Anyone disappointed with SCA pres?

copperx · 27th September 2005

I'm about to buy a couple of SCA unassembled pres (A12, 2xC84) and searching through this forums I haven't been able to find ANYTHING bad about them which worries me

. These pres can't be perfect! tell me some disadvantages please ...

I know the A12 is not API, if I wanted exactly that sound I would buy API. I just want high-quality pres with some color. Would you consider SCA pres low end or high end? API-quality? (ok, their sound is not the same, but does it have similar QUALITY?)

Solunaris · 27th September 2005

I have an 8 pack of the SCA N72's and have not one complaint whatsoever. I got the whole thinga assembled about 3 months ago from this guy in New York for $3300. They sound awesome, super big creamy sound. Great on drums. I've never heard anyone say anything bad about SCA pre's either, maybe there is nothing bad.....

not_so_new · 27th September 2005

I have a rack of 7 A12's that I built and as much as I hate to disappoint you I LOVE them and have nothing bad to say about them at all..... well other than I am thinking of picking up a N72 or something to fill out the rack and I have to take the whole thing apart to get it in there. I am not looking forward to that.

Yes I would consider them to be high end all the way, don't be fooled by price.

I have never used the A12's and say a 512 side by side but from what I remember of the 512s the A12's have that sound if you know what I mean. Michael W. did do a side by side on the API and the SCA and he picked the SCA, that says something (but only because he thinks his older APIs might need some work, other than that I get the idea he thinks they were very close in sound).

I would be surprised if you are not very happy with anything from SCA. And don't let anyone fool you, 9 out of 10 cats here could not tell the difference between the real API and the SCA inside a mix or even soloed so you are getting pretty close to the "API" sound for sure.

Hope this helps.

charlieg6 · 27th September 2005

I can't speak for the pres themselves... but I ordered some in late June. 12 weeks later, I still did not have my pres despite several estimated ship dates come and gone from Tim. I cancelled my order.

It's a shame, because they really sound like a nice product, but I was really disappointed in the wait and getting jerked around (it was tough to get confirmation of my initial order- took 2 phone calls and 3 emails- and then the struggle to get updates of my order status).

Tim obviously makes a great product, there's no question there. If you're going to offer a product to the public, the customer support had better be there, and IMO it wasn't.

For what it's worth, Tim was very prompt in giving me a refund.

Solunaris · 27th September 2005

About the above post. I wouldn't have gotten the SCA's if I had to buy them through the company.. I got lucky enough to find a guy on ebay with an 8 pack of N72's he seemed legit, and was. Everyone says the wait for these things is pretty gnarly, which sucks.

bradb · 27th September 2005

The wait for the kits is less. Once you get the kit, you can assemble 2 channels in a weekend day.

they're good stuff.

not_so_new · 27th September 2005

I built all 7 in 3 days and another day to do the chassis. Yes the wait did suck. Also while Tim is a great guy and very nice it takes a bit to get a hold of him.

So there you have it... the only negative thing you can find is that hands down SCA has been pretty slow on the shipping side of things and not easy to talk to.... if I had to do it again I would, the hardware is worth it.

For the record the estimated shipping time on his web site was dead on on the back side of the estimate, 4 to 6 weeks was exactly 6 weeks to the day.

**mwagener** · 28th September 2005

SCA pres thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup
Love 'em, any wait time would be cool for those. I have 4 x A12, 2 x N72 and 2 x C84. No complaints whatsoever about either one of them. Go for it, even if it takes 6 month.

u b k · 28th September 2005

so, how difficult is it to build the n72? i've never built a circuit, but i am plenty good with a soldering iron, doing cables replacing caps etc...

gregoire
del ubik

GMR · 28th September 2005

I love these N72's, and the price can't be beat. shipping is the down side but...wait till you pluged them in and know what you paid for 'em. The N72 is the hardest to build. Not for the inexperienced with a soldering iron! If used to soldering, it's pretty laid out easily!

thearnicasync · 28th September 2005

The A12's are easy, but there are little things to watch for. Soldering them is straightforward, but getting them in the chassis takes a little finesse. I also wish the circuit boards weren't double-sided...getting parts out is a pain.

sounds great, though...

crypticglobe · 28th September 2005

Hey hey... nothing bad to say here either. I have an 8-pack with 2 of each pre-amp available (A12's, N72's, J99's, and C84's).

They sound fantastic, and are very reliable, and it's a GREAT price. Just about every single person I have loaned them too has ended up buying some. Later this year, or early next I am going to buy another eight pack that is a half and half (half N72's, and half A12's).

It does take a WHILE if you are getting assembled pre's. If you are buying the kit it won't take as long. However, there is a guy here in the Nashville area that is assembling them and re-selling them (with Tim at SCA's full endorsement). He can usually turn them around pretty fast. His name is Rob, and here is his e-mail address (I asked him if I could list it... and he is ok with it).

robertwolford AT comcast DOT net

I say... you just can't go wrong with these things!

caseyLA · 28th September 2005

I just ordered a kit with an N72 and A12. I went with the SCA opamp.

Anybody adding meters to these things? I've seen a few mods with VU meters.

SeventhCircle · 30th September 2005

Hi guys, that's certainly a thread topic that caught my attention! Thanks for the comments, both good and bad, it's quite valuable to hear how people think we're doing. It's true that some who placed orders this past summer encountered a virtual perfect storm of delays. First, we were unable to get power supply parts for weeks on end. To solve that, we decided to offer the new PS03 power supply a little earlier than planned. But that required making changes to the chassis, which of course took longer than expected to get right. And then we discovered a number of completely unrelated chassis problems that rendered almost half our stock un-saleable. Sorry if anybody feels "jerked around", but I assure you no one was more frustrated about it all than I.

Anyway, we've gotten all of that straightened out and are currently shipping "complete" kits (which include chassis, power supply, and at least one module) in about 2 weeks from receipt of the order. Many ship sooner, and orders for individual module kits often ship the next day. I don't suspect many of those people will post to complain about getting their kits too quickly, however.

Having said that, it's important to stress that our focus is on selling kits, not preamps. Our company is at least as much about giving all those budding "engineers" out there a reason to get involved in electronics, as it is about selling gear. Our priority is supporting kitbuilders, not manufacturing. Consequently, the lead times for assembled preamps are longer (usually much longer) than the lead times for kits, and that's not likely to change.

BTW, our latest kit, the transformerless C84, is now shipping, which brings the number of preamp modules to four. Like the A12, J99, and N72, the C84 fits in our 2U chassis and works with the PS03 power supply. You can get more details at the web site, which has just been updated with new photos and more detailed instructions. All the documentation is now in .pdf format, which makes downloading and printing a lot easier. If anybody has comments or suggestions, please let me know!

The Spark · 30th September 2005

My current plan is to pick up a few of these preamps when money permits. Its awesome that something that seems so good is availible at this price!

jdunn · 30th September 2005

I've got 4 Millennia MM99 op amp blocks that were designed by Fred Forsell. Looks like I found something to do with them. I guess I'll build some A12's, or J99's with them.

An 8 channel unit with some A12's for toms and kick + C84's for snare and overheads would be a great drum unit. Maybe a few N72's in there too.

And of course I'll need another 8 channels for other instruments. Then I can tell people I built my own preamps. Cool!

Bravin Neff · 30th September 2005

I've got (2) of the original revision N72's along side my John Hardy's. I think they're fantastic and would think so were they three times the price. They are certainly worthy of sharing the rack with the Hardy's. I struggled a little building the first one and Tim was prompt and helpful with his email replies.

I guess it hasn't happened yet, but it is certain these preamps are slowly turning from sleepers into... "classics"?

Yes, I think classics. Not in the sense of sonics that are historically important, but rather in the fact they ushered an era where you could buy worldclass channels for under $400 a pop. Even my John Hardy's (which I think are totally underpriced) are roughly $200 per channel more.

cominginsecond · 13th November 2005

Just thought I'd add that Tim is very patient and helpful with the kit builders, even with folks that keep making dumb mistakes (like me). I also got my kits quite quickly. I'm talking two or three days in some cases.

cletus · 14th November 2005

Can't wait to start my box of SCA's! 4 N72's, 2 A12's, and 2 J99's

Devs1980 · 14th November 2005

Hi, has anyone had experience of the benefits in buying the upgrade op-amp? I'm gonna be ordering a set of N72s and A12s in the next month and want to know how big a sonic difference this makes.
Cheers ;-)

grahluk · 14th November 2005

Oh man I hate these SCA threads. Just when I feel fine and covered gear wise I read about these and my credit card starts jumping around yelling "Use ME! Use ME!" in a tinny high pitched voice.

cominginsecond · 14th November 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Devs1980

Hi, has anyone had experience of the benefits in buying the upgrade op-amp? I'm gonna be ordering a set of N72s and A12s in the next month and want to know how big a sonic difference this makes.
Cheers ;-)

Not sure what you mean by "upgrade" op-amp. The A12 doesn't come with an op-amp, so you either need to buy an op-amp from Seventh Circle or from API, Avedis, Millenia, etc.

GMR · 14th November 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by grahluk

Oh man I hate these SCA threads. Just when I feel fine and covered gear wise I read about these and my credit card starts jumping around yelling "Use ME! Use ME!" in a tinny high pitched voice.

Well your credit card won't complain too much cuz there is definitely bang for the buck here!

27th September 2005	#1
copperx Lives for gear Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ciudad Juarez, Mexico Posts: 530 Thread Starter	Anyone disappointed with SCA pres? I'm about to buy a couple of SCA unassembled pres (A12, 2xC84) and searching through this forums I haven't been able to find ANYTHING bad about them which worries me . These pres can't be perfect! tell me some disadvantages please ... I know the A12 is not API, if I wanted exactly that sound I would buy API. I just want high-quality pres with some color. Would you consider SCA pres low end or high end? API-quality? (ok, their sound is not the same, but does it have similar QUALITY?)

27th September 2005	#3
not_so_new Lives for gear Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 5,695	I have a rack of 7 A12's that I built and as much as I hate to disappoint you I LOVE them and have nothing bad to say about them at all..... well other than I am thinking of picking up a N72 or something to fill out the rack and I have to take the whole thing apart to get it in there. I am not looking forward to that. Yes I would consider them to be high end all the way, don't be fooled by price. I have never used the A12's and say a 512 side by side but from what I remember of the 512s the A12's have that sound if you know what I mean. Michael W. did do a side by side on the API and the SCA and he picked the SCA, that says something (but only because he thinks his older APIs might need some work, other than that I get the idea he thinks they were very close in sound). I would be surprised if you are not very happy with anything from SCA. And don't let anyone fool you, 9 out of 10 cats here could not tell the difference between the real API and the SCA inside a mix or even soloed so you are getting pretty close to the "API" sound for sure. Hope this helps. __________________ Michael

28th September 2005	#8
mwagener High End Moderator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Music City USA Posts: 3,582	SCA pres thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup thumbsup Love 'em, any wait time would be cool for those. I have 4 x A12, 2 x N72 and 2 x C84. No complaints whatsoever about either one of them. Go for it, even if it takes 6 month. __________________ Michael Wagener http://www.michaelwagener.com Next Production Workshop scheduled for February 4th through 10th, 2012 Please read reviews about the production workshops here Click here for production workshop DVD updates.

28th September 2005	#12
crypticglobe Lives for gear Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Nashville Posts: 2,507 1 Review written	Hey hey... nothing bad to say here either. I have an 8-pack with 2 of each pre-amp available (A12's, N72's, J99's, and C84's). They sound fantastic, and are very reliable, and it's a GREAT price. Just about every single person I have loaned them too has ended up buying some. Later this year, or early next I am going to buy another eight pack that is a half and half (half N72's, and half A12's). It does take a WHILE if you are getting assembled pre's. If you are buying the kit it won't take as long. However, there is a guy here in the Nashville area that is assembling them and re-selling them (with Tim at SCA's full endorsement). He can usually turn them around pretty fast. His name is Rob, and here is his e-mail address (I asked him if I could list it... and he is ok with it). robertwolford AT comcast DOT net I say... you just can't go wrong with these things! __________________ Steve Lamm Cryptic Globe Recording CGR Studios - Engineering, Mixing, and Production Cryptic Globe Recording - Custom PC DAW Systems! Ask me about my Custom Mac!!

14th November 2005	#21
grahluk Lives for gear Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 554	Oh man I hate these SCA threads. Just when I feel fine and covered gear wise I read about these and my credit card starts jumping around yelling "Use ME! Use ME!" in a tinny high pitched voice. __________________ "Wow, that's really exciting and new and underground and authentic. Let us take it and bring it into our dark hearts." -John Stewart on marketing.

27th September 2005	#2
Solunaris Lives for gear Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,698	I have an 8 pack of the SCA N72's and have not one complaint whatsoever. I got the whole thinga assembled about 3 months ago from this guy in New York for $3300. They sound awesome, super big creamy sound. Great on drums. I've never heard anyone say anything bad about SCA pre's either, maybe there is nothing bad.....

27th September 2005	#4
charlieg6 Gear interested Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 10	I can't speak for the pres themselves... but I ordered some in late June. 12 weeks later, I still did not have my pres despite several estimated ship dates come and gone from Tim. I cancelled my order. It's a shame, because they really sound like a nice product, but I was really disappointed in the wait and getting jerked around (it was tough to get confirmation of my initial order- took 2 phone calls and 3 emails- and then the struggle to get updates of my order status). Tim obviously makes a great product, there's no question there. If you're going to offer a product to the public, the customer support had better be there, and IMO it wasn't. For what it's worth, Tim was very prompt in giving me a refund.

27th September 2005	#6
bradb Gear maniac Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 274	The wait for the kits is less. Once you get the kit, you can assemble 2 channels in a weekend day. they're good stuff.

28th September 2005	#9
u b k Gear Guru Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: The Land of Sunshine Posts: 11,037	so, how difficult is it to build the n72? i've never built a circuit, but i am plenty good with a soldering iron, doing cables replacing caps etc... gregoire del ubik

28th September 2005	#10
GMR Gear maniac Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Montreal Canada Posts: 265	I love these N72's, and the price can't be beat. shipping is the down side but...wait till you pluged them in and know what you paid for 'em. The N72 is the hardest to build. Not for the inexperienced with a soldering iron! If used to soldering, it's pretty laid out easily!

28th September 2005	#11
thearnicasync Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 641	The A12's are easy, but there are little things to watch for. Soldering them is straightforward, but getting them in the chassis takes a little finesse. I also wish the circuit boards weren't double-sided...getting parts out is a pain. sounds great, though...

28th September 2005	#13
caseyLA Gear nut Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 112	I just ordered a kit with an N72 and A12. I went with the SCA opamp. Anybody adding meters to these things? I've seen a few mods with VU meters.

30th September 2005	#14
SeventhCircle Gear nut Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Oakland, CA Posts: 133	Hi guys, that's certainly a thread topic that caught my attention! Thanks for the comments, both good and bad, it's quite valuable to hear how people think we're doing. It's true that some who placed orders this past summer encountered a virtual perfect storm of delays. First, we were unable to get power supply parts for weeks on end. To solve that, we decided to offer the new PS03 power supply a little earlier than planned. But that required making changes to the chassis, which of course took longer than expected to get right. And then we discovered a number of completely unrelated chassis problems that rendered almost half our stock un-saleable. Sorry if anybody feels "jerked around", but I assure you no one was more frustrated about it all than I. Anyway, we've gotten all of that straightened out and are currently shipping "complete" kits (which include chassis, power supply, and at least one module) in about 2 weeks from receipt of the order. Many ship sooner, and orders for individual module kits often ship the next day. I don't suspect many of those people will post to complain about getting their kits too quickly, however. Having said that, it's important to stress that our focus is on selling kits, not preamps. Our company is at least as much about giving all those budding "engineers" out there a reason to get involved in electronics, as it is about selling gear. Our priority is supporting kitbuilders, not manufacturing. Consequently, the lead times for assembled preamps are longer (usually much longer) than the lead times for kits, and that's not likely to change. BTW, our latest kit, the transformerless C84, is now shipping, which brings the number of preamp modules to four. Like the A12, J99, and N72, the C84 fits in our 2U chassis and works with the PS03 power supply. You can get more details at the web site, which has just been updated with new photos and more detailed instructions. All the documentation is now in .pdf format, which makes downloading and printing a lot easier. If anybody has comments or suggestions, please let me know!

30th September 2005	#15
The Spark Lives for gear Join Date: May 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 576	My current plan is to pick up a few of these preamps when money permits. Its awesome that something that seems so good is availible at this price!

30th September 2005	#16
jdunn Head of Bumping Security (B.S) Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: in the hills of Southern California Posts: 2,944	I've got 4 Millennia MM99 op amp blocks that were designed by Fred Forsell. Looks like I found something to do with them. I guess I'll build some A12's, or J99's with them. An 8 channel unit with some A12's for toms and kick + C84's for snare and overheads would be a great drum unit. Maybe a few N72's in there too. And of course I'll need another 8 channels for other instruments. Then I can tell people I built my own preamps. Cool!

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
SCA	rowdy322	So much gear, so little time!	5	14th January 2006 05:57 AM
Help me buy SCA pres! And maybe mics...	Poopants	High end	3	14th December 2005 05:20 PM
SCA - Opinions?	tee boy	So much gear, so little time!	3	10th August 2004 03:17 AM
SCA N72	out1ear	High end	0	12th January 2003 02:12 PM

30th September 2005	#17
Bravin Neff Gear maniac Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Hockeytown Posts: 187	I've got (2) of the original revision N72's along side my John Hardy's. I think they're fantastic and would think so were they three times the price. They are certainly worthy of sharing the rack with the Hardy's. I struggled a little building the first one and Tim was prompt and helpful with his email replies. I guess it hasn't happened yet, but it is certain these preamps are slowly turning from sleepers into... "classics"? Yes, I think classics. Not in the sense of sonics that are historically important, but rather in the fact they ushered an era where you could buy worldclass channels for under $400 a pop. Even my John Hardy's (which I think are totally underpriced) are roughly $200 per channel more.

13th November 2005	#18
cominginsecond Gear maniac Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 268	Just thought I'd add that Tim is very patient and helpful with the kit builders, even with folks that keep making dumb mistakes (like me). I also got my kits quite quickly. I'm talking two or three days in some cases.

14th November 2005	#19
cletus Gear addict Join Date: May 2005 Location: Bay Area Posts: 406	Can't wait to start my box of SCA's! 4 N72's, 2 A12's, and 2 J99's

14th November 2005	#20
Devs1980 Gear Head Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Portsmouth, United Kingdom Posts: 37	Hi, has anyone had experience of the benefits in buying the upgrade op-amp? I'm gonna be ordering a set of N72s and A12s in the next month and want to know how big a sonic difference this makes. Cheers ;-)