Chameleon Labs 7602 vs Summit Audio 2BA-221

[thestranger]

Hey All....

I'm having trouble deciding between the chameleon labs 7602 and the summit audio 2ba-221. i'm looking for a good workhorse pre in the $600-$700 range... to use for vocals, electric guitars, and maybe bass (use as a DI).

does anyone have a preference between these two? i like the EQ on the 7602, but the 2BA is a little cheaper, doesn't need an external P/S, and i'm into all the stackable outs that it has.

then there's also the Clabs 7622, which has 2 pres, but no eq... not sure if i've heard a lot of good reviews on it though...

any thoughts? i'd appreciate any suggestions. thanks...

jonathan

[warhead]

Wow, talk about two animals of a different breed...but both belong in the same "you get way more than you paid for" category.

Summit 2BA-221: The solid state preamp section has a great presence and quite decent depth to it, and of course you can blend with the tube output circuit for more harmonic content. Many pres enjoy this feature, however the Summit has a smoother range and isn't so much a "fuzzbox strapped onto a solid state pre" as other brands have been trying to do. You can run line level input as well. The ability to blend the DI with the mic pre when mic'ing up guitars / bass is very nice to have. The completely variable (100 to 10k!) input impedence is like a presence boost for many mics (great for ribbons and dynamics) and the hi-pass filter is completely variable (20 to 200) and of course has polarity reverse and -20dB pad. Anyhow, it's high end functionality and sound for a not so high end price (a pair can be had around $1250, half the cost of most upper end preamps). It's hard to say it's not worth twice its price for anyone needing versatility, great sound and functions not found on many pres in any price range. The fact that it gives you multiple simultaneous outputs is icing on the cake also, another feature not offered by many preamps in any price range.

Chameleon 7602: The preamp section is quite nice, starts off pretty clean with a bit more upper mid-forward sound. You can turn the output fader down and drive the input more for a somewhat thicker midrange / more driven sound. The Chameleon is transformer in and out and does have a bit of a weightier sound to it overall, and somewhat less detailed. The DI has a nice forward mid sound again, which is what you need in a mix so I like it over some of the big huge bombastic sounding DI's on the market. The EQ section on this unit however is where the clouds open up and you realize this is one special unit. The points available are great, the low end is a great thickening agent (for Grindhouse fans...) again and you can flat out gouge a tom or kick drum with the mids or boost for guitars / bass etc, and the hi shelf is pretty smooth stuff that can be pushed without harshness most times. For drums and guitars mainly I find the 7602 unit to be a real winner.

Overall I would prefer the versatility of the pre itself on the Summit if you're focusing on the pre. The EQ on the Chameleon makes it versatile in other ways of course. Vocals I would pick the Summit likely hands down though, and raising the impedence with a ribbon or dynamic on guitar cabs (as well as dialing in the hi-pass filter) and driving the tube output gives you nice options there as well. Both are great units in their own right!

War

[mostlykeys]

I just wanted to second Mr. Dent's reply. Both great sounding units. I would describe the Summit Audio piece as more hifi sounding, if that makes any sense. I like the eq on the Chameleon Labs though.
Orlando

[thestranger]

thanks so much for your feedback. that's exactly what i needed to hear... i think i'm going to go for the summit audio pre. i appreciate your detailed response!

[Drumminkiger]

Ive got the 7622, and its a really rockin box. Never head the summit, but if you want that neve-ish tone the CL wont let you down. The 7602 is great too, I like the EQ on it a lot. I went with the Stero Pre because I dont do a lot of EQing to tape, and i didnt have any other good pres, i figured id better have two so i can use them for overheads (and they do rock on overheads IMO). So yeah, it all depends on what you want for tone, im sure that the Summit is a great box, just had to throw in something contrary to what was being said to make your choice harder, lol.

[thestranger]

Originally Posted by Drumminkiger

just had to throw in something contrary to what was being said to make your choice harder, lol.

dangit. haha.

[statixx]

hey gs, im bumping a old thread because im in the mix of deciding to purchase one or the other. I will use this pre for vox and vox only. Warren dent suggests he would pick the summit audio hands down for vocals. However, i record hip hop and fellow engineers have suggested to go with the neveish sounding CL. the Summit pre is a SS with a tube in it ( i own a ua la610 i love tube amps) so it can do clean or warm is this correct? does that mean this pre can sound like a tube pre or a very clean ss pre aswell? The Chameleon labs has great mid range and is suppose to sound similar to a neve pre which is good for vox right? plus everyone raves about its EQ section!

cons:

ive heard people say the CL preamp section doesnt sound like a neve and its only strong point is its eq.

The only complaint ive heard on the SA is problems with it being noisy? i hope not!

Which one would be better as a Vocal workhorse Preamp only?

One more thing,
would you guys suggest a outboard compressor in this situation? like a art vla or fmr rnc? will i NEED to have a outboard compressor?

[Jonboy79]

Go with the Summit, it does have a much more pleasant overall sound to it and if you don't drive the output too hard then you don't have to worry about it being noisey. It's surely not the same beast as the 610 which I also think is great for vocals(actually I'm surprised you're looking to use something other than that for hip hop vocals). As far as comps go, no you don't NEED an outboard comp but it certainly can be a nice thing to have. The fmr is a really nice bang for the buck comp.

[statixx]

hip hop vocals is exactly what i use my 610 for but im looking for an appropriate down grade.(i need money for college)You know, i never tought about it but my ua la 610 has a bypass feature for the compressor. Thats basically what you pay for in this piece right? if i can get the quality i like out of it by passing the T4 then i may consider jus getting a solo610. This will be my sole workhorse P.A. though so its a hard decision. Summit audio 2ba-221, solo610, groove tubes brick these are the best tube PAs in this price range correct?

Someone offered me a rnp rnc combo in a u funk logic rack for $420. is this a deal i should not pass up? something about unbalanced gear worries me though. i know the deal xlr to ts right? unbalanced gear and noise problems makes this a factor even though ive heard tons of hype over these two pieces

[Jonboy79]

Originally Posted by statixx

hip hop vocals is exactly what i use my 610 for but im looking for an appropriate down grade.(i need money for college)You know, i never tought about it but my ua la 610 has a bypass feature for the compressor. Thats basically what you pay for in this piece right? if i can get the quality i like out of it by passing the T4 then i may consider jus getting a solo610. This will be my sole workhorse P.A. though so its a hard decision. Summit audio 2ba-221, solo610, groove tubes brick these are the best tube PAs in this price range correct?

Someone offered me a rnp rnc combo in a u funk logic rack for $420. is this a deal i should not pass up? something about unbalanced gear worries me though. i know the deal xlr to ts right? unbalanced gear and noise problems makes this a factor even though ive heard tons of hype over these two pieces

The solo610 is basically the same as my old m610 except my m610 was rackmountable. It didn't have the comp either and I still absolutely loved the way it sounded. The brick is nice but there are better options out there. One thing to consider is to leave the whole tube thing out of it. Tube gear can be nice but there are many solid state pre's(if that's what you want to call them) that are just as colorful as tube ones. So really you should try to research the stuff in your price range that is considered colorful if that's what you're looking for. If you're looking for something different than your 610 then a good choice would be the Summit, but really you should find a place that will let you return the product if you don't like it so you can really find something that works for you. As far as the rack mounted rnp/rnc thing goes. That is a pretty good deal, and for the money those are pretty good pieces of gear but again until you hear it and decide for yourself you won't really know if it's for you or not. The unbalanced thing shouldn't be that big of a deal at all as long as you keep the cables going from the rnp/rnc to the interface within 3 to 6 feet or under.