Cheap pre-amp for Rhodes

[Edward]

I posted about this in the Electronic forum but was told to buy a £1300 pre-amp.

I just want to be able to record my Rhodes without hiss.
I have always recorded synths and drum machines direct into the desk, no problems, the same with microphones and even electric guitars at times.... but my Rhodes is VERY quiet and turning up the gain on the desk just makes it hiss like crazy.

I never used a pre-amp, I really consider all the talk on here abot expensive pres to be nonsense, I have made loads of electronic records just using the desk and they sound mostly good to me!

What do I need to buy to get a clean recording of the Rhodes without spending more than the price of a Rhodes?

thanks

[Rob C]

Bah, a mere hundred bucks or so aughta do you. Go to speakeasyvintagemusic online site and get their stage box preamp. it doesn't do anything fancy... just brings up the Rhodes to a reasonable level. Works beautifully.

[Edward]

Thanks, that was what I needed to know!

[tombak]

Fellow GS member and John Zorn Masada keyboardist Jamie Saft recommended the MXR micro amp to me before for the Rhodes. He uses it for his stage 73 live and it does a great job. These can be had second hand for nothing.

The stuff from Speakeasy Vintage is great, those guys really know their stuff. Haven't tried this unit yet but it looks like what you're looking for.

Stage Box Preamp for Rhodes™ Stage Pianos - Product Details

Ooh this post just put forth an idea, I'm going to try using my Zvex Super Hard On with my Rhodes. This could create some interesting results.

BTW recording your Rhodes from a mic'd guitar amplifier creates beautiful results. Fender Twin Reverb or a Fender Deluxe can make the Rhodes sing and bite.

[jproc]

A lot of gearslutz will roast me for saying this, but I get great results using a cheap ART TubeMP ...

90% of the time I run it into a decent tube amp (Fender Twin or Laney VC30) and mic the amp, but occasionally I've used the tube mp with decent results..
and for the occasional live show when i didnt feel like toting around multiple amps I've used the tube mp as a DI to the PA system... dial in a little crunch and good to go... I use a motion sound stack for my VK7, so bringing a second amp for the Rhodes can be a pain....

Joe

[Stevil]

Edward, which model of Rhodes do you have?
Vintage Piano Models (1965 - 1984)

i picked up a CAEsound 5pin XLR power supply for mine & it sounds great. Not all models have the powered out & theres 2 different sizes of those.

RSPS2 POWER SUPPLY, 5 PIN XLR 179.00
RSPS1 POWER SUPPLY, 5 PIN DIN 89.00

Remanufactured & New/Old Stock Parts
CAE Sound - Service & Design for the Music Industry

[GYMusic]

Try a pod.

[Stevil]

a pod works ok.

[tombak]

Originally Posted by jproc

A lot of gearslutz will roast me for saying this, but I get great results using a cheap ART TubeMP ...

This is the Low End sub-forum, you're safe.

[Stevil]

I have always recorded synths and drum machines direct into the desk, no problems, the same with microphones and even electric guitars at times.... but my Rhodes is VERY quiet and turning up the gain on the desk just makes it hiss like crazy.

think of the rhodes more like an electric guitar, not like a synth. the tone bars are like the strings & the pickups are sending an unamplified signal to the output, hence the hiss. some of the later models came with a pre on the front of the keyboard & an amplified 'Janus' cabinet connected by either a 4 or 5 pin cable & power supply (much like yer traditional guitar/amp setup). with the power supplys i mention in the post above you can get a hiss free tone @ line level.

[ltemma74]

I agree that a Rhodes and a guitar are pretty much the same thing. Both are passive magnetic pickup designs.

The only real difference I've noticed is that my Rhodes has a lower output volume level than my guitars. I usually run my Rhodes into a Seymour Duncan "Pickup Booster" pedal on the way into an amp. The Pickup Booster is basically a clean preamp. I use it to boost the Rhodes' output level to match the output level of my guitars. It's under $100. You may want to try it. I'd think that any clean boost pedal should be able to do this.

Once you've got the level boosted to match your guitars' levels, you can treat the signal exactly how you would treat the signal coming out of a guitar or bass with passive pickups. Pedals, amps, DI boxes, etc.

[clusterchord]

Originally Posted by jproc

A lot of gearslutz will roast me for saying this, but I get great results using a cheap ART TubeMP ...

90% of the time I run it into a decent tube amp (Fender Twin or Laney VC30) and mic the amp, but occasionally I've used the tube mp with decent results..
and for the occasional live show when i didnt feel like toting around multiple amps

i got similar experience with low end-ish pres... when not in position to mic a Fender Twin or Bassman, i had great results as far as gritt/color with HI-Z input on TLA Ivory 5051 (channel). i 'd say the pre itself was the weakest chain, but their semi-param tube EQ worked magic.. esp when u boosted 3K. sweet sound. their compressor was also warmish and unobstrusive/slow enough to work with rhodes.

that being said, as far as pres i really heard night n day difference when i switched from TLA and FF800 pres to using Hi-Z in on Great River ME-1NV. i couldn't believe how my my rhodes got focus n extended bandwith. suddenly it sounded "like a record" for lack of better words. esp. in the mix it was noticeable. i'd love to try GR pre with some tube EQ. also, for next pre i narrowed down to TAB V78. cant wat to hear it on rhodes.. also wanna pick up stage box, as it can allow for some serious overdriving of whatever u put down the chain.. pres and amps alike. and its cheap

as far as DIs.. ive heard good things about running a Manley Tube DI into GR mic pre input, but havent tried it myself yet. my guess is it gets much more coloured this route.. also, someone pls correct me if im wrong, but im guessing a Radial JDI, being passive, ain't the right choice for a passive instrument like Rhodes Stage. if youre going DI into pre route, you need an active box.

[Rob C]

I don't see why you'd need an active box.. I've always used passive boxes on my Rhodes... just treat it like a guitar.

[Edward]

In case anyone's interested, I ended up getting an MXR Micro Amp, my Rhodes now sounds exactly the same as before but louder and therefore less his, it was cheap, I am happy.

[jonas_bloetz]

Try a Studio Projects VTB1 its really magic on a Rhodes and cheap too. The Tube Blend is very useful to provide sounds from superclean to crispncrunchy.

[pmx]

tc electronic 1240 is great on rhodes, and it's cheap

[longwelsh]

I can second the StudioProjects VTB1. used one for the last 3 years or so on my stage 73 and sounds great. Tried an ART mic pre and that worked well too. will try and get hold of the MXR, sounds like it might push the pre that little bit harder.

[Rob C]

... but he's already bought something. I guess this could be useful for others in the same situation, though.

[Land Fish]

A Sansamp para driver DI into a CBS volumax is the best Rhodes tone

[andi85]

For future reference, in case a more guitaramp-like tone is desired, the classic Hughes & Kettner tube gear can be a good choice: The Tubeman and the Crunchmaster both sound really good on the Rhodes, I think.

Apart from that I can second the recommendation for the ART Tube MP. Sounds good, although it's cheap. Can be noisy, though.

Also the Black Beauty from Vintage Vibe might be worth consideration.

[fjzingo@hotmail.]

Hello

Connect directly to the harp and skip the built in preamp since it's crap.

i have the speakeasy stage box and the bigger white preamp. Both sound great and it really depends on which rhodes sound you're after.

For a more bell like characer I could also recommend www.vintageua.no has a great dyno preamp.

checkout The Super Site - FenderRhodes.com for more info specific to everything about fender rhodes.

/Fred

[Rob C]

I'm assuming he has a stage model, which is passive (no preamp)

[jproc]

Even on pre-ampless stage models sometimes I'll connect directly to the RCA jack on the harp instead of the 1/4" out...
connenting at that point bypasses the volume and tone controls.. (in fact you physically disconnect them at that point)

on a lot of older Rhodes, its the tone control & volume pot that introduce a lot of noise to the signal even though they're passive...

try both.. use whatever sounds better to you

[analogtodd]

since its lowend, I'll throw in that an EH LPB-1 works like a champ!!!!
and its under $40

[fjzingo@hotmail.]

hiss?????

have you got anything sitting on the rhodes lid, turn it off I got disturbances from a motif sitting on top of the rhodes.

Try to connect youre desk directly to the harp as have been suggested.

Stage

/Fred