $1,200, stick the Jensens in a diecast box and use them when you feel like it. Or do the same thing with the RNP and Jensen input transformers, if noise performance is important. Heck, an RNP/RNC bundle with the Funk Logic plate and external Jensen input and output options would be ~$900.

Then take the $972 savings, buy a big bag of ganja, and roll it all into one giant spliff. Or spend it all on cheap beer and women, either option is probably preferable to a college student :drunk:

. . . who doesn't have $1,872, so it doesn't really matter . . . I would buy the RNP sans Funk Logic and transformers, and lose the $125 savings shooting pool :o

If you can't make a good recording with an RNP, nothing else will really help.
 
I still find the DMP3 surprisingly good and have heard some fantastic acoustic guitar recordings made with one of these on here.

The Audient Mico is also another excellent option.

As for single channels the Grace M101 and True Systems P-Solo are excellent options.
 
mshilarious said:
You could buy two M101s plus two Jensen output transformers for $1,200, stick the Jensens in a diecast box and use them when you feel like it. Or do the same thing with the RNP and Jensen input transformers, if noise performance is important. Heck, an RNP/RNC bundle with the Funk Logic plate and external Jensen input and output options would be ~$900.

Then take the $972 savings, buy a big bag of ganja, and roll it all into one giant spliff. Or spend it all on cheap beer and women, either option is probably preferable to a college student :drunk:

. . . who doesn't have $1,872, so it doesn't really matter . . . I would buy the RNP sans Funk Logic and transformers, and lose the $125 savings shooting pool :o

If you can't make a good recording with an RNP, nothing else will really help.
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I would simply get a Mackie and have MORE channels...IF money was the ONLY concern..The Noise on the RNP will not be any lower with a Jensen..The headroom will not be as good...
There is a good reason why Top engineers use truly high end gear to record great musicians...
 
Mike Keith said:
There is a good reason why Top engineers use truly high end gear to record great musicians...
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Yeah... Great musicians can afford to pay top engineers top dollar for top end equipment...

I'm not dissin' quality electronics but the difference between a $300 or $3000 Preamp could be almost determinable in the right hands.
 
Mike Keith said:
I would simply get a Mackie and have MORE channels...IF money was the ONLY concern..The Noise on the RNP will not be any lower with a Jensen..The headroom will not be as good...
There is a good reason why Top engineers use truly high end gear to record great musicians...
Click to expand...

Well you can ask Fletcher if he considers himself a Top engineer:

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/5778299-post30.html

Of course you were already on that thread stating that the RNP wasn't high end. I think your argument was that it didn't cost enough.

The bottom line is that you came on this thread to recommend to a college student that he spend over 3x his budget to buy a preamp that you sell, and if he didn't, then he could never be a Top engineer. That is crass as hell, and it's also spam, so I suggest you limit your posts to responding to questions where people have actually mentioned your gear before you do.

PS: sure the RNP + input transformer can match noise spec, it would require changing a couple of resistors in the RNP, but that's all. Low noise isn't that hard when you have 1:4 on the front end . . .

PPS: who really cares about gonzo headroom? +/-24V rails, hooray. Does nothing when your converter runs on 5V. I suppose you can saturate the output transformer more, but that's not headroom then, is it?
 
Cheap for now, Elite by x-mas?

At this point a dmp3 is very appealing to me. People are raving about such high quality for such a low cost and my deadline to have the studio up by mid october. I don't have 1000+ dollars to spend or even 700 for that matter.

Really I'm just looking for something that gets 85% of the job done. Believe me; I'll save up for that extra 15% later, but for now I just have to get something working of decent quality.

Things to consider:
1) It's for acoustic guitar
2) Stereo using my sm81's would be awesome
3) This is for a small project studio and most of my gear is entry level

So what's the best affordable sound for entry level? I promise to upgrade later, but until then?
 
mshilarious said:
Well you can ask Fletcher if he considers himself a Top engineer:

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/5778299-post30.html

Of course you were already on that thread stating that the RNP wasn't high end. I think your argument was that it didn't cost enough.

The bottom line is that you came on this thread to recommend to a college student that he spend over 3x his budget to buy a preamp that you sell, and if he didn't, then he could never be a Top engineer. That is crass as hell, and it's also spam, so I suggest you limit your posts to responding to questions where people have actually mentioned your gear before you do.

PS: sure the RNP + input transformer can match noise spec, it would require changing a couple of resistors in the RNP, but that's all. Low noise isn't that hard when you have 1:4 on the front end . . .

PPS: who really cares about gonzo headroom? +/-24V rails, hooray. Does nothing when your converter runs on 5V. I suppose you can saturate the output transformer more, but that's not headroom then, is it?
Click to expand...

Sorry but NOT correct...I never said any of the above you CLAIM I did..
And IM not impressed with Fletcher's techie info...
I will not waste any more of my time here...
But that will NOT change anything in the real world...
 
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