Members Phait Posted December 17, 2008 Members Share Posted December 17, 2008 I've got $235 coming, and prob. a little more come Christmas. Right now it's pretty imperative that I get an Emu 0404 soundcard as it comes with Cubase LE and Sonar LE, because I really need a new DAW (Ableton Live Lite is very limited, Logic 5 only recognises 1 GB of 2 GB RAM and can be wonky sometimes). So that leaves me with $135. I've read decent reviews of the VTB-1, yet have also read those cheaper tube pre's don't work to full capacity of a real tube preamp. I guess I'm just looking for something to give a little color to my vocal recordings, and possibly direct guitar in (though I'm rarely using this as I haven't found a good sound). Should I absolutely spring for the VTB-1, or other suggestions? http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/VTB1/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members albiedamned Posted December 17, 2008 Members Share Posted December 17, 2008 Save your money until you can afford an RNP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted December 17, 2008 Members Share Posted December 17, 2008 an RNP, while a really nice preamp (and aptly named, too, I might add!), might not impart the color that he wants since it's quite clear. I don't have a suggestion, especially at that price range. A lot of people, including Phil, really like the Brick, but that's far more expensive than his budget allows. At that price range, the only other thing off the top of my head is probably something made by ART, and I don't know how good those are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted December 17, 2008 Author Members Share Posted December 17, 2008 I wouldn't mind saving if it was worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scarecrowbob Posted December 18, 2008 Members Share Posted December 18, 2008 Is the presonus bluetube still around? I used to have one and it did the job nicely, and seemed to be around that price point. Used, at least... Here is an idea: if you just need two channels of preamp and don't have much cash to get something, why not go with a used cheap-ass mixer rather than a cheap-ass pre? IIRC, the I bought an alesis r12 for somewhere in that neighborhood (180$ ebay shipped): it has !8! mediocre preamps (just take the inserts out), plus is is a 12x4 mixer. Very useful and cheap. Frankly, it didn't sound markedly better than the bluetube. But it didn't sound much, much worse either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted December 18, 2008 Moderators Share Posted December 18, 2008 First off Phait, I wouldn't go for a pre with "color" at this stage. You need clean and solid. You can always eff up a signal subtley or beyond all recognition in the box... but you can't undo "color". There is a pre for that kind of money that is very good. Not very glamorous or pretty, but a very good sounding pre... The Rane MS1B. 150 bucks for a 100% no excuses great sounding pre. http://www.rane.com/ms1b.html You can get it here: http://www.sweetwater.com/c662--Rane--Single_Channel_Preamps I've had experience with this little sleeper and it holds its own against some very nice pres. The nice thing is it isn't a consumer grade product. It's a professional utility piece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kurfu Posted December 18, 2008 Members Share Posted December 18, 2008 Is the presonus bluetube still around? I used to have one and it did the job nicely, and seemed to be around that price point. Used, at least... Had one, never liked it, sold it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted December 18, 2008 Members Share Posted December 18, 2008 First off Phait, I wouldn't go for a pre with "color" at this stage. You need clean and solid. You can always eff up a signal subtley or beyond all recognition in the box... but you can't undo "color". If it's a first high-quality preamp, I'd generally agree with this unless you are just aching, dying, absolutely need color at the get-go, which is usually not the case. If you are going for relatively clean and uncolored, the RNP is an excellent choice (2 preamps for a little under $500). I've heard from a lot of trustworthy sources that Sytek is also excellent. I am not familiar with the Rane that Lee mentions, but I'm sure it's good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted December 18, 2008 Share Posted December 18, 2008 First off Phait, I wouldn't go for a pre with "color" at this stage. You need clean and solid. You can always eff up a signal subtley or beyond all recognition in the box... but you can't undo "color". There is a pre for that kind of money that is very good. Not very glamorous or pretty, but a very good sounding pre...The Rane MS1B. 150 bucks for a 100% no excuses great sounding pre. http://www.rane.com/ms1b.htmlYou can get it here:http://www.sweetwater.com/c662--Rane--Single_Channel_PreampsI've had experience with this little sleeper and it holds its own against some very nice pres. The nice thing is it isn't a consumer grade product. It's a professional utility piece. I've never used that pre, but IIRC, Roger Nichols was raving about them over on Musicplayer back in the day... Outside of that, I'd definitely recommend saving up for a FMR RNP. Two channels for under 500 bucks new, great sound and not overly colored - a good thing IMO, if it's going to be your "only" preamp. There's a lot to be said for having two channels IMHO... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted December 18, 2008 Author Members Share Posted December 18, 2008 Something that's inspired this decision is the sound of Dave Gahan's sessions here - - And here you can hear his Kingdom vocals without the music, albeit with the effect of the room and video camera audio quality... I know he must be using a nice mic there, in addition to some nicer gear. But maybe with these examples one could suggest, or perhaps the above suggestions might work. I've got an AT-2020. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members indigo_dave Posted December 19, 2008 Members Share Posted December 19, 2008 Would the same recommendation apply to the Rane ML 1 - a two channel preamp ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phait Posted December 19, 2008 Author Members Share Posted December 19, 2008 It looks like I'll be making $350 soon. That's like $585 total. Now, I don't wanna blow all that on a preamp just yet Must get the 0404, and I need to save $150 for hotel/friend visit. So that leaves me with $335. For that price I'd much rather get a mixing interface. But how much do you have to pay to get decent preamps on those? Presonus Studio Channel? http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/StudioChan/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members casper2 Posted December 24, 2008 Members Share Posted December 24, 2008 Most "good" preamps use input or output transformers or both. In addition, the preamp portion is a special designed discrete opamp or tube circuit. A transformer power supply is used to keep the noise down. All these components and the design/layout is what you are paying for. There are electronic kits to make your own but if you are not familiar with electronics or know some one I wouldn't try it. I would say go with the RNP when you can afford it. In the mean time you still need to setup and figure out how to use the new recording interface and software. Merry Christmas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members offramp Posted December 24, 2008 Members Share Posted December 24, 2008 For what it's worth, I have a Presonus TubePre--one of those that averages around $100--and I got a noticeable improvement in the signal when I put a NOS RCA 12AX7 in it. Yes, it's a starved-plate design, but taking the crappy Chinese tube out and putting a 'real' tube in did something pleasant. So, it stands to reason that this might work with others of its' ilk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted December 30, 2008 Members Share Posted December 30, 2008 If it's a first high-quality preamp, I'd generally agree with this unless you are just aching, dying, absolutely need color at the get-go, which is usually not the case.If you are going for relatively clean and uncolored, the RNP is an excellent choice (2 preamps for a little under $500). I've heard from a lot of trustworthy sources that Sytek is also excellent. I am not familiar with the Rane that Lee mentions, but I'm sure it's good. I agree, get clean the a color pre later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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