Console or Separate Pre's???

gearmaniac · 7th January 2008

Hey just had a quick question...
well, I own a studio where I run two motu 828mk2's, 20 analog ins and 20 analog outs....but only 4 pre's. Not that great either. I use Digital Performer and up to now I have been pretty content on recording through my Avalon 737 with a Neuman tlm149. I inherited a Behringer mx9000 which was working alright for routing but I tried recording stuff through it and I hated it and now it is making noise in the headphone mix. The problem is that I have to record a band and i need about 16 pre's for the project, well at least 12 for the drums, and i am unsure if I should buy pre's or a console. I also would need monitoring capabilities. I can do it inside DP but I guess I could also do it through the console. I guess I would have to learn. If I get the console I would also need a good patchbay because I use an alesis masterlink for the finished product, any recomendations???

Pre's I can afford and am looking at:
Focusrite ISA828
SSL Alpha VHD
Presonus Digimax LT 96k

Console's I can afford and am looking at:
TRident 8t16
Toft atb16
Tascam Dm3200

Any Suggestions?????????

sinchi · 7th January 2008

IMO it's up to you: Do you want to work with separate pre's or with a console. Both have their own advantages but the biggest difference is your opinion.

If you have separate pre's you also have different sounds. But there are opinions about whether or not it's a good thing to have different pre's (no consistent sound).

I haven't used any of the pre's you mentioned, so no comments on that topic...

Best of luck

The Byre · 7th January 2008

The Avalon is a very, very clean pre. It hardly comes as a suprise that the Behringer 9000 would sound strange after that. (Sell the thing, before it breaks, they nearly always do BTW!!! Usually thre PSU or the power management bits in the board go, taking all or most of the rest with it.)

Trp · 7th January 2008

I´d much rather get a DAV BG No 8 than the Focusrite. I own AMS-Neve 1073s, ISAs and the DAVs and definately prefer the DAV pres to the ISAs. They cost about the same.

Eigenwert · 7th January 2008

another vote for DAV

Fletcher · 7th January 2008

I think in your current budget range you'll probably want to look at the Toft ATB desks... though if you're capable of running 20 in and 20 out you might want to look at a desk with 24 inputs instead of 16.

Just a thought.

Best of luck with your search.

Peace.

glissmeister · 7th January 2008

Reading between the lines on how your looking to work it, using a console will give you a rock solid if not preferable foundation for tracking on the analog side; identical pres and signal paths with common eq offer important advantages; centralizing and stabilizing advantages. The Toft atb 24 channel console seems a perfect fit for how you're looking to work production wise.

And for when you get the odd anemic track, or need more meat on a vocal, bass, etc., you can easily add outboard or on post go OTB to sweeten it to taste with the outboard gear of your choice.

Which returns us to the question of your system's core sound and sonic character. I'm getting to sound like a broken record, but BLA mods and the BLA Microclock are something to look carefully at. It's the best way to get the most out of your MOTUs for not a lot of bucks.

So, come at the question from both sides; put a Toft at the gateway and drop BLA mods and clocking into heart of the MOTUs. You already know your system well. Boosting it on both ends will greatly improve the sonics and utility of what you now have.

7th January 2008	#1
gearmaniac Gear maniac Joined: Jan 2008 Posts: 235 Thread Starter	Console or Separate Pre's??? Hey just had a quick question... well, I own a studio where I run two motu 828mk2's, 20 analog ins and 20 analog outs....but only 4 pre's. Not that great either. I use Digital Performer and up to now I have been pretty content on recording through my Avalon 737 with a Neuman tlm149. I inherited a Behringer mx9000 which was working alright for routing but I tried recording stuff through it and I hated it and now it is making noise in the headphone mix. The problem is that I have to record a band and i need about 16 pre's for the project, well at least 12 for the drums, and i am unsure if I should buy pre's or a console. I also would need monitoring capabilities. I can do it inside DP but I guess I could also do it through the console. I guess I would have to learn. If I get the console I would also need a good patchbay because I use an alesis masterlink for the finished product, any recomendations??? Pre's I can afford and am looking at: Focusrite ISA828 SSL Alpha VHD Presonus Digimax LT 96k Console's I can afford and am looking at: TRident 8t16 Toft atb16 Tascam Dm3200 Any Suggestions????????? Last edited by gearmaniac; 7th January 2008 at 05:57 AM.. Reason: Didn't look good in the forum

7th January 2008	#3
The Byre Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2004 Location: Highlands of Scotland Posts: 2,018 1 Review written	The Avalon is a very, very clean pre. It hardly comes as a suprise that the Behringer 9000 would sound strange after that. (Sell the thing, before it breaks, they nearly always do BTW!!! Usually thre PSU or the power management bits in the board go, taking all or most of the rest with it.) __________________ http://www.the-byre.com

7th January 2008	#6
Fletcher member no 666 Joined: Jun 2002 Location: Durham, NC Posts: 10,108	I think in your current budget range you'll probably want to look at the Toft ATB desks... though if you're capable of running 20 in and 20 out you might want to look at a desk with 24 inputs instead of 16. Just a thought. Best of luck with your search. Peace. __________________ CN Fletcher Professional Affiliations: R/E/P Professional Recording Engineer and Producer forums - serious hobbyists welcome SoundPure.com mwagener wrote on Sat, 11 September 2004 14:33 We are selling emotions, there are no emotions in a grid Roscoe Ambel once said: Pro-Tools is to audio what fluorescent is to light

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7th January 2008	#2
sinchi Gear Head Joined: Nov 2006 Location: Finland Posts: 30	IMO it's up to you: Do you want to work with separate pre's or with a console. Both have their own advantages but the biggest difference is your opinion. If you have separate pre's you also have different sounds. But there are opinions about whether or not it's a good thing to have different pre's (no consistent sound). I haven't used any of the pre's you mentioned, so no comments on that topic... Best of luck

7th January 2008	#4
Trp Gear addict Joined: Jun 2004 Location: Germany Posts: 315	I´d much rather get a DAV BG No 8 than the Focusrite. I own AMS-Neve 1073s, ISAs and the DAVs and definately prefer the DAV pres to the ISAs. They cost about the same.

7th January 2008	#5
Eigenwert Lives for gear Joined: Apr 2007 Posts: 698	another vote for DAV

7th January 2008	#7
glissmeister Gear Head Joined: Jan 2008 Posts: 47	Reading between the lines on how your looking to work it, using a console will give you a rock solid if not preferable foundation for tracking on the analog side; identical pres and signal paths with common eq offer important advantages; centralizing and stabilizing advantages. The Toft atb 24 channel console seems a perfect fit for how you're looking to work production wise. And for when you get the odd anemic track, or need more meat on a vocal, bass, etc., you can easily add outboard or on post go OTB to sweeten it to taste with the outboard gear of your choice. Which returns us to the question of your system's core sound and sonic character. I'm getting to sound like a broken record, but BLA mods and the BLA Microclock are something to look carefully at. It's the best way to get the most out of your MOTUs for not a lot of bucks. So, come at the question from both sides; put a Toft at the gateway and drop BLA mods and clocking into heart of the MOTUs. You already know your system well. Boosting it on both ends will greatly improve the sonics and utility of what you now have.