Mic Preamp sound comparison request - anybody?

IzzyRock · 18th January 2008

Im wondering if anybody could post a sound clip comparison between a crappy mic preamp , lets say, mackie, behringer, or any soundcard's stock pre, V/S anything you consider a "high end" preamp, (lets say Api, neve, pacifica or whatever.
I REALLY want to hear how big is the difference, i mean, hear it in practice. I know there is a lot of stuff high end preamps have, suchs as headroom, low noise, colour, etc etc etc. But besides any technical aspect of it, im looking foward to hear that.
I just wanna hear those 3 or 4 thousand dollars in there !

Any1?

Proposal: An acoustic guitar miked (obviously same exact setup for both preamps)

theblotted · 18th January 2008

one preamp with one source ain't gonna do much for you.

go read this, it'll give you a good place to start:

To Pre or Not to Pre: Quality pres can focus sounds in your mix and give everything better definition

Lynn Fuston · 18th January 2008

Or better yet, instead of reading which you have obviously done and are not satisfied (with good reason), check out this CD. It's not one cheap preamp vs. one expensive preamp. But 29 preamps. On both acoustic guitar and female voice.

I think it would be exactly what you are looking for. It will definitely answer the question your ear has. Namely, "Can I hear the difference?"

osCommerce

PS: Almost forgot. If you want to hear what a range of preamps sound like on a lot of different instruments and be able to mix and match them, then the Preamp Summit DVD is the best (probably only) option I'm aware of. You can find it at the webstore link in my signature line below.

IzzyRock · 19th January 2008

I'm asking this mainly because I saw some other posts in the shotout section where some people even liked Behringer preamps without even knowing it was it.

So, It makes me think.. humm , maybe is there a psichological aspect of having a very expensive piece of gear in your rack that makes you feel it sounds great while maybe a cheap mic preamp would not sound as good but the difference would be so TINY that it makes u wonder if thats worth the money.
I've seen it and heard it before.
Even with summing boxes, same deal. I've heard many summing boxes v/s ITB mixes, and yeah, there is a difference, but , the question is... is a 3,000 dollar difference?

A major producer friend of mine once told me "If you can hear what you want it to sound like, you will get the difference of what a good piece of gear could give it to the sound ANYHOW without it"

Being said that, I wanted to have a cheap/expensive preamp comparison, even with a whole mix, whatever. Maybe there is such a difference that will be like "oh yeah, there is some more bass in there"... worth it?

Lynn Fuston · 19th January 2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by IzzyRock

Being said that, I wanted to have a cheap/expensive preamp comparison, even with a whole mix, whatever. Maybe there is such a difference that will be like "oh yeah, there is some more bass in there"... worth it?

I can't tell if you want to really hear the difference or just talk about it. }:-/

There are two ways to find out.

1) Cut a whole record simultaneously through both a cheap and expensive preamp. An expensive and time consuming proposition.

Or 2)

iLCacciLLo · 15th October 2008

Check this Thread for Mic Pre comparison samples

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/so-mu...-tl-audio.html

18th January 2008	#1
IzzyRock Gear addict Joined: Dec 2005 Location: Santiago, Chile Posts: 417 Thread Starter	Mic Preamp sound comparison request - anybody? Im wondering if anybody could post a sound clip comparison between a crappy mic preamp , lets say, mackie, behringer, or any soundcard's stock pre, V/S anything you consider a "high end" preamp, (lets say Api, neve, pacifica or whatever. I REALLY want to hear how big is the difference, i mean, hear it in practice. I know there is a lot of stuff high end preamps have, suchs as headroom, low noise, colour, etc etc etc. But besides any technical aspect of it, im looking foward to hear that. I just wanna hear those 3 or 4 thousand dollars in there ! Any1? Proposal: An acoustic guitar miked (obviously same exact setup for both preamps) __________________ www.estudiosbassino.cl Producer/Mixing Engineer

18th January 2008	#2
theblotted Lives for gear Joined: Sep 2005 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 2,304	one preamp with one source ain't gonna do much for you. go read this, it'll give you a good place to start: To Pre or Not to Pre: Quality pres can focus sounds in your mix and give everything better definition __________________ "You can imagine where it goes from here." "He fixes the cable?"

18th January 2008	#3
Lynn Fuston Lives for gear Joined: Dec 2002 Location: Spring Hill, TN, USA Posts: 2,244	Or better yet, instead of reading which you have obviously done and are not satisfied (with good reason), check out this CD. It's not one cheap preamp vs. one expensive preamp. But 29 preamps. On both acoustic guitar and female voice. I think it would be exactly what you are looking for. It will definitely answer the question your ear has. Namely, "Can I hear the difference?" osCommerce PS: Almost forgot. If you want to hear what a range of preamps sound like on a lot of different instruments and be able to mix and match them, then the Preamp Summit DVD is the best (probably only) option I'm aware of. You can find it at the webstore link in my signature line below. __________________ Lynn Fuston 3D Audio Inc. Producer of the 3D Mic CD, Preamp, ADC, Ribbon Mic Comparison CDs and the Preamps in Paradise DVD available at 3D Webstore.

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19th January 2008	#4
IzzyRock Gear addict Joined: Dec 2005 Location: Santiago, Chile Posts: 417 Thread Starter	I'm asking this mainly because I saw some other posts in the shotout section where some people even liked Behringer preamps without even knowing it was it. So, It makes me think.. humm , maybe is there a psichological aspect of having a very expensive piece of gear in your rack that makes you feel it sounds great while maybe a cheap mic preamp would not sound as good but the difference would be so TINY that it makes u wonder if thats worth the money. I've seen it and heard it before. Even with summing boxes, same deal. I've heard many summing boxes v/s ITB mixes, and yeah, there is a difference, but , the question is... is a 3,000 dollar difference? A major producer friend of mine once told me "If you can hear what you want it to sound like, you will get the difference of what a good piece of gear could give it to the sound ANYHOW without it" Being said that, I wanted to have a cheap/expensive preamp comparison, even with a whole mix, whatever. Maybe there is such a difference that will be like "oh yeah, there is some more bass in there"... worth it?

15th October 2008	#6
iLCacciLLo Gear Head Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 50	Check this Thread for Mic Pre comparison samples http://www.gearslutz.com/board/so-mu...-tl-audio.html