Favorite "High End" quality but "Low End" price piece of gear?

Sacalait · 3rd January 2008, 02:57 AM

Maybe this has been covered. I'm posting this because I'm a working musician and don't have an inheritance or a hit record (yet) that would allow me to buy whatever gear I desire.

I’d like to know what gear you consider: High end yet has a “low end- or close” price tag?

For the record, I’m a professional. I’ve been making a living producing for the last five years. I believe there’s no substitute for quality gear. However, I do subscribe to the concept of “results beat logic- always”… (It re-appears in my signature and I firmly believe it!…) For me, this means, “the ‘higher the price’ doesn’t, inherently, mean I’m getting the best stuff.”

Lerxst · 3rd January 2008, 03:17 AM

I would have to say an SM57. A total workhorse for guitar, drums, etc., and at eighty bucks or so it's a steal.

~Lerxt

Johnkenn · 3rd January 2008, 03:31 AM

AKG C451b

idrinkalot · 3rd January 2008, 03:34 AM

i'm loving the new wave of cheap ribbon mics

Akoppenheffer · 3rd January 2008, 03:43 AM

Anything modded by Black Lion.

Gates · 3rd January 2008, 03:51 AM

Great River gear.. not very cheap, but pretty reasonable

drumkideric · 3rd January 2008, 04:05 AM

57 and 4050

jonaknt · 3rd January 2008, 04:14 AM

Almost any Audio Technica 40 series mic. Great deal.

Guitar effect pedals.

SM7. I use it for vocals so often.

jonaknt · 3rd January 2008, 04:15 AM

Also, Shure KSM 32's and 44's continue to amaze me on just about everything.

Silver Sonya · 3rd January 2008, 04:18 AM

One obvious mention is this little piece of software. Mindblowing value.

At this point, your imagination is the only limit. Get a MacBook, Logic, an SM57, an Apogee Duet and make a masterpiece for about $2k.

- c

code green · 3rd January 2008, 04:38 AM

orban gear offers great bang for buck at (broadcast) professional specs. love their eq's.

soupking · 3rd January 2008, 04:47 AM

Regardless of medium, I'd have to say that my best low-end / high-end gear that has had zero regrets are as follows:

:: Midas Venice - the routing's kind of a bitch, but sounds great
:: Transient Designer - If you don't have one, go slice some more bread
:: Cascade Fathead ribbon mic - best ribbon mic on a budget on the market
:: Quad Eight - One of the most under-rated vintage preamps in the majors and I hope it stays that way.

Peace,
-soup

p.s. Oh, and having a friend who's an audio tech. Priceless.

fuddfar · 3rd January 2008, 06:39 AM

The Symetrix 202 mic pre. Comparable to 90% of the high end ones.

thenoiseflower · 3rd January 2008, 06:47 AM

KSM 44

SM57

MD421

the new gibson melody makers

the purple BIZ should cost twice as much IMO

pendejo · 3rd January 2008, 08:19 AM

Radial Pro DI. Awesome sound and build quality. $99

mohthom · 3rd January 2008, 09:00 AM

Ain't the Quad Eight essentially an old-school Pacifica?

MohThoM

peeder · 3rd January 2008, 10:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mohthom

Ain't the Quad Eight essentially an old-school Pacifica?

I heard the "U47" was an old-school Wagner CM7...is that also true?

ThomasWho · 3rd January 2008, 10:37 AM

UAD-1 card with Cambridge Eq

this combo might not have "mojo" or add exitement but it`s a very high end tool for mixing , when you need to fit someting into a mix - without making it sound totally different from what it is.

(sorry for the long and convoluted sentence , I`m tired...

)

Thomas

84K · 3rd January 2008, 10:56 AM

sm7b

All products by API in the 500 series (I have tried many of the newer 500 series products from other companies and I am still most blown away by the API stuff.) I know it is not as cool because it has been around for 30 years, but it is still amazing.

rdfusari · 3rd January 2008, 02:12 PM

universal audio 1176 compressor...i track with it...mix with it ...use it as distortion...if i want more low mid in vocal i drive it a certain way.... its a bit over 1k but does the job of 10 compressors

Sacalait · 3rd January 2008, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lerxst

I would have to say an SM57. A total workhorse for guitar, drums, etc., and at eighty bucks or so it's a steal.

~Lerxt

Agreed. In fact, it may be at the top of this list in my opinion.

soupking · 3rd January 2008, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mohthom

Ain't the Quad Eight essentially an old-school Pacifica?

MohThoM

Yeah, but people hype the Pacifca about 4-5 times as much.

Keep up the good work guys!

Pasta4lnch · 3rd January 2008, 04:04 PM

epi valve jr, sm57 . . . and dare i say my fenders. not sure they count as "low end" but i paid 9 and change for my dbl fat strat new - which is not a whole lot for a guitar. i would take it over ANY gibson or prs for twice the price or more! and my amer hot rodded p-bass was like 7 and change new (sale) and it's the BEST rock bass i've ever heard imo . . . that's dirt cheap for a bass. . .

kittonian · 3rd January 2008, 04:36 PM

Radial SGI - a must have for any studio and only a few hundred bucks

The Byre · 3rd January 2008, 04:48 PM

D224, D202 D222 and the D200 all used the patented AKG two-way transducer system and are superb mics for voice, horns, parts of the drum kit and lots of other things. Also watch out for the D1200, which was AKG's answer to the SM57, only far better! All cheap on eBay.

Unfortunately, AKG has been blotting its copybook lately with some cheap imports, but hidden in junk basket of cheap tat at the end of the aisle is a series of real microphones, the 300 (so called 'Blue Line') series, which is a body plus capsule system. The 300 body come bundled with the cardioid 91 capsule as the AKG C391 and costs about £180 new. This is a good, sweet-sounding mic that works for things like piano, overheads and orchestras and sounds very similar to a DPA 4015, only that costs £1,500!!! Other capsules with other characteristics are available, but they cost quite a good bit more and are not really worth the extra.

Audix D6 of course!

Neumann KMS105. This is originally a live mic, but it works brilliantly in the studio, especially for rock and jazz voices and costs only £325 by the usual mail order companies.

Shure made very high quality dynamic mics, such as the SM54 and the SM59 that seem to have been forgotten today, but still make brilliant mics for all kinds of things, especially drums and hi-hats in particular.

Altogether, Shure made hundreds of types and models, incuding some condenser models that I have seen sell fairly cheaply, such as the SM80 and the SM102 that used to be extremely poular in their day.

Andrew Kinsey · 3rd January 2008, 04:54 PM

Sebatron Preamps & Compressors. They smoke some high-end gear that costs twice as much.

Guitarhak · 3rd January 2008, 06:54 PM

AT4050
Symetrix 501 on bass

deve · 3rd January 2008, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kittonian

Radial SGI - a must have for any studio and only a few hundred bucks

you can do the same thing with two pro di's or jdi's

Silvertone · 3rd January 2008, 07:29 PM

Electrodyne, Quad Eight, Sphere, Cinema Engineering, Melcor & Inovonics all come to mind.

And yes and no on that Pacifica question as it was modeled after only one of Q8's products. Check out the Q8 MM61 or 71 or the 310, 311 and 312's for something a little different.

The Beatsmith · 3rd January 2008, 08:02 PM

sm7b, sm57, dbx 160x/xt/a, pspaudio plugins... is all i can think of. i don't consider UA 1176's as low end price!

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3rd January 2008, 02:57 AM	#1
Sacalait Gear nut Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: South Louisiana Posts: 81	Favorite "High End" quality but "Low End" price piece of gear? Maybe this has been covered. I'm posting this because I'm a working musician and don't have an inheritance or a hit record (yet) that would allow me to buy whatever gear I desire. I’d like to know what gear you consider: High end yet has a “low end- or close” price tag? For the record, I’m a professional. I’ve been making a living producing for the last five years. I believe there’s no substitute for quality gear. However, I do subscribe to the concept of “results beat logic- always”… (It re-appears in my signature and I firmly believe it!…) For me, this means, “the ‘higher the price’ doesn’t, inherently, mean I’m getting the best stuff.” __________________ Digital Sac-a'-Lait Productions South Louisiana "Results beat logic- always." Quad core 6600, Sonar 7.0, RME, A-Designs, Roland, Korg, Gibson, Fender, Imperical Labs, API, Etc.

3rd January 2008, 03:43 AM	#5
Akoppenheffer Gear addict Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Reading, PA Posts: 362	Anything modded by Black Lion. __________________ -Alex

3rd January 2008, 04:05 AM	#7
drumkideric Lives for gear Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Nashville Posts: 532	57 and 4050 __________________ Eric Green www.myspace.com/plaidnomad

3rd January 2008, 04:14 AM	#8
jonaknt Gear maniac Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 153	Almost any Audio Technica 40 series mic. Great deal. Guitar effect pedals. SM7. I use it for vocals so often. __________________ Jon Harter www.khmstudios.com

3rd January 2008, 03:17 AM	#2
Lerxst Gear maniac Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Out there! Posts: 288	I would have to say an SM57. A total workhorse for guitar, drums, etc., and at eighty bucks or so it's a steal. ~Lerxt

3rd January 2008, 03:31 AM	#3
Johnkenn Lives for gear Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Nashville Posts: 1,744	AKG C451b

3rd January 2008, 03:34 AM	#4
idrinkalot Gear maniac Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 262	i'm loving the new wave of cheap ribbon mics

3rd January 2008, 03:51 AM	#6
Gates Gear Head Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 53	Great River gear.. not very cheap, but pretty reasonable

3rd January 2008, 04:15 AM	#9
jonaknt Gear maniac Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 153	Also, Shure KSM 32's and 44's continue to amaze me on just about everything. __________________ Jon Harter www.khmstudios.com

3rd January 2008, 04:18 AM	#10
Silver Sonya Lives for gear Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Washington, DC Posts: 1,331	One obvious mention is this little piece of software. Mindblowing value. At this point, your imagination is the only limit. Get a MacBook, Logic, an SM57, an Apogee Duet and make a masterpiece for about $2k. - c

3rd January 2008, 04:38 AM	#11
code green Gear maniac Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 173	orban gear offers great bang for buck at (broadcast) professional specs. love their eq's. __________________ www.myspace.com/codegreenstudio

3rd January 2008, 04:47 AM	#12
soupking Lives for gear Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 2,336	Regardless of medium, I'd have to say that my best low-end / high-end gear that has had zero regrets are as follows: :: Midas Venice - the routing's kind of a bitch, but sounds great :: Transient Designer - If you don't have one, go slice some more bread :: Cascade Fathead ribbon mic - best ribbon mic on a budget on the market :: Quad Eight - One of the most under-rated vintage preamps in the majors and I hope it stays that way. Peace, -soup p.s. Oh, and having a friend who's an audio tech. Priceless. __________________ Anyway, it. Wow, the pee actually lands right on top of the i in 'it'. That's awesome! Last edited by soupking; 3rd January 2008 at 04:48 AM. Reason: p.s.

3rd January 2008, 06:39 AM	#13
fuddfar Gear nut Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 121	The Symetrix 202 mic pre. Comparable to 90% of the high end ones.

3rd January 2008, 06:47 AM	#14
thenoiseflower Lives for gear Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 1,024	KSM 44 SM57 MD421 the new gibson melody makers the purple BIZ should cost twice as much IMO

3rd January 2008, 08:19 AM	#15
pendejo Gear nut Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Kalifornia Posts: 118	Radial Pro DI. Awesome sound and build quality. $99

3rd January 2008, 09:00 AM	#16
mohthom Gear addict Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 417	Ain't the Quad Eight essentially an old-school Pacifica? MohThoM __________________

3rd January 2008, 10:37 AM	#18
ThomasWho Gear maniac Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Oslo , Norway Posts: 252	UAD-1 card with Cambridge Eq this combo might not have "mojo" or add exitement but it`s a very high end tool for mixing , when you need to fit someting into a mix - without making it sound totally different from what it is. (sorry for the long and convoluted sentence , I`m tired... ) Thomas

3rd January 2008, 10:56 AM	#19
84K Lives for gear Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: right coast Posts: 3,766	sm7b All products by API in the 500 series (I have tried many of the newer 500 series products from other companies and I am still most blown away by the API stuff.) I know it is not as cool because it has been around for 30 years, but it is still amazing.

3rd January 2008, 02:12 PM	#20
rdfusari Gear Head Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 73	universal audio 1176 compressor...i track with it...mix with it ...use it as distortion...if i want more low mid in vocal i drive it a certain way.... its a bit over 1k but does the job of 10 compressors

3rd January 2008, 04:04 PM	#23
Pasta4lnch Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 1,177	epi valve jr, sm57 . . . and dare i say my fenders. not sure they count as "low end" but i paid 9 and change for my dbl fat strat new - which is not a whole lot for a guitar. i would take it over ANY gibson or prs for twice the price or more! and my amer hot rodded p-bass was like 7 and change new (sale) and it's the BEST rock bass i've ever heard imo . . . that's dirt cheap for a bass. . . __________________ http://myspace.com/stevebuonanotte "There should be a single Art Exchange in the world, to which the artist would simply send his works and in return be given as much as he needs. As it is, one has to be half a merchant on top of everything else, and how badly one goes about it." -Beethoven F/S Voodoo Labs Super Fuzz & Proctavia

3rd January 2008, 04:36 PM	#24
kittonian Lives for gear Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Cleveland, OH Posts: 2,300	Radial SGI - a must have for any studio and only a few hundred bucks __________________ Joshua Aaron President/Chief Engineer AudioLot/AudioLot Studios High End Pro Audio Sales & Consulting Recording/Music Production/Mixing http://www.audiolot.com --------------- AudioLot is offering 10% off any purchase over $1000, up to $400 off until Nov. 30th, 2008. Use coupon code FALL08* when making your online purchase.*

3rd January 2008, 04:48 PM	#25
The Byre Lives for gear Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Highlands of Scotland Posts: 1,079	D224, D202 D222 and the D200 all used the patented AKG two-way transducer system and are superb mics for voice, horns, parts of the drum kit and lots of other things. Also watch out for the D1200, which was AKG's answer to the SM57, only far better! All cheap on eBay. Unfortunately, AKG has been blotting its copybook lately with some cheap imports, but hidden in junk basket of cheap tat at the end of the aisle is a series of real microphones, the 300 (so called 'Blue Line') series, which is a body plus capsule system. The 300 body come bundled with the cardioid 91 capsule as the AKG C391 and costs about £180 new. This is a good, sweet-sounding mic that works for things like piano, overheads and orchestras and sounds very similar to a DPA 4015, only that costs £1,500!!! Other capsules with other characteristics are available, but they cost quite a good bit more and are not really worth the extra. Audix D6 of course! Neumann KMS105. This is originally a live mic, but it works brilliantly in the studio, especially for rock and jazz voices and costs only £325 by the usual mail order companies. Shure made very high quality dynamic mics, such as the SM54 and the SM59 that seem to have been forgotten today, but still make brilliant mics for all kinds of things, especially drums and hi-hats in particular. Altogether, Shure made hundreds of types and models, incuding some condenser models that I have seen sell fairly cheaply, such as the SM80 and the SM102 that used to be extremely poular in their day. __________________ http://www.the-byre.com

3rd January 2008, 04:54 PM	#26
Andrew Kinsey Lives for gear Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: London Posts: 606	Sebatron Preamps & Compressors. They smoke some high-end gear that costs twice as much. __________________ Best Wishes, Andrew Kinsey High End Audio Equipment Specialists In the UK & Europe

3rd January 2008, 06:54 PM	#27
Guitarhak Gear nut Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 91	AT4050 Symetrix 501 on bass __________________ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - It's a coin toss: nuns teaching sex ed, or idiots commenting on gear they have only read about... The sick and the dying don't argue about gear...

3rd January 2008, 07:29 PM	#29
Silvertone Lives for gear Join Date: May 2005 Location: Saratoga Springs, NY Posts: 736	Electrodyne, Quad Eight, Sphere, Cinema Engineering, Melcor & Inovonics all come to mind. And yes and no on that Pacifica question as it was modeled after only one of Q8's products. Check out the Q8 MM61 or 71 or the 310, 311 and 312's for something a little different. __________________ Larry DeVivo Silvertone Mastering, Inc. 518-581-8141 www.silvertonemastering.com

3rd January 2008, 08:02 PM	#30
The Beatsmith Lives for gear Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: UK Posts: 783	sm7b, sm57, dbx 160x/xt/a, pspaudio plugins... is all i can think of. i don't consider UA 1176's as low end price!

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