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I need a good microphone preamp.

J

JohnVF

Lunatic Member
Banned
So..home recording fans, I am looking for a decent microphone preamp to replace my old Bellari units, that I just have grown tired of. I think the tube is just coloring the sound and not doing anything else. I'm looking to spend around $500, and it will be used with condenser mics so I'll need phantom power. It will also be used with a non-phantom ribbon microphone.

What say you all? Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance! I've been out of this hobby for awhile and just dug my recording gear out of the closet to start writing again....
 
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I'll be writing up a detailed review of what I think of the Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56 I just got to go along with a new 17" MacBook Pro...Focusrite does some interfaces for about 500 that, if good, would be amazing value for money.
 
Thanks David - that seems like an interesting option. I'm also in the process of switching to a computer based recording system from a 10-year-old stand-alone Korg DAW, so that actually might be something that better suits my needs.

I was looking at this, for no other reason than I though it looked cool and had a tube/ss choice. I know nothing about this stuff. I asked one of the engineers that I work with what to buy and his options were more than I wanted to spend. He said that he highly recommends Gordon- but that seems like overkill for what I need. And its way way out of my budget.
 
spideyjack said:
good timing, I have been eyeing the FMR RNP (really nice preamp) and The Grace 101. Both are in your price range.

anybody use that Blue Robbie? it seems to have everything.








always great quality, interested to hear your review.
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Those both look really nice and seem to have what I need (which isn't a lot). I like that the Grace seems to take Ribbon mics into account, as I just got one that I like for certain things. Anything will be a step up from these extremely noisy Bellari pieces of junk.
 
Computer based systems are great for size and convenience....I will probably always like good analog, but good digital can sound excellent. And it means I don't have to lug the R2R. I've never used any standalone recorder other than an Edirol R-09, but I liked it. Always done the R2R or audio interface thing.
 
Any reason to to use a small good mixer that has phantom power? A lot cheaper than a dedicated pre, and it would also give you another channel or two if you ever needed it...
 
similost said:
Any reason to to use a small good mixer that has phantom power? A lot cheaper than a dedicated pre, and it would also give you another channel or two if you ever needed it...
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I've thought about that. We have a little Mackie board at work that has decent mic pres in it. What it comes down to, though, is that I don't really need a mixer (its all handled on my workstation or through Pro Logic or whatever I end up with). I'd rather spend the money on just the pres than on the rest of it, which wouldn't get much use. I've rarely used more than two mics at a time, though if I need to my Korg unit can act as a mixer. It's also bleed-over from my hi-fi mindset of how much improvement I've noticed at the first amplification stages, like a phono pre. And by how terrible my Bellari mic-pre/compressor is. My recorder has phantom power but its gain stages are awful. Just tinny/noisy. I've gone so far as to run everything into the unit digitally through the ADCs of an old Sony CDR unit just to bypass them completely. Which is to say- my recording rig is a mess, and hence the needed update.
 
Ah,.. Ok. .was just tossing it out there as a cheaper option that I've found sounds good to my ears using either my Tapco or Behringer mixers..

Now I just need to find me a couple nicer mics I want to afford..
 
similost said:
Ah,.. Ok. .was just tossing it out there as a cheaper option that I've found sounds good to my ears using either my Tapco or Behringer mixers..

Now I just need to find me a couple nicer mics I want to afford..
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I think anything would be better than these Bellari units, so thanks for the suggestion. One is a compressor/mic pre the other is a this thing that looks like their phono preamp. Both are terrible, and I bought them before I knew anything about Hi Fi or tube gear, and was just switching over from a cheap 4-track. I have some decent microphones. Nothing exotic. a big CAD multi-capsule large diaphragm condensor and some other budget condensor from 2003 that has sounded nice. Just picked up this boutique hand-made ribbon mic on a whim and love it, but its revealing that minus phantom power, my pres suck. They're terrible gain stages.

Getting back into this hobby after a 7 year hiatus and I'm amazed at what is out there. The price of entry has dropped considerably, especially in microphones. When I bought my Korg D12 it was the most expensive thing I'd ever bought for myself. Sad to see what a dinosaur its become! Its a decent digital recorder, FWIW. Just very limited and the analog parts are terrible.
 
I've never done any critical recording with it, but the Tascam US-144 I have seems to do a fine job for my tinkering with room measurements. OTOH, maybe that's a different type of mic preamp you're looking for.
 
whoaru99 said:
I've never done any critical recording with it, but the Tascam US-144 I have seems to do a fine job for my tinkering with room measurements. OTOH, maybe that's a different type of mic preamp you're looking for.
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That's not exactly what I'm wanting here but I'd find that incredibly useful. It seems to be an ADC, right? That'll be something else I need to deal with...the interface between all my analog stuff, including mics, and my computer. I'm really looking for a high quality microphone gain stage. But I'm kind of lost in the woods here.
 
Ok, so I went a bit if an u expected route and bought an Apogee Duet II, which is a mic preamp but also looks to be a capable ADC/DAC. I basically went this way to force myself to go down the computer route...and it's a well reviewed product. We shall see...
 
Reading the user reviews of this thing is hilarious in how much it sounds like a debate here. There seems to be a big debate about it being "too bright" from some, the counter from some engineers being that it's actually perfectly neutral and just revealing a crappy source (cheap mics). The theme seems to be that it's the opposite if a warm colored sound. Which is what I want. I will happily warm up the sound somewhere else, most likely with mic choice. Reading the arguments there- it's just like here! Seems I bought the equivalent of a "source first" thinking ADC/pre. Which is what I want. I could also run a warmer mic pre into it for options (like the overly warm veiled ones I own that started this).
 
spideyjack said:
wow, that thing is tiny! looks like it does a lot more than just a mic-pre.

now, go record something! :)
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It's slightly bigger than it looks in pictures but still not huge. And it doesn't look like a big piece of studio gear sitting around which is nice- because I can use it as the DAC in my server if its sounds good. I won't know until later today when I'm back home.

Its a lot more than a mic preamp, yes. I decided to try to kill a few birds with one stone. Hopefully it works out!
 
The Akai M8 amps make for a sweet tubed mic pre amp from my reading. A bit of modding needed but that's the fun part ;)
 
Rex Everything said:
The Akai M8 amps make for a sweet tubed mic pre amp from my reading. A bit of modding needed but that's the fun part ;)
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Ah....fun. Such a relative term! That would be really neat. This search is about trying to motivate me to record again- I think modding anything would be just another barrier to that. If I get this all set up I may then venture out into more involved territories :)
 
JohnVF said:
Ah....fun. Such a relative term! That would be really neat. This search is about trying to motivate me to record again- I think modding anything would be just another barrier to that. If I get this all set up I may then venture out into more involved territories :)
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You can find them already modded and ready to go out there on the interwebzzzzzzzzz
 
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