Members GZsound Posted November 21, 2008 Members Share Posted November 21, 2008 I'm thinking of adding an additional eight channels of mic preamps and wondering if anyone has done any comparisons of the various ADAT and Firewire interfaces. I was considering a MOTU 8 Pre, but the reviews are not kind.. Now I'm looking at a PreSonus D8 ADAT interface with their XMAX mic preamps. Has anyone done any quality comparisons with these preamps and say an RNP or A&H/Mackie/Soundcraft mixer..? It's pretty hard to find any useable information on units like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Majoria Posted November 21, 2008 Members Share Posted November 21, 2008 How does the D8 compare to the Digimax FS? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members albiedamned Posted November 21, 2008 Members Share Posted November 21, 2008 How does the D8 compare to the Digimax FS? The preamps are the same as far as I know, but the FS gives you some extra features. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted November 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 21, 2008 Yeah...as far as I can tell the D8 has the same XMAX mic preamps as the other PreSonus gear. I'm just trying to figure out what the quality of the mic preamps is like. I prefer using the ADAT connections so I don't need Firewire. I just want eight extra preamps for a reasonable price and I would hope for better quality than from a typical mixer. That's the question... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MrJoshua Posted November 21, 2008 Members Share Posted November 21, 2008 I'm afraid I haven't done any comparisons, but I went with the Focusrite ISA-428 with converter card and couldn't be happier. The converters are very nice, and the preamps are quite good as well. It's a fair amount more expensive than the Presonus, though. I admit that I've liked what PreSonus gear I've used in the past, but that's basically limited to a headphone amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted November 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 21, 2008 I'm afraid I haven't done any comparisons, but I went with the Focusrite ISA-428 with converter card and couldn't be happier. The converters are very nice, and the preamps are quite good as well. It's a fair amount more expensive than the Presonus, though. I admit that I've liked what PreSonus gear I've used in the past, but that's basically limited to a headphone amp. Thanks, I have actually found some sound comparisons with an acoustic guitar through an RME and the D8 and the ProSonus rep has commented on the quality of the mic preamps in the various units. It seems more than adequate for adding eight additional mic preamps for drums, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Red Ant Posted November 25, 2008 Moderators Share Posted November 25, 2008 I STRONGLY recommend the Mackie Onyx 800R. In that price range, NOTHING I've heard beats the Onyx mic pres! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Red Ant Posted November 25, 2008 Moderators Share Posted November 25, 2008 I'm afraid I haven't done any comparisons, but I went with the Focusrite ISA-428 with converter card and couldn't be happier. The converters are very nice, and the preamps are quite good as well. It's a fair amount more expensive than the Presonus, though. I admit that I've liked what PreSonus gear I've used in the past, but that's basically limited to a headphone amp. Interesting. I own 4 channels of ISA pres/eqs (2 x ISA220) and I'm really not happy with the pres at ALL. They sound brittle and un-musical to me, and they absolutely HATE to be hit hard. You might say I'm spoiled (I also own 2 x Neve1073) but I have a bunch of cheap Mackie Onyx pres that I like the sound of a LOT more than the ISAs. YMMV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted November 25, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 25, 2008 I STRONGLY recommend the Mackie Onyx 800R. In that price range, NOTHING I've heard beats the Onyx mic pres! Well...it's funny but I don't even consider Mackie stuff much anymore. I had problems with some of their mixers and just sort of got turned off by their extra cost for the name stuff.. And I realize that's probably unreasonable... Have you compared the preamps between Mackie and the PreSonus gear personally? I'm kinda wandering right now, some guy just put a Soundcraft digital mixer on my local Craigslist for $1,100.00.. That would do the trick very nicely... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Red Ant Posted November 25, 2008 Moderators Share Posted November 25, 2008 Have you compared the preamps between Mackie and the PreSonus gear personally? Yes, I have. Night & Day, Apples & Oranges, etc, etc... no comparison. Like I said earlier in the thread, I prefer the Onyx to my FocusRite ISAs, never mind Presonus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MrJoshua Posted November 25, 2008 Members Share Posted November 25, 2008 Interesting. I own 4 channels of ISA pres/eqs (2 x ISA220) and I'm really not happy with the pres at ALL. They sound brittle and un-musical to me, and they absolutely HATE to be hit hard. You might say I'm spoiled (I also own 2 x Neve1073) but I have a bunch of cheap Mackie Onyx pres that I like the sound of a LOT more than the ISAs. YMMV. Interesting. I'd never use "brittle" or "un-musical" to describe the preamps in the 428. However, I'm pretty sure that the 428 and the 220 are completely different preamps, so that's likely the cause of our difference of opinion. The Focusrite preamps don't see a ton of use in my studio these days, mainly on drums (especially toms), occassionally a vocal part if I think the voice needs their particular bit of color added. I find them to be a slightly colored but fairly neutral preamp, and just a touch flat. It's a decent preamp for various uses, but drums are the only thing where I go right for it these days. I made plenty of recordings with it before I had lots of other preamps, though, that I'm still very happy with. But when you add the eight-channel converter card option, that's when this unit shines, IMO. The card is an absolute steal. It may not be quite as good as my Apogee Rosetta 200 converter, but it's very close. I run all my drums through the Focusrite converters, and while I could bypass the preamps and use line-ins on all eight channels, the preamps sound good on drums so I use them. Use whatever sounds good to you, though. I haven't used the 220 so I can't comment on it, but the 428 is a pretty solid unit with the option to add eight channels of quality conversion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scarecrowbob Posted November 25, 2008 Members Share Posted November 25, 2008 I dunno how useful the comparison is, but I used the D8 with a Yamaha o1v. I liked the pres in the o1V a lot more. I don't have any specific reason, so it is just opinion. But I mixed a lot of music on that setup and always preferred the Yamaha. But the D8's were good enough for what we were doing. I didn't find them objectionable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted November 25, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 25, 2008 Yes, I have. Night & Day, Apples & Oranges, etc, etc... no comparison. Like I said earlier in the thread, I prefer the Onyx to my FocusRite ISAs, never mind Presonus. Thanks.. I'll have to check out the Onyx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TBush Posted November 25, 2008 Members Share Posted November 25, 2008 Well...it's funny but I don't even consider Mackie stuff much anymore. I had problems with some of their mixers and just sort of got turned off by their extra cost for the name stuff.. And I realize that's probably unreasonable... Have you compared the preamps between Mackie and the PreSonus gear personally?I'm kinda wandering right now, some guy just put a Soundcraft digital mixer on my local Craigslist for $1,100.00.. That would do the trick very nicely... Is it a 328? If so, get it- it's a great little board w/16 pre's. ADAT lightpipe or Tascam interface is included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HairyScaryMark Posted November 25, 2008 Members Share Posted November 25, 2008 I have a Mackie Onyx 800r and a RME fireface 800. They are concidered to be of similar quality but I reckon the Onyx 800r sounds nicer. I would recommend it to anyone looking to add 8 pres to their studio if it matches your budget. I also have Behringer ADA8000 and used to own M-Audio Delta 1010, neither of which I concider alongside the RME and Mackie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted November 26, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 26, 2008 Is it a 328? If so, get it- it's a great little board w/16 pre's. ADAT lightpipe or Tascam interface is included. Yeah...it's a 328. He just dropped the price to $950. I am trying to collect the funds as we speak.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members eightyeightkeys Posted November 28, 2008 Members Share Posted November 28, 2008 Another new unit that has had a fabulous review in SOS magazine is the new 8 channel Yamaha/Steinberg MR816 CSX. (Frig, I can never remember the model number):poke: The reviewer makes direct and favourable comparisons with his own Lavry convertors. The preamps are Yamaha's newest and supposedly best pre-amps ever. Up to 84 db of gain ! There are other really interesting features. A morphing compressor on every channel and the REV X reverb built in. All in all, if you're a Cubendo user, this unit looks really interesting. (I'm waiting patiently for the dust to settle on the FW drivers etc..ya' never know) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted November 28, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 28, 2008 Another new unit that has had a fabulous review in SOS magazine is the new 8 channel Yamaha/Steinberg MR816 CSX. (Frig, I can never remember the model number):poke:The reviewer makes direct and favourable comparisons with his own Lavry convertors. The preamps are Yamaha's newest and supposedly best pre-amps ever. Up to 84 db of gain !There are other really interesting features. A morphing compressor on every channel and the REV X reverb built in. All in all, if you're a Cubendo user, this unit looks really interesting. (I'm waiting patiently for the dust to settle on the FW drivers etc..ya' never know) That looks interesting. Unfortunately I am not a Cubase user but it seems to be pretty neat for those who are. At $1,200 it's a tad more money than I want to spend, especially since, as I said, I don't use Cubase. I think I have talked myself into the Soundcraft 328 digital mixer which the guy will sell me for $900. I can't find a bad review of the unit and it will integrate perfectly into my existing system.. Soundcraft mic preamps have been pretty well respected for a long time..so getting 16 of them for $56 each seems like a pretty good deal.. and a killer bargain when they are wrapped in a digital mixer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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